Starter quiz
- What is one of the few written sources that survives from Anglo-Saxon Britain called?
- The Bayeux Tapestry
- The Doomsday Book
- The Law of Aethelbert ✓
- The Magna Carta
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- Which statements accurately describe what 'law codes' were and why they are of historical significance?
- Law codes were detailed instructions for building settlements. ✓
- Law codes were long lists of rules that everyone in the kingdom had to follow.
- Law codes allow historians to understand the layout of buildings in settlements.
- Law codes allow historians to infer that society was very violent. ✓
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- What was given to Anglo-Saxons if they were hurt by someone?
- gifts
- compensation ✓
- verbal apologies
- pieces of land
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- What is the name given to the system where people are ranked according to their importance?
- democracy
- monarchy
- economy
- hierarchy ✓
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- Which group of people were at the bottom of the Anglo-Saxon social hierarchy?
- enslaved people ✓
- earls
- freeman
- the king
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- Whom does the word 'widow' describe?
- a man whose wife has passed away
- a woman or man whose husband or wife has passed away
- a woman whose husband has passed away ✓
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Exit quiz
- Match the word to the correct description.
- pagan⇔a person who has beliefs other than those of the main world religions ✓
- monastery⇔a building where monks live and work together ✓
- manuscript⇔a handwritten document usually from ancient or medieval times ✓
- imagery⇔a way of describing pictures and patterns that can be seen on items ✓
- True or false. When the Anglo-Saxons first arrived in Britain they followed the Christian religion.
- True
- False ✓
- Which statement accurately describes the impact that missionaries had on Anglo-Saxon Britain?
- They taught the Anglo-Saxons about Christianity. ✓
- They introduced the Anglo-Saxons to new farming techniques.
- Many Anglo-Saxon kings converted to Christianity. ✓
- They established a new language in Anglo-Saxon Britain.
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- Starting with the earliest, order these events.
- 1⇔The Romans leave Britain.
- 2⇔The Anglo-Saxons arrive in Britain.
- 3⇔Christianity declines in Britain.
- 4⇔Missionaries convert the pagan Anglo-Saxons to Christianity.
- 5⇔The Anglo-Saxons begin to build churches on old pagan sites.
- Which statements about the Anglo-Saxon monk Bede are correct?
- He started learning at aged seven at Jarrow Abbey. ✓
- He discovered a new kind of plant in the monastery garden.
- He wrote an important manuscript about the history of Britain. ✓
- He was famous for building the largest monastery in England.
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- Complete the sentence. The ______ on 'the Franks Casket' tells us that both Christian and pagan traditions were popular around the same time.
- 'imagery' ✓
Worksheet
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Presentation
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Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Historians believe that Anglo-Saxon churches were built on sites of older pagan temples and places of worship.
- Archaeologists have found the remains of Anglo-Saxon churches and monasteries, such as Jarrow Abbey.
- These were centres of manuscript making and learning; Bede entered one aged 7 and went on to write a history of Britain.
- The Franks Casket, a 700s CE Northumbrian chest, has both pagan imagery and the Christian Adoration of the Magi.
- Historians argue about what else it shows, but it does suggest pagan traditions continued after Christianity’s spread.
Common misconception
Pupils may think that as soon as Christianity returned to Britain, pagan traditions disappeared completely.
Paganism did not completely vanish. Though the majority of Anglo-Saxons were Christians, pagan beliefs and traditions were still present.
Keywords
Pagan - a pagan is a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions
Monastery - a monastery is a building where monks live and work together dedicated to religious life
Manuscript - a manuscript is a handwritten document usually from ancient or medieval times
Imagery - imagery is a way of describing pictures and patterns that can be seen on items
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