The first people to live in Britain were hunter-gatherers, in what we call the Stone Age. For much of the Stone Age, Britain was connected to the continent by a land bridge. People came and went, following the herds of deer and horses which they hunted. Britain only
became permanently separated from the continent by the Channel about
10,000 years ago.
The first farmers arrived in Britain 6,000 years ago. The ancestors of these first
farmers probably came from southeast Europe. These people built houses,
tombs, and monuments on the land. One of these monuments, Stonehenge, still
stands in what is now the English county of Wiltshire. Stonehenge was probably
a special gathering place for seasonal ceremonies. Other Stone Age sites have
also survived. Skara Brae on Orkney, off the north coast of Scotland, is the best
preserved prehistoric village in northern Europe and has helped archaeologists
to understand more about how people lived near the end of the Stone Age.
Around 4,000 years ago, people learned to make bronze. We call this period
the Bronze Age. People lived in roundhouses and buried their dead in tombs
called round barrows. The people of the Bronze Age were accomplished
metalworkers who made many beautiful objects in bronze and gold, including
tools, ornaments, and weapons. The Bronze Age was followed by the Iron Age
when people learned how to make weapons and tools out of iron. People still
lived in roundhouses, grouped together into larger settlements, and sometimes
defended sites called hill forts. A very impressive hill fort can still be seen today
at Maiden Castle, in the English county of Dorset. Most people were farmers,
craft workers, or warriors. The language they spoke was part of the Celtic language
family. Similar languages were spoken across Europe in the Iron Age, and related
languages are still spoken today in some parts of Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.
The people of the Iron Age had a sophisticated culture and economy. They
made the first coins to be minted in Britain, some inscribed with the names of
Iron Age kings. This marks the beginnings of British history.
Julius Caesar led a Roman invasion of Britain in 55 BC. This was unsuccessful
and for nearly 100 years Britain remained separate from the Roman Empire.
In AD 43 the Emperor Claudius led the Roman army in a new invasion. This
time, there was resistance from some of the British tribes but the Romans were
successful in occupying almost all of Britain. One of the tribal leaders who
fought against the Romans was Boudicca, the queen of the Iceni in what is now
eastern England. She is still remembered today and there is a statue of her on
Westminster Bridge in London, near the Houses of Parliament.
Areas of what is now Scotland were never conquered by the Romans, and
the Emperor Hadrian built a wall in the north of England to keep out the Picts
(ancestors of the Scottish people). Included in the wall were a number of forts.
Parts of Hadrian’s Wall, including the forts of Housesteads and Vindolanda, can
still be seen. It is a popular area for walkers and is a UNESCO (United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage Site.
The Romans remained in Britain for 400 years. They built roads and public
buildings, created a structure of law, and introduced new plants and animals.
It was during the 3rd and 4th centuries AD that the first Christian communities
began to appear in Britain.
ชาวโรมันปักหลักอยู่ในอังกฤษเป็นเวลานาน 400 ปี และได้สร้างถนนและอาคารสาธารณะ
ตลอดจนจัดวางระเบียบโครงสร้างทางกฎหมาย และนำพืชพันธุ์และสัตว์ชนิดใหม่เข้ามาใน
อังกฤษ ในช่วงคริสต์ศตวรรษที่ 3 และที่ 4 ชุมชนชาวคริสต์กลุ่มแรกได้เริ่มปรากฏตัวขึ้นใน
อังกฤษ
The Anglo-Saxons อังกฤษยุคแองโกล-แซกซัน
The Roman army left Britain in AD 410 to defend other parts of the Roman
Empire and never returned. Britain was again invaded by tribes from northern
Europe: the Jutes, the Angles, and the Saxons. The languages they spoke are
the basis of modern-day English. Battles were fought against these invaders
but, by about AD 600, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were established in Britain. These
kingdoms were mainly in what is now England. The burial place of one of the
kings was at Sutton Hoo in modern Suffolk. This king was buried with treasure
and armor, all placed in a ship that was then covered by a mound of earth.
Parts of the west of Britain, including much of what is now Wales, and Scotland,
remained free of Anglo¬Saxon rule.
The Anglo-Saxons were not Christians when they first came to Britain but, during
this period, missionaries came to Britain to preach about Christianity. Missionaries
from Ireland spread the religion in the north. The most famous of these were St
Patrick, who would become the patron saint of Ireland (see page 151 for more
about patron saints), and St Columba, who founded a monastery on the island
of lona, off the coast of what is now Scotland. St Augustine led missionaries
from Rome, who spread Christianity in the south. St Augustine became the
first Archbishop of Canterbury (see page 150 for more about the Archbishop of
Canterbury and the Church in Britain today).
The Vikings came from Denmark and Norway. They first visited Britain in AD 789
to raid coastal towns and take away goods and slaves. Then, they began to stay
and form their own communities in the east of England and Scotland. The Anglo-
Saxon kingdoms in England united under King Alfred the Great who defeated
the Vikings. Many of the Viking invaders stayed in Britain – especially in the east
and north of England, in an area known as the Danelaw (many place names
there, such as Grimsby and Scunthorpe, which come from the Viking languages). The
Viking settlers mixed with local communities and some converted to Christianity.
Anglo-Saxon kings continued to rule what is now England, except for a short period
when there were Danish kings. The first of these was Cnut also called Canute.
กษัตริย์ชาวแองโกล-แซกซัน ยังคงปกครองอาณาบริเวณซึ่งเป็นพื้นที่ประเทศอังกฤษใน ปัจจุบัน
ยกเว้นช่วงระยะเวลาหนึ่งที่มีกษัตริย์ชาวเดนมาร์กปกครอง กษัตริย์ชาวเดนมาร์กองค์แรกมี
พระนามว่า คนูท หรือคานูท
In the north, the threat of attack by Vikings had encouraged the people to
unite under one king, Kenneth MacAlpin. The term Scotland began to be used
to describe that country.
กลุ่มชนในภาคเหนือที่หวาดเกรงการบุกรุกโจมตีจากพวกไวกิ้งได้เข้ารวมตัวกันอยู่ภายใต้การนำ
ของกษัตริย์ เคนเนธ แม็คอัลพิน และเริ่มมีการใช้คำว่า ‘สก็อตแลนด์’ เพื่อพูดถึงประเทศใน
ส่วนนั้น
The Norman Conquest ยุคนอร์มันครองเมือง
In 1066, an invasion led by William, the Duke of Normandy (in what is now
northern France), defeated Harold, the Saxon king of England, at the Battle of
Hastings. Harold was killed in the battle. William became king of England and
is known as William the Conqueror. The battle is commemorated in a great
piece of embroidery, known as the Bayeux Tapestry, which can still be seen
in France today.
ในปี ค.ศ. 1066 วิลเลียม ดยุคแห่งนอร์มังดี (พื้นที่ตอนเหนือของฝรั่งเศสในปัจจุบัน) ได้ทรง
ยกทัพบุกเข้ามาในอังกฤษ พระเจ้าแฮโรลด์ กษัตริย์ชาวแซกซันแห่งอังกฤษพ่ายแพ้ต่อ
วิลเลียมในการสู้รบที่เมืองเฮสติ้งส์ พระเจ้าแฮโรลด์ทรงถูกฆ่าตายในสนามรบ วิลเลียมได้รับการ
สถาปนาขึ้นเป็นกษัตริย์แห่งอังกฤษ และมีสมญานามว่า ‘วิลเลียมผู้พิชิต’ การรบที่สมรภูมิเฮสติ้งส์
เป็นหน้าประวัติศาสตร์ที่ถูกบันทึกไว้เป็นอนุสรณ์ในผลงานเย็บปัก ถักร้อยฝีมือเยี่ยมที่เรียกว่า
ผ้าปักบายู (Bayeux Tapestry) ซึ่งยังคงสามารถชมกันได้ที่ฝรั่งเศสในปัจจุบัน
The Norman Conquest was the last successful foreign invasion of England and
led to many changes in government and social structures in England. Norman
French, the language of the new ruling class, influenced the development of
the English language as we know it today. Initially, the Normans also conquered
Wales, but the Welsh gradually won territory back. The Scots and the Normans
fought on the border between England and Scotland; the Normans took over
some land on the border but did not invade Scotland.
ชัยชนะของชาวนอร์มันเป็นความสำเร็จครั้งสุดท้ายของชนต่างแดนที่รุกรานเข้ามายึด ครอง
อังกฤษ และได้ก่อให้เกิดการเปลี่ยนแปลงต่างๆ มากมายในระเบียบการปกครองและโครงสร้างสังคมของอังกฤษ ภาษานอร์มันเฟรนช์ซึ่งเป็นภาษาของชนชั้นปกครองกลุ่มใหม่ ได้
มีอิทธิพลต่อวิวัฒนาการของภาษาอังกฤษที่เรารู้จักทุกวันนี้ ในช่วงแรกๆ ชาว นอร์มันได้เข้า
ยึดครองเวลส์เช่นกัน แต่ชาวเวลส์ต่อสู้ช่วงชิงดินแดนกลับคืนมาทีละน้อย ชาวสก็อตและชาว
นอร์มันได้สู้รบกันในพื้นที่ตามชายแดนระหว่างอังกฤษกับสก็อตแลนด์ ชาวนอร์มันยึดครอง
ที่ดินตามชายแดนได้บางส่วน แต่ไม่ได้บุกเข้าไปในสก็อตแลนด์
William sent people all over England to draw up lists of all the towns and
villages. The people who lived there, who owned the land, and what animals
they owned were also listed. This was called the Domesday Book. It still exists
today and gives a picture of society in England just after the Norman Conquest.
พระเจ้าวิลเลียมได้ทรงส่งคนไปสำรวจและจัดทำรายชื่อเมืองและหมู่บ้านทุกแห่งทั่วอังกฤษ
และสั่งให้บันทึกรายชื่อผู้คนที่อาศัยอยู่และเป็นเจ้าของที่ดินในเมืองและหมู่บ้านเหล่านั้น ตลอด
จนรายการสัตว์ต่างๆ ที่พวกเขามีอยู่ในความครอบครองด้วย เอกสารบันทึกนี้มีชื่อว่า ‘บันทึก
ดูมส์เดย์’ ซึ่งปัจจุบันนี้ยังคงมีอยู่ และเป็นเอกสารที่ช่วยให้มองเห็นภาพสังคมในอังกฤษภายหลัง
การยึดครองของชาวนอร์มันได้ดี
In 1455, a civil war was begun to decide who should be king of England. It was fought between the supporters of two families: the House of Lancaster and the House of York. This war was called the Wars of the Roses because the symbol of Lancaster was a red rose and the symbol of York was a white rose. The war ended with the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. King Richard III of the House of York was killed in the battle and Henry Tudor, the leader of the House of Lancaster, became King Henry VII. Henry then married King Richard’s niece, Elizabeth of York, and united the two families. Henry was the first king of the House of Tudor. The symbol of the House of Tudor was a red rose with a white rose inside it as a sign that the Houses of York and Lancaster were now allies.
In the Middle Ages, Parliament began to develop into the institution it is today. Its origins can be traced to the king’s council of advisers, which included important noblemen and the leaders of the Church.
There were few formal limits to the king’s power until 1215. In that year, King John was forced by his noblemen to agree to a number of demands. The result was a charter of rights called the Magna Carta (which means the Great Charter). The Magna Carta established the idea that even the king was subject to the law. It protected the rights of the nobility and restricted the king’s power to collect taxes or to make or change laws. In the future, the king would need to involve his noblemen in decisions
In England, parliaments were called for the king to consult his nobles, particularly when the king needed to raise money. The numbers attending Parliament increased and two separate parts, known as Houses, were established. The nobility, great landowners, and bishops sat in the House of Lords. Knights, who were usually smaller landowners, and wealthy people from towns and cities were elected to sit in the House of Commons. Only a small part of the population was able to join in electing the members of the Commons.
A similar Parliament developed in Scotland. It had three Houses, called Estates: the lords, the commons, and the clergy.
This was also a time of development in the legal system. The principle that judges are independent of the government began to be established. In England, judges developed ‘common law’ by a process of precedence (that is, following previous decisions) and tradition. In Scotland, the legal system developed slightly differently and laws were ‘codified’ (that is, written down).
The Normans used a system of land ownership known as feudalism. The king gave land to his lords in return for help in the war. Landowners had to send certainly numbers of men to serve in the army. Some peasants had their own land but most were serfs. They had a small area of their lord’s land where they could grow food. In return, they had to work for their lord and could not move away. The same system developed in southern Scotland. In the north of Scotland and Ireland, the land was owned by members of the ‘clans’ (prominent families).
In 1348, a disease, probably a form of plague, came to Britain. This was known as the Black Death. One-third of the population of England died and a similar proportion in Scotland and Wales. This was one of the worst disasters ever to strike Britain. Following the Black Death, the smaller population meant there was less need to grow cereal crops. There were labor shortages and peasants began to demand higher wages. New social classes appeared, including owners of large areas of land (later called the gentry), and people left the countryside to live in the towns. In the towns, growing wealth led to the development of a strong middle class.
In Ireland, the Black Death killed many in the Pale, and, for a time, the area controlled by the English became smaller.
