27th November 2008 - by Frederick Williams
Early Britain’s Interesting History
Neolithic farming people seemed to have migrated to Northern
Britain at around 4500 BC. They settled permanently with their
animals, especially near the sea because it provided food for
them and for their livestock and thus making them experts in
fishing and at making wooden boats.
The next settlers, the Beaker People, used lots of stones in
their burials and used to keep things enjoyed by that
particular person during his/her lifespan, making his journey
to the next World easier, They brought these stones from far
off places and set them in circles, the best among them is
Calanish in Isle of Lewis, where you can find thirteen of them
standing in a circle.
The Beaker people also brought in the Bronze Age with their
stone age axes, knifes and swords which were made from bronze
in 1000 BC.
Around 400 BC they made many things from iron and the iron age
started wars as they could now build stronger weapons. It also
helped build stronger defenses such as towers or brochs for
protection of families from outsiders.
Much of the best preserved broch is on the Shetland island if
Mousa. The Celts continued coming here until Julius Caesar
invaded in 56 BC.
Many iron age tribes lived on this island who apart from
raiding, were busy with wresting a living, growing barley and
oats, rearing sheep, hunting deer and fishing before the
arrival of Romans in 43 AD.
By 80 AD the Roman Governor, Agricola, was fully secure in the
South and so he invaded the North of Britain which partly gave
way due to his fierce army.
It was the Romans who drew the first map of Northern Britain
with its 17 tribal territories.
By the year 500 Picts held most of the northern isles as the
Romans had evacuated to defend their homeland from Germanic
Barbarians.
However to the West there were Britons with Roman names, that
suggests that they had Romanized the Celtic people.
On the West Coast lived the Scotti, who later gave their names
to the Country as a whole and their language was Q Celtic, from
which was derived modern Gaelic.
From 800 AD, Norse looters started arriving and settling in
Northern isles covering the whole of North East of Britain.
Inter marriages became a common thing and a Scotti King Kenneth
MacAlpine who united Dalriada with Pictland in 843 was son of a
Pictish Princess.
Kenneth and his successor gradually kept increasing the size of
their kingdom, some times by force of arms or marriage and by
1034 were ruling almost all of Northern Britain.
He was not a proper King that we often refer to, but in Gaelic
system Kings were selected by a group whose ancestors used to
be Kings in ancient times. The tanist, the fittest of the
successor, was chosen as a ruler. These later turned out to be
dangerous titles as some other successor used to kill the
tanist and seize the throne.
The Canmores, though they were not Royal, posed a great
fighting threat and they started reforming the Church. By 1200
many monasteries were built in the country and Royal burghs
were created controlling the towns by Gaelic speaking
tribes.
However by 1550 a Northern version of the Anglo Saxon became
the local language.
Article Source: http://www.articlesabroad.com
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