Essay+on+the+Fall+of+Anglo-Saxon+England

 The Anglo-Saxons were a people who treated warfare as a way of life. A civilization so dependent on warfare that it led to their inevitable fall [[|3] ]. The fall of Anglo-Saxon England had to do with many factors, including the Anglo-Saxon’s obsession with war, a leaders ignorance and disregard towards his advisors and internal rivalries. __Our current civilization could learn a lot from the fall of the Anglo-Saxon’s, that a civilization dependant on warfare cannot prosper and is due for collapse. __  In 1066, Harold II, made the worst decision of the Anglo-Saxon’s. Disregarding his advisors recommendations to wait and starve the Viking invaders, Harold took to battle, leading to his death, the Anglo-Saxon’s defeat and the end of the Anglo-Saxon empire [[|1] ]. Though the fall would of likely still occurred if Harold had taken the advise provided to him, it would not of happened until a later time, meaning that the Battle of Hastings would of likely been a much more one sided affair since the Viking army had been starved for as long as England could afford. Our current civilization needs to take notes on Harold’s decision, for it mirrors many choices made by the American government going into Iraq, Afghanistan and many other unneeded wars. Our civilization needs to learn from Harold’s mistake and listen to our advisers, to prevent future wars and prevent ourselves from getting into worse situations.

Our civilization has learned from the Anglo-Saxon’s that a Monarchy is unsuccessful. Many internal conflicts had arisen in Anglo-Saxon England due to the monarchic system. When Edgar died, despite not being Edgar’s requested heir, his son Edward was presented the crown due to his half brother Æ thelred being to young. Edward’s kingship caused a division in who should rule England, leading to constant distraction and eventually to Edward’s assassination [[|1] ]. Due to monarchic rules, Æthelred II the Unready was forced to become a king at the age of 10 [[|1] ]. He is considered the unready, for he was too young and was therefore to dependant on his council and advisors. Due to his forced leadership due to monarchic rules, Æthelred led some of the worst times of Anglo-Saxon England and was a big part in leading them to their inevitable fall. It is a good thing that our current civilization has learned from the mistakes the Anglo-Saxon’s had in having a monarchy government, for if we hadn’t we may have found ourselves in worse situations then we have ever been faced with. The most important thing we can learn from the Anglo-Saxon’s, is that a civilization prospers most in times of peace appose to in times of war. It was during Edgar’s reign that England was said to be in peace, free of invasions and interior conflicts [2]. It was said during Edgar’s reign, England had become a more powerful and organized state, gaining respect from countries all over Europe [2]. Creating what is often considered as the golden age of Anglo-Saxon England. Soon after Edgar’s death internal conflicts arose between his sons, leading to the assassination of one of them and then to the most deadly battles of the Norman Conquest [[|1] ]. The loss of peace and constant wars had deadly effects on the politics and power of Anglo-Saxon England, eventually leading to their inevitable fall [2]. This is an important lesson for our current civilization to understand, for it is clear that we are currently in troubled times in our economy and in many other factors of our life, if we were to remove ourselves from war, we would be able to focus on the problems that face our current civilization, taking us towards our golden age instead of towards our fall.

In conclusion the Anglo-Saxon’s fell due to their obsession with war, disregard towards their advisors and their Monarchy system of government. It is our responsibility as a current civilization to learn from the mistakes made by the Anglo-Saxon’s, like we have learned with the removal of Monarchy government. As a civilization, we must take in what the Anglo-Saxon’s did wrong and use that to help us avoid the same fate that they encountered, leading us to a much more prosperous future.

Josh Weisfeld

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 * __ Citations

__**  Campbell, Alistair. "England: History __ Anglo-Saxon Period." Encyclopedia Americana 2009. Grolier Online. 21 Apr. 2009 <[] >. **= 1**

Campbell, James. //The Anglo Saxons.// Penguin, 2007. **= 2**  

White, David. //Wergild: Anglo-Saxon Social Structure in One Word// 26 Jan. 2001. 7 May. 2009 <[]> **=** **3**