History Roman Britain.docx

History Roman Britain.docx

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HistoryRomanBritain

RomanBritain

Hadrian'sWall（哈德良长城） viewedfromVercovicium

AfterCaesar'sexpeditions,theRomansbegantheirrealattempttoconquerBritainin43AD,atthebehestof（在……的命令下）theEmperorClaudius.TheylandedinKent,anddefeatedtwoarmiesledbythekingsofthe Catuvellauni tribe, Caratacus and Togodumnus,inbattlesattheMedway（麦德威河）andtheThames.Togodumnuswaskilled,andCaratacusfledtoWales.TheRomanforce,ledbyAulusPlautius,thenhaltedasPlautiussentforClaudiustocomeandfinishthecampaign.WhenClaudiusarrivedheledthefinalmarchontheCatuvellaunicapitalat Camulodunum,beforereturningtoRomeagainforhistriumph.TheCatuvellauniatthistimeheldswayover（支配）themostofthesoutheasterncornerofEngland;elevenlocalrulerssurrendered,anumberofclientkingdoms（附庸国）wereestablished,andtherestbecameaRomanprovincewithCamulodunumasitscapital.

Overthenextfouryears,theterritorywasconsolidated（巩固）andthefutureemperor VespasianledacampaignintotheSouthwestwherehesubjugated（征服）twomoretribes.By54ADtheborderhadbeenpushedbacktotheSevern（赛文河）andtheTrent（特伦托河）,andcampaignswereunderwaytosubjugateNorthernEnglandandWales.In60ADhowever,undertheleadershipofthewarrior-queen Boudicca,thetribesroseinrevoltagainsttheRomans.Camulodunumwasburnedtotheground,aswellas Londinium and Verulamium,thereissomearchaeologicalevidencethatthesamehappenedatWinchesteraswell,andtheSecondLegion（军团）Augusta,stationedat Exeter,refusedtomoveforfearofrevoltamongthelocalsthereaswell.Thegovernorhowever, SuetoniusPaulinus,marchedbackfromhiscampaigninWalestofaceBoudiccainbattle.Therewasasubstantialengagement,somewherealongthelineofWatlingStreet,attheendofwhichBoudiccawasutterlydefeated.Theprovincewaspacified（平定）oncemore.

Overthenexttwentyyearsthebordersexpandedbutlittle,butthegovernorshipofAgricolasawthelastpocketsofindependenceinWalesandNorthernEnglandfinallyincorporatedintotheprovince.HealsoledacampaignintoScotland,butfromtheseconquestshewasrecalledbytheEmperorDomitian,andthebordergraduallysolidified（凝固，团结）alongthelineoftheStanegate inNorthernEngland. Hadrian'sWall wasbuiltalongthislinein138AD;apartfromanumberoftemporaryforays（突袭，侵略）intoScotland,thiswasnowtheborder.TheRomans,andtheirculture,wereheretostay;overthecourseoftheirthreehundredandfiftyyearsincharge,England'slandscapewouldbecomeubiquitously（无所不在的）impregnatedwithtracesoftheirpresence.

TheAnglo-Saxoninvasion

Kingdomsandtribesin Britain,c.700AD

Inthewakeof（紧随而来…）thebreakdownofRomanruleinBritainfromthemiddleofthefourthcentury,presentdayEnglandwasprogressivelysettledby Germanic groups.Collectivelyknownasthe"Anglo-Saxons",thesewere Angles and Saxons from,whatisnow,theDanish/Germanborderareaand Jutes fromtheJutlandpeninsula（日德兰半岛）.Theentireregionwasreferredtoas,"Hwicce"andsettlementsthroughoutthesouthwerecalled Gewisse.The BattleofDeorham wasacriticalbattlethatestablishedtheAnglo-Saxonrulein577.Saxonmercenaries（雇佣兵）hadbeenpresentinBritainsincebeforethelateRomanperiod,butthemaininfluxofpopulationisthoughttohavetakenplaceafterthefifthcentury.Theprecisenatureoftheseinvasionshasnotbeenfullydetermined,withdoubtsbeingcastonthelegitimacyofhistoricalaccountsduetoalackofarchaeologicalfinds. TheBritonstheninvitedthe Saxons intotheisland,hopingtorepeltheinvadingarmiesofthenorth.Totheirdismay（沮丧，灰心）,theSaxonsthemselvesturnedagainsttheBritonsaftervanquishingtheScotsandPicts.

SevenKingdomsaretraditionallyidentifiedasbeingestablishedbytheseSaxonmigrants.Threewereclustered（聚合）intheSoutheast:

 Sussex, Kent and Essex.TheMidlandsweredominatedbythekingdomsof Mercia and EastAnglia.The MonarchsofMercia'slineage（血统，世系）wasdeterminedtoreachasfarbackastheearly500's.Tothenorthwas Northumbria whichunifiedtwoearlierkingdoms, Bernicia and Deira.Thedevelopmentofthesekingdomsledtotheeventualdominationby Northumbria andMercia inthe7thcentury, Mercia inthe8thcenturyandthen Wessex inthe9thcentury. Northumbria extendeditscontrolnorthinto Scotland andwestintoWales.Italsosubdued（征服，制服） Mercia whosefirstpowerfulKing, Penda,waskilledby Oswy in655.Northumbria'spowerbegantowaneafter685withthedefeatanddeathofitsking Aegfrith atthehandsofthe Picts.Mercianpowerreacheditspeakundertheruleof Offa,whofrom785hadinfluenceovermostofAnglo-SaxonEngland.FromOffa'sdeathin796thesupremacyof Wessex wasestablishedunder Egbert whoextendedhiscontrolwestinto Cornwall beforedefeatingtheMerciansatthe BattleofEllendun in825.FouryearslaterhereceivedsubmissionandtributefromtheNorthumbrianking, Eanred.

Thesequenceofeventsofthefifthandsixthcenturiesisparticularlydifficulttoaccess,pepperedwith（使布满）amixtureofmythology,suchasthecharactersofHengistandHorsa,andlegend,suchasSt Germanus'sso-called"AlleluiaVictory"againsttheHeathens,andhalf-rememberedhistory,suchastheexploits（业绩，伟绩）ofAmbrosiusAurelianus and KingArthur.However,thebeliefthattheSaxonssimplywipedordroveoutallthenativeBritonsfromEnglandhasbeenwidelydiscredited（受怀疑）byanumberofarchaeologistssincethe2000s.Atanyrate,theAnglo-Saxons,includingSaxonifiedBritons,progressivelyspreadintoEngland,byacombinationofmilitaryconquestandculturalassimilation,untilbytheeighthcenturysomekindofEnglandreallyhademerged.

Heptarchy（七王国）andChristianisation

Britainc.800

ChristianisationofAnglo-SaxonEngland beganaround600AD,influencedby CelticChristianity fromthenorthwestandbytheRomanCatholicChurch fromthesoutheast. Augustine,thefirst Archbishop（大主教）ofCanterbury,tookofficein597.In601,hebaptisedthefirstChristianAnglo-Saxonking, AethelbertofKent.Thelastpagan（异教徒，无信仰者）Anglo-Saxonking, PendaofMercia,diedin655.Thelastpagan Jutish king, Arwald ofthe IsleofWight waskilledin686.The Anglo-Saxonmission onthecontinenttookoffinthe8thcentury,leadingtotheChristianisationofpracticallyallofthe FrankishEmpire by800.

Throughoutthe7thand8thcenturypowerfluctuatedbetweenthelargerkingdoms. Bede records AethelbertofKent asbeingdominantatthecloseofthe6thcentury,butpowerseemstohaveshiftednorthwardstothekingdomofNorthumbria,whichwasformedfromtheamalgamation（融合，联合）ofBerniciaandDeira. EdwinofNorthumbria probablyhelddominanceovermuchofBritain,thoughBede'sNorthumbrianbiasshouldbekeptinmind.Successioncrises（继位危机）meantNorthumbrianhegemony（霸权，领导权）wasnotconstant,andMercia remainedaverypowerfulkingdom,especiallyunderPenda.TwodefeatsessentiallyendedNorthumbriandominance:

theBattleoftheTrentin679againstMercia,andNechtanesmerein685againstthe Picts.

Theso-called"MercianSupremacy"（莫西亚人的霸权）dominatedthe8thcentury,thoughitwasnotconstant.Aethelbaldand Offa,thetwomostpowerfulkings,achievedhighstatus;indeed,Offawasconsideredtheoverlord（大君主，霸主）ofsouthBritainby Charlemagne.ThatOffacouldsummontheresourcestobuild Offa'sDyke istestament（遗嘱）tohispower.However,arisingWessex,andchallengesfromsmallerkingdoms,keptMercianpowerincheck,andbytheearly9thcenturythe"MercianSupremacy"wasover.

Thisperiodhasbeendescribedasthe Heptarchy,thoughthistermhasnowfallenoutofacademicuse.Thewordaroseonthebasisthatthesevenkingdomsof Northumbria, Mercia, Kent, EastAnglia, Essex, Sussex and Wessex werethemainpolitiesofsouthBritain.Morerecentscholarship hasshownthatotherkingdomswerealsopoliticallyimportantacrossthisperiod:

 Hwicce, Magonsaete, Lindsey andMiddleAnglia.

VikingchallengeandtheriseofWessex

Englandin878

Thefirstrecorded Viking attackinBritainwasin793at Lindisfarne monastery（修道院）asgivenbythe Anglo-SaxonChronicle.However,bythentheVikingswerealmostcertainlywell-establishedin Orkney and Shetland,andmanyothernon-recordedraids（突袭）probablyoccurredbeforethis.RecordsdoshowthefirstVikingattackon Iona takingplacein794.ThearrivaloftheVikings（inparticulartheDanish GreatHeathenArmy）upsetthepoliticalandsocialgeographyofBritainandIreland.In867 Northumbria felltotheDanes（丹麦人）; EastAnglia fellin869.Though Wessex managedtocontaintheVikingsbydefeatingthemat Ashdown in871,asecondinvadingarmylanded,leavingtheSaxonsonadefensivefooting.AtmuchthesametimeEthelred,kingofWessexdiedandwassucceedbyhisyoungerbrother Alfred.AlfredwasimmediatelyconfrontedwiththetaskofdefendingWessexagainsttheDanes.Hespentthefirstfiveyearsofhisreignpayingtheinvadersoff.In878,Alfred'sforceswereoverwhelmedatChippenhaminasurpriseattack.

Itwasonlynow,withtheindependenceofWessexhangingbyathread,thatAlfredemergedasagreatking.InMay878heledaforcethatdefeatedtheDanesat Edington.ThevictorywassocompletethattheDanishleader, Guthrum,wasforcedtoacceptChristianbaptismandwithdrawfrom Mercia.AlfredthensetaboutstrengtheningthedefencesofWessex,buildinganewnavy—60vessels（船舶）strong.Alfred'ssuccessboughtWessexandMerciayearsofpeaceandsparkedeconomicrecoveryinpreviouslyravagedareas.

Alfred'ssuccesswassustainedbyhisson Edward,whosedecisivevictoriesovertheDanesinEastAngliain910and911werefollowedbyacrushingvictoryatTempsfo