Who is the historian?
Historical debates in the case study: how has history been constructed and recorded over time? what was the purposes of history? why have approaches to history changed over time?
The ‘Venerable’ Bede
Anglo-Saxon
Late 7th and 8th C AD- born into a lawless, anarchic England AD
Major Work; Ecclesiastical History of the English People
Lived in the center of learning
Hagiographer (writer of the lives of saints)
Theologian (who studies religion)
Chronicler
Godly man
Was a scholar
Travelled little (Cloistered) however, lived at the center of learning and came into contact with travelers
Christian propagandist- justifying Christian propaganda
Foundation myth (aka Creation Myth) Work was used for royal use- Northumbria bias (Down plays the growth of Mercia, Patriotic)
Monastic seclusion
Included Miracles – anachronistic (old- fashioned)
God manifested Himself in the dramas and tragedies of everyday life
Search for accuracy- Wide range of sources incl. primary and referenced
Recalculation of the “6 ages of man” time period:
History in 6 stages
1. Creation
2. Flood
3. Abraham
4. David
5. Captivity of Judah
6. Birth of Christ
Prolific (many ideas/ expressive mind) writer
Imitation of Classical Historiographers eg: use of rhetoric
Secular (worldly) politics was replaced with the interest in the doings of the monastery (building where monks live under religious vows)
