Examine the main stages in the formation of the population of Great Britain (Ancient Britain, The Celts, Romans, Anglo-Saxons) their contribution.

Ancient and Roman Britain

This term is used about the people who live on the British Isles, and to be more exact, who live in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

They are all united in one country officially known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, or shortly U.K. The flag of the United Kingdom known as the Union Jack, reflects the history of the State.

This term can be explained as follows: "Union" reflects the union of England and Scotland in 1606, and "jack" means the flag flown on the jack staff (a small flagstaff) of ships to show their nationality.

The Union Jack is made up of three crosses on a blue ground. The blue colour refers to the seas surrounding Britain. The central red cross is the cross of St. George, the patron saint of England. The white diagonal cross (with the arms going into the corners) is the cross of St.Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland. The red diagonal cross is the cross of St.Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, but today it refers to Northern Ireland. St.David is the patron saint of Wales, but the symbol of Wales is not reflected in the Union Jack, because when the flag first appeared Wales was already firmly united with England. The Welsh flag is a red dragon on a white and green ground.

The English, Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irishare different from each other, and to understand the reasons for this we are to take a short glimpse into the history of the country.

In prehistoric times Britain was joined to the rest of Europe. The first people, and many animals, came there over dry land. Towards the end of the Ice Age the low-lying land areas became covered with water, and thus the present English Channel was formed.

The hunters of the New Stone Age crossed the sea to Britain to the west of the Channel and settled along the Western shores in their search of food.

The first inhabitants of the island for whom a traditional name + are the Iberian or Megalithic people (from the words "monolith", Megalith" or big stones which they used), who lived mainly in the western part of the country.

They are thought to have come from the region of the Mediterranean Sea (the Iberian peninsula where Spain is located) somewhere after 3000 B.C. (before Christ). Soon after 2000B.С. another people entered the country from the east of Europe. The two peoples intermixed. The ancient people left behind impressive monuments of which Stonehenge and Avebury are most remarkable.

 

The arrival of the Celts from Central Europe after 800 B.C. opened up a new and important page of British history. The name "Britain" comes from the name of a Celtic tribe known as the Britons who settled in the country.

The Celts spoke the Celtic language. The influence of the Celts was greatest in Wales, Scotland and Ireland. They were driven to these parts by the invaders who followed them. Due to this, these parts of Britain are very different from England in language, custom, traditions.

Welsh is one of the Celtic languages, like Scottish and Irish Gaelic. About 16 to 20 per cent of the population of Wales speak the Welsh language, although in north and west Wales about half of the population speak the local tongue.

Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic are still spoken in Scotland and Northern Ireland, although they have suffered more than Welsh from the spread of English. However, these languages are being taught and learned in schools.

Many People in Scotland have the name MacDonald or MacKenzie. "Mac means the son of" and people with this name feel that they belong to the family or clan. The Gaelic word "clann" means "family", or ascendants" and the great clans of Scotland were really very big anulies ruled by powerful chiefs.

In England itself Celtic influence is felt to this very day, though this influence is much weaker, as compared with the other parts of the country. The Celts worshipped nature. The oak-tree and mistletoe were sacred. Water was also worshipped as the source of life. There are place- names in England connected with the Celts. For example, Avon - the name of a river, which means "water" in Celtic. The origin of the name Severn - the longest river in the country - is connected with the name of a Celtic goddess - Sabrina. The tradition of decorating the homes in Britain during Christmas with branches of such plants as the mistletoe and holly is connected with the customs of the Celts, who believed that these plants protected their homes against evil spirits.

The most interesting description of the life of the Celts was given by Julius Caesar, the Roman ruler, who first invaded Britain in 55 B.C.

The Romans said that this meant "white land", because the first view of Britain for most visitors was the white cliffs near Dover. Caesar knew that Britain produced corn which the Romans needed. Tin, widely used in Rome, was exported from Cornwall. And the Romans needed a fresh supply of slaves. Moreover, the Celts in Britain helped their kinsmen in Gaul (the present territory of France) in their struggle against the Romans who wanted to conquer them. So Caesar decided to punish the Britons for their support. However, Caesar's first expedition was not successful, because his force was small, and the Celts fought well. So in the following year, that is in 54 B.C., he invaded the country with a larger army of 25,000 men. This time the expedition was successful, and the Celts were defeated. But Caesar did not stay in Britain. He left the country with many slaves and other riches, and he received a promise from the Celts that they would pay a regular tribute to Rome.

Some 90 years later, that is in A.D. 43 the country was conquered by the Romans. This occupation of Britain continued to the beginning of the fifth century (about 410). Not all of Britain was firmly in the hands of the Romans. In the south and south-eastern parts Roman influence was greatest, while in the north and west the country remained much untouched.

Many towns were built by the Romans which were connected by good roads. Some of these roads still exist to this very day. For example, Watling Street from London to Chester, or Icknield Way connecting London with Cirencester. Most British towns with names ending with "chester" were, in Roman times, fortified camps. You can see much of Roman times in the ancient town of Colchester, which became a town for retired Roman soldiers. Here is the best preserved Roman gateway in Britain. You can see here the original Roman walls. Evidence of the Roman past can be seen in many places of Britain. Bath was well known to the Romans. They discovered the hot mineral springs that could be

used for curing all kinds of illnesses.

The largest of the towns was called Londinium. It began life as a Roman fort at a place where it was possible to cross the river Thames. Many believe that here was a Celtic settlement called "Llyn-dyn" which meant "lake-fort" and which the Romans changed into Latin. Ruins of the old Roman wall can be seen today in the Tower of London. Many walls were built to defend the country from the attacks of the barbarians living in the north and west. Most outstanding was the wall built on the orders of Emperor Hadrian in the north near Scotland. This wall roughly divided England from Scotland, and was to keep out the Picts and Scots.

 

However, when the Romans left the country at the beginning of the 5th century, Britain became open to the attacks of newcomers from the continent who destroyed Roman civilization and culture.

 

After the departure of the Romans, the Celts remained independent for some time, but quite soon the country began to be attacked by Germanic tribes from the continent.

 

They were the Jutes, the Saxons and the Angles. The Jutes and the Angles came from the Jutland peninsula (today southern Denmark) and the Saxons from the territory between the Rhine and Elbe rivers (northern Germany). At first they came as mercenaries hired by Celtic tribal chiefs who fought one against the other, then seeing that the country was weak to defend itself, they came in great numbers conquering it altogether.

The Jutes landed in Kent (the south-east) somewhere in 450. They were followed by the Angles and the Saxons so that by the end of the 5th century the greater part of the country (with the exception of Wales, Cornwall and Scotland) became occupied by the invaders. The Angles settled mainly to the north of the Thames, and quite soon the country began to be called "the land of the Angles", later "Engla-land" and as you easily see England. The Saxons settled in the south, south- west and partially east forming the ancient kingdoms of Wessex, Sussex and Essex. The Anglo-Saxons and Jutes were close to each other in speech and customs, and they gradually formed into one people referred to as the Anglo-Saxons.

Although the German invaders occupied most of the British Isles, certain areas remained unconquered. They were Wales, Cornwall, the northern part of Britain, Ireland. Many of the Celts who survived after the attacks of the Germanic tribes fled to these parts of the country.

 

The northern part of Britain was the home of the Picts and Scots. After the conquest of the Picts by the Scots in the 9th this northern territory came to be called Scotland and a united Scottish kingdom was formed in the 11th century.

 

The Anglo-Saxons settled in small tribal villages or townships. Saxon villages consisted of about 20 to 30 families, all faithful to their leader. Local rules were made by the "moot", which was a small meeting held on a grassy hill or under a tree. Sometimes it judged cases between the people of the village. The many villages were, as time went by, grouped into "hundreds", and the "hundreds" were grouped into "shires". Each "hundred" had an open-air court of justice, and the judges were called aldermen. Important cases were judged by the sheriff of shire or by a king's representative called a reeve. These cases were discussed at a shire moot or meeting, which was a kind of local parliament which met usually twice a year. The King's council was called the Witan, which was a kind of parliament of wise men. It could make laws and choose, or elect new kings.

The Saxon kingdoms fought one against the other, at times one kingdom would become stronger, then another, but at the beginning of the 9th century Wessex became the leading kingdom and united the rest of England in the fight against the Danes, who came from present-day Denmark. Since 829 the greater part of the country was united under the name England.

 

An important event which contributed to the unification of the country and the development of culture was the adoption of Christianity in England in 664. Christianity began to spread in England much earlier. It is connected with the name of St. Augustine who founded the Church of England in 597.

. With the adoption of Christianity many churches and monasteries were built. Among them Glastonbury later became the largest abbey in Britain. The monasteries also served as centres of education in Wessex.