Where did the jutes come from?

After the collapse of the Roman Empire in the west, many Germanic people from outside the former Empire began to migrate westwards. This is known as the Migration Period, because of the movement of large numbers of people across Europe at the same time.

The Romans had previously hired mercenary Saxon, Frisian and Frankish troops to help defend the province of Britannia; from around 449 AD these tribes and elements of the Jutes, Angles, Wends and others decided to migrate to the rich farmlands of southern England, simply because they were mainly farming people themselves. Together, these people are known today as Anglo-Saxons.

By the 6th century they were advancing into Wiltshire and towards the good farmland in Devon and Somerset - they had already established themselves in the Midlands and the eastern counties.