The history of England, from the earliest times to the Norman Conquest — John Shaqi
The history of England, from the earliest times to the Norman ConquestHodgkin, Thomas
History
The history of England, from the earliest times to the Norman Conquest
Hodgkin, Thomas
Great Britain -- History -- To 1066
To the age of stone succeeded the age of bronze, and to the age of
bronze succeeded that of iron. Both in our island belong to the
domination of the Celts, except in so far as the age of iron may be
said to have lasted through Roman, Saxon and Norman domination down
to our own day. It is admitted by all that the Celtic immigrants came
in two successive waves, the distinction between which may be seen
to this day, or if not always seen in physical type, at least always
heard in the language of their descendants. The first wave, which is
generally known as the Gaelic, eventually rolled to the Highlands and
islands of Scotland and to the shores of Ireland, and is represented
philologically by the kindred dialects of Gaelic and Erse. The second
wave, popularly known as the Cymric, overspread the whole east and
centre of Britain, the Gaels being probably forced to retire before
their Cymric conquerors. To this race belong the Welsh and the Bretons
of France; and Cumberland and Cornwall once spoke their language.
Some of our most recent authorities on British ethnology, believing
the term Cymri to be of late origin and the term Gaelic to have some
misleading associations, prefer to speak of Goidels and Brythons (early
national names) instead of Gaels and Cymri; but the distinction between
the two races and the main lines of their geographical distribution
are generally accepted, and are not affected by this question of
nomenclature.
It is probable, then, that at some period whose date cannot yet be even
approximately conjectured, and from some quarter which we may guess,
but can only guess, to have been the north of Germany, a bronze-using
race of warriors and hunters, ancestors of the modern Highlander and
Irishman, crossed the sea and established themselves in the island of
Britain, or, as it was, perhaps, then called, Albion. Later on, but how
many centuries later none can say, another race, kindred but probably
hostile, invaded our shores, drove the Gaels or Goidels before them,
established themselves in the best parts of the southern portion of
the island, and, being themselves called Brythons, gave to the whole
land the name by which the Romans called it, Britannia. As we know that
iron had been introduced into the country before the arrival of the
Romans, we may conjecture that this second Celtic wave consisted of
the wielders of weapons of iron, and that this was one cause of their
victory over the Goidels. The Brythons, thus settled in the valley of
the Thames and above the chalk cliffs of Sussex, were the enemies whom
Cæsar encountered when he invaded Britain.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account