Burghal Hidage
As Burghal Hidage seven documents are referred to, in which the Anglo-Saxon fortifications to ward off the Vikings are listed at the turn of the 9th to the 10th century.
Historical background and content
Alfred the Great defeated the Vikings under Guthrum in 878 near Edington (Wiltshire) . His defeated opponent, King Guthrum, was then baptized and retired to his kingdom of East Anglia . There were no further attacks by the Vikings until 892, which gave Alfred time to protect his country with a network of fortresses and thus counteract new attacks by the Vikings.
In the Burghal Hidage, which was possibly built as early as the 880s, but no later than 917, 33 burhs ("castles") and the lands required to supply the soldiers are listed. The basis was a crew of one man per 1.25 m of the ramparts , for whose maintenance a hide was estimated. Such a "war tax" has been documented since the middle of the 8th century. A new feature, however, was the creation of a standing army by Alfred the Great for Anglo-Saxon England.
The importance of the Burghal Hidage for understanding the Anglo-Saxon defense strategy lies in the fact that not only the location and size of the fortifications, but also the garrison strength were recorded. Some of the fortifications went back to Iron Age (e.g. Pilton) and Roman origins (e.g. Bath ), and some were rebuilt.
None of the seven documents known as Burghal Hidage provides an exhaustive list. The surviving copies probably go back to two older originals and come from the time of Edward the Elder (899-924). The last two entries (Worcester and Warwick) are later additions.
| Name of the borough | assigned lands (in hide ) |
|---|---|
| Eorpeburnan (location unknown) | 324 |
| Hastings | 500 |
| Lewes | 1300 |
| Burpham (near Arundel ) | 720 |
| Chichester | 1500 |
| Portchester (near Portsmouth ) | 500 |
| Southampton | 150 |
| Winchester | 2400 |
| Wilton | 1400 |
| Chisbury (near Hungerford ) | 700 |
| Shaftesbury | 700 |
| Twynam (now Christchurch ) | 470 |
| Wareham | 1600 |
| Bridport (in Dorset ) | 760 |
| Exeter | 734 |
| Halwell (in Devon ) | 300 |
| Lydford | 140 |
| Pilton (near Barnstaple ) | 360 |
| Watchet (at Bridgwater ) | 513 |
| Axbridge (in Somerset ) | 400 |
| Lyng (in Somerset) | 100 |
| Langport (in Somerset) | 600 |
| Bath | 1000 |
| Malmesbury | 1200 |
| Cricklade | 1500 |
| Oxford | 1400 |
| Wallingford | 2400 |
| Buckingham | 1600 |
| Sashes Island (near Cookham ) | 1000 |
| Eashing (at Godalming ) | 600 |
| Southwark | 1800 |
| Worcester | 1200 |
| Warwick | 2400 |
literature
- David Hill, Alexander R. Rumble (Eds.): The Defense of Wessex. The Burghal Hidage and Anglo-Saxon Fortifications , Manchester University Press, 1996, ISBN 978-0719032189
- Simon Keynes: Burghal Hidage ; In: Michael Lapidge, John Blair, Simon Keynes, Donald Scragg (Eds.): The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England . Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford et al. a. 2001, ISBN 978-0-631-22492-1 .
Web links
- University College London: The Burghal Hidage
- The Burghal Hidage
- Location of the 33 Burhs (Google Maps)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Simon Keynes: Burghal Hidage ; In: Michael Lapidge, John Blair, Simon Keynes, Donald Scragg (eds.): The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England , Wiley-Blackwell, 2000, ISBN 978-0-631-22492-1 , p. 76
- ↑ Richard Abels: Army ; In: Michael Lapidge, John Blair, Simon Keynes, Donald Scragg (eds.): The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England , Wiley-Blackwell, 2000, ISBN 978-0-631-22492-1 , p. 47
- ^ University College London: The Burghal Hidage
- ^ David Hill: The Burghal Hidage: The Establishment of a Text