Anglo-Saxon 600-900 AD
In the 5th century King Alfred agreed to Viking invaders settling in England under Dane Law, in an area that was roughly east of a line joining London and Chester. The Anglo-Saxons lived south of the line, the Vikings to the North; the border in the local area ran along Watling Street (the A5 road) with a crossing at the River Ouse at Old Stratford.
It is impossible to give exact dates for Anglo-Saxon settlement in this area, but Saxon settlement at Passenham probably began in the sixth century. The village names of Passenham (Passe’s ham or river meadow), Deanshanger (Dynne’s hangra or wooded slope) and Puxley (Pocca’s leah or open place in a wood) all commemorate the founders of these settlements. From the local area only Passenham is mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.
Evidence of occupation has been found at Passenham. Discoveries of human bones uncovered around the village was often talked of in local lore, the first recorded excavation took place in 1873 in the Old Rectory. A 1965 excavation, again in the Old Rectory but by this date empty and fallen into disrepair, uncovered around 400 skeletons believed to date to 921, although this remains unproven. The skeletons have been attributed as a possible Saxon war cemetery. Written records show that an army led by King Edward the Elder (King Alfred's son) encamped at Passenham. From here Edward raided the Danes across the border particularly at Towcester and Bedford, but many cross-border skirmishes occurred during this unsettled period. Puxley is known to have been laid to waste on at least one occasion.
