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Alfred the Great

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: British History 1500 and
before (including Roman Britain); Military People; Monarchs of Great Britain

                    Alfred the Great
   King of the Anglo-Saxons (more...)
   Statue of Alfred the Great, Wantage, Oxfordshire
   Statue of Alfred the Great, Wantage, Oxfordshire
      Reign    23 April 871 — 26 October 899
   Predecessor Ethelred of Wessex
    Successor  Edward the Elder
     Spouse    Ealhswith ( 852 — 905)
                         Issue
   Aelfthryth
   Ethelfleda
   Edward the Elder
                       Full name
   Ælfrēd of Wessex
   Royal house House of Wessex
     Father    Ethelwulf of Wessex
     Mother    Osburga
      Born     c. 849
               Wantage, Berkshire
      Died     26 October 899
     Burial    c. 1100

   Alfred (also Ælfred from the Old English: Ælfrēd) (c. 849 – 26 October
   899) was king of the southern Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex from 871 to
   899. Alfred is noted for his defence of the kingdom against the Danish
   Vikings, becoming the only English King to be awarded the epithet 'the
   Great' (although not English, Canute the Great was another King of
   England given this title by the Danes). Alfred was the first King of
   the West Saxons to style himself ' King of the Anglo-Saxons'. Details
   of his life are discussed in a work by the Welsh scholar, Asser. A
   learned man, Alfred encouraged education and improved the kingdom's law
   system.

   In 2002, he was ranked 14th in the 100 Greatest Britons poll.

Childhood

   Alfred was born sometime between 847 and 849 at Wantage in the
   present-day ceremonial county of Oxfordshire (though historically
   speaking in the historic county of Berkshire). He was the fifth and
   youngest son of King Ethelwulf of Wessex, by his first wife, Osburga.

   King Alfred was the son of king Ethelwulf, who was the son of Egbert,
   who was the son of Elmund, was the son of Eafa, who was the son of
   Eoppa. The Life of King Alfred

   At five years of age, Alfred is said to have been sent to Rome where,
   according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, he was confirmed by Pope Leo IV
   who "anointed him as king." Victorian writers interpreted this as an
   anticipatory coronation in preparation for his ultimate succession to
   the throne of Wessex. However, this coronation could not have been
   foreseen at the time, since Alfred had three living elder brothers. A
   letter of Leo IV shows that Alfred was made a 'consul' a
   misinterpretation of this investiture, deliberate or accidental, could
   explain later confusion. It may also be based on Alfred later having
   accompanied his father on a pilgrimage to Rome and spending some time
   at the court of Charles the Bald, King of the Franks, around 854– 855.
   In 858, Ethelwulf died and Wessex was ruled by three of Alfred's
   brothers in succession.

   Asser tells the story about how as a child Alfred's mother offered a
   volume of Anglo Saxon poetry to the first of her children able to
   memorize it. This story may be true, or it may be a myth designed to
   illustrate the young Alfred's love of learning.

Royal prince and military commander

   During the short reigns of his two eldest brothers, Ethelbald and
   Ethelbert, Alfred is not mentioned. However, with the accession of the
   third brother, Ethelred I, in 866, the public life of Alfred began. It
   is during this period that Asser applies to him the unique title of
   'secundarius,' which may indicate a position akin to that of the Celtic
   tanist, a recognized successor closely associated with the reigning
   monarch. It is possible that this arrangement was sanctioned by the
   Witenagemot, to guard against the danger of a disputed succession
   should Ethelred fall in battle. The arrangement of crowning a successor
   as diarch is well-known among Germanic tribes, such as the Swedes and
   Franks, with whom the Anglo-Saxons had close ties.

   In 868, Alfred, fighting beside his brother Ethelred, unsuccessfully
   attempted to keep the invading Danes out of the adjoining kingdom of
   Mercia. For nearly two years, Wessex itself was spared attacks.
   However, at the end of 870, the Danes arrived in his home land. The
   year that followed has been called "Alfred's year of battles". Nine
   general engagements were fought with varying fortunes, though the place
   and date of two of the battles have not been recorded. In Berkshire, a
   successful skirmish at the Battle of Englefield, on 31 December 870,
   was followed by a severe defeat at the Siege and Battle of Reading, on
   5 January 871, and then, four days later, a brilliant victory at the
   Battle of Ashdown on the Berkshire Downs, possibly near Compton or
   Aldworth. Alfred is particularly credited with the success of this
   latter conflict. However, later that month, on 22 January, the English
   were again defeated at Basing and, on the following 22 March at
   'Merton' (perhaps Marden in Wiltshire or Martin in Dorset). Two
   unidentified battles may also have occurred in between.

King of war

   In April 871, King Ethelred died, most probably from wounds received at
   the Battle of Merton. Alfred succeeded to the throne of Wessex and the
   burden of its defence, despite the fact that Ethelred left two young
   sons. Although contemporary turmoil meant the accession of Alfred — an
   adult with military experience and patronage resources — over his
   nephews went unchallenged, he remained obliged to secure their property
   rights. While he was busy with the burial ceremonies for his brother,
   the Danes defeated the English in his absence at an unnamed spot, and
   then again in his presence at Wilton in May. Following this, peace was
   made and, for the next five years, the Danes were occupied in other
   parts of England. However, in 876, under their new leader, Guthrum, the
   enemy slipped past the English army and attacked Wareham in Dorset.
   From there, early in 877, and under the pretext of talks, they moved
   westwards and took Exeter in Devon. There, Alfred blockaded them and, a
   relieving fleet having been scattered by a storm, the Danes were forced
   to submit. They withdrew to Mercia, but, in January 878, made a sudden
   attack on Chippenham, a royal stronghold in which Alfred had been
   staying over Christmas, "and most of the people they reduced, except
   the King Alfred, and he with a little band made his way by wood and
   swamp, and after Easter he made a fort at Athelney, and from that fort
   kept fighting against the foe" ( Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).
   Statue of Alfred the Great at Winchester
   Statue of Alfred the Great at Winchester

   A popular legend tells how, when he first fled to the Somerset Levels,
   Alfred was given shelter by a peasant woman who, unaware of his
   identity, left him to watch some cakes she had left cooking on the
   fire. Preoccupied with the problems of his kingdom, Alfred accidentally
   let the cakes burn and was taken to task by the woman upon her return.
   Upon realizing the king's identity, the woman apologised profusely, but
   Alfred insisted that he was the one who needed to apologise. From his
   fort at Athelney, a marshy island near North Petherton, Alfred was able
   to mount an effective resistance movement while rallying the local
   militia from Somerset, Wiltshire and Hampshire.

   Another story relates how Alfred disguised himself as a minstrel in
   order to gain entry to Guthrum's camp and discover his plans. This
   supposedly led to the Battle of Edington, near Westbury in Wiltshire.
   The result was a decisive victory for Alfred. The Danes submitted and,
   according to Asser, Guthrum, and twenty-nine of his chief men, received
   baptism when they signed the Treaty of Wedmore. As a result, England
   became split in two: the south-western half kept by the Saxons and the
   north-eastern half including London, thence known as the Danelaw, by
   the Vikings. By the following year ( 879), not only Wessex, but also
   Mercia, west of Watling Street, was cleared of the invaders.

   The tide had turned. For the next few years there was peace, the Danes
   being kept busy in Europe. A landing in Kent in 884 or 885 close to
   Plucks Gutter, though successfully repelled, encouraged the East
   Anglian Danes to rise up. The measures taken by Alfred to repress this
   uprising culminated in the taking of London in 885 or 886, and an
   agreement was reached between Alfred and Guthrum, known as the Treaty
   of Alfred and Guthrum. Once more, for a time, there was a lull, but in
   the autumn of 892 or 893, the Danes attacked again. Finding their
   position in Europe somewhat precarious, they crossed to England in 330
   ships in two divisions. They entrenched themselves, the larger body at
   Appledore, Kent, and the lesser, under Haesten, at Milton also in Kent.
   The invaders brought their wives and children with them, indicating a
   meaningful attempt at conquest and colonization. Alfred, in 893 or 894,
   took up a position from where he could observe both forces. While he
   was in talks with Haesten, the Danes at Appledore broke out and struck
   north-westwards. They were overtaken by Alfred's eldest son, Edward,
   and defeated in a general engagement at Farnham in Surrey. They were
   obliged to take refuge on an island in the Hertfordshire Colne, where
   they were blockaded and ultimately compelled to submit. The force fell
   back on Essex and, after suffering another defeat at Benfleet,
   coalesced with Haesten's force at Shoebury.

   Alfred had been on his way to relieve his son at Thorney when he heard
   that the Northumbrian and East Anglian Danes were besieging Exeter and
   an unnamed stronghold on the North Devon shore. Alfred at once hurried
   westward and raised the Siege of Exeter. The fate of the other place is
   not recorded. Meanwhile the force under Haesten set out to march up the
   Thames Valley, possibly with the idea of assisting their friends in the
   west. But they were met by a large force under the three great
   ealdormen of Mercia, Wiltshire and Somerset, and made to head off to
   the north-west, being finally overtaken and blockaded at Buttington.
   Some identify this with Buttington Tump at the mouth of the Wye River,
   others with Buttington near Welshpool. An attempt to break through the
   English lines was defeated. Those who escaped retreated to Shoebury.
   Then after collecting reinforcements they made a sudden dash across
   England and occupied the ruined Roman walls of Chester. The English did
   not attempt a winter blockade, but contented themselves with destroying
   all the supplies in the neighbourhood. Early in 894 (or 895), want of
   food obliged the Danes to retire once more to Essex. At the end of this
   year and early in 895 (or 896), the Danes drew their ships up the
   Thames and Lea and fortified themselves twenty miles above London. A
   direct attack on the Danish lines failed, but later in the year, Alfred
   saw a means of obstructing the river so as to prevent the egress of the
   Danish ships. The Danes realised that they were out-manoeuvred. They
   struck off north-westwards and wintered at Bridgenorth. The next year,
   896 (or 897), they gave up the struggle. Some retired to Northumbria,
   some to East Anglia. Those who had no connections in England withdrew
   to the Continent. The long campaign was over.'..

Reorganisation

   After the dispersal of the Danish invaders, Alfred turned his attention
   to the increase of the royal navy, partly to repress the ravages of the
   Northumbrian and East Anglian Danes on the coasts of Wessex, partly to
   prevent the landing of fresh invaders. This is not, as often asserted,
   the beginning of the English navy. There had been earlier naval
   operations under Alfred. One naval engagement was certainly fought
   under Aethelwulf in 851, and earlier ones, possibly in 833 and 840. The
   Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, however, does credit Alfred with the
   construction of a new type of ship, built according to the king's own
   designs, "swifter, steadier and also higher/more responsive (hierran)
   than the others". However, these new ships do not seem to have been a
   great success, as we hear of them grounding in action and foundering in
   a storm. Nevertheless both the Royal Navy and the United States Navy
   claim Alfred as the founder of their traditions. The first vessel ever
   commissioned into the Continental Navy, precursor to the United States
   Navy, was named the Alfred.

   Alfred's main fighting force, the fyrd, was separated into two, "so
   that there was always half at home and half out" (Anglo-Saxon
   Chronicle). The level of organisation required to mobilise his large
   army in two shifts, of which one was feeding the other, must have been
   considerable. The complexity which Alfred's administration had attained
   by 892 is demonstrated by a reasonably reliable charter whose witness
   list includes a thesaurius, cellararius and pincerna—treasurer,
   food-keeper and butler. Despite the irritation which Alfred must have
   felt in 893, when one division, which had "completed their call-up
   (stemn)", gave up the siege of a Danish army just as Alfred was moving
   to relieve them, this system seems to have worked remarkably well on
   the whole.

   One of the weaknesses of pre-Alfredian defences had been that, in the
   absence of a standing army, fortresses were largely left unoccupied,
   making it very possible for a Viking force to quickly secure a strong
   strategic position. Alfred substantially upgraded the state of the
   defences of Wessex, by erecting fortified burhs (or boroughs)
   throughout the kingdom. During the systematic excavation of at least
   four of these (at Wareham, Cricklade, Lydford and Wallingford]) it has
   been demonstrated that "in every case the rampart associated by the
   excavators with the borough of the Alfredian period was the primary
   defence on the site" (Brooks). The obligations for the upkeep and
   defence of these and many other sites, with permanent garrisons, are
   further documented in surviving transcripts of the administrative
   manuscript known as the Burghal Hidage. Dating from, at least, within
   20 years of Alfred's death, if not actually from his reign, it almost
   certainly reflects Alfredian policy. Comparison of town plans for
   Wallingford and Wareham with that of Winchester, shows "that they were
   laid out in the same scheme" (Wormald). Thus supporting the proposition
   that these newly established burhs were also planned as centres of
   habitation and trade as well as a place of safety in moments of
   immediate danger. Thereafter, the English population and its wealth was
   drawn into such towns where it was not only safer from Viking soldiers,
   but also taxable by the King.

   Alfred is thus credited with a significant degree of civil
   reorganization, especially in the districts ravaged by the Danes. Even
   if one rejects the thesis crediting the 'Burghal Hidage' to Alfred,
   what is undeniable is that, in the parts of Mercia acquired by Alfred
   from the Vikings, the shire system seems now to have been introduced
   for the first time. This is probably what prompted the legend that
   Alfred was the inventor of shires, hundreds and tithings. Alfred's care
   for the administration of justice is testified both by history and
   legend; and he has gained the popular title 'protector of the poor'. Of
   the actions of the Witangemot, we do not hear very much under Alfred.
   He was certainly anxious to respect its rights, but both the
   circumstances of the time and the character of the king would have
   tended to throw more power into his hands. The legislation of Alfred
   probably belongs to the later part of the reign, after the pressure of
   the Danes had relaxed. He also paid attention to the country's
   finances, though details are lacking.

Foreign relations

   Asser speaks grandiosely of Alfred's relations with foreign powers, but
   little definite information is available. His interest in foreign
   countries is shown by the insertions which he made in his translation
   of Orosius. He certainly corresponded with Elias III, the Patriarch of
   Jerusalem, and possibly sent a mission to India. Contact was also made
   with the Caliph in Baghdad. Embassies to Rome conveying the English
   alms to the Pope were fairly frequent. Around 890, Wulfstan of Haithabu
   undertook a journey from Haithabu on Jutland along the Baltic Sea to
   the Prussian trading town of Truso. Alfred ensured he reported to him
   details of his trip.

   Alfred's relations to the Celtic princes in the western half of Britain
   are clearer. Comparatively early in his reign, according to Asser, the
   southern Welsh princes, owing to the pressure on them of North Wales
   and Mercia, commended themselves to Alfred. Later in the reign the
   North Welsh followed their example, and the latter co-operated with the
   English in the campaign of 893 (or 894). That Alfred sent alms to Irish
   as well as to European monasteries may be taken on Asser's authority.
   The visit of the three pilgrim 'Scots' (i.e., Irish) to Alfred in 891
   is undoubtedly authentic. The story that he himself in his childhood
   was sent to Ireland to be healed by Saint Modwenna, though mythical,
   may show Alfred's interest in that island.

Law: Code of Alfred, Doom book

   Alfred the Great’s most enduring work was his legal Code, reconciling
   the long established laws of the Christian kingdoms of Kent, Mercia and
   Wessex. These formed Alfred’s ‘’‘Deemings’‘’ or Book of ‘’‘Dooms’‘’
   (Book of Laws). See: Doom book or the Code of Alfred. Sir Winston
   Churchill observed that Alfred blended these with the Mosaic Code, the
   Christian principles of Celto-Brythonic Law and old Germanic customs.
   Lee, F. N. traced the parallels between Alfred’s Code and the Mosaic
   Code. Churchill stated that Alfred’s Code was amplified by his
   successors and grew into the body of Customary Law administered by the
   Shire and The Hundred Courts. This led to the Charter of Liberties,
   Henry AD 1000. The Norman kings then undertook to respect this body of
   law under that title the "Laws of Edward the Confessor". Out of this
   emerged the Common Law which was re-confirmed in the Magna Carta of AD
   1215.

Religion and culture

   The history of the Church under Alfred is most obscure. The Danish
   inroads had tolled heavily upon it. The monasteries had been especial
   points of attack and, though Alfred founded two or three monasteries
   and brought foreign monks to England, there was no general revival of
   monasticism under him. To the ruin of learning and education wrought by
   the Danes, and the practical extinction of the knowledge of Latin even
   among the clergy, the preface to Alfred's translation into Old English
   of Pope Gregory's Pastoral Care bears eloquent if not impartial
   witness. It was to remedy these evils that he established a court
   school, after the example of Charlemagne; for this he imported scholars
   like Grimbald and John the Saxon from Europe and Asser from South
   Wales; for this, above all, he put himself to school, and made the
   series of translations for the instruction of his clergy and people,
   most of which yet survive. These belong unquestionably to the later
   part of his reign, likely to the last four years, during which the
   chronicles are almost silent.

   Apart from the lost Handboc or Encheiridion, which seems to have been
   merely a commonplace book kept by the king, the earliest work to be
   translated was the Dialogues of Gregory, a book greatly popular in the
   Middle Ages. In this case the translation was made by Alfred's great
   friend Werferth, Bishop of Worcester, the king merely furnishing a
   foreword. The next work to be undertaken was Gregory's Pastoral Care,
   especially for the good of the parish clergy. In this Alfred keeps very
   close to his original; but the introduction which he prefixed to it is
   one of the most interesting documents of the reign, or indeed of
   English history. The next two works taken in hand were historical, the
   Universal History of Orosius and Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the
   English People. The priority should likely be given to the Orosius, but
   the point has been much debated. In the Orosius, by omissions and
   additions, Alfred so remodels his original as to produce an almost new
   work; in the Bede the author's text is closely stuck to, no additions
   being made, though most of the documents and some other less
   interesting matters are omitted. Of late years doubts have been raised
   as to Alfred's authorship of the Bede translation. But the sceptics
   cannot be regarded as having proved their point.

   We come now to what is in many ways the most interesting of Alfred's
   works, his translation of The Consolation of Philosophy of Boethius,
   the most popular philosophical handbook of the Middle Ages. Here again
   Alfred deals very freely with his original and though the late Dr. G.
   Schepss showed that many of the additions to the text are to be traced
   not to Alfred himself, but to the glosses and commentaries which he
   used, still there is much in the work which is solely Alfred's and
   highly characteristic of his genius. It is in the Boethius that the
   oft-quoted sentence occurs: "My will was to live worthily as long as I
   lived, and after my life to leave to them that should come after, my
   memory in good works." The book has come down to us in two manuscripts
   only. In one of these the writing is prose, in the other a combination
   of prose and alliterating verse. The latter manuscript was severely
   damaged in the 18th and 19th centuries, and the authorship of the verse
   has been much disputed; but likely it also is by Alfred. In fact, he
   writes in the prelude that he first created a prose work and then used
   it as the basis for his poem, the Lays of Boethius, his crowning
   literary achievement. He spent a great deal of time working on these
   books, which he tells us he gradually wrote through the many stressful
   times of his reign to refresh his mind. Of the authenticity of the work
   as a whole there has never been any doubt.

   The last of Alfred's works is one to which he gave the name Blostman,
   i.e., "Blooms" or Anthology. The first half is based mainly on the
   Soliloquies of St Augustine of Hippo, the remainder is drawn from
   various sources, and contains much that is Alfred's own and highly
   characteristic of him. The last words of it may be quoted; they form a
   fitting epitaph for the noblest of English kings. "Therefore he seems
   to me a very foolish man, and truly wretched, who will not increase his
   understanding while he is in the world, and ever wish and long to reach
   that endless life where all shall be made clear."

   Beside these works of Alfred's, the Saxon Chronicle almost certainly,
   and a Saxon Martyrology, of which fragments only exist, probably owe
   their inspiration to him. A prose version of the first fifty Psalms has
   been attributed to him; and the attribution, though not proved, is
   perfectly possible. Additionally, Alfred appears as a character in The
   Owl and the Nightingale, where his wisdom and skill with proverbs is
   attested. Additionally, The Proverbs of Alfred, which exists for us in
   a 13th century manuscript contains sayings that very likely have their
   origins partly with the king.

   The Alfred jewel, discovered in Somerset in 1693, has long been
   associated with King Alfred because of its Old English inscription
   "AELFRED MEC HEHT GEWYRCAN" (Alfred Ordered Me To Be Made). This relic,
   of unknown use, certainly dates from Alfred's reign but it is possibly
   just one of several that once existed. The inscription does little to
   clarify the identity of the central figure which has long been believed
   to depict God or Christ.

Family

   In 868, Alfred married Ealhswith, daughter of Aethelred Mucill, who is
   called Ealdorman of the Gaini, the people from the Gainsborough region
   of Lincolnshire. She appears to have been the maternal granddaughter of
   a King of Mercia. They had five or six children together, including
   Edward the Elder, who succeeded his father as King of Wessex;
   Ethelfleda, who would become Queen of Mercia in her own right, and
   Aelfthryth (alias Elfrida) who married Baldwin II, Count of Flanders.

   Every monarch of England and subsequently every monarch of Great
   Britain and the United Kingdom, with the exception of Canute, Harold
   Harefoot, Harthacanute, William the Conqueror (who married Alfred's
   great-granddaughter Matilda) and his adversary Harold II, down to and
   including Queen Elizabeth II (and her own descendants) is directly
   descended from Alfred.
   Diagram based on the information found on Wikipedia
   Diagram based on the information found on Wikipedia

Death and burial

   Alfred died on 26 October 899. The actual year is not certain, but it
   was not necessarily 901 as stated in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. How he
   died is unknown. He was originally buried temporarily in the Old
   Minster in Winchester, then moved to the New Minster (perhaps built
   especially to receive his body). When the New Minster moved to Hyde, a
   little north of the city, in 1110, the monks transferred to Hyde Abbey
   along with Alfred's body. His grave was apparently excavated during the
   building of a new prison in 1788 and the bones scattered. However,
   bones found on a similar site in the 1860s were also declared to be
   Alfred's and later buried in Hyde churchyard. Extensive excavations in
   1999, revealed his grave-cut but no bodily remains.

Veneration

   He is regarded as a saint, with a feast day of October 26..
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