Year 5 - History
Religious buildings and artefacts
The Anglo-Saxons: how do we know about life in Anglo-Saxon England?
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Study Guides
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 understanding of the link between sources and historical knowledge. They learn about some of the main historical sources that exist for the Anglo-Saxon period and how historians have used these to present arguments about life in Anglo-Saxon
Lesson Summary
You will learn to explain what archaeologists and historians think they have found out about Christianity in Anglo-Saxon Britain from buildings and artefacts.
Key Notes
- Historians believe that Anglo-Saxon churches were built on sites of older pagan temples and places of worship.
- Archaeologists have found the remains of Anglo-Saxon churches and monasteries, such as Jarrow Abbey.
- These were centres of manuscript making and learning; Bede entered one aged 7 and went on to write a history of Britain.
- The Franks Casket, a 700s CE Northumbrian chest, has both pagan imagery and the Christian Adoration of the Magi.
- Historians argue about what else it shows, but it does suggest pagan traditions continued after Christianity's spread.
Vocabulary To Learn
- pagan: a pagan is a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions
- monastery: a monastery is a building where monks live and work together dedicated to religious life
- manuscript: a manuscript is a handwritten document usually from ancient or medieval times
- imagery: imagery is a way of describing pictures and patterns that can be seen on items
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Pupils may think that as soon as Christianity returned to Britain, pagan traditions disappeared completely.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Summarise this historical learning in two key ideas.
Historians believe that Anglo-Saxon churches were built on sites of older pagan temples and places of worship. Archaeologists have found the remains of Anglo-Saxon churches and monasteries, such as Jarrow Abbey.
2. Define this history term and explain why it matters in this topic. 'pagan'
a pagan is a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions.
3. Correct this common history misconception using evidence language.
Mistake: Pupils may think that as soon as Christianity returned to Britain, pagan traditions disappeared completely. Correction: Paganism did not completely vanish. Though the majority of Anglo-Saxons were Christians, pagan beliefs and traditions were still present.
More Lessons In This Unit
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