New England (medieval) facts for kids
New England was a legendary colony said to have been founded by Anglo-Saxon refugees. These English people were escaping the Norman Conquest of England. The colony was supposedly created either in the 1070s or 1090s.
We learn about New England from two old writings: the French Chronicon Universale Anonymi Laudunensis (which finished in 1219) and the 14th-century Icelandic Játvarðar Saga. Both stories describe a long journey. The English refugees traveled from England, through the Mediterranean Sea, all the way to Constantinople. There, they helped defend the city from attackers. The Byzantine Emperor Alexius I Comnenus rewarded them for their bravery. He gave a group of them land to the north-east of the Black Sea. The English took back this land and renamed it "New England."
Contents
The Story of New England
The Játvarðar Saga tells us that English rebels were fighting against William the Conqueror. When they realized the Danish king Sveinn Ástríðarson would no longer help them, they decided to leave England. Their goal was Constantinople, also known as Miklagarðr.
The English group was very large, with 350 ships, "three earls and eight barons." They were led by "Siward earl of Gloucester" (Sigurðr jarl af Glocestr). They sailed past Pointe Saint-Mathieu, Galicia, and through the Straits of Gibraltar to Ceuta. They captured Ceuta, taking its gold and silver. After that, they took over Majorca and Menorca. Then they sailed to Sicily, where they heard that Constantinople was under attack.
The English sailed to Constantinople and defeated the attacking fleet and army. The ruler of Constantinople, Alexius I Comnenus (Kirjalax), offered the English a job. He wanted them to be his bodyguards, just like the Varangians who worked for him. Some of the English liked this idea. However, Earl Siward and others wanted their own land to rule.
Emperor Alexius told them about a land across the sea. This land used to belong to the emperor but was now held by other groups. The emperor gave this land to the English. Earl Siward led a group to this new land. Another group of English stayed in Constantinople to serve Alexius. The new land was "6 days north and north-east of Constantinople." Earl Siward won many battles and drove away the other groups. They called this new territory "England." Its main towns were named "London," "York," and other names from great towns in England. The English there did not follow the Eastern rite church. Instead, they got their bishops and priests from the Kingdom of Hungary. The story says that the descendants of these English people have lived in that region ever since.
Different Versions of the Story
The Chronicon Universale Anonymi Laudunensis tells a similar story but with some small differences. For example, it doesn't name the Danish king. It also doesn't mention the exact sailing route to the Mediterranean.
Other small changes include:
- "William king of England" in the Chronicon is called "William the Bastard" in the Játvarðar Saga.
- "Sicily" in the saga is "Sardinia" in the Chronicon.
- The Chronicon doesn't mention the city names London and York.
- The Chronicon calls the colony "New England" (Nova Anglia), while the saga just calls it "England."
- Earl Siward in the saga is called Stanardus in the Chronicon.
Most of the story, however, is very similar. This includes the number of ships, earls, and barons, and the sailing distance to the colony. The Chronicon adds one more detail. It says that when Alexius sent an official to collect taxes from the "eastern English," they killed the official. The English who stayed in Constantinople then feared Alexius's revenge. They supposedly fled to New England and became pirates.
Is the Story True?
Historians generally agree that English Anglo-Saxons did travel to Constantinople around this time. Many of them joined the Varangian Guard, which was the emperor's elite bodyguard unit. Other historical records confirm this.
A more reliable source, closer to the actual events, is the Ecclesiastical History by Orderic Vitalis. He wrote about the Norman conquest of England and what happened to the defeated English. He said that some English people went into exile to escape the Normans. Some of the younger ones traveled to distant lands and bravely offered their services to Alexius, the emperor of Constantinople.
Emperor Alexius welcomed the English exiles. He sent them to fight against the Norman forces, who were very strong. Alexius even started building a town called Civitot for the English. Later, when the Norman threat grew, he brought them back to Constantinople. He had them guard his main palace and royal treasures. This is why many English Saxons moved to Ionia. These English people and their families faithfully served the empire and were honored by the Greeks.
Beyond this general account, it's hard to prove the specific details of the "New England" story. The sources are from much later, and some parts of the story seem "fantastic," meaning they are hard to believe.
Historians' Views
Despite the difficulties, some historians believe the colony might have existed. These include Jonathan Shepard, Christine Fell, and Răzvan Theodorescu. Jonathan Shepard thought that the Earl Siward in the story might be Siward Barn. Siward Barn was an important English rebel who was last heard of in 1087. He had been released from prison by King William I.
Shepard noted that Siward Barn was the only important English noble at the time who owned land in Gloucestershire. However, this Siward was in prison from 1071 to 1087. This means he couldn't have been in Constantinople in 1075, which is when the Chronicon says the English arrived. So, Shepard suggested that the English voyage happened after Alexius asked for help in 1091. He also thought the English fleet might be the same one led by Edgar the Ætheling. Shepard later found possible English place names in the Crimea, including one that might be "London."
Another mention of the English in Constantinople comes from Geoffroy de Villehardouin. In his account of the Fourth Crusade in 1205, he wrote: "The French planted two scaling ladders against a barbican close to the sea. The wall here was strongly manned by Englishmen and Danes, and the struggle that ensued was stiff and hard and fierce." This shows English people were still fighting in Constantinople much later.
Language Clues
Place Names
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Some old maps, called portolans, made by Italian, Catalan, and Greek sailors, show five place names on the north coast of the Black Sea. These names support the idea of a medieval New England east of Constantinople.
One name, Susaco (or Porto di Susacho), might come from the word "Saxon" or "South Saxons" (from the old Kingdom of Sussex). This place might have given its name to the Ottoman fortress of Sudschuk-ckala'h or Sujuk-Qale. Today, this is the Russian port city of Novorossiysk.
Medieval portolans also show a place called Londina. This place was on the north coast of the Black Sea, north-west of Susaco. It gave its name to the Londina River and might come from the city name "London".
Images for kids
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In this portolan map of the Black Sea by Battista Agnese (around 1544), there is a uagꝛopoli in southern Crimea and a flumẽlondia and p.d.ſuſaco east of the Kerch strait.
