OCR Specification focus:
‘Law-making, dispute, feud and resolution including wergild and the use of violence; burials.’
The legal and ritual practices of the early Anglo-Saxon period reveal how societies without centralised states maintained order, mediated disputes, and expressed beliefs about life, death, and community belonging. Law, feud, and burial rites illustrate the blending of Germanic custom, Christian influence, and regional practice.
Law and Legal Traditions
Customary Law
Early Anglo-Saxon societies did not have codified national laws. Instead, justice relied upon customary law, preserved orally and enforced through kinship groups. These customs emphasised collective responsibility, where the actions of one individual could implicate the entire family or clan.
Law-Making Kings
From the seventh century, some rulers began issuing law codes. Kings like Æthelberht of Kent provided written lists of punishments, often denominated in fines. Such codes were influenced by both Germanic tradition and Roman-Christian models, aiming to reinforce royal authority.
The opening folios of Æthelberht’s law-code in the 12th-century Textus Roffensis preserve early English provisions on compensation (including wergild) and peace-keeping fines. Source
Law code: A collection of laws, often issued by a king, that set penalties for crimes and helped establish consistent expectations for justice.
Law-making bolstered a king’s prestige by demonstrating his ability to regulate behaviour and reduce internal conflict within his kingdom.
Disputes and Feuding
The Feud System
In the absence of strong central authority, disputes often escalated into feuds—cycles of retaliatory violence between kin groups. Honour and reputation demanded that wrongs be avenged, creating the potential for long-term instability.
Feud: A prolonged conflict between families or groups, typically involving cycles of revenge killings and compensation claims.
The Role of Wergild
To limit bloodshed, Anglo-Saxon law employed wergild (literally "man-price"), a system of financial compensation paid by an offender to the victim’s kin.
The amount of wergild varied depending on social status.
Killing a nobleman required a much higher payment than killing a ceorl (freeman).
Payment restored balance, preventing cycles of vengeance.
Failure to pay wergild could result in renewed violence or outlawry.
Wergild: The legally defined value of a person’s life in monetary terms, used as compensation to prevent blood-feuds.
The existence of wergild demonstrates both the economic basis of justice and the hierarchical nature of Anglo-Saxon society.
Violence and Resolution
While violence was a common element of dispute resolution, alternative mechanisms also existed:
Oaths and Compurgation: The accused swore an oath of innocence, supported by oath-helpers who vouched for their reliability.
Ordeals: Ritual trials by fire or water, interpreted as divine judgement.
Arbitration by Lords or Kings: Powerful figures could impose settlements, reinforcing their authority.
Such mechanisms highlight how spiritual belief, social pressure, and hierarchy all contributed to dispute settlement.
The Social Meaning of Law
Law functioned not just as a tool of order but also as a reflection of power:
Kingship was legitimised by the ability to regulate disputes.
Lords gained authority by protecting dependants and mediating conflicts.
Communities reinforced bonds through participation in legal assemblies, such as the moots, where cases were heard and settled.
These practices emphasised consensus-based governance, with law resting on the cooperation of kin groups, lords, and kings.
Burial Rites
Pagan Traditions
In the early Anglo-Saxon period, pagan burial rites predominated. Key practices included:
Cremation: Burning the body, often with grave goods.
The ceramic figure known as “Spong Man” served as the lid of a cremation urn from Spong Hill, the largest early Anglo-Saxon cremation cemetery. Source
Inhumation: Burying the body intact, positioned with weapons, jewellery, or everyday items.
Grave Goods: Objects symbolising status, identity, or belief in the afterlife.
Burial customs varied by region and time, reflecting local traditions and external influences.
Christian Influence
With the spread of Christianity after Augustine’s mission in 597, burial practices shifted:
Grave goods declined, replaced by simpler interments.
Orientation of graves towards the east became common, symbolising resurrection.
Cemeteries were increasingly located near churches, linking the dead to Christian sacred space.
These changes highlight the gradual assimilation of Christian ritual into everyday life.
Burials as Social Statements
Burials communicated identity and hierarchy within communities:
Richly furnished graves, such as Sutton Hoo, showcased elite power and connections.
Communal cemeteries expressed group belonging and territorial claims.
Variations in rites marked distinctions between pagan and Christian belief, as well as between elites and commoners.
Burials thus reveal the cultural, religious, and political transitions of the period.
Interconnection of Law, Dispute, and Burial
The triad of law, dispute resolution, and burial rites reflects the underlying principles of early Anglo-Saxon society:
Kinship and Honour were central in both feud and funerary practice.
Hierarchy shaped both wergild payments and burial splendour.
Religion and Belief influenced ordeals in law and rituals of the dead.
Together, these practices reveal a society negotiating between traditional Germanic customs and the transformative impact of Christianity.
FAQ
Wergild payments were not arbitrary but based on a fixed social hierarchy. A nobleman’s life could be valued at up to 1,200 shillings, whereas a ceorl’s was often 200 shillings.
Payments also covered injuries: losing a finger, eye, or tooth had set fines. These detailed tariffs reflected how law aimed to balance justice with the practical needs of a society lacking centralised enforcement.
Moots were gatherings where free men discussed and settled disputes. They reinforced community cohesion by making decisions collectively rather than through royal enforcement.
They heard oaths and compurgation.
Witnesses gave evidence, often supported by kinship networks.
Outcomes included wergild payments or public reconciliations.
These meetings acted as both legal courts and social arenas where local authority was expressed.
Christian teaching emphasised resurrection and salvation, not material possessions. Grave goods were seen as pagan symbols tied to afterlife beliefs.
By discouraging their use, church leaders aimed to create uniform burial practices that focused on spiritual equality rather than social display. Over time, Christian cemeteries near churches became dominant, reflecting these new values.
Not all violence was unlawful. Certain acts were permitted if carried out within established codes.
Defending honour or property was acceptable if proportionate.
Punitive violence by lords or kings reinforced order.
Feuding could be tolerated if wergild was refused.
The distinction lay in whether violence maintained social balance or threatened wider stability.
Burial sites were often chosen to mark territorial control or community identity.
Cemeteries near boundaries asserted claims to land.
Grouped burials indicated kinship ties.
Placement near roads or prominent landmarks made graves visible reminders of social continuity.
Thus, cemeteries functioned not only as resting places but as public statements of identity and belonging.
Practice Questions
Question 1 (2 marks)
What was the purpose of wergild in early Anglo-Saxon society?
Mark scheme:
1 mark for identifying that wergild was a payment made to the family of a victim.
1 mark for explaining that it aimed to prevent blood-feuds by offering financial compensation.
Question 2 (5 marks)
Explain two ways in which burial practices in Anglo-Saxon England reflected social status.
Mark scheme:
Up to 2 marks for describing the use of grave goods (e.g. weapons, jewellery, or everyday items signifying wealth and role).
Up to 2 marks for explaining how richly furnished graves such as Sutton Hoo displayed elite power and connections.
1 mark for explaining that the presence or absence of such items highlighted clear distinctions between elites, freemen, and lower-status individuals.
