TODAY - November 19
NIELS’ MORNING GREETINGS
ON: NOVEMBER 19
New edition
TODAY’s LENGTH:
This day is here
in Belgium 7 hours and 43 minutes shorter than June 21. Its length is 8 hours
and 47 minutes – from 08.05 to 16.52.
See more – also in
English – on what you are: www.dagenslaengde.dk
TODAY’s NAME:
Today’s name is ELISABETH’s DAY. She was a young Hungarian princess, who was married to count Ludwig IV of Thüringen when she was only 14. When her husband died early in their marriage ( in 1227 ) she was sent away. And she lived the rest of her short life helping poor people, and she lived herself also in poor conditions. He died already in 1231. Four years later she was made a saint. In Belgium her name was attributed to the day November 16.
This day is in Belgium
called SAINTE MECHTILD – from a Saxon-German Benedictine nun, who lived
in the years 1244-98. She was known to
be very talented in music, and she had a beautiful voice.
TODAY’s EVENT:
1977: Egypt’s president Anwar Sadat is the first
Arab leader to visit Israel officially.
TODAY’s QUESTION:
Anglo-saxons - who were and are
they ?
The Angles were one of the
Germanic tribes, which in the 5th century A.C. conquered
England. The famous English historian Bede wrote in the 8th century,
that they came from a country in between the lands of the Jutlanders and the
Saxons. More precisely from the peninsula Angel ( Latin:
Angelus; Germanic: Angul; German: Angeln; Danish: Angel ) between the fiords of
Flensburg and Schleswig ( the Schlei ). This was by the way Danish
territory until 1864. The Angles settled in particular in Northumberland, in
Mercia and in East Anglia.
Another Germanic tribe, which invaded Britannia in
that period, was the Saxons. They came from the present day
North German areas. And they settled down in the areas, which today carry the
name ending –sex ( Essex, Middlesex, Sussex and Wessex ). The ending
–sex comes from Saxon.
And the last invading tribe was according to the
historians the Jutlanders. They did not come from
Jutland, but from the Frisian areas at the Germanic coast of the North Sea.
Why? Because the Jutlanders already in the 4th century had left
Jutland and settled in these Frisian territories. In this way most villages and
farms in the Jutland area disappeared. These were about a hundred years later
taken over by the Danes – another tribe which came from the
present areas in East Denmark and before that from Sweden. The
Jutlanders settled in particular in Kent, on the island of Wight and along the
coast of Hampshire.
All this happened during the period of
great migrations in Europe ( around the 4th and 5th centuries
).
What sort of country was it that the Anglo-Saxons
conquered at the time ?
It was the Roman province of Britannia. Before
the Romans this area was in the hands of the Brits – a Celtic
tribe, which was related to the Galls in present France. Culturally they were
somewhat different from the Galls. And in war they tattooed themselves and
painted themselves with a blue colour. The Brits spoke Celtic. By the way, most
of Europe’s population did so before the Roman times. Celtic tribes and people
inhabited a very large part of present Europe – except Scandinavia and most of
Eastern Europe. But the Romans pushed them all back step by step everywhere.
Especially Caesar’s war against the Galls turned into a real bloodbath. About
one third of the Galls was killed. The Romans were in particular against the
religion of many Celtic tribes, where their priests, the druids, sacrificed
human beings according to their beliefs.
Caesar came with his army from Gaul to Britannia in
the years 55 and 54 BC. He arranged that trade relations were established
between Britannia and Rome. Only during the reign of emperor Claudius the
Romans in year 43 AC started to conquer the country and make it a Roman
province. The Roman general Agricola conquered the area all the way up to Forth
and Clyde in present Scotland in the years 78-85 AC. Later emperor Hadrian
abandoned the Scottish area and built a 120 km wall between Tyne and Solway.
This wall called Hadrian’s Wall is partly still there.
The culture of Rome soon dominated Britannia. Many
towns and cities were created, especially London ( Londonium ) and York (
Eboracum ). All cities and towns, which today carry the ending –coln owe
their name to the Roman word “colonia”. And the ending –chester comes
from the Roman “castrum”, which means camp. Lots of roads were also built, and
the Romans did a lot to improve the local mining industry and trade in
general.
When the people to the north of Britannia (
especially the Picts and the Scotes ) started to attack the province life
became more and more difficult for the Romans. There were also many attacks
from the sea by Germanic tribes. In 410 AC the Romans decided to
pull all their troops out of Britannia, and the country was now wide open to
conquerers from outside.
Some rumours say that some of the Brits invited
Germanic tribes to come to help them. At any rate, the Germanic people came in
their thousands. And took over the country. The Brits had during the Roman
period accepted Christianity. The Germanic tribes had not, so they attacked the
church ferosiously. The Brits escaped in large numbers westwards ( to Wales,
Cornwall, the Isle of Man and Ireland ). Other went north to present day
Scotland. And many crossed the Channel and settled down in present day Brittany
( Bretagne ). Until then this peninsula was called Armorica ( “the land at the
sea” ). Now it got the name of Brittany, which means “Little
Britannia”.
The stories about “King Arthur and the Knights of
the Round Table” come from the battles between the Brits ( which King Arthur
etc. belonged to ) and the invading Anglo-Saxons. There is great disagreement
between historians on whether these stories are real or just legends.
The language of the Brits survived in all the
areas, where they settled down. A couple of hundred years ago it practically
disappeared in Cornwall and later on the Isle of Man.
Back to the new conquerors in the 6th century:
The Anglo-Saxons ( and the Jutlanders ) The Brits
called them all “Saxons”. The Danes and other Northerners called them “Engle” –
from the word “Angles”. That’s where the name ENGLAND comes from ( the land of
the Angles – from the peninsula Angel ).
The “English language” also has its origins
from this period. Many of the invading Anglo-Saxons spoke a simplified form of
the “Old Frisean language”, and they carried that with them to their new
country. This language was so easy to learn that it was quickly taken over also
by the part of the local population, which had not moved away. This was the
start of English.
The Anglo-Saxon England did not enjoy peace for a
long period. From the 8th century the Vikings –
or Normans, as they were also called, because they were the men
from the North ) – started to invade the English coasts. They came from Denmark
in their impressive longboats. They created their own “kingdom” in the north
and the middle of the country. It was called DANELAGEN ( the country
where Danish law was implemented ). Today about 1.500 names of places in this
area are of direct Danish origin. And DNA tests of the population today have
recently shown that in many places about half of the people carries “Viking
blood”.
The Danish period in England was at its height,
when Canute the Great was king in Denmark as well as in England. When he died
in 1035, decline started for the Danes almost right away.
A new era for England and its already very mixed
population started in 1066, when the Normans from France attacked
and conquered the country. They were direct descendants of the Danish Vikings,
who from the beginning of the 10th century had seized this
area, which consequently got the name Normandie ( or Normandy ). The
conquest took place under the leadership of the Danish Viking chief Rollo (
died around 930 ). These Vikings were very quickly – over 2-3 generations –
assimilated with the local French population, took over their language and
forgot their original Danish language. And they created a very
strong “kingdom” at that time. They were the people, who in 1066 under the
leadership of William the Conqueror ( originally called “William the Hybrid” )
took over England. After that they were the ruling class – a French-speaking
upper-class in England. The arrival of the Normans also meant that
many French words and expressions from now on were adopted into the English
language.
Some centuries later England conquered Normandy.
That’s how things often move forth and back in history.
Reflection:
It is interesting to reflect on the fact, that it
was with DANES ( Jutlanders ) in front, when the Anglo-Saxons conquered
Roman Britannia. It was DANISH Vikings, who later seized the country from them.
And it was Vikings of DANISH origin ( the Normans ), who later again took over
from the Vikings.
If you see it all from a GERMAN angle this history
is also very interesting:
Most of the Anglo-Saxon conquerors in the 6th century
were “Germans”. The Germanic tribe, the Franks, who lived
along the Rhine, took the area of Gall from the Romans in the 5th century.
They started the Frankian Empire ( Charlemagne, etc.) and later France ( named
from the Franks ). Therefore, the Germans can with strong historic backing
claim that they are the origins of England as well as of France.
Also one of history’s very interesting lessons.
QUESTION FOR TOMORROW:
The name IRENE -
where does it
come from? And what does it mean?
47 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT EUROPE:
EUROPE AT WORK: www.europe-at-work.be
TODAY’s QUOTE & FAMOUS PEOPLE :
1.
Yesterday’s quote:
War
is like brain-damaged spiders, who destroy their own cobweb.
This was said by the Danish
author Suzanne Brøgger.
2.
Today’s quote:
The
spirit of democracy cannot be imposed from outside. It has to come from
inside.
Who of today's persons has said that?
3. Famous
people born on this day:
1770: Bertel Thorvaldsen ( died 1844 )
1805: Ferdinand de Lesseps ( died 1894 )
1917: Indira Gandhi ( died 1984 )
1933: Larry King
1938: Ted Turner
4. Famous
people died on this day:
1828: Franz Schubert ( 31 years )
1975: Francisco Franco ( 83 years )
Niels Jørgen Thøgersen
www.simplesite.com/kimbrer +
EUROPE-AT-WORK www.europe-at-work.be
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