1821. 



Mr. Gait on the SaA'on Chronicle. 



399 



it is drawn np, is not calculated to be- 

 come popular, even with all tlic illus- 

 trations of Mr. Ingram's erudition. 



It commences with a brief description 

 of the island of Britain, in which it is 

 stated that there are five distinct races 

 of inhabitants, the English, Britons or 

 Welch, Scots, Picts, and Romans. The 

 Britons are described as the first who 

 took possession of the country, and 

 they are supposed to have come fi-om 

 Armenia. The Picfs are considered to 

 have been of Scythian origin. '• They 

 first lauded," says tlic Chronicle, " in 

 the north of Ireland, and entreated tiie 

 Scots that they might abide there, and 

 thej^ would not permit (hem ; but ihe 

 Scots said, ' we may neverthehss give 

 you counsel ; we know another island 

 eastward of this — there you may live 

 if you will, and if any withstatul you, 

 •we will aid yo»i tliat you may confjuer 

 it.' Then the Picts departed, and came 

 to the northern parts of this land. And 

 the Picts took v.-ives of the Scots, on 

 condition that they should always 

 choose their royal lineage on the \\o- 

 man's side. And it happened in the 

 course of years, that a division of the 

 Scots passed from Ireland into Britain, 

 and conquered some part of this land." 



The record then proceeds (o notice 

 file invasion of Julius Caesar, and (he 

 brief summary which it gives of his 

 two expeditions evidently appears to 

 have been drawn from his own com- 

 mentaries. But the Chronicle does not 

 commence till the July, second year of 

 the reign of Augustus, in which Clirlst 

 was born. 



In tlie 46th 3'ear of tlic christian 

 «ra, the invasion of the island by Clau- 

 dius is stated to have taken place, and 

 that he subjected the Orkney islands 

 to the Roman empire. In IS9 Severus 

 came into Britain wi(h an armj^, and 

 conquered great part of the island by 

 battle, and built a rampart from sea to 

 sea across the island. It would seem 

 tiiat (he Romans, however, had only a 

 niilihiry possession of the country simi- 

 lar to what we Iiold in India, for the 

 Chronicle narrates that in this year 

 " Lucius, King of the Britains, sent 

 letters to Eleutherus, Bishop of Rome, 

 entreating that he might be made a 

 christian," and he obtained that which 

 he desire;!, and the Britons afterwards 

 iHMnainpd in the true faith till the reign 

 of Dioclesian. 



Little notice is taken of any British 

 aflairs till 410, Mhen it is said that 

 '' (he Romans colhjcted all (he gold 



that was in Britain, and hid some of it 

 in the earth, so (hat none could after- 

 wards find it, and some they carried 

 with them into Oaul." No explana- 

 tion is given of this transaction ; it 

 however probably refers to the with- 

 drawing of the legions, and the aban- 

 donment of the island by tlie Romans. 

 And yet, from what is mentioned re- 

 specting the events of the year 435, 

 thei'e is some reason to conclude that 

 the legions were not withdrawn so 

 earl)'. " In this year (435)" sajis the 

 Chronicle, " the Goths took Rome, and 

 never after "^lid the Romans reign in 

 Britain. 1'he Romans reigned in Bri- 

 tain fourhundred and sevenly years in 

 all, from the first invasion of (."ains 

 Julius." This,however, is not correcf, 

 for (hey had no permanent footing on 

 the land till the time of Claudius, and 

 the exact periodof their military domi- 

 nation, granting that it continued till 

 4.35, was but three hundred and eighty 

 nine years. 



In 449, Vortigern, King of the Bri- 

 tons, called to his aid against (he Picts 

 Ileugest and Horsa, warriors and lead- 

 ers of the Angles, a martial race of 

 Germany. Heugest and Ilorsa weio 

 the sons of Whihtgils, the son of Wittn, 

 the son of Wecta, the son of Woden, 

 and from the period of (heir arrival iu 

 the island, the Chronicle relates almost 

 entirely to British transactions. B\it 

 we shall not enter into the details of 

 conflicts and incidents, of which ali 

 the interest ha-; long perished, and the 

 descriptions contain no circumstance 

 calculated to redeem the dryness of the 

 record. Bishops and abbots seein t;» 

 have been of more consequence in the 

 eyes of the Chroniclers than Kings, and 

 the prosperity of the inland was esti- 

 mated by the building of cliurches and 

 the founding of monasteries. One 

 circumstance, however, from the per- 

 manency of its consequences, merits 

 particular attention. In the year S54 

 '• King /Ethelwolf made a grant of t!:e 

 tithe of HIS lands throughout all his 

 kingdom, for the love of God, and lor 

 his own soul's eternal welfare." This 

 is the first notice that we find of the 

 institution of tithes in Britain, and 

 the tythiug was limited to the royal 

 domains. 



Under the year 938 we meet with a 

 verv poetical description of (he ba((le 

 of Brunanburh. (he style of wliich re- 

 sembles that of Ossian so much, that 

 merely as a literary ciiiiosily, it well 

 deserves to bequoled. 



'• This 



