Alfred's Wars: Sources and Interpretations of Anglo-Saxon Warfare in the Viking Age

Description

Frontcover; List of Illustrations; List of Tables; Source Acknowledgements; Note on sources; Preface; 1 Introduction: A Society at War: Mentalities of Warfare in Later Anglo-Saxon England; Mentalities of Warfare in Later Anglo-Saxon England; Ealdorman Æthelweard: The writing of history and the experience of warfare in the tenth century; The study of later Anglo-Saxon warfare: Themes and their studies; Ideologies of war; Masculinity, youth and experience in Anglo-Saxon warfare; 2 Friends and Foes; Britons and the 'Kingdom of the English'; The advent of the Vikings.;Selected by Choice for the 2011 list of Outstanding Academic Titles. The warfare of the late Anglo-Saxon period had momentous consequences for the development of the English state following Alfred the Great's reign. This book provides a comprehensive guide, with extracts in translation from the principal sources for our knowledge, accompanied by the most important interpretations by scholars through the ages, and new introductions by the present author. It looks at every aspect of the topic, from land and sea forces to logistics and campaigning, from fortifications and the battlefield to the. Frontcover List of Illustrations List of Tables Source Acknowledgements Note on sources Preface 1 Introduction: A Society at War: Mentalities of Warfare in Later Anglo-Saxon England Mentalities of Warfare in Later Anglo-Saxon England Ealdorman Æthelweard: The writing of history and the experience of warfare in the tenth century The study of later Anglo-Saxon warfare: Themes and their studies Ideologies of war Masculinity, youth and experience in Anglo-Saxon warfare 2 Friends and Foes Britons and the 'Kingdom of the English' The advent of the Vikings. Their own worst enemy? Internal conflicts3 Organization and Equipment: Land The nation at arms? 'Five Hides and All That': Aristocrats and military service A royal elite? The housecarls Arms, armour, and status 'A nobleman belongs on horseback': horses and equestrian equipment Summary 4 Organization and Equipment: Maritime Types of vessel Fleet logistics Æthelweard's Chronicon and records of nautical terminology The organization of coastal defence Summary 5 Campaigns and Strategies The movement of armies Amphibious warfare and combined operations: Ships in campaigns Summary. 6 FortificationsThe Burghal Hidage and the organization of fortifications Fortifications in action Fortifications in the Second Viking Age Summary and observations 7 Fields of Slaughter: Battles and Battlefields Courage, cowardice and motivation Medieval or classical sources? Fighting techniques and battlefield tactics Naval battles Locating and remembering battlefields Summary 8 After the Battle: Peacemaking and Peace Agreements Opportunities for negotiation Strategic peace: the use and abuse of peace? Truce, peace and peace treaties Summary Conclusions Appendix: Chronology.