Week 1 Lecture: Introduction (You
don’t have to know this one)
The Death of Major Peirson (6-1-1781)
The major is seen in the middle and his “guard” is
shooting the killer. It is unusual for a minority to be
represented this way in a painting. He died at the
Battle of Jersey which was the last French attempt
to seize the island of Jersey.
What do we talk about when …?
United Kingdom is more of a political term. England has a dominance within the United Kingdom
which is why British is often confused with English. In the course, we’ll see how England develops
into the United Kingdom.
When we talk about Great Britain, we mean England and Scotland. When we talk about the United
Kingdom, we mean Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Commodification of national identity means that we turn certain images and products that can be
sold to foreigners as an idea of a culture (A brand, a symbol). This is the case, f.e., when you google
British culture.
“Contemporary British culture is a mixture of all the cultures of the past that people are influenced
by –but certain figures, symbols and narratives exercise particularly strong control over the ways we
imagine ourselves to be and have been” (British Cultural Identities). An Imagined Community id
when nations try to shape imagined community, we try to still feel connected to them. For example
by social media, seeing people do the same things that you are doing. Or reading the Times
Newspaper like everyone else does. Or when everyone in Holland is watching soccer. Still, these
versions of the community (or Britain) can clash with reality.
British heroes
Isambard Kingdom Brunel is kind of a symbol for industrialization. Heroes can be real, or fiction.
To what extent are the British going through an identity crisis?
There’s a political crisis (Brexit). Recently, the Grenfell tragedy was caused by politicians who are not
concerned with civilians from the lower class. The British Empire has been reduced to only Britain.
Identity construction can be a top-down or bottom-up process. In Britain, people are now identifying
with projects in Europe and not only as English or British. But, identity is always moving.
,Britain before England
Neolithic cultures are cultures in the Stone Age. Around 4000 BCE there
were hunters and gatherers. Stonehenge was built between c. 2200-1300
BCE.. Immigration into Britain intensified over time. The Celts came who
called Britain Albion. New grains and new drinks were introduced.
Then the Roman invasions started. Julius Caesar invaded the island
(55BCE). The Romans called Britain, Britannia. A century later, the island
was incorporated into the Roman Empire under the reign of Claudius.
There was resistance by Boudicca (Celtic queen), but Rome did not want
to accept a female leader. Boudicca launched a rebellion against the
Romans, but eventually she committed suicide to evade capture by the
romans. Boudicca, the Celtic queen
The Celtic population was ruled by a Latin-speaking elite. The elite did
have a Celtic background.
Hadrian’s wall was built to protect the northern border against invading tribes (Picts from the later
Scotland). It also served as a sign of Roman power.
From Angles to England
The tribes had decided to go overseas and see what they could
find. From the fifth century onwards, there were raids by the
Picts, Saxons, Jutes and Angles. The Celts had to vent for
themselves.
Vortigern invited Anglo-Saxon mercenaries in the year 450.
Hengist and Horsa, two Anglo-Saxon leaders. They were
mercenaries for Vortigern, but they later turned against him.
Horsa was killed, but Hengist successfully conquered Kent,
becoming the forefather of its kings.
The Celtic resistance against Germanic invaders contains a myth.
King Arthur is said to be a hero who defended his land against
these Anglo-Saxons. He fought the people who actually came to
be British.
,Vikings
In the ninth century, there were a lot of
Northmen raids. They decided to stay in the
land they had raided.
King Alfred was the King of Wessex, and he
was able to stop the invaders and during an
agreement with the Vikings, he established
the Danelaw. He promoted scholarship and
monasteries. (?)
King Ethelred the Ill-advised tried to deal
with the Vikings by extortion money. Then
he ordered to kill all the Vikings, but in the
end the Vikings, Sveyn Forkbeard, defeated
King Ethelred. England was now in the hand
of the Vikings. Sveyn Forkbeard was then
succeeded by his son Cnut, as the King of
England.
The Norman Conquest
Edward the Confessor, a son of Ethelreed,
died on January 5th in 1066. Then there were
four claims to the throne.
- The king of Norway: Harald
Sigrudsson,
- the Duke of Normandy (William the
Bastard),
- the Earl of Northumbia (Tostig) and
- the Earl of Wessex (Harold Godwinson).
Harold defeats Harald and Tostig at Stamford Bridge on September 25th 1066. Then William defeats
Harold at the Battle of Hastings on October 14th 1066.
Consolidating England
The Doomsday Book was written to state who owned what land
and what taxes should be paid. The Norman supremacy was
established. The Vikings had gone raiding in England, French-
speaking Vikings who now came to rule over England. Richard I
Lionheart became king in 1189 after succeeding Henry II (r. 1154-
1189). Richard Lionheart was in England for only 4 months out of
Richard Lionheart (r. 1189-1199)
his 10-year reign.
, John (r. 1199-1216), Henry’s
son and Richard’s brother,
succeeded Richard. During
his reign, he signed the
Magna Carta, a charter of
rights. This established
what civil rights the people
have, it also limited the rule of
the king. The King was forced
to sign this.
In 1272, Edward I came to
power.
In the Welsh wars, he defeated
Llewelyn ap Gruffyd (the prince of Wales) (this was in 1277). The Guardian of Scotland, William
Wallace was also defeated by Edward, not winning the independence for Scotland as planned.
Edward was also known as Hammer of Scots (Malleus Scotorum), for his defeats.
War and pestilene
The Hundred Years’ War took place from 1337 to 1453. Edward III claims the French throne. His son
Edward, the Black Prince, wins major victories. The bubonic plague hit England in 1348, resulting in
the death of possibly half the population of England. In 1399, Richard II put from the thrones by
Henry IV. In 1415, Henry V
triumphs at the Battle of
Agincourt (Tom Hiddleston,
Shakespeare play), but then dies
suddenly (1422) after which his
infant son (Henry VI) inherits the
throne.
The War of the Roses took place
from 1453 to 1485. Henry VI (r.
1422-1461), who succeeded his
father Henry V, belonged to
house Lancaster. The house of York,
however, felt that they should inherit
the throne. Near the end of the
war, Richard the III (r. 1483-
1485), a member of house York,
has the throne for two years,
but was
defeated at Bosworth Field in
1485. Henry VII succeeds him and marries Elizabeth (York). With this, he establishes the Tudor
dynasty.
