By the 4th century A.D. , the Roman province of Britannia was manned by troops of approximately 75% Germanic origin . By the middle of the 5th century , what troops were left garrisoned here were virtually homogenously Germanic . As the Romans themselves had left to defend their crumbling empire from other invading Germanic tribes , the troops in Britannia called on their relatives back in Germania , the Frisian islands and Denmark , to come ever to Britain , as there was land for the taking in a very underpopulated country . The Romano - British ( Celts ) constituted a small number and were always in-fighting for power inside their petty kingdoms . Hence around 449 A.D. , the Celtic King Vortigern , asked the Germanic warriors to help him keep power . These warriors were led by the now legendary Jutish brothers, Hengest and Horsa .
These Germanic warriors were too good at their task and eventually took over Vortigerns kingdom themselves , establishing their own kingdoms . There were the following Kingdoms , all named after the folk who founded them ;
West Seaxe , West Saxony ( Wessex )
East Seaxe , East Saxony ( Essex )
Suð Seaxe , South Saxony ( Sussex )
MiddelSeaxe , Middle Saxony (Middlesex )
Cantware , Kentfolk (Kent ) , Jutish ,
Norðanhymbra , North of the Humber (Northumbria )
Mierce , Border area ( Mercia )
East Angeln , East Angles (East Anglia )
There were a number of smaller kingdoms such as Deira , Hwicce and Bernicia.Eventually all these Smaller kingdoms were either absorbed by the larger ones or became Earldoms in one great nation , Angeland , England !
