The Origins and Early
History of the English
Bryan Evans
During the late 4th and early 5th
centuries the Roman Empire came under increasing attacks from
Germanic and other tribes. In order to strengthen their core
defences Rome moved armies away from places like Britain, finally
abandoning it and its citizens in 410.
With the Romans
gone, Britons had to provide for their own defence and in doing so
followed the Roman example by employing Germanic mercenaries. This
opened the door to Anglo-Saxon migration and settlements. As the
hold of the local British leadership slackened, forceful
Anglo-Saxon leaders were well-placed to take over post-Roman
tribal kingdoms as ‘going concerns’.
In the next phase of
the settlement, Anglo-Saxon groups pressed inland, using the Wash
and Humber river systems and Roman roads. The settlement of
Britain by Angles, Saxons and others was neither quick nor without
resistance - it varied from place to place and time to time. A
British fight-back – led perhaps by an Arthur-figure – gave a
stunning British victory at Badon Hill. Only a generation later
the Angles and Saxons were on the move once more, against Britons
weakened by their own infighting and, perhaps, by plague. Yet it
was only in the 630s that the conquest became irreversible.
The telling of this tale focuses on the human story, on
footloose adventurers, on formidable warlords, on twists of fate,
on truth and treachery, on desperate last stands and daring,
foolhardy raids.
25 maps help the reader get to grips with the twists and turns of
the plot.
£12·95 212 pages 170x244mm approx. 6
1/2
x 9 1/2"
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