THE FIRST KING OF ENGLAND

ANGLO SAXONS

When William the Conqueror won on the battlefield

Origins of the Anglo Saxons

Where did the Anglo-Saxons come from and how many of them were there in the first place?

The once and future king

The legendary king of England, Arthur, actually fought against the English

The Seven Kingdoms

Out of the chaos of the end of an empire, seven kingdoms emerged, known as the Heptarchy

Northumbria

The realm of heroes and saints

Mercia

The Mercians took their place in the heart of the country and fought to keep it

Wessex

The last Anglo-Saxon kingdom became the first kingdom of England

The Kingdom of the East Angles

The riches of Sutton Hoo show the wealth of an Anglo-Saxon kingdom

The Kingdom of Kent

This was where, according to tradition, the first kingdom of the Anglo-Saxons was established

Sussex

Sandwiched between Kent and Wessex, with Mercia bearing down from the north, Sussex struggled to survive

Essex

The kingdom of the East Saxons spread through Hertfordshire and included the land of the Middle Saxons (Middlesex)

Sutton Hoo

When the Anglo-Saxon hoard at Sutton Hoo was

NEW GOD FOR OLD

In the clash between religions, battle provided the answer as to which god to worship

The old gods

What we know of Anglo-Saxon paganism

Elves and dwarves

The Anglo-Saxons believed in elves who were nothing like Legolas

EARLY VIKING RAIDS

From Lindisfarne to the Great Heathen Army

What’s in a name?

It’s time to uncover why we call them ‘Vikings’

ALFRED VS THE VIKINGS

How a defeated and abandoned king rose from the ultimate underdog to become one of the most celebrated monarchs in English history

MAKING WESSEX VIKING-PROOF

Alfred had beaten the Viking invasion, but now he knew he had to prepare the kingdom in case they came back

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

Along with everything else, Alfred also set up the first continuing record of the country’s history

The Alfred Jewel

Just over six centimetres in height, three centimetres

VIKING SETTLEMENT

The development of the Danelaw

Erik Bloodaxe

The last Viking king of York?

THE HOUSE OF WESSEX

England’s longest-lasting family that saw the nation invaded, reconquered and unified

THE PEDIGREE

THE QUEEN WHO MARRIED FATHER & SON

Judith  b.843-d.870 

KILLING FOR THE CROWN

Alfred the Great 

THE WARRIOR QUEEN

Æthelflæd 

THE WICKED QUEEN

Elfrida 

ENGLAND'S WORST KING PROBABLY

Æthelred the Unready 

THE THREE-TIME QUEEN

Emma of Normandy 

THE KING WHO FOUGHT AND LOST

Edmund Ironside 

THE EVERYDAY LIFE OF AN ANGLO-SAXON

In a society ruled by class and status, Anglo-Saxon life was hard but filled with surprising opportunities

ÆTHELSTAN THE GLORIOUS

Perhaps no king in English is history is more important and less remembered

A PORTRAIT OF A KING

This striking image from the Dark Ages depicts one of the greatest kings in English history

THE VIKINGS RETURN

Sweyn Forkbeard and the conquest of Anglo-Saxon England

EMPEROR OF THE NORTH

1,000 years ago, a young Viking warrior became king of England. No one at the time can have expected how remarkable his reign would be

EDWARD THE CONFESSOR

Edward brought the country stability and prosperity, but his failure to secure the succession to the throne left England open to war

THE LAST ANGLO-SAXON KING

Harold, England’s most powerful earl, claimed the throne on King Edward’s death. But to hold on to the crown, Harold knew he would have to fight

ENGLAND’S AXE WARRIORS

The elite housecarls are surrounded by myth, but were they really the fearless fighters of legend?

CLASH OF CROWNS 1066

When three kings rose to claim Edward the Confessor’s crown, England’s fate would be decided with steel and blood

The king is dead

“Here King Harold has been killed”. This is

EDGAR ÆTHELING

Harold Godwinson was dead, his forces scattered and leaderless. As the king passed away, the future of Saxon England now lay with a little-known teenager

AFTER HASTINGS: ANGLO-SAXON ENGLAND’S RESISTANCE WAR

Even though William defeated Harold Godwinson in battle on 14 October 1066, the king’s death did not bring England under his control

HOW HASTINGS CHANGED HISTORY

After Hastings, the Normans set about fashioning England in their own image, sweeping away centuries of tradition and enacting reforms that are still felt today

WHAT IF?

With the clash of three kings, England faced three fates