SECTION 1 Celtic Ireland SECTION 2 Christianity

2. SECTION 1Celtic Ireland SECTION 2Christianity

3. Terms to Learn People to Know • coracles • Saint Patrick • shires • sheriff • king’s peace • witenagemot • witan • Saint Columba • Pope Gregory I • Ethelbert • Bede • Alfred the Great Places to Locate • British Isles • Kent • Wessex • Daneland

4. Celtic Ireland • When the Anglo-Saxons came, most of the Celts who lived in Britain fled to Ireland. • Ireland became the major center of Celtic culture where clans of people farmed and raised cattle. • Seafaring Irish made boats large enough to hold 30 people, called coracles, by stretching cow hides over a wooden frame. • The Irish remained free of Germanic attacks because their island was located farther out in the Atlantic Ocean than Britain.

5. Celtic Ireland (cont.) • Saint Patrick, who was born in Britain in the 400s A.D., founded the Irish Church. • Ireland lost contact with Rome during the Germanic invasions of the Roman Empire. • The monasteries became centers of Irish life. • Church organization was weak, however, because of poor transportation and communication.

6. Celtic Ireland (cont.) • SaintColumba, one of the best-known monks, set up a monastery on Iona, an island off the west coast of Scotland.  • Monks from Iona went to northern England to preach to the Anglo-Saxons; other went to northern Europe, where they built monasteries and churches.  • They helped spread Christianity and learning throughout Charlemagne's empire.

7. Christianity and Anglo-Saxon England • Ireland was Christian, but the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Britain followed the Germanic religions. • In 597 A.D., Pope Gregory I sent a mission of 41 monks from Rome to England under the leadership of Augustine to convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity • Ethelbert, the king of Kent, allowed Augustine to build a church in the town of Canterbury. • One monk, Bede, was a great scholar and wrote the first history of the English people.

8. Alfred the Great • About 835 A.D., bands of Danes began attacking the coast of England to make permanent settlements. • The English kingdoms decided to resist the invaders. They chose Alfred, King of Wessex, who later became known as Alfred the Great, to resist the invaders. • As Alfred was never strong enough to completely drive the Danes from England, he signed a treaty with them. • Alfred had London rebuilt after destruction by the Danes.

9. The Government • The government of Anglo-Saxon England centered on the king who was elected by a council of lords. • Since the central government was too weak to govern the whole country, the king set up local governments divided into districts called shires. • Each shire was run by a sheriff, who was a local noble chosen by the king. • The king and his household moved around; the area the royal household was in was under the king's peace, or royal protection.

10. The Government (cont.) • A group of nobles and church leaders, known as the witenagemot, met with the king to advise and act as a court. • Each member of the group was known as a witan, or wiseman. • The group approved laws drawn up by the king and his household.

11. The People • The people in Anglo-Saxon England were generally divided into two classes–nobles and peasants. • An Anglo-Saxon became a noble by birth or as a reward for special service to the king. • Nobles had to attend the witenagemot, keep peace in local areas, and serve the king in war. • The king rewarded nobles with gifts of gold, silver, horses, weapons, and estates.

12. The People (cont.) • The peasants lived in huts in small villages on the estate and did not own their own land. • They helped each other farm the noble's land by sharing tools and oxen.