Those of you that have read the post below will know that this blogger has been lucky enough to spend a week in Suffolk recently.It was just north of Bury St. Edmunds (see post below) that you will find West Stow, home to one of the most remarkable places I have ever been.
The picture on the left here is what it's all about. West Stow was once an Anglo-Saxon village. Archaeologists have been continually excavating the site since 1965, and their discoveries changed how the Anglo-Saxons are perceived (see below).
Since then the Anglo-Saxon buildings have been re-built on the exact places they were excavated. There is a museam hosting all the items found in the village, which is regularly visited by schools and members of the public alike.
Walking around those buildings- with their log fires smouldering, allows you to feel as if you were back in 500AD in a real Anglo-Saxon village. It was remarkable.Best of all was the museum, which explained that Anglo-Saxons had always been thought of as murderous, brutal savages. Until, that is, excavations like this which proved that, through their pottery, jewellery and artwork, the Anglo-Saxons were cultured and sophisticated people.
The museum told the story of Anglo-Saxon England- ending with this board:
"Norman propaganda denigrated Anglo-Saxon culture and only recently has this been challenged".All those school children and parents and teachers will read it.
The denigration of Anglo-Saxon culture continues to this day- it's why we can't celebrate our national day or say we're proud to be English without some looney using the word "racist". But this is being challenged. Our cultural ancestors were intelligent, sophisticated people that laid the foundations for what has become one of the finest nations in the world- England.
When you visit places like West Stow, you know that there is hope yet for our young people and for England.
2 comments:
Hi, I found the stuff on West Stow very interesting. But could you please call the Anglo-Saxon mud huts by their real name please - Grubenhauser. I think this more accurately reflects the Germanic origins of the English.
As a proud Englishman I have always very found the Anglo-Saxon period of our great nations history fascinating! but I become rather perplexed with why we never acknowledge the people that were here before the Anglo-Saxons!!, the Romans yes but also the Celts. These people are an important part of make up and history of this pleasent beautiful nation, and it is a great undoing to forget these fasinating and somewhat mysterious people that makes up the genetics of over HALF of our fellow Englishmen.
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