History, Wonder Tales, Fairy Tales, Myths and Legends The Flemish | Page 39

confirm and amplify it."
Frisians were from the Frisian Islands and the area to the north of the Netherlands, and
the Franks were from areas along the Rhine and Merovingian Gaul. The Suevi were
from Sweden.
"To this amalgam the term 'Anglo-Saxon' can well be applied" writes Alcock, and
suggests "in the sixth century the Anglo-Saxon element in the population of Britain
amounted to no more than fifty to a hundred thousand." Alcock believes the population
around 200 AD was at least a million but that it had declined markedly by the start of the
fifth century.
Paul Johnson writes, "Arthur's [circa 475-537] real achievement was that he delayed,
indeed for a time reversed, the progress of Germanic settlement. This had important
consequences, for it prevented the British from being exterminated in, or wholly
expelled from, the lowland area. It is true that British culture disappeared almost
completely."

DANES and NORWEGIANS (VIKINGS) 789-1104 AD
Disinclined to celebrate diversity, the Viking "immigrants" brought terror, death,
destruction, and the almost complete eradication of the indigenous Christian culture.
The first Viking attack was recorded in 789 AD, and then in 793 AD against the Angles
monastery of Lindisfarne.
Alfred of Wessex, King of the English, repulsed the Danes at the end of the 9th century,
but the Northmen were too strong to be permanently defeated, and Canute, King of
Denmark and Norway, triumphed in 1016. Viking history effectively ended in England
with the Battle of Hastings, although it lasted longer in Scotland with Magnus Barefoot's
seizure of the Western Isles between 1098 and 1104.
What numbers are we talking about? Lloyd and Jennifer Laing write, "In the late seventh
century the Laws of Ine of Wessex announce that 'up to seven men' were thieves, 'from
seven to thirty-five a band and above three dozen an army'. In 786 Cynheard's army
amounted to eighty-five men, which was nearly sufficient to capture Wessex from king
Cynewulf. Hengist and Horsa are described as having come over in three ships, while
Cerdic and Cynric came over in five. In other words, war bands coming to England were
of the order of 100-250 men". Thus Viking voyagers should be numbered in the
hundreds, not thousands.

NORMANS 1066
Writing of the Norman invasion and "Continental" takeover, Paul Johnson writes, "When
William dismissed his mercenaries in 1070, nearly all returned to France … The
probability is that the Continental settlement did not involve more than 10,000 people and perhaps as few as 5,000 out of a population of well over a million. England simply
acquired a new ruling class."

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