1.1 how defensible was Wessex in 871? Flashcards
What’s a fyrd?
A form of military, mostly voluntary that can be called upon when needed.
Shires meaning?
Who ran them and who did they report to?
Local districts with their own councils to run them, reported to the king.
Ealdormen meaning?
Very high rank in society, basically nobles. Large land holders.
Thegn meaning?
High rank, below ealdormen and reeves, owned land and led armies for ealdormen and the king.
How is England divided? What were the 4 key ones. Overall, England…
Kingdoms, Northumbria, Mercia, Wessex and East Anglia. …doesn’t exist yet.
How were there struggles between kingdoms?
Mercian supremacy had been established by Offa, but after he died, Mercia fell into a decline.
How did Wessex maintaining their borders for many years benefit them?
Wessex was one of the wealthiest Southern Kingdoms.
How was the economy evolving fast?
Coinage is developed in many kingdoms, particularly under Offa.
What does coins being found in Mercia indicate?
Why is this significant?
They participated in global trade. There were no cities, but coastal ministers provided sites for markets.
Most artistic developments are associated with…?
The Church
What was known for being made of gold and gemstones? Where were they produced?
Illuminated manuscripts, produced at monasteries.
What 3 factors impacted Wessex’s defensibility?
Alfred himself, the enemy, Wessex itself
How many siblings did Alfred have? Who were the key ones?
(alfred himself)
5: Aethelbald, Aethelwulf, Aethelred.
What happened to Alfred between 853-855? What does this suggest? (2)
(alfred himself)
He was sent to Rome to have a spiritual experience. He’s intelligent, but not as valuable.
Who was originally meant to inherit after Alfred’s father? How likely was Alfred to become King?
(alfred himself)
Aethelwulf, very unlikely.
What did Aethelbald do in 855 when Alfred and his father went to Rome?
(alfred himself)
Schemed to stop his father.
What happened as a consequence to Wessex after Aethelwulf’s death?
(alfred himself)
Wessex would be permanently split.
Aethelbald inherited but died in in 865, what was Alfred worried would happen when his brother Aethelred became king?
(alfred himself)
He would be side-lined.
What did Alfred ask Aethelred for? What did he say?
(alfred himself)
A fair share of their fathers property, Alfred should gain all of their fathers possessions once Alfred became king.
What would happen if Alfred outlived his brother? Why?
(alfred himself)
Cause Alfred considerable challenges to his authority - the surviving brother is to pass the position of King to his own children (not nephews-children of brother who died first is to be looked after by surviving brother).
What future problems would challenges to Alfred’s authority cause?
(alfred himself)
Aethelred and Aethelbald would oppose Alfred - KINGS RULE BY CONSENT.
What battle did Aethelred and Alfred fight in 871? What was the outcome?
(alfred himself)
Battle of Ashdown, won but at a bad cost.
Geographical strength of Wessex itself?
(wessex itself)
Fryds belonged to different shires which were led by individual ealdormen.
Military strength of Wessex itself?
(wessex itself)
Alfred successfully fought at a battle at Edington with fyrds drawn from Somerset, Wilshire and Hampshire. Raised 4000 warriors.
Political strength of Wessex itself?
(wessex itself)
Alfred was left as sole ruler after Aethelred’s death, united defence>easily coordinated.
Geographical weakness of Wessex itself?
(wessex itself)
Wessex was a divided territory after Aethelwulf dies in 858. This leads to an inevitable divided defence.
Political weakness of Wessex itself?
(wessex itself)
Lack of previous unity>forced Alfred to look for better methods for running his kingdom, defined Anglo-Saxon history long after his death.
Military weakness of Wessex itself?
(wessex itself)
Fyrds belonged to shires, shires had localised conflicts. Would often strike deals with opponents to avoid taking too much damage e.g. in Wiltshire during a Viking attack.
What were Viking’s considered as before 865? How did their strategy change? E.g?…
(the enemy)
Pirates, obtaining as much wealth (at minimum risk) to gaining territory. E.g they targeted churches (wealthy and no defence) to attacking Northumbria first.
What happened between 865-868? Why is it hard to know the full details? What does this make difficult?
(the enemy)
Every kingdom EXCEPT WESSEX came under control of the Danes(vikings), kingdom left no records -hard to understand why Anglo-Saxons found it hard to defend themselves from Vikings.
What was important for the success of Viking raids? (2)
(the enemy)
Horses and ships
What did the Viking ships make it possible for them to do? Why did this help in winter?
(the enemy)
Landing on islands, they could defeat them.
Why was the Vikings ability to carry horses advantageous?
(the enemy)
They could go straight to the islands.
Why was the Vikings “hit and run” tactic effective? (2)
(the enemy)
The anglo-saxons weren’t able to organise and defend themselves in time.
They were slow and had no permanent military.
What caused a change in the “hit and run” tactic? What was this designed to be?
(the enemy)
The Great Heathen Army 865 (anti-christian). Designed to be highly mobile and unpredictable.
Who had the Vikings previously targeted? Why did the Vikings struggle to attack here after 862?
(the enemy)
Kingdom of West Frankia. King Alfred built bridges, fortified towns and abbeys.
Which 2 kingdoms did the Great Heathen Army attack first?
(the enemy)
Kent and East Anglia
What did the Great Heathen Army get from King Edmund of East Anglia? (3) Why was one of these a bad decision? This leads to the Vikings now being more?…
(the enemy)
Food, money and horses.
Horses=they’re more mobile. Vikings are now more powerful.
Why was Wessex more fortunate?
What did Wessex do, that other kingdoms did not, to survive? (2)
(the enemy)
Conquest of Northern England (they targeted north to south).
Built buhrs, taxed their people more.
