The Saxons weren't the first newcomers to the islands of Britain, and they certainly weren't the last, but they changed Britain more than any other group of people before or after them.

Start right at the beginning and learn who the Saxons were and how they became known as the Anglo-Saxons. From the Dark Ages to the Venerable Bede, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and Beowulf, find out how we know what we know about the Anglo Saxons.

Read about Saxon kings, laws and punishments; how language and place names evolved; everyday life from houses, farming and working life, paganism and Christianity; how Anglo Saxons have influenced life today, from place names to days of the week; how the Vikings attacked and about King Alfred and his attempts to repel them; and how Saxon life came to an end with an arrow in the eye for Harold Godwine at the Battle of Hastings which led to our first Norman king, William the Conqueror.