Year 5 - History
How Christianity survived the Romans' departure
Britain after the Romans: how did Christianity survive in the British Isles?
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
In this unit, pupils develop their causal understanding by learning how Christianity survived in the British Isles following the departure of the Romans. They learn about how religion changed after the Romans left and the importance of Irish Christianity in this period.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to explain why Christianity in the British Isles survived the Romans' departure.
Key Notes
- Christianity survived the departure of the Romans in the places where the Anglo-Saxons did not settle.
- The main centre of this survival was Ireland, where Christianity grew more popular throughout the 5th century.
- The importance of monasteries meant that Christianity flourished in Ireland.
- The work of missionaries meant that Ireland began to spread Christianity to other places in the 6th century.
- A good explanation of why Christianity survived the Romans' departure will use knowledge from across this unit.
Vocabulary To Learn
- pagan: pagan means a religion other than one of the main world religions
- monastery: a monastery is a building lived in by a community of monks who follow religious vows
- missionary: a missionary is a person sent on a religious mission, especially one sent to promote Christianity in a foreign country
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Pupils may think Christianity survived because of one reason.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Summarise this historical learning in two key ideas.
Christianity survived the departure of the Romans in the places where the Anglo-Saxons did not settle. The main centre of this survival was Ireland, where Christianity grew more popular throughout the 5th century.
2. Define this history term and explain why it matters in this topic. 'pagan'
pagan means a religion other than one of the main world religions.
3. Correct this common history misconception using evidence language.
Mistake: Pupils may think Christianity survived because of one reason. Correction: Christianity survived because of a few reasons. It survived in the places the Anglo-Saxons did not settle. It also survived because monasteries were set up and missionaries spread the the religion to other places.
More Lessons In This Unit
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