Celtic and Roman Britain Overview

A group of ancient people who lived in Europe and Britain, known for their distinct culture and language.

The religion practiced by ancient Celts, focusing on nature and deities.

A prehistoric monument in Wiltshire, England, likely connected to ancient Celtic rituals and possibly sun worship.

The period when the Roman Empire controlled parts of Britain, significantly influencing its culture, language, and infrastructure.

The system of social hierarchy and land ownership established by the Normans in England after their conquest, where land was granted in exchange for loyalty and service.

The Duke of Normandy who conquered England in 1066, becoming King William I and establishing Norman rule.

A strong, fortified structure built by the Normans to protect their conquests and serve as centers of power.

A survey of English land and resources commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1085, providing valuable information about the country's wealth.

The Domesday Book was a survey of England conducted by William the Conqueror in 1086, recording the land ownership and resources of the country. It is a valuable historical source for understanding England in William's time.

Feudalism was a social and political system in which land ownership was granted to nobles and knights in exchange for loyalty and military service. Land was further sub-divided and granted to lower-ranking people, with the ultimate power residing in the king.

Serfs were the lowest class in feudal society. Though they worked the land, they were bound to it and received no wages. They had the right to cultivate only a small portion of the land they worked for their own subsistence.

Guilds were associations of craftspeople or tradespeople, providing protection from unfair competition and training for new workers as apprentices. Guilds regulated wages and set prices.

William II, known as 'William Rufus,' was a cruel and unpopular king who succeeded William the Conqueror. William II was later killed in a hunting accident.

Henry I, the first Norman king born in England, spoke both English and French. He played a key role in uniting England and France, although he had no male heir.

Stephen, Henry I's nephew, was a weak king who lost control of much of England. He agreed to a compromise solution, which resulted in Henry II, Matilda's son, succeeding the throne after Stephen died.

Henry II, the first of the Plantagenet line, was a strong king, a skilled soldier, and the founder of the English jury system. He is notable for his conflicts with the Church and for the murder of Thomas Becket.

King Richard I of England, known for his military prowess and crusades, spent the first half of his reign in Palestine and the second half regaining French territories.

During King Richard I's absence on crusade, his younger brother, Prince John, ruled in his stead.

The Hundred Years' War, a series of conflicts between England and France from 1337 to 1453, was marked by periods of intense fighting and periods of peace. The war aimed to regain lost territories and stake claims to the French throne.

The Black Death, a devastating plague that swept through Europe reaching England in 1348, decimated nearly half of the population, impacting English social structure dramatically.

The Black Death's impact on serfdom led to a decline in their numbers, forcing lords to pay free laborers who, in short supply, demanded higher wages. This decline began to weaken the rigid structure of the feudal system.

The epic poem, Beowulf, recounts events set in Scandinavia and is believed to be a single-author work written in Old English by a cultured individual in an Anglo-Saxon court, demonstrating the influence of oral traditions and Christian beliefs.

The manuscript containing the epic poem Beowulf, written by two scribes around 1000 CE, reflects the poem composed earlier, between 700 CE and 1000 CE, narrating events set in Scandinavia.

Although Beowulf is set in Scandinavia, it was written in Old English by an author likely Christian and reflecting the culture of the Anglo-Saxon courts.