Roman Britain to Norman England

Fall 2012Migration Period; Early Middle Ages

Today’s Topics

• Roman Britain– Fall? Dark for whom?– Fate of Roman culture– State of British (native) culture

• The Saxon Advent– Models– DNA evidence

Schematic Timeline 1

066

55

10000

43

410

500

100

Roman Britain

Cel

tic k

ingd

oms

Sub

-Rom

an

Wales, Scotland

Saxon

Kingdoms

England

Danelaw

Question: What are the natures of the transitions?

410: Ties with Rome Broken

The alarmists saw the news and bemoaned

the end of the nation’s Anglo-Saxon culture,

while the enthusiasts saw it and cheered the

end of Anglo-Saxon culture.

Roman

Roman

Wilmington News-Journal May 19, 2007

Two Contemporary Views of Events

• Byzantine writersBritish obliged to throw off Roman rule because of

decline in Roman power to protect them

• Gildas– Romans abandon Britain– Tyrants strip Britain of armies for continental

adventures

Political Events Preceding 410

• Empire and Britain face frequent incursions– Troops withdrawn from Britain to deal with

these incursions

• Usurpers from Britain• Withholding of taxes

Economic Events Preceding 410

• Decline in money supply– Inflation, Hoarding, Counterfeiting and

clipping– Money supply dependent on troop presence

• Failure to maintain buildings• Reduction in variety and, finally,

disappearance of manufactured pottery

Political events after 410

• 410 Defense of Britain left to civitates– Hadrian’s Wall maintained

• Reassertion of elite Celts who occupied hill-towns and forts in outlying areas.

• End of Pax Romana• Migrations to Ireland, Brittany, Gaul

Our sources• Continental writers to ~470• St. Patrick (Romano-Celtic viewpoint)• Gildas ~(500-570) (Romano-British viewpoint)• Bede 730 (Anglo-Saxon viewpoint)• Chronicles – Welsh, Irish, Anglo-Saxon

retrospective constructions• Archaeology

Britain in 407

Continuity

• Maintenance of many urban areas• Some political contacts

– Requests for aid

• Continued Christianity– Worship connected with martyred saints

• Continued contacts on Church level• Continued trade with Mediterranean

Post R

oman Tow

ns

Post Roman Forts – Pre-Roman Forts

• Hill forts better located for defensive purposes.

• Roman forts useful as quarries• Prestige associated with continued

association with Roman forts

Post R

oman F

orts

615

>640400

Tintagel

Hill Forts

Cadbury Castle

Halls

Reconstruction at Cadbury Castle

Fate of a Roman City - Wroxeter

• Public buildings in use to ~500• Defense includes mercenaries?• Part of Kingdom of Powys• Baths not maintained

– Replaced by large wood mansion (Bishop’s palace?)

Roman Stone Construction Not Maintained

City abandoned ~650

Cunorix475-500, Wroxeter

Nature of Post Roman States

• Maintain some trappings from Roman system?

• Led by tyrants?• Failure to maintain public works

Trade

Tintagel Project• Mid 5th-6th Century• Amphorae• Byzantine coins• Glassware characteristic of

Spain• Red slipware from Turkey• Celtic name in Latin context

Aerial View

Ground View

Artognou Stone

Inscription

PATER / COLI AVI FICIT / ARTOGNOV

Artognou, father of a descendant of Coll, has had (this) made

Continued Mediterranean Trade

Trade – Wales – Continental Glass

Legacies of Rome in Britain

• Cities• Civitas• Fortifications

• Reading • Religion• Roads

The Saxon Advent

The Saxon Advent

Scenarios

• Invasion and ethnic cleansing• Invasion and apartheid• Migration over a prolonged period: Pre-

Roman, Roman, Sub-Roman

The Saxons

One scenario• Arrive as federates• Mass migration of Germanic

peoples– Existing population killed,

displaced or intermarry– Christian Romans (British)

displaced by pagans

Another Scenario

• Small-scale military activity – Cultural and linguistic changes in existing

population– Changes in taste under new cultural influence– Some interbreeding; invaders predominantly

male

The invitation and its consequences

449 Hengest and Horsa, invited by Wurtgern, king of the Britons to assist him

455 Hengest and Horsa rebel agaist Wurtgern, Horsa killed

457 Hengest and his son, Esc, defeat other Britons in Kent

465, 473 Further victories by Horsa and Esc

Further advent by their ‘cousins’

Genetic Studies

• Aim is to determine whether current populations can be related to putative homelands(1) Y Chromosome Evidence for Anglo-Saxon Mass Migration

Michael E. Weale*,1, Deborah A. Weiss ,1, Rolf F. Jager* , Neil Bradman* and Mark G. Thomas* Molecular Biology and Evolution 19:1008-1021 (2002)

(2) A Y Chromosome Census of the British Isles Cristian Capelli1, 8, Nicola Redhead1, Julia K. Abernethy1, Fiona Gratrix1, James F. Wilson1, Torolf Moen3, Tor Hervig4, Martin Richards5, Michael P. H. Stumpf1, 9, Peter A. Underhill6, Paul Bradshaw7, Alom Shaha7, Mark G. Thomas1, 2, Neal Bradman1, 2 and David B. Goldstein1 CURRENT BIOLOGY 13: (11) 979-984 MAY 27 2003

Sampling(2)

Genetic Variations (Y)

Genetic Mixing (Y)

Authors’ Conclusions

1. Central England - Little genetic differentiation

2. North Welsh - Highly significant differences between two towns, both from each other and from the five Central English towns

3. No significant differences between Friesland and any of the Central English towns

4. “…an Anglo-Saxon immigration event affecting 50%–100% of the Central English male gene pool at that time is required… “

0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

Po

pu

lati

on

A

dm

ixtu

re

England Scotland Isles Wales

Norway

Germany

Calculated admixtures

Portion of “indigenous” DNA

Authors’ Conclusions

1. “Limited continental input in southern England, which appears to be predominantly indigenous”

2. “…the part of mainland Britain that has the most Continental input is Central England…”

3. Contributions of Danish and North German can not be distinguished.

4. “…the transition between England and Wales is somewhat gradual…”

Isotope Studies

• Evidence for mobility– Sr

• Dentine• Enamel• Bone

– Pb (distorted by lead from objects)

Inconclusive

Coming

• Cultural changes• Religious persistence and renewal