Where does the name "England" come from? How to distinguish it from Britain and Great Britain?

When it comes to England, more people confuse it with the concept of Great Britain. Although the Kingdom of England was dominated by the Stuart dynasty in the Acts of Union in 1707 and 1800, it merged with the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of Ireland to form a Western European superpower (the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland), which was unparalleled for a while. But "England" has been stumbling and even struggling along the way. Because from the birth of this name, it is destined to withstand inhuman tests and torture on the fragmented island of Great Britain. And this has to start from Rome. Let’s talk about the collapse of the empire. Pictured is the map of Britannia 01. In 476 AD, the walls of the Western Roman Empire collapsed, and the German barbarians trampled on the islanders of the province of Britannia, which once regarded themselves as civilized people. After losing the protection of the empire, they were forced to hold on to the hoes and rakes in their hands. In AD 449, during the time of internal and external troubles, the foolish Roman-British nobles actually chose to hire two Germanic barbarian armies, the Anglos and the Saxons, to defend their country. Wealth. The result can be imagined - these two barbarian tribes quickly turned against each other after winning a few brief victories - and together with their companions, the Jutes, dragged the entire island of Great Britain into the sea of ????fire. The Celts who later settled resisted, but faced the bloody and terrifying invasion of the barbarians - they were forced to move to the colder north or the barren west, as well as to the small islands across the sea. These three Germanic tribes truly owned their own land. They began to follow the methods of the Romans, established kingdoms on the island, and were baptized by God and became loyal supporters of the divine right of kings (Archbishop West in 668 AD). Odo's brief visit accelerated the theocratic construction of England) However, unlike the high degree of unity during the imperial period, there were as many as 7 countries in "England" at this time, which is what we know as the "Era of the Seven Kingdoms" . They were composed of the fighting aborigines, the merged Anglo-Saxons, and a small number of Jutes. Until the 6th century AD, the boundaries of the seven kingdoms gradually became clear. As shown in the picture above, they are from north to south. Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia, Essex, Wessex, kent and Sussex (Sussex). The picture shows the emblems of the kingdoms in the Seven Kingdoms era 02 "England" originally originated from the Old English "Englaland", which means "Anglo Land" and represents the Anglo-Saxon people. However, although the Anglo-Saxons actually controlled large areas of central, northern and southwestern England during the Seven Kingdoms era, "England" was never truly unified - until an iron-blooded Saxon monarch , the appearance of ""Alfred the Great" (Alfred) of the Kingdom of Wessex broke this deadlock. The picture shows a still of Alfred the Great. It must be said that Alfred the Great was a real warrior, Although he had been weak since childhood, he was born with Saxon blood. In the middle of the 9th century AD, a group of Danish invaders from Northern Europe landed in England and conquered large areas of Northumbria. , and established a puppet regime in the Kingdom of Mercia. Red is the territory invaded by the Danes, brown and yellow are the territories controlled by the British. Since then, the only ""Saxon"" seedling left in the Kingdom of Wessex in England. As the king, Alfred soon realized that Wessex The "last kingdom" of Saxons must stand up to maintain the dignity and dignity of the Saxons. After facing the Danes' unilateral betrayal and surprise attack, he narrowly escaped death and was determined to fight the invaders head-on. 878 AD In 2008, as the Danes officially invaded the Kingdom of Wessex, Alfred, who was already prepared to fight to the death, chose the decisive battle location at Edington, as shown in the red square in the picture below. The weather was still good. . But the dull atmosphere of war has already made both sides breathless. On the one hand, the leader of the Danes, Guthrum, is eager to prove his great achievements, but because he did not get "Ivar the Boneless". With the support of other leaders such as Ivar and Ubba, and because his fleet lost as many as 120 ships in the storm at Swanage, his warriors were not superior in numbers, and the Saxons were the last. Hope, under the prayer of the priest, Alfred the Great looked at the magnificent river in front of him and sighed in his heart - this battle must be a bloody battle, how can they afford to lose? Yes, the Saxons can never endure it again? Their king could not, nor could the thousands of militiamen from Wiltshire, Hampshire, and Somerset, and the war raged on both sides. The shield formation is the most effective one. But Alfred was quick to act wisely. He concentrated the most elite troops of the lords in the center of the shield formation, and with the support of archers in the rear row, he gradually broke through Guselun's defense line from the middle of the team.

The Danes began to collapse under the fierce onslaught of the Saxons - when Guthelen's ace troops were exhausted and only a few Danish recruits remained, the balance of victory finally tilted towards the Saxons. Regarding this battle, "Life" recorded this passage: ""A fierce battle, the Saxons formed a dense shield wall against the pagan army, and fought bloody... Finally, Alfred won the victory. He overthrew the infidel armies with ferocious slaughter, and repulsed the fugitives, pursuing them as far as their strongholds. ” In the third week after the battle, the Danish leader Guthrum was baptized as “Athelstan” at Aller in Somerset, becoming the first conquered by Alfred the Great. A pagan leader. Pictured is a still from Gutheron. Following the terms of the Treaty of Wedmore, Gutheron was asked to leave Wessex and return to the kingdom of East Anglia, where he became king. Died in 890 (Wessex actually gained control of the Kingdom of Mercia) The Battle of Edington sounded the clarion call for the Saxon counterattack. In 881 AD, the puppet regime of the Kingdom of Mercia fell; in 886 AD, Wessex. The Kingdom of England captured London. After that, from 893 to 896 AD, Alfred the Great once again led his army to defeat the invasion of the Danes, almost unifying England and becoming the "King of England" in the true sense. 03 England Starting from Alfred the Great, the British Isles truly had the concept of "England". The disputes between the Seven Kingdoms were finally concluded in the long history of the Kingdom of Wessex. However, Alfred was not satisfied with force. During Alfred's reign, he built many churches, greatly improved the literacy rate of the people, and scholars also admired the emperor's reputation. , willing to be loyal to the Kingdom of Wessex. Of course, the famous "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle" was also revised during Alfred's reign-it records various conflicts between the two Germanic tribes from 450 AD. Historical changes, later generations continued to write this chronicle until 1154 AD. However, as the saying goes, a dragon begets a dragon, and a phoenix begets a phoenix. His son, Edward the Elder, was not a coward. Inheriting his father's legacy and the will of the Saxons, he defeated the invading Danes again at the Battle of Tatehall in 910 AD, and took advantage of the opportunity to capture the great cities of Essex and Hertford in 912 AD. In 914 AD, 916 AD, 918 AD, and 919 AD, Edward successively captured Derby, Colchester, Wales, Sewell, Manchester, Nottingham, Northumbria and Scotland. In 920 AD, Edward became the king of England. Overlord of all Britain and true overlord of England. The Edwardian map chronicler of England, William of Malmesbury, said: Edward was ""less learned than his father," But "had unparalleled glory in dominion". Other medieval chroniclers expressed a similar view - Edward was generally considered to be far less accomplished in book learning than in his military achievements. But from Worcester John still described him as "the most invincible king, King Edward". Indeed, Edward the Elder and his father Alfred the Great were the true founders of England. They single-handedly shaped England's history The territory created the fighting spirit of the Saxons. Their most common descendant, "Edgar the Peacemaker", not only extended the administrative-level "county" system to the whole of England, but also built a considerable scale of churches, bringing a "unrest" to England. "Renaissance" movement. The coronation ceremony he created even formed the basis of today's British coronation ceremony. But in fact, Edgar's greatest contribution in achieving "unification" was that he profoundly integrated national identity and territory. *** is branded in the heart of every English person. From then on, people will consider themselves "English" instead of simply Saxons and Celts... 04 Great Britain, Britain, England First, divide it into administrative regions. For example: Britain = England + Wales Great Britain = Britain + Scotland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland = Great Britain + Northern Ireland (the six counties of Ulster, changed to 26 autonomous regions in 1974) (and the British Overseas Affiliated Colonies) The Island of Great Britain = Scotland + Wales + England + Surrounding Islands Therefore, England can only represent the region of England, and there are still differences in the concepts of ""Britain"" and ""Great Britain". As mentioned above, England's national identity and various historical differences The dynastic disputes were all dominated by the Saxons in England, so England is considered to be the source of "Britain". Although the name "Britain" appeared in the Roman period (Britannia was named after the capital of Upper Britain, Longtini Yarm, now London, and Ibrakan, the capital of Lower Britain, now York), but it was rarely called this during the Middle Ages until James I, King of Great Britain, succeeded him in 1603. The British throne was called "King of Great Britain".

After the Glorious Revolution, the Act of Union combined the two confederal kingdoms, abolished the titles of the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, and merged them into the Kingdom of Great Britain. Since then, there has been "Great Britain" as we see it. The Kingdom of England, although it was completely disintegrated after the Norman Conquest in 1066 AD, is still a unique entity, at least it once was. Alf Red the Great, Edward the Elder, Edgar the Peace, they are all the national soul of England, and the traces of the Saxon existence should not be forgotten, because it is called "England". This article Document 1. William E. Burns, A Brief History of Great Britain, p. xxi 2. "Germania". What are the differences between several concepts? 》, January 15, 2019.

4. Sawyer, Illustrated History of Vikings, p. 50 5. Garmonsway, The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, pp. 70-73