What was the best Anglo-saxon kingdom and why was it Wessex?
>>1326337
>why was it Wessex?
Because they stomped Guthrum and his """""great""""" heathen army.
>>1326337
Northumbria gets my vote because Lindisfarne is arguably the greatest Anglo-Saxon contribution to world culture.
>>1326337
Kent because reasons.
>>1326350
You mean after that army had been worn down conquering all the other saxon kingdoms?
lol not much of an achievement.
>>1326337
Is there a relation between the english province of Cumbria and the Welsh name Cymru?
>tfw live in Peterborough
>tfw live in East Anglia
I know a lot of people like Wessex and such, but can anyone give me some good shit about East Anglia?
>>1326337
Long live Mercia!!!! Death to the heathens.
>>1326425
To be fair, the Heathen Army did get a pretty big advantage by surprise attacking him during his Christmas feast. ((As in Alfred the GREAT))
>>1326428
Yeah there is. The old Cumbric language is close to Welsh
>>1326337
Mercia was very powerful during the 8th century, King Offa was hegemon of the Anglo-Saxons, i.e. everyone else paid him tribute and agreed not to invade Mercia.
He also delineated the Welsh border with a great long ditch. Absolute madman.
>>1326639
Is the ditch still visible
>>1326748
i don't know if the entire thing is still in place but
>>1326337
>northumbria
>there's no south umbria
>east anglia
>there's no west anglia
>>1326748
Yes, I've been to it myself. Not hugely impressive, just a long ditch. But it was much deeper originally and probably had wooden fortifications.
Cool
>>1326337
Mercia literally has the coolest High Fantasy-ass name ever so all other Kingdoms are beat.
>>1326337
I'm actually More interested in the old Celtic kingdoms
>>1326864
fuck you
>>1326905
I like the Saxon countries too. But my family is originally from Cumbria
>>1326764
>sussex
>wessex
>essex
>MIDDLESEX
>no fucking norsex
>>1327231
Fucking anglos, seriously. How was this allowed?
>>1327234
actually, those are the saxons. that's where the "-sex" come from
>>1326764
Northumbria = North of the Humber.
East Anglia = Eastmost of the Angles.
>>1327234
>How was this allowed?
Willkommen to Germanic languages, anon
There was a Middle Anglia too.
My favourite was the Jutish kingdom on the Isle of Wight.
>>1328016
Stuff and Whitgar, the greatest dynasty founders.
>>1326337
Deira. Edwin was the greatest Bretwalda, just ahead of 'Emperor' Coenwulf, the first emperor in Europe after the fall of Rome (Disputed).
Wessex makes good tubas.
>>1326639
>He also delineated the Welsh border with a great long ditch
Sounds vaguely familiar
>>1326337
It's hard to imagine cloak-dressed, long haired, bearded men who drank from horns and wore furs and worshipped Wodan, living in Kent.
>Elfenstal carries a 2-metre sword; He lives in Kent
>The battle cry of the Saxons against the hordes of the Picts as they are about to clash in Kent.
>go to wikipedia
>see this:
>"The history of the Anglo-Saxons is the history of a cultural identity. It developed from divergent groups in association with the people's adoption of Christianity"
this is why one should never go to wikipedia
>>1326337
>"""Great"""
Heathen
>"""Army"""
>>1326909
There were many post-Roman Celtic kingdoms across the British Isles after the end of Roman control. Many of them had been in the Roman vein early on but had deteriorated into petty kingdoms based on often on decayed Roman provincial centres like Wroxeter, Carlisle or Canterbury. Some examples include Rhegin on the southern coast, the kingdoms of North and South Rheged, Elmet based at Eboracum, old Venta in Hampshire etc. The north was initially all held under one semi-mythological figure called Coel, or Old King Coel, the ruler of the Hen Oggledd (Old North). Possibly appointed by the Roman authorities, or maybe even a high-ranking Roman dux himself, he held the north against the initial Pictish incursions in the 5th century. Upon his death the stupid Celtic tradition of dividing land up amongst all your sons gradually led to the fragmentation of the north into warring kingdoms.
