Anglo-Saxon Shropshire (AD 410 to AD 1066)

What is Anglo Saxon Britain?

The Anglo-Saxon period of Britain usually refers to the years between AD 410 and the Norman Conquest in 1066.

After the departure of the Romans in c.410 AD to deal with more pressing matters elsewhere in the Empire, what is now known as England was subject to successive invasions of Germanic (modern Germany and southern Denmark) tribesmen. They originally landed and settled on the eastern shores but as more and more arrived they began to push westwards in search of new land.

The Roman town of Wroxeter appears to have been inhabited in some form up until the 6th century with various building phases taking place after the 4th century. Some of the more important hillforts in Shropshire appear to have been re-occupied after the departure of the Romans in the early 5th century. 13 Shropshire hillforts adjoined important lowland areas in the 11th century, suggesting there was a direct movement from the hillforts to the lowland settlements sometime in the Saxon period.

The 7th Century

In the early 7th century a prince called Cyndrwyn ruled in the area around Wroxeter (to the South East of Shrewsbury). Cyndrwyn’s son Cynddlan fought at the Battle of Chester in AD 616 (fought between the Northumbrians and the kingdoms of Northern Wales) and won a victory for himself against a Saxon army at Wall, near Lichfield. Soon after he was killed and his sons fled to Powys and Shropshire came into the control of the Mercian kingdom. At its peak this kingdom covered most of Central England.

England by this time was divided into 5 main Saxon kingdoms; Northumbria, Mercia, Wessex, East Anglia and Kent.

In the south of Shropshire a 7th century saxon cemetery has been found at Bromfield, a small settlement to the north of Ludlow. This site showed evidence of up to 31 burials. The bodies were laid out in a roughly east-west alignment, suggesting the influence of Christianity but three of the graves contained grave goods, indicating the continuation of Pagan religious rituals. Pagans were people who believed in many gods. They cremated their dead and put them in pottery urns or buried them with goods that they might need in the next life.

The Spread of Christianity

During the Roman period most Britons were Christians. When they fled from the Saxon invaders they set up small churches in Wales and the west. Monks from these and other 'Celtic' churches later tried to convert the Saxons to Christianity. Missionaries were sent out by the Pope in Rome and they arrived in Kent in 597 under the leadership of Augustine. King Ethelred, the Kentish leader, agreed to meet with Augustine, but only in open land where he believed the 'magic' of the priest would do less damage. The mission to convert the king was a success and St Augustine became the first Archbishop of Canterbury.
Sometime before AD 690, the Mercian royal house founded the monastery of St. Milburga in Much Wenlock, to the South East of Shrewsbury. Milburga was the daughter of Merewald, who was the third son of Penda, King of Mercia. The community that was created here was for nuns and monks, who worshipped in separate churches.

The original dedication of the parish church at nearby Cressage to St. Samson, suggests that Christianity continued in Shropshire after the departure of the Romans until the establishment of Mercian authority in the 7th century.

With its position on the border with Wales, Mercia was a vulnerable kingdom, as the Welsh were known to be fierce and restless and along with Scotland and Cornwall Wales was never conquered by the Saxon invaders. In c.765 AD the Mercians built a border between the Dee estuary and Pentre-coed near Oswestry and this was known as Wat’s Dyke.

Later on in the 8th century, to further protect his kingdom, King Offa (AD 757 – 796) built a defensive ditch along the length of its Western border from coast to coast. This feature was known as Offa’s Dyke and short stretches of it can be found in Shropshire. The length of the actual ditch is 130km but considering that where it can it utilises natural defences such as mountains, it is more like 240km.

In some places the dyke measures 20m across and averages about 4m high. Llanfair Hill in Shropshire is the highest point of the dyke. Further sections of Offa’s Dyke in Shropshire can be seen at Spoad Hill and Mardu, near Clun, Eden Hope and to the south of the Montgomery to Chirbury road to the west of Oswestry. (Image: Offa’s Dyke)

The origins of Shrewsbury

The first documentary evidence we have for a settlement at Shrewsbury occurs in AD 901 and archaeological evidence cannot date human activity here to any earlier than the 8th century. By the 920’s AD a mint had been established at Shrewsbury, which was known as Scrobbesbyrig in the Anglo-Saxon period. ‘Byrig’ means a ‘fortified place’ and Scrobbes could refer to either shrubs or scrubland or it could be the name of a person, e.g. Scrob. We know that a Richard FitzScrob (or son of Scrob) built Richards Castle near Ludlow and that he had been settled in the area since around 1052.

Shrewsbury castle would have begun its life as a wooden Anglo-Saxon fortification, guarding the only dry access route into the city

Another possible Anglo-Saxon site is the ford on the River Severn at Atcham, where aerial survey in 1975 revealed cropmarks indicating buildings approximately 14m x 8m and 24m x 8m, which appeared to have been aisled. The location of this site adjacent to a church dedicated to the 7th century Northumbrian bishop Eata also adds credence to the possibility of it being Anglo-Saxon in origin.

A small number of existing churches in Shropshire have Anglo-Saxon masonry and these include churches at Diddlesbury, Stanton Lacy, Rushbury, Stottesdon and St. Andrew’s at Wroxeter. There are also other churches that still carry the name of Anglo-Saxon saints, giving a clue to their origins. Two of these churches are St. Giles’at Much Wenlock and St. Edith’s at Eaton under Haywood.(Image: Saxon Tympanum, Stottesdon)

The Kingdom of Mercia

During the 10th century the Kingdom of Mercia was organised into Shires (smaller areas of administration) and Shropshire was the only Mercian shire not to derive its name directly from its main town.

In keeping with most other Anglo-Saxon shires, Shropshire’s affairs were dealt with by a Sheriff, who normally acted on behalf of the king. Although no record exists to identify the Sheriff of Shropshire, we do know that he had the authority to collect taxes and raise armies for attacks into Wales, as well as being responsible for enforcing law and order.

During the 9th and 10th centuries, the Shropshire area was frequently invaded by the Danes, who in AD 874 destroyed the Priory at Much Wenlock. In AD 896 the Danes
spent the winter at Quatford, to the SE of Shrewsbury, near Bridgnorth. In AD 912, Ethelfled, the Lady of Mercia erected a fortress against the Danes at Bridgnorth. The following year she erected another at Chirbury. (Image: Much Wenlock)

Keeping out the Danes!

In 886 AD the last Mercian king died and Shropshire came under the control of the Kings of Wessex, the only kingdom which had been able to withstand the Danes.

The first mention of Shropshire in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is in AD 1006 when the Danish invaders were raiding and destroying great parts of England and the king is said to have spent the winter in Shropshire. In 1016 Edmund Ironside, King of England, and half-brother of Edward the Confessor plundered Shrewsbury and the surrounding area, possibly to prevent it being used as a base by the invading Danish King Knute.

Edmund Ironside was later defeated by Knute (or Canute) but they reached an agreement to divide the kingdom between them and Knute took control of Mercia. Edmund died the following year leaving Knute as sole ruler of England.

In the years before the Norman Conquest much of Shropshire was laid to waste by the Welsh and recovery took several years.