5. Anglo-Saxon Britain, the Heptarchy.

5^th century – the period of Anglo-Saxon invasion. The 5th and 6th centuries are known as Sub-Roman Britain, or the "Dark Ages"; from the 6th century larger distinctive kingdoms are developing - Heptarchy; Christianization of Anglo-Saxon England began around AD 600, influenced by Celtic Christianity from the north-west and by the Roman Catholic Church from the south-east. The Anglo-Saxon mission on the continent took off in the 8th century, leading to the Christianization. Heptarchy - the existence of seven kingdoms, which were the basis for the Kingdom of England (Northumbria,Mercia, East Anglia, Essex, Kent, Sussex and Wessex).

At first anglo saxon kings were leaders of groups of free warriors and enjoyed little privilege. The kingdoms increased in size => king had to do with the new problems=> kingship came to have a dual function: the monarch was the guardian of his people and he was the god’s representative. 9^th Wessex became the most powerful; and Edberg the king of all England.

The Saxons created institutions which made the English state strong for the next 500 years. One of these institutions was the King's Council - Witan. The Witan probably grew out of informal groups of senior warriors and churchmen to whom kings had turned for advice.

Scandinavian invasion, the Danelaw.

The 11th century was a time of turbulent warfare. The Battle of Hastings in 1066. This first and most decisive victory of the Norman Conquest of England was won by William, duke of Normandy, he had smaller but better trained and better equipped force.

Just four weeks earlier, a lesser known battle had taken place. At a site now referred to as Stamford Bridge, King Harold II had defeated a large army of Norse invaders fed by King Harald III of Norway. Before the year 1066 was over, a French-speaking Norman, rather than a Scandinavian king, had come to power in England. The triumph of the Normans was a turning point in history: It took England out of the North Sea orbit and into the cultural sphere of Europe, changing forever its language and institutions.

The Danelaw (from the Old English Dena lagu, Danish: Danelagen ) is an 11th century name for an area of northern and eastern England under the administrative control of the Danish Viking empire from the late 9th century until the early 11th century. The term is also used to describe the set of legal terms and definitions established between Alfred the Great and the Viking Guthrum. Later, around 886, the Treaty of Alfred and Guthrum was created, which established the boundaries of their kingdoms. The area occupied by the Danelaw was roughly the area to the north of a line drawn between London and Chester. Five fortified towns became particularly important in the Danelaw: Leicester, Lincoln, Nottingham, Stamford and Derby. These strongholds became known as the "Five Boroughs" - from the Old English word burg (a fortified town).

Enduring impact of the Danelaw. The influence of this period of Scandinavian settlement can still be seen in the North of England and the East Midlands, most evidently in place names: name endings such as "by" or "thorp". Comprehensible and the mixed language of the Danelaw caused the incorporation of many Norse words into the English language, including the word law itself, as well as the third person plural pronouns they, them and their. Four of the five boroughs became county towns — the counties of Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.