... size would have been limited by these costs. One gets a sense of quite a claustrophobic Darwinian world in Anglo-Saxon England with a number of small and large kingdoms all on each others doorsteps and all with their own agendas constantly probing and testing each other. It has been argued that there were few instances where territory was gained as a result of a single successful ... well equipped. Where necessary he could take personal command of the men. Added to this the king had at his disposal travelling commissioners or missi. These could be sent to specified regions either to und...

• Word Count: 4216
• Approx Pages: 17
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... can be perceived in many different ways. Williams for instance, proceeds to suggests that the attack on the Irminsul had an underlying religious significance. After all, this is the first recorded evidence of the Franks devising a pre-planned attack on a Saxon religious centre. The king kept fighting men in the palace without fixed positions or incomes, who lived from gifts of food and clothing, gold and ... silver, horses and arms. Rewards were thus expected for the professional warrior and it was the only way by which ... in northern Italy in 774, he 'entered it with hymns and l...

• Word Count: 1645
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: Undergraduate