In the British Isles
, the Neolithic and Bronze Ages saw the
transformation of British and Irish society and landscape. It saw the adoption
of agriculture, as communities gave up their hunter-gatherer modes of
existence to begin farming.
Iron Age (1200BC to 600AD)
As its name suggests, the British Iron Age is also characterised by the
adoption of iron, a metal which was used to produce a variety of different
tools, ornaments and weapons.
In the course of the first millennium BC, immigration from continental
Europe resulted in the establishment of Celtic languages in the islands,
eventually giving rise to the Insular Celtic group. What languages were
spoken in the islands before is unknown, though they are assumed to have
been Pre-Indo-European.
Classical period
From AD 40 to about AD 410, southern Britain was a part of the
Roman Empire, with archaeologists referring to this area as "Roman Britain",
and this time span the "Romano-British period" or the "Roman Iron Age".
In and around the same time period, Ireland was being invaded and settled by
Gaels.
Medieval period
Main articles: Medieval England, Medieval Scotland, Medieval Wales, Early
medieval Ireland, and Late medieval Ireland
Early medieval
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The Early medieval period saw a series of invasions of Britain by the
Germanic-speaking Saxons, beginning in the 5th century. Anglo-Saxon
kingdoms were formed and, through wars with British states, gradually came
to cover the territory of present-day England. Around 600, seven principal
kingdoms had emerged, beginning the so-called period of the Heptarchy.
During that period, the Anglo-Saxon states were Christianised (the conversion
of the British ones had begun much earlier). In the 9th century, Vikings from
Denmark and Norway conquered most of England. Only the Kingdom of
Wessex under Alfred the Great survived and even managed to re-conquer and
unify England for much of the 10th century, before a new series of Danish
raids in the late 10th century and early 11th century culminated in the
wholesale subjugation of England to Denmark under Canute the Great.
Danish rule was overthrown and the local House of Wessex was restored to
power under Edward the Confessor for about two decades until his death in
1066.
Late Medieval
Bayeux Tapestry depicting events leading to the Norman conquest of
England, which defined much of the subsequent history of the British Isles
In 1066, William, Duke of Normandy said he was the rightful heir to the
English throne, invaded England, and defeated King Harold II at the Battle of
Hastings. Proclaiming himself to be King William I, he strengthened his
regime by appointing loyal members of the Norman elite to many positions of
authority, building a system of castles across the country and ordering a
census of his new kingdom, the Domesday Book. The Late Medieval period
was characterised by many battles between England and France, coming to a
head in the Hundred Years' War from which France emerged victorious. The
monarchs throughout the Late Medieval period belonged to the houses of
Plantaganet, Lancaster and York.
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