The gods and goddesses of the Anglo-Saxons

When the Germanic tribes of Angles, Saxons and Jutes crossed the North Sea and began to settle in the former Roman province of Britannia they brought with them their beliefs and religions. It would take three or four hundred years for the Anglo-Saxons to convert to Christianity and in many cases this was undertaken not because of some deep revelation  or spiritual event but simply and pragmatically for political reasons.  Many common saxons and indeed a good number of their leaders remained secretly pagan even after baptism and those pagan traditions persisted in to later years and even as far as the modern age in words and names of the days of the week and of towns and cities.

It is no surprise that this was the case.  When the ancient Germanic and Norse peoples started putting names and shapes to many of the striking themes and feelings they encountered in the world they created a mythology of beings of great power that were believed to have direct influence over their lives. This article then looks at the Anglo-Saxon Pantheon- the gods of our ancestors.

Two Groups of gods

In ancient norse legends there were once two groups of gods. These were the   Æsir and Vanir. The Saxons called the two  groups the Ese and the Wena. In ancient times the groups fought and in time the Ese won and their chief Woden (Odin) became the king of the gods and the Wena became subservient to him. The Wena are the fertility gods.

Here is a list of the Saxon gods:

The Ese

Woden

Woden is the chief God. He is the god of battle and war  but also an observer of humans who might visit them in disguise. Woden’s name is remembered in the day Wednesday which means Wodensdæg (Woden’s Day.) It also crops up in a great number of place names such as Wednesbury and Wednesfield.

Frige

Woden’s wife , Frige was the goddess of households and of childbirth. Her name lingers on in our day, Friday from the old English world, Frigesdæg .

Thunor

Thunor (or Thor) is the god of thunder but was also seen as the protector of humanity against threats. His symbol, the hammer, was worn by many common people as a protection.  Yet another of our days -Thursday is named after Thunor.

Tiw

Tiw was another god of war and was associated with courage and sacrifice in battle. He is remembered in the day Tuesday.

Seaxneat

Seaxneat was the god of the sword. The Saxon name for a long knife – the Seax became the basis for the name of the race – the Saxons.

Loki

Loki is the god of cunning and tricks. Often seen as manipulating and up to plots. (A theme I use a lot in my books).
The Wena

Ingui-Frea

Male god of fertility and of the harvest .

Freo  or Freyja

The sister of Ingui-Frea, Freo is the Goddess of love. She is also the goddess of female magic. In later Christian times her followers were considered witches and this goddess became a demon.

Eostre

Esotre was a Goddess worshiped during Eostremonath (April in today’s calendar). It was seen as the end of winter and the beginning of the warm summer months.  So the celebration was all about rebirth. The giving of  eggs seemed to have been associated with Eostre.  So popular was the celebration that the Christian church was forced to adopt the whole festival – linking it to Christ’s passion in the season we call today Easter. Even the egg lingered on in today’s Easter eggs.

Christmas

The festival we now celebrate on 25th December linked to the birth of Christ, is based on various winter festivals. It is close to the Roman winter solstice. It is also the first day of the old Anglo-Saxon year and part of their Yuletide or winter celebration.

The coming of Christianity and the passing of the old gods

Roman Britain was Christian. The invading Anglo Saxons encountered the new religion as practised by the Romano-British or Welsh and the Irish. Yet it was the mission sent by Pope Gregory and led by Augustine to Canterbury in AD 597 that paved the way for the conversion of England to Christianity. The King of Kent at the time. Aethelbert had a Christian wife. Her wife was a princess from the land of the Franks and probably for political reasons he permitted the establishment of a church in Canterbury.  The religion spread across the Anglo-Saxons lands but it would be 100 years before all the English kings would agree to the new religion. Many of them, and many of their subjects clung to the old religions for years after. The Church took to view that it was better or easier to absorb old pagan traditions, use old temples and holy sites rather than try and eradicate them.

Thus what we have today is a land which hasChristian traditions in which there are echoes of older folklore. Easter and Christmas both come from Pagan festivals. 4 of our 7 days are named after these pagan gods as well as many scores of villages and towns.

In my Dark Ages Historical fiction, The Amber Treasure and its sequel, Child of Loki these beliefs and the new Christian ones appear and have influences on the characters and their world.