General Notes

1  DEAT
2  DATE 26 OCT 901
2  PLAC England
See biography at wwma p 15+
bk&q pp 19, 22, 29, 52, 128, 139, 159, 262-3, 319-21, 348, 466-7, 470-1, 7
50-1, 767, 796, 799-802
For a preview, see Alfred's brother Athelred I, who was king prior to Alfr
ed.
pp 319-21 Alfred the Great, Wessex, 23 April 871-26 October 899.  "Althou
gh Alfred is certainly the best known of the West Saxon kings, much of wh
at we think we know about him is myth, created by later writers in venerat
ion of the saviour of the Saxons who alone held back the onslaught of t
he Danes and who established a period of prosperity in England.  In that s
ense he shares something of the role in folk memory of king Arthur.  Alfr
ed was also a man of learning and did much to establish a history and chro
nology of his time, and was responsible for starting (or reforming) the AS
C, but that does not mean we have to trust everything that was written abo
ut him at the time.  This includes his Life written by Bishop Asser whi
ch some claim to be a forgery and which certainly has many anomalies.  Con
trary to our image of him as a strong and valiant king, he was somethi
ng of a hypochondriac, being struck down with or threatened by mystery dis
eases, and a long sufferer of piles.
Alfred was the fourth son and fifth child of Athelwolf.  His moth
er is recorded as Osburh, though he may have been the son of a second, unk
nown, marriage as there is a gap of several years between Alfred's birth a
nd those of his elder brothers.  Alternatively Alfred may have been old
er than we are led to believe, a pooint which may be attested by his ill h
ealth in his final years.  Little is known of his childhood--as the younge
st son with three elder brothers he was not thought likely to become king-
-so even the place of his birth is not certain.  Asser's reference to Want
age is generally accepted but not definite, and somewhere like Wimbor
ne is more probable.  It is also unlikely that, as a child, Alfred was se
nt to rome on his own and consecrated by the pope as future king.  It is l
ikely that he accompanied his father on his pilgrimage to Rome from 854-8
55 and spent some time at the court of Charles the Bald, king of the Frank
s.  Alfred became fascinated with the Frankish world, the court of the des
cendants of Charlemagne, and modelled his own court on it, which includ
ed his passion for scholarship.  Alfred was probably being groomed for t
he church, as his father was intensely religious.
Although Alfred's name begins to appear on authenticated charters aro
und the year 861, he does not step onto the stage of history until arou
nd 865 and 866 when we find him in harness with his brother Athelred in ba
ttle against the Danes who had been harrying England for decades but we
re now showing greater strength of arms.  At best Athelred and Alfred he
ld the Danes at bay, but in 871 Athelred died of wounds, and though he h
ad two infant sons (see Athelwold), it was Alfred who was declared success
or.  Alfred had already proved his battle prowess, particularly at Ashdo
wn in 870, but there was no time to celebrate his succession--the
re is no record of his coronation, despite the claim that he was crown
ed at Kingston upon Thames.  Within a month of his succession Alfred w
as in pitched battle with the Danes at Wilton, a day which Alfred thoug
ht he had won but the wiliness of the Danes with a false retreat caught t
he English off guard.  Battle followed battle that first year, the outcom
es swinging both ways till, at the end of the year, Alfred bought peace wi
th the Danes.  The Danes settled north of the Thames, where peace was al
so bought with the Mercians, and for a period Alfred could consolidate h
is army.  It was also during this time that Alfred began to develop a na
vy in order to meet the Danes on their own terms.
In 876 a new generation of Danish warrior leaders, of whom the most s
ignificant was Guthrum, began further in