4th Quarter Outside Reading Post A #1

The culture at this time in English history(885 AD) is a very brutal, dirty, and disrespectful thing. For example, Uhtred, the lord of Babbenburg, a hilltop fortress in Northumbria, is held in high regard by his kinsmen. He is a man of great military might who possesses a large sum of hoarded silver that he can use if necessary in order to hire an army. A man of this rank is respected by all, but only because if one disrespects him, one will likely go home missing a head.

Peasants, on the other hand, are treated like trash by most men of any rank. They are tortured and killed and raped, even if they have done nothing wrong. Peasants have no power whatsoever and their lord can do essentially anything he wants with them. These kinds of absences of all power make the peasant class into one of loathing and pity. Few men therefore associate themselves with mere peasants if they have the ability not to.

However, most lords treat their peasants well because of what is known as the fyrd. The fyrd is like a militia. It is made up of peasants that would normally be farming, but it can be called upon by their lord or king to fight when more men are needed. Although not a trained force, the fyrd can be huge in numbers and could easily turn the tide of a battle or lessen the casualties of the professional army. While a king's household troops may number in the hundreds, a king could have thousands of men in the fyrd at his command.