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Celtic Culture
Manching, the capital of Bavaria, had a 4.5-mile wall around it. Manching was 1000 acres, nearly as big as Rome.

Trading
They traded grain from 160 storage pits. The Celts smelted and smithed iron and copper. They tanned hides, milled flour, produced colored glass pottery, and mined gold and salt.

Religion
Religion was another bond of Celtic society. Each tribe had its own deities and cults. There were hundreds of gods and goddesses, but their roles and rites had much in common.

Stonehenge

Druids
The Druids had a considerable influence. They forecasted the future, educated the young nobility, and conserved old traditions. Once a year they met in a tribal assembly called Chartres. They settled disputes between nobles and conflicts between tribes and enforced through the treat of "excommunication."

Trade
In Switzerland in the Bernese Alps, archeologists found a well-preserved early Celtic ship 70 yards off shore. They excavated a 60-foot single-masted cargo vessel. Big flat bottom barges like this could sail all the way to the Mediterranean Sea or to the North Sea from the Alps. Celts were first robber barons on major rivers charging tolls.

The Black Forest headwaters of the Rhine, Rhone, and Danube are only 15 miles apart. The Rhine is 820 miles long, the Danube is 1776 miles, and the Rhone is 505 miles. All three of these were Celtic trade routes.

Ancient Celtic Women
When Queen Boudicca of the Iceni took the warpath in her chariot, she shredded Roman legions and burned Londinium (Roman London) to the ground. Here's what Roman historian, Ammianus Marcelinus, says of the gentler sex:

"A Gallic woman, fighting beside her man, is a match for a whole troop of foreigners. Steely-eyed ... she swells her neck, gnashes her teeth, flexes her huge white biceps, and rain wallops and kicks as though from the twist cords of a catapult."

The War Horse and Chivalry
The "war horse" with bronze bits and harness, was central in Celtic society. The Celtic horseman wore trousers, which startled the Roman eyes. A warrior's horse was his badge of nobility. Commoners fought on foot. The Celtic knight foreshadowed the feudal knight - The name "Chivalry" comes from "Cheval" (French for horse).

Ancestors of the Celts
We know about ancestors of Celtic people (before the time of the Greeks and Romans) by their burial practices through archaeological excavations. In Austria during 1846, systematic excavation revealed 2000 Iron Age graves - the greatest assemblage then know. It yielded long, heavy swords, daggers, axes, cauldrons, pottery, and jewelry with striking geometric and animal motifs.

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Mr. Sedivy's Lecture Notes & Historical Info

The Celts
| Gallic He-Men | Celtic Culture, Trade, Religion, Women |
| Threat of the Celts - Celtic Battles and Conquests |

- Rise of Nation State England -
| Roman Conquest of Britain | Christianity in Britain |
| Customs: Thanes, Churls, Thralls, Wergeld, Folk-Moot |
| Dark Ages: Alfred the Great, Edward the Elder, Athelstan |
| The Return of the Vikings |
| Kings of Britain: Aethelred, Cnut, Edward the Confessor |
| Bayeaux Tapestry, William the Conqueror,
Edward the Confessor, Harold Godwinson, Harold II |
| The Crusades: Richard Lion Heart, Pope Urban |
| King John, Innocent III, Archbishop Stephen Langton |
| Magna Carta / First Parliament |

Wales and Scotland
| Wales: Edward I, Llewellyn, Snowdonia |
| Scotland: Alexander III, John Balliol,
William Wallace, Robert Bruce, King Edward II |

The 100 Years War
| Edward III, Longbows at Crecy, Edward IV, Black Prince |
| Henry V, King Charles VI, Battle at Calais, Treaty of Troyes |

More Information
| Other Kings of the Dark and Middle Ages:
William II, Henry I, Henry II |
| The British Monarchy's Peerage: Dukes, Viscounts,
Marquess, Earls, Baronets, and Barons |

Class Activities
Roman Conquest Comparison
Battle of Agincourt

Related Information
Mr. Sedivy's World History - The Middle Ages
The Complete Bayeux Tapestry
Roman Catholic Church in the Middle Ages / Crusades
The Hundred Years War
King Henry VIII
The Interesting Life of Elizabeth I
The Stuarts - James I, Charles I, Charles II, James II
Oliver Cromwell