The Historical Setting: 7th century Northumbria

I'm still not exactly sure why I wanted to set The Adventures of the Billy Goats Gruff in the Early Middle Ages, but I know that I was drawn to stories of the period. I started writing the story in about 1994, before I  started my MA, so the interest was sparked by history books for the general market and I had not at that stage picked up a copy of Bede's Ecclesiatical History to begin to read the primary sources - indeed at that time I knew more about the later Historia Britonnum and Annales Cambriae than I did about the Anglo-Saxon sources.

What I was aware of was the prominent position of Northumbria at that time. I have since learned to develop a layer of scholarly cynicism, to see Bede and other contemporary writers as people with agendas and bias, not as pure, disinterested chroniclers of events. Nonetheless, there was definitely something dynamic and vital about the kingdom in the 7th century, a fact that is attested in the monumental sculpture, the incredible illuminated manuscripts and the fact that no other kingdom at the time produced so many writers who could present their stories of saints and kings and be preserved after Northumbria had ceased to be independent and became a relatively minor earldom and ultimately remembered only through the county name of Northumberland.

It is difficult to define when the concept of Northumbria came into being and whether it was meant to represent a unified political force or to be descriptive of a group of peoples who came to be united. The inverse term of South Humbrians was certainly used (by Bede, of course) to refer to all the other English kingdoms, but that label did not stick, largely because the South Humbrians included Mercia and the West Saxons, who were to be the main rivals in later centuries for the dominance of England.

There were two principal dynasties involved in the formation of Northumbria, the Idings in the north and the Soemilings in the south. The Idings ruled a land given the Latin name of Bernicia, which I have called Bernice (not pronounced Ber-nees like the girls' name, but Ber-nee-che). The Soemilings ruled ina land in modern Yorkshire called Deira, which I have given the alternative name of Dere in the book after the name of the Roman road which runs from York to Edinburgh.

Ida was a king of Bernicia and is said to have joined Bernicia and Dinguaire (Dinware in the book). As the older name given in Welsh sources for Bamburgh is Dingauiraroy (or something similar), this seems to represent a more southerly kingdom, probably centred on the River Tyne, absorbing a more northerly one. Ida seems to have had a lot of sons, the greatest of whom was Æthelric. They were under repeated attack particularly by Urien of Rheged and Morcant, but they survived it all in part because the Welsh were divided and Urien was killed by an assassin. Æthelric's son, Æthelfrith, was the first king of both Bernicia and Deira. He also seems to have expanded his territories westwards at the cost of kingdoms like Rheged and its forgotten southern neighbours.

Soemil is named in the ancestry of the kings of Deira, but may not have been an actual person. For the purposes of the book, I have assumed that he was, and that the Grufflings are descended from him, thus giving them royal blood. The first king of Deira named in history was Ælle, for his name is said to have been known to slave traders in Rome, as recounted in the Life of St Gregory. It was Ælle that was defeated by Æthelfrith when he became ruler of both kingdoms. Ælle's son Eadwine (Edwin) was forced into exile until the time was ripe for his return. Eadwine defeated Æthelfrith and in turn ruled over both Deira and Bernicia, the only Soemiling to do so. The importance of the line continued after his death, however, as we shall see in time.

Into this situation I have placed our family of Grufflings. The two older boys were born in Deira and stayed there as fosterlings when their mother died. Their father was sent north into Bernicia, to the place that Bede tells us was called Ad Gefrin and is know called Yeavering, in Northumberland. Here he remarried, a political match to a princess from the fallen royal family of Rheged. They had two sons and a daughter, born in the north and of mixed ancestry - they differ from their elder brothers in being biligual, learning Welsh from their mother even though English was their main language. When Edgar and his elder brother Athelred join the family, they are almost full grown men, and Athelred is taken by his father as his assistant. The younger boys learn to get along with their older brothers, but the differences between them can cause arguments to flare up - as with brothers anywhere.

In AD 633 two significant events seem to have occurred. The first was that Cearl of Mercia (or Mierce) was deposed by a kinsman called Penda. The second was that Cadwallon (or Cadwalla), who was the king of Gwynedd, rebelled against Eadwine. Together with this same Penda, he marched out against Eadwine, who fell at Hatfield Chase. Cadwallon stormed northwards, harrying the land and seeking out any English settlers, putting them to the sword. Bede states that his intention was to destroy the English race. This is the situation facing the family at the beginning of the book. The events at Yeavering are not part of history, although the excavation there by Brian Hope-Taylor identified two attempts to burn the place to the ground, neither of which was particularly successful. I have taken the first attempt as being in AD 633 and have based my account around that fact.

In a future post I will discuss the aftermath of Eadwine's death further, as it has an impact on one minor character and will affect the world to which the Grufflings return.

A look at other fiction set in the Early Middle Ages

There is a good sized body of historical fiction with an Anglo-Saxon bent out there. Most of it is good, often it can be seriously flawed, but generally it is entertaining stuff and a good way to bring to life the period. I have arranged the list below into roughly chronological periods which are however undefined in terms of dates.

My most common dissatisfaction with books about the period is simple things being wrong, such as pre-Viking Age characters being given Scandinavian names when there is a substantial choice of English names and enough name elements known to make up your own constructs. Then there is the treatment of Anglo-Saxon paganism as being identical to Scandinavian paganism but with a W at the beginning of Odin, not to mention good old fashioned anachronisms. There are a few other points along these lines but this is not the place to make specific criticisms. As these all point to Amazon, take into account the customer reviews there - there may even be some of mine!

NB: An updated list is available here.

Settlement Period
Rhinegold Technically this is of only passing connection to the Anglo-Saxons, being set in Europe throughout, but I have included it for character and because it is truly outstanding!
Hengest's Tale An account of Hengest's adventures in Frisia, possibly aimed at a younger reader.
Men Went to Cattraeth From the other side: an account of the Gododdin.
Ragnarok Bad title (suggestive of Viking Age) for a good book. A British noblewoman marries an English king.
The Way Of Wyrd: Tales of an Anglo-Saxon Sorcerer Not certain what period this belongs to but it is presumably early rather than late. The title says it all.
The Saga of Beowulf A modern retelling of Beowulf. Originally conceived in two episodes, The Land of Death and Shadow followed by The Land of Fire and Ice. It is also available on Kindle

Heptarchy Period
The Amber Treasure (Northern Crown) Set in the 6th/7th century in Deira
Ship Burial: The Rune of Ing A Christian mission from Kent to East Anglia finds the way is less than smooth.
Paths of Exile King Edwin's life as an exile after his father's death.
Storm Frost Set in the 7th century but the location is unknown.
Brightfire: A Tale of Sutton Hoo Sequel to Storm Frost set in 7th century East Anglia
The Whispering Bell Set in 7th century Mercia - the tale of an orphaned girl.
Month of Swallows Story of Hilda, a girl in the court of King Edwin of Northumbria
Holy Isle Sequel to Month of Swallows. Good luck finding a copy (you are up against me for one!)
Wolf Girl A crime story set in 7th century Northumbria

Viking Period
The Last Kingdom Northumbrian exile fights the Vikings
The Pale Horseman Northumbrian exile at Athelney with Alfred of Wessex
The Lords of the North Northumbrian exile returns home
Sword Song Northumbrian exile returns to help Alfred of Wessex
The Burning Land Northumbrian exile saves Wessex
Hrolf Kraki's Saga Poul Anderson's faithful rendition of the saga with additional material from other sources makes for an almost saga-like reading experience; not to everyone's taste as it can feel like reading a translation rather than a work of fiction.
Byzantium Irish monk enslaved by Vikings finds his way by the Volga to Byzantium.
Raven: Blood Eye A Viking's life.
Raven: Sons of Thunder More Viking's life
The Whale Road Viking band in search of the treasure of Attila
The Wolf Sea Still looking for Attila's treasure by way of a stolen sword.
The White Raven Apparently finished with Attila's treasure the boys have problems at home.
The Prow Beast  Their homes lost and their boat sunk, the boys get involved in Swedish politics.
Far After Gold Scottish lass enslaved by Viking brute/hunk in M&B style kirtle-ripper

Pre-Conquest Period
The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth A look back at the Battle of Maldon from the grisly battlefield.
Mercenaries Norman lads go out to seek their fortune
Warriors Norman lads make a name for themselves in Italy
Conquest Normans + Conquest = ?  No, not 1066, this sees our Norman lads go on Crusade.
Housecarl The life of a Huscarl in Harold Godwinson's army.

Post-Conquest Period
Last of the English Story of Hereward the Wake
Hereward Another Story of Hereward the Wake (not yet published)

One final comment: I have discovered in the course of compiling this list that at least one book that I had listed elsewhere (but not here) is probably the work of a Neo-Nazi. The Anglo-Saxons seem to hold a great deal of fascination for English Neo-Nazis, so I suppose a small sample of books from the genre may reflect their distasteful world view. If any of the books here are of the same ilk, I unreservedly apologise for including them. This list is to be viewed as a wide sample of the genre rather than a list of recommendations!

Setting (1) The time and place at the beginning of the book

The book opens in the autumn of AD633 in a place I call Gatburgh. The ruler in the region at the time was King Eadwine. This land would later to be known as Northumbria but there was no such political sense of unity at the time and each separate component of the realm ruled by Eadwine had its own history and traditions. Gatburgh lies in the province that I have called Dinware from the Welsh Din Guaire. This later becomes merged in the popular mind with Bernice (Bernicia) which lay further to the south, centred on Tynedale and especially Corbridge.

Eadwine had converted to Christianity a mere six years earlier and so the religion from the south had strong backing but relatively weak roots. Christianity had been known of for much longer among the Welsh population of Britain, but although there had been Welsh Christians in the north of Britain for a long time, it would seem that this corner of England had remained pagan even up to the coming of the English. In my book I have assumed that it was the threat of encroaching Christianity that persuaded the leading families of Dinware to offer the rulership to Ida, a Saxon pagan already strong in Bernice to the south. By bringing in a strong pagan of a different tradition, they safeguarded their own ancient ways against the tide of Christianity. The tactic works for about two generations, maybe slightly longer. By this time the population is thoroughly mixed and the language of Ida and his successors dominates everyday life to the point that names of places are becoming English names.

Gatburgh is an attempt to give an English name to modern Yeavering; a place known to history as Ad Gefrin. This itself is a Latin rendition of Welsh Gafre Vrin which translates as the hill or place of the goats. My name Gatburgh derives from the Old English gat (goat) and burh (fortified place). The place is named in Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People (Bede) as being a royal palace site, from where we get the Latinised name. Excavations by Brian Hope-Taylor (H-T) at Yeavering revealed a sequence of occupation whose earliest stages probably pre-date the Anglo-Saxon presence in the area but whose development clearly shows evidence of a change in building style that suggests the arrival of a new culture. I have assumed for the book that the name Gatburgh will fall out of use once Eadwine's people are no longer in command of the site.

You can see the attraction of the place for my story about goats. Yeavering was probably a site which in pre-Christian times was the centre of what can only be called a goat cult. This is echoed in Grave AX from H-T's site report which is mentioned in passing in my book and has both an animal skull and a broken staff in it. The animal skull, identified as a sheep by H-T, I have re-assigned as a goat. The two skull types are difficult to tell apart as the two species are very close (hybrids are possible). More importantly, the staff (which is discussed in terms of being a surveying device by H-T) is surmounted by a bronze and wood figurine that closely resembles a goat. This staff and another identical one come into the story at different points in time and are a significant part of the development of the story.

I still find it somewhat strange that I learned all of this long after I had chosen Yeavering as the origin place for the brothers; before I had really researched the place. Even the place-name was at that point an unknown factor, all that I knew was that it was a known site of Anglo-Saxon date. It was one of several times that I found things falling neatly into place as I developed my story. That I subsequently developed the story around the site I can only hold up my hand to but then it really is a fascinating site.

Links/further reading:
H-T's book Yeavering: An Anglo-British Centre of Early Northumbria is usually pretty expensive; I was fortunate to have access to it while studying at Newcastle University.
A more accessible format for information on this subject is Paul Frodsham's recent book Yeavering: People, Power and Place
More immediately you can view the Past Perfect website devoted to the location. Check it out (especially the sparrow's flight), it is well worth a visit!