King of England Alfred *the Great* Born: ABT. 849 Wantage, Oxfordshire, ENGLAND Sex: M Died: 25 OCT 899 Winchester, Hampshire, ENGLAND Cause: natural causes Buried: ? Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire, England
Relationship: 36. + 37. great grandfather
Accession: April 23, 871
Ancestors:
Marriage(s) and Relationships: Married to: Ealhswith of Gaini+Mercia 869, Winchester, Hampshire, ENGLAND
Child:Elftrudis of Wessex Child:King of England Edward I *the Elder*Notes: King of the English 871 - 899
Although Alfred's four siblings all had names that started with *Ethel*-,
which in Saxon means *of high birth*, Alfred's name means something
totally different -- elf counsel. Some historians speculate that Alfred
was thus named by his mother, Osburga, whose name refers to nature pixies.
Alfred's father King Ethelwulf sent him on a pilgrimage to Rome when the
boy
was just four. Ethelwulf had vowed to make the trip himself a decade
before,
and historians surmise that Alfred, as the youngest son, could be spared
most readily.
He travelled to Rome with a large retinue and was received by Pope Leo IV.
Although some sources, including the Anglo-Saxon chronicle, say that
Alfred
was crowned, it is more probable that Leo confirmed him.
Several years later, after Alfred's mother Osburga died, Ethelwulf finally
made the pilgrimage himself, and took Alfred with him. They stayed in
Rome
for more than a year.
According to his early biographer Asser, Alfred suffered the first bout of
an unknown illness at his wedding. This illness brought him great pain
and would plague him for another 20 years.
Asser tells us that Alfred often prayed to rid himself of the mysterious
ailment, and would give thanks that the sickness was not leprosy, which
he feared.
After he taught himself Latin at age 38, Alfred translated a work of Pope
Gregory and sent a copy to each of his bishops.
Alfred is subject of the 1969 film, *Alfred the Great*.
Source: RoyaList.
Events of his reign 871 - 899:
871 Alfred succeeds his borther Aethelred as King of Wessex.
878 Danes invade Wessex. Alfred takes refuge on the Isle of Athelney
and prepares his forces against the Great Army of Guthrum. The
apocryphal story about Alfred burning the cakes occurs at this time.
878 Alfred defeats Guthrum at Ethandune in Wessex.
878 Treaty of Wedmore divides England into two, and makes Alfred
overlord of both halves.
886 Alfred captures and rebuilds London; he is now recognized as King of
all England.
890's Alfred buils the first permanent fleet of warships in England,
ready to engage Viking invasion ships.
891 Alfred starts to compile the Anglo-Sxon Chronicles.
894-5 Alfred translates Orosius's world history and Bede's
Ecclestiastical History of the English Nation into Anglo-Saxon.
899 Death of Alfred.
Alfred acceeded to the throne of Wessex upon the death of his brother
Aethelred in 871.
By the ninth century England was suffering under the onslaught of the
Vikings, who first raided the English coast in 787. These raids
continued for more than 2 centuries and considerably disrupted the life
of the country. The Vikings were not entirely victorious, however, for
they faced powerful opposition from the Anglo-Saxon kings. The greatest
of these, and the only one in all English history to be called *The
Great*, was Alfred, who, with his successors, kept the Vikings at bay,
consolidated the supremacy of the Wessex kings over the whole of England,
and improved the administration of the country. After routing the Great
Army of the Vikings in 878, Alfred signed the Treaty of Wedmore with its
leader Guthrum, dividing England along a line running roughly north-west
from London to Chester; Alfred ruled to the south of this line and was
recognized as overlord of the area to the north, known as the Danelaw.
Further Viking incursions followed until, in 886, Alfred captured London
and was finally accepted by Saxon and Dane alike as King of all England.
He refoprmed and codified Saxon law, promoted a revival in learning and
instigated the compilation of the famous *Anglo-Saxon-Chronicle*, a
history of the people of England. (The chronicle details 1,200 years of
English history from before Julius Caesar's invasion of the British Isles
in 55 BC. Possibly derived from earlier chronicles, the *Chronicle* was
written in Anglo-Saxon, the language spoken by the people rather than
Latin, the language of the church. It outlined political, social and
economic events in England and was continually updated until the 12.
century.)
Source: Plantagenet Somerset Fry.
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