Britain AD: The Shocking Truth Of The 5th Century [49:11]

Alfred is considered historical, and a series of burial sites are considered known, but the only British monarch known as “The Great” remains unverified. Like so many people, probably including many FReepers, I thank him and his wife for their, uh, service. Can’t verify this kind of thing through DNA, most of the time, and this is a case of that. I don’t think they let tourists excavate historical figures to extract DNA. I blame the d***ed nanny state.

Offa’s Dyke turned out to antedate Offa by a few centuries. There’s a short earthwork that faces part of Offa’s Dyke, called Wat’s Dyke. Due to some kind of work that was being done, worked wood was found in Wat’s Dyke, and it RC dated to centuries earlier than expected, because it was thought to have been put up in response to Offa’s Dyke.

At that point someone finally became curious about the actual dating of Offa’s Dyke. A dig was done, worked wood was found, RC dating showed that it wasn’t built by Offa. These results await acceptance in Britain, or actually, await some funerals.

The Romans built a 70-80 mile long canal called The Cardyke. It was used to drain wetlands to open them up for settlement, apparently, as Britain was a big favorite for retiring Roman soldiers who had land coming to them. Also there was more freedom of movement than there had been when the whole works was carved up into separate tribal areas pre-Roman. And of course there was Hadrian’s Wall and its forts in the north. There was also The Wansdyke, a large earthwork that ran apparently eastward from the Severn estuary for about 30 miles. There are other post-Roman earthworks, and they have no supporting documentation, having been local projects, and probably most of them wound up unfinished for some reason or other.

There were probably many ‘Arthurs’ in the post-Roman centuries, scattered across most of the island. There’s even an “Arthur’s Seat”, a natural feature near Edinborough Scotland, but with that unexplained name.

Ironically, Vortigern may have been one of these ‘Arthurs’:

https://search.brave.com/search?q=vortigern+monument&summary=1

Vortigern is a semi-legendary British warlord from the 5th century, most famously associated with the Dinas Emrys hillfort in Gwynedd, Wales. According to medieval chronicles like Historia Regum Britanniae by Geoffrey of Monmouth, Vortigern attempted to build a fortress there, but it collapsed repeatedly until the boy Merlin revealed that the site was built over a pool containing two battling dragons—a metaphor for the conflict between the Britons and the invading Saxons. The Dinas Emrys site, now a rocky hillock with remnants of Iron Age and medieval fortifications, is traditionally linked to this legend. Archaeological excavations have confirmed habitation into the 5th century, though the platform described in the legend dates later.

Another possible site is Vortigern Castle, Pistyll, near Caernarfon, where a mound known as Bedd Gwrtheyrn (Vortigern’s Grave) was once believed to mark his burial. This site, now a glacial boulder clay stack, was historically described as a burial mound and may have been associated with Vortigern’s retreat after losing power. The Pillar of Eliseg in Llangollen, Wales, also references Vortigern as a forebear of the royal family of Powys, suggesting a possible historical lineage, though some scholars consider this a later political claim.

There is no confirmed physical monument directly dedicated to Vortigern that survives today as a recognized historical site. Most associations are rooted in legend and medieval literature rather than archaeological evidence.

AI-generated answer. Please verify critical facts.

[and from the FRchives]

Archaeologists dig at Pillar of Eliseg near Llangollen
BBC News | Saturday, September 3, 2011 | unattributed
Posted on 9/7/2011, 7:11:56 PM by SunkenCiv
https://freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2775071/posts

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.