History Tellers

The Battle of Ellandun has been dubbed one of “The most decisive Battle of English History” by many. It completely changed the face and politics of Saxon Britian and ensured King Egbert (Ecgbehrt) of Wessex made the history books. More information on Egbert can be found on my previous blog, “From exile to First King of England”.  The Battle of Ellandun ended Mercian Supremcy.  This blog probably isn’t going to be very long, the reason being is because the Battle of Ellandun was not recorded, or if it was recorded then these records got lost.  However I wanted to do a blog on it as it was such a important battle in Saxon Britian and it was, as previously mentioned, the battle which put King Egbert in the history books.  Location  Due to no records being recorded, or the records being lost, the exact location of the Battle is unknown and very much debatable. However, we know it was near Swindon. Evidence and research suggests that it was likely to have taken place...

In this post I am going to be giving you a snap shot of the Saxons. The first kings of England were Saxons, which is why I believe it is important to have a basic understanding of the Saxons before we look at their kings.  Who are the Saxons? The Saxons were a Germanic tribe that originally occupied the region which today is the North Sea coast of the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark.  The Saxon period in Britian dates from 450AD until 1066AD, until the Norman Conquest.  The Saxons attempted to raid English shores in 350AD but was pushed back by the Romans, then when the Romans left Britain in 410AD, it left the English shores unprotected and allowed the Saxons to settle in 450AD in Kent.  In 556AD, the Saxons created the 7 Kingdoms. These are crucial to remember, as they will be mentioned a lot when we start looking at the Saxon kings.  The Seven Kingdoms  The Seven Kingdoms were created by the Saxons in 556AD. The seven kingdom were, Northumbria, Mercia, ...