Warlord’s grave reveals secrets of unknown English tribe
The grave of an Anglo-saxon warlord, discovered by a metal detectorist, could rewrite the history of post-roman Britain, archaeologists have said.
The “Marlow” warlord has been found buried on a hilltop above the Thames Valley, alongside highly decorated spears, shears, dress fittings and other paraphernalia.
The six-foot soldier, who was aged between 40 and 50 when he was buried, is proof that there was a powerful tribe in the area, which had its own leaders and identity, according to researchers at Reading University.
The area i n which the warlord was found was previously considered to be a “no man’s land” without any fixed boundaries of its own – in between the kingdom of Kent to the south and the east, and Wessex to the west and the north.
However the new findings have shown that the area was home to its own power base, later to be absorbed by a larger kingdom, and helmed by the newly discovered military leader.
Archaeologists were called in to complete an excavation of the pagan site after Sue Washington, 64, stumbled across two bronze bowls during a metal detection in 2018.
A full survey and excavation was then carried out in August once archaeologists had obtained the permission of
‘We can now say there was a powerful tribe living in the area with its own leaders and identity’
the site’s landowner.
“There was a period of transition after the collapse of the Roman Empire where, before you had your big kingdoms coming on the scene, there were these smaller territories ruled over by warlords,” said Dr Gabor Thomas, a specialist in early medieval archaeology at Reading.
“You’ve got these local ‘big men’ controlling these territories, and what happens over time is they get absorbed. To start with, you had lots of power bases of fairly equal standing, and our Marlow warlord”
Dr Thomas said that very little was previously known about this area of the Thames and its significance, but “we can now say there was a powerful tribe living in the area, with its own leaders and identity”.
He believes the warlord in question was “very likely to have been a warrior in his own right”.
Further analysis of the remains will be carried out to determine the warlord’s exact age, in addition to his diet, health, and geographic origins.