The Battle of Brunanburh was a West Saxon victory in 937 by the army of king Athelstan and his brother Edmund over the combined armies of Olaf III Guthfrithson, Viking king of Dublin, Constantine, king of Scotland and King Owain of Strathclyde (mention is also made in some sources of Irish and even Welsh mercanaries)

Build up

King Athelstan had invaded the Kingdom of Strathclyde a few years earlier (933-934 being the most likely candidate years for such an invasion according to contemporary sources). This invoked much anger amongst other rulers across the British isles (no doubt fearing for their own positions)

Site of the Battle

The location of Brunanburh has not yet been definitively identified though possible sites in Northumbria have been suggested as well as Bromborough in Merseyside and Tinsley wood near SheffieldWood, Michael (2001). Tinsley Wood. In In Search of England: Journeys into the English past, pp203–221. Penguin Books Ltd (University of California Press in the United States). ISBN 0-520-23218-6 An Oxford History of England-Volume 2- Anglo Saxon England (by no means are these the only sites suggested, but they are the most commonly accepted).

The Battle

Our chief sources for the details of the battle come from the Anglo-Saxon poem of the same name, the writings of Anglo-Norman historian William of Malmesbury, the Annals of Tigernach, the Brut y Tywysogion and Icelandic sagas such as the Saga of Eigil Skallagrimson, who fought for Athelstan.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records the event as follows:

937:

Here, King Athelstan, leader of warriors,

ring-giver of men, and also his brother,

the aetheling Edmund, struck life-long glory

in strife around 'Brunanburh'

The battle is considered one of the bloodiest of the period, and saw the death of five British (other sources say Irish) kings and seven earls on the Celtic side and numerous Saxon casualties including two of Athelstan's cousins Alfric and Athelwin and a prominent Saxon bishop. Interestingly, it is asserted that at one point the West Saxons deployed a cavalry charge, contradicting popular belief that the early-English fought in infantry based armies. It is of course worth noting that cavalry were still a relatively insiginificant part of the Saxons force and may well have been mercanaries from any number of other Kingdoms.

Influence

This poorly recalled battle is actually one of the most important in British history since Athelstan's crushing defeat of the combined Norse-Celtic force facing him irrevocably confirmed England as an Anglo-Saxon kingdom, forcing the Celtic kingdoms to consolidate in the fringe positions they occupy today.

Literature and the Arts

English poet Alfred Lord Tennyson translated the poem from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in 1880, publishing it as part of his Ballads and Other Poems. Tennyson's son Hallam Tennyson published a prose translation of the poem. American composer Derek Strykowski used the battle as a basis for The Brunanburh Suite in 2005.

References