The primary aim of our project is to remember and celebrate the unification of England under one single monarch – Æthelstan, the first King of all England. In 2027 England will be 1100 years old and we want to make that year a special celebration of all things English.
Politics could be described as the interaction between the ideal and the practical,
between the grand designs to improve life and the personal, often petty, squabbles
of those trying to enact the grand design. Too often the former is broken by the latter.
The people of England can count themselves fortunate, because almost 1100
years ago the grand design succeeded despite the personal squabbles.
The idea of a home for the English people was turned into reality, and
there emerged an English leader who was able to defend our ancestors against their enemies.
In 927AD the unification of English nation was completed, for the first time in history all the English people then lived under one king, with one legal system – England was born.
So, the Royal Society of St. George (RSSG), have initiated a project to celebrate this story – the Birth of England. We believe that everyone in England, and indeed beyond our
country, deserves to hear the story of how our nation came to be. Our project will show how the early English people, threatened by invaders found a leader in Alfred, King of Wessex and the fightback began. Yet, the struggle to create a homeland and a unified kingdom for the English people took many years. Alfred’s son and daughter took-up the struggle after his death, but it was not until Alfred’s oldest grandson – Æthelstan, came to the throne, that the struggle to unify the English people was successful.
So, it may seem an obvious thing to say, but England was created by the English
people. A name for our country was first recorded in 10th century, and then it was known as ‘Englaland’ – the land of the Angles or English. Yet the first recorded use of the term English (in Latin it is ‘Anglorum’), was three centuries earlier. So, when someone asks you the question – which came first the people or the country? – it was definitely the English people.
Our English ancestors wanted to have a secure homeland for all those people who
spoke their language – English. This is why our ancestors fought so hard to create a
unified kingdom and a country. At the time, over 1100 years ago, the English
language was different from the English we speak today (it is known as Old English)
but many of the words we use today would be recognisable in Old English.
The Royal Society of St. George is proud to have initiated this campaign, and we
hope that everyone living in England will join us in celebrating England’s 1100th
Anniversary in 2027. Regardless of whether you identify yourself as English, if you
live in England you benefit from the struggles of our early English ancestors. It is
they who created the place we call England, and it is to them that we give thanks for
creating a country that gives us the freedom to discuss and celebrate our history.