Perceptions of the Past in Late Anglo-Saxon England: Historiographical and Antiquarian Practice c. 960–1020

Abstract

This thesis investigates perceptions of the past in late Anglo-Saxon England, uncovering how the writings of first- and second-generation monastic reformers shaped beliefs about the origins and history of the English. First proposed by Patrick Wormald, Antonia Gransden, and Alan Thacker in the 1980s, the golden-age theory of monastic reform proposes that the ‘Big Three’ bishops (Dunstan, Æthelwold, and Oswald) were motivated by a desire to recreate an idealised version of monasticism according to their interpretation of Bede’s Historia ecclesiastica. Recently, this theory—and indeed the very concept of monastic reform—has received criticism for overemphasising ideological unity among its proponents. This thesis uncovers new evidence in support of the idea that the ecclesiastical elite were motivated by a nostalgic longing for the idealised seventh century, arguing that second-generation reformers were active in researching and collecting evidence to support their readings of Bedan history. It considers how we might constructively use the term ‘antiquarian’ to describe the varied practices involved in reconstructing, rewriting, and revitalising the imagined seventh and eighth centuries. Chapter 1 examines cultural memory and perceptions of the past in late Anglo-Saxon England, with a focus on the beliefs of the first generation of reformers. Chapter 2 reveals how the ideological roots planted in the 960s manifested as a flowering of antiquarian practice among Bishop Æthelwold’s circle in the 990s, particularly in the production of charters at Abingdon and the Old Minster, Winchester. Chapter 3 turns to hagio-historiography among Archbishop Oswald’s circle, looking at Byrhtferth of Ramsey’s curation and rewriting of sources in his Historia regum. It considers how Byrhtferth crafted his narrative around Bede’s Historia ecclesiastica and Historia abbatum, creating a historical supplement for students already familiar with Bede’s histories. Chapter 4 shifts the focus to the reform of the Church in the later years of Æthelred’s reign, with Wulfstan of York’s use of Bede and Alcuin in his ‘letter of protest’ against changing practices for distributing an archiepiscopal pallium. This chapter assesses Wulfstan’s methods of rearranging his sources to frame the existing terms of the debate to suit his own political ends. The conclusion returns to the nostalgic antiquarianism of the second generation of reformers, comparing their different strategies for reconstructing the past and briefly pointing out some alternate ways that people thought about history at the turn of the millennium. It concludes that the crises of Æthelred’s reign produced a longing for the golden age of early English history, as depicted in Bede’s Historia ecclesiastica, which second-generation reformers sought to reconstruct through erudite and imaginative antiquarian methods.