The Witenagemot – The Backbone of Monarchs
source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Witan_hexateuch.jpg#file The Witenagemot was an advisory council from the Anglo-Saxon ruling class whose duty was to counsel their kingdoms monarch, in which contained mostly kings. They only assembled when summoned and answered to the monarch directly. It was considered treason if the Witenagemot assembled without
Cerdic – The Forefather of a Dynasty
Cerdic is the progenitor of the royal House of Wessex from the heptarchy Kingdom of the same name. The House of Wessex is also referred by its less common name “the House of Cerdic” where Cerdic’s descendants were originally known as the Cerdicingas dynasty. This royal dynasty shaped the
The Church of St Laurence – Bradford-on-Avon ‘A Hidden Jewel’
Erected in the historic town of Bradford-on-Avon lies a ‘hidden jewel’ of the west country of England, its style of architecture is from a time that is mostly forgotten by the average citizen. Bradford’s ‘hidden jewel’ is a church dedicated to St Laurence; one of the seven deacons of
Finding Mercia
The Anglo-Saxons can feel very remote. It’s nearly 1000 years since that period ended with Harold’s defeat at Hastings, and the Angles, Saxons, Jutes and others had first made their mark on England some 600 years before that. Luckily we have some written sources for the period – Bede’s
Alfred the Great: The Honourable Protector
Alfred the Great is the only English monarch to be granted with the righteous entitlement of ‘Great’. Like the great Macedonian leader Alexander, Alfred helped to demonstrate qualities of sheer greatness. Alfred was a descendant of Cerdic of Wessex, the first of the Anglo-Saxon kings and a relation of
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