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Battle of Brunanburh
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The Battle of Brunanburh was a West Saxon victory in 937 by the army of King Athelstan and his brother Edmund over the combined armies of Olaf III Guthfrithson, Viking king of Dublin, Causantín mac Áeda II, King of Scotland and King Owain of Strathclyde (mention is also made in some sources of Irish, Welsh and Cornish mercenaries).
King Athelstan had invaded the Kingdom of Strathclyde a few years earlier (933-934 being the most likely years for such an invasion according to contemporary sources). This provoked much anger amongst other rulers across the British Isles (no doubt fearing for their own positions).
BattlePrimary sources regarding details of the battle come from the Anglo-Saxon poem of the same name that is in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the writings of Anglo-Norman historian William of Malmesbury, the Annals of Tigernach, the Brut y Tywysogion and Icelandic sagas such as the Saga of Egill Skallagrimsson, who fought for Athelstan.
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records the event as follows:
- 937:
- Here, King Athelstan, leader of warriors,
- ring-giver of men, and also his brother,
- the aetheling Edmund, struck life-long glory
- in strife around 'Brunanburh'
The battle is considered one of the bloodiest of the period.
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The Battle of Brunanburh was a West Saxon victory in 937 by the army of King Athelstan and his brother Edmund over the combined armies of Olaf III Guthfrithson, Viking king of Dublin, Causantín mac Áeda II, King of Scotland and King Owain of Strathclyde (mention is also made in some sources of Irish, Welsh and Cornish mercenaries).
King Athelstan had invaded the Kingdom of Strathclyde a few years earlier (933-934 being the most likely years for such an invasion according to contemporary sources). This provoked much anger amongst other rulers across the British Isles (no doubt fearing for their own positions).
BattlePrimary sources regarding details of the battle come from the Anglo-Saxon poem of the same name that is in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the writings of Anglo-Norman historian William of Malmesbury, the Annals of Tigernach, the Brut y Tywysogion and Icelandic sagas such as the Saga of Egill Skallagrimsson, who fought for Athelstan.
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records the event as follows:
- 937:
- Here, King Athelstan, leader of warriors,
- ring-giver of men, and also his brother,
- the aetheling Edmund, struck life-long glory
- in strife around 'Brunanburh'
The battle is considered one of the bloodiest of the period. The battle was the demise of five English (other sources say Irish) kings and seven earls on the Celtic side and numerous Saxon casualties including two of Athelstan's cousins, Alfric and Athelwin, and a prominent Saxon bishop. Some have claimed that at one point the West Saxons deployed a cavalry charge, contradicting popular belief that the early English fought in infantry-based armies. Cavalry were still a relatively insignificant part of the Saxon force and may well have been mercenaries from any number of other kingdoms. However, the Anglo-Saxon text of the chronicle makes no such mention: Burton Raffel's translation of the poem, for instance, is misleading. His rendering "All the battle / Became the Wessex cavalry endlessly / Hunting a broken enemy" mistranslates the Anglo-Saxon 'eorodcistum,' which means 'troop' or 'company.'
AftermathThis poorly recalled battle is actually one of the most important in British history since Athelstan's crushing defeat of the combined Norse-Celtic force facing him irrevocably confirmed England as an Anglo-Saxon kingdom, forcing the Celtic kingdoms to consolidate in the positions they occupy today.
The Battle of Brunanburh still has a great deal of influence in the Wiltshire town of Malmesbury, 200 miles south of any probable site. The townsfolk of Malmesbury fought for King Athelstan, and he granted them 600 hides of land and gave them all freemen status. This status and the organisation formed then exists today, as the Warden and Freemen of Malmesbury, and Athelstan is remembered in their ceremonies. When Athelstan died, his body was transported from Gloucester to Malmesbury for burial.
Literature and artEnglish poet Alfred Lord Tennyson translated the poem from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 1880, publishing it as part of his Ballads and Other Poems. Tennyson's son Hallam Tennyson published a prose translation of the poem. American composer used the battle as a basis for The Brunanburh Suite in 2005. The Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges wrote various poems about or mentioning the Saxons and their victory at Brunanburh.
Battle siteThe location of Brunanburh has not been definitively identified though possible sites in Northumberland have been suggested as well as Bromborough on the Wirral Peninsula, Burnswark in southwest Scotland, Tinsley Wood near Sheffield, Yorkshire and Axminster, Devon. These are not the only sites suggested, but they are the most commonly accepted. Alistair Campbell analysed all the sources, contemporary and later, and found it impossible to locate the battle.
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