I was recently reading R.H. Hodgkin's History of the Anglo-Saxons v.II, and I came across an interesting term. In describing how the Saxons fought at Ethandun, Hodgkin states that they formed into a testudo, and faced the enemy. Does the word testudo accurately describe the shield-wall of Anglo-Saxon warfare? It does not. The testudo looked much different and advanced with shields above the heads in sequential rows. It took different equipment than what the Anglo-Saxons had to forma testudo. A good representation of the testudo on a smaller scale can be found at http://www.roman-empire.net/army/testudo.html.