towns.

the strict meaning of burh, appears to be fortified place or stronghold. it can therefore be applied to a single house or castle, as well as to a town. there is a softer form byrig, which in the sense of a town can hardly be distinguished from burh, but which, as far as i know, is never used to denote a single house or castle. rome and florence, and in general all large towns, are called burh or byrig. this is the widest term.

port strictly means an enclosed place, for sale and purchase, a market: for “portus est conclusus locus, quo importantur merces, et inde exportantur. est et statio conclusa et munita.” (thorpe, i. p. 158.)

wíc is originally vicus, a vill or village. it is strictly used to denote the country-houses of communities, kings or bishops.

ceaster seems universally derived from castrum, and denotes a place where there has been a roman station. now every one of these conditions may concur in one single place, and we accordingly find much looseness in the use of the terms: thus,

london is called lundenwíc[1037], hhoðh. § 16. chron. 604: but lundenburh or lundenbyrig, chron. 457, 872, 886, 896, 910, 994, 1009, 1013, 1016, 1052. and it was also a port, for we find its geréfa, a port-geréfa. again york, sometimes eoferwíc, sometimes eoferwíc-ceaster (chron. 971) is also said to be a burh, chron. 1066. dovor is called a burh, chron. 1048; but a port, chron. 1052. so again hereford, in chron. 1055, 1056, is called a port, but in chron. 1055 also a burh. nor do the latin chroniclers

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help us out of the difficulty; on the contrary, they continually use the words oppidum, civitas, urbs and even arx to denote the same place.

the saxon chronicle mentions the undernamed cities:—

ægeles byrig, now aylesbury in bucks. chron. sax. 571, 921.

acemannes ceaster or baðan byrig, often called also æt baðum or æt hátum baðum, the aquae solis of the romans and now bath in somerset. this town in the year 577 was taken from the british. the chronicle calls it baðanceaster: see also chron. 973.

ambresbyrig, now amesbury, wilts. chron. 995.

andredesceaster. anderida, sacked by ælli. chron. 495. most probably near the site of the present pevensey: see a very satisfactory paper by mr. hussey, archæol. journal, no. 15, sept. 1847.

baddanbyrig, now badbury, dorset. chron. 901.

badecanwyl, now bakewell, derby, fortified by eádweard. chron. 923. florence says he built and garrisoned a town there: “urbem construxit, et in illa milites robustos posuit.” an. 921.

banesingtún, now bensington, oxf. chron. 571, 777.

bebbanburh, now bamborough in northumberland. this place, we are told, was first surrounded with a hedge, and afterwards with a wall. chron. 642, 926, 993. florence calls it “urbs regia bebbanbirig.” an. 926.

bedanford, now bedford. there was a burh here which eádweard took in 919: he then built a second burh upon the other side of the ouse. chron. 919. florence calls it “urbem.” an. 916.

beranbyrig. chron. 556.

bremesbyrig. at this place æðelflǽd built a burh. chron. 910. florence says “urbem.” an. 911: perhaps bromsgrove in worcestershire, the æt bremesgráfum of the cod. dipl. nos. 183, 186.

brunanburh, brunanbyrig, and sometimes brunanfeld: the site of this place is unknown, but here æðelstán and eádmund defeated the scots. chron. 937.

brycgnorð, bridgenorth, salop. here æðelflǽd built a burh. chron. 912: “arcem munitam.” flor. an. 913.

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bucingahám, now buckingham. here eádweard built two burhs, one on each side of the ouse. chron. 918. florence calls them “munitiones.” an. 915.

cantwarabyrig, the city of canterbury. dorobernia, ciuitas doruuernensis, the metropolis of æðelberht’s kingdom in 597. beda, h. e. lib. i. c. 25. in the year 1011 canterbury was sufficiently fortified to hold out for twenty days against the danish army which had overrun all the eastern and midland counties, and was then only entered by treachery. flor. wig. an. 1011. i have already noticed both king’s reeves and port-reeves, the ingang burhware and cnihta gyld of canterbury. there can be little doubt that king, archbishop, abbot and corporation had all separate jurisdictions and rights in canterbury: see chron. 633, 655, 995, 1009, 1011.

cirenceaster, now cirencester in gloucestershire, the ancient durocornovum. chron. 577, 628.

cissanceaster, now chichester, the roman regnum. chron. 895.

cledemúða. here eádweard built a burh. chron. 921.

colnceaster, now colchester in essex, the first roman colonia, destroyed by boadicea. in 921 colchester was sacked by eádweard’s forces, and taken from the danes, some of whom escaped over the wall. in the same year eádweard repaired and fortified it. chron. 921. “murum illius redintegravit, virosque in ea bellicosos cum stipendio posuit.” flor. 918.

coludesburh, coldingham. chron. 679.

cyppanham, chippenham, wilts. chron. 878.

cyricbyrig, a city built by æðelflǽd. flor. 916. cherbury.

deóraby, derby, one of the five burgs taken by æðelflǽd from the danes. chron. 917, 941. a city with gates. flor. 918. “civitas.” flor. 942.

dofera, dover in kent. chron. 1048, 1052. there was a fortified castle on the cliff, which in 1051 was seized by the people of eustace, count of boulogne, against the town. flor. wig. 1051.

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dorceceaster, dorchester, oxon. chron. 954, 971. for some time a bishop’s see, first for wessex, which was afterwards removed to winchester: afterwards for leicester.

dorceceaster, dornwaraceaster, dorchester, dorset. chron. 635, 636, 639.

eádesbyrig, a place where æðelflǽd built a burh. chron. 914. florence says a town. an. 915. eddisbury, cheshire?

eligbyrig, ely in cambridgeshire. chron. 1036.

egonesham, now eynesham, oxon. chron. 571.

eoforwíc, eoforwíc ceaster, now york; kair ebrauc, eboracum; the seat of an archbishop, a bishop, and again an archbishop. it seems to have been always a considerable and important town. in the tenth century it was one of the seven confederated burgs, which æðelflǽd reduced. the strength however which we should be inclined to look for in a city, which once boasted the name of altera roma, is hardly consistent with asser’s account of it. describing the place in the year 867, he says: “praedictus paganorum exercitus ... ad eboracum ciuitatem migravit, quae in aquilonari ripa humbrensis fluminis[1038] sita est.” after stating that ælla and osberht, the pretenders to the northumbrian crown, became reconciled in presence of the common danger, he continues: “osbyrht et ælla, adunatis viribus, congregatoque exercitu eboracum oppidum adeunt, quibus advenientibus pagani confestim fugam arripiunt, et intra urbis moenia se defendere procurant: quorum fugam et pavorem christiani cernentes, etiam intra urbis moenia persequi, et murum frangere instituunt: quod et fecerunt, non enim tunc adhuc illa civitas firmos et stabilitos muros illis temporibus habebat. cumque christiani murum, ut proposuerant, fregissent, etc.[1039]” we may infer from asser himself that the saxon mode of fortification. was not strong: speaking of a place in devonshire, called cynuit (which he describes as arx), he says: “cum pagani arcem imparatam atque omnino immunitam, nisi quod moenia nostro more erecta solummodo haberet,

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cernerent, non enim effringere moliebantur, quia et ille locus situ terrarum tutissimus est ab omni parte, nisi ab orientali, sicut nos ipsi vidimus, obsidere eam coeperunt[1040].” york however continued to be an important town. it was retaken by æðelflǽd who subdued the danes there; and again by eádred in 950. at this time it appears to have been principally ruled by its archbishop wulfstán. for york, see chron. 971, 1066, etc.

exanceaster, now exeter, the isca damnoniorum or uxella, of the romans. chron. 876, 894, 1003. as the saxon arms advanced westward, exeter became for a time the frontier town and market between the british and the men of wessex: in the beginning of the tenth century there appears to have been a mixed population. but at that period[1041] æðelstán expelled the british inhabitants, and fortified the town: he drove the cornwealhas over the tamar, and made that their boundary, as he had the wye for the bretwealas. william of malmesbury tells us: “illos (i. e. cornewalenses) impigre adorsus, ab excestra, quam ad id temporis aequo cum anglis iure inhabitarunt, cedere compulit: terminum provinciae suae citra tambram fluvium constituens, sicut aquilonalibus britannis amnem waiam limitem posuerat. urbem igitur illam, quam contaminatae gentis repurgio defaecaverat, turribus munivit, muro ex quadratis lapidibus cinxit[1042]. et licet solum illud, ieiunum et squalidum, vix steriles avenas, et plerumque folliculum inanem sine grano producat, tamen pro civitatis magnificentia, et incolarum opulentia, tum etiam convenarum frequentia, omne ibi adeo abundat mercimonium, ut nihil frustra desideres quod humano usui conducibile existimes[1043].” thus situated, about ten miles from the sea, exanceaster could not fail to become an important commercial station; the exa being navigable for ships of considerable burthen, till in 1284, hugh courtenay interrupted the traffic, by building a

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weir and quay at topsham. it is probable that æðelstán placed his own geréfa in the city. but in the year 1003, queen emme ælfgyfu seems to have been its lady; for it is recorded that through the treachery of a frenchman hugo, whom she had made her reeve there, the danes under svein sacked and destroyed the city, taking great plunder[1044]. it was afterwards restored by cnut; but appears to have been still attached to the queens of england, for after the conquest we find it holding out against william, under gýð, the mother of harald.

exanmúða, now exmouth. chron. 1001.

genisburuh, now gainsborough. chron. 1013, 1014.

glæstingaburh or glæstingabyrig, now glastonbury, som. urbs glastoniae, chron. 688, 943.

gleawanceaster, now gloucester; kair glou, and the roman glevum. urbs gloverniae, glocestriae. a fortified city of mercia. chron. 577, 918.

hæstingas, now hastings in kent. a fortification, and probably at one time the town of a tribe so called. chron. 1066. it was reduced by offa, and probably ruined in the danish wars of ælfred and æðelred.

hagustaldes hám or hagstealdeshám, now hexham in northumbria: the ancient seat of a bishopric. chron. 685.

hamtún, now southampton. chron. 837.

hamtún, now northampton, quod vide.

heanbyrig, now hanbury in worcest. chron. 675.

heortford, now hertford. chron. 913. urbs. flor. 913.

hereford, now hereford. chron. 918, 1055, 1066.

hrofesceaster, durocobrevis, hrofesbreta, now rochester; a bishop’s see for west kent, probably once the capital of the west kentish kingdom: a strong fortress. chron. 604, 616, 633, 644. asser. 884.

huntena tún, now huntingdon. originally, as its name implies, a town or enclosed dwelling of hunters; but in process of time a city. chron. 921. civitas. flor. 918.

judanbyrig, perhaps jedburgh. chron. 952.

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legaceaster, kairlegeon, now chester, a roman city. chron. 607; deserted, chron. 894; restored, chron. 907. flor. 908.

legraceaster, now leicester. chron. 918, 941, 943. civitas. flor. 942.

lindicoln, the ancient lindum, now lincoln, the capital city of the lindissi; a bishop’s see: then one of the five or seven burhs. chron. 941. civitas. flor. 942.

lundenbyrig, lundenwíc, londinium, now london. the principal city of the cantii; then of the trinobantes; kair lunden, troynovant. locally in essex, but usually subject to mercian sovereignty. towards the time of the conquest more frequently the residence of the saxon kings, and scene of their witena gemóts. a strongly fortified city with a fortified bridge over the thames connecting it with southwark, apparently its tête de pont. chron. 457, 604, 872, 886, 896, 910, 994, 1009, 1013, 1016, 1052.

lygeanbyrig, now leighton buzzard. chron. 571.

maidulfi urbs, meldumesbyrig, now malmesbury in wilts. flor. 940.

mameceaster, now manchester: “urbem restaurarent, et in ea fortes milites collocarent.” flor. 920.

mealdun, now maldon in essex. chron. 920, 921. urbs; rebuilt and garrisoned by eádweard. flor. 917.

medeshámstede: afterwards burh, and from its wealth gyldenburh: now peterborough. chron. 913.

merantún, now merton in oxfordshire. chron. 755.

middeltún, middleton in essex, a fortress built by hæsten the dane. chron. 893.

norðhamtún, more frequently hámtún only, now northampton: a town or “port,” burnt by the danes under svein. chron. 1010.

norðwíc, now norwich, a burh, burned by svein. chron. 1004.

oxnaford, oxford: a burh in mercia, taken into his own hands by eádweard on the death of æðelflǽd. the burh was burnt by svein. chron. 1009.

possentesbyrig. chron. 661. ? pontesbury, co. salop.

rædingas, now reading: a royal vill, but, as many or all probably were, fortified. asser. 871.

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runcofa, now runcorn, urbs, flor. wig. 916.

sandwíc, now sandwich, a royal vill, and harbour, whose tolls belonged to canterbury. chron. 851.

scaroburh, now salisbury, the ancient kairkaradek. chron. 552.

scærgeat, now scargate, built by æðelflǽd. chron. 912; arx munita, flor. wig. 913.

sceaftesbyrig, shaftsbury, the seat of a nunnery founded by ælfred. chron. 980, 982.

sceobyrig, now shoebury in essex; a fort was built there in 894 by the danes. chron. 894.

seletún, perhaps silton in yorkshire. chron. 780.

snotingahám, now nottingham: the british tinguobauc,or urbs speluncarum. asser. 868; chron. 868, 922, 923, 941. there were two towns here, one on each side the river. flor. wig. 919, 921; civitas, flor. wig. 942.

soccabyrig, probably sockburn in durham. chron. 780.

stæfford, now stafford, a vill of the mercian kings, fortified by æðelflǽd. chron. 913; arx, flor. wig. 914.

stamford in lincolnshire. chron. 922, 941; arx and civitas, flor. wig. 919, 942.

sumertún, now somerton in oxfordshire, taken by æðelbald of mercia from wessex. chron. 733.

súðbyrig, now sudbury in suffolk. chron. 797.

swanawíc, probably swanwick, hants. chron. 877.

temesford, tempsford in bedfordshire, a danish fortress and town. chron. 921.

tofeceaster, towchester in northampton. chron. 921; civitas, flor. wig. 918; walled with stone, flor. ibid.

tomaworðig, now tamworth in staffordshire; a favourite residence of the mercian kings. chron. 913, 922; fortified by æðelflǽd; urbs, flor. wig. 914.

wæringawíc, now warwick. chron. 914; urbs, flor. wig. 915.

weardbyrig, now warborough, oxford; urbs, flor. wig. 916.

wigingamere, probably in hertfordshire. chron. 951; urbs, flor. wig. 918; civitas, ibid.

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wigornaceaster, worcester, a fortified city. chron. 922, 1041.

wihtgarabyrig, now carisbrook. chron. 530, 544.

wiltún, wilton in wiltshire. chron. 1008.

wintanceaster, winchester, the capital of wessex, a fortified city. chron. 643, 648.

withám, now witham in essex; a city and fortress. chron. 913; flor. wig. 914.

ðelweal, thelwall in cheshire, a fortress and garrison town. chron. 923; flor. wig. 920.

ðetford, now thetford in norfolk; a fortress and city. chron. 952, 1004.

it is not to be imagined that this list nearly exhausts the number of fortresses, towns and cities extant in the saxon times. it is only given as a specimen, and as an illustration of the averments in the text. the reader who wishes to pursue the subject, will find the most abundant materials in the index locorum appended to vol. vi. of the “codex diplomaticus aevi saxonici;” and to this i must refer him for any ampler information.