KS3 History Year 7 - Anglo Saxon Life and SocietyUnit title/key question: Anglo Saxon Life and Society

What was the Anglo Saxon life in Britannia between c.400AD-1100AD?

To explore and recognise how the people during the Saxon era of Britain lived and grew. In this topic, the students will recognise how the birth of our nation, England, occurred and how her early growth helped to shape the country that we recognise today. Term: Autumn Number of hours: 12

Sequence of learning:

Component 1: What motivated the Saxons to migrate to Britain?In this topic we will be focussing on the invasion of Britain by the Germanic tribes, following the Roman occupation c.5 th Century AD. Once the Romans had left Britain to return back to Italy, there was a power vacuum in Britannia (it’s key to refer to our nation as Britannia at this point as it is not called England yet), but also the Romans leave behind a sparsely populated nation. The Angles, Jutes and Saxons of northern Germany, Denmark and the Low Countries take the decision to leave their ancestral homes to occupy the fertile lands.From this, they settle and give the place names that we recognise today, Angleland (England), East Saxe (Essex), West Saxe (Wessex), Cent (Kent) and South Saxe (Sussex). Elements of our language come from this time period too. As aforementioned, the main reason for the Germanic tribes coming to our island is that it had much better fertile land for farming, but it also has a natural defence battier (the fact we’re an island) and a reasonable populace to work with.Assessment: What were the main reasons why the Saxons migrated to Britain?

Students will be asked the above question, followed by a Point and Explain paragraph (Where they would make their point as to what the main reasons were, followed by why they think this) – SEN/LA students may be given a writing frame to assist with scaffolding, whilst MABLE students will receive a less prescriptive writing frame.

To be successful at this component, students will be able to identify the different reasons why the Saxons arrived on our shores and started to settle, once the Romans had left. To further challenge the students, you would encourage them to then rank their reasons in a level of significance and explain why they believe this to be so.

Component 2: How can we best understand the Saxon religion and how does it change?

Despite current ideas that Saxons were savages or barbarians, they were invariably better than they were given credit for. For example, in Saxon law, women and men were relatively equal in different facets of the life. Women could be a part of the army (shield maidens being a Germanic/Nordic tradition). But this is also reflected in their religion.

Introduction to polytheistic (multiple gods) and monotheistic (one god) religious ideas Pagan Gods profiles – introducing the students to the Gods of Paganism and what roles that they had in Saxon life (and the

separation between the Hollywood ideals of these and the reality – misconception would be that Thor is just the god of Thunder and flies around saving the modern Earth with the Avengers)

Observation of the Tree of Life – the structuring of the Pagan belief The Conversion Era:

o The Romans started to convert to Christianity around 313AD, however they began to leave Britain between 388-400AD, meaning that there is a high chance that the Romans practiced Christianity in Britain, although the people themselves would have limited understanding of this and remained Pagan.

o With the continued interaction with Europeans (through trade), the Saxon people were becoming more and more aware of the ‘new’ religion of Christianity and its origins

o A brief overview of the historical origins of Christianity and take into consideration the British Values that Christianity preaches – it is not a requirement that teachers not students are Christian to understand or follow this.

o We will take a look at the story of Augustine, the Benedictine Monk that was instructed by the Pope to convert England, through the King of England (Aethelbert)’s wife, Bertha [c.595AD]. Following this, the whole of England began to convert to Christianity.

Students are introduced to Sutton Hoo – A Saxon burial ground:o This particular part of the component does reach across into another component. The use of this source evidence

provides an insight into Saxon religions (it has elements of both Christian and Pagan) and will be used as a case study for subsequent components

o This is case study is on the archaeological find at Sutton Hoo of the largest (to date) Saxon burial ground in England. We take a look at the story of how the owner of the land (Edith Pretty) discovered the site and how the site is so well preserved.

o Sutton Hoo: This was an archaeological find made by the owner of the land there, Edith Pretty. She believed to have had a dream that a Saxon warrior stood over one of the mounds in the field, and she believed this meant that he was

buried there. Upon excavating the area, they find the remains of a Danish Longboat burial (a Pagan style burial). In this excavation, they also find large amounts of gold, jewels and weaponry (more Christian); but they also find around 20 other skeletons around the site too – believed to be the slaves as some had bound hands, were bent over in submission. The belief is that the man buried was a local lord but was recently converted to Christianity so followed basic principles of a Christian burial but still held on to his Pagan roots. We know that this is around the timeframe of the 6th/7th century based on the coins present.

Students will need to understand that: This is the largest Saxon find in the world It is incredibly rich in the items found There was still diversity – people didn’t suddenly become Christian and forget where they came from

Assessment: What differences and similarities are there between Christianity and Paganism?

To be successful at this component, students must be able to identify the similarities in Christianity and Paganism (both beliefs in place due to the lack of understanding in the events of the world – when it rains, people get ill, dates and themes for holidays [holy days]) and the differences (number of gods, male/female focus)

In order for this to be successful, students will be given a Venn diagram with Christianity on one-side and Paganism on the other. The overlapping section will have the bits that both have in common – dates for Holy days, the fact that they share the belief that God/s are in control of the environment (not nature). Whereas in their separate circles, the religions will have their own differences.

{see appendix 1}Component 3: What was it like living in Anglo Saxon Society? (Crimes and Punishment)

To begin this component we will take a look into the different aspects of Saxon punishments and how they dealt with law and order.

During this period there was no such thing as a police force so the people had to take it into their own hands through the hue and cry system (where a witness to a crime would shout, and the rest of the village would then join the manhunt to catch the criminal – relatable story: the boy who cried wolf)

Introduce the concept of the Blood Feud – where Saxon families would take the law into their own hands and deliver

punishment for a fallen family member. To explain this, you would select Student A and inform the class that they have murdered Student B -> Student B’s family would murder Student A -> Student A’s family would murder a member of family B’s and so on. “An eye for an eye”.

Observe the different punishments, from physical beatings to execution. You will encourage the students to look beyond the specific examples, and take a deeper look at the differences – the fact that the Saxons were more physical and brutal (but for the most part had a lower crime rate) while we have prisons to punish our criminals (high crime rate). Debate topic of reintroducing the death penalty for those more able to comprehend this topic.

o The last execution in Britain was over the murder of John Alan West in 1964, where Peter Anthony Allen and Gwynne Owen Evans were both executed

o Execution was banned due to the immorality of the killing of another person, there is a link to the Nazis in the war (Britain fought to defeat the brutality of the Nazis, they didn’t want to continue a similar practice).

o This is an ethical question, where the teacher would provide an unbiased view, but state that execution has been banned in the UK.

o Only 53 nations in the world still execute prisoners, including the USA (in certain states), India, Japan, China and Jamaica. When surveyed, British people are less than 50% in favour of capital punishment

Assessment: Link the Crimes and the Punishments.

The students will be given a resource which will have a list of crimes on one side and a list of punishments on the other, but in a random order. Students will then match up the crimes to the punishments.

To be successful at this component, students will be able to recognise the differences in crimes and how they were punished, along with the strategies that the Saxons used for policing using the community – which will link to a later topic.

Component 4: What was it like living in Anglo Saxon Society? (Housing)

The houses were often built out of wood (due to it being the most readily available resource, and quicker to build with than stone), insulated using a method called Wattle and Daub – a mixture of animal waste and mud, caked onto a wooden lattice.

Thatched rooves were tempered with similar treatments to ensure they didn’t catch fire, as the fire in the centre of the household needed to remain lit through the day and the night (there was a belief that if the fire went out, you would die).

The houses only had one room, so everything was done in the same room. Cook, clean, sleep and change all in the same room. It’s also important to stress that there would usually be the family livestock animal that would live in the house as

well. Often it was only 1 animal (a cow or pig), but it would be vital that the animal be kept indoors during the night for both heat and security (to make sure that the animal is protected).

Creativity task: Create an estate agency advert for a Saxon household.

Assessment: What differences are there between the Saxon housing and modern housing?

In order to be successful at this component, students will be able to identify the key features of a Saxon house, and will also be able to identify the differences between the modern homes and the Saxon ones (multiple rooms, internet, no large livestock indoors [although not uncommon for some households to have it] and indoor toilets).

In order to do this, the students will be presented with a blank diagram and they will need to fill in the aspects of the Saxon household, followed by questions based on its modern equivalent. [see appendix 4]

Component 5: What was it like living in Anglo Saxon Society? (Power and the Monarchy)

Unlike the modern era, there was no democracy among the power-holders in Saxon England

Saxon hierarchy: (in later topics called the “Feudal System”) this is to show the learners the structure of how the Saxons would run the society, with the King at the top of the pyramid, Earls beneath him, then the Barons (the Saxon equivalent of Knights), then the Coerls (merchants, lawyers), and finally the peasants and slaves. With each step down, the pyramid gets wider – a point here is that as the power filters down, there becomes more and more people. Therefore, the more people mean there is less power. There is also a link between the amount of land and money. The more land and money you have, the higher up the pyramid you would be.

The Witan: Students will also need to understand how the royalty and succession is dealt with at this point. At testing of prior knowledge, the students will assume that the first-born child/son will inherit the crown from their predecessor. However, in Saxon times, the Witan would make the decision of who would become King (often it would be the King’s son, but this was not a certainty). The Witan itself consists of a high-ranking Earls and Holy men who would also council the King in times of strife – they would be his closest advisors

Assessment: Where did the real power lie?

Students will be asked this question and there will be an opportunity for a discussion regarding where the power truly lies in Saxon England – arguable the King rules the land and makes all the decisions, but the peasants are the ones providing the food; should the food not be provided, the King dies – therefore, you can argue that the Peasants have the power, despite their lowly status

[see Deepening thinking column].

To show off this knowledge, the students will fill out a “Tug o’ war” map [see appendix 3], where the students will fill out the table to show their knowledge of what power each of the groups had. For deepening knowledge, students can be challenged to consider 2 other groups, the Witan (who decide who becomes King) and the Coerls (the merchants and tradespeople) and ask where their power lies. Following the tug of war table, students will be asked to write a brief point/explain statement as to which group they think is the most powerful and why.

To be successful at this component, students will be able to identify aspects of the hierarchy in Saxon society and be able to identify who has the most power. This is a subjective question, (although the overall power did lie with the King) students will be encouraged to use their own views. The way to know whether students are successful at this component is the amount of knowledge and understanding they can muster on to the Tug of war table, more than their decision over who has the most power – this is a challenge for them to consider where power truly lies.

Component 6: What can the military of the Saxons tell us of the time period?

In this component, we will investigate the differences in Saxon techniques and tactics when it came to battle. This will provide a foundational schema for the following topic where we study the Norman invasion.

Shield Wall: A concept that derived from the Nordic and Germanic tribes, but also similarly to the Roman Testudo formation (Turtle). Soldiers would line up together and interlock their shields to ensure that they create a wall that the attackers couldn’t hurt or kill any of the men behind the wall, allowing the men behind the wall to attack and kill the attackers.

Weaponry: There was a range of weaponry that the Saxons used during this time period, again deriving more from the Viking styles. There was a variation in Axes, but also in throwing implements (javelins, spears) and a richer weapon in the sword.

Parts of this will be interlinked with other components, such as the Fyrd, but in a focus of this component would be to look at the differences between the Fyrd and the Housecarls – the professional army of the Saxon kings.

Burhs and fortifications – this will link with the 5th component.

Assessment: What are the strengths and weaknesses of Saxon weapons? Students will be given a table of the different weapons with columns after it, showing the uses of each weapon, who would use it, its strengths and weaknesses. The students will then be given a presentation and a series of videos where they will be able to fill in the gaps in their table – the teacher will

provide the explanation that certain weapons are more useful for different scenarios. For example, a spear is more useful than an axe against a warrior wearing chainmail (the axe will glance off the armour, while the point of the spear will penetrate the links of the chainmail), or a sword would be better than an axe as it is lighter and longer, while the axe was easier to make and more common amongst the farmers (cutting down trees – therefore the peasantry will have a more knowledgeable understanding of the limits and strengths of their weapon).

To be successful at this component, students will be able to list the strengths and weaknesses of Saxon weaponry based on the knowledge that they have gathered. To challenge students further, you would encourage them to rank the factors into level of significance to identify which weapon is the most useful or least useful for the Saxons should they go to war.

Component 7: What changes did the early Anglo-Saxon Kings make?

This will be broken down into focussing on two Kings: Alfred the Great and Offa

Alfred the Great:

Knowledge will be built around how Alfred’s story to becoming King (physically weaker second son, but stronger intellectually and was chosen by the Witan over his brother) and how he started to secure England against invading forces (primarily the Vikings)

Introduction of Burhs (fortified towns – not castles) and Fyrd (this started out as trained army soldiers who had been demobilised back to being farmers, would settle and be tasked into keeping themselves prepared and ready should the time arise for battles – over time the amount of army training started to dwindle and the Fyrd essentially became the farmer or peasant army)

Changes in Saxon society – introduction of the Saxon Chronicle (the first written sources of Saxon England – Alfred was determined to leave his mark in history, and what better way than to commission the writing of it), the beginnings of a Royal Navy, and changes to education and justice.

Offa:

Often only remembered for the fortifications he ordered to be built along the Welsh and English border – Offa’s Dyke. This fortification was mainly to protect the Saxon lands from Welsh raiders, but this also allowed the English to attack from into Welsh lands. It’s also the first official border between the two nations.

Offa is also the King in charge of the introduction of the currency that we in the modern era can recognise – the Libra Ponda (the pound). Rather than having coins at intermittent weights and sizes, Offa standardised how much gold should be in a coin based on its weight – a pound of gold. From this practice, any coins minted by the royalty have followed this principle.

Assessment: Which of these Saxon Kings had a bigger impact on England?

Students will be asked the above question, followed by a See-Saw comparison task [see appendix 2a] where they will put the information that they have gathered of each monarch and then decide amongst themselves as to which one had the bigger impact.

To be successful at this component, Students need to be highlighting the feats of each of the monarchs, rather than finding the “right” answer to the question – as it is subjective. The success will lie in the knowledge shown by the students [an example of this can be seen in appendix 2b]

Knowledge & vocabulary

Substantive knowledge

Offa’s Dyke and the Saxon conflict with the Welsh King Offa and the introduction of new currency

o Prior knowledge of how currency did exist beforehand, but it had a varying weight and people often bartered their goods (trading a cow for a piece of cloth [e.g.])

Anglo Saxon crime and punishment – Blood feuds and Hue and Cry The Saxon arrival/invasion of Britain [Background] The Roman occupation of Britannia Alfred the Great, the dealings with the Vikings and Danelaw Saxon military tactics, weapons and fortifications Christianity and Paganism – and the differences between them Saxon housing The hierarchy of the Anglo-Saxons Sutton Hoo and the Saxon excavation site

Disciplinary knowledge

Ability to critically evaluate the message of a broad range of historical sources, their purpose and

usefulness Ability to evaluate the significance of events and form a balanced argument based on sound

historical evidence Ability to recognise the role of both direct and indirect involvement on the development of a nation

through time Ability to recognise that social development is part of a wider pattern of change, influenced by a

range of interlinking factors.

Vocabulary

Subject methods and resources

Teacher led PowerPoint lessons, planned to a high quality

Broad range of historical sources of different types being available for

Prior Knowledge Dependent on Primary school curriculum.

Source analysis from Term 1 – This will come into effect

independent analysis by students

Effective use of active teaching to allow students to ‘visualise’ what they are learning about in the context with which it exists

during the studying of the Sutton Hoo case study, but also when observing Alfred the Great’s Saxon Chronicle (as these are reference to why sources are useful – as it’s an early piece of written evidence as opposed to word of mouth)

Assessment of components and summative assessment of the unit (composite).

Components:Each component will be assessed by considering students ability to process information and form an opinion based on the evidence Embedded disciplinary components that feature throughout will be assessed using a ‘we do’ whole class approach with teacher being aware of attributes of strength and improvements within a cohort and directing support as appropriate through live marking during tasks.

Composite:At the end of the unit pupils will be assessed on their ability to recall information surrounding the key terms and topics of the components. This will be through a variety of question types

- Imagery labelling – giving an image of a Saxon house and asking them to label the key components

- Compare/Contrast – students will be asked to find similarities and differences between the Saxons and

Likely misconceptions and suggested strategies to tackling them

- First born son receives everything – This will be corrected with the understanding of the role of the Witan

- England has always been England – was called Britannia by the Romans, and only became England during the reign of the Saxons and Angles.

- Everyone lived in houses made of poo and sticks – Although this is accurate for the peasantry, this was not conclusive for all members of society. And in some cases, the peasants didn’t require the need for the Wattle and Daub technique due to the amounts of wood that they could utilise.

- That students form and justify a personal viewpoint from their own rather than a historical perspective

o In this instance students can be asked to argue and justify an alternative perspective to

the modern era

DO NOW and Plenary Tasks will also be utilised to promote effective memory recall along with thinking.

their own based on historical evidence. Where the students will later be given prompt points in an exam setting, the students at this time will be allowed the freedom to make their own views, but are encouraged to make them based from evidence and can be backed up by an explanation.

Appendix 1: Venn diagram

Appendix 2a:

Appendix 2b:

Appendix 3:

Appendix 4: