At its height a complex and wealthy state, by the end of the 4th and beginning of the 5th centuries Roman Britain was at the point of collapse. It was soon replaced by Anglo-Saxon culture which migrated across the North Sea. This absorbing study explores the tensions and conflicts between the various tribal groupings that made up Roman Britain and examines how tribal and political fragmentation could have contributed to its fall. It analyzes Roman Britain not as a unified entity but as a collection of different peoples with a history of long-term conflict, and finds parallels in modern...

They say that history is written by the victors, and consequently there is a tendency for the Britons to be forgotten in the story of the end of Roman Britain and the post-Roman period. Warlord will redress this balance looking at the extraordinary lives of British leaders from 400-550 and the strategies they used to seize and hold power during these turbulent times. The book focuses on key figures who have been largely neglected in history over the last 30 years. Starting with Gerontius, who rebelled against the Roman establishment, the story then turns the key figures of Vortigern...