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The Making of Scotland #7
Angels, Fools and Tyrants: Britons and Anglo-Saxons in Southern Scotland
In the South of the country, the local Britons living in the kingdoms of Strathclyde, Rheged and Gododdin faced a new threat - from the Angles of Northumbria. This is the fascinating story of two of the least known peoples of early Scotland and their struggle for the subject of ancient myths and legends, and epic poetry. Recent research has given new insights that challenge many of the previously accepted ideas of relations between Angles and Britons in this period. This book is part of a series produced by Historic Scotland and Canongate which provides lively, accessible and up-to-date introductions to key themes and periods in Scottish history and prehistory.
64 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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July 23, 2021
Angels, Fools and Tyrants, Britons and Anglo-Saxons in Southern Scotland, by Chris Lowe, 1999, 64 pages
Between the general lay out and the large number of pictures, I'll go to the foot of my stairs if this isn't from the same people who do the Osprey guides. Despite the pages being quite large, it feels fairly lightweight and I was initially dubious about buying it. However, most of the reviews were fairly positive and for a couple of quid, I felt it worth a punt.
The Chapters include:
Setting the scene
Petty tyrants and foolish priests
Northumbrian expansion
Strongholds and centres of power
Stones, shrines and cemeteries
Enclosed places: centres of spiritual and economic power
Conclusions
Sites around Scotland
To be fair, it's better than what you'd expect and is a reasonable starter book. It has a good, if basic framework, but unfortunately not the space to go into a lot of detail or nuance. Just as you're getting into a chapter, it moves on. The archaeological side of the evidence is given the most attention and this is very good. However, other aspects of scholarship are not fully up to date – Lowe repeats the old idea that ingas are amongst the earliest place-name types.
That aside, this is a reasonable enough book. It's not one to spend real money on, but it's a pleasant enough quick read.
Between the general lay out and the large number of pictures, I'll go to the foot of my stairs if this isn't from the same people who do the Osprey guides. Despite the pages being quite large, it feels fairly lightweight and I was initially dubious about buying it. However, most of the reviews were fairly positive and for a couple of quid, I felt it worth a punt.
The Chapters include:
Setting the scene
Petty tyrants and foolish priests
Northumbrian expansion
Strongholds and centres of power
Stones, shrines and cemeteries
Enclosed places: centres of spiritual and economic power
Conclusions
Sites around Scotland
To be fair, it's better than what you'd expect and is a reasonable starter book. It has a good, if basic framework, but unfortunately not the space to go into a lot of detail or nuance. Just as you're getting into a chapter, it moves on. The archaeological side of the evidence is given the most attention and this is very good. However, other aspects of scholarship are not fully up to date – Lowe repeats the old idea that ingas are amongst the earliest place-name types.
That aside, this is a reasonable enough book. It's not one to spend real money on, but it's a pleasant enough quick read.
Displaying 1 of 1 review