British Dark & Middle Ages
Feature Writer Articles in British Dark & Middle Ages
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John Felton
Fictionalized in the Three Musketeers, John Felton's murder of George Villiers became a political hot point that set King Charles against his magistrates.
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The Oxford Martyrs Trail
Although Oxford has changed a lot in the 450 years since the Martyrs were executed. There are still a few sites to see.
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William Caxton
Around twenty years after Johann Gutenberg printed the first book on a printing press, William Caxton brought the new craft to England.
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The Anglo Saxon Calendar
Although our knowledge of Anglo-Saxon culture is very limited, thanks to Bede, we do know the names of the 10 Anglo-Saxon months.
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The Anglo-Saxon Penny
In the seventh century, the Anglo-Saxon monetary system transitioned from gold coins to small silver pennies, sometimes misnamed 'sceattas'.
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The Death of King Alexander III
In 1290, King Edward I came up with a plan to peacefully create a Union between Scotland and England.
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Penda of Mercia
The King of Mercia in the early 7th Century, Penda made his mark in history mainly through the men he killed.
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Cadwallon ap Cadfan
Emerging from the gloom of the Dark Ages, Cadwallon was one of the last of the British kings to overthrown an Anglo-Saxon Kingdom.
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Ine
Ine was neither the son nor the father of a king, but in his laws he left a lasting legacy in England.
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Magna Carta 1215
In 1215, King John was forced to sign Magna Carta, a document that imposed limits on royal power and serves as the basis for modern British law.
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William Rufus
After the rebellion of one brother, and the death of another, William Rufus succeded his father, William the Conqueror, as King of England.
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The Saxon Kingdoms
England (the land of the Angles) was born in the 7th century, a new country made up of a number of rival Kingdoms.
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Urien of Rheged
Starting in 570AD the Saxons moved against the British. The fight began with the Saxon conquest of the south and ended with the war against Rheged.
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Maelgwn Gwynedd
Denounced by the chronicler Gildas as beyond redemption, Maelgwn may have been the greatest of British Kings in the years following Arthur.
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Mons Bodonicus (Mount Badon)
Questions and answers about the history of the most famous battle fought between the Romano-British and the Saxon invaders.
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Allele, the First Bretwalda
At the end of the fifth century, the Saxon warrior Allele carved out his own kingdom in Sussex. Soon after, he disappears from history, a possible victim of Arthur.
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The Downfall of Vortigern
In 442 AD, Hengest led the Saxons in an uprising against the British and started a war that would continue on and off for over a century.
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Vortigern & Ambrosius
Although successful in stopping invasion from abroad, Vortigern was forced to fight against his own countrymen at the Battle of Wallop.
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The Rise of Vortigern
Vortigern was the first recorded ruler of post-Roman Britain. Unfortunately, his best remembered deed was to invite Hengest the Saxon to come and fight for Britain.
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Vortigern, Germanus, and Cunedda
With the help of the travelling Bishop Germanus' and the legendary Cunedda (Kenneth) of Wales, the British were able to contain the threat of Irish settlement and Invasio
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The Norman Knight
William the Conqueror's best troops at the battle of Hastings were his heavily armoured Norman Knights.
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The Death of Harold Godwinson
According to most chroniclers, Harold Godwinson was killed by an arrow in his eye, but a close examination of the Bayeux tapestry tells another story.
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The Anglo-Saxon Warrior
From the fall of Roman Britain, to the coming of the Normans, the warrior culture of the Anglo-Saxons ruled Britain.
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The Excavation at Sutton Hoo
The burial ship uncovered in the mound at Sutton Hoo is the greatest single find in Anglo-Saxon archaeology.
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The Picts
Sometimes called "The Painted Men", the Picts came out of nowhere to rule the north of Britain.
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Contributing Articles in British Dark & Middle Ages
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Traveling in Medieval England
For a noble household, traveling between one of their castles and the next was an expedition rather than a journey and one that could involve hundreds of people.
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History Trail - Names of Lancashire Alehouses
History is discovered in ancient documents or from artefacts dug up by archaeologists. Or it may be revealed in place names, and signs and symbols on old hostelries.
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History Trail - Traditional Lancashire Pub Names
Over four thousand years people have travelled English county byways. Research Lancashire's ancient trade routes by sampling its hotels, restaurants and public houses.
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Trade in England in the Early Middle Ages
The history of trade in England is fascinating. Readers will learn, in brief, how trade evolved from the time of the Normans over the following 400 years.
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Robin Hood, Folklore Hero and Outlaw
Robin Hood is a character portrayed on film and television by actors such as Errol Flynn and Richard Greene. Is he urban myth, fable or real person?
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The Peasants' Revolt, 1381
In June 1381 a hated poll tax became the catalyst in a conflict in which the Tower of London was breached for the first and last time during the Peasants' Revolt.
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Anglo-Saxon Gold Found in Staffordshire
The largest hoard of Anglo Saxon gold ever found has been discovered in a field in Staffordshire, north west England, by an amateur archaeologist with a metal detector.
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Saxon Building Chosen as Top Archeological Site
Repton, ancient capital of the Kingdom of Mercia, boasts an 8th Century Crypt which was the resting place of St Wystan. Many pilgrims flocked to venerate this saint.
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Buried Treasure Found in England
The dream of every person with a metal detector is to find a stash of buried treasure; for Terry Herbert the dream has come true.
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Robin Hood, Medieval England's Most Wanted
Robin Hood is a scarecrow. A cobbled together mismatched fabric of myth, man and ancient tradition that has produced folklore's most human and enduring character.
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The Siege of Corfe Castle, August 1139
An account of the siege of a major rebel stronghold in the early stages of the Civil Wars in England in the Twelfth Century between Stephen and Matilda.
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The Battle of Blore Heath 23 September 1459
A description of the Battle of Blore Heath, an important battle fought between the armies of Lancaster and York in the early stages of the Wars of the Roses.
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The Viking Invasion of Wiltshire
An overview of the Viking invasion of Wiltshire in the reign of Alfred the Great that led to the king's flight to Athelney, his redemption at Edington and the Danelaw.
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Sussex and the Invasion of England 1216
An account of the invasion of Prince Louis of France in the year 1216, and how he was eventually defeated thanks to the efforts of a local guerilla leader.
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Azincourt (Agincourt) and the V Sign Remembered
The myth regarding the link between the marksmanship of King Henry V's archers and the two fingered salute is exposed.
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The Jewish Massacre at York
In 1190, the Jewish residents of York fled to the royal castle at York after anti-Jewish rioting broke out in the city. The remaining residents laid siege to the castle.
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Danelaw
For over a century, Danish law dominated a significant portion of Anglo Saxon England. How did a Scandinavian influence get hold of England and what did the English do?
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Alfred the Great Saves England from Danish Rule
King Alfred the Great's defeat of the Danes freed England from foreign occupation and established England as a unified power.
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Reivers - The Anglo Scots Border Laws of 1249
Confrontation on the Borderline between England and Scotland called for special measures. The Border Laws was a system of legislation unique in British history
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Events that led to the Battle of Hastings
Arguably the Battle of Hastings was one of those very rare moments when the future of England was reshaped by a single event, and it's aftermath.
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The Lollards
England like most of Western Europe at the turn of the sixteenth century was predominately Roman Catholic. Only a few homegrown heretics known as Lollards persisted.
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Samhain and Halloween in Britain and Ireland
Millions of people still celebrate the Halloween festival that takes place on October 31st, and this article describes its history and traditions.
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The Magna Carta
The Magna Carta was drawn up by the leading members of the English nobility and was then presented to the very unpopular King John to sign during the summer of 1215.
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Reivers - The Border Marches of Britain
The Border Laws were unique to the Border Country of England and Scotland. In place as early as 1249, they sought to control the clans until the Union of the Crowns.
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Reivers - Border Laws - England and Scotland
In meetings of English and Scottish knights in 1249 the notion of the Border Laws was mooted. Their deliberations would provide a format to control the Reiving Clans.
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