Respected antiquarian Thomas William Shore investigates the Anglo-Saxons and their ancestors; the regional tribes who settled upon all corners of ancient England and Wales.

This genealogical study is the result of years of painstaking study and research. Working at the turn of the 20th century, the author used the existing archaeological finds together with the documentary evidence, to draw conclusions upon the character of England. We discover that the English have a staggering array of ancestors from a variety of locales; Scandinavia, southern and central Europe, and farther afield in Africa. The complex movements of settlers to the British Isles, a process spanning thousands of years, is summarized.

The later chapters turn to the different regions of England, such as Kent, Sussex, Northumbria and Lincolnshire, and Mercia in the southwest. The various tribal societies that existed in these parts are detailed, with Shore noting that the tribes often had disparate origins - different peoples separated by vast distances across Europe settled in differing regions of England. The Anglo-Saxon identity that eventually resulted was the product of extremely diverse and varied origins.

In support of this cogent narrative, every chapter of this work contains annotations and references, that the reader be able to cross-reference the many sources that Shore made use of.