Week 6

Question 1

Germanic tribes in Anglo-Saxon society

Answer 1

Germanic tribes came in as mercenaries (450 AD). Over the next 250 years they tried to take things over.

Question 2

Germanic social structure (Early Germanic warrior culture)

Answer 2

The way that the warrants were structured:

Lord gives protection, feasts and treasures. The warriors give military service and loyalty in return.

Question 3

The people the King trusted most and their functions

Answer 3

1. Bishops.
2. Archbishops (clergy).
3. High-ranking noblemen.

They elected the king (not hereditary, but kings were chosen). They helped and consulted the king when he had to make law codes; always made with assistance of the witan. They advised the king on important matters. If there was a crises, the witan had to be gathered.

Question 4

The House of Lords/Witans (two groups)

Answer 4

The witan is the direct ancestor of the House of Lords, which is made of two groups.
1. The lords spiritual (clergy).
2. The lords temporal (noblemen, aristocrats).

Question 5

Settling a feud in Anglo-Saxon society

Answer 5

1. Revenge.
2. Intermarriage (marry off daughter to opposing party, is called a freoghty webbe =peace weaver).
3. Compensation (simply pay the other party).

Question 6

What was one of the earliest Anglo-Saxon lawcodes?

Answer 6

Compensation

Question 7

On what did the value of a man depend?

Answer 7

Rank in society.

Question 8

Concept of Wergild

Answer 8

Known as “man price” (blood money), a concept in law codes where a value was established for a person’s life, to be paid as a fine or as compensatory damages to the person’s family if someone was killed or injured.

Question 9

Lady Godiva

Answer 9

Wife of a powerful Earl who raised taxes on people of convents. Godiva wanted lower taxes. The Earl would obey if she went into the conventry naked, and she did.

Question 10

History of Anglo-Saxon Church (!)

Answer 10

1. Augustine arrives in Canterbury and Roman missionaries converted the Anglo-Saxons in the south (597).
2. Conversion; Irish monks in the north, Romans in the south (600-700).
3. Golden Age of Anglo-Saxon learning (700-800).
4. Viking raids ‘disrupt’ religious life (793-878).
5. Benedictine Reform; movement that sought to restore the Benedictine rule (c.960-1020).

Question 11

Anglo-Saxon missionaries

Answer 11

Willibrord and Bonifatius (converted the pagan Frisians). They became Anglo-Saxon saints.

Question 12

Anglo-Saxon saints

Answer 12

Martyr (Edmund)
Confessor (Edward)
Virgin (Aetheltryth)

They are important because they are intermediaries between us (people) and God.

Question 13

Primary and secondary relics

Answer 13

Primary relics are things that belong to the saint (e.g. hair).
Secondary relics are clothes.

Question 14

What could one do with relics?

Answer 14

1. Contact with God.
2. Miracles worked through them.
3. If a monastery had an important relic, many pilgrims would come and make donations (income).

But many were often faked.

Question 15

Purpose of Anglo-Saxon monasteries

Answer 15

They were centres of learning, wealth, art (e.g. Lindisfarne Gospels).

Question 16

How is Lindisfarne tied to Christianity?

Answer 16

It is the center of Christianity in the north. Irish missionaries would come to the north to covert king Oswald and he gave them Lindisfarne.

Question 17

Lindisfarne Gospels, and who is the important bishop there?

Answer 17

In 793, Lindisfarne was raided by Vikings. It was the home of St. Cuthbert. People find out he is exhumed (is a saint), so they made gospels.

Very much decorated manuscript, written on carpet pages, made at Lindisfarne Priory.

St Cuthbert.

Question 18

Germanic ‘warbands’

Answer 18

1. Small groups of warriors, centred around one Lord.
2. Bond between Lord and retainers is based on reciprocity.
3. Grow into larger kingdoms.

Question 19

Retainer

Answer 19

Military service and loyalty in return for protection, feasts and treasures.

Question 20

Lord

Answer 20

Gives protection, feasts and treasures to the retains.

Question 21

What was the bond between king and noblemen based on? And what is it?

Answer 21

Based on reciprocity, which is military service for land.

Question 22

Witengemot

Answer 22

Meeting of wise men;
1. Chose the new king (if needed) before hereditary shizzle was standardised.
2. Were consulted for new laws and important decisions.

Made up out of:
1. Direct ancestor of House of Lords, upper house of British parliament.
2. Wise men and noble gentry.
3. Both religious and secular/lay people.

Question 23

Local government

Answer 23

Kingdoms were devided into smaller units, governed by earls, reeves, etc. This survives into the present day.

Question 24

What were the three estates and explain them?

Answer 24

Those who fight, pray and work.
1. Those who fight and protect: soldiers, warriors.
2. Those who intercede with God: bishops, clergy.
3. Those who provide: farmers.

Question 25

Feuds were a threat to Anglo-Saxon society and why?

Answer 25

Two groups, one kills members of other group, so there’s a never ending cycle of revenge. Kings want to prevent this, because it causes disruption.

Question 26

Women in OE times

Answer 26

The 1066 society was not fully dominated by men. Women could own land and be educated.

Question 27

Awesome women in OE times: Hildelith, Hild, Berthgyth, Aethelflaed, Lady Godiva

Answer 27

1. Hildelith: scholar, poems written about her.
2. Hild: teacher, was the abbess of Whitby, head of double monastery.
3. Berhtgyth: first recorded female poet, very learned in liberal arts, letters to brother.
4. Aethelflaed: army leader, daughter Alfred the Great, ruler of Mercia, kidnaps Welsh queen.
5. Lady Godiva: protestor, wealthy landowner, most famous for leading protest against the raising of taxes, also patron of churches.

Question 28

Recap: what happened in 597?

Answer 28

St Augustine arrives in Canterbury and starts to convert the south of England.

Question 29

What happened between 600-700?

Answer 29

Conversion of England to Christianity

Question 30

What happened between 700-800?

Answer 30

Golden Age of Anglo-Saxon learning

Question 31

What happened between 793-878?

Answer 31

Viking raids ‘disrupt’s the religious life

Question 32

What happened between 960-1020?

Answer 32

Benedictine Reform; attempt to revive learning.

Question 33

Secular clergy and regular clergy

Answer 33

Regular:
1. Nun
2. Monk
3. Abbot
4. Abbess
Follow the Benedictine rules.

Secular:
1. Archbishop
2. Bishop
3. Priest
4. Deacon
Had a job within the church, but were not allowed to leave.

Question 34

What is a dioceses? And where are the most important bishops?

Answer 34

The area where a bishop rules. The most important bishops reside in Canterbury and York.

Question 35

What are Saints? And what are the different kinds of Saints?

Answer 35

People that have died for their faith, the subject of many poems and texts.

Different Saints are;
1. Martyr
2. Confessor: doesn’t die for martyrdom
3. Virgin: eg. Aethelthryth

Question 36

What is the ‘intercession’ of the Saints? And how to get in touch with Saints?

Answer 36

Saints as intermediaries between the people and god.

Relicts.

Question 37

How much do the Lindisfarne gospels weigh? (!)

Answer 37

As much as a badger or 30 red squirrels.

Question 38

Languages used in the Lindisfarne Gospels

Answer 38

Old English and Latin

Question 39

When were the Lindisfarne Gospels made and by who?

Answer 39

680-720 AD. Possibly Eadfrith (bishop of Lindisfarne), who wrote it. Aethilwald bound it. Billfrith decorated it with jewels and gold.

Question 40

What texts do the Lindisfarne Gospels contain and in which languages?

Answer 40

New Testament, Mark, Luke, John, Matthew.

OE and Latin (Vulgate version)

Question 41

Why does Aelfric consider it “swiðe pleolic” (a risky piece of work) to translate Genesis?

Answer 41

Because he fears that if some foolish person reads the translation, they might misunderstand and believe that they can live under the laws of the Old Testament (Moses), as they were still in effect, disregarding the NT.

Question 42

What, according to Aelfric, do the unlearned priests fail to understand?

Answer 42

The spiritual meaning of the Bible instead of any literal meaning.

Question 43

What, according to Aelfric, is the difficulty of translating Latin to (Old) English?

Answer 43

The difficulty lies in the difference in linguistic structure and expressions. He says that Latin and English don’t have the same order in language, which makes it difficult to accurately convey meaning.

Question 44

Is Aelfric’s opinion of translating the Bible positive or not?

Answer 44

It’s negative, he says that he will never translate something again.