Ten Minute English and British History #07 - The Late Anglo-Saxons and King Cnut

Wed, 27 Oct 2021 09:50:36 +0000

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This episode covers the reign of Æthelred the Unready and the many problems he faced, most notably the Vikings. The reign of Cnut and his many achievements and his legacy alongside those of his two sons, Harold and Harthacnut are also examined. This period is the last time that a Scandinavian would rule England but their legacy changed England forever.

Recommended books:

Recommended Reading:

James Campbell et al. - The Anglo-Saxons (1991) - You'll only have to see this book one more time in the recommendations. But seriously, it's unmatched as far as an overview of Anglo-Saxon England is concerned.

Timothy Bolton - Cnut the Great (2017) - A new work and a good one at that. It's very pro-Cnut and is about changing the modern-day opinion of him from that of a conquering Viking to a modernising statesmen. Very good, though.

Michael Wood - In Search of the Dark Ages (2005) - Originally published in 81 so beware of straight-up believing everything. He covers most major Anglo-Saxon kings including Æthelred the Unready. It's very accessible and the chapters on Offa and Eric Bloodaxe are definitely worth a read.

Ten Minute English and British History is a series of short, ten minute animated narrative documentaries that are designed as revision refreshers or simple introductions to a topic. Please note that these are not meant to be comprehensive and there's a lot of stuff I couldn't fit into the episodes that I would have liked to. Thank you for watching, though, it's always appreciated.