Why Grateley? Reflections on Anglo-Saxon Kingship in a Hampshire Landscape

Proc. Hampshire Field Club Archaeol. Soc. 60, 2005, 154-169 (Hampshire Studies 2005) WHY GRATELEY? REFLECTIONS ON ANGLO-SAXON KINGSHIP IN A HAMPSHIRE LANDSCAPE By RYAN LAVELLE ABSTRACT jargon may have been undesirable), it is evident that what he refers to are regiones, the This paper focuses on the context of the promulgation of the quasi-'proto-kingdoms' of early Anglo-Saxon first 'national' lawcode of King Atlxelstan at Grateley England. The relicts of such a landscape are there- (c.925x30; probably 926x7). A localised context allows a fore useful for understanding manifestations of consideration of the arrangements of the royal resourcesroyal control of the landscape. Although this which supplied the Anglo-Saxon 'national' assembly, the article may not concur with Wood's tentative des- witangemot. In so doing the paper looks at royal estate ignation of Andover and Grateley as separate organisation in Andover hundred in north-western Hamp- territories, each focused on hillforts, it is intended shire, making a case for the significance of Andover itself. to build on his proposition, addressing the Finally, the role of the landscape in the political ritual of question of the royal territory - arguably an early laxomaking is discussed. royal territory - in the expression of authority on a 'national' scale. This paper uses a specific event as a focal point INTRODUCTION for die examination of the landscape. During the first few years of his reign, King Athelstan issued This paper addresses the exercise of Anglo-Saxon what was probably his first lawcode at a place kingship, manifested in land organisation in the which is toponymically identifiable as Grateley, hundred of Andover (see Fig. 1). For the most some 8 km west of Andover (Gover 1961, 166). part, die area under discussion is an undulating Known as // Atlielstan, the lawcode, and subse- chalk downland landscape to which some distinc- quent references to it provide the only tive character may be ascribed (Crawford 1922, documentary indications of Grateley's appear- 10-11). It is dominated by pasture and the River ance in Anglo-Saxon history (Liebermann 1903, Anton and its tributary, the Pilhill Brook. Field 150-67; Whitelock 1979, 417-22). The lawcode names indicate diat the area was formerly charac- can be located on the basis of the epilogue to its terised by woodland; indeed in the twelfth Latin version, recorded in the early century die region was part of the Forest of twelfth-century Quadripartitus text, which referred Chute, which may have had pre-Conquest origins to a 'great assembly at Grateley1 (magna synodo apud (Bond 1994, 122). Greateleyam) (Liebermann 1903, 167). There was Michael Wood has suggested that north-west no reason for this clause to have been fabricated Hampshire can be seen as areas organised initially in the twelfth century, as the primacy of a lawcode from hillforts and later from royal vills, with from Grateley can be ascertained by references to relicts of that organisation surviving in the land- it in Athelstan's later codes (Liebermann 1903, scape over at least a millennium (Wood 1986, 166-7, 170-1, and 173). 76-9; see also Hase 1994). Although Wood was IIAthebtan included a variety of clauses associ- writing before the term became common currency ated with the direct implementation of justice in amongst archaeologists and historians (and, given criminal law and a reorganisation of the burghal the wide audience for whom he wrote, specialist system. Even by the high standards of the West LA VELLE: WHY GRATELEY? ANGLO-SAXON KINGSHIP IN A HAWSHIRE LANDSCAPE 155 Fig. 1 Location map of Grateley and Andovcr in Hampshire Saxon dynasty, in which the promulgation of leg- Grateley compares poorly with the more prolific islation was one of the central tenets of the location of Andover. expression of Christian kingship, it was an impor- This leads to the question proposed in Uiis tant and ambitious text, the 'major "official" paper's tide, to which a simple response could be statement of the reign', as Patrick Wormald made: why not Grateley? After all, the peripatetic described it (Wormald 1999, 300). Such a legisla- nature of Anglo-Saxon kingship is well docu- tive statement is hardly unsurprising in view of mented, probably including the use of tents (see Athelstan's later achievements. However, one below, p. 157), and Athelstan's travels are better might be more surprised at the choice of Grateley, recorded than most (Hill 1981, 87). It seems only now an unassuming village, for the site of such a natural that the king would have been docu- lawcode. The reference to die 1133 grant of a mented as staying in 'minor' places of the nature chapel (capella) at Grateley alongside a church at of Grateley just as much as, if not proportionately Over Wallop in a charter of Henry 1 (Farrer 1914, more than, in such important royal/ecclesiastical no. 132) does not fill one with confidence for the centres as Winchester. However, die promulga- site of an important royal vill and minster church tion of the Grateley lawcode was an event of a complex of the sort associated with, for example, calibre which required more than an overnight Cheddar (Blair 1996). Certainly, as will be sojourn of a king and his family. Assemblies addressed below, the amount of evidence for which resulted in lawcodes were evidently major 156 HAMPSHIRE FIELD CLUB AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL SOCIETY political events. In view of the manner in which addition to Grateley, assemblies known to have early medieval kings operated with a sense of involved lawmaking (although of course we do ritual and drama, the landscape in which die law not know if they excluded land transactions) were could have been promulgated should not be over- held at Exeter, Thunderfield (Surrey), Faversham looked, just as the landscape in which the law (Kent), London and Whittlcbury (Northants.) operated was an important part of its 'meaning' (Liebermann 1903, 150-83). Therefore, Grateley (Reynolds forthcoming). In the process of investi- was the only such Athelstan assembly that is gating this, I hope to address the manner in which known of in the Wessex 'heartlands', although royal power could be expressed in the landscape with Chippenham, Worthy, Wellow, Amesbury, and the question of how such assemblies could be Wilton, Winchester, Frome and Dorchester resourced through the organisation of West amongst die locations of other assemblies, such Saxon royal estates. West Saxon locations were hardly uncommon in what was otiierwise a relatively even geographical distribution. In terms of assemblies at non-urban KINGS AND ASSEMBLIES: GRATELEY locations, probably in the open air, such as at AND THE MANIFESTATIONS OF ROYAL Lifton, Thunderfield and Whittlebury, die mani- POWER festation of Anglo-Saxon kingship at Grateley does not appear to have been extraordinary. The Grateley lawcodc can be usefully considered Given die need for Anglo-Saxon kings to take as a manifestation of die peripatetic nature of counsel and to be seen to take good counsel, Anglo-Saxon kingship. In calling for a legislative assemblies were an integral part of Anglo-Saxon assembly, Adielstan, like his predecessors and kingship, an issue of Old Testament significance. indeed his successors, was showing that he could As some of the better-recorded witness lists show command resources and feed his people (or at (e.g. for Hampshire, Sawyer 1968, nos. 370, 413, least those people who were important). The king 425, 779, 876), particularly large assemblies could called his council to a range of different places in result in attendances of some forty or more order to conduct the affairs of state, the locations nobles, many, if not all of whom, were presum- of some of which were recorded in charters and ably accompanied by their respective retinues. Of lawcodes (Fig. 2). The purpose of an assembly course, it is not entirely possible to estimate how may have determined its scale, with 'legislative' many such 'hangers-on' this would have entailed assemblies requiring greater logistical attention but, if we consider an arbitrary ratio of ten to due to higher attendance. Although the disposi- every one notable, a very rough estimate of at tion of land may only have been one relatively least some four hundred cannot be unrealistic. unimportant element of the business conducted at Assuming that a well-fed, wealthy man would some assemblies, locations of assemblies at what need some 2,000-2,500 calories per day and that seem to be a 'national' level are mostly known a large portion of meat would provide a sizeable from land charters, which due to the assiduous element of that intake, such a large party could work of a scribe known to diplomatists as easily have been supported by a render including 'Athelstan A' are comparatively well recorded the likes of the two cows or ten wethers, and 300 during the reign of Athelstan. Such assemblies are loaves which are specified in King Ine's lawcode known from Exeter, Buckingham, Lyminster from every ten hides (Liebermann 1903, 119-20; (Sussex), Chippenham, Colchester, Worthy Whitelock 1979, 406). While this is not the place (Hants.), Wellow (Hants, or Somerset), Lifton to discuss the relationships between a seventh- (Devon), Milton (Kent or Dorset), Amesbury, century lawcode and late Anglo-Saxon estate Wilton, Winchester, Nottingham, Frome organisation (See Lavelle 2003), it should suffice (Somerset), Cirencester, Dorchester, Abingdon here to say that a large royal estate at Andover and Hamsey (Sussex) (Keynes 1995, tables 36-9; was more than capable, should it have been neces- Sawyer 1968, nos. 1208, 1211), a mixture of rural sary, of providing enough to supply a royal estates, urban and ecclesiastical centres. In assembly. IJVVELLE: WHY GRATELEY? ANGLO-SAXON KINGSHIP IN A HAMPSHIRE LANDSCAPE 157 • Nottingham Whittleburv Colchester • Buckingham •_ Cirencester London Chippenham ?Miltorf 1 ^AmesburyS ^ ThgndgrSf^|cj Faversham w 0 m Worthy • Wilton • #Winchester • Hamsey Wei low ^ ^ # EX3ter Dorchester _jWftt ^^^^7 Lyminster •Litton Fig.

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