Why did Anglo-Saxons convert to Christianity?

 



Year 5 started our lesson by discussing what we know about Anglo-Saxon beliefs from our Sutton Hoo learning and exploring the image above. Could this be another grave? A tombstone of a king? Some kind of monument? What does it show?

As this monument is a cross, it shows us that the Anglo-Saxons must have been Christian. Miss Studd explained with her Christianity-o-meter that Angles, Saxons and Jutes were Pagan... But that Christianity boomed in Britain in the Early Middle Ages. So what caused this?


Year 5 set off on chromebooks to find clues. Who was spreading Christianity? Where did it come from?

In our research, we found out that Christianity mostly left when the Romans left and that some Christians worried that Christianity was being brushed aside. Because of this, Pope Gregory sent St Augustine to Britain to convert people to Christianity. They started by converting Kings and hoping that everyone else would follow... But it mainly just stuck with the royal types!


It was a different man - St Aiden - who spread Christianity to ordinary Anglo-Saxons by spending time with them and convincing them to give it a try. He set up a monastery called Lindisfarne. 
We will learn more about this monastery soon!

Another excellent history session. 
Well done, year 5! 








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