This module covers the archaeological evidence for the development of Anglo-Saxon England AD 650-1050. This is one of the crucial periods in the development of England with the emergence of a few large kingdoms and then England's eventual unification. Major social and economic transformations in rural settlements, towns, and artefacts help to delineate the scale of these changes.

The Mid and Late Saxon centuries are a crucial formative period in the history of England.  At the beginning Anglo-Saxon kingdoms come to control most of modern England though the formation of discrete kingdoms of some size may have been fairly recent.  By the end of the period one English kingdom has been formed out of the crucible of Viking conquest and English (Wessex) reconquest.  Major changes in settlement and economy are indicated in the emergence of major trading sites and then permanent towns.  Industrial ceramics and coinage suggest the development of a more technically and economically sophisticated society.  Nucleated villages and elite residences foreshadow much that is seen as typical of medieval England.  This course will look at the archaeological evidence for Mid and Late Saxon ceramics, coinage, towns, settlements, churches and art.

REQUISITES: Pre-requisite Module: HS2104.

• knowledge of the nature of the archaeological record for Mid and Late Anglo-Saxon England.
• that they understand the difficulties in integrating archaeological, historical and linguistic

      evidence.

• that they understand the evidence for the burial record, rural settlement, towns, artefacts and the landscape of Mid and Late Anglo-Saxon England.
• that they understand current debates about Mid and Late Anglo-Saxon England.

The principal medium will be the illustrated lecture, using 10 lecture periods and 1 or 2 seminars throughout the semester.  Lectures will investigate individual themes.  Seminars will give students the chance to discuss topics in small groups and to contribute ideas and interpretations.

Intellectual Skills:

• the ability to evaluate evidence of varying quality and source
• the ability to correlate information from lectures, seminars and independent reading
• the ability to present their knowledge in a coherent manner in essay and exam conditions

 Discipline Specific (including practical) Skills:

The ability to demonstrate an understanding of archaeological evidence and its limitations

Transferable Skills:

• the ability to write cogently and critically in an assessed essay and under examination conditions.
• the ability to understand complex arguments and evaluate the evidence in support of them.
• to work independently and produce work to deadlines.

The assessed essay, examination, and non-assessed seminars, require the student to demonstrate critical analysis of the archaeological evidence for the Mid and Late Anglo-Saxon period.

• Burial
• Pottery
• Coinage
• Metalwork and Art
• Landscape and settlement
• Elite sites, estates and territories
• Mid-Saxon towns
• The burhs
• Monasteries and Churches and Architecture
• What is the Anglo-Saxon achievement?

Backhouse, J et al (eds)  1984  The Golden Age of Anglo-Saxon Art 966-1066

Blair, J &  Sharpe, R  (eds) 1992  Pastoral Care before the Parish (Leicester).

Carver, M  1987  Underneath English Towns, London

Clarke, H & Ambrosiani, B  1991  Towns in the Viking age, Leicester.

Fernie, E  1983  The architecture of the Anglo-Saxons, London

Grierson, P & Blackburn, M  1986  Medieval European Coinage 1. The Early Middles Ages (5th -10th      centuries). Cambridge

Haslam, J.  l984  Anglo-Saxon Towns in Southern England

Hill, D  1981  An atlas of Anglo-Saxon England

Hill, D & Metcalf, D  1984  Sceattas in England and on the Continent, Oxford

Hill, D & Rumble, A R 1996  The defence of Wessex. The Burghal Hidage and Anglo-Saxon fortifications.             Manchester.

Hinton, D  1974  Catalogue of the Anglo-Saxon ornamental metalwork 700-1100 in the Ashmolean Museum,             Oxford

Hinton, D  1990  Archaeology, Economy and Society (reprinted 1998).

Hodges, R  l982  Dark Age Economics, London

Hodges, R  1989  The Anglo-Saxon Achievement,

Hooke, D 1998  The landscape of Anglo-Saxon England, London.

James, E  2001  Britain in the first millennium, London.

McCarthy, M & Brooks, C  1988  Medieval pottery in Britain AD 900-1600

Rackham, J(ed)  1994  Environment and economy in Anglo-Saxon England. York.

Reynolds, A 1999  Later Anglo-Saxon England (Stroud).

Richards, JD  1991  Viking Age England, Batsford.

Sawyer, P  1982  Kings and Vikings

Taylor, C  1983  Village and Farmstead

Wilson, D  1984  Anglo-Saxon Art, London

Wilson, D (ed)  1976  The Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon England, (London)