PowerPoint Presentation

Sub-topics:

1) Anglo-Saxon Britain - Angles, Saxons, Jutes

2) Beowulf

3) The spread of Christianity, Canterbury Cathedral

Anglo-Saxon Britain - Angles, Saxons, Jutes

Their original homelands were Germany, Denmark and northern Netherlands. They had wooden boats which they used to row around in the North Sea. The reason why these Germanic tribes were invading Britain is not known. It may be because of their own country was often flooded, so there was not enough land to grow crops. Some sources say that Saxon warriors were invited to come to England.

When the Anglo-Saxons reached the British isles, they did not settle to the center as the Romans before them had done, but colonised northwards and westwards, pushing the native Celts to the fringes of Britain. The era of Anglo-Saxon Britain had started, although Celtic peoples remained also in Cornwall, Wales and Scotland. The Anglo-Saxon areas eventually combined into kingdoms and by 850 AD there were three kingdoms - Mercia, Northumbria and Wessex. These kingdoms were competitive, but also altogether under the attacks of Vikings. By 875 AD both Mercia and Northumbria had succumbed, only Wessex remained as Anglo-Saxon.

The Roman towns had become ruins by the time the Anglo-Saxons came. The early people used to live in small settlements consisting of a few families, but as the time went villages and towns formed. Their houses were wooden and had thatched roofs. The houses consisted of only one room and a heart for cooking and light.

The society was was structured hierarchically, mostly consisting of freemen and slaves.Freeman had their own land and slaves, as for slaves had nothing of their own. In addition to that, the freeman had the right to participate in things which were the governing assemblies in Germanic societies. Richer freeman worked also for the king.

The structure of Anglo-Saxons’ law was simple , so for crimes people people had to pay fines. The Saxons chopped off hands and noses as punishment for stealing or another smaller crime. If someone killed a Saxon, he had to pay money called wergild, the amount varying according to the social rank of the victim.

Men and women had different options in the society. This could be seen by the tools that were put to the graves of both men and women. While men had tools for hunting and farming, then women had tools for making clothes.

Before their conversion to Christianity around 7^th and 8^th century the Anglo-Saxons were pagan peoples and believed in many gods. When their people died they were either cremated or buried with their belongings. But in 6^th century the pope send a monk called Augustine to persuade the Anglo-Saxons to become Christians. In two centuries Christianity slowly settled in as many monasteries and churches were built.

The downfall began for Anglo-Saxons with the invasion of Vikings in the 8^th and 9^th century. In the Viking raids many Anglo-Saxons were massacred, their churches were destroyed, animals and precious objects stolen. Also they lost their land. The new Viking area was called Danelaw. By the end of 9^th century all Anglo-Saxon land except Wessex were invaded by the Vikings. The king Alfred had won them in the battle. Gradually his descendants began to take back the lands from the Vikings. King Alfred was also the one who told to make a book about the Anglo-Saxons. It was called the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. The end to the Anglo-Saxons came with the battle of Hastings in 1066, when Duke William of Normandy (future William I Conqueror) defeated the Anglo-Saxons. This was also the beginning of the Norman era.

Exercises:

1)When did the Anglo-Saxons invade Britain?

2)What were the main groups of Anglo-Saxons?

3)What could be the reasons why the Anglo-Saxons invaded Britain?

4)What were the three Anglo-Saxon kingdoms?

5)What were the main levels of the Anglo-Saxon society?

6)How did criminals pay for smaller crimes, like stealing?

7)When did the Anglo-Saxons become Christians?

8)Why was the Vikings' invasion crucial to the Anglo-Saxons?

9)What is the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle?

10)What was the end of Anglo-Saxons' time?

Answers:

1)The Anglo-Saxons invaded Britain around the 5th and 6th century.

2)The main groups of Anglo-Saxons were the Angles, Saxons and Jutes.

3)The reasons why the Anglo-Saxons invaded Britain could be because their own land was often flooded or also they could have been called to Britain.

4)The three Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were Wessex, Northumbria and Mercia.

5)The main levels in Anglo-Saxon society were the freemen and slaves. Also there were some richer freemen who supported the king.

6)For smaller crimes the Saxons had the criminals nose or hand chopped off.

7)The Anglo-Saxons became Christians in about 7th or 8th century.

8)The Vikings' invasion was crucial to Anglo-Saxons because they were massacred, their property stolen and land taken away.

9)The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a chronicle about Anglo-Saxons, which was told to write by the great kind Alfred.

10)The end of Anglo-Saxons' time was the battle of Hastings where future William I defeated their army.

Sources:

http://www.great-britain.co.uk/history/ang-sax.htm

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/anglosaxons/invasion/index.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxon

Beowulf

“Beowulf” is an Old English heroic epic poem, being both the first English literary masterpiece and one of the earliest European epics written in the vernacular language, since back then most of the literature was written in Latin. At 3,182 lines, it is notable for its length compared to other Old English poems.

“Beowulf” is an utterly exciting poem in which the main character is a hero of the Geats who travels great distances to prove his strength at impossible odds against three antagonists: the monster Grendel who has been attacking the Danes, especially the royal court; Grendel’s mother who wishes revenge to whoever killed her son; and an unnamed dragon. While battling with supernatural beasts, Beowulf needs to perform a duty in front of his people and succeeds to rule the country for over fifty years. Its an adventure story told in historical perspective. Most of Beowulf's story is said to take place in Denmark and Scandinavia. It is also believed that some parts of “Beowulf” took place in North Kent, possibly on Harry Island.

// Beowulf destroying the supernatural // The manuscript //

beasts with the help of a magical sword //

Although the author of "Beowulf" is unknown, its themes are generally believed to have been formed through oral tradition. The story of Beowulf survived in only one single fragile manuscript which originally dates back to the 11th century. In the 16th century the manuscript belonged to a man called Laurence Nowell, a well-known cartographer and antiquarian, and that's why it's often named after him - the Nowell Codex. The original manuscript is untitled and the name "Beowulf" was ascribed to it no earlier than in the 19th century.

Unfortunately, it suffered damage in a fire that broke out in the Cotton Library at Ashburnham House in 1731. Since then, its charred edges have crumbled and lost words in the outer margins of the leaves. Despite all efforts to save the manuscript from further loss, however, a little part of it was still obliterated. Today, ultraviolet light and other technologies reveal erasures and characteristics of the manuscript that used to be unrecognizable.

The Beowulf manuscript is now safely kept in the British Library.

As for the dialect of "Beowulf", the poem mixes the West Saxon and Anglian dialects of Old English. The first translation was made into Latin in 1815. The number of different editions and translations has certainly raised by now and the interest to observe "Beowulf" from various aspects has not languished either.

"Beowulf" can be characterized as a dynamic, enthralling and a dashing piece that being an unique document of literature reaches us from its own time. It has been an inspiration not only to many movie directors but also to other writers and composers as its surprisingly complex and poignant story gives perfect basis for different ways of interpretation, hence to all kinds of different creations.

Exercises:

1) Beowulf is, after all, a Scandinavian hero, of the tribe of Geats. What’s the connection between Anglo-Saxon England and Scandinavia?

2) Who is the author of the story of Beowulf?

3) From which century does the manuscript origin?

4) How many manuscripts have survived throughout the history?

5) Determine the genre of "Beowulf".

6) Who was Laurence Nowell?

7) Why is "Beowulf" important?

8) What happened in 1731?

Answers:

1) The story takes place in Scandinavia, but the piece was written in Old English.

2) The author of "Beowulf" is unknown.

3) The manuscript origins from the 11th century.

4) Only a singel manuscript has reached to today's world.

5) "Beowulf" is a poem written in anglo-saxon alliterating verse.

6) Laurence Nowell was the earliest owner of the manuscript of "Beowulf".

7) Beowulf is the first English literary masterpiece and one of the earliest European epics written in the native language.

8) In 1731 the manuscript was badly damaged.

Sources:

"Beowulf", Eesti Raamat, Tallinn, 1990

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beowulf/

http://greenehamlet.com/beowulf.html/

http://images.google.ee/images?q=Beowulf&hl=et&lr=&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi/

The spread of Christianity, Canterbury Cathedral

During the second century there were a few Christians in eastern England, and during the fourth century the first martyr, St Alban, appeared. The Empire was still pagan, but soon after the martyrdom of Alban, the Emperor Constantine made Christianity the imperial religion and soon the British Church flourised. This isn’t considered to be the start of the wide spread of Christianity in Britain.

In 367 the Celts of the north, the Picts and Scots overran the Wall and devastated the greater part of England. The Barbarians forced the Britons to flee west into Wales and Cornwall. They took their Roman culture , language and Christianity with them. But soon all these customs just faded away and the old Celtic way of life confirmed itself.

When the Christian Britons and the pagan Saxons were in a hostile fight, little was done to convert the Saxons to Christianity. Until 597 when St Augustine saw an opportunity in bringing the Roman brand of Christianity to Britain. At first he landed in Kent, where the Saxon king Ethelbert of Kent was converted to Christianity and the first church at Canterbury was founded. As St Augustine being the first Archbishop of Canterbury, the spread of Christianity in Britain had begun.

The Canterbury Cathedral is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. An important moment in the history of Canterbury Cathedral was the murder of Thomas Becket. A disastrous fire broke out in 1174 which destroyed the entire eastern end and was rebuilt in the Early English Gothic design.

By the end of the seventh century whole England was converted, but there were still marks of old Christianity, which had evolved three centuries earlier.These beliefs were some way different and that is why a synod of bishops was called at Whitsby in 664 to sort out which form of Christianity was right. The decision was in favor of the new Roman form.

This event was of tremendous importance. It prefigured the future conflict with Rome and brought England into contact with Europe’s new civilization.The Church brought: literacy and learning to kings and their councils, and a greater humanity to the laws. English art and letters flowered for the first time throughout other converted kingdoms: well-lighted Lindisfarne Gospels, sculpted crosses, the poems of Caemdon and The Ecclesiastical History of the English People.

The Ecclesiastical History of the English People was written by Venerable Bede. The book is divided into five chapters and is a mixture of fact, legend and literature. In general its main focus is on the struggle between Roman and Celtic Christianity.