Old English: A Historical Background - From Abandonment To Groaning

(Author's note:  History is a wide ranging discipline which in some senses can be fluid as we learn new things and in some cases is solid as we choose to interpret events and findings in light of our own day, not the day in which it happened.  Individuals spend their whole lives studying these things.  My very concise overview is meant as nothing more than that:  an overview to give background.  All errors and omissions remain my own.) 

The Province of Britain - increasingly abandoned by Rome over the latter part of the 4th Century with a few bright points of occasional reinforcement from a Roman government that was increasingly concerned more and more with events much closer to home - saw as part of this slow retreat the establishment of client kings and client kingdoms.

This sort of thing had been practiced in other parts of the Empire throughout its history and dating back even to the Republic days:  it allowed Rome to continue to exercise overall control while sparing itself the expense and drain of day to day management.  In the case of Britain as well, it had been "Romanized" for well over 300 years at this point.  There was likely still a functioning bureaucracy and remaining fortifications such as The Saxon Shore (Eastern England) had been turned over to local militia that had likely been trained in the Roman way of war.  Given the circumstances, it was likely the best the Empire could do.

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But the world was in the throes of the great changes that would eventually fracture the Empire:  great movements of people, generals fighting either for control of the Empire or, as things progressed, setting up their own smaller fiefdoms.  Britain was not immune to this, especially as the coast remained open for raids from across the English Channel from the Jutes, the Franks, the Saxons, the Frisians, and the Angles.

Our knowledge of this period of history is sadly lacking; the fifth and sixth century are poorly documented from around 410 A.D. to the arrival of St. Augustine in 597 A.D.  We have a  On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain, written by the monk Gildas around sometime in the early to mid 500's (likely not later than 540 A.D.) which chronicles the history of Britain from the Roman invasion to the writer's present day.  We have a series of documents known as the Historia Brittanica, a series of genealogies, Easter tables, and small history.  We have a record of a visit of St. Germanus in approximately  (largely to confront the Pelagian heresy).  We have the Venerable Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People (based on Gildas' work as well as other history).  And  we have the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, which is was formalized on or about 891 A.D. but likely incorporated earlier versions.  

In other words, it is if we had the first 150 years of the history of the United States and only 4 documents of questionable historical value to inform us.

What is known is that Britain remained under threat of piracy and raids from the Picts in the North, the Irish in the West (this is the period that St. Patrick was captured and taken to Ireland), and the various German tribes in the East.  And while the settlement of German tribes had been happening for almost 200 years or more, apparently even their reinforcement was not enough to meet the need. Using the idea that the easiest way to defend against a thief is to hire a thief, a Sub-king who comes down to us in history as Vortigern hired Saxon mercenaries (traditionally in the year 428 A.D.) to defend against the pirates.  He offered them land in Eastern England in return.  

This was a fine arrangement - and historically quite sound, as this is something that the Roman Empire had done for hundreds of years.  What was not anticipated was a payment dispute that got out of hand and the following revolt of the Saxons (442 A.D. to 446 A.D.), where great destruction occurred as the Saxons (at least according to our records) burned and pillaged their way across Briton.

Added to the revolt of the Saxons was the continuing and the renewed raids of the Picti and Scoti from the West and North.  Rather obviously to the Britons of that time, the current "hire a thief to catch a thief" strategy had left them wanting.  And so, in 446 A.D., the Britons reached out one last time to a Rome that was increasingly consumed with its own problems on the continent. The communication has come down to us as "The Groans Of The Britons":

"To Aetius, thrice consul

The barbarians drive us to the sea, the sea drives us to the barbarians;

between these two means of death we are either killed or drowned". 

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We do not have Aetius' response, if there was one.  What most likely became apparent was that the British could no longer look to Rome for any assistance.  They were on their own.

Works consulted:

Blair, Peter Hunter:  Roman Britain and Early England 55 B.C. - A.D. 871.  WW Norton and Company:  London, 1991.

Nicolle, David:  Arthur And The Anglo-Saxon Wars.  Osprey Publishing:  Hong Kong, 1984

Alcock, Leslie:  Arthur's Britain.  Penguin:  Great Britain, 1971

Wikipedia:  Groans of the Britons