Gǣð ā Wyrd swā hīo scel! Fate goes ever as she shall!
Written by Tyler Batstone
For centuries, the Anglo-Saxons and their world has captured the minds and imaginations of historians and non-historians alike. Their impact on England can still be seen on various place names throughout the country, their culture and beliefs preserved in modern fantasy literature passed down from generation to generation, and their presence can still be felt around the barrows where they laid their dead. Much of what we know about the Anglo-Saxons and their society can be attributed to Christian monks and their documentation of the Saxons after their conversion to Christianity. However, when the Germanic peoples belonging to the various tribes of Angles, Saxons, Jutes, and Frisii came to the shores of England at the very beginning of the Middle Ages, their culture and beliefs were a far cry from what they would eventually become. In a world of honour, magic, mystery, and mythical creatures, the Anglo-Saxons carved themselves in legend and history.
Religion/Beliefs:
Wikimedia Commons
Before their conversion to Christianity, the Anglo-Saxons were polytheists who worshipped a pantheon of Gods. Woden was the chief deity associated with wisdom, wandering, death, madness, and war who leads his spectral army of the Wild Hunt across the skies during a point each year when the physical world and the spiritual world briefly touch. Thunor was the god of thunder and protector of the common peoples. Tiw was the god of battle and law while Frig was the goddess of fate and divinity. Not only did these deities serve as icons to be worshiped by the Saxons but their names also became attributed to many locations in England during the Early Middle Ages as well as the Anglo-Saxon days of the week calendar. Monday was known as Mōnandæg or Moon’s Day, Tuesday was known as Tiwesdæg or Tiw’s day, Wednesday was known as Wōdnesdæg or Woden’s day, Thursday as known as Þūnresdæg or Thunor’s day, and Friday was known as Frigedæg or Frigg’s day. There is no celestial or Anglo-Saxon deity associated with Saturday, in turn they used the Roman god Saturn and dubbed Saturday as Sæturnesdæg. This day in particular was known to be a day of bathing and washing oneself in Germanic societies across Northern Europe. Lastly, Sunday was known as Sunnandæg or Sunna’s Day. This is the only mention of the deity known as Sunna however many scholars believe that she is closely related to the Norse deity Sól, goddess of the Sun.
Beside their beliefs in various deities, pre-Christian Anglo-Saxons believed in the concept of animism and that supernatural creatures inhabited the natural lands of their world. Wights are spirits that inhabit forests, streams, and caves. Elves are supernatural beings that are known to cause mischief and harm to others that encounter them. Dwarves are known to be great smithies and craftsmen who inhabit the caves and tunnels underneath the grounds of the earth, some written accounts of swords in Germanic poems were said to have been forged by dwarves. Dragons were large serpentlike/reptilian creatures that were allured by wealth and treasure most of all and would fiercely protect it with its life. According to written Saxon sources, these beings were not always looked on favorably in the pagan cosmology and were known to be more harmful than helpful according to some medical sources such as Bald’s Leechbook. In the book, the text describes a remedy for an ailment known as “elf-shot”, caused by a malevolent elf who shoots an invisible arrow into the victim's body to cause pain and discomfort.
The Anglo-Saxons also had a unique concept of fate that guided their cosmology and personal actions in life. The term Wyrd, can be translated to fate yet it does not equate to the concept of predetermined fate. The Anglo-Saxon concept of fate is far more complex and has to do more so with a hidden force guiding personal choice rather than revealing the end to a person’s story or life. Wyrd remains a mystery to us beyond what we know how the Anglo-Saxons used it in their stories. Wyrd is referenced several times in many Anglo-Saxon poems such as Beowulf and The Wanderer. In these stories, Wyrd is utilised as a fickle mistress who does not always shine her good fortune on those who need it, similar to how modern people describe the idea of “Lady Luck”.
Traditions & Culture:
Artists impression of Beowulf and the Dragon - Wikimedia Commons
In pagan Anglo-Saxon society, their measurements of time and calendar system were based upon the cycles of the moon and at different points of each year a celebration or festival would be held. The 8th century monk and scholar, Bede, writes about these cyclical festivals and elaborates more on the calendar system that the Saxons had used for their society. According to him, the Winter Solstice, also known as Mother’s Night, began the start of a new year within the calendar. Followed by Solmonað in February, Eosturmonath in April, Halegmonath in September, and Blōtmōnaþ in November. These celebrations and festivities were essential to the Anglo-Saxons way of life and are essential to understanding the society’s concept of community and the importance of traditional practices. Such activities during these festivals would be holding sacrifices for the gods, attending feasts, the brewing and drinking of mead, sharing tales and stories over the hearth fire in the longhouses, as well as playing music or sharing poetry.
The Saxons themselves were known for their love of poetry and storytelling as showcased by one of their most famous and world renown epics that still finds relevance in our modern era. Beowulf tells the tale of the Geatish hero Beowulf, and his slaying of the monster known as Grendel and later, his victory over a dragon that threatens his kingdom and leads to his victorious death. When analysing this titular piece of literature, we can isolate themes that resonate and exude from Anglo-Saxon culture and beliefs such as the concept of swearing an unbreakable oath to your lord that not only symbolizes fellowship, but loyalty as well.
Other sources of Anglo-Saxon poetry such as The Wanderer and The Seafarer focus on themes of melancholy and remembrance of old memories filled with companionship contrasted with the present as these narrators are now filled with sadness and loneliness as they become solitary figures without their friends, masters, and companions. The Wanderer is nostalgic and melancholic that he has no master to serve and the Seafarer drifts alone at sea remembering the good times he had with his crewmates when they were still alive. These poems particularly speak to the great sense of community and fellowship that the Anglo-Saxons had for one another in their society.
Rituals/Material Culture:
Sutton Hoo Helmet- Wikimedia Commons
The pagan Anglo-Saxons expressed their faith in many ways; they prayed at shrines in groves or around nature. In Christian accounts, it is recorded that the Saxons practiced animal sacrifice for blessings or to appease the gods, much to the dismay of missionaries at that time. Archaeological evidence points to this conclusion as many animal remains found dated back to the Anglo-Saxon period were found to be in a ritualistic setting. Interestingly enough, while similar religions and cultures such as the Norse or continental Germanic societies practiced human sacrifices, there is no written record or evidence indicating that the Anglo-Saxons followed the same beliefs. Accounts of pagan priests during this time period are extremely scarce, so we truly have no idea how these rituals were planned or conducted. The funeral rites and burial customs of the Anglo-Saxons varied based on class and how the deceased wished their remains to be handled. There are examples of great kings who were buried in what is known barrows or mounds that would include the remains of the deceased as well as all of his worldly possessions, for he would need them in the afterlife.
A well-known and monumental example of these burial scenes is the Sutton Hoo burial site that showcases a very wealthy and important mound. According to theories by scholars, the burial mound was dedicated to Rædwald, king of East Anglia during the Wuffingas dynasty. The mound itself houses an early medieval Saxon ship with the remains of the dead laid upon it surrounded by his treasures and weapons. This burial practice can be closely related to Norse ship burials and their mound burials. In contrast to these examples with continental Germanic society, we see that bog burials were very popular within their society possibly because they were not a sea-going society like the other two. Besides funerary rites, the pagan Anglo-Saxons were known to have prayer sites in groves and specifically where great trees were located throughout England according to many place-name sources. Some of these locations are also known to us as the early Anglo-Saxon Christian churches were built over top of the old pagan shrines during the conversion of England in the 7th and 8th centuries.
Magic/Witchcraft:
Alongside their beliefs in various deities, supernatural creatures, and an unseen guiding force, the Anglo-Saxons also believed in magic and witchcraft as well as its power to heal or to hurt others. Known as sċīnlǣċe, wiċċa, helrūne or ġealdriċġe, pagan Anglo-Saxon society believed that these individuals could harness and utilise magic or divine power from the gods to their benefit. Using this logic, there is no distinction between magic and religion in this society as they believed that they were using divine powers through rituals, enhancing items with charms, or speaking specific words to have a meta-physical effect, similar enough to prayer. A form of shamanism, ritualistic magic according to the Anglo-Saxons would be the use of charms.
Charms were used to imbue an item with magical protection or enhancement and many charmed items came in the form of amulets.
Woden, chief deity of the pagan Anglo-Saxons as depicted in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle - Wikimedia Commons
These amulets would typically be composed of gems, stones, animal teeth, and were said to hold protective abilities when blessed or charmed by a practitioner of magic. Other forms of magic or witchcraft came in the form of spoken words which, when said, would create an action to occur in the physical world by magical means such as spells. These practices were preserved by Christian monks and healers in written texts, manuscripts, and guides such as the Nine Herbs Charm which is said to detail the preparation of nine specific herbs in order to induce a meta-physical reaction. The goal would be to recite the specific words as written in the text and to follow the instructions in order for the effect to take hold. Within the enchanting text of this charm, the practitioner prays both to Woden and Jesus Christ, showcasing a fascinating syncretism of pagan and Christian beliefs in Anglo-Saxon Society.
While this article may seem like a complete guide to Anglo-Saxon pagan culture and religion, there is still so much more that is left unsaid or omitted from the various sources I have used here. Luckily, archaeology is able to tell us much about Anglo-Saxon burials while material culture and poems like Beowulf help us understand Anglo-Saxon societal values and culture better, but it seems that the more answers we get, the more questions we have. Besides prayer, how did the Anglo-Saxons actually interpret their concept of fate? How were their rituals organised? How did the average Anglo-Saxon interact with their perceived world? A world filled with magic, malevolent elves, crafty dwarves, mighty heroes, terrible dragons, and an unseen force guiding the lives and destinies of these men and women who truly lived in the world that they created for themselves. The pagan Anglo-Saxon period of England is but a mere memory now to those who study them; however, we still see their legacy everywhere we go on the island, from place names to barrows, the Anglo-Saxons persist to stay with us after all this time as if it was fated to be.