The History of England

56 The History of Medieval Europe, Part 2

The Holy Roman Empire to the death of Barbarossa, the briefest of histories of Norway, Denmark and Spain, and the 4th Crusade. It's action packed. 

56 The History of Medieval Europe Part 2 rm

 

The Investiture Crisis - Gregory VII and Henry IVth

Hildebrand, or Gregory VIIth to use his Papal name, was a reformer and Pope between 1073 and 1085. He firmly believed that the church should be independent from the influence of the material world, and unlike other Popes before and after him he was not prepared to compromise. He believed that the Papacy should be free of the influence of the Emperor, and indeed superior. 

Henry IVth meanwhile was the descendant of Otto the Great. He believed in a system based on what he saw as the ancient right of the Roman Emperor to appoint the Pope. The system of government he inherited depended on him being able to choose churchmen he could trust to help him govern. He was utterly convinced in his right to 'invest' bishops and churchmen with the symbols of their office. 

At the same time Henry IVth had to struggle with opposition from within German, w hose Princes

fought to establish their independence and liberties within the rule of the Emperor. In the struggle's most dramatic moment, beset by rebels allied with Gregory, Henry camped outside Gregory's palace in Canossa, in the robes of a penitent and pleaded to  be accepted back into the Pope's favour. Gregory was forced to accept, and by so doing betrayed the rebels, who were then crushed by Henry. The Emperor established his own anti-Pope and ejected Gregory from Rome, who dies in exile in Sicily, lamenting

I have loved justice and hated iniquity - and therefore I die in exile

Frederick Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor, 1152 - 1190

Gregory thought he had lost - but in fact the long term victory was his. The Emperor's anti-pope was never accepted, and the idea of the Emperor's supremacy over the Pope lost. Despite the outward glory of Barbarossa's reign, in fact by the end of his reign the basis of the Emperor's power was sorely eroded. Frederick lost control of the northern Italian cities. he was forced himself to prostrate himself before Pope Alexander III. He held enormous power in Germany, but at the cost of a new deal with the German nobility that accepted that they were a closed, hereditary circle, with power over their own lands, while the Emperor remained elective. Under Emperors weaker than Barbarossa, the weakness of the Emperor's real power would be exposed. 

 

Medieval Spain and La Reconquista

Spain had been largely overrun by the Arabs by the 9th Century, leaving 3 small Christian states surviving in the north - Leon in the North West, Navarre in the north and Aragorn in the north east. 

By 1210, and the map shows, Spain was once again largely Christian, though far from completely. Despite periodic setbacks as new Caliphates tried to re-establish the old Islamic dominance, such as the Almoravids and Almohads, disunity among the Arab states allowed the kingdom of Castille to lead the fight back. The fall of Toledo in 1085 and victory at the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212 would prove decisive. By 1252, the last Muslim kingdom of Granada was a vassal of Castille, and would finally cease to exist in 1492.

Byzantium, the 4th Crusade, and the fall of Constantinople in 1204

After the death of Emperor Manuel Comnenos it is hard to find a Byzantine Emperor of any great talent. But the event which tore the heart out of the Empire came not from the East and the Islam world, but from the Christian west. 

The evil genius is Enrico Dandolo, the Doge of Venice. Enrico uses the fee he is owed from transporting the Crusaders  to force the crusade away from the objective of Egypt to first recapture the city of Zara. Then Alexius Angelos, a man with a claim to the throne of Byzantium, and persuades the Crusaders to help him gain the throne - for a fee of course. But once in place, he changes his mind about the fee - having looked first at the state of the Imperial treasury. As a result, the Crusaders attacked and took Constantinople, and submitted it to the traditional 3 day sack. 

Here's a contemporary account which gives a flavour of the sacking: 

How shall I begin to tell of the deeds wrought by these nefarious men ! Alas, the images, which ought to have been adored, were trodden under foot ! Alas, the relics of the holy martyrs were thrown into unclean places ! Then was seen what one shudders to hear, namely, the divine body and blood of Christ was spilled upon the ground or thrown about. They snatched the precious reliquaries, thrust into their bosoms the ornaments which these contained, and used the broken remnants for pans and drinking cups,-precursors of Antichrist, authors and heralds of his nefarious deeds which we momentarily expect. Manifestly, indeed, by that race then, just as formerly, Christ was robbed and insulted and His garments were divided by lot; only one thing was lacking, that His side, pierced by a spear, should pour rivers of divine blood on the ground.

Nor can the violation of the Great Church be listened to with equanimity. For the sacred altar, formed of all kinds of precious materials and admired by the whole world, was broken into bits and distributed among the soldiers, as was all the other sacred wealth of so great and infinite splendor.

When the sacred vases and utensils of unsurpassable art and grace and rare material, and the fine silver, wrought with gold, which encircled the screen of the tribunal and the ambo, of admirable workmanship, and the door and many other ornaments, were to be borne away as booty, mules and saddled horses were led to the very sanctuary of the temple. Some of these which were unable to keep their footing on the splendid and slippery pavement, were stabbed when they fell, so that the sacred pavement was polluted with blood and filth.

For Venice it was a triumph - they captured the right to the trade of the Empire. For Byzantium it was a disaster. 

The Empire split into a small Latin Empire and several Greek Empires - as you can see from the map below. Although the Latin Empire lasts only 57 years, and is eventually reconquered, Byzantium never recovers its strength. 

 

55 The History of Medieval Europe, Part I

From Charles Martel and the battle of Tours in 732, through Charlemagne and Otto the Great, the first installment concentrates on France, Germany and Italy and takes us to the shores of Gregory VIIth.

55 The History of Medieval Europe Part 1 rm

 

The Battle of Tours, 732

It is hotly debated as to whether or not Charles Martel's victory over the Muslim armies in central France was the occasion that caused the Muslim tide to recede. Probably it's not the cause but the event that marks it, but how ever you look at it the victory of probably 30,000 Franks over 75,000 previously unstoppable Muslim forces was hugely significant. Martel had prepared and trained his soldiers for this event, and his victory founded his dynasty - the Carolingian dynasty - which led to Charles the Great, Charlemagne.

The Empire of Charlemagne

Charlemagne's Empire was a conscious attempt to re-create the glories of the Roman Empire of the west. Charlemagne put as much effort into reviving learning and spreading Christianity as he did into territorial expansion. None the less his Empire was huge, as the map shows (thanks to EB...). 

Charlemagne was crowned as the Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo in 800. Charlemagne's view of this event was very much that his servant, the Pope, was adding his support to his kingship. Pope Leo was trying to establish that Emperors only became Emperors when the Pope said so. This is an argument that will run and run. 

Charlemagne becomes one of the touchstones of medieval Europe - just as he referred back to the Roman Empire,  so future kings would refer back to the glories of Charlemagne. 

Otto the Great and the Holy Roman Empire

After Charlemagne, his empire splits into three (see the small inset box map in map above). France, under  Charles the Bald and his descendants, fragments under the pressure of Viking raids and communication into a series of semi-independant states. The French king concentrates on the development of his own power within the Ile de France, and maintaining some lip service to their legal supremacy over the rest of the Western Franks. In the end, it's a strategy that pays handsome dividends under Phillip Augustus. 

The Eastern Franks choose a different route. Otto the Great took up the mantle of Charlemagne, and fought to maintain a new Roman, and Holy Empire. He defeated the Magyars at Lechfeld in 955, and finally put an end to the chaos. He brought the warring leaders of the German 'Stem Duchies under royal control. He chose a unique way of ruling this still huge and disparate empire. The Ottonian system relied on the church to be partners in ruling his empire. Prince Bishops would not try to establish dynasties, for example, to break away from the Empire. For over 100 years, Otto's system works beautifully, and his Empire dominates Germany and much of Italy. But it relied on control of church appointments and control of the Popes. Local churchmen, by and large, were happy enough - the Pope was not. 

 

 

43a Aelfthryth by Melisende of Outremer

Ælfthryth was a controversial figure. Wife of King Edgar,  mother of Æthelred the Unready - and possibly murderer of her step son, Edward? Melisende of Outremer looks at the life of a remarkable person. 

And check out Melisende's excellent blog - Women of History.

43a Melisende's Episode - Aelfthryth

 

31a Anglo Saxon Questions - Church Conversion and Economy

Chris and Matt sent some interesting questions that take us back to Anglo Saxon England. So here's a free, supplementary episode. We talk about:

• How much did daily life really change when Anglo Saxon kingdoms converted to Christianity?
• What differences did the Norman Church bring to Anglo Saxon England?
• How did Alfred and Aethelred keep raising all those armies?
• How did Aethelred keep raising all that silver and gold for Danegeld?

31a Anglo Saxon Questions - Church conversion and Economy

 

 

24a The Anglo Saxon view of the outside world

The Anglo Saxons seem a very insular bunch - what was their view of the outside world, how much interaction did they have? A good deal more than we might suppose.

24a The Anglo Saxon view of the outside World

 

 

 

The summary is that Anglo Saxon England has a good deal of contact with the western European seaboard. And that its Kings had relationships as far afield as Rome and the Holy Roman Empire.

But it seems that they had relationships with the Islamic world too. This is a picture of an extraordinary coin - a coin issued by Offa of Mercia very late in the 8th Century for the Pope. It is a copy of an Islamic, Abbasid coin, with the inscription 'there is no god but allah alone’. Hopefully, the Pope couldn't read Arabic. And of course many English left England in 1066 to serve the Byzantine Emperor in the Varangian guard, to escape the Norman tyranny.

Here also is an 11th century Anglo Saxon map of the world. Louise C of the Historum Forum writes: 'A mappa mundi is a depiction of the world as a place of experiences, of human history, of notions and knowledge. It's more like an encyclopedia. It's certainly not - and was never intended to be - a chart to be followed by travellers.

More than likely, a mappa mundi would have been a conversation piece in a rich man's house. A fashionable - and expensive - ornament to prompt after-dinner discussion. For journeys people needed not maps but travel tineraries, and that is what they had.'

Once you get beyond Byzantium it's clear that even traders would have only hearsay to repeat. None the less, it's pretty clear that Anglo Saxon England was a good deal more connected than you might think.

Trade, and trade with the outside world

Trade was based around the local Burghs or Ports; Edward the Elder specifically ordered in his laws that all trade be done there - no doubt so that he could tax it. Trade would not always have been in coin; while English silver coins were relatively high quality, by no means everyone would have had access to coins, so trade in kind was often the way things were done.

And yet there would of course be lots of stuff not available in the neighbourhood, and Merchants took advantage of this. Merchants faced many obstacles; there was no credit - so all stock had to be bought up front. The roads were rubbish, so rivers were preferred where possible. If travelling by road, good protection was a must against the robbers and brigands.

Despite all of this, there is lots of evidence of trade throughout the period. By the 11th Century towns have grown; all numbers are very approximate, but London the biggest probably 10-12,000, York 8,000, Norwich and Lincoln 5,000, Thetford 4,000, Oxford 3,500. Coastal towns with a large amount of external trade - such as Ipswich and Southampton were probably about 1-1,500.

As to what exactly got traded with whom and in what quantity, the evidence is painfully slight. But here are a few things.

External trade

Good old Bede in the 8th Century talks about sending to Gaul for Glassmakers, and the Abbot of Monkwearmouth did the same in 756. There are over 300 glass items in graves from there period, which indicates considerable trade. Most glass came from the Northern Gaul or Rhineland, and there's a grave in Sussex with a vessel from the Eastern Mediterranean.

Swords also sometimes came from the Rhineland - Raedwald's sword at Sutton Hoo, for example. In the same burial, cowry shells, amethyst beads and bronze vessels from Coptic Egypt show similar evidence of widespread trade at this early point.

In the 8th Century, the quality of English coinage indicates strong external trade. Offa has a dispute with Charlemagne, and as a result Charlemagne temporarily banned English merchants from the ports of Northern Gaul, and Offa reciprocated. So clearly there's enough trade to make a ban painful. Later in the correspondance, Offa agreed to ensure that English woollen cloaks traded with France remained the same length - so we are exporting garments, then.

We know that trade with Scadninavia, Frisia and the Rhineland is strong throughout the period, from pottery items found in burials and quernstones. Frisian and Scandinavian traders were probably the biggest carriers of trade, but we do know that there were English carriers too - an 8th century charter exempts the Bishop of Worcester's two ships from duties, for example. And we now that the English had at least some share of trade with the Mediterranean. in 1027, Cnut negotiates hard with the Emperor and Pope to get a good deal for English traders.

What did England produce for home use and export?

• England produced Iron for use locally and probably abroad, from mines in the Forest of Dean and Kent.
• Cheese was exported to Flanders
• Pottery, especially in Stamford and Thetford
• Textiles were probably exported - those woollen cloaks, the skills that produced the Bayeux tapestry (made in England).
• Salt making was an important industry around the Wash, the coast of Sussex and in Cheshire
• Lead and silver) was produced in Derbyshire
• Fishing was important for many coastal towns - particularly Dunwich, Southwold and Yarmouth

The oldest and most obvious trade was in Slaves. It's not just the Vikings that raided England for slaves; the Anglo Saxons raided the celtish lands such as Wales and Cornwall and took slaves. Bristol was a centre for slave trading, as it was to be in it's later history, sending slaves to Ireland. William of Malmesbury wrote:

'You might well groan to see then long rows of young men and maidens whose beauty and youth might move the pity of the savage, bound together with cords, and brought to market to be sold.'

Slave trading was banned at the Council of Westminster in 1102. But it's clear that for the Anglo Saxons it would have been an important part of the their external trade.

The evidence that England was a wealthy trading nation is there in the vast gelds paid to the Danes, and in the continuingly high quality of the English coinage. But it's difficult to see more than glimpses of how that wealth was generated.

22 1066 and Goodbye to all That

1066 was a year that changed a lot of things - though not as much as you might think. 3 experienced war leaders fought for control of England - and we all know who won, so no need to worry about plot spoilers. The History of England podcast takes us up the coronation of William at Westminster Abbey, Christmas day 1066

22 1066 and Goodbye to all That

Why William, Harold and Harold claimed the throne

Harold Godwinsson claimed the throne by an ancient elective principle. He was nominated by Edward the Confessor, and appointed king by the Witan. Lets hear it for the poor of the people! William the Bastard claimed the throne by hereditary right through his Great Aunt Emma of Normandy. Plus he said that Harold had sworn an oath to help his claim. Harold Hadradaa said that Magnus I of Norway and Harthacnut has agreed that whoever died last should get England, back in 1040. But when Harthacnur died first, Edward the Confessor took the throne instead.

What happened

I'm only going to do a simple coverage on the blog - There are literally a billion websites (well quite a few anyway) that will tell you all you want to know, if you want more information or want to read about it . The BBC's is comprehensive and straightforward - cleck here if you want to look at it. You can listen to Stanley Holloway's version of events at Hastings as well, on YouTube here. Or find out more about Fulford at a very dedicated website here.

So the main events . . .

• 6th January: Harold is hastily crowned King in Westminster Abbey
• Spring and summer: Harold gets an army and Navy together and waits for the axe to fall. Nothing happens. William is in Normandy, arguing with his barons, persuading the Pope to help out, building ships and then, once he's done all that waiting for the wind to change so that he can sail over.
• 8th September: Harold has to disband his army and navy - no more food, everyone needs to go back to the fields. The very same day, Hadrada and Tostig land in Northumbria. Ach, bummer.
• 12th September: William sails - but gets pushed back into port
• 20th September: the Battle of Fulford: Earls Edwin and Morcar do their best, but it's not good enough, and they are defeated by Hadrada.
• ?21st - 25th: Harold absolutely canes it up to the north, about 185 miles in 4 days. The Vikings are luxuriating in their victory, are caught unawares and comprehensively defeated at the Battle of Stamfordbridge. Yay.
• 28th September: William lands at Pevensey and starts to knock up a castle. Harold absolutely charges down to London with his men, but then, sensibly, waits for a week in London getting himself together, orders the local Fryds to assemble. Then it's off to the seaside.
• 14th October: The Battle of Hasting. Boo. They think it's all over...

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• October: The Witan proclaim Edgar the Atheling king.
• November: William marches to Wallingford, buring and destroying as he goes. Archbishop Stigand gives in and submits.
• December: Edgar and the Anglo Saxon Thegns submit to William the Bastard at Berkhampstead, and now we must start to call him William the Conqueror. William is crowned William Ist on Christmas Day.  ... it is now.  

The companions of William the Conqueror

 There are 15 people who we are pretty sure were with William on his great adventure. Some of them gained massive rewards from their support. The nams we know are:

• Robert de Beaumont
• Eustace, Count of Boulogne
• William, 3rd Count of Évreux
• Geoffrey of Mortagne
• William FitzOsbern
• Aimeri, Viscount of Thouars
• Walter Giffard, Lord of Longueville
• Hugh de Montfort, Lord of Montfort-sur-Risle
• Ralph de Tosny
• Hugh de Montfort
• William de Warenne
• William Malet
• Odo, Bishop of Bayeux
• Turstin FitzRolf
• Engnulf de Laidgle

20 Anglo Saxon England in the 11th Century

Anglo Saxon England has been seen by some commentators as a bit of a basket case by 1066 - out of date and ready to be conquered. But actually England had its great strengths that would have been the envy of continental monrach, if they'd spent any time thinking about that small, damp island somewhere off the continental coast.  The History of England takes a brief look at the English state in the 11th century

20 Anglo Saxon England in the 11th C

Law, Government, Agriculture - and Feudalism?

Anglo Saxon England was not so very different from contentintal Europe, in reality. But there were some differences. Mainly these were around a more communal approach to Government. For example, the position of Earl was a non hereditary job title in England; he was a government official. In Normandy, Earl is a hereditary title. The Army is similar too - the Anglo Saxon Army is still recruited as a public army, rather than raised by the Kings' nobles based on their landholding.

But things had changed since 7th Century. England was moving towards Feudalism; most Thegns held land of their own right, but more held them from a lord in return for military service. And more Coerls had lost their independent land holding than used to be the case, and were therefore less free. A manorial approach to agriculture was much more common - i.e. organised around a village with communal fields, rather than individual farms.

The King's though had mainly retained his rights - although there was a little devolving of his rights of justice to his nobility. And his power had grown - becuase now he has the added power of the Church and God's approval to add to his mystique. Engish administration was also relatively advanced, so he could be effective - unless he was himself incompetant of course.

Place names and websites

Have fun with the place names thing - really, sounds nerdy, but it's good. These two websites are good for different things. I picked this English Place Names website becasue it gives a nice clear introduction to some of the most common.

While this one, the English Place Name Society, is the official expert. It has a great search engine, where you can serach for any place name or part of a name to find out why your home town is named as it is. When you go tthe site, go to 'The Key' and then use the search tool.

19 Edward the Confessor

Edward enjoyed one year of independence in 1051-2, before the return of Godwin forced him into humiliating submission. But after Godwin's death the following year, the rest of his reign was broadly peaceful and prosperous, with the odd local difficulty. The History of England podcast takes us up to 1064

 

19 Edward the Confessor

Edward sows the seeds of his own destruction

In 1051, Edward had won because of the support of earls Leofric and Siward. Edward then proceeded to alienate both these men, by employing more French at court, and striking up a friendship with William of Normandy.

Godwin returns - and dies

In 1052 Godwin returned, and in a confrontation in London King Edward is forced into submission. As part of the deal he has to take Godwin back, and get rid of his foreign friends. But within a year Godwin dies - and hands over to his much more affable son, Harold.

The rise of the Godwinssons

Although the Godwin family are not penalised on the death of Godwin, it's Leofric who gains most as Aelfgar takes over the Earldon of East Anglia as harold moves to Wessex. But over the next 10 years or so, the Godwinssons are back. The death of Siward and Leofric makes harold the leading man in England. His brother Tostig is made Earl of Northumbria in Siward's place.

Gruffyd ap Llewellyn and the Welsh wars

Gruffyd ap Llewellyn is the only Welsh leader to unite all the states of Wales. But between 1039 and 1055, that's what he managed to acheive.

He also used the opportunities thrown up by the mysterious relationship between Aelfgar Leofricsson and Edward the Confessor, which meant that Aelfgar was twice thrown out of his earldom. In 1055 and 1056, Gruffyd and Aelfgar sacked Hereford and forced Edward to cede a significant amount of land on the Welsh border.

In 1058 it all flares up again, but in 1063 Harold and Tostig Godwinsson decide that enough is enough, and mount a concerted campaign. The campaign established Harold's reputation as an able military comander, able to make his army move with speed in line with a decisve strategy.

London and Westminster Abbey

Meanwhile, Edward the Confessor famously concentrated on building his chruch. He selected an inhospitable eyelot in the Thames called Thorney, and set about building a church on a massive scale. It gave him the chance to indulge his love of French and Norman culture, and well as demonstraing his piety.

London had become the leading town of Anglo Saxon England, with 10-12,000 inhabitants. There's a couple of maps here - a nice hand drawn map from http://londonist.com/, and one showing the growth of London from 1590 - just so that you can see the scale.

18 The End of the Danish Dynasty, Edward the Confessor and the Rise of the Great men

Cnut's dynasty survived him by only 7 years, and in 1042 the house of Cerdic returned in the form of Edward the Confessor. Edward is an enigma - weak man or determined survivor? This week the History of England podcast looks at how he came to the throne and his first 10 years.

 

18 The End of the Danish Dynasty, Edward the Confessor and the Rise of the Great Men

This period of history has it all really - the threat of international war, high politics, scheming Queens . . . a real political soup. There are 3 groups with an interest in the English throne:

• Harold - Son of Cnut and Aelgifu of Northampton
• Harthacnut - son of Cnut and Emma of Normandy
• Alfred and Edward - stuck in Normandy, son of Aethelred the Unready

Harold Harefoot (King of England 1036-1040)

Cnut and his wife, Emma of Normandy never intended Harold to come to the throne, since he was Cnut's son by his first wife, Aelfgifu of Northampton. They planned for Harthacnut to combine the thrones of England and Denmark. But Harold and Aelfgifu had other ideas. While Harthacnut was occupied defending Denmark, Harold and Aelfgifu persuaded the English thegns to put Harold on the throne - including the crucial man of power - Godwin. Emma of Normandy was sent packing. Meanwhile Harold starting to get rid of his rivals, having Alfred blinded ad killed.

Harthacnut (King of England 1040 - 1042)

Finally Harthcnut was ready in 1040 to fight for his English inheritance - but Harold saved him the trouble by dying. According to the chroniclers, Harthcnut ‘never did anything kingly while he ruled’. But he did bring over Edward (the Confessor) and make him heir.

Edward the Confessor (King of England, 1042-1066)

After Edward took his revenge on his mother, the first 10 years of his reign were dominated by fear of invaision from Scandinavia, and Edward's relationship with Godwin. In 1051, Edward had his chance at last to remove Godwin from the scene - and he took full advantage, though his joy did not last long. Edward can be seen as a weak man, or as a man who carefully planned his vengence, and was prepared to wait for the right moment.

 

17 Cnut the Conqueror

Cnut was pretty much the complete king. Conqueror of the English, ruler of a Scandinavian empire that spanned 4 countries. And a man who knew how to win the peace as well as the war. The History of England podcast this week looks at his reign.   

Cnut was probably born around 990, and by 1016 had become the ruler of England. He was to rule for the next 19 years, and in the main his years were so full of boring peace, prosperity and lack of discord that the chroniclers could find little to say about his rule

 

 

17 Cnut the Conqueror rm

 

Cnut's marriage to Aethelred the Unready’s widow, Emma of Normandy, was not only an astute political move but also turned out to be a good personal choice. Astute politically because he allied himself with the English Queen; and astute personally because he and Emma shared the same aims and values. Emma was a power at court, and helped Cnut get the English Church on his side.

This was important because recognition as a Christian King rather than a pagan warrior was essential a part of Cnut’s campaign to be accepted as the legitimate successor to the Anglo Saxon dynasty. He did other things as well. He agreed with the witan to rule by the laws of Edgar.  He issued his own law code which very clearly followed his predecessors’ codes, and their policy of accepting the different customs of the Danelaw and the rest of England.

But Cnut did have his followers to reward – after all they had fought hard for him and his father for many years. So although we see nothing like the wholesale replacement of English thegns that we will see under William the Conqueror, there is a significant influx. In the early years, Cnut’s great men are all Danes – Thorkell the Tall and Eilaf the Viking for example. But over time this changes, and Anglo Saxons such as Leofwin and Godwin gain their place in the sun. Cnut also taxed England and maintained a standing army and navy with the proceeds – some indication maybe that he was not secure at least for the first part of this reign.

Cnut spent much of his reign establishing his Scandinavian empire – and for a short period he ruled England, Denmark, Norway and parts of Sweden. But it didn’t last long, and was to prove beyond the ability of his sons to maintain.

 When he died in 1035, the chroniclers are remarkably deadpan about his passing. But he was a clever and successful man, who gave England a much needed respite after the years of Aethelred’s chaos. He died and was buried at Winchester, and should be seen as one of the most successful rulers of England before the conquest.

 

16 Edmund Ironside and Cnut

 In 1012, Aethelred looked down and out. But Svein died, and Edmund Ironside appeared on the scene. Suddenly, Aethelred was a real king and all action, and Cnut was forced to flee. But he came back, and 1016 saw one of the great confrontations of English History, and a great 'what-might-have-been' man in Edmund Ironside, before he got an arrow up his backside.

16 Edmund Ironside and Cnut

 

 

 

There are some maps and stuff you need too. Here's a map of the battles of Edmund Ironside in 1016. And below is a nice picture of Penselwood, a small place in England that has a big place in Anglo Saxon History.

  

 

 

 

15 Aethelred, Svein Forkbeard and years of misery

The Danish threat is notched up a few levels, and Aethelred the Unready and the English state is brought to it knees. The Vikings are too fast, skillful and mobile, and are much better led

15 Aethelred, Svein Forkbeard and years of misery rm

 

 

By the way, check the website for family trees . . .

The years between 1002 and 1014 were a relentless and at times monotonous series of English defeats and Danish triumph.

 Svein Forkbeard was to prove himself a superb warleader, and more than capable of dealing with anything Aethelred could throw against him. In 1003, he descended on the South West, captured and sacked Exeter, and saw of the army of the Earldorman Aelfric.

 In 1004 it was East Anglia, and they sacked Norwich. But then, for the first and only time until Edmund Ironside, the Vikings met more than they could handle. The English hero was a man called Ulfkell, and for once the Vikings had to run for home.

1006 was the worst yet – the Danes wandered all over Wessex, marching boldly past the English capital on Winchester goading the English with their impotence. So in 1007, Aethelred and his court come up with an innovative strategy – they pay the Danes off with a massive tribute of £36,000.

This gaves Aethelred some respite – during which we see the arrival of the arch English traitor, Edric ‘the Grasper’ Streona. But Edric was basically loyal to Aethelred, and works with him to create a new fleet, ready for the next invasion in 1009. But chaos again ensues. The fleet fought amongst itself, part of it instead raided the English coast – and when the Danes arrive it is nowhere to be seen.

This time, Svein came for conquest. In 1010 he took England’s spiritual centre, Canterbury, and the Archbishop was killed – beaten to dead by cow bones. This time, even Ulfkell was defeated. The Anglo Saxon Chronicle summed it up:

 ‘when the force was in the east the troops were kept west, and when they were in the south then our troops were in the North. Then the counsellors were all summoned and it was discussed how this land should be defended; but whatever was counselled then it did not last longer than a month. There was no head man who would gather the troops, but each fled as best he might; furthermore no shire would help the other next to it.’

 By 1013, Svein controlled all of England except London, and was acclaimed King everywhere with that one exception. Aethelred fled to Richard of Normandy. The game was up.

But Svein’s only official act as King was to raise a tax – and then he unexpectedly died (everyone who had paid the tax got their money back, by the way). The net result would be 2 more years of war before his son finished what he had started.

Aethelred has had some rehabilitation over the years; he maintained a very efficient administration, we see the start of a modern chancery, he maintained coinage and issued law codes. But he was ultimately a dreadful failure. He was incapable of creating a coherent response the invasions, was capricious and untrustworthy with his leading men, and hired the wrong men too often.

14 Aetheled the Unready and the Rising Tide

Aethelred's mother gets her son onto the throne at last. But it's not long before the disadvantages of kingship become clear, as the Danes begin to return with increasing force. Aethelred turned 18 in 983, and by 984 has sent his mother away and reigns with his own men. But three years of raids, 997-999 beging to demonstrate the weakness of the English reponse. And by 1002, England face a national opponent as Svein Forkbeard joins the party.

14 Aetheled the Unready and the Rising Tide rm

 

 

Below is a really rubbish map I have done, which has the main place names in this week's podcast; it does have the Shires as they'd have been in the 10th Century though, which is nice. There's also another much better map further down, but you'd have to print it to read.

 

 

This map (phot) below is from Tinity college Cambridge's website. It shows all the raids between 991 and 1005.

View this photo

 

 

13 Another and last Golden Age

Edgar the Peaceable's reign was a golden age of peace, prosperity and monastic reform. Unfortunately, once he'd gone his wife stuck a knife into her stepson, and the trouble starts over. But his reign should be remembered as the apogee of the Anglo Saxon state.Edgar's is the first recorded Coronation oath, and still remains the basis for the coronation oath today.

13 Another and last Golden Age

 

 

The Coronation Oath of Edgar the Peaceable, 973

This record has been copied letter by letter from that which Archbishop Dunstan gave to our lord at Kingston on the day that he was consecrated king, forbidding him to give any pledge except this one which he laid upon Christ’s altar as the bishop told him:

In the name of the Holy Trinity, I promise three things to the Christian people subject to me:

Firstly that God’s church and all the Christian people of my dominions will be held in true peace.

Secondly I will forbid robbery and all unlawful deeds by all ranks of men.

Thirdly I promise and command justice and mercy in all judgements, in order that the gracious and merciful lord, who liveth and reigneth, may thereby forgive us all through his everlasting mercy.

 

12 The last King in Jorvik

Edmund the Magnificent and Eadred finally defeat Eric Bloodaxe, the last king of Jorvik. But there are some social clouds on the horizon in the History of England.

12 The last King in Jorvik

 

 

 The Hundred Ordinances

These are a set of instructions about how the Hundred court, where most justice was conducted, should be conducted. It's a simple document...

Download The Hundred Ordinance, 939-961

 

11 His Years though few were full of Glory

Athelstan can reasonably claim to be the first king of England. And he seems like a nice guy as well.

 

11 His Years though few were full of Glory rm

 

 

Download PDF Episode 11 maps & stuff

10 English Conquest

Edward the Elder and Aethelflaed, Lady of Mercia reclaim the Danish Viking kingdoms south of the Humber for the Anglo Saxons or English in The History of England this week.

10 English Conquest

Download PDF File: 10 la Reconquista map

 

9 Unshakeable Pillar of the Western People

One more Danish Army attacked Wessex, in the dying years of the 9th Century. But they faced a very different Wessex and Mercia, and a war leader well prepared and at the height of his powers

9 Unshakeable Pillar of the Western rm

Transcript

For those of you interested, here is the transcript of the episode

Download 9 Unshakeable pillar of the western people

 

8 Reconstruction and defence

Alfred's victory in 878 bought Wessex and Mercia crucial 14 years to rebuild and prepare for the next Danish onslaught. Alfred's reforms covered all aspects of Anglo Saxon life - the military, learning, religion, and the economy.

8 Reconstruction and Defence

 

 

 Transcript

For those of you interested, here is the transcript of the episode

Download 8 Reconstruction and Defense

7 Alfred the Great and the fight for survival

The Great Heathen army came to destroy the Anglo Saxon kingdoms. We look at Alfred the Great and Wessex struggles to survive the brutal onslaught from 870-878.

7 Alfred the Great and the fight for survival

The History of England

In 870 the Great Heathen Army turns its attention to Wessex. The first campaign of 871 sees 9 battles fought, and Alfred the Great suceed his brother Athelred to the throne of Wessex. Although Wessex wins the battle of Ashdown, it has little overall impact, and Alfred is defeated at Basing, Wilton, and Maredun. In the end, Alfred pays the Vikings to go away, and the they have been to fight so hard that they agree.

But they are back in 878, and reduce Alfred to his closest thegns in the marsh at Athelney. In his famous fightback, Alfred rebuilds Anglo Saxon confidence with a series of raids; pulls together the fyrds of Somerset, Wiltshsire and Hampshire and defeats the Vikings in a decisive battle at Ethandun.

There's a slightly odd bit of treaty that survives between Alfred and Guthrum. It does help us understand the division of lands - but spends most of its time demonstrating that Dane and Anglo Saxon are of equal value before the law. 

Download The Treaty between King Alfred and Guthrum

Transcript

For those of you interested, here's the transcript of the episode

Download 7 Alfred and the fight for survival

6 Pirates from the North - The Vikings

This week's installment in the History of England is about the Pirates of the north that changed the course of England's history - the Vikings.

 

6 Pirates from the North

 

 

Who were the Vikings? 

  First of all, the word Viking is probably more something you do that something you are. To go viking was to go raiding or travelling. The Scandinavians who caused Europe so much trouble were also not just one group - and indeed they spent plenty of time beating each other up, as well as the English, Irish and French.

This handy map shows that the Scandinavians went different places, though it doesn't show the full story. Actually, the Swedes mainly concentrated on Russia and the east. The Norwegians mainly invaded Ireland - and it was the Danes that caused England all the trouble. The Danes and Norwegians also ravaged northern France, including beseiging Paris. In 911, a viking called Rollo was granted Normandy by the French King, in a last desperate attempt to  find an answer to the terrible raids and destruction.

Why did they come?

The Danes may have gone raiding for a number of reasons - though we don't really know. It could be because they wanted land, and were suffering from overpopulation; they may have been looking for revenge for Charlemagne's bloody attempts to impose Christianity on them; or maybe they just found raiding an easier way to make a buck than farming. Or maybe the death of the strong Danish King Horik I in 854 removed the only central authority that could prevent the departures. What ever the reason, they kept coming.

The first Danish raids

 The first recorded raid was 789, entered in the Anglo saxon Chronicle:

 . . . came the first three ships of the Northmen from Horthaland. The reeve rode there, and meant to force them to the King's dwelling because he did not know what they were; and then he was killed.

Then in 793 they ravaged Lindisfarne, and raids continued in a sporadic manner until the 840's, gradually increasing in severity. The Kings of Wessex Aethelwulf and Aethelbald fought them, and sometimes won. But the raids, though devastating, did not  basically stop the normal operation of the kingdom. And then in 855 the Great Heathen Army came to stay and everything changed.

The Great Heathen Army

In 866 the sons of Ragnar Lothbrok took York and Northumbria. In 869, they did the same in East Anglia, and martyred it's king, Edmund. In 870, it was quite clear that it was time for Wessex and Mercia to fall.

The Anglo Saxon Chronicle

So much of what we know about these times are through the Anglo Saxon Chronicle that I thought I'd put up a table of the bits of the entries concerning Vikings, for the period covered by Episode 6 in the History of England podcast. You can easily see the whole thing on t'internet if you are too mean to buy it - try the link below, for example.

http://www.britannia.com/history/docs/843-70.html

 Download Anglo Saxon Chronicle Entries - Viking raids