Maldon

The next day I thought that I would take a trip out of the big city to see something that was on the top of my list.  That would be the city of Maldon, near which a battle being the source for one of the most important Old English poems (fragment of a poem really) took place.  The battle of Maldon took place on August 10th 991, alongside the river Blackwater.  There was a group of vikings who had camped at Northey Island and were attempting to raid the area.  Beorhtnoth, the Ealdorman of Essex led the defending English forces from the south bank of the Blackwater.  Rather than try to pay a ransom immediately to try to pay off the vikings, he told their messenger that he would rather fight than cowardly hand over treasure.  Later when the tide had gone out, in his "overmastering pride", he gave too much land for the vikings to fight on.                

Ðā se eorl ongan for his ofermōde
ālȳfan landes tō fela lāþere ðēode.
Ongan ċeallian þā ofe cald wæter
Byrhtelmes bearn(beornas ġehlyston):
"Nū ēow is ġerȳmed; gāð riċene tō ūs,
guman tō gūþe. God ān wāt
hwā þǣre wælstōwe wealdan mōte."

Then the earl began in all his pride
to give too much land to the hateful people.
He began to call then over the cald water,
Byrhthelmes son, warriors listened:
"Now the way is cleared for you all; come quickly to us,
men to battle, God alone knows
who can wield the battlefield."

Well, the battle did not end well for the English.  Byrhtnoth died, and so did his men defending him.  The famous lines at the end of the poem are thought to capture the northern spirit of fighting to the last defending or avenging your lord.  

"Hige sceal þē heardra, heorte þē cēnre,

mōd sceal þē māre, þē ūre mægen lȳtlað."

Thought shall be harder, heart the keener,

spirit shall be more, as our might lessens.

There wasn't actually too much to see in Maldon.  There was a statue of Byrhtnoth with some information about the battle.

Then I took a walk on a dike alongside the river to where the causeway was, and where the battle most likely happened.  

It was a beautiful day out, so I sat on the dike and ate lunch, sadly, where all of the English fought and died over a thousand years ago.  Then I made my way back to meet Chenoa and Trygve in London, and to see some museums.