Product Description
Originally published in 1915.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1913.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1922.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1912.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1921.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1894.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1895.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume. ... Read more

Product Description
This survey, an introduction to the history of Anglo-Saxon England looks at political history, and religious, cultural, social, legal and economic themes are woven in. Throughout the book the authors make use of original sources such as chronicles, charters, manuscripts and coins, works of art, archaelogical remains and surviving buildings.The nature of power and kingship, role of wealth, rewards, conquest and blood-feud in the perennial struggle for power, structure of society, the development of Christianity and the relations between church and secular authority are discussed at length, while particular topics are explored in 19 "picture essays". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Good Text
I bought this book for a class and only really had to use it for about two or three weeks. The text was easy enough to read although dry (but what textbook isn't). The photos were nice and it was cool to see examples of some of the things they were describing. I can't see reading this book for the sake of reading the book. It has good info but could have been presented in a more lively manner. I got the impression of a monotone from the text. It served it's purpose well, however, and I would recommend it to anyone studying this time period in school.

Nice intro to the subject
I think that this book is useful to anyone studying Anglo-Saxon topics.It covers the basic context of the development of Anglo-Saxon England after the fall of Roman Britain through the Battle of Hastings.It provides a fairly good account, in broad generalist terms, of this period in history.

This book is primarily a history and as such needs to be seen as such.It is not a deep look at Anglo-Saxon social structures, nor it is a look at Anglo-Saxon ethical culture.However it covers material culture in relative detail as well as what is known about the historical movements, consolidations of power, and the like.

The illustrations and photographs in this book are extremely interesting and well organized.Even if the text wasn't great (which it is), the photos would have made the text worth it.I would recommend this work.

A book to keep coming back to
I'm not a historian but I loved this book. I think the transition between Roman Britain and Anglo-Saxon England is one of the most fascinating periods in history (together with the 10/12th AD awakening). This book, along with Michael Wood's In search of the Dark Ages are a wonderful read.

A shaky review for a shaky theory..
if you're looking for a book that can separate the Anglo-Saxons from the Romans and Celts plus the other tribes inhabiting the Isles before the arrival of the Saxons don't look here. In fact I don't think anyone using all of the sources available plus the most recent archaeology ever could.Since Britain was heavily Romanized in the 1st century AD,especially in the southeastern parts and around present day London,one could have serious questions about the arrival of the Saxons during and after this period,Were the Saxons brought over as Roman slaves for military and labor purposes.As one author in Campbell's series has stated,"There is NO history or records on slavery during this period",it definitely existed during this period and a lack of info on this vital subject leaves major gaps in any attempt at discovery.The author admits to the critical shortage of acurate writings and records from the "Dark Age" period although more light has come on this period from numerous scholarly works recently.Even the most famous Anglo-Saxon archaeological relic of the period the Sutton-Hoo mask can be debated. Is it in fact a post -Roman copy of a Roman military parade mask? I have seen a few of the Roman masks and they are almost identical and a few hundred years before the Sutton-Hoo mask. Some of the treasures pictured in the book were actually found on the continent and the author states,"They(May Be) of Anglo-Saxon origin so he admits he might be wrong. The coin stashes found and presented in the book are both Roman and Continental?Whomever controls the minting of the coin usually has the power so is my read of Campbell that far off?The image of boatloads of Anglo-Saxon freebooters,arriving in postRoman Britain shouting "power to the peasants" is shattered in this work.The Anglos,Saxons and the Jutes probably arrived in large numbers and during different periods as possible contracted labor,mercenaries,concubines,(slaves)? and were gobbled up rapidly by the nations/tribes(including previously arrived Anglo-Saxons) already established in the isles,at least that is(MY) read of Campbells'book.I have heard it said on occasion that the WestSaxon tongue was the language of slaves.Would it be the first time in history that slave-lingo took over a country?This is not to say that the Anglo-Saxons did not make a major contribution to English law and culture.The numerous essays and descriptions of the works of art and law by the Anglo-Saxons included in the book leave one in awe.But how much of this was the result of Roman and other Continental influences?Good luck trying to separate it!!but it was never meant to be separated anyway.
If I've confused you that's good because almost every work on the Anglo-Saxons is VERY confusing due to lack of records-no ships lists,no records of crossings--no nothing-a culture of wood buildings.There are a few one-sided (Hell and Damnation)scribbling of monks based on folklore who may have been court propogandists bolstering a shaky throne.Then you have crossings of numerous contintental tribes,vikings,etc.,etc, so numerous that noone even knows their names(or for that matter cares or should care).Then suddenly someone writes a book and everyone with caucasion features is you guessed it Anglo-Saxon.It's a scissors and paste and every which way but loose fit.Suddenly around 800 AD England is Anglo-Saxon.I've seen so many different books and they all have different dates anywher form 200AD to 800AD when England is Anglo-Saxon.Anglo-Saxon as far as a label is good enough for me.With little to none writings and archaeological records,the Anglo-Saxon historian becomes the (ARTIST)! or what the heck! The spinner of tall tales,I understand Paul Bunyon was Anglo-Saxon too!!I gave the book 5 stars not becuase I'm convnced about Campbells' assumption of an Anglo-Saxon England,but because of the extreme scarcity of sources except imagination,any attempt is praiseworthy.By the way great pictures!!

Idiosyncratic but delightful
I recently used this text in a graduate course on the early Middle Ages.I like it because it does several things really well -- most of what is written about the period tends to focus on the period after Alfred the Great because historians are rightly dependent upon written sources that become relatively more plentiful in the later period.This text draws on archaeology really nicely and gives a lot of good visuals.The sidebar discussions of things like estimating the populations of medieval cities are really nice jumping off points for discussion.The book does gloss over several ongoing historiographical debates and becomes, I think, problematically idiosyncratic for the eleventh century.It also lacks discussion of some important issues such as institutional and military history (which is hard to write about in an engaging fashion) and women's history.I wouldn't use it in an undergrad course without a lot of supplementation. ... Read more