Storia dell'Inghilterra: dalla Britannia celtica all'epoca medievale, Sintesi del corso di Inglese

Scarica Storia dell'Inghilterra: dalla Britannia celtica all'epoca medievale e più Sintesi del corso in PDF di Inglese solo su Docsity! ENGLISH CELTIC AND ROMAN BRITAIN 1000 BCE Celts conquered France, Belgium and Britain. Celtic Europe was dominated by Gauls, Gaels and Britons and spoke some languages older than English. Religion was druidism where the Sun God was admired (maybe connected with Stonehenge). In 55-54 BCE Julius Caesar and Romans conquered the island under Emperor Claudius. Under Emperor Hadrian the Hadrians’s Wall, that runs from coast to coast, was built to defend Britannia from Scotland. Romans brought their culture including language and religion. They stayed there for about 400 years until they were recalled in 410 CE to fight in the continent. The Germanic tribes of Angles, Saxons and Jutes from the North Sea took advantage of this to invade the island (they spoke a dialect now called “old English”). ANGLO-SAXON BRITAIN The period when Anglo-Saxon England was divided into 7 Germanic kingdoms is called “Heptarchy”. Viking raids started in the eight century. From 793 onwards the Vikings destroyed many monasteries in the North, the remaining monks fled to Ireland with an evangelical book known as “Book of Kells”. As the Vikings prepared armies to conquer the island, King Alfred united Anglo-Saxon against Danes that maintained eastern England but left Wessex. His son, Edward the Elder, reconquered the Danelaw. King Edgard issued laws to recognise the multi-ethnical character of England. The last Anglo-Saxon king, Harold, defeated Vikings in 1066 but he was than forced to move his army to south to face the Norman invasion guided by William the Conqueror (Duke of Normandy). In the Battle of Hastings Harold was killed and so the Anglo-Saxon reign comes to end. CHRISTIANITY Roman introduced the Christianity that disappeared with the Anglo-Saxon. At the end of 600 Augustine, a monk, was sent to reconvert the people and so he built a church in Canterbury where he became the first Archbishop. Saint Patrick, a Roman Britain, found a church in Ireland among Celts. This form of Christianity spread particularly in the islands. NORMAN ENGLAND The first Norman king was William who was crowned in 1066 in Westmister Abbey. With him, Normandy became an English territory. He introduced the feudal system with castel to defend territory, his language (Norman French and Latin) and reduced the defeated to the condition of serfs. Is important to remember the survey commissioned in 1085 to calculated the amount of taxes. This survey was published the year later in a book which offer precious information about that historical time. William I was succeeded by: William II (unpopular), Henry I (first Norman king born in England, spoke as well English as French), Stephen (weak king who lost control of much of England). When Stephen died Henry Plantagenet became king. Henry II became the first king in the French Plantagenet line. He was a strong king and an able solider that dominated most of France also thanks to 3 reforms: • Reform of the army: he introduced a new tax to pay mercenaries (to reduce the power of the barons). • Reform in the field of justice: he introduced travelling judges (pairs of judges travelling along a circuit, visiting the various properties to administer justice) that replaced “the trial by ordeal”. • Reform in the religion field: he named Thomas Becket Archbishop of Canterbury, but then he killed him by 4 knights He’s also remembered for the conflict with the Church and the murder of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Was succeeded by his son Richard (nominated “Lionheart” for his bravery and military abilities) who spent only few months in England, in fact he takes part to crusade. During his absence reigned his brother, John, unpopular figure on whom the story of Robin Hood is based. After the Richard’s death, John became king and lost all England possession in France. The barons rebelled to the king for the exaggerated taxes imposed and forced him to sign the Magna Charta (freedom under law for everyone, including the king). In 1337 began the 100 years’ war to regain the lost territories. Edward III won at Crecy and Poitiers; however Henry V won in Agincount. Under Henry VI fortunes changed till the French regained their territories in 1453. In 1348 arrived in England the Black Death, the worst plague for the nation that lost half population. This reduction of the population changed the social structure, in fact the reduced number of serfs obligated lords to pay for workers. In 1381 a revolt was checked, the feudal system was beginning to crumble. After wars England went to the dispute between the House of York and the House of Lancaster (two branches of the Plantagenet family). This war was named “War of the Roses”, cause of the symbols of the Hauses, which end with the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485 where won the House of Lancaster. Became king Henry VII, first member of the Tudor dynasty, that united the 2 family through marriage. This dynasty brought a period of strength and growth and signed the end of the medieval period. BRITISH MUSEUM Founded in 1753, was the first national public museum in the world (London). It holds a collection of art from ancient and living cultures of the world spanning two million years of human history. It’s permanent collection, numbering eight million works, is among the largest in existence. It includes the Rosetta Stone, the Parthenon Sculptures and the Sutton Hoo Treasure. In 1939 an archaeologist excavated the largest of 18 burial mounds in the grounds of a country house at Sutton Hoo. Inside, he discovered a burial in a large ship. The mound covered a ship with an astonishing range of weapons and armour, gold jewellery, silver vessels and coins. Many artefacts founded here are: gold belt buckle (an intricate pattern of stylised snakes biting their own bodies, birds and other animals decorate the buckle’s surface), large circular shield (with a predatory bird and flying dragon), the Sutton Hoo helmet (the centrepiece burial exhibit in there). ANGLO-SAXON LITERATURE The main literary genres are epic poetry and the elegy, it centred around religious subjects and is inspired by Christianity expressed in Old English. It also exalted the qualities of the warriors, who were bravery and heroism, but was also pervaded by a deep sense of pessimism and melancholy regarding the condition of man. The most important poetic work of the Anglo-Saxon Age is "Beowulf”, an anonymous epic poem belonging to the oral tradition and transcribed by a monk in the ninth century. Beowful reflects a time in the history of Germanic society when Paganism mingled with the Christian faith. Beowulf was a Scandinavian prince characterised by bravery, integrity and altruism. There were supernatural creatures and battle scenes. It also pervaded by a strong sense of sadness. The elegy, characterised by a sense of melancholy, the adoption of a meditative tone and the focus on the themes of loss and grief. The most famous among Anglo-Saxon elegies is The Seafarer, a surprisingly moving reflection on the hard conditions of life of an Anglo- Saxon explorer of the sea.