Sunday, April 13, 2014

History Of Britain - Alfred The Great 849 - 899 AD

History Of Britain - Alfred The Great 849 - 899 AD

Alfred was born at Wantage in Oxfordshire in 849, fourth or fifth son of Aethelwulf, king of the West Saxons. Following the wishes of their father, the sons succeeded to the kingship in turn. At a time when the country was under threat from Danish raids, this was aimed at preventing a child inheriting the throne with the related weaknesses in leadership. In 870 AD the Danes attacked the only remaining independent Anglo-Saxon kingdom, Wessex, whose forces were commanded by Alfred's older brother, King Aethelred, and Alfred himself.
In 871 AD, Alfred defeated the Danes at the Battle of Ashdown in Berkshire. The following year, he succeeded his brother as king. Despite his success at Ashdown, the Danes continued to devastate Wessex and Alfred was forced to withdraw to the Somerset marshes, where he continued guerrilla warfare against his enemies. This was where he famously burnt a villagers cakes while keeping watch on them. Alfred did not wish to fight a costly war, so he kept the peace by paying tribute to the Danes for four years. The next year, 876, when the Danes came to collect their tribute, they did not leave the land. Instead they stayed and lived off of Alfred's people for the next two years. By 878 Alfred had tired of supporting the Danes in his land with payments, so he attacked them and won a great battle at Edington, forcing them to comply to his terms and pay tribute to him. The Danes, however, still had power in many other places. In 886 Alfred decided to attack London, a Danish-held city. He hoped to diminish the lands ruled under the Dane law since he thought of them as heathens. He succeeded in capturing it and making the West Saxons quite powerful. It is said that at this point Alfred earned the title of "King of England" because of his great success. They made peace and Guthrum, their king, was baptised with Alfred as his sponsor. In 886 AD, Alfred negotiated a treaty with the Danes. England was divided, with the north and the east (between the Rivers Thames and Tees) declared to be Danish territory - later known as the 'Danelaw'. Alfred therefore gained control of areas of West Mercia and Kent which had been beyond the boundaries of Wessex. In late 892, the Danes decided to make a violent return. Alfred was taken off guard, but, with a new tactic at sea, was able to defeat the Danes once again.
Alfred built up the defences of his kingdom to ensure that it was not threatened by the Danes again. He reorganised his army and built a series of well-defended settlements across southern England. He also established the first navy for use against the Danish raiders who continued to harass the coast.

Although Alfred's greatest achievement during his reign was the defeat of the Danes, he also had other accomplishments. He pushed for better education and helped make learning important in the lives of the people of his land. This was necessary during his reign because education had declined due to the fact that the Danes were looting the monasteries and churches which were the center of education. Alfred believed that learning "makes life more rewarding and enjoyable;...the worst thing of all is ignorance" (Alfred University). He also kept the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and established a code of law based on the teachings of the Bible. This helped maintain social order.
King Alfred the Great died on October 26, 899 and was buried in the Old Minster at Winchester. He is the only English monarch to be known as "the Great". He is well-deserving of this title. He defeated the Danes and protected his people, but he also contributed his ideas for better education and social order.
As an administrator Alfred advocated justice and order and established a code of laws and a reformed coinage. He had a strong belief in the importance of education and learnt Latin in his late thirties. He then arranged, and himself took part in, the translation of books from Latin to Anglo-Saxon.
By the 890s, Alfred's charters and coinage were referring to him as 'king of the English'. He died in October 899 AD and was buried at his capital city of Winchester.