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152-704: The English Militia was descended from the Anglo-Saxon Fyrd , the military force raised from the freemen of the shires under command of their Sheriff . It continued under the Norman kings , notably at the Battle of the Standard (1138). The force was reorganised under the Assizes of Arms of 1181 and 1252 , and again by King Edward I 's Statute of Winchester of 1285. Now Commissioners of Array would levy

304-530: A Merovingian bride, and is one of the first Anglo-Saxon rulers who can be identified with some confidence. Bede and later sources portrayed Æthelberht as a descendant of the original group of "Saxons" mentioned by Gildas, although they apparently believed they were actually Jutish. Unfortunately the king lists and genealogies produced by Bede and later writers are not considered reliable for these early centuries. A 2022 genetic study used modern and ancient DNA samples from England and neighbouring countries to study

456-790: A lieutenant-colonel . The quota for Gloucestershire was set at 1993 men and the Lord Lieutenant was instructed to recruit the two moribund regiments up to this strength over the next two years. War having broken out with Russia in 1854 and an expeditionary force sent to the Crimea , the Militia were called out in 1854. In this year the RSGM was redesignated as light infantry, as the Royal South Gloucestershire Light Infantry (RSGLI), or more pompously as

608-421: A "shameful habit" of drinking and eating in the outhouse, which some of the countrywomen practised at beer parties. In April 1016, Æthelred died of illness, leaving his son and successor Edmund Ironside to defend the country. The final struggles were complicated by internal dissension, and especially by the treacherous acts of Ealdorman Eadric of Mercia, who opportunistically changed sides to Cnut's party. After

760-628: A coalition of his enemies – Constantine , King of the Scots; Owain ap Dyfnwal , King of the Cumbrians; and Olaf Guthfrithson , King of Dublin – at the battle of Brunanburh , celebrated by a poem in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , opened the way for him to be hailed as the first king of England. Æthelstan's legislation shows how the king drove his officials to do their respective duties. He was uncompromising in his insistence on respect for

912-490: A collective term, the compound term Anglo-Saxon , commonly used by modern historians for the period before 1066, first appears in Bede's time, but it was probably not widely used until modern times. Bede was one of the first writers to prefer " Angles " (or English) as the collective term, and this eventually became dominant. Bede, like other authors, also continued to use the collective term " Saxons ", especially when referring to

1064-500: A common collective term, and indeed became dominant. The increased use of these new collective terms, "English" or "Anglo-Saxon", represents the strengthening of the idea of a single unifying cultural unity among the Anglo-Saxons themselves, who had previously invested in identities which differentiated various regional groups. In contrast, Irish and Welsh speakers long continued to refer to Anglo-Saxons as Saxons. The word Saeson

1216-420: A formidable fighting force. At first, Alfred responded by the offer of repeated tribute payments. However, after a decisive victory at Edington in 878, Alfred offered vigorous opposition. He established a chain of fortresses across the south of England, reorganised the army, "so that always half its men were at home, and half out on service, except for those men who were to garrison the burhs", and in 896 ordered

1368-564: A fresh attempt to have as many men as possible under arms for home defence in order to release regulars, the Government created the Supplementary Militia, a compulsory levy of men to be trained in their spare time, and to be incorporated in the Militia in emergency. In 1796 Gloucestershire had to find an additional 1757 militiamen for the Supplementary Militia, though unlike some counties these were apparently incorporated into

1520-528: A king, but who under the Alfredian regime was regarded as the 'ealdorman' of his people. The wealth of the monasteries and the success of Anglo-Saxon society attracted the attention of people from mainland Europe, mostly Danes and Norwegians. Because of the plundering raids that followed, the raiders attracted the name Viking – from the Old Norse víkingr meaning an expedition – which soon became used for

1672-561: A large cadre of permanent staff (about 30). Around a third of the recruits and many young officers went on to join the Regular Army. The Militia Reserve, formed in 1868, consisted of present and former militiamen who undertook to serve overseas in case of war. When the Second Boer War drew away most of the Regular Army, the Militia were called out for home defence and to garrison certain overseas stations. The 4th Gloucesters

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1824-409: A large part of Britain, and writing about Romano-British kingdoms which had been limited to the north and west. Other historians have argued that in the 5th century many Romano-British people must have adopted the new culture which we now call Anglo-Saxon, even when they did not have Germanic ancestry or rulers. Unfortunately, there are very few written sources apart from Gildas until the conversion of

1976-479: A letter addressed by Aldhelm to Hadrian that he too must be numbered among their students. Aldhelm wrote in elaborate and grandiloquent and very difficult Latin, which became the dominant style for centuries. Michael Drout states "Aldhelm wrote Latin hexameters better than anyone before in England (and possibly better than anyone since, or at least up until John Milton ). His work showed that scholars in England, at

2128-707: A major under Monmouth at Sedgemoor , commanded the Bristol Militia against the riotous coal miners of Kingswood in 1714, and there was a flurry of activity in Gloucestershire at the time of the Jacobite rising of 1715 . Apparently, Gloucestershire organised a new battalion in 1750, with its headquarters at Bristol. Under threat of French invasion during the Seven Years' War a series of Militia Acts from 1757 re-established county militia regiments,

2280-612: A mission to Christianise the Kingdom of Northumbria from their native Anglo-Saxon paganism. Oswald had probably chosen Iona because after his father had been killed he had fled into south-west Scotland and had encountered Christianity, and had returned determined to make Northumbria Christian. Aidan achieved great success in spreading the Christian faith in the north, and since Aidan could not speak English and Oswald had learned Irish during his exile, Oswald acted as Aidan's interpreter when

2432-600: A mobilisation scheme began to appear in the Army List from December 1875. This assigned Regular and Militia units to places in an order of battle of corps, divisions and brigades for the 'Active Army', even though these formations were entirely theoretical, with no staff or services assigned. Both Gloucestershire militia regiments were assigned to 1st Brigade of 3rd Division, V Corps . The division would have mustered at Gloucester in time of war, and did actually undertake collective training at Minchinhampton Common in 1876 during

2584-624: A monastery in Campania (near Naples). One of their first tasks at Canterbury was the establishment of a school; and according to Bede (writing some sixty years later), they soon "attracted a crowd of students into whose minds they daily poured the streams of wholesome learning". As evidence of their teaching, Bede reports that some of their students, who survived to his own day, were as fluent in Greek and Latin as in their native language. Bede does not mention Aldhelm in this connection; but we know from

2736-701: A new type of craft to be built which could oppose the Viking longships in shallow coastal waters. When the Vikings returned from the Continent in 892, they found they could no longer roam the country at will, for wherever they went they were opposed by a local army. After four years, the Scandinavians therefore split up, some to settle in Northumbria and East Anglia, the remainder to try their luck again on

2888-641: A number of casual references scattered throughout the Bede 's history to this aspect of Mercian military policy. Penda is found ravaging Northumbria as far north as Bamburgh and only a miraculous intervention from Aidan prevents the complete destruction of the settlement. In 676 Æthelred conducted a similar ravaging in Kent and caused such damage in the Rochester diocese that two successive bishops gave up their position because of lack of funds. In these accounts there

3040-567: A renaissance in classical knowledge. The growth and popularity of monasticism was not an entirely internal development, with influence from the continent shaping Anglo-Saxon monastic life. In 669 Theodore , a Greek-speaking monk originally from Tarsus in Asia Minor, arrived in Britain to become the eighth Archbishop of Canterbury . He was joined the following year by his colleague Hadrian, a Latin-speaking African by origin and former abbot of

3192-562: A reputation in Europe and showing that the English could write history and theology, and do astronomical computation (for the dates of Easter, among other things). During the 9th century, Wessex rose in power, from the foundations laid by King Egbert in the first quarter of the century to the achievements of King Alfred the Great in its closing decades. The outlines of the story are told in

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3344-526: A turning point the continental ancestors of the Anglo-Saxons were probably quite diverse, and they arrived over a longer period. In another passage, Bede named pagan peoples still living in Germany ( Germania ) in the eighth century "from whom the Angles or Saxons, who now inhabit Britain, are known to have derived their origin; for which reason they are still corruptly called Garmans by the neighbouring nation of

3496-568: A working alliance between the West Saxon dynasty and the rulers of the Mercians. In 860, the eastern and western parts of the southern kingdom were united by agreement between the surviving sons of King Æthelwulf , though the union was not maintained without some opposition from within the dynasty; and in the late 870s King Alfred gained the submission of the Mercians under their ruler Æthelred , who in other circumstances might have been styled

3648-497: Is a rare glimpse of the realities of early Anglo-Saxon overlordship and how a widespread overlordship could be established in a relatively short period. By the middle of the 8th century, other kingdoms of southern Britain were also affected by Mercian expansionism. The East Saxons seem to have lost control of London, Middlesex and Hertfordshire to Æthelbald, although the East Saxon homelands do not seem to have been affected, and

3800-510: Is called "Old English". Yet neither are they "Middle English"; moreover, as Treharne explains, for around three-quarters of this period, "there is barely any 'original' writing in English at all". These factors have led to a gap in scholarship, implying a discontinuity either side of the Norman Conquest, however this assumption is being challenged. Henry Berkeley, 7th Baron Berkeley Too Many Requests If you report this error to

3952-592: Is the Heptarchy , which has not been used by scholars since the early 20th century as it gives the impression of a single political structure and does not afford the "opportunity to treat the history of any one kingdom as a whole". Simon Keynes suggests that the 8th and 9th century was a period of economic and social flourishing which created stability both below the Thames and above the Humber . Middle-lowland Britain

4104-614: Is the modern Welsh word for "English people"; the equivalent word in Scottish Gaelic is Sasannach and in the Irish language , Sasanach . Catherine Hills suggests that it is no accident "that the English call themselves by the name sanctified by the Church, as that of a people chosen by God, whereas their enemies use the name originally applied to piratical raiders". Although it involved immigrant communities from northern Europe,

4256-613: The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , though the annals represent a West Saxon point of view. On the day of Egbert's succession to the kingdom of Wessex, in 802, a Mercian ealdorman from the province of the Hwicce had crossed the border at Kempsford , with the intention of mounting a raid into northern Wiltshire ; the Mercian force was met by the local ealdorman, "and the people of Wiltshire had the victory". In 829, Egbert went on,

4408-700: The Commonwealth and Protectorate the militia received pay when called out, and operated alongside the New Model Army to control the country, for example in 1650 when the bulk of the army was on campaign in Scotland. Many militia regiments were called out in 1651 during the Scottish invasion (the Worcester campaign ) and the Gloucestershire were part of a concentration ordered at Gloucester. After

4560-601: The Danelaw . This was the " Great Army ", a term used by the Chronicle in England and by Adrevald of Fleury on the Continent. The invaders were able to exploit the feuds between and within the various kingdoms and to appoint puppet kings, such as Ceolwulf in Mercia in 873 and perhaps others in Northumbria in 867 and East Anglia in 870. The third phase was an era of settlement; however, the "Great Army" went wherever it could find

4712-578: The Frankish kingdom of Austrasia . Bede therefore called these the " Old Saxons " ( antiqui saxones ), and he noted that there was no longer any country of Angles in Germany, as it had become empty due to emigration. Similarly, a non-Anglo-Saxon contemporary of Bede, Paul the Deacon , referred variously to either the English ( Angli ), or Anglo-Saxons (Latin plural genitives Saxonum Anglorum , or Anglorum Saxonum ), which helped him distinguish them from

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4864-674: The Franks on the Lower Rhine . At the same time, the Roman administration in Britain (and other parts of the empire) was recruiting foederati soldiers from the same general regions in what is now Germany, and these are likely to have become more important after the withdrawal of field armies during internal Roman power struggles. According to the Chronica Gallica of 452 Britain was ravaged by Saxon invaders in 409 or 410. This

5016-523: The Hundred of Kiftsgate in Gloucestershire was required to find 186 bowmen and 323 billmen , of which the parish of Winchcombe provided 70 men. The legal basis of the militia was updated by two acts of 1557 covering musters ( 4 & 5 Ph. & M. c. 3) and the maintenance of horses and armour ( 4 & 5 Ph. & M. c. 2). The county militia was now under the Lord Lieutenant appointed by

5168-576: The Isle of Thanet and proceeded to King Æthelberht 's main town of Canterbury . He had been sent by Pope Gregory the Great to lead the Gregorian mission to Britain to Christianise the Kingdom of Kent from their native Anglo-Saxon paganism . Kent was probably chosen because Æthelberht had married a Christian princess, Bertha , daughter of Charibert I the king of Paris , who was expected to exert some influence over her husband. Æthelberht in Kent

5320-628: The Lord Lieutenant of Gloucestershire , Gyles Brydges, 3rd Lord Chandos , was ordered to send 1000 of his trained men to defend Wales in case of invasion. During the summer of 1588, when England was threatened by the Spanish Armada , the Gloucestershire Trained Bands assembled with 3000 infantry in 10 properly organised companies under captains, together with four troops of cavalry amounting to 235 mounted men (20 lancers, 180 light horse, and 35 armed with 'petronelles' –

5472-476: The Middle English language. Although the modern English language owes less than 26% of its words to Old English, this includes the vast majority of everyday words. In the early 8th century, the earliest detailed account of Anglo-Saxon origins was given by Bede (d. 735), suggesting that they were long divided into smaller regional kingdoms, each with differing accounts of their continental origins. As

5624-671: The Petronel was an early cavalry firearm). The county also mustered 1000 armed but untrained men. The primary role of the Gloucestershire Trained Bands was to defend the Severn Estuary , but a large detachment was sent under Sir John Tracy of Toddington to join Queen Elizabeth 's main army at London: With the passing of the threat of invasion, the Trained Bands declined in the early 17th Century, but Gloucestershire

5776-760: The Restoration of the Monarchy , the English Militia was re-established by The King's Sole Right over the Militia Act 1661 under the control of the king's lords-lieutenant, the men to be selected by ballot. This was popularly seen as the 'Constitutional Force' to counterbalance a 'Standing Army' tainted by association with the New Model Army that had supported Cromwell 's military dictatorship. The militia of Gloucestershire were called out during

5928-967: The Royal South Battalion of the Gloucestershire Light Infantry Militia Both regiments were disembodied in 1856 but the RNG was embodied a year later during the Indian Mutiny , serving for a few months in Ireland. Under the 'Localisation of the Forces' scheme introduced by the Cardwell Reforms of 1872, militia regiments were brigaded with their local Regular and Volunteer battalions – for the Gloucestershire Militia this

6080-703: The Second Anglo-Dutch War in 1666 when a French and Dutch invasion was feared. During the Monmouth Rebellion in 1685, the Lord Lieutenant , the Duke of Beaufort , led his Gloucestershire Militia (four regiments of Foot, one of Horse and an independent company of Foot from the City of Gloucester), together with that of neighbouring Herefordshire and Monmouthshire , to join the 700-strong City of Bristol Militia and prevent that city falling into

6232-431: The Synod of Whitby was convened and established Roman practice as opposed to Irish practice (in style of tonsure and dates of Easter) as the norm in Northumbria, and thus "brought the Northumbrian church into the mainstream of Roman culture." The episcopal seat of Northumbria was transferred from Lindisfarne to York . Wilfrid , chief advocate for the Roman position, later became Bishop of Northumbria, while Colmán and

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6384-423: The Volunteers . Agricultural workers in the ranks could be loaned out to farmers during the harvest. Service in the militia could be hard: the men found that a daily food allowance of five pence did not go far when the price of provisions rose, and some units were involved in food riots. While stationed at Portsmouth in 1795 the men of the Gloucestershire Militia forced the local butchers to lower their prices. In

6536-405: The "War of the Saxon Federates". Unlike Bede and later writers who followed him, for whom this war turned into a very long war between two nations which was eventually won by the descendants of the Saxons, Gildas reported that by the time he was born this war ended successfully for the Britons after the siege at 'Mons Badonicus' . (The price of peace, Higham argues, must have been a better treaty for

6688-497: The "proud tyrant" as Vortigern . However, the date could have been significantly earlier, and Bede's understanding of these events has been questioned. The Historia Brittonum , written in the 9th century, gives two different years, but the writer apparently believed it happened in 428. Another 9th century source, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is largely based on Bede but says this Saxon arrival happened in 449. The archaeological evidence suggests an earlier timescale. In particular,

6840-417: The 1st Bn. The SR resumed its old title of Militia in 1921 and then became the Supplementary Reserve in 1924, but like most militia battalions the 3rd Gloucestershires remained in abeyance after World War I. By the time of his death in 1938, Col William Burges (as honorary colonel) was the only remaining officer listed for the battalion. The Militia was formally disbanded in April 1953. In September 1759 it

6992-444: The 2nd (North) Battalion had only gathered two companies but it was formally raised with seven companies at Cirencester on 22 August 1760, when its weapons were requested. It was embodied under the command of Lt-Col Viscount Tracy on 9 April 1761 and granted the subtitle of 'Fusiliers' the same year. A Bristol battalion may also have been formed in 1762. The North and South battalions regiments were camped together at Winchester during

7144-424: The 4th Bn Oxfordshire Light Infantry and 3rd Bn Berkshires. Under the more sweeping Haldane Reforms in 1908, the Militia was replaced by the Special Reserve , a semi-professional force whose role was to provide reinforcement drafts for Regular units serving overseas in wartime (similar to the former Militia Reserve). The former RSGLI became the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment on 7 June 1908, while

7296-482: The 4th Bn was disbanded on 31 July. The 3rd (Reserve) Battalion was mobilised on the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914 and served in the UK throughout World War I , initially guarding Woolwich Arsenal and the huge dumps of explosives distributed nearby, later at Gravesend and then Sittingbourne in the Thames & Medway Garrison. All the while the battalion fulfilled its other purpose by training and forming drafts of reservists, recruits and returning wounded for

7448-438: The 4th century not with a specific country or nation, but with raiders in North Sea coastal areas of Britain and Gaul . An especially early reference to the Angli is the 6th-century Byzantine historian Procopius who however expressed doubts about the stories he had heard about events in the west, which he apparently heard through Frankish diplomats. He never mentions the Saxons, but he states that an island called Brittia, which

7600-451: The 5th century. The Anglo-Saxon period in Britain is considered to have started by about 450 and ended in 1066, with the Norman Conquest . Although the details of their early settlement and political development are not clear, by the 8th century a single Anglo-Saxon cultural identity which was generally called Englisc had developed out of the interaction of these settlers with the pre-existing Romano-British culture . By 1066, most of

7752-430: The Anglo-Saxon period." In modern times, the term "Anglo-Saxons" is used by scholars to refer collectively to the Old English speaking groups in Britain. As a compound term it has the advantage of covering the various English-speaking groups on the one hand, and to avoid possible misunderstandings from using the terms "Saxons" or " Angles " (English), both of which terms could be used either as collectives referring to all

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7904-408: The Anglo-Saxons to Christianity which began in the late 6th century. One eastern contemporary of Gildas, Procopius , reported a story which was apparently relayed to him by Frankish diplomats, that an island called Brittia which faced the Rhine was divided, between three peoples, the Britons, Anglii, and Frisians. Much later, Æthelberht of Kent (died 616) invited missionaries from the Pope and married

8056-404: The Boer War, there were moves to reform the Auxiliary Forces (Militia, Yeomanry and Volunteers ) to take their place in the six Army Corps proposed by the Secretary of State for War , St John Brodrick . However, little of Brodrick's scheme was carried out. Collective training in brigades was carried out on Salisbury Plain in 1906 and 1907, with the 3rd and 4th Bns of the Glosters brigaded with

8208-413: The Britons": the Frisians , the Rugini , the Danes , the " Huns " ( Avars in this period), the "old Saxons", and the " Boructuari " who are presumed to be inhabitants of the old lands of the Bructeri , near the Lippe river. Gildas reported that a war broke out between the Saxons and the local population, who joined forces under a person named Ambrosius Aurelianus . Historian Nick Higham calls it

8360-502: The Continent. More important to Alfred than his military and political victories were his religion, his love of learning, and his spread of writing throughout England. Keynes suggests Alfred's work laid the foundations for what really made England unique in all of medieval Europe from around 800 until 1066. Thinking about how learning and culture had fallen since the last century, King Alfred wrote: ...So completely had wisdom fallen off in England that there were very few on this side of

8512-406: The Danes and that any charters issued in respect of such grants have not survived. When Athelflæd died, Mercia was absorbed by Wessex. From that point on there was no contest for the throne, so the house of Wessex became the ruling house of England. Edward the Elder was succeeded by his son Æthelstan , whom Keynes calls the "towering figure in the landscape of the tenth century". His victory over

8664-432: The East Saxon dynasty continued into the ninth century. The Mercian influence and reputation reached its peak when, in the late 8th century, the most powerful European ruler of the age, the Frankish king Charlemagne , recognised the Mercian King Offa 's power and accordingly treated him with respect, even if this could have been just flattery. Michael Drout calls this period the "Golden Age", when learning flourished with

8816-411: The Elder – who with his sister, Æthelflæd , Lady of the Mercians, initially, charters reveal, encouraged people to purchase estates from the Danes, thereby to reassert some degree of English influence in territory which had fallen under Danish control. David Dumville suggests that Edward may have extended this policy by rewarding his supporters with grants of land in the territories newly conquered from

8968-615: The English (Angle) migrants came from a country neighbouring those Saxons. Anglo-Saxon material culture can be seen in architecture , dress styles , illuminated texts, metalwork and other art . Behind the symbolic nature of these cultural emblems, there are strong elements of tribal and lordship ties. The elite declared themselves kings who developed burhs (fortifications and fortified settlements), and identified their roles and peoples in Biblical terms. Above all, as archaeologist Helena Hamerow has observed, "local and extended kin groups remained...the essential unit of production throughout

9120-416: The European Saxons who he also discussed. In England itself this compound term also came to be used in some specific situations, both in Latin and Old English. Alfred the Great , himself a West Saxon, was for example Anglosaxonum Rex in the late 880s, probably indicating that he was literally a king over both English (for example Mercian) and Saxon kingdoms. However, the term "English" continued to be used as

9272-404: The Gloucestershire Militia regiment was raised in 1761, both battalions wore red coats with blue facings. Officers wore gold lace, changed to silver in 1805 in line with normal militia practice. Drummers often wore 'reversed colours' ( ie coats of the regimental facing colour, faced red), but the two Gloucester Militia regiments appear to have clothed their drummers in white coats faced red. By 1820

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9424-436: The Gloucestershire levies in Scotland , for example at the Siege of Berwick and Battle of Halidon Hill in 1333. Rather than 1000 men, the Gloucestershire contingent serving from 23 June to 23 August 1335 was a more manageable body of 218 longbowmen (16 of them mounted), commanded by two ductores (constables) and 11 vintenars. The levies continued to be mustered under Henry VIII : a surviving muster roll of 1543 shows that

9576-538: The Great's Pastoral Care") What is presumed to be one of these "æstel" (the word only appears in this one text) is the gold, rock crystal and enamel Alfred Jewel , discovered in 1693, which is assumed to have been fitted with a small rod and used as a pointer when reading. Alfred provided functional patronage, linked to a social programme of vernacular literacy in England, which was unprecedented. Therefore it seems better to me, if it seems so to you, that we also translate certain books ...and bring it about ...if we have

9728-430: The Humber who could understand their rituals in English, or indeed could translate a letter from Latin into English; and I believe that there were not many beyond the Humber. There were so few of them that I indeed cannot think of a single one south of the Thames when I became king. (Preface: "Gregory the Great's Pastoral Care") Alfred knew that literature and learning, both in English and in Latin, were very important, but

9880-410: The Ionan supporters, who did not change their practices, withdrew to Iona. Wilfred also influenced kings to the south who were under the dominance of Oswiu, such as the son of Penda, Wulfhere of Mercia (died 675), who converted to Christianity and eventually recovered control over Mercia, and eventually expanded his dominance over most of England, beginning a long period of Mercian supremacy . By 660,

10032-443: The Lord Lieutenant, the Earl of Macclesfield , and Sir John Guise, 2nd Baronet of Elmore Court , were assembled for a month's summer training in 1690 during the crisis when William and the army were in Ireland and the French had won temporary command of the English Channel . However, when the French fleet failed to follow up the Battle of Beachy Head , Macclesfield and Guise were ordered to send their men to their homes to help with

10184-423: The Militia Ballot might be used if the counties failed to meet their quotas). Training was for 56 days on enlistment, then for 21–28 days per year, during which the men received full army pay. Under the Act (amended in 1854), Militia units could be embodied by Royal Proclamation for full-time service in three circumstances: Under the new organisation, militia regiments had an honorary colonel , but were commanded by

10336-437: The Militia of the County and City of Gloucester. The Gloucester Trained Bands may have been organised as: Control of the militia was one of the major points of dispute between Charles I and Parliament that led to the English Civil War in 1642. Elements of the Gloucester TBs may have been part of the Parliamentarian force at the skirmish at Shepton Mallet in August 1642, but with a few exceptions neither side made much use of

10488-407: The Old English speakers, or to specific tribal groups. Although the term "Anglo Saxon" was not used as a common term until modern times, it is not a modern invention because it was also used in some specific contexts already between the 8th and 10th centuries. Before the 8th century, the most common collective term for the Old-English speakers was "Saxons", which was a word originally associated since

10640-445: The Picts and Scots. Gildas did not report the year, and later writers (and modern historians) developed different estimates of when this occurred. Possibly referring to this same event, the Chronica Gallica of 452 records for the year 441: "The British provinces, which to this time had suffered various defeats and misfortunes, are reduced to Saxon rule". Bede, writing centuries later, reasoned that this happened in 450-455, and he named

10792-409: The RNG were only trained in 1820, 1821, 1825 and 1831. The permanent staffs of the regiments were progressively reduced. The long-standing national Militia of the United Kingdom was revived by the Militia Act 1852 , enacted during a period of international tension. As before, units were raised and administered on a county basis, and filled by voluntary enlistment (although conscription by means of

10944-442: The RNG; a further regiment was added in 1813: After Napoleon's exile to Elba the Gloucestershire Militia was disembodied in 1814. They were not called out again during the short Waterloo campaign . The Local Militia was disbanded in 1816. Although officers continued to be commissioned into the 'Regular' militia and ballots were still held to maintain the numbers of militiamen, they were rarely assembled for training after Waterloo –

11096-578: The Regular battalions of the Gloucesters fighting on the Western Front . The SR also formed reserve battalions for the ' Kitchener's Army ' units being formed: 3rd (Reserve) Bn Gloucesters formed 11th (Reserve) Bn. Thousands of men would have passed through the ranks of these battalions during the war. The 3rd Battalion was disembodied on 9 August 1919 when the remaining personnel were drafted to

11248-679: The Saxons, giving them the ability to receive tribute from people across the lowlands of Britain. ) Gildas himself did not mention the defeated Saxons as an ongoing problem, but instead he noted that the Britons had become divided into many small "tyrannies". His interest was in criticizing the Romano-British ruling class, whereas archaeological evidence shows that Anglo-Saxon culture had long become dominant over much of Britain. Historians who accept Bede's understanding interpret Gildas as ignoring

11400-460: The Scots, who had the capacity not merely to interfere in Northumbrian affairs, but also to block a line of communication between Dublin and York; and the inhabitants of northern Northumbria were considered a law unto themselves. It was only after twenty years of crucial developments following Æthelstan's death in 939 that a unified kingdom of England began to assume its familiar shape. However,

11552-658: The South Gloucesters becoming No 23, but the North Gloucesters (independent from April 1763) became No 69. The Cirencester contingent of Gloucestershire levies who served in the North of England in 1570 were supplied with blue caps with a yellow band, a blue coat with yellow facings , and yellow stockings. The names of the 'White', 'Green', 'Blue' and 'Red' militia regiments of 1697 probably relate to their Regimental colours rather than their uniforms. When

11704-469: The Trained Bands were exempt from foreign service, they were frequently employed in Ireland, Gloucestershire again providing large contingents. When war broke out with Spain in 1583, training and equipping the militia became a priority. Counties were organised into groups for training purposes, with emphasis on the invasion-threatened 'maritime' counties. As an inland county Gloucestershire was simply taxed in 1585 and only began serious training in 1587, when

11856-553: The archaeological record in Britain begins to indicate a relatively rapid melt-down of Roman material culture, and its replacement by Anglo-Saxon material culture. At some time between 445 and 454 Gildas , one of the only writers in this period, reported that the Britons also wrote to the Roman military leader Aëtius in Gaul, begging for assistance, with no success. In desperation, an un-named "proud tyrant" at some point invited Saxons as foederati soldiers to Britain to help defend it from

12008-457: The chronicler reports, to conquer "the kingdom of the Mercians and everything south of the Humber". It was at this point that the chronicler chooses to attach Egbert's name to Bede's list of seven overlords, adding that "he was the eighth king who was Bretwalda ". Simon Keynes suggests Egbert's foundation of a 'bipartite' kingdom is crucial as it stretched across southern England, and it created

12160-399: The conduct of government and warfare during Æthelred's reign. It is this evidence which is the basis for Keynes's view that the king lacked the strength, judgement and resolve to give adequate leadership to his people in a time of grave national crisis; who soon found out that he could rely on little but the treachery of his military commanders; and who, throughout his reign, tasted nothing but

12312-586: The culture of the Anglo-Saxons was not transplanted from there, but rather developed in Britain. In 400, the Roman province of Britannia had long been part of the Roman Empire . Although the empire had been dismembered several times during the previous centuries, often because of usurpations beginning in Britain such as those of Magnus Maximus , and Constantine "III" there was an overall continuity and interconnectedness. Already before 400 Roman sources used

12464-592: The death of Constantine "III" in 411, "the Romans never succeeded in recovering Britain, but it remained from that time under tyrants." The Romano-Britons nevertheless called upon the empire to help them fend off attacks from not only the Saxons , but also the Picts and Scoti . A hagiography of Saint Germanus of Auxerre claims that he helped command a defence against an invasion of Picts and Saxons in 429. By about 430

12616-629: The defeat of the English in the Battle of Assandun in October 1016, Edmund and Cnut agreed to divide the kingdom so that Edmund would rule Wessex and Cnut Mercia, but Edmund died soon after his defeat in November 1016, making it possible for Cnut to seize power over all England. In the 11th century, there were three conquests: one by Cnut on October 18, 1016; the second was an unsuccessful attempt of Battle of Stamford Bridge in September, 1066; and

12768-477: The drummers wore red faced with blue, appropriate for 'Royal' regiments, which did not reverse their colours. The Gloucestershire Local Militia units wore uniforms that approximated to the 'Regular' militia: red with blue facings. Each had its own pattern buttons and pouch belt plates. The two Gloucestershire militia regiments changed their facings to white when they became battalions of the Glosters in 1881, and

12920-449: The earliest periods of settlement. Roman and British writers of the 3rd to 6th century had described those earliest Saxons as North Sea raiders, and mercenaries. Later sources such as Bede believed these early raiders came from the region they called " Old Saxony ", in what is now northern Germany , which in their own time had become well-known as a region resisting the spread of Christianity and Frankish rule . According to this account,

13072-521: The error of his ways, leading to a period when the internal affairs of the kingdom appear to have prospered. The increasingly difficult times brought on by the Viking attacks are reflected in both Ælfric 's and Wulfstan 's works, but most notably in Wulfstan's fierce rhetoric in the Sermo Lupi ad Anglos , dated to 1014. Malcolm Godden suggests that ordinary people saw the return of the Vikings as

13224-653: The established militia were the mainstay of national defence during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, they were supplemented from 1808 by the Local Militia, which were part-time and only to be used within their own districts. These were raised to counter the declining numbers of Volunteers, and if their ranks could not be filled voluntarily the Militia Ballot was employed. Three regiments were formed in Gloucestershire, each commanded by an officer from

13376-459: The first time following the Anglo-Saxon invasion, coins began circulating in Kent during his reign. His son-in-law Sæberht of Essex also converted to Christianity. After Æthelberht's death in about 616/618, the most powerful king was Rædwald of East Anglia , who also gave Christianity a foothold in his kingdom, and helped to install Edwin of Northumbria , who replaced Æthelfrith to become

13528-677: The hands of the rebels. They arrested potential rebels and then patrolled the north bank of the River Avon to prevent the rebel army moving north or crossing into Wales. The Gloucester Militia Horse may have reconnoitred as far forward as Bridgwater . Three of the regiments of Foot had mustered at Gloucester, St Briavels in the Forest of Dean , and Cirencester, and the Horse at Gloucester. Faced with another invasion in 1688, this time by his son-in-law, William of Orange , King James II called out

13680-505: The harvest. A full return of the English Militia was compiled in 1697. By then Viscount Dursley was Lord Lieutenant of both the County of Gloucestershire and the City of Bristol, and he controlled the following regiments, though there is no mention of any training being carried out: After the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713 the militia was allowed to dwindle. Nathaniel Wade , who had served as

13832-419: The ignominy of defeat. The raids exposed tensions and weaknesses which went deep into the fabric of the late Anglo-Saxon state, and it is apparent that events proceeded against a background more complex than the chronicler probably knew. It seems, for example, that the death of Bishop Æthelwold in 984 had precipitated further reaction against certain ecclesiastical interests; that by 993 the king had come to regret

13984-460: The imminent "expectation of the apocalypse," and this was given voice in Ælfric and Wulfstan writings, which is similar to that of Gildas and Bede. Raids were taken as signs of God punishing his people; Ælfric refers to people adopting the customs of the Danish and exhorts people not to abandon the native customs on behalf of the Danish ones, and then requests a "brother Edward" to try to put an end to

14136-411: The insistence of Athelstan, right at the end of his reign in 939. Between 970 and 973 a council was held, under the aegis of Edgar, where a set of rules were devised that would be applicable throughout England. This put all the monks and nuns in England under one set of detailed customs for the first time. In 973, Edgar received a special second, 'imperial coronation' at Bath , and from this point England

14288-693: The international crisis that led to the Russo-Turkish War ; the Militia Reserve were also called out during this crisis. By 1880 the South Regiment had moved its headquarters to the brigade depot at Horfield Barracks , Bristol, but the North Regiment resisted the move and remained at Cirencester, where Cecily Hill Barracks had been built for it in 1854–6. The Childers Reforms of 1881 took Cardwell's reforms further, with

14440-440: The kingdom in 1648 it passed legislation to reorganise the militia in various counties, including an Ordinance to settle the Militia of Gloucester, Monmouth, Brecon and Glamorgan, and to raise forces to suppress rebellion therein on 12 May, followed by an Ordinance for settling the Militia in the City and the County of the City of Bristol on 22 June. From now on the term 'Trained Band' began to disappear in most counties. Under

14592-483: The kingdom of England was indeed made whole. In his formal address to the gathering at Winchester the king urged his bishops, abbots and abbesses "to be of one mind as regards monastic usage . . . lest differing ways of observing the customs of one Rule and one country should bring their holy conversation into disrepute". Athelstan's court had been an intellectual incubator. In that court were two young men named Dunstan and Æthelwold who were made priests, supposedly at

14744-507: The latter was preaching. Later, Northumberland 's patron saint, Saint Cuthbert , was an abbot of the monastery, and then Bishop of Lindisfarne . An anonymous life of Cuthbert written at Lindisfarne is the oldest extant piece of English historical writing, and in his memory a gospel (known as the St Cuthbert Gospel ) was placed in his coffin. The decorated leather bookbinding is the oldest intact European binding. In 664,

14896-522: The law. However this legislation also reveals the persistent difficulties which confronted the king and his councillors in bringing a troublesome people under some form of control. His claim to be "king of the English" was by no means widely recognised. The situation was complex: the Hiberno-Norse rulers of Dublin still coveted their interests in the Danish kingdom of York ; terms had to be made with

15048-591: The linked Regular regiments becoming two-battalion regiments and their linked militia formally joining as sequentially numbered battalions. The 28th and 61st Foot became the Gloucestershire Regiment ('The Glosters') and the South and North militia regiments became its 3rd and 4th Battalions on 1 July 1881. All recruits, whether Regular or Militia, underwent training at the regimental depot before being posted to their battalions. Militia battalions now had

15200-519: The locals and immigrants were being buried together using the same new customs, and that they were having mixed children. The authors estimate the effective contributions to modern English ancestry are between 25% and 47% "north continental", 11% and 57% from British Iron Age ancestors, and 14% and 43% was attributed to a more stretched-out migration into southern England, from nearby populations such as modern Belgium and France. There were significant regional variations in north continental ancestry ― lower in

15352-514: The major political problem for Edmund and Eadred , who succeeded Æthelstan, remained the difficulty of subjugating the north. In 959 Edgar is said to have "succeeded to the kingdom both in Wessex and in Mercia and in Northumbria, and he was then 16 years old" (ASC, version 'B', 'C'), and is called "the Peacemaker". By the early 970s, after a decade of Edgar's 'peace', it may have seemed that

15504-416: The men being conscripted by means of parish ballots (paid substitutes were permitted) to serve for three years. Gloucestershire, including the cities of Gloucester and Bristol, was given a quota of 960 men to raise. Despite anti-ballot riots at Cirencester, Cricklade and Lechlade , Gloucestershire was one of the first counties to meet the bulk of its quota (incorporating the vestiges of the old regiments) and

15656-640: The militia during the war beyond securing the county armouries for their own full-time troops. Gloucester, Bristol and Cirencester were all secured for Parliament early in the war by regular troops of the Western Association before they were besieged by Royalist forces (only Gloucester held out). Later in the war some Gloucester TB troops may have formed part of the Parliamentarian garrison of Sudeley Castle in 1647 under Col Richard Aylworth. Once Parliament had established full control of

15808-440: The militia were assembled for their 28 days' annual training, but to save money only two-thirds of the men were actually called out. In view of the worsening international situation the militia was embodied for service in 1792, even though Revolutionary France did not declare war on Britain until 1 February 1793. Both Gloucestershire regiments were at Weymouth, Dorset , in 1795 when King George III stayed there and granted them

15960-487: The militia were disembodied in 1802. The peacetime quota for Gloucestershire was set at 1163 militiamen. However the Peace of Amiens quickly broke down, and they were embodied once more in 1803. Both regiments marched to Portsmouth, where they did duty alternately for a few months. They resumed the routine of summer camps and winter quarters around the country, undergoing training, suppressing smuggling and guarding prisoners, all

16112-613: The militia, and a detachment of the Gloucestershires intercepted Lord Lovelace and 70 followers at Cirencester en route to join the invader. The militia made them prisoners after a sharp skirmish in which Major Lorange of the militia and his son were killed. However, most of James's regular army and many militia regiments rallied to William, whose takeover (the Glorious Revolution ) was otherwise virtually bloodless. The Gloucestershire Militia, horse and foot under

16264-576: The monarch, assisted by the Deputy Lieutenants and Justices of the Peace . The entry into force of these Acts in 1558 is seen as the starting date for the organised county militia in England. Although the militia obligation was universal, it was clearly impractical to train and equip every able-bodied man, so after 1572 the practice was to select a proportion of men for the Trained Bands , who were mustered for regular training. Although

16416-475: The most powerful and influential women in Europe. Double monasteries which were built on strategic sites near rivers and coasts, accumulated immense wealth and power over multiple generations (their inheritances were not divided) and became centers of art and learning. While Aldhelm was doing his work in Malmesbury , far from him, up in the North of England, Bede was writing a large quantity of books, gaining

16568-706: The outbreak of the War of American Independence in 1775 a controversial Act of Parliament was passed to 'Enable His Majesty to call out and assemble the Militia in all cases of Rebellion in any part of the Dominion belonging to the Crown of Great Britain'. In the event the militia was called out in its traditional role when Britain was threatened with invasion by the Americans' allies, France and Spain. Both Gloucestershire regiments were embodied from 1778 to 1782. From 1784 to 1792

16720-589: The overall group in Britain as the "English" people (Latin Angli , gens Anglorum or Old English Angelcynn ). In Bede's work the term "Saxon" is also used to refer sometimes to the Old English language, and also to refer to the early pagan Anglo-Saxons before the arrival of Christian missionaries among the Anglo-Saxons of Kent in 597. The term "Saxon", on the other hand, was at this time increasingly used by mainland writers to designate specific northern neighbours of

16872-424: The peace, that all the youth of free men who now are in England, those who have the means that they may apply themselves to it, be set to learning, while they may not be set to any other use, until the time when they can well read English writings. (Preface: "Gregory the Great's Pastoral Care") This began a growth in charters, law, theology and learning. Alfred thus laid the foundation for the great accomplishments of

17024-401: The people of what is now England spoke Old English, and were considered English. Viking and Norman invasions changed the politics and culture of England significantly, but the overarching Anglo-Saxon identity evolved and remained dominant even after the Norman Conquest. Late Anglo-Saxon political structures and language are the direct predecessors of the high medieval Kingdom of England and

17176-581: The people to their knees in 1009–12, when a large part of the country was devastated by the army of Thorkell the Tall . It remained for Swein Forkbeard , king of Denmark, to conquer the kingdom of England in 1013–14, and (after Æthelred's restoration) for his son Cnut to achieve the same in 1015–16. The tale of these years incorporated in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle must be read in its own right, and set beside other material which reflects in one way or another on

17328-665: The people's sins, raising awareness of a collective Christian identity; and by 'conquering' the kingdoms of the East Angles, the Northumbrians and the Mercians, they created a vacuum in the leadership of the English people. Danish settlement continued in Mercia in 877 and East Anglia in 879—80 and 896. The rest of the army meanwhile continued to harry and plunder on both sides of the Channel, with new recruits evidently arriving to swell its ranks, for it clearly continued to be

17480-408: The political map of Lowland Britain had developed with smaller territories coalescing into kingdoms, and from this time larger kingdoms started dominating the smaller kingdoms. The development of kingdoms, with a particular king being recognised as an overlord, developed out of an early loose structure that, Higham believes, is linked back to the original feodus . The traditional name for this period

17632-516: The preface: ...When I had learned it I translated it into English, just as I had understood it, and as I could most meaningfully render it. And I will send one to each bishopric in my kingdom, and in each will be an æstel worth fifty mancuses. And I command in God's name that no man may take the æstel from the book nor the book from the church. It is unknown how long there may be such learned bishops as, thanks to God, are nearly everywhere. (Preface: "Gregory

17784-416: The question of physical Anglo-Saxon migration and concluded that there was large-scale immigration of both men and women into Eastern England, from a "north continental" population matching early medieval people from the area stretching from northern Netherlands through northern Germany to Denmark. This began already in the Roman era, and then increased rapidly in the 5th century. The burial evidence showed that

17936-423: The raiding activity or piracy reported in western Europe. In 793, Lindisfarne was raided and while this was not the first raid of its type it was the most prominent. In 794, Jarrow, the monastery where Bede wrote, was attacked; in 795 Iona in Scotland was attacked; and in 804 the nunnery at Lyminge in Kent was granted refuge inside the walls of Canterbury. Sometime around 800, a Reeve from Portland in Wessex

18088-468: The required number of men from each shire. The usual shire contingent was 1000 infantry commanded by a millenar , divided into companies of 100 commanded by centenars or constables, and subdivided into sections of 20 led by vintenars . Edward I regularly summoned the shire levies of Gloucestershire to fight in neighbouring Wales during his Welsh Wars , but they were not required for his Scottish campaigns . However, his grandson Edward III , did employ

18240-527: The richest pickings, crossing the English Channel when faced with resolute opposition, as in England in 878, or with famine, as on the Continent in 892. By this stage, the Vikings were assuming ever increasing importance as catalysts of social and political change. They constituted the common enemy, making the English more conscious of a national identity which overrode deeper distinctions; they could be perceived as an instrument of divine punishment for

18392-467: The royal army for the Second Bishops' War in 1640, though like other counties many of the men sent were probably untrained hired substitutes. Charles I had attempted to reform the Trained Bands into a national force or 'Perfect Militia' answering to the king rather than local control. On 12 February 1641 a firm Royalist supporter, George Brydges, 6th Lord Chandos , was entrusted with organising

18544-414: The second king over the two kingdoms north of the Humber, Bernicia and Deira . After Rædwald died, Cadwallon ap Cadfan, the king of Gwynedd , in alliance with king Penda of Mercia , killed Edwin in battle at Hatfield Chase . Æthelfrith's son Oswald subsequently became the third king of Northumbria. Although not included in Bede's list of rulers with imperium, Penda defeated and killed Oswald in 642 and

18696-430: The southern Danelaw, and finally over Northumbria, thereby imposing a semblance of political unity on peoples, who nonetheless would remain conscious of their respective customs and their separate pasts. The prestige, and indeed the pretensions, of the monarchy increased, the institutions of government strengthened, and kings and their agents sought in various ways to establish social order. This process started with Edward

18848-476: The state of learning was not good when Alfred came to the throne. Alfred saw kingship as a priestly office, a shepherd for his people. One book that was particularly valuable to him was Gregory the Great's Cura Pastoralis (Pastoral Care). This is a priest's guide on how to care for people. Alfred took this book as his own guide on how to be a good king to his people; hence, a good king to Alfred increases literacy. Alfred translated this book himself and explains in

19000-495: The summer of 1761. From November the North battalion was stationed at Bideford guarding French prisoners-of-war . The battalion returned to Winchester in June 1762, then in the autumn it marched to Gloucestershire. The Seven Years War ended with the Treaty of Paris on 10 February 1763 and the two battalions of Gloucestershire militia were disembodied, but not before they became separate South and North regiments on 20 April. After

19152-440: The surviving works of Anglo-Latin and vernacular literature, as well as the numerous manuscripts written in the 10th century, testify in their different ways to the vitality of ecclesiastical culture. Yet as Keynes suggests "it does not follow that the 10th century is better understood than more sparsely documented periods". During the course of the 10th century, the West Saxon kings extended their power first over Mercia, then into

19304-528: The tenth century and did much to make the vernacular more important than Latin in Anglo-Saxon culture. I desired to live worthily as long as I lived, and to leave after my life, to the men who should come after me, the memory of me in good works. (Preface: "The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius") A framework for the momentous events of the 10th and 11th centuries is provided by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle . However charters, law-codes and coins supply detailed information on various aspects of royal government, and

19456-533: The term Saxons to refer to coastal raiders who had been causing problems especially on the coasts of the North Sea . In what is now south-eastern England the Romans established a military commander who was assigned to oversee a chain of coastal forts which they called the Saxon shore . The homeland of these Saxon raiders was not clearly described in surviving sources but they were apparently the northerly neighbours of

19608-399: The third was conducted by William of Normandy in October, 1066 at Hastings. The consequences of each conquest changed the Anglo-Saxon culture. Politically and chronologically, the texts of this period are not Anglo-Saxon; linguistically, those written in English (as opposed to Latin or French, the other official written languages of the period) moved away from the late West Saxon standard that

19760-453: The time of Magnus Maximus in the late 4th century. Bede, whose report of this period is partly based on Gildas, believed that the call was answered by kings from three powerful tribes from Germania, Angles, Saxons, and Jutes. The Saxons came from Old Saxony on the North Sea coast of Germany, and settled in Wessex , Sussex and Essex . Jutland , the peninsula containing part of Denmark,

19912-624: The title 'Royal', but the North regiment lost its 'Fusiliers' distinction the following year. The French Revolutionary Wars saw a new phase for the English militia: they were embodied for a whole generation, and became regiments of full-time professional soldiers (though restricted to service in the British Isles ), which the regular army increasingly saw as a prime source of recruits. They served in coast defences, manning garrisons, guarding prisoners of war, and for internal security, while their traditional local defence duties were taken over by

20064-616: The two existing regiments. The Supplementary Militia were stood down in 1799, but the county had to find 1163 more in 1802. When the Irish Rebellion broke out in 1798 the Royal North Gloucesters (RNG) volunteered for service there, but arrived too late for action, the French army surrendering soon after the regiment arrived. It returned to England in 1799. A peace treaty having been agreed (the Treaty of Amiens ),

20216-598: The uniform thereafter was the same as the Regulars. Anglo-Saxons The Anglo-Saxons , in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English , were a cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages . They traced their origins to Germanic settlers who became one of the most important cultural groups in Britain by

20368-530: The very edge of Europe, could be as learned and sophisticated as any writers in Europe." During this period, the wealth and power of the monasteries increased as elite families, possibly out of power, turned to monastic life. Anglo-Saxon monasticism developed the unusual institution of the "double monastery": a house of monks and a house of nuns, living next to each other, sharing a church but never mixing, and living separate lives of celibacy. These double monasteries were presided over by abbesses, who became some of

20520-586: The west, and highest in Sussex, the East Midlands and East Anglia. From the time of the Christian conversions the first well-attested English kings and kingdoms appear in the written record. This situation with a small number of kingdoms competing for dominance is traditionally called the Heptarchy , which indicates a period of seven kingdoms. There were however more than seven kingdoms, and their interactions were quite complex. In 595 Augustine landed on

20672-528: The while being depleted by men volunteering for the regulars: the RNG supplied a large number of recruits to the 9th Foot . The two Gloucestershire regiments came together again in August 1808, when a large militia camp was held near Brighton , the excuse being the birthday of the Prince of Wales , but the opportunity being taken to carry out collective manoeuvres. The RNG served in Ireland again in 1813–14. While

20824-399: The work of Catherine Hills and Sam Lucy on the evidence of Spong Hill has moved the chronology for the settlement earlier than 450, with a significant number of items now in phases before Bede's date. Historian Guy Halsall has even speculated that Gildas was badly misread by Bede and all subsequent historians, and that the invitation of the foederati was part of a military reorganization in

20976-520: Was 8th) remained in force until 1802, and another drawing took place at the start of the Napoleonic War (Gloucestershire was 7th), which remained in force until 1833. In that year the King drew the ballots for individual regiments and the resulting list remained in force with minor amendments until the end of the militia; the regiments raised before the peace of February 1763 took the first 37 places,

21128-571: Was dominant over the southern kingdoms. At the time of the battle of the river Winwæd, thirty duces regii (royal generals) fought on his behalf. Although there are many gaps in the evidence, it is clear that the seventh-century Mercian kings were formidable rulers who were able to exercise a wide-ranging overlordship from their Midland base. Mercian military success was the basis of their power; it succeeded against not only 106 kings and kingdoms by winning set-piece battles, but by ruthlessly ravaging any area foolish enough to withhold tribute. There are

21280-521: Was embodied on 11 January 1900, followed by the 3rd Gloucesters on 15 May. The 4th Battalion was sent to guard Boer prisoners of war on Saint Helena , for which it was awarded the unique Battle Honour St Helena 1900–01 . The 3rd Battalion remained in the UK, though it did supply 124 volunteers to the 4th Bn for service in St Helena. The 3rd Bn was disembodied on 13 July 1901 and the 4th on 27 July. After

21432-426: Was killed when he mistook some raiders for ordinary traders. Viking raids continued until in 850, then the Chronicle says: "The heathen for the first time remained over the winter". The fleet does not appear to have stayed long in England, but it started a trend which others subsequently followed. In particular, the army which arrived in 865 remained over many winters, and part of it later settled what became known as

21584-603: Was known as the place of the Mierce , the border or frontier folk, in Latin Mercia. Mercia was a diverse area of tribal groups, as shown by the Tribal Hidage; the peoples were a mixture of Brittonic speaking peoples and "Anglo-Saxon" pioneers and their early leaders had Brittonic names, such as Penda . Although Penda does not appear in Bede's list of great overlords, it would appear from what Bede says elsewhere that he

21736-476: Was later seen by Bede as the third king to have imperium over the English south of the Humber , having replaced Ceawlin of Wessex (died about 593), and before this generation there are only semi-mythical accounts of earlier kings. Æthelberht's law for Kent, the earliest written code in any Germanic language , instituted a complex system of fines. Kent was rich, with strong trade ties to the continent, and Æthelberht may have instituted royal control over trade. For

21888-428: Was one of the few counties to continue enrolling and training men seriously, particularly in 1608 when it was organised by county divisions under the Lord Lieutenant, Henry, 7th Lord Berkeley : In 1638 the Gloucestershire Trained Bands consisted of 3120 men armed with 1826 muskets and 1294 Corslets (pikemen with armour), together with 200 horse. Gloucestershire also provided one of the largest contingents (1500 men) to

22040-449: Was only a few years after Constantine "III" was declared Roman emperor in Britain, and during the period that he was still leading British Roman forces in rebellion on the continent. The rebellion was soon quashed, the Romano-British citizens reportedly expelled Constantine's imperial officials during this period, but they never again received new Roman officials or military forces. Writing in the mid-sixth century, Procopius states that after

22192-565: Was ordered that militia regiments on service together were to take their relative precedence from the date of their arrival in camp. In 1760 this was altered to a system of drawing lots where regiments did duty together. During the War of American Independence the counties were given an order of precedence determined by ballot each year, beginning in 1778. In the French Revolutionary War the order balloted for in 1793 (Gloucestershire

22344-462: Was ready to issue them with arms on 15 May 1759. A train of waggons carrying arms and accoutrements for the regiment left the Tower of London on 22 May. The regiment was commanded by Col Norborne Berkeley , who became Lord Lieutenant of Gloucestershire in 1762. The 1st or South Battalion was embodied for permanent duty at Gloucester on 27 July 1759 with eight companies under his command. At that time

22496-508: Was ruled by Edgar under the strong influence of Dunstan, Athelwold, and Oswald , the Bishop of Worcester. The reign of King Æthelred the Unready witnessed the resumption of Viking raids on England, putting the country and its leadership under strains as severe as they were long sustained. Raids began on a relatively small scale in the 980s but became far more serious in the 990s, and brought

22648-586: Was supposedly distinct from Britain itself, was settled by three nations: the Angili, Frissones, and Brittones, each ruled by its own king. Each nation was so prolific that it sent large numbers of individuals every year to the Franks, who planted them in unpopulated regions of their territory. By the 8th century the Saxons in Germany were seen as a country, and writers such as Bede and some of his contemporaries including Alcuin , and Saint Boniface , began to refer to

22800-465: Was the dominant king of the English until he was himself killed in battle against Oswald's brother Oswiu in 655. Oswiu remained the dominant king of England until he died in 670. In 635, Aidan , an Irish monk from Iona , chose the Isle of Lindisfarne to establish a monastery which was close to King Oswald 's main fortress of Bamburgh . He had been at the monastery in Iona when Oswald asked to be sent

22952-580: Was the homeland of the Jutes who settled in Kent and the Isle of Wight . The Angles (or English) were from 'Anglia', a country which Bede understood to have now been emptied, and which lay between the homelands of the Saxons and Jutes. Anglia is usually interpreted as the old Schleswig-Holstein Province (straddling the modern Danish - German border), and containing the modern Angeln . Although this represents

23104-655: Was with the 28th (North Gloucestershire) and 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiments of Foot in Sub-District No 37 (County of Gloucester) in Western District . The Militia were now under the War Office rather than their county lords lieutenant. Although often referred to as brigades, the sub-districts were purely administrative organisations, but as a continuation of the Cardwell Reforms

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