The Anglo-saxon Kings

by Venning, Timothy

• ISBN13: 9781445602073
• ISBN10: 1445602075
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-05-15
• Publisher: Amberley Publishing

Summary

The Anglo-Saxon era is one of the most important in English history, covering the period from the end of Roman authority in the British Isles to the Norman Conquest of 1066 in which the very idea of England was born. Starting off with an examination of the problematic textual sources and the historiography, Timothy Venning argues that is time to return to a more linear view of this period and to re-examine ideas about the Anglo-Saxon settlement of England.In The Anglo-Saxon Kings, the author examines the rulers of Anglo-Saxon England, those whom the sources tell us most about, beginning with the legendary leaders of the Anglo-Saxon invasion such as Hengest and Horsa or Cerdic and Cynric and moving on through such figures as Æthelberht of Kent, who received the mission led by Augustine of Canterbury to re-Christianize England, Saint Oswald of Northumbria, to Alfred of Wessex and his dynasty, the Viking invasions, and the last of the Anglo-Saxon kings, Harold Godwineson.

Author Biography

Timothy Venning studied history at Kings College, London to PhD level, winning the London University History Prize in 1979. He has written articles for the Dictionary of National Biography, as well as a book on Oliver Cromwell and reference works on British office-holders and the chronology of the Byzantine Empire. He also contributes to major biographical publications and his research forms the basis for many other publications.