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The Battle of Deorham was fought in southwestern Britain in 577, between the Saxons
Saxons

The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic peoples. Their modern-day descendants in Saxony are considered ethnic Germans; those in the eastern Netherlands are considered to be ethnic Dutch people; those in north eastern Belgium are considered to be ethnic Flemish people; and those in southern England ethnic English people ....
 of Wessex
Wessex

West Saxon redirects here. For other meanings of Wessex or West Saxon see Wessex .Wessex , from the Old English Westseaxe , was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the West Saxons, in South West England, from the 6th century, until the emergence of the English state in the 9th century, under the Wessex dynasty....
 and the Britons
Brython

Historically, the Britons were the P-Celtic indigenous peoples inhabiting the island of Great Britain south of the river Forth. They were speakers of the Brythonic languages and shared common cultural traditions; the surviving P-Celtic languages are Welsh language, Cornish language and Breton....
 to their west. Deorham is usually taken to refer to Dyrham
Dyrham

Dyrham is a village in South Gloucestershire, England....
 in South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire

South Gloucestershire is a Unitary authority Districts of England in the Ceremonial counties of England of Gloucestershire in South West England England....
, on the Cotswold
Cotswold

The Cotswolds are a range of hills in central England that give their name to:*Cotswold *Cotswold *Cotswold Chase, a horse race*Cotswold Games, annual games in Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire...
 escarpment a few miles north of Bath. Since the only evidence of the battle is a brief mention in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English language chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The annals were created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great....
, no details of it are known.

The battle was won by the Saxons
Saxons

The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic peoples. Their modern-day descendants in Saxony are considered ethnic Germans; those in the eastern Netherlands are considered to be ethnic Dutch people; those in north eastern Belgium are considered to be ethnic Flemish people; and those in southern England ethnic English people ....
, who afterward occupied the three cities of Cirencester
Cirencester

Cirencester is a market town in Gloucestershire, England, 93 miles west northwest of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in Cotswold ....
 (Corinium), probably a provincial capital in the Roman period, Gloucester
Gloucester

Gloucester is a city status in the United Kingdom, Non-metropolitan district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England region of England....
 (Glevum
Glevum

Glevum was a Roman fort in Roman Britain. Today it is known as Gloucester, located in the England county of Gloucestershire. The name Glevum is taken by many present day businesses in the area and also by the 26-mile Glevum Way, a long-distance footpath or recreational walk encircling modern Gloucester....
), a former legionary fortress and a colonia
Colonia (Roman)

A Roman colonia was originally a Roman Empire outpost established in conquered territory to secure it. Eventually, however, the term came to denote the highest status of Roman city....
, and Bath (Aquae Sulis
Aquae Sulis

Aquae Sulis was a small town in the Roman province of Britannia. Today it is known as Bath, Somerset, located in the England county of Somerset....
), a renowned pagan religious centre and spa-city.






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The Battle of Deorham was fought in southwestern Britain in 577, between the Saxons
Saxons

The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic peoples. Their modern-day descendants in Saxony are considered ethnic Germans; those in the eastern Netherlands are considered to be ethnic Dutch people; those in north eastern Belgium are considered to be ethnic Flemish people; and those in southern England ethnic English people ....
 of Wessex
Wessex

West Saxon redirects here. For other meanings of Wessex or West Saxon see Wessex .Wessex , from the Old English Westseaxe , was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the West Saxons, in South West England, from the 6th century, until the emergence of the English state in the 9th century, under the Wessex dynasty....
 and the Britons
Brython

Historically, the Britons were the P-Celtic indigenous peoples inhabiting the island of Great Britain south of the river Forth. They were speakers of the Brythonic languages and shared common cultural traditions; the surviving P-Celtic languages are Welsh language, Cornish language and Breton....
 to their west. Deorham is usually taken to refer to Dyrham
Dyrham

Dyrham is a village in South Gloucestershire, England....
 in South Gloucestershire
South Gloucestershire

South Gloucestershire is a Unitary authority Districts of England in the Ceremonial counties of England of Gloucestershire in South West England England....
, on the Cotswold
Cotswold

The Cotswolds are a range of hills in central England that give their name to:*Cotswold *Cotswold *Cotswold Chase, a horse race*Cotswold Games, annual games in Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire...
 escarpment a few miles north of Bath. Since the only evidence of the battle is a brief mention in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English language chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The annals were created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great....
, no details of it are known.

The battle was won by the Saxons
Saxons

The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic peoples. Their modern-day descendants in Saxony are considered ethnic Germans; those in the eastern Netherlands are considered to be ethnic Dutch people; those in north eastern Belgium are considered to be ethnic Flemish people; and those in southern England ethnic English people ....
, who afterward occupied the three cities of Cirencester
Cirencester

Cirencester is a market town in Gloucestershire, England, 93 miles west northwest of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in Cotswold ....
 (Corinium), probably a provincial capital in the Roman period, Gloucester
Gloucester

Gloucester is a city status in the United Kingdom, Non-metropolitan district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England region of England....
 (Glevum
Glevum

Glevum was a Roman fort in Roman Britain. Today it is known as Gloucester, located in the England county of Gloucestershire. The name Glevum is taken by many present day businesses in the area and also by the 26-mile Glevum Way, a long-distance footpath or recreational walk encircling modern Gloucester....
), a former legionary fortress and a colonia
Colonia (Roman)

A Roman colonia was originally a Roman Empire outpost established in conquered territory to secure it. Eventually, however, the term came to denote the highest status of Roman city....
, and Bath (Aquae Sulis
Aquae Sulis

Aquae Sulis was a small town in the Roman province of Britannia. Today it is known as Bath, Somerset, located in the England county of Somerset....
), a renowned pagan religious centre and spa-city. The remains of many villas are found around these cities, which suggests that the area was both wealthy and relatively sophisticated, and thus that this Saxon advance was a heavy blow to the Britons.

The battle is also considered by some to have begun the differentiation of Welsh
Welsh language

Welsh ]], is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, in England by some along the Welsh Marches and in the Welsh settlement in Argentina in the Chubut Valley in Argentina Patagonia....
 and Cornish
Cornish language

The Cornish language is one of the Brythonic group of Celtic languages. The language continued to function as a community language in parts of Cornwall until the late 18th century, and there have been attempts to revive the language since the early 20th century....
 into two separate languages, by cutting off the Britons in Wales
Wales

native_name = Cymru|conventional_long_name = Wales|common_name = Wales|image_flag = Flag of Wales 2.svg|national_motto = ...
 from those in Devon
Devon

Devon is a large Counties of England in South West England. The county is also referred to as Devonshire, but that is an entirely unofficial name, rarely used inside of the county but often indicating a shire....
 and Cornwall
Cornwall

Cornwall , constitutional Duchy and palatine, is a metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England of England, United Kingdom, located at the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain....
, by land. Against this, it has been objected that, although the battle may have prevented large-scale movements, the passage of British-speakers between the two areas seemingly stayed possible, given that a Welsh genealogy appears to record that, in the 7th century, the descendants of kings of Pengwern
Pengwern

Pengwern was a Brythonic settlement of sub-Roman Britain situated in what is now the England county of Shropshire, adjoining the modern Wales border....
 founded a dynasty in the Glastonbury
Glastonbury

Glastonbury is a small town in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town has a population of 8,800....
 region. The journey by boat is not difficult. Further, archaeology
Archaeology

Archaeology, archeology, or arch?ology is the science that studies Homo cultures through the recovery, documentation, analysis, and interpretation of material remains and environmental data, including architecture, Artifact , features, Biofact s, and cultural landscape....
 suggests that, although the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons

Anglo-Saxons is the term usually used to describe the invading tribes in the south and east of Great Britain starting from the early 5th century AD, and their creation of the English nation, lasting until the Norman conquest of England of 1066....
 quickly took over the Cirencester region after the battle, it took some time for them to colonize Bath and Gloucester.

Sources