The Facts:
How much do we really know?
Last Modified: 21st August 2011 The reconstruction I have offered in The Ruin and Conquest of Britain as told by the Primary Sources is an attempt to reconcile the accounts of all of the primary (and some of the secondary) sources. But, as noted there, these sources are of varying reliability. Because of the nature of the times, only contemporary or near-contemporary sources can be regarded as reliable. This reduces the available sources considerably. Specifically, the core texts for the period from the end of the Roman period (410) into the mid 6th century now become:
The Ruin of Britain by Gildas
The Gallic Chronicle (anonymous)
The Life of Germanus by Constantius
The letters of Sidonius
The History of the Goths by Jordanes
The History of the Wars by Procopius
Of these, only the first three actually report any events in Britain. Unfortunately, the source upon which we have to rely most heavily is Gildas. It is unfortunate because he was not writing history, but rather a polemic against the morals of his countrymen. There are no absolute dates in his text, and periods of time are generally marked in vague terms. The one instance of a specific time period is embedded in prose so convoluted that its meaning is not clear. It is not even certain whether it is legitimate to treat his text as a narrative at all, but, as Dumville has opined, we seem to have no other option if we wish to use it constructively. Bearing this in mind, we can give the following outline, which indicates the (sometimes very broad) periods in which events must have occurred.
408 x 410
From hereon Britain is subject to raids by Scots, Picts, and Saxons.
425 x 454
The Britons appeal to Aetius, the master of the soldiers in Gaul, for aid against the "barbarians". Whether this is the Picts and Scots (as Gildas says) or the Saxons depends on the placing of the events here. The dates here are the dates that Aetius was in power. If the "thrice consul" epithet by Gildas is taken at face value then a date after 446 would be required.
429
St. Germanus visits Britain to combat the Pelagian heresy, and leads local forces to defeat raiders, allegedly Picts and Saxons. Apart from this, his visit is unremarkable; culturally, Britain would appear to still be part of the Roman world.
410 x 460
The Britons inflict a defeat on the invading barbarians according to Gildas. The earliest possible date for this after the end of effective Roman authority is 410, when it would correspond to Zosimus noting that "the Britons ... armed themselves and ran many risks to ensure their own safety and free their cities from the attacking barbarians". The latest date is shortly after the latest possible date for the appeal to Aetius, which follows from assuming that Gildas has got the Aetius quote correct and in context. In any case, according to Gildas this victory is followed by a period of prosperity, presumably at least a decade or so.
435 x 447 St. Germanus perhaps visits Britain a second time. No war or devastation is reported.
440 x 445 According to the Gallic chronicles, Britain comes under the sway of the Saxons. Whether this designates a particularly large and prolonged raid, a treaty for establishing federate troops, or a military take-over depends upon one's interpretation of other events.
420 x 500
Following the period of prosperity, there is the threat of renewed Pictish raiding, and then a plague.
425 x 505
Following the plague, a "proud tyrant", probably by the name of Vortigern, is in power as the leader of a council of Britain. Three keels of Saxons arrive at the invitation of Vortigern, to fight against the Picts and Scots. They are settled in the East of the Island. Their leaders are perhaps Hengest and Horsa (Bede). Reinforcements subsequently arrive.
469
At the invitation of the Roman Emperor, Riothamus, "king of the Britons", leads a force of considerable size into Bourges, in the heart of Gaul, "by way of the Ocean" (Jordanes). The most natural interpretation is that Riothamus came direct from Britain, but it is possible that he was instead a king of Brittany. In any case, he confronts the Visigoths in battle but is beaten and retreats into Burgundy.
c.480
According to Constantius, Britain is a prosperous island.
430 x 510
The Saxon revolt. Britain is plundered, even as far as the west coast. The date is "a long time" after the reinforcement which followed the advent, according to Gildas. Presumably at least 5, probably less than 30 years. Following this, Britons flee into the mountains and forests, or overseas. The upper limit is set by the latest possible date for Gildas' writing of the The Ruin of Britain (see below).
432 x 512
The British rally under the leadership of Ambrosius Aurelianus, challenge the Saxons to battle and defeat them. The date is "a while" (presumably at least a couple of years) after the Saxon revolt. Then follows a period of considerable time (at least 5, perhaps 43 years) of fluctuating fortunes in war until Badon.
452 x 547
The siege of mount Badon in which the Saxons are defeated. Gildas is born. Thereafter Britain is partitioned between Saxon and Briton, and there is little fighting between them. But civil wars continue, and cities are largely deserted. (Note that we cannot mention Arthur here, as he is not mentioned in any of the contemporary sources.) The date for Badon is either 43 years before the time of Gildas' writing, or 43 years after Ambrosius' victory.
530 x 548
Angles, Frisians and Britons have migrated in considerable numbers from Britain to Francia (Procopius).
495 x 575
Gildas writes The Ruin of Britain bemoaning the morals of his countrymen. This is at least a generation (say 28 years) but at most about (and perhaps exactly) 43 years after Badon. It is therefore probably at least say 48 (=5+43) years after Ambrosius' victory. In fact, Gildas says that those who witnessed the Saxon revolt and the Ambrosian rally have died and "an age succeeded them which is ignorant", so his time of writing must have been at least 65 years or so after the Saxon revolt. This sets the terminus post quem for his writing. A date for Gildas' composition of The Ruin of Britain any later than about 575 would be incompatible with the reliably known history of the late 6th century, from "Nennius", the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and Bede.
572-9
Theodoric, son of Ida, reigned in Bernicia, and fought vigorously against Urien of Reged and his sons. ("Nennius"/Bede)
580s
The West Saxons under Ceawlin conquer much of Southern England. (Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, as interpreted by Dumville)
This chronology shows the extreme uncertainty of reconstructing events in Britain in the period 410 to 575. Vortigern's rise to power, the appeal to Aetius, the advent of the Saxons, their revolt, defeat by Ambrosius and defeat at Badon could all (in different schemes) be assigned dates in the 450s. Of course in any given reconstruction, these events would be widely separated in time. The greatest uncertainty occurs for the battle of Badon, which can barely be pinned down within a century. To illustrate how unconstrained the above chronology is, I have given below some fragments from alternate schemes which manufacture the history in greater detail. They all hinge on (and hence are identified by) the position of Riothamus' doings in Gaul in relation to the Saxon revolt, Ambrosius' victory, and the battle of Badon. Number 5 is closest to the chronology proposed by Dumville, although he has the Saxon advent even later (480x490).
1. Riothamus = "Arthur" (successor to Ambrosius)
410 Picts and Scots defeated
410s Age of abundance
425 Vortigern comes to power
428 Saxons under Hengest are invited (Saxon advent)
430s Saxons reinforced
445 Saxons revolt
446 Appeal to Aetius for aid against Saxons
450 Ambrosius' victory over Saxons
467 British victory at Badon
469 Riothamus (victor at Badon) leads fatal expedition to Gaul
510 Gildas writes his letter.
2. Riothamus = Ambrosius
427 Appeal to Aetius for aid against Picts and Scots
429 Picts and Scots defeated (? by St. Germanus)
430s Age of abundance
445 Saxon advent
460 Saxon revolt
465 Ambrosius' victory over Saxons
469 Riothamus = Ambrosius leads fatal expedition to Gaul
3. Riothamus = "John Reith" (Breton Prince)
450 Saxon advent
463 Saxon revolt
465 British nobles abandon Britain, taking the vanquished army to Brittany
469 Riothamus (Breton leader) is defeated by Visigoths
470 Ambrosius' victory over Saxons
4. Riothamus = "Vortimer" (successor to Vortigern)
457 Saxon advent
469 Riothamus (successor to Vortigern) leads fatal expedition to Gaul
471 Saxon revolt
475 Ambrosius' victory over Saxons
5. Riothamus = predecessor to Vortigern
446 Appeal to Aetius for aid against Picts and Scots
450 Victory over Picts and Scots
450-70 Age of abundance
469 Riothamus, high-king of the Britons, leads fatal expedition to Gaul
470 Vortigern comes to power
471 Saxon advent
477 Saxons revolt
480 Ambrosius' victory over Saxons
501 British victory at Badon
544 Gildas writes his letter.
Some would exclude many of these scenarios on the basis of the archaeological evidence. In particular, John Morris claimed that substantial Saxon settlement must have begun before c.430, and that the battle of Badon must have been towards the end of the 5th century. Most would now see this as misplaced confidence in the dating of Saxon cemeteries, and perhaps even misinterpretation of the data (as far as the abandonment of midland settlement in the early 6th century is concerned). Despite these misgivings, one must conclude that any scenario (as for example, that by Dumville) which has the first settlement of Saxons in Britain in the second half of the 5th century would want to have a great deal going for it from the textual evidence in order to be accepted in the face of the archaeological record. This still leaves a great deal of leeway to historians, and story-tellers. In particular the story told by the later sources (as reconstructed by me) fits relatively easily within the constraints applied by what we know to be genuine history.
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