The 'Dark Ages', Anglo-Saxons and Vikings

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Anglo-Saxon Archaeology
www.gla.ac.uk/archaeology/resources/
Anglo-Saxon/index.html
Glasgow University's collection of links to websites on Anglo-Saxon archaeology.

Anglo Saxon England: A guide to online resources
www.the-orb.net/encyclop/early/
pre1000/asindex.html
Part of the ORB Online Reference Book for Medieval Studies, this website has perhaps the best set of web links covering everything from original Anglo-Saxon texts to bibliographies, maps and teaching resources.

Anglo-Saxon England
www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/prehistory/
vikings/angsaxe.html
Includes, among much else, a map of Anglo-Saxon Britain and a detailed bibliography, with a special emphasis on King Cnut.

Anglo-Saxon cemeteries
www.gla.ac.uk/Acad/Archaeology/
resources/Anglo-Saxon/cemeteries/index.html
This website contains pointers to a series of resources relating to early Anglo-Saxon cemeteries. Jeremy Huggett, who maintains the site, carried out PhD research involving an analysis of social aspects of burial. As part of this work an early Anglo-Saxon cemeteries database was assembled, consisting primarily of cemeteries from central and central-southern England. The database is available on the site, together with a distribution map of the major cemeteries included and discussions on various aspects of early Anglo-Saxon burials.

Early Manuscripts at Oxford University
http://image.ox.ac.uk/
This site provides access to digital facsimiles of more than 80 early illuminated manuscripts now in institutions associated with Oxford University.

Sutton Hoo Society
www.suttonhoo.org
Sutton Hoo is a group of low grassy burial mounds in south-east Suffolk. In 1939, excavations brought to light the richest burial ever discovered in Britain, an Anglo-Saxon ship containing the treasure of one of the earliest English kings, Rædwald, King of East Anglia. Further excavations, completed in 1992, proved the site to be a complex collection of burials, some royal, others possibly the victims of judicial execution.  Most recently, excavations in advance of building work in 2000, uncovered the remains of another, earlier cemetery. Full details about visiting one of Britain's most important archaeological sites are available on this website, which offers an online interactive tour of the site. Details of how to join the Sutton Hoo Society are also provided on the website.

Regia Anglorum
www.regia.org
Anglo-Saxon, Viking and Norman re-enactment society, used by Time Team on the 2001 live, who modestly describe themselves as 'probably the best early medieval (or Dark Ages) re-enactment society in the world'. Their website includes a short history of Anglo-Saxon England and the entertaining virtual village of Wichamstow, with a wealth of information about everyday life in the Anglo-Saxon world.

Saxon and Viking Women Warriors
www.lothene.org
Lothene Experimental Archaeology is an Edinburgh-based group involved in researching and recreating aspects of life in Scotland in the past. The group was one of those used by Time Team for the Roxburgh programme in the 2004 series to recreate an 11th-century medieval market. As well as covering aspects of everyday life in Scotland during this period, their website contains a large amount of information on the early Anglo-Saxons and the Vikings. It is particularly strong on women warriors, and has an extensive section on Women as warriors in history,
from 3500BC to the 20th century.
There is also a section on Saxon and Viking women warriors.

World of the Vikings
www.worldofthevikings.com
Describing itself as 'the definitive guide to Viking resources on the internet', this website supports The World of the Vikings CD-ROM, a collaborative project between the National Museum of Denmark, York Archaeological Trust and more than 50 museums and research institutions from across the Viking world. For those who don't want to buy the CD, it is most useful for its links to other Viking resources on the web: www.mindwave.co.uk/vikings/links.asp.

Swedish History: The Viking Age
www.utb.boras.se/uk/se/projekt/
history/articles/vikage/
vikage1.htm
Although it is apparently a Swedish school project, this is a worthwhile site. Most areas of Viking life ranging from gods to writing, and from explorers and ships to warriors are covered. There is also a sizeable section on the Vikings' campaigns.

King Arthur

There are thousands of websites that touch upon the legend of King Arthur, a man about whom much has been written but cannot be said for certain even to have existed. Most belong in the realm of the fantasy: these at least have a factual basis.

The Camelot Project
www.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/cphome.stm
The Camelot Project is designed to make available in electronic format a database of Arthurian texts, images, bibliographies and basic information. The project, begun in 1995, is sponsored by the University of Rochester and offers a useful starting point for anyone seeking information about Arthur on the internet.

Arthur: A Man for the Ages
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/4186/Arthur/htmlpages/kingarthur.html
David White's heavily cross-referenced site on Arthurian history and legends. Includes a lively FAQ (frequently asked questions) section, including 'Was the sword really in the stone?', 'Who was the Lady of the Lake?' and 'Was Galahad really so boring?'

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