The Timeline of conflict in Anglo-Saxon Britain is concerned with the period of history from just before the departure of the

Roman Army The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval contin ...

, in the 4th century, to just after the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...

in the 11th century. The information is mainly derived from annals and the

Venerable Bede Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...

. The dates, particularly from the fourth to the late sixth centuries, have very few contemporary sources and are largely later constructions by medieval chroniclers.Gransden. Historical Writing. Ch. 1. Gildas and Nennius The historian Diana Greenway described one such 12th-century chronicler,

Henry of Huntingdon Henry of Huntingdon ( la, Henricus Huntindoniensis; 1088 – AD 1157), the son of a canon in the diocese of Lincoln, was a 12th-century English historian and the author of ''Historia Anglorum'' (Medieval Latin for "History of the English"), ...

, as a 'weaver' compiler of history, and the archaeologist Martin Welch described the ''

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...

'' as "a product of the West Saxon court... concerned with glorifying the royal ancestry of

Alfred the Great Alfred the Great (alt. Ælfred 848/849 – 26 October 899) was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Æthelwulf and his first wife Osburh, who bot ...

. Manipulation of royal genealogies, in this and other sources, to enhance the claims of contemporary rulers was common. Literary formulas associated with original myths are a common feature of earlier entries."Huntingdon. ''Historia Anglorum.'' p. 97Welch. ''Anglo-Saxon England''. p. 9. Although the timeline uses the annals for this period of history, information provided by these sources can be problematic, particularly with the earlier dates.

Chronology

Constructing a chronology of the early Anglo-Saxon period, and how the

Anglo-Saxons The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

took over land in Britain from Romano-Britons (Celtic-speakers, Latin-speakers, or both), is highly complex. The limitations of source material place constraints on just how accurate any chronology can be. As an example, the following table shows how much variation there is between historians on just one date, the

Battle of Badon The Battle of Badon /ˈbeɪdən/ also known as the Battle of Mons Badonicus ( la, obsessio isBadonici montis, "Blockade/Siege of the Badonic Hill"; ''Bellum in monte Badonis'', "Battle on Badon Hill"; ''Bellum Badonis'', "Battle of Badon"; Ol ...

: Much of the dating of the period comes from

Bede Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...

(672/673–735), who in his ''

Ecclesiastical History of the English People The ''Ecclesiastical History of the English People'' ( la, Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum), written by Bede in about AD 731, is a history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the conflict be ...

'', tried to compute dates for events in early Anglo-Saxon history.Gransden. Historical Writing. pp. 11–23 Although primarily writing about church history, Bede is seen as Britain's first true historian, in that he cited his references and listed events according to dates rather than regnal lists. So we know that he relied heavily on ''

De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae ''De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae'' ( la, On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain, sometimes just ''On the Ruin of Britain'') is a work written in Latin by the 6th-century AD British cleric St Gildas. It is a sermon in three parts condemning ...

'' by

Gildas Gildas (Breton: ''Gweltaz''; c. 450/500 – c. 570) — also known as Gildas the Wise or ''Gildas Sapiens'' — was a 6th-century British monk best known for his scathing religious polemic ''De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae'', which recounts ...

, a sixth-century cleric, for his early dates and historians have found Gildas unreliable where dates were concerned.Bede. Ecclesiastical History. Farmer Ed. p. 24. Bede's work was widely read among the literate in the

Anglo-Saxon kingdoms The Heptarchy were the seven petty kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England that flourished from the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain in the 5th century until they were consolidated in the 8th century into the four kingdoms of Mercia, Northumbria, Wess ...

, and his dates were used by the

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s who compiled the various

s from the late ninth century onwards.Alfred the Great. Asser.(2004) pp. 275–281. - Discussion of sources, authors, dates and accuracy Some sources say that the Saxon warriors were invited to come, to the area now known as England, to help keep out invaders from Scotland and Ireland. Another reason for coming may have been because their land often flooded and it was difficult to grow crops, so they were looking for new places to settle down and farm. The most controversial dates in the period—those from the fourth to the late sixth centuries—have very few contemporary sources, and are mainly derived from later attempts to construct Anglo-Saxon history. The following is an outline of some events recorded in Bede's ''Ecclesiastical History'', the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', the ''Welsh Annals'' (''

Annales Cambriae The (Latin for ''Annals of Wales'') is the title given to a complex of Latin chronicles compiled or derived from diverse sources at St David's in Dyfed, Wales. The earliest is a 12th-century presumed copy of a mid-10th-century original; later ed ...

''), and ''

Brut y Tywysogion ''Brut y Tywysogion'' ( en, Chronicle of the Princes) is one of the most important primary sources for Welsh history. It is an annalistic chronicle that serves as a continuation of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s ''Historia Regum Britanniae''. ''Bru ...

''. Many of the dates from the fourth, fifth, and sixth century are points of contention. :AC = "from the ''

''" (English translatio
at this link
. :ASC = "from the ''

''". :B = "from

's writings". :ByT = "from ''

''". :(?) = Dates and events that are contentious or subject to debate.

4th century

*360 AD and after, and perhaps before: various

Germanic peoples The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and ear ...

(Alemanni, Saxons, etc.) came to

Roman Britain Roman Britain was the period in classical antiquity when large parts of the island of Great Britain were under occupation by the Roman Empire. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. During that time, the territory conquered was ...

: raiders, Roman armies recruited from among German tribes, some settlers (The

Saxon Shore The Saxon Shore ( la, litus Saxonicum) was a military command of the late Roman Empire, consisting of a series of fortifications on both sides of the Channel. It was established in the late 3rd century and was led by the "Count of the Saxon Shor ...

( la, litus Saxonicum)).

5th century

*410 AD: Emperor Honorius refuses a call for help from Britain, tells the cities to look to their own defence. *429 AD:

Germanus of Auxerre Germanus of Auxerre ( la, Germanus Antissiodorensis; cy, Garmon Sant; french: Saint Germain l'Auxerrois; 378 – c. 442–448 AD) was a western Roman clergyman who was bishop of Autissiodorum in Late Antique Gaul. He abandoned a career as a h ...

leads Romano-Britons to victory over Saxon raiders.Butler, Rev. Alban, "St. Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, Confessor", ''The Lives of the Saints'', Vol. VII, 1866
/ref> *c. 430 to 520: The range of dates for the

. See effects of the battle for the strategic situation resulting afterwards. *c. 446: The "

Groans of the Britons Paralanguage, also known as vocalics, is a component of meta-communication that may modify meaning, give nuanced meaning, or convey emotion, by using techniques such as prosody, pitch, volume, intonation, etc. It is sometimes defined as relatin ...

" - A last appeal (possibly to the

Consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throug ...

Aetius) for the Roman army to come back to Britain. *449:

Vortigern Vortigern (; owl, Guorthigirn, ; cy, Gwrtheyrn; ang, Wyrtgeorn; Old Breton: ''Gurdiern'', ''Gurthiern''; gle, Foirtchern; la, Vortigernus, , , etc.), also spelled Vortiger, Vortigan, Voertigern and Vortigen, was a 5th-century warlord in ...

invites

Saxons The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

to come and help them against the

Pict The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from ear ...

s, who were raiding the east coast, and allows them to settle on ''"The eastern side of the island."''Gildas. The Ruin of Britain 23. Gildas says that it is Saxons who come over to fight the Picts and settle, whereas Bede, ''HE.Book 1 Ch 15'' suggests that it is Angles ''or'' Saxons. (The name Vortigern may mean "Great King" rather than being a lifelong personal name.) *455: ASC 455. Her Hengest & Horsa fuhton wiþ Wyrtgeorne þam cyninge, in þære stowe þe is gecueden Agælesþrep, & his broþur Horsan man ofslog; & æfter þam Hengest feng to rice & Æsc his sunu. (

Battle of Aylesford The Battle of Aylesford or Epsford ( ang, Æȝelesford) was a battle between Britons and Anglo-Saxons recorded in the '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' and the ''Historia Brittonum''. Both sources concur that it involved the Anglo-Saxon leaders Hengist ...

: Here Hengest and

Horsa Hengist and Horsa are Germanic peoples, Germanic brothers said to have led the Angles, Saxons and Jutes in their invasion of Great Britain, Britain in the 5th century. Tradition lists Hengist as the first of the Jutish kings of Kingdom of Kent ...

fought against Vortigern the king, in the place that is called

Aylesford Aylesford is a village and civil parish on the River Medway in Kent, England, northwest of Maidstone. Originally a small riverside settlement, the old village comprises around 60 houses, many of which were formerly shops. Two pubs, a village s ...

, and his brother Horsa was slain; and after that Hengest took the throne with Æsc, his son.) *457: ASC 457.Her Hengest & Æsc fuhton wiþ Brettas in þære stowe þe is gecueden Crecganford & þær ofslogon .iiiim. wera, & þa Brettas þa forleton Centlond & mid micle ege flugon to Lundenbyrg. (Here Hengest & Æsc fought against

Briton British people or Britons, also known colloquially as Brits, are the citizens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the British Overseas Territories, and the Crown dependencies.: British nationality law governs mo ...

s in the place which is called Crecganford and there slew 4,000 men, and the Britons abandoned

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and with great fear fled to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

.) *c. 460:

Treachery of the Long Knives The Treason of the Long Knives ( cy, Brad y Cyllyll Hirion) is an account of a massacre of British Celtic chieftains by Anglo-Saxon soldiers at a peace conference on Salisbury Plain in the 5th century. The story is thought to be pseudohist ...

, Death of all British kings, Begin of violent land grab by

. *466:

Battle of Wippedesfleot The Battle of Wippedesfleot was a battle in 466 between the Anglo-Saxons (or Jutes), led by Hengest, and the Britons. It is described in the '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' thus: :465: :465: Here Hengest and Æsc fought together against Welsh (= ...

ASC 465. Her Hengest & Æsc gefuhton uuiþ Walas neah Wippedesfleote & þær .xii. wilisce aldormenn ofslogon, & hiera þegn an þær wearþ ofslægen, þam wæs noma Wipped. Here Hengest and Æsc fought together against the Welsh (meaning 'foreigner': the manner in which the invaders referred to the Britons) near Wippedesfleot and there slew 12 Welsh chief men, and one of their thanes was slain, whose name was Wipped. [This battle is said to have resulted in much bloodshed and slaughter on both sides, to the extent that hostilities abated for a while thereafter. It is not known where Wippedesfleot (= "Wipped's tidal estuary") was.]) *473: ASC 473. Her Hengest & Æsc gefuhton wiþ Walas & genamon unarimedlico herereaf, & þa Walas flugon þa Englan swa þær fyr. (Here Hengest & Æsc fought against Welsh and took countless war- loot, and the Welsh fled from the English like fire.) *477:(?) ASC 477. Her cuom Ælle on Bretenlond & his .iii. suna, Cymen & Wlencing & Cissa, mid .iii. scipum on þa stowe þe is nemned Cymenesora, & þær ofslogon monige Wealas & sume on fleame bedrifon on þone wudu þe is genemned Andredesleage. (Here Ælle came to Britain and

ith him The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

his 3 sons Cymen & Wlencing & Cissa, with 3 ships to the place which is named Cymenesora The_Owers,_rocks_off_Selsey.html" ;"title="cymenshore#The_Owers.html" ;"title="robably now cymenshore#The Owers">The Owers, rocks off Selsey">cymenshore#The_Owers.html" ;"title="robably now cymenshore#The Owers">The Owers, rocks off Selsey in West Sussex], and there slew many Welsh & drove some in flight into the wood which is called Andredesleag [= The Weald ].)Welch.Anglo-Saxon England p.9.- ''When Aella and his three sons land from three ships on a beach named after one of the sons, we are reading legend rather than history.'' *485:

Battle of Mercredesburne The Battle of Mercredesburne was one of three battles fought as part of the conquest of what became the Kingdom of Sussex in southern England. The battles were fought between the Saxon leader Ælle's army and the local Britons. The '' Anglo-Sa ...

ASC 485. Her Ælle gefeaht wiþ Walas neah Mearcrædesburnan stæðe. (Here Ælle fought against Welsh near the margin of Mearcrædesburna Mearcræd's stream) *491: ASC 491.Her Ælle & Cissa ymbsæton Andredescester & ofslogon alle þa þe þærinne eardedon; ne wearþ þær forþon an Bret to lafe. (Here Ælle and Cissa besieged Andredescester ow_Pevensey.html" ;"title="Pevensey.html" ;"title="ow Pevensey">ow Pevensey">Pevensey.html" ;"title="ow Pevensey">ow Pevenseyand slew all who dwelt therein; no Briton was left [alive] afterwards.) *c. 497: Defeat of the

in the

Battle of Mons Badonicus The Battle of Badon /ˈbeɪdən/ also known as the Battle of Mons Badonicus ( la, obsessio isBadonici montis, "Blockade/Siege of the Badonic Hill"; ''Bellum in monte Badonis'', "Battle on Badon Hill"; ''Bellum Badonis'', "Battle of Badon"; Old W ...

Britons British people or Britons, also known colloquially as Brits, are the citizens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the British Overseas Territories, and the Crown dependencies.: British nationality law governs mo ...

led by

King Arthur King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a ...

6th century

*c. 500 AD: Average of suggested dates for the

. *c. 500 AD:

Angles The Angles ( ang, Ængle, ; la, Angli) were one of the main Germanic peoples who settled in Great Britain in the post-Roman period. They founded several kingdoms of the Heptarchy in Anglo-Saxon England. Their name is the root of the name ' ...

colonised the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

and

Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between th ...

coastal areas, particularly around

Holderness Holderness is an area of the East Riding of Yorkshire, on the north-east coast of England. An area of rich agricultural land, Holderness was marshland until it was drained in the Middle Ages. Topographically, Holderness has more in common wit ...

. *501: ASC 501.Her cuom Port on Bretene & his .ii. suna Bieda & Mægla mid .ii. scipum on þære stowe þe is gecueden Portesmuþa & ofslogon anne giongne Brettiscmonnan, swiþe æþelne monnan. (Here Port and his 2 sons Bieda and Mægla came to Britain with 2 ships to the place which is called

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

and slew a young British man, a very noble man. '' ut this may be an old fiction, as a folk-etymology to explain the placename Ports-mouth.' ) *508: ASC 508.Her Cerdic & Cynric ofslogon ænne Brettisccyning, þam was nama Natanleod, & .v. þusendu wera mid him. Æfter was þæt lond nemned Natanleaga oþ Cerdicesford. (Here

Cerdic Cerdic (; la, Cerdicus) is described in the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' as a leader of the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, being the founder and first king of Saxon Wessex, reigning from 519 to 534 AD. Subsequent kings of Wessex were each cla ...

and

Cynric Cynric () was King of Wessex from 534 to 560. Everything known about him comes from the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle''. There, he is stated to have been the son of Cerdic, who is considered the founder of the kingdom of Wessex. However, the 'Genealogic ...

slew a British king, whose name was

Natanleod Natanleod, according to the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', was a king of the Britons. His inclusion in the ''Chronicle'' is believed to be the product of folk etymology. Under the year 508, a date which is not to be relied upon,Campbell, ''Anglo-Sax ...

, and 5000 men with him. Afterwards that land was named Natanleag as far as Cerdicesford _North_Charford_and_South_Charford.html" ;"title="North_Charford.html" ;"title=" North Charford"> North Charford and South Charford">North_Charford.html" ;"title=" North Charford"> North Charford and South Charford ].) *c. 520: Saxons took control of Sussex, Kent, East Anglia and part of Yorkshire, West Saxons founded a Kingdom in Hampshire under

. *535 & 536: The

extreme weather events of 535–536 The volcanic winter of 536 was the most severe and protracted episode of climatic cooling in the Northern Hemisphere in the last 2,000 years. The volcanic winter was caused by an eruption, with several possible locations proposed in various contin ...

likely caused a great famine and thus population loss. *In or before 547:

Bernicia Bernicia ( ang, Bernice, Bryneich, Beornice; la, Bernicia) was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England. The Anglian territory of Bernicia was ap ...

established by Angles taking over part of a British area called

Bryneich Bernicia ( ang, Bernice, Bryneich, Beornice; la, Bernicia) was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England. The Anglian territory of Bernicia was appr ...

. *Around 549: A great plague caused much population loss. *556

Battle of Beran Byrig At the Battle of Beran Byrig or Beranburh the West Saxons are said to have defeated the Britons at Barbury Castle Hill Fort near Swindon in the year 556. The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' entry for the year states: (This year Cynric and Ceawlin fo ...

. The West Saxons are said to have defeated the Britons at Barbury Castle Hill Fort near Swindon. *About 560: Saxons conquered all of east

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

and the British kingdom of

Ebrauc The history of York, England, as a city dates to the beginning of the first millennium AD but archaeological evidence for the presence of people in the region of York dates back much further to between 8000 and 7000 BC. As York was a town i ...

, and there established

Deira Deira ( ; Old Welsh/Cumbric: ''Deywr'' or ''Deifr''; ang, Derenrice or ) was an area of Post-Roman Britain, and a later Anglian kingdom. Etymology The name of the kingdom is of Brythonic origin, and is derived from the Proto-Celtic *''daru' ...

. *571: ASC 571.Her Cuþwulf feaht wiþ Bretwalas æt Bedcan forda. & .iiii. tunas genom, Lygeanburg. & Ægelesburg. Benningtun. & Egonesham. & þy ilcan geare he gefor. ( Battle of Bedcanford: Here Cuthwulf fought against

s at Bedcanford and took 4 settlements:

Limbury Limbury is a suburb of Luton, in the Luton district, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England, and was formerly a village before Luton expanded around it. The area is roughly bounded by Bramingham Road to the north, Marsh Road to the so ...

Aylesbury Aylesbury ( ) is the county town of Buckinghamshire, South East England. It is home to the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery, David Tugwell`s house on Watermead and the Waterside Theatre. It is in central Buckinghamshire, midway between High Wy ...

Benson Benson may refer to: Animals *Benson (fish), largest common carp caught in Britain Places Geography Canada *Rural Municipality of Benson No. 35, Saskatchewan; rural municipality *Benson, Saskatchewan; hamlet United Kingdom * Benson, Oxfordshire ...

Eynsham Eynsham is an English village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Oxfordshire, about north-west of Oxford and east of Witney. The United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 Census recorded a parish population of 4,648. It was estimated at 5,0 ...

. And in the same year he died.) *573:

Battle of Arfderydd The Battle of Arfderydd (also known as Arderydd) was fought, according to the Annales Cambriae, in 573. The opposing armies are variously given in a number of Old Welsh sources, perhaps suggesting a number of allied armies were involved. The main ...

Arthuret Arthuret is a civil parish in the Carlisle district of Cumbria, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,434, increasing to 2,471 at the 2011 Census. The parish includes the town of Longtown and the village of Easton. It is ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

: Briton fought Briton and weakened their numbers. *577:

Battle of Dyrham The Battle of Deorham (or Dyrham) is claimed as a decisive military encounter between the West Saxons and the Britons of the West Country in 577. The battle, which was a major victory for Wessex's forces led by Ceawlin and his son, Cuthwine, r ...

: Capture of

Glevum Glevum (or, more formally, Colonia Nervia Glevensium, or occasionally ''Glouvia'') was originally a Roman fort in Roman Britain that became a " colonia" of retired legionaries in AD 97. Today, it is known as Gloucester, in the English county ...

Corinium Corinium Dobunnorum was the Romano-British settlement at Cirencester in the present-day English county of Gloucestershire. Its 2nd-century walls enclosed the second-largest area of a city in Roman Britain. It was the tribal capital of the Dobun ...

Aquae Sulis Aquae Sulis (Latin for ''Waters of Sulis'') was a small town in the Roman province of Britannia. Today it is the English city of Bath, Somerset. The Antonine Itinerary register of Roman roads lists the town as ''Aquis Sulis.'' Ptolemy records ...

by Saxons of

Wessex la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons , common_name = Wessex , image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg , map_caption = S ...

led by Cealin.ASC 577.Her Cuþwine & Ceawlin fuhton wiþ Brettas, & hie .iii. kyningas ofslogon, Coinmail, & Condidan, & Farinmail, in þære stowe þe is gecueden Deorham. & genamon .iii. ceastro Gleawanceaster, & Cirenceaster, & Baþanceaster. (Here

Cuthwine Cuthwine, born c. 565, was a member of the House of Wessex, the son of King Ceawlin of Wessex. Cuthwine's father Ceawlin was deposed from the throne of Wessex in 592 by his nephew Ceol. Therefore, Cuthwine never inherited the throne. Cuthwine ...

and

Ceawlin Ceawlin (also spelled Ceaulin and Caelin, died ''ca.'' 593) was a King of Wessex. He may have been the son of Cynric of Wessex and the grandson of Cerdic of Wessex, whom the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' represents as the leader of the first grou ...

fought against Britons and they slew 3 kings: Coinmail & Condidan & Farinmail, in the place which is called

Dyrham Dyrham is a village and parish in South Gloucestershire, England. Location and communications Dyrham is at lat. 51° 29' north, long. 2° 22' west (). It lies at an altitude of 100 metres above sea level. It is near the A46 trunk road, about ...

, and took 3 towns:

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

Cirencester Cirencester (, ; see below for more variations) is a market town in Gloucestershire, England, west of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in the Cotswolds. It is the home of ...

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

. ): These entries seem to show that the Britons' defences in the

English Midlands The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...

collapsed, and the peace that followed the

ended, and the Saxons obliterated the British Watling Street salient and united their areas and overran the

Verulamium Verulamium was a town in Roman Britain. It was sited southwest of the modern city of St Albans in Hertfordshire, England. A large portion of the Roman city remains unexcavated, being now park and agricultural land, though much has been built upon ...

area and much of the plain of the Midlands. Loss of Bath would separate the Britons of Wales from the Britons of the southwest. After this, the border between Saxons and the southwest Britons was probably at the Wansdyke along the ridge of the

Mendip Hills The Mendip Hills (commonly called the Mendips) is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running from Weston-super-Mare and the Bristol Channel in the west to the Frome valley in the east, the hills ...

. *581:

Ælla of Deira Ælla or Ælle is the first known king of the Anglian kingdom of Deira, which he ruled from around 560 until his death in 588. Biography The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' records that Ælla became king in 560.Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, s.a. 560 Anachro ...

took land from the Britons, thus establishing or enlarging

. *c. 584: The

Kingdom of the Iclingas la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era=Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ye ...

became

Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era=Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ye ...

. *584: ASC 584.Her Ceawlin & Cuþa fuhton wiþ Brettas, in þam stede þe mon nemneþ Feþanleag. & Cuþan mon ofslog. & Ceaulin monige tunas genom, & unarimedlice herereaf, & ierre he hwearf þonan to his agnum. (Battle of Fethanleag: Here Ceawlin and Cutha fought against Britons in the place that is named Fethanleag and Cutha was slain, and Ceawlin took many settlements and countless war- loot, and in anger he returned to his own land.) *590: Elmet joined an alliance of British kingdoms against the expanding

. See

Elmet Elmet ( cy, Elfed), sometimes Elmed or Elmete, was an independent Brittonic kingdom between about the 5th century and early 7th century, in what later became the smaller area of the West Riding of Yorkshire then West Yorkshire, South Yorkshir ...

and History of Yorkshire#Sub-Roman. *592: West Saxons were defeated in the Battle of Woden's Burg (

Wōden Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, victory, ...

's Burg). *596:

defeated an alliance of

, Scots and

Picts The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from ea ...

in the

Battle of Raith The Battle of Raith was the theory of E. W. B. Nicholson, librarian at the Bodleian Library, Oxford. He was aware of the poem Y Gododdin in the Book of Aneirin and was aware that no-one had identified the location "Catraeth". He parsed the name ...

. *Afterwards: The British king, Urien of Rheged was murdered. A feud broke out between two of this alliance's key members. *597: St.

Augustine of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury (early 6th century – probably 26 May 604) was a monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597. He is considered the "Apostle to the English" and a founder of the English Church.Delaney '' ...

, a monk sent by

Pope Gregory I Pope Gregory I ( la, Gregorius I; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was the bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 to his death. He is known for instigating the first recorded large-scale mission from Rome, the Gregori ...

, arrived in the

Kingdom of Kent la, Regnum Cantuariorum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the Kentish , common_name = Kent , era = Heptarchy , status = vassal , status_text = , government_type = Monarchy ...

on a mission to convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity, under the patronage of King

Æthelberht of Kent Æthelberht (; also Æthelbert, Aethelberht, Aethelbert or Ethelbert; ang, Æðelberht ; 550 – 24 February 616) was King of Kent from about 589 until his death. The eighth-century monk Bede, in his ''Ecclesiastical History of the Engli ...

, reputedly a descendant of Hengest.

7th century

*c. 600:

Battle of Catraeth The Battle of Catraeth was fought around AD 600 between a force raised by the Gododdin, a Brythonic people of the ''Hen Ogledd'' or "Old North" of Britain, and the Angles of Bernicia and Deira. It was evidently an assault by the Gododdin party o ...

( Catterick): also see

Y Gododdin ''Y Gododdin'' () is a medieval Welsh poem consisting of a series of elegies to the men of the Brittonic kingdom of Gododdin and its allies who, according to the conventional interpretation, died fighting the Angles of Deira and Bernicia at a p ...

: An army from the Celtic kingdom of

Gododdin The Gododdin () were a Brittonic people of north-eastern Britannia, the area known as the Hen Ogledd or Old North (modern south-east Scotland and north-east England), in the sub-Roman period. Descendants of the Votadini, they are best known a ...

fell in battle against the

and

at Catterick in

. *c. 604: Deira and Bernicia united as

Northumbria la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria , common_name = Northumbria , status = State , status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...

. *Afterwards:

built earthworks in near

Aberford Aberford is a village and civil parish on the eastern outskirts of the City of Leeds metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 1,059 at the 2001 census, increasing to 1,180 at the 2011 Census. It is situated eas ...

, north and west of Barwick-in-Elmet where Elmet's king's seat was. *614: ASC 614.Her Cynegils & Cuichelm gefuhton on Beandune, & ofslogon .ii. þusendo Wala & .lxvi. (Here Cynegils and Cwichelm fought together at Beandun, and slew 2,066 Welsh.) *616: Autumn - Northumbria invaded and conquered Elmet. *616: Likeliest date for the Battle of Chester, between a Northumbrian army and a Welsh army: heavy Welsh casualties, and their defeat severed the land connection between Wales and the Celts of northwest Britain. *633, 12 October: Battle of Hatfield Chase, Battle of Hatfield (AC: 630, Meigen) near Doncaster in

: Gwynedd and

attacked and defeated

;

and

temporarily returned to Celtic rule. *633 or 634: Battle of Heavenfield (AC: 631, Cantscaul) about 6 miles NW of Hexham: Northumbria expels the Gwynedd army. *642: ASC 642.Her Oswald Norþanhymbra cyning ofslægen wæs. (Here Oswald of Northumbria, Oswald king of Northumbria was slain) ''This may be the same battle as'':- *644: The Battle of Maserfield (alias Battle of Maes Cogwy), in which Oswald king of the Northmen and Eawa king of the Celtic Mercians fell. AC B *652: Cenwalh of Wessex won a battle at Bradford-on-Avon. *655, 15 Nov: Battle of the Winwaed in which King Oswiu of Bernicia defeated and killed King Penda of Mercia. King Cadafael Cadomedd ap Cynfeddw, Cadafael ap Cynfeddw of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd was allied with Penda but stayed out of the battle. *658: ASC 658.Her Cenwalh gefeaht æt Peonnum wiþ Walas, & hie gefliemde oþ Pedridan; þis wæs gefohten siþþan he of East Englum com. He wæs þær .iii. gear on wrece, hæfde hine Penda adrifenne, & rices benumenne. forþon he his swostor anforlet. (Here Cenwalh of Wessex, Cenwalh Battle of Peonnum, fought against Welsh [= Britons] at Penselwood, and drove them in flight as far as [the river] Parrett [in Somerset]; this was fought after he came from East Anglia. He was there 3 years in exile. Penda had driven him out, and taken his kingdom, because he abandoned his [= Penda's] sister.) *682: ASC 682. On þissum geare Centwine gefliemde Bretwealas oþ sę.''On the Parker MS it was 682. On the Cotton Tiberius 683'' This year also, Centwine chased the Britons into the sea.

8th century

*710: ASC 710..... & þam ylcan geare feaht Beorhtfrið ealdorman wið Pehtas betwux Hæfe & Cære, & Ine & Nun his mæg gefuhton wið Gerente Weala cyninge, (... and in the same year ealdorman Beorhtfrith fought against

s between [the rivers] River Avon, Falkirk, Avon and River Carron (Forth), Carron [which flow into the River Forth from the south about 20 miles west of Edinburgh ], and Ine of Wessex, Ine and his relative Nunna fought against Geraint of Dumnonia, Geraint king of Welsh ... [This second battle may have been the Battle of Llongborth.] ) ... *722: According to the

, 722 saw "the battle of Hehil among the Cornish people, Cornish, the battle of Garth Maelog, [and] the battle of Pencon among the south Britons (historic), Britons, and the Britons were the victors in those three battles." *Before 730: Northumbria annexed the kingdom of Rheged. *760: A battle between the Britons and the Saxons, the Battle of Hereford, in which Dyfnwal son of Tewdwr dies. AC *778: The devastation of the South Britons by Offa. AC *779: "Cynewulf of Wessex, Cynewulf and Offa fought at Battle of Bensington, Bensington, and Offa took the town." Asc *784: The devastation of Britain by Offa in the summer AC *794: ASC 794.Her Adrianus papa & Offa cyning forþferdon ... (796 [corrected from 794]: In this year pope Hadrian and king Offa die.) (AC: 797: Offa king of the Mercians and Maredudd king of the Demetae, Demetians die, and the battle of Rhuddlan.) *798: Caradog king of Gwynedd is killed by the Saxons. AC

9th century

*813: ASC 813.... & þy geare gehergade Ecgbryht cyning on West Walas from easteweardum oþ westewearde. (815 [corrected from 813]: ... and in this year king Egbert of Wessex, Ecgbryht raided in Cornwall from east to west.) *816: ... Saxons invaded the mountains of Eryri and the kingdom of Rhufoniog. AC *818: Cenwulf devastated the Dyfed region. AC *822: The fortress of Degannwy is destroyed by the Saxons and they took the kingdom of Powys into their own control. AC *823: ASC 823.Her wæs Wala gefeoht & Defna æt Gafulforda. ... (825 [corrected from 823]: Here was a fight of Welsh/Britons [against] men of Devon at Gafulford ...) *825: The Battle of Ellendun was fought in Wiltshire between Ecgberht of Wessex and Beornwulf of Mercia It effectively ended Mercian Supremacy over the southern kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England and established West Saxon dominance in southern England. *835: ASC 835.Her cuom micel sciphere on Westwalas & hie to anum gecierdon, & wiþ Ecgbryht West Seaxna cyning winnende wæron. Þa he þæt hierde & mid fierde ferde & him wiþ feaht æt Hengestdune & þær gefliemde ge þa Walas ge þa Deniscan. (838 [corrected from 835]: Here a great ship-army [of Vikings] came to Cornwall and they [= the Cornish] joined them, and were fighting against Egbert of Wessex, Ecgbryht king of the Kingdom of the West Saxons, West Saxons. Then he heard and with an army fought against them at Hingston Down, Hengestdun and there put to flight both the Cornish people, Cornish and the Danes (Germanic tribe), Danes.) *877: Rhodri Mawr, a Welsh opponent of the Vikings, and his son Gwriad were killed by Mercian forces, even though Mercia was almost completely under the control of the Vikings at the time.Mercia and the Making of England. p. 107 AC *878:

defeated the remnants of the Great Heathen Army at The Battle of Edington. A *893:A combined force containing men from Mercia, Wessex and Wales besieged the Vikings at Buttington for several weeks, starving them out until finally the Vikings had to emerge and they were defeated there by the English and the Welsh: the surviving Vikings fled back to Essex.Mercia and the Making of England. p. 84A

10th century

*4 and 5 August 910 Battle of Wednesfield near Wolverhampton. 'The first written references to Wednesfield came in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle where there is mention of a great battle at Wednesfield in which the Mercians and their allies inflicted a defeat on the Danes, leading to the effective end of their power.' *927: Athelstan evicted the Cornish from Exeter and refortified the city.Wood. In search of the Dark Ages.pp. 146 - 147.''He(Athelstan) now attacked the 'West Welsh'(Cornish) ..crushed their opposition, deported the dissident minority, established a new boundary at the Tamar.. Athelstan was remembered in Cornwall not as a conquering warlord but as the benefactor of their churches.'' *934: Æthelstan's invasion of Scotland *936: King Athelstan set the boundary between English people, England and Cornish people, Cornwall at the River Tamar. *937: Æthelstan's victory at the Battle of Brunanburh *946: ... And Kingdom of Strathclyde, Strathclyde was laid waste by the Saxons.Woods. Dark Ages. p.152. Constantine king of the Scots broke his treaty with Athelstan. Whether he was already plotting against Athelstan we can not say, but he must have refused to pay tribute. Athelstan's response was swift.. AC

11th century

* 1016: Battle of Assandun, fought in Essex on 18 October between the armies of Edmund Ironside (King of England) and Cnut, Canute (King of Denmark). * 1059: Macht, son of Harold, came to Wales with a great army in his train; and the Prince Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, Gruffudd, and Macht, with combined forces, proceeded against the Saxons, and devastated the country of England a great way towards its centre; and they returned to Wales with great spoil. ByT * 1060: Caradoc, son of Rhydderch, son of lestin, hired Harold to come with an army to S.Wales. Then, conjointly with a great host of the men of Glamorgan and Gwent, they went against Grufudd. After Grufudd, son of Llywelyn, was slain, his head was cut off and taken as a present to Harold. (The ASC dates this as 1063) ByT * 1063: Here Earl Harold Godwinson, Harold and his brother Earl Tostig went into Wales both with land-army and ship-army, and conquered that land; and that people gave hostages and submitted to them, and afterwards went to and killed their king Gruffudd, and brought Harold his head, and he set another king for it. ASC (Peterborough manuscript). * 1066: Battle of Hastings. William, Duke of Normandy, came as an intruder to the island of Britain, and a pitched battle took place between him and Harold; in which, after a severe and bloody fight, Harold was killed. ByT * 1068: Some of the Saxons sought protection from the Normans in Powys then..'' Afterwards, by the power of the Saxons, Bleddyn, son of Cynvyn, reigned sole king of Gwynedd and Powys; and Meredydd, son of Owain, son of Edwin, by the power of the Saxons became prince of South Wales.'' ByT

ASC Notes

''The Timeline was constructed using the following extracts from the

, they are in their original Old English form. For a more complete version and explanatio
Click Here
:''

Notes

References

* Commissioned in the reign of Alfred the Great * * * Bede. (1903). Translation based on L.C. Jane * * * * * Gildas. (1848). Translation based on Thomas Habington & J. A. Giles * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Timeline Of Anglo-Saxon Settlement In Britain Sub-Roman Britain Conflict in Anglo-Saxon England British history timelines, Anglo-Saxon Settlement In Britain