Battle of the Stones

Battle of the Stones
File:Brytene Stones.jpg The location of the battle
Date 644AD Location Near Eorlingas Holdfast, Brytene Result Brytisc victory
Belligerents
Brytene	Template:Country data Brytisc Celts
Commanders and leaders
Queen Brenna I Teoden of Rohan	Template:Country data Brytisc Celts King Cadwyg Cadarn †
Strength
800-1,000	600-800
Casualties and losses
Unknown, presumed light	Unknown, heavy

The Battle of the Stones was a battle between the Kingdom of Brytene and the forces of King Cadwyg Cadarn, High King of the Celti. The battle resulted in a victory for the Brytisc forces and the defeat of the Celti in Anglaland.

Background

The Celti had been present in western Anglaland prior to the Anglisc landings. Torsten of Rohan, leader and founder of the House Rohan had built the town of Eorlingas Holdfast in the centre of Anglaland, barring the surviving Celti off from the eastern part of the isle. Skirmishes and raiding had been non-stop between the two races since the arrival of the Saxones, and in 644AD Saxone chroniclers noted a "great gathering of Celti" in the foothills west of Eorlingas Holdfast. King Cadwyg Cadarn was rallying warriors from across the region with the intent of marching against the Holdfast and unlocking the route east towards Anglaland's rich heartlands.

The Battle

Little detail about the battle is available. It is estimated that the Saxons had roughly a thousand warriors and the Celti slightly fewer.

Queen Brenna I led a warband west at Teoden's request, and the Saxone forces marched to the Stones of Brytene to offer sacrifice before meeting their enemy in battle. Chroniclers record that the "Celti appeared there as if by magic, and the two armies made much slaughter".

Cadarn was slain in battle, with some witnesses claiming Teoden slew him in single combat. The Celti army was routed and the threat to Anglaland was destroyed.

Aftermath

Within a decade, the archaeological and written records begin to tell of Saxon settlements on the western coast of Anglaland. The battle marked the final defeat of the Celti and their replacement by the Saxones.

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