mn i HOTA | Pra eeeeee ed i iil wn wn inns I nl Cornell Universily Library ANGLO-SAXON COLLECTION THE BEQUEST OF Hiram Carson PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH LITERATURE IN THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY 1870-1911 A.2 SG6Laa saul lemorials of King Alfred KING ALFREDS JEWEL QTR EEO OSX IG IONO COR QOOOIAOR AO MEMORIALS OF KING ALFRED, BEING ESSAYS ON THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF EGESND DURING THE NINTH CENTURY, THE AGH OF KING ALFRED. BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. EDITED AND IN PART WRITTEN BY THE REV. DR. GILES, Formerly Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. LONDON : PUBLISHED BY JOHN RUSSELL SMITH, 36, Sono Square, MDCCCLADI. PREFACE. In the year 1849 a festival was held at Wantage to celebrate the Thousandth year since the birth of Kine ALFRED THE GreAt. In consequence of that meeting the whole works of that great king were published in English, with Preliminary Essays, illustrative of English History during the Ninth Century. A limited number of that JuBILEE Epition having been issued to suit the number of Subscribers, the work is now out of print; but as many persons, who had not procured a copy of the Works, were desirous of obtaining the Preliminary Essays, the most important of these are now issued in this — volume. They will be found to contain a perfect and authentic history of the fifty years of King Alfred’s lite, and to furnish an insight into the literature and manners of that age which the greater brevity of complete Histories of England, written - by modern authors, fails mostly to convey. J. A. GILES. Harmondsworth Vicarage, Middlesex, March 1, 1863. CONTENTS. PAGE. I—HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS DURING THE LIFE OF KING ee ALFRED—a.v. 849—901. By THE Rev. Dr. Gites ia ne isa 1 IIL—SKETCH OF THE ANGLO-SAXON MINT. By J. Y. AKERMAN ... wu. 129 II].—DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE COINS OF KING ALFRED NOW RE- MAINING (with 7 plates). By THz Rey. Dante, Henny Haten .. 138 IV.—A METRICAL ENGLISH VERSION OF KING ALFRED’S POEMS, TO ILLUSTRATE ANGLO-SAXON POETRY IN GENERAL. By Martin Fanquuak Tupper, Esq., D.C.L. a ue sth ea vibe we 157 » KING ALFRED’S PARLIAMENT AT SHIFFORD—A METRICAL FRAGMENT FROM THE ANGLO-SAXON ys side ss ve 249 V.—HISTORY AND POLITICAL STATE OF EUROPE IN THE NINTH CENTURY, THE AGE OF KING ALFRED THE GREAT. By Tuomas ForEster, Esq. ... wes see sen wate ah aie te wey 257 VI.—DESCRIPTION OF KING ALFRED'S JEWEL, WITH SOME OBSER- VATIONS ON THE ART OF WORKING IN GOLD AND SILVER AMONG THE ANGLO-SAXONS (with a coloured fac-simile as frontis- piece). By THE Rev. Dz. Gitzs aie at on sete ass w 827 VIL—THE DANES :—1. THEIR ORIGIN.—2. -THEIR WARLIKE DEEDS AND CHARACTER.—3. THEIR RELIGION.—4. THEIR POLITY.— 5. THEIR LOVE AND MODE OF WAR.—6. THEIR MANNERS, CUSTOMS AND OCCUPATIONS.—7. THEIR ARTS AND LANGUAGE By B. C. Hoox, Esq... se re “ies kk ie a w ©6887 VIIIL—GRIMBALD’S CRYPT (witha plate). By ran Rav. Dr. Gizes ... w 879 ESSAYS ILLUSTRATIVE OF ENGLAND AND THE ENGLISH, IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS, DURING THE LIFE OF KING ALFRED: A. D. 849—901. The history of King Alfred’s Life and Times is to be gathered from three different classes of written records : 1. CHRONICLES containing a notice of public and private events during the period in which King Alfred lived; i. e. from the year 849 to the year 901. 2. Incidental notices of those times, found in other writings, such as Homilies, Letters, Councils, Charters &c, whether contemporary or of a later date. 3. The writings of King Alfred himself. Of King Alfred’s own writings, as published collectively, in these volumes, it is unnecessary here to speak. The second of the three classes of documents, above-mentioned, namely Homilies, Letters, Councils, Charters, and other short pieces, furnishing incidental notices of King Alfred’s life and times, have, up to the present time, been only partially collected, and are still in so uncertain a state, being mostly unpublished, and the information which each of them furnishes is so little, that we need 1 Essays 2 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS only mention Mr Kemble’s collection of charters, “Codex diplomaticus zvi Anglo-Saxonici,” and may proceed at once to pass in review the first and principal source from which almost all that we know of the life and history of king Alfred is derived. These are, the regular Chronicles or annals of English history, drawn up by monks and ecclesiastics, who lived and wrote between the time of the Reformation and the first introduction of the Christian religion into this island. These chronicles are valued in proportion as the author was contemporary or not with the events which he records; but in some cases we know so little about the writers that it is impossible for us to determine whether they furnish original evidence or write from second hand. In few cases do we know nore about these chroniclers than may be gathered from some brief sentences interspersed in various parts of their works. It is necessary, therefore, to judge each of them on his own merits, and constantly to refer their statements to those tests which criticism supplies, as the best means of eliciting the truth. The most approved of these methods is certainly to compare one chronicle with another ; for if, by this process, all are found to be at variance, we may safely say that no satisfactory inference can be deduced; but if, on the contrary, all agree in the main points of their narratives, it is an obvious result that all are founded upon a ground-work of truth. If any period of English history is of sufficient importance to warrant this laborious comparison of authorities, it is surely the latter half of the ninth century, which coincides with the life of king Alfred the Great; for those fifty years abound in brilliant deeds and stirring events, which have had an influence on the condition of this country, its laws and liberties, even down to the present time. Notwithstanding the importance of the subject, it is nevertheless a fact, that we do not possess a single ancient chronicle, which can be shewn to be undoubtedly contemporary with the period of which we have now to speak. It is, indeed, generally believed that we have one, at least, if not two contemporary histories of this period ; but there are certain difficulties connected with one of these, and a want of conclusive evidence respecting the antiquity of the other, which make it necessary to receive both, not perhaps with suspicion, but with that reserve, which, whilst it dignifies every enquiry after truth, not unfrequently leads at last to the FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 3 place, where truth may with the greatest certainty be found. These remarks will be more intelligible, as we proceed to examine severally the chronicles which form the basis of English history between the year 849 when Alfred was born at Wantage, and 901, the year of his death. I. The first of these is generally called the Saxon CuRonicLe, because it is written in the old Saxon tongue, and forms a contiuous record of the old Saxon times. Seven ancient manuscripts of this invaluable document have been preserved, some of which are thought to have been written as early as the ninth century, and. therefore to be contemporary with king Alfred. It would far exceed our present limits to give even a superficial account of these manuscripts and the various questions which arise concerning them. The reader may refer, for more minute particulars, to a folio volume “ Materials for the History of England, &c.” edited by Mr Petrie and published by the Record Commission; to Dr Ingram’s edition of the Saxon Chronicle; to the little volume containing a translation of Bede’s Ecclesiastical History and of the Saxon Chronicle, published in Mr Bohn’s Anti- quarian Library ; and to a small volume entitled a “ Dissection of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle &c. &c.” London, 1815. One observation however must be made, relating to its con- temporary character. The gradual variation of style from a more rude to a more modern dialect, so conspicuous throughout the Chronicle, has led to the obvious supposition that it is the gradual work of succeeding ages, the notice of each event having been inserted by the next succeeding chronicler who lived at the time or in the generation immediately succeeding. As applied to the period with which we are now concerned, it is very remark- able that the chronicle does not notice the birth of Alfred in 849, but is highly laudatory of him under 901 the year of his death, and for several preceding years. The inference, which I draw from this fact, is, that the events of 849 and following years were written before Alfred’s fame was established, and that those of 901 and the years immediately preceding were written by some contemporary when Alfred’s reputation was at its height. II. Asser’s Lire or Atrrep. The second historical record of this period is a work, professing to be a life of Alfred by Asser, one of his friends and bishops. Its authority, on the one hand, rests upon general tradition; but, on the other hand, has been 4 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS questioned on account of certain difficulties, which I shall here briefly mention. 1. It consists of two elements, the one biogra- phical, the other historical. 2. The historical notices are in many places identical in language with the other chronicles of this period, and everywhere correspond most remarkably ;_as if all had been drawn from some common original. 3. The biographical notices, though interesting, are inserted at random in various parts of the work. The two sides of this complicated question have been severally taken, the one by Mr Wright, who impugns the authenticity of the work in his “ Biographia Anglo-Saxonica,” page 408, and more fully in a paper read before the Antiquarian Society, and printed in the Archzologia: the other by Dr Lingard, who defends it, in his “ History and Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church,” vol. ii, page 420. The work does not extend further than the year 893, and the whole of it is given in this Harmony of the Chroniclers. III. Ernetwerp, surnamed the ‘ Patrician, has left a chronicle of England down to the reign of king Edgar, written in the most barbarous and inflated Latin style that can possibly be conceived. He says, in his own work, that he was descended from Ethelred the brother of king Alfred. He lived in the latter half of the eleventh century and therefore was coeval with the Norman Conquest. His work is copied almost wholly from the Saxon Chronicle. IV. Fiorence or Worcester, so called from the abbey, in which he was a monk, compiled a chronicle of English history, partly from the Saxon Chronicle, and partly from the work of Marianus Scotus, extending to the year 1118, when its author died. A continuation, by an anonymous author, brings down the history to the year 1141. V. Henry or Huntincpon. This writer tells us, in a letter published in Wharton’s Anglia Sacra, vol. ii, p. 694, that he was an adherent of Robert Bloet, bishop of Lincoln from a. p. 1092 to 1122. He is surnamed ‘ of Huntingdon, because he was arch- deacon of Huntingdon; and not from the place of his birth. He died about the middle of the twelfth century. His works consist of his History or Chronicle, and various poems, epigrams and hymns, which were collected by their author before his death, and published in twelve books, part of which only has been printed. FROM. A. D. 849 TO 901. 5 VI. Steon or Duruam, a monk of Durham, and precentor of that church, lived about the year 1130, and wrote a Chronicle or Annals of English history from the time of the Saxon Heptarchy down to the year 1129; and for part of this period he wrote a duplicate work, varying in several respects, but principally in phraseology, from the former. There has not yet been any com- plete edition of the two works. These six chronicles form the ground work of our authority for the period of English history preceding the times in which their authors lived. In the ‘Harmony’ their narratives will be arranged in parallel columns ; for which mode of treatment, they are admirably adapted by the tabular form of annals into which they were originally thrown by their authors. There are, however, several other medizval writers which require to be noticed, because, though mostly later in date, they have added minor facts, which the foregoing principal chroniclers have omitted. These are William of Malmesbury, Ingulf, and the anonymous author of the Chronicle of St Neot’s commonly called Asser’s Annals. 1. The first of these, Witttam or Ma.messury, was coeval with some of the six chroniclers before enumerated, as he died in 1140; but the nature of his work, which does not follow the order of chronology, and is not arranged in the form of annals, renders it less adapted for being introduced into a Harmony than those before mentioned. He is the author of a “ History of the Kings of England,” De gestis Regum Anglic, and “ a History of the bishops,” De gestis Pontificum, besides some works of inferior note. 2. IncuLF or CroyLaNnp, was secretary to William the Con- queror ; he has left us a History of Croyland abbey, which has been continued by an anonymous author, said to be Petrus Blesensis, down to a.p. 1118. Doubts of the authenticity of this work have been entertained by many writers [See Wricut’s Bioc. vol. ii, page 29]; but this question cannot be discussed within our present limits. 3. The CuHronicie or Saint Neot, is sometimes called Asser’s Annals, because supposed to have been compiled by the same Asser who wrote the Life of Alfred. This, however, is another of those historical difficulties for the solution or even the investi- gation of which a separate treatise would be required. The most remarkable feature of the Annals, as regards our present subject, 6 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS is their identity in language with the Life of Alfred in at least three-fourths of what they have in common: and a second peculiarity of the Annals is that some passages in Alfred’s life, of a vague and uncertain character, seem to rest on their authority alone. They omit some things mentioned in the Life, and else- where supply additional matter : they end in the year 914. Such are principally the works which have been brought together to form this Harmony of the Chroniclers during the life of king Alfred; and the mode in which they are arranged, with every other necessary particular, will be readily understood, with the help of the following observations. 1. The six oldest chroniclers are arranged in six parallel columns, so that the different accounts of the same transaction are found side by side. 2. Variations of fact only, and not of mere language, found in the three subsidiary writers, above described, are inserted in smaller type, as near as may be to the six principal narratives. 3. Notes, illustrations, and occasional extracts from later writers, Matthew of Westminster, Matthew Paris, John Brompton, and others, are also, in like manner, given in a smaller type. Sarton Chronicle Asset Ethelwerd 849 * Asser’s Life of Alfred is super- scribed thus: To MY VENERABLE AND MOST PIOUS LORD, RULER OF ALL THE CHRISTIANS IN THE I8- LAND OF Britain, TO /ELFRED, KING OF THE ANGLO-SAxoNns, As- SER, THE LAST OF ALL THE SER- VANTS OF GoD A THOUSAND-FOLD PROSPERITY IN EITHER LIFE, TO THE FULFILMENT OF HIS WISHES. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 849, was born Ax- FRED, king of the Angul-Sax- ons, in the royal vill which is called Wanating,* in that district which is called Ber- rocscire, which district is so * Wantage in Berkshire. The Saxon Chronicle does not no- tice the birth of Alfred, or any other event occurring in $49 and 850. The genealogy, which here follows, is given in connection with the death of Ethelwolf, in the year 855. And he £thelwulf was the son of Ecgbreht, Ecgbreht of Ealhmund, Eal- called from Berroc Wood, where the box tree grows most abundantly. His genealogy is traced in the following order. King #lfred was the son of king Athelwolf, who was the son of Ecgberth, who was the son of Ealhmund, who was Ethelwerd, like the Saxon Chroni- cle, gives the following genealogy in a later year (857). The aforesaid king [Eruet- wor], therefore, was the son of king Ecgbyrht, and his grandfather was Ealhmund, FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 7 4. Words, abbreviated in the manuscripts, are written at length in the Harmony; and the Arabic figures are used, for brevity’s sake, instead of the Roman numerals, which are universally found in the manuscripts of the original writers. 5. As the Harmony is intended for historical and not philolo- gical purposes, the text of the chronicles is given, not in the original Latin, but in an English literal translation. But the spelling of proper names, both in the Saxon column, which gives a vernacular idiom, and in the other chroniclers, who wrote in Latin, has been carefully retained, except in cases of manifest error. 6. The whole text of the six principal chroniclers between the years 849 and 901 has been given; and, in the same way, the whole of the supplementary chronicles, and all the Charters between the same dates, have been noticed in the Harmony. 7. Wherever, in either of the columns, a paragraph has been displaced for the purpose of juxta-position, small figures, denoting the original order, have been prefixed to each paragraph, or an explanatory note has been attached. By these means the reader may for himself reconstruct the chronicle, in its original state. 849 Slorence Huntingdon Simeon 849. Atrrep, king of the Anglo-Saxons, is born in that district which is named Bar- rocescire, in the royal vill which is called Wanating, which district is so called from Berroc wood, where the box tree grows most abundantly. His genealogy is traced in the following order. King Alfred was the son of king Etheluulf, who was the son of Ecgbert, who was the son of Alhmund, who was In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 849, arose light out of darkness : Etrrep, king of the English, was born in the royal vill, which is called Wanatinge by the English. His ponealogy is traced in the following order. King Elfred was the son of king Ethelwlf, who was the son of Egberht, who was the son of Alhmund, who was 8 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Savon Chronicle mund of Eafa, Eafa of Eop- pa, Eoppaof Ingild; Ingild was brother of Ine king of the West-Saxons, he who held the kingdom thirty seven winters, and afterwards went to St Peter, and there resig- ned his life; and they were the sons of Cenred, Cenred of Ceolwald, Ceolwald of Cutha, Cutha of Cuthwine, Cuthwine of Ceaulin, Ceawlin of Cynric, Cynric of Cerdic, Cerdic of Elesa, Elesa of Esla, Esla of Gewis, Gewis of Wig, Wig of Freawine, Freawine of Frithogar, Frithogar of Brond, Brond of Beldeg, Beldeg of Woden, Woden of Frithowald, Frithuwald of Frealaf, Frealaf of Fri- thuwulf, Frithuwulf of Fin, Fin of Godwulf, Godwulf of Geat, } Or Ina. His memory is still preserved as a “household word,” by the verger of Wells cathedral. 7 Gewissz, the West-Saxons, Geat of Tetwa, Tztwa of Beaw, Beaw of Sceldwa, Sceldwea of Heremod, Heremod of Itermon, Itermon of Hath- ra, Hathra of Hwala, Hwala of Bedwig, Bedwig of Sceaf, that is, the son of Noe, he was born in Noe’s ark; Lam- ech, Matusalem, Enoh, Iae- Asset the son of Eafa, who was the son of Eowwa, who was the son of Ingild,—Ingild, and Ine, t the famous king of the West-Saxons, were two brothers. Ine went to Rome, and there ending this life honourably, entered the hea- venly kingdom, to reign there for ever with Christ— Ingild and Ine were the sons of Coenred, who was the son of Ceolwalde, who was the son of Cudam, who was the son of Cuthwine, who was the son of Ceaulin, who was the son of Cynric, who was the son of Creoda, who was the son of Cerdic, who was the son of Elesa, who was the son of Gewis, from whom the Bri- tons name all that nation Gegwis,{ who was the son of Brond, who was the son of Belde, who was the son of Woden, who was the son of Frithowalde, who was the son of Frealaf, who was the son of Frithuwulf, who was the son of Fin || Godwulf, who was the son of Geat, which Geat the pagans long worshipped as a god. Sedulius makes mention of him in his metrical poem, as follows: Ethelwerd 849 his great-grandfather Eafa, whose father was Eoppa, and his great-grandfather’s grand- father was Ingild, brother of Ine, king of the Western- Angles, who ended his life at Rome; and the above- named kings derived their origin from king Cenred. Cenred was the son of Ceol- wald, son of Cuthwine, son of Ceaulin, son of Cynric, son of Cerdic, wbo also was the first possessor of the western a of Britain, after he had efeated the armies of the Britons : his father was Elesa, son of Esla, son of Geuuis, son of Wig, son of Freauuine, son of Frithogar,son of Brond, son of Balder, son of Uuothen, son of Frithouuald, son of Frealaf, son of Frithouulf, son of Fin, son of Goduulfe, son of Geat, || Here are omitted the words ‘who was the son of’; for Fin and God- wulf were two distinct persons, father and son. There are many other similar errors in all the six chronicles ; but it will be unnecess- ary to notice them: the parallel columns of the others will, in almost every case, indicate and correct the error. When gentile poets with their fictions vain In tragic language and bombastic strain To their god Geta, comic deity. Loud praises sing, &c. Geata was the son of Cztwa, who was the son of Beaw, who was the son of Sceldwea, who was the son of Heremod, who was the son of Itermod, who was the son of Hathra, who was the son of Huala, who was the son of Bedwig, who was the son of Sem, who was the son of Noe, who was the son of Lamech, son of Tetuua, son of Beo, son of Scyld, son of Scef. This Scef came with one ship to an island of the ocean named Scani, sheathed in arms, and he was a young boy, and unknown to the people of that land ; but he was receiv- ed by them, and they guarded him as their own with much care, and afterwards chose him for their king. It is from him that king Athulf derives his descent, FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 849 Florence the son of Eafa, who was the son of Eoppa, who was the son of Ingils,—Ingils and Ine, the famous king of the West-Saxons, were two brothers. Ine went to Rome, and there ending this life honourably, entered the hea- venly kingdom, to reign there with Christ.—Ingils and Ine were the sons of Coenred, who was the son of Ceolwald, who was the son of Cutha, who was the son of Cuthwin, who was the son of Ceaulin, who was the son of Kenric, who was the son of Creodi, who was the son of Cerdic, who was the son of Elisi, who was the son of Esle, who was the son of Gewis, from whom the Bri- tons name all that nation Gewis, who was the son of Wig, who was the son of Freawine, who was the son of Freodegar, who was the son of Brand, who was the son of Bealdeag, who was the son of Woden, who was the son of Frithewald, who was the son of Frealaf, who was the son of Fritheulf, who was the son of Finn, who was the son of Godulf, who was the son of Geeta, which Geeta the pagans long worshipped as a god. who was the son of Cetwa, who was the son of Beawa, who was the son of Sceldwa, who was the son of Heremod, who was the son of Itermod, who was the son of Hathra, who was the son of Wala, who was the son of Bedwig, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Noah, who was the son of Lamech, who was the son of Matu- Essays Huntingdon bo Simeon the son of Affa, who was the son of Eoppa, who was the son of Ingild,—Ingild and Ine were brothers. Ine was the most famous king throughout the borders of all the nation of the English, who royally ruled the king- dums of the western regions, and, when he had passed several years in his kingdom, went to Rome, leaving his country and present king- dom, that he might possess with Christ an eternal one, which the power of the di- vine majesty gave to him— These were the sons of Coenred, who was the son of Ceolwold, who was the son of Guda, who was the son of Cuderwine, who was the son of Ceawlin, who was the son of Cinric, who was the son of Creoda, who was the son of Cerdic, who was the son of Elesa, who was the son of Gewis, from whom the Bri- tons name all that nation Gegwis, who was the son of Brand, who was the son of Belde, who was the son of Woden, who was the son of Frithuwald, who was the son of Frealaf, who was the son of Fridrenwulf, who was the son of Geta, whom the pagans long worshipped as a god. Sedulius, the famous poet, makes mention of him in his Paschal poem, beginning thus : {vain When gentile poets with their fictions In tragic language & bombastic strain To their god Geta, comic deity, Loud praises sing &c. Geta was the son of Cetwa, who was the son of Beaw, who was the son of Seldwa, who was the son of Heremod, who was the son of Itermod, who was the son of Hatra, who was the son of Wala, who was the son of Bedwig, who was the son of Sem, who was the son of Noe, who was the son of Lamech, who was the son of Matusa- 10 Saron Chronicle red, Maleel, Cainon, Enos, Seth, Adam, primus homo et pater noster, id est Christus. Amen. CHARTERS in 849, 1, ALHHUN bishop of Worcester. Kemble’s Co- dex, vol. II, p. 33. 2, BeRTWOLF, king of Mercia, Ib. p. 34. A. 850. CHARTERS in 850. Two of EruHeLwotr king of Wessex. IT, 35. Asser who was the son of Methu- salem, who was the sonof Enoch, who was the son of Malaleel, who was the son of Cainan, who was the son of Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam. The mother of Alfred was named Osburgh, a religious woman, noble both by birth and by nature; she was daughter of Oslac, the famous butler of king thelwulf, which Oslac was a Goth by nation, descended from the Goths and Jutes, of the seed, namely, of Stuf and Wihtzur, two brothers and counts; who, having received posses- sion of the Isle of Wight from their uncle, king Cerdic, and his son Cynric_ their cousin, slew the few British inhabitants whom they could find in that island, at a place called Gwihtgaraburhg ;* for the other inhabitants of the island had either been slain before, or escaped into exile. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 849 * The Wihtwara, or in the Latin form, VecTuaRII, are the ‘ inha- bitants of Wight; ” hence ‘* Wihtga- raburg” the “ town of the inhabi- tants of Wight: ” its modern name is CARISBROOK. Martuew of WESTMINSTER says ‘‘ Withgares- burgh i. e. burgum Withgari,” With- gare’s borough. An. 851. Here alderman Ceorl fought with the heathen men in Devonshire at Wic- ganbeorge [Wempury,] and there made great slaughter, and gained the victory. 2 And the heathen men first sat over winter in Thanet. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 851, which was the third after the birth of king Alfred, Ceorl, earl of Devon, with the men of Devon fought against the pagans at a place called Wicgambeorg; and the Christians gained the vic- tory. And that same year the pagans first wintered in the island called Sheppey, which means the Sheep-isle, and is situated in the river Thames between Essex and Kent, but is nearer to Kent than to Essex ; it has in it a fine monastery [Minster]. When seven years, then, had passed, Ceorl earl of Devon engages in battle against the pagans at a place called Uui- ganbeorge; and they slay many of the Danes, and keep possession of the place of victory. 2 But in the course of that year the barbarians first wintered in the island of Thanet, which lies not far from Britain, and has fruitful but not large cornfields. FROM A. D. 85) Slorence salem, who was the son of Enoch, who was the son of Jared, who was the son of Malaliel, who was the son of Cainan, who was the son of Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam. The mother of Alfred was named Osburga, a religious woman, noble both by birth and by nature; she was daughter of Oslac, the famous butler of king theluulf, which Oslac was a Goth by nation, descended from the Goths and Jutes, of the seed, namely, of Stuf and Wihtgar, two brothers and counts, who, having received posses- sion of the Isle of Wight from their uncle, king Cerdic, and his son Cynric_ their cousin, slew the few British inhabitants whom they could find in that island, at a place called Wihtgarabirig; for the other inhabitants of the island had either been slain before, or escaped into exile. 849 TO 901. Huntingdon 11 Simeon lem, who was the son of Enoch, who was the son of Malaleel, who was the son of Canaan, who was the son of Enos, who was the son of Seth, who was the son of Adam the first man. But the mother of king Elfred was called Osburg ; she was a very religious woman and noble in disposition, which nobility she adorned with prudence of mind. Her father also was called Oslac; he was the devoted and faithful butler of king Ethel- wif. For he was sprung from the Goths and the Jutes, of the seed of Stuph and Winhtgar, two brothers. Having premised these things, let us now, as far as we can, pursue the course of the work, which we have undertaken. 850. On the calends of June [June 1], the eve of Whitsun- day, Berhtferth, son of Berhtulf king of the Mercians, “unjustly slew his relation St Wistan. Now this man was the grandson of two Mercian kings : for his father Wigmund was son of king Wiglaf, but his mother A‘lfleda was daugh- ter of king Ceoluulf. But his body, being borne to the monastery at that time so famous, named Reopedun {Rerron], was buried in the mausoleum of his grandfather king Wiglaf. To his martyrdom heavenly miracles were not wanting: for from the place in which the innocent youth was slain, a column of light, stretching up to heaven, was visible for 30 days to all the neighbours of that place. 851. Ceorl earl of Devon, with the men of Devon, fought against the pagans at a place called Wicganbeorh; and the Christians gained the vic- tory. And that same year the pagans first wintered in the island called Sheppey, which means the Sheep-isle, and is situated on the river Thames between Essex and Kent, but is nearer to Kent than to Essex; it has in it a fine monastery. 5 Lhe consul also named Ceorl, with the people of Devonshire, fought against the pagans, and slew many, and was victorious at Wien- orne, 7 This year the army of the pagans first stopped through the whole winter in this country. iu the year of our Lord's incarnation 851 and the third from the birth of Alfred, earl Ceorl fought against the Danes, and the Christians gained the victory over their enemies. The Danes also wintered in the island which is called Sheppey, i. e. Sheep-island. 12 Saron Chronicle 3 And the same year came three hundred and fifty ships to Thames-mouth, and the crews landed and broke into Canterbury and London, and put to flight Beorhtwulf king of the Mercians with his army. § Canterbury was called DoRUBER- Ni, i.e. Dover, in the earlier part of the Saxon History. 4 And then went south over the Thames into Surrey ; and there king Ethelwulf and his son /Ethelbald, with the army of the West-Saxons, fought against them at Aclea [Ocxtey], and there made the greatest slaughter among the heathen army that we have heard tell of unto the present day|}, and there got the victory. {| This must, apparently, have been written before the terrible battles which Alfred afterwards fought against the Danes at Ash- down, and Eddington. CHARTERS tn 851. 1. Bentwour king of Mercia, Friday, March 27. I, 36. 2. Another of Bertwour, II, 45. @ The Annals have “ Athelstan son of King Adhelwlf.” He was king of the eastern subject kingdom of Kent, Essex, and Sussex. Some call him brother of Ethelwolf. 1 And the same year king Ethelstan {| and alderman Ealchere fought on ship- board, and cut off a large army at Sandwich in Kent, and took nine ships, and put the others to flight. Asset The same year also a great army of the pagans came with three hundred and fifty ships to the mouth of the river Thames, and sacked Dorubernia, § which is the city of the Cantuarians, [and also the city of London, *] which lies on the north bank of the river Thames, on the confines of Essex and Mid- dlesex; but yet that city belongs in truth to Essex ; and they put to flight Beorh- tulf, king of Mercia, with all the army, which he had led out to oppose them. After these things, the same army of pagans went into Surrey, which is a district situated on the south bank of the river Thames, and to the west of Kent. And Athelwulf, king of the Saxons, and his son fEthelbald, with all their army, fought a long time against them at a place called Ac-lea, i. e. the Oak-plain, and there, after a lengthened battle, which was fought with much bravery on both sides, the greater part of the pagan multitude was destroyed and cut to pieces, so that we never heard of their being so slaughtered, either before or since, in any country, in one day; and the Christians gained an honourable victory, and were triumphant over the place of death. In the same year king #thel- stan and earl Ealhere slew a large army of the pagans in Kent, at a place called Saud- wich, and took nine ships of their fleet; the others escap- ed by flight. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd — 85) 3 That year was not yet finished, when a large fleet of pagans came, with 350 ships, to the mouth of the river Thames, commonly called Thames-mouth, and destroy- ed the city of Canterbury and the city of London, and put to flight Beornulf king of Mercia, having defeated his army. * The words in brackets do not occur in Asser, but it is evident that they have been omitted by the copy- ist; for the descriptive words wHICH LIES ON THE NORTH BANK W&c. can- not apply to Canterbury. 4 After the battle they returned beyond the river Thames towards the south, through the province of Sur- rey, and there king Athulf with the Western Angles met them: an immense number was slain on both sides, nor have we ever heard of a more severe battle before that day : these things happened near Aclea Wood. ANNALS. 851. The Normans enter the Seine. INGULF states that there was a severe disease in 851, prevalent over all England, which withered the limbs of men, women, and children, and was similar to the palsy. 1 Also in the same year king Athelstan and duke Ealhere fought against the army ofthe above-mentioned nation in the province of Kent, near the town of Sand- wich, where they slew many of them, put their troops to flight, and took nine ships, FROM A. D. 851 Florence The same year also a great army of the pagans came with three hundred and fifty ships to the mouth of the river Thames, and sacked Dorubernia, which is the city of the Cantuarians, and also the city of London, which lies on the north bank of the river Thames, on the confines of Essex and Mid- dlesex; but yet that city belongs in truth to Essex ; and they put to flight Beorht- uulf king of Mercia with all his army, which he had led out to oppose them. After these things, the same army of pagans went into Surrey, which is a district situated on the south bank of the river Thames, and to the west of Kent. And theluulf, king of the West-Saxons, and his son /Ethelbald, with all their army, fought a long time against them at a place called Ac-lea, i. e. the Oak-plain, and there, after a fierce battle, which was fought with much bravery on both sides, the greater part of the pagan multitude was destroyed and cut to pieces, so that we never heard of their being so slaughtered, either before or since, in any country, in one day; and the Christians gained an honourable victory, and were triumphant over the place of death. In the same year king #thel- stan and earl Ealhere slew a large army of the pagans in Kent, at, a place called Sand- wich, and took nine ships of Huntingdon 1 Adelwlf, in the 16th year of his reign, and Edelbald his son, having assembled all their forces, fought with a great army, which with 250 ships had put in at Thames-mouth and _ over- powered those _ illustrious cities, famous through so many years, namely London, and Canterbury, and defeated and put to flight Britwlf king of Mercia, with his army, who never afterwards throve again; 3 And enter- ing Surrey, they met the royal squadrons at Achlea. There was fought, therefore, between those large armies so great and so severe a battle, as no one before had ever heard to have been fought in England. You might then have seen warrior men fall on both sides like a crop of corn, and streams of blood roll with them the heads and limbs of the slain. But would it not be too great and wearying prolixity to describe each particular ? God gave the fortune of the battle to those who believed in him, and unutterable an- guish to those who des- pised him. King Adelwlf then was the glorious victor. * Simeon prefixes ANNo DomINICH IncarNnationts 852 to this para- graph, but the other chroniclers are against him. 4 The same year Edelstan, king of Kent, and duke Eal- here, fought a naval battle against the Danes at Sand- wich, and having made a great slaughter of the enemy, 849 TO 901. 13 Simeon In the same year a great army of pagans came with 350 ships into the mouth of the river Thames. Who laid waste Dorobervia,i.e. the city of the Kentish men, and put to flight Berhtulf king of the Mercians with all his army, who had come to do battle against them. After this the Danes became more bold, and all their army was drawn together in Surrey. Which the warlike Ethelwlt king of the Saxons hearing, both he and his son Ethelbald with him collected a large army in a place which is called Aclea, that is, in the field of the oak. And when the pride of the En- glish nation shone with glancing arms, the English fought a very long time with the Danes; bravely striving against them, because they saw that their king fought fiercely, therefore they be- came braver than their en- emies in war. And when they had manfully striven for a very long time, and both sides fought with much sharpness and spirit, the greatest part of the Pagan throng was thoroughly cut off and slain, so that never in any land, in one day, before or after, did so many fall. The Christians however on that same day honourably gained the victory and were masters of the field of death, giving thanks to the Lord in hymns and confessions. * King Ethel- stan and earl Alchere found a great army of the pagans in Kent in a place which is called At Sandwich ; + whom + Ar SanpwicH: a customary Saxon idiom. 14 Savon Chronicle Asset HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 85) A. 852. Here at this time Ceolred abbat of Medesham- . stede and the monks let to Wulfred the land of Sempin- gaham, on this condition, that after his decease the land should return to the minster, and that Wulfred should give the land of Sliowaford [Stearorp] to Medeshamstede, and each year should deliver into the minster sixty fother of wood, and twelve fother of coal, and six fother of faggots, and two tuns full of pure ale, and two beasts fit for slaughter, and six hundred loaves, and ten measures of Welsh ale, and each year a horse, and thirty shillings, and one day’s entertainment. At this agreement were present king Burhred, and archbishop Ceolred, and bishop Tunberht, and bishop Cenred and bishop Alhhun, and bishop Berhtred, and abbat Wihtred, and abbat Werhtherd, and alderman 4Ethelheard and alderman Hunberht, and many others. * Thls local notice of MEDESHAM- STEAD, i. e. PETERBOROUGH, Occurs in only one MS. of the Saxon Chro- nicle, which was probably written by a monk of that abbey. CHARTERS 1n 852. 1. CronrEpD abbat of Peterborough, subscribed by BurGrep king of Mercia &c. II, 46. This Charter is partly the same as the extract from the Saxon Chronicle under this year. 2. BERTWOLF king of Mercia, II, 47. A. 853. Here Burhred king of the Mercians and _ his ‘witan’ begged of kin ZEthelwulf that he woul assist him so that he might make the North-Welsh obe- dient to him, In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 853, which was the fifth of king Alfred, Burgred, king of the Mer- cians, sent messengers, and prayed thelwulf king of the West-Saxons, to come and help him in reducing the midland Britons, who dwell between Mercia and _ the western sea, and who strug- « He then did so; and went with an army across Mercia among the North-Welsh, and made them all obedient to him. 3 And upon this after Easter /Ethelwulf king of the West- Saxons gave his daughter * to Burgred king of Mercia. * Her name was Ethelswith. gled against him most im- moderately. So without delay, king Ethelwulf, hav- ing received the embassy, moved his army, and ad- vanced with king Burghred against Britain, and immedi- diately on entering that country, he began to ravage it; and having reduced it under subjection to king Burghred, he returned home. 4 In the same year also, after Easter, Aithelwulf, king of the West-Saxons, gave his daughter to Burgred, king of the Mercians, to be queen, and the marriage was cele- brated royally at the royal vill of Chippenham. After three years king Burhred asked assist- ance “from king Aitheluulf to subdue the Northern Britons. He granted it, and having collected his army, passed through the Mercian kingdom to go against the Britons: whom he subdued and made tributary. 3 The same year also after Easter king Athulf gave his daughter in marriage to king Burhrede. FROM A. D. 853 Florence their fleet; the others esca- ped by flight. 849 TO 901. Huutingdon took nine of their ships; but the others fled. 6 This year, therefore, was fortunate for the English people. 15 Simeon they almost cut offin the game place, God granting them help, and seized nine of their ships: the rest struck with terror escaped by flight. 852. Beorhtuulf, king of the Mercians, departed this life, to whom Burhred succeeded in the kingdom. 2 To whom (Bertwotr] suc- ceeded Burrhed on the throne of Mercia. 853. Burhred, king of the Mer- cians, by messengers, prayed ARtheluulf king of the West-Saxons, to come and help him in reducing the midland Britons, who dwell between Mercia and the western sea, and who strug- gled against him most im- moderately. So without delay, king theluulf, hav- ing received the embassy, moved his army, and ad- vanced with king Burhred against Britain, and immedi- ately on entering that country, he began to ravage it; and having reduced it under subjection to king Burhred, he returned home. 3 In the same year also, after Easter, Atheluulf, king of the West-Saxons, gave his daughter to Burhred, king of the Mercians, and the mar- riage was celebrated royally at the royal vill of Chippen- ham. Adelwlf, in the 18th year of his reign, most powerfully helped Burhred to subdue anne his rule the North Welsh. CHARTERS tn 853. ETHELWOLF King of Wessex, subscribed by ETHELBERTUS rex, CIALNOTHUS Dei gratia archiepiscopus, and others, among whom we find “‘ Ego Eurrep fili regis consensi et ‘sub- scripsi.” II, 48. MATTHEW or WESTMINSTER relates, under this year, a legend concerning the terrible death and damnation of a witch ; also the fate of Charles Martel. And gave him his daughter in marriage. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 853, of the birth of Alfred 5, Burhred king of the Mercians sent mes- sengers, and begged Ethelwlf king of the West Saxons to bring him help in order that he might be able to subdue under his dominion the midland Britons who dwell between Mercia and the Western Sea, who often strove against him. But King Ethelwlf, having received his embassy, moved an army, distributed pay, and bravely went forth with king Burhred to war. Presently when he had begun to lay waste that nation, he took, slew, and subdued it to king Burhred, who giv- ing thanks sent him away with joy to return to his own land. 3 The same year after the feast of Christ’s holy resur- rection, king Ethelwlf, of glorious power, gave his daughter, with great glory, as it is customary for kings, to Burhred king of the Mer- cians, at the vill which is called At Chippenham ; 16 Saron Thronicle 1 And the same year king ZEthelwulf sent his son /Elfred to Rome. Leo was then pope of Rome, and he consecrated him king, and took him for his son at con- firmation. * * See note * in page 18. 2 Then, in the same year, Ealhere,with the men of Kent, and Huda, with the men of Surrey, fought in Thanet against the heathen army; and at first they were vic- torious; and many there were slain, and drowned on either hand, and both the alderman were killed. A. 854. CHARTERS rn 854. 1. ETHEL- wour, king of Wessex, subscribed also by Alstan, ‘‘ thred fili. reg.” and‘ Ailfred fili. reg.” II, 50. This is the celebrated grant of tithes: it HARMONY OF THE Asset 1 In the same year, king fEthelwulf sent his son /Elfred, above-named, to Rome, with an honourable escort both of nobles and commoners. Pope Leo [THE FouRTH ] at that time presided over the apostolic see, who ordained and anointed for king the aforesaid child El- fred, and confirmed him, receiving him as his son of adoption. 2 The same year also, earl Ealhere, with the men of Kent, and Huda with the men of Surrey, fought bravely and resolutely against an army of the pagans, in the island, which is called in the Saxon tongue, Tenet, [Taa- net], but Ruim in British. 8 And at first the Christians had the victory, but when the battle was protracted to a great length, many fell on both sides, and also were drowned in the water; and both the earls were there slain. is dated April 22. 2. Another copy of the same charter follows, p. 52, in which the names of Ethelred and Alfred do not appear. Both copies bear the subscription of the celebrated Swithun bishop of Winchester, and Alstan bishop of CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd $53 1 In the same year king Atheluulf sent his son Alfred to Rome in the days of our lord pope Leo, who conse- crated him king and named him his son in baptism, as we are accustomed to name little children, when we receive them from the bishop’s hand. 2 In the same year were fought battles in the isle of Thanet against the pagans ; and there was a great slau- ghter made on both sides, and many were drowned in the sea. Sherborne. 3. ErHrtwotr, April 23. 4, ETHELWOLF, subscribed also by ‘‘ ATHELRED filius regis,” and ‘‘ ZELFRED filius regis,” II, 55. 5. BERTWoLF of Mercia, no date, I, 5 A. 855. Here the heathen men first sat over winter in Sheppey. And the same year king AEthelwulf gave by charter the tenth part of his land throughout his realm for the glory of God and his own eternal salvation. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 855, which was the seventh after the birth of the aforesaid king, the great army of the pagans passed the whole winter in the afore- said isle of Sheppey. In the same year the afore- said venerable king /Athel- wulf released the tenth part of all his kingdom from all royal service and tribute, and with a pen never to be for- gotten, offered it up to God the One and the Three in One, in the cross of Christ, for the redemption of his own soul and of his prede- cessors. After a year the pagans wintered in Sheppey. In the same year king Athulf gave the tenth of all his possessions to be the Lord’s_ portion, and_ so appointed it to be in all the government of his kingdom. INGULF places the grant of tithes in 855, after the return of Ethelwolf from Rome: but, if he started for Rome in 855, and’stayed there 12 months, it is certain that he returned in 856, and consequently, if the grant was made in 855, it must have been © made before he started. Ethelwolf married Judith on the Ist of October 856. [Bovauer, vii, 72.] FROM A. D. 8 a o Slorence 1 In the same year, king 7Etheluulf sent his son fElfred, above-named, to Rome, with an honourable escort both of nobles and _ commoners. Whom pope Leo, at his father’s request, ordained and anointed for king, and confirmed, receiv- ing him as his son of adoption. 2 The same year also, earl Ealhere, with the men of Kent, and Huda with the men of Surrey, fought bravely and resolutely against an army of the pagans, in the island, which is called in the Saxon tongue, Tenet, [THa- net], but Ruim in the British. And at first the Christians had the victory, but when the battle was protracted toa great length, many fell on both sides, and also were drowned in the water; and both the earls were there slain. Huntingdon In the same year king Adelwif sent to Rome, to pope Leo, his son Alured, whom Leo afterwards blessed as king, and received as his son. In this year duke Ealhere with the men of Kent and Huda with the men of Surrey, fought against the army of the pagans at Thanet; and a great number were slain on both sides and shipwreck- ed; and both the dukes died. * The word here rendered puKE, is pux in the Latin: it is rendered DUKE merely for the sake of con- venience: the word implies no specific title of honour. 849 TO 901. 7 Simeon whereby, on the completion of ‘the nuptials, he appointed her the dignity of the name of queen. 1 Inthe same year king Eth- elwlf sent over to Rome his son Elfred accompanied by a great band of noble soldiers. At which time the blessed pope Leo presided over the apostolic see : who ordained and anointed for king the aforesaid child, and receiving him for his adopted son, con- firmed him and sent him back to his country and to his father with the blessing of St Peter the apostle. 2 At that time earl Alchere and Wada, with the men of Kent and Surrey, fought se- verely against the army of the pagans in the island which is called Tene in the Saxon tongue, but in the British Rum. At first the Christians had the victory; but, when the battle was protracted to a great length, many fell on both sides, and many were drowned in the river and slain, a number not to be described. Both the afore- said Jeaders there fell for the deliverance of their people. 854. Died Eanbert bishop of MATT. WESTMINSTER. In the year of Grace 854 died Wymunp archbishop of York to whom suc- ceeded WILFER. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 854, archbishop Wlfere received the pall, and Eardulf undertook the bisho- pric of Lindisfarne. Lindisfarne, and LEardulf succeeded. 855 : The great army of the pagans passed the whole winter in the afore- said isle of Sheppey. In the same year the afore- said venerable king /thel- uulf released the tenth part of all his kingdom from all royal service and tribute, and with a pen never to be for- gotten, offered it up to God the One and the Three in One, in the cross of Christ, for the redemption of his own soul and of his predeces- sors. Essays 7 About this time the pagans tarried the whole winter in Sheppey. 1 Ethelwolf, in the 19th year of his reign, tithed all his land for the service of the churches, on account of his love of God and for the re- demption of himself. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 858, and the seventh from the birth of the aforesaid king, the army of the pagans wintered the whole winter in the island of Sheppey. At which time king Ethelwlf tithed all the dominions of his kingdom for the redemp- tion of his soul and that of his ancestors. ANNALS. Ay. 855. Eadmund, the most glorious king of the East- Angles, begins to reign on the 8th before the calends of January, i.e. on our Lord’s birth-day, in the lith year of his age. 18 Sarton Chronicle And the same year he went to Rome in great state, and dwelt there twelve months.* * One MS. of the Chron. gives, as paragraph 7 (in page 26) the fol- lowing. 7 ‘ Alfred his third son he had sent to Rome: and when pope Leo heard say that Athelwulf was dead, he consecrated Alured king, and held him as his spiritual son at confir- mation, even as his father Athewulf bade on sending him thither. The general authority of the Sax- on Chronicle leads to a doubt, whether Alfred may not have remained at Rome during the inter- val between the two sendings. Asset ‘ In the same year he went to Rome with much honour; and taking with him his son, the aforesaid king Alfred, for a second journey thither, be- cause he loved him more than his other sons, he remained there a whole year. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 855 And in the same year he set out to Rome with great dignity, and stopped there 12 months. CHARTERS in 855. 1. ErHer- woLF, Nov. 5. mentions that Beorred king of Mercia, and Edmund king of the Eastangles, were present and subscribed. JI, 56. 2. ETHEL- WOLF; subscribed also by ‘‘ Athel- berht rex,” ‘ Alfred filius regis,” and others, ITI, 58. 3. BurerEepD of Mercia; signed also by ‘“‘ Athels- with regina,” ‘ Mucel dux,” and others, II, 58, 4. BuRGRED, subscribed also by ‘ Athelswith regina,” and _ others. II, 60. 5. EaLuwine bishop of Worcester. II, 61. (8) A. 856. 1 And then returned home- wards. And then Charles king of the Franks gave him his daughter to wife; and after that he came to his people, and they were glad of it. After which he returned to his own country, bringing with him Judith, daughter of Charles, the king of the Franks. In the meantime, however, whilst king Acthelwulf was residing beyond the sea, a base deed was done, repug- nant to the morals of all Christians, in the western part of Selwood. For king Ethelbald and Ealhstan, bis- hop of the church of Sher- borne, with Eanwulf, earl of the district of Somerton,+ are. said to have made a conspi> xacy together, that king /Ethelwulf, on his return from Rome, should never again be received into his kingdom. This crime, unheard-of in all previous ages, is ascribed by many to the bishop and earl alone, as resulting from their counsels. Many also ascribe it solely to the insolence of the king, because that king was pertinacious in this matter, and in many other perversities, as we have heard related. by certain persons; as also was On his way back to his own country, Charles king of the Franks gave to him in mar- riage his daughter, whom he received and brought into his own country. + Earl of Somersetshire, of whicti Somerton was once the chief town. FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 856 Slovence And thus he went to Rome with much honour; and taking with him his son, the aforesaid king Alfred, for a second journey thither, be- cause he loved him more than his other sons, he remained there a whole year. Huntingdon 2 Afterwards he went with great honour to Rome, and there dwelt one year. 19 Simeon In the same year, he set ont with great honour to the threshold of the prince of the apostles, having with him Elfred, because he loved him more than the others. The king of the English was received in a becoming way by the apos- tolic man ; and he remained there a whole year, diligently occupied in prayers and alms. (15) 856. 1 After which he returned to his own country, bringing with him Juthith, daughter of Charles, the king of the Franks, The most holy Edmund, beloved by God, sprung from the lineage of the old Saxons, and a true worshipper of the Christian faith, affable to all by his sweet mode of speech, and deeply imbued with the grace of humility, liberal to the needy, and a most merci- ful father to orphans and widows, obtained the govern- ment of the province of East-Anglia. 2 Inthe meantime, however, whilst king /Etheluulf was residing beyond the sea, a base deed was done, repug- nant to the morals of all Christians, in the western part of Selwood. For king Ethelbald and Ealhstan, bis- hop of the church of Sher- borne, with Eanwulf, earl of the district of Somerton, are said to have made a conspi- racy together, that king Etheluulf, on his return from Rome, should never again be 3 And return- ing thence, he took to wife the daughter of Charles the Bald king of France, and brought her with him into this country. received into his kingdom. This crime, unheard-of in all previous ages, is ascribed by many to the bishop and earl alone, as resulting from their counsels. Many also ascribed it solely to the insolence of the king, because that king was pertinacious in this matter, and in many other perversities, as we have heard related by certain persons; as also was When he [Erue.wotr] was returning to his ountry, ANNALS. An. 856. In the 18th year of the reign of Adhelwlf king of the West-Saxons, HuMHERCHT bishop of the East Angles anointed with oil, and consecrated for king, the most glorious Eadmund with great joy and the greatest honour, in the royal vill which is called Burna, because the royal seat was then there, in the 15th year of his age, the sixth day of the week, 24th moon, being the day of our Lord’s birth, he became hateful to his son Ethel- bald, and Ealhstan bishop of Sherborne, and many others. CHARTERS tw 856. None are extant. 20 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Sarton Chronicle Asser proved by the result of that which follows. For, as he was returning from Rome, his son aforesaid, with all his counsellors, or, as I ought to say, his conspirators, attempted to perpetrate the crime of repulsing the king from his own kingdom ; but neither did God permit the deed, nor would the nobles of Saxony * consent to it. For to per- vent this irremediable evil to Saxony, of a son warring against his father, or rather of the whole nation carrying on civil war, either on the side of the one or the other, the extraordinary mildness of the father, seconded by the con- sent of all the nobles, divided between the two the kingdom which had hitherto been undivided ; the eastern parts were given to the father, and the western to the son ; contrariwise : for where the father ought by just right to reign, there his unjust and obstinate son did reign; for the western part of Saxony is always preferable to the eastern. When thelwulf, therefore, was coming from Rome, that nation, as was fitting, so delighted in the arrival of the old man, that, if he permitted them, they would have expelled his rebellious son Aithelbald, with all his counsellors, out of the kingdom. But he, as we have said, acting with great clemency and prudent counsel, so wished things to be done, that the kingdom might not come into danger; and he placed Judith, daughter of king Charles, whom he had received from her father, by his own side on the regal throne, without any controversy or enmity from his nobles, even to the end of his life, contrary to the perverse custom of that nation. For the nation of the West-Saxons do not allow a queen to sit beside the king, nor to be called a queen, but only the king’s wife; which stigma the elders of that land say arose from a certain obstinate and malevo- lent queen of the same nation, who did all things so contrary to her lord, and to all the people, that she not only earned for herself exclusion from the royal seat, but also entailed the same stigma upon those who came after her; for, in consequence of the wickedness of that queen, all the nobles of that land swore together, that they would never let any king reign over them, who should attempt to place a queen on the throne by his side. : And because, as I think, itis not known to many whence this perverse and detestable custom arose in Saxony, con- trary to the custom of all the Theotiscan + nations, it seems to me right to explain a little more fully what I have heard from my lord Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, as he also had heard it from many men of truth, who in great part recorded that fact. There was in Mercia, in recent times, a certain valiant king, who was feared by all the kings and neighbouring states around. His name was Offa, and it was he who had the great rampart made from sea to sea between Britain ¢ and Mercia. His daughter, named Eadburgh, was married to Berhtric, king of the West-Saxons; who immediately, having the king’s affections, and the control of almost all the kingdom, began to live tyrannically like her father, and to execrate every man whom Beorhtric loved, and to do all things hateful to God and man, and to accuse all she could before the king, and so to deprive them insidiously of their life or power; and if she could not obtain the king’s consent, she used to take them off by poison: as is ascertained to have been the case with a certain young man beloved by the king, whom she poisoned, finding that the king would not listen to any accusation against him. It is said, moreover, Ethelwerd * i,e. ENGLAND. ¢ “I Tedeschi "—Teutonic. Live. WaLEs. 8 5 6 ° FROM A. D. 856 Slorence Guntingdon proved by the result of that which follows. ; 3 For as he was returning from Rome, his son aforesaid, with all his counsellors, or, as I ought to say, his conspirators, attempted to perpetrate the crime of repulsing the king from his own kingdom; but neither did God permit the deed, nor would the nobles of all Saxony consent to it. For to per- vent this irremediable evil to Saxony, of a son warring against his father, or rather of the whole nation carrying on civil war, either on the side of the one or the other, the extraordinary mildness of the father, seconded by the con- sent of all the nobles, divided between the two the kingdom which had hitherto been undivided ; the eastern parts were given to the father, and the western to the son ; for where the father ought by just right to reign, there his unjust and obstinate son did reign; for the western part of Saxony is always preferable to the eastern. 4 When £theluulf, therefore, was coming from Rome, that nation, as was fitting, so delighted in the arrival of the old man, that if he permitted them, they would have expelled his rebellious son Athelbald, with all his counsellors, out of the kingdom. But he, as we have said, acting with great clemency and prudent counsel, so wished things to be done, that the kingdom might not come into danger; and he placed Judith, daughter of king Charles, whom he had received from her father, by his own side on the regal throne, without any controversy or enmity from his nobles, even to the end of his life, contrary to the perverse custom of that nation. For the nation of the West Saxons do not allow a queen to sit beside the king, nor to be called a queen, but only the king’s wife; which stigma our elders say arose from a certain obstinate and malevo- lent queen of the same nation. 6 For the malice of this queen, all the inhabitants of that land swore together, that they would never allow any king to reign over them, who should command his queen to sit beside him on the royal throne. * The remarks which William of Malmesbury has made on the reign and character of Ethelwolf are worthy of notice: ‘‘ In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 537, Ethelwulf, (whom some call Athulf) son of {Go To THE TOP OF THE NEXT coLumN.] 5 There was in Mercia, in recent times, a certain valiant king, Offa, whose daughter, . named Eadburh, was married, as we have said before, to Brihtric, king of the West-Saxons; who immediately began to live tyrannically and to do all things hateful to God and man, and to accuse all she could before the king, and so to deprive them insidiously of their life or power; and if she could not obtain the king’s consent she used to take them off by poison: as is ascertained to have been the case with a certain young man beloved by the king, whom she poisoned, finding that the king would not listen to any accusation against him. It is said, moreover, 849 TO 901, 21 Siméon Egbirht, reigned 20 years and five months: he was mild by nature, and mote inclined to live in peace than to command many provinces : in short, he was content with his paternal kingdom of the West-Saxons, and gave over as appanages to his son Ethelstan the others which his father had subdued. He assisted Burhred king of the Mercians with an auxiliary army against the Britons, and exalted him wonderfully by giving him his daughter in marriage. The Danish pirates, who wandered over the whole island, and infested all its coasts with unexpected landings, were crushed more than once by him and his generals; though, according to the lot of war, he received frequent and severe losses at the hands of the same, whereby London and almost all Kent were' laid waste. But a stop was always put to these losses by the energy of the king's counsellors, who who would never allow the enemy to offend with impunity, but took vengeance upon them with their united forces. For he had, in his time, two excellent prelates, the blessed Swithin of Winchester, and Alstan of Sherborne; who, seeing that the king was of a dull and heavy mind, impelled him by their admo- nitions to the science of ruling. Swithun, sickened with earthly things, taught his lord to look to above; Alstan, thinking that public matters also were not to be neglected, encouraged him against the Danes, himself supplying money to the treasury, himself marshalling the army. He who reads the annals, [PROBABLY THE SAXON CHRONICLE IS MEANT] will find many of his achievenents both bravely begun and happily ended. He lived 50 years in his bishopric, happy in having lived to do good for so long a time. I would willingly praise him, except that, led astray by human covet- ousness he acted unlawfully when he deprived the monastery of Malmesbury ofits possessions. We feel to this day the effects of his shameless conduct, though the place immediately after his death, strugg- led its way out of the violence that had been done it, even down to our own times, when it has fallen again into the same danger [se1zED BY RocEr Bp or SAuispury IN 1118] .... Ethelwulf relying on‘ these two supporters, and providing for that which was without, whilst he did not slight what was within, after he had triumphed over his ene- mies, turned to the worship of God, and granted to Christ’s servants the tenth of every hide of land within his kingdom, freed from all duties and from all annoyances. But how little glory was that? When he had settled his kingdom, he went to Rome, and there, he gave to St Peter the tribute, which Englaud still pays, in presence of pope Leo the Fourth, who also, before that, had honorably received and anointed for king his son Alfred when he had been sent unto him. Ethelwolf remained there a whole year, and beautifully repaired the school of the English, which, they say, was first founded by Offa king of the Mercians, and had been burnt the year before. 22 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saou Chronicle Asset that king Beorhtric unwittingly tasted of the poison, though the queen intended to give it to the young man only, but the king took it too quickly, and so both perished. Beorhtric therefore being dead, the queen could remain no longer among the Saxons, but sailed beyond the sea with immense treasures, and went to the court of the great and famous Charles, king of the Franks. As she stood before the throne, and offered him money, Charles said to her, “ Choose, Eadburgh, between me and my son, who stands here with me.” She replied, foolishly, and without deliber- ation, “If I am to have my choice, I choose your son, be- cause he is younger than you.” At which Charles smiled and answered, “ If you had chosen me, you would have had my son; but as you have chosen him, you shall not have either of us.” However, he gave her a large convent of nuns, in which, having laid aside the secular habit and taken the religious dress, she discharged the office of abbess during a few years: for, as she is said to have lived irrationally in her own country, so she appears to have acted still more so in that foreign country ; for being convicted of having had unlawful inter- course with a man of her own nation, she was expelled from the monastery by king Charles’s order, and lived a vicious life of reproach in poverty and misery until her death; so that at last, accompanied by one slave only, as we have heard from many who saw her, she begged her bread daily at Pavia, and so misera- bly died. Now king /thelwulf lived two years after his return from Rome ; during which, among many other good deeds of this present life, reflecting on his departure according to the way of all flesh, that his sons might not quarrel unreason- ably after his death, he order- ed a letter of inheritance, or instructions to be written, in which he ordered that his kingdom should be divided between his two eldest sons, his private inheritance be- tween his sons, his daughter, and his relations, and the money which he left behind him, between his sons and nobles, and for the good of his soul. Of this prudent policy we have thought fit to record a few instances out of many for posterity to imi- tate; namely, such as are understood to belong princi- pally to the needs of the soul ; for the others, which relate only to human dispensation, it is not necessary to insert in this work, lest prolixity should create disgust in those who Cthelwerd 8 oc os FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 856 =—-_ Hlorence Huntingdon that king Bertric unwittingly tasted of the poison, though the queen intended to give it to the young man only, but the king took it too quickly, and so both perished. 7 Bertric therefore being dead, the queen could remain no. longer among the West-Saxons, but sailed beyond the sea with immense treasures, and went to the court of the great and famous Charles, king of the Franks. As she stood before the throne, and offered him money, Charles said to her, ‘ Choose, Eadburga, between me and my son, who stands here with me.” She replied, foolishly, and without deliber- ation, “If Iam to have my choice, I choose your son, be- cause he is younger than you.’ At which Charles smiled and answered, ‘If you had chosen me, you would have had my son; but as you have chosen him, you shall not have either of us.” 8 However, he gave her a large convent of nuns, in which, having laid aside the secular habit and taken the religious dress, she discharged the office of abbess during a few years ; for, having been violated by a lay-man of her own nation, and expelled from the monastery by king Charles’s order, she at last brought her life to an end in poverty and misery. 9 King #theluulf lived two 4 And when he [Eruetworr] years, after his return from had kept her [J upitu] two Rome ; during which among years: many other good deeds of this present life, reflecting on his departure according to the way of all flesh, that his sons might not quarrel unreason- ably after their father’s death, he ordered a letter of inheritance to be written, in which he ordered that his kingdom should be divided between his two eldest sons, fEthelbald and A®thelbert, his private inheritance be- tween his sons, his daughter, and his relations, and the money which he left behind him, between his sons and nobles, and for the good of his soul. 23 Simeon The most merciful king Ethelwlf lived two years after he set out for the city of Romulus. Among other good deeds of this present life, to which he gave his royal mind, he medi- tated before-hand on his own death, and, that his sons might not quarrel after he had departed this life, he com- posed an epistle in an elegant style, wherein he gave away the things which belonged to himself. 24 Saron Chronicle Asset read or wish to hear my work. For the benefit of his soul, then, which he studied to promote in all things from the first flower of his youth, he directed through all his hereditary dominions, that one poor man in ten,* either native or foreigner, should be supplied with meat, drink, and clothing, by his succes- sors, until the day of judg- ment; supposing, however, that the country should still be inhabited both by men and cattle, and should not become deserted. He com- manded also a large sum of money, namely, three hun- dred mancuses, to be carried every year to Rome for the good of his soul, to be distributed in the following manner: namely, a hundred mancuses in hon- our of St Peter, specially to buy oil for the lights of the church of that apostle on Easter eve, and also at the cock-crow: a hundred man- cuses in honour of St Paul, for the same purpose of buying oil for the church of St Paul the apostle, to light the lamps on Easter eve and at the cock-crow; and a hundred mancuses for the universal apostolic pontiff. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cc oS Ethelwerd 8 * “In decem manentibus” is the expression of Asser. “in decem mansis,” which is less intelligible, of Simeon. (9) A. 857. CHARTERS rn 857,_ 1. Bune- RED of Mercia. April 18, subscribed also by ‘‘ /Ethelswith regina,” and others. II, 63. (10) A. 858. 2 And about two years after he came from France he died, and his body lies at Winches- ter. 3 And he reigned eighteen years and a half. t Here follows (as paragraph 4 according to the figures) the gene- alogy given at page 6. But when king Ethelwulf was dead, Lastly, after a year king Athulf died, and his body reposes in the city of Win- chester. And then was completed the fiftieth year from the begin- ning of king Egbyrht’s reign. HERE ENDS THE THIRD BOOK AND THE PROLOGUE OF THE FOURTH BOOK HERE BEGINS. THREE BOOKS ARE NOW FINISHED, AND IT REMAINS TO GUIDE MY PEN TO THE FOURTH, IN WHICH FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 858 = Florence 10 For the benefit of his soul, then, which he studied to promote in all things from the first flower of his youth, he directed through all his hereditary dominions, that one poor man in ten, either native or foreigner, should be supplied with meat, drink, and clothing, by his succes- sors, until the day of judg- ment; supposing, however, that the country should still be inhabited both by men and cattle, and should not become deserted. He com- manded also a large sum of money,namely 300 mancuses of pennies yearly to be carried to Rome for the good of his soul, to be distributed in the follwing manner: namely, an hundred mancuses in hon- our of St Peter, specially to buy oil for the lights of the church of that apostle on Easter eve, and also at the cock-crow: a hundred man- cuses in honour of St Paul, for the same purpose, and 100 mancuses for the universal apostolic pontiff. Huntingdon 25 Simeon Throughout all the inheri- tance of his kingdom, he commanded that for every ten manses one poor man, either native or foreign, should be assisted or fed, with meat and drink or raiment, for himself and for all his successors. He also commanded that 300 mancuses should be carried to Rome for the redemption of his soul ; 100 to the gate of St Peter especially to buy oil, 1U0 in honor of St Paul, and 100 for the universal apostolic pope. (16) 857. MATT. WESTM. The same year died Cedda bishop of Hereford, to whom succeeded Albert. (17) 858. 5 He was removed from 11 When king Ethelwulf was among men, and was buried dead,* on the ides of January (Jan. 13] and was buried at Winchester, * The ANNALS say that he was buried at Steningham [Steyning in Essex]. Essays at Winchester. 6 He had first been bishop at Winchester, but, on the death of Egbrict his father, necessity compelling it, he was made king; and, having married a wife, he begat four sons, who were all kings after him. 4 When, therefore, the glorious king Ethelwulf was dead, 26 Savon Thronicle 5 And then Athelwulf’s two sons succeeded to the king- dom; /ithelbald to the king- dom of the West-Saxons ; and ZEthelbryht to the kingdom of the Kentish-men, and to the kingdom of the East-Saxons and to Surrey and to the king- dom of the South-Saxons. 6 And then Athelbald reign- ed five years.} { Here follows par. 7, given at note * in page 18. HARMONY Asset His son Athelbald, contrary to God’s prohibition and the dignity of a Christian, con- trary also to the custom of all the pagans, ascended his father’s bed, and married Judith, daughter of Charles, king of the Franks, and drew down much infamy upon himself from all who heard of it. During two years and a half of licentiousness after his father he held the government of the West-Saxons. OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 858 ALSO WILL BE FOUND GREATER GAIN, AND THE ORIGIN OF OUR RACE IS MORE CLEARLY _INDI- CATED. AND, ALTHOUGH I MAY SEEM TO SEND YOU A LOAD OF READING, DEAREST SISTER OF MY DESIRE, DO NOT JUDGE ME HARSH- LY, BUT AS MY WRITINGS WERE IN LOVE TO YoU, SO MAY YoU READ THEM. AnD MAY GoD ALMIGHTY, WHO 18 PRAISED BOTH IN TRINITY AND In UNIPOTENCE, EVER PRESERVE YOU UNDER THE SHADOW OF HIS8 WINGS, AND YOUR COMPANIONS wiItH you. AmEn! HERE ENDS THE PROLOGUE. Crap. I.—OF THE REIGN OF THE SONS OF KING ATHULF, NAMELY ETHELBALD AND ETHELBYRHT. Meanwhile after the death of king Athulf, his sons were raised to the kingdom, namely Ethelbald over the Western Angles, and Aithelbyrht over the men of Kent, and the Eastern, Southern, and Mid- land Angles. CHARTERS 1n 858. Arutt- BERHT king of Kent. II, 64 When five years were com- pleted, A. 859. ANNALS. Awwo 859. This year it began to freeze two days before the calends of December [Nov. 29] and ended on the nones of April [sp. 5]. CHARTERS 1n 859, PLEGRED subscribed also by “‘ Ethelwulf rex.” ‘« Ethelbeald fili. regis,” and others. II, 66. A. 860. Here died king /Ethelbald and his body lies at Sher- burne. And /Athelbryht succeeded to all the realm of his brother, and he held it in goodly concord and in great tranquillity. And in his days a large fleet came to land, In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 860, which was the twelfth from king Alfred’s birth, died /Ethelbald, and was buried at Sherborne. His brother Athelberht, as was fitting, joined Kent, Surrey, and Sussex also to his dominion. In his days a large army of pagans, came up from the king Ethelbald died, and his brother AEthelbyrht succeeded to the possessions of both. In his days a large fleet of pagans came to land, and FROM A.D 849 TO 860 = Florence 12 His son Athelbald, contrary to God’s prohibition and the dignity of a Christian, con- trary also to the custom of all the pagans, ascended his father’s bed, and married Judith, daughter of Charles, king of the Franks, and thus 13 during two years and a half of licentiousness after his father he held the government of the West-Saxons, Huntingdon The afore.aid most noble king left to his son Ethelbald the hereditary kingdom of Wessex. To his son Ethelbert he left the kingdom of Kent and Essex and Sussex. Both the brothers therefore, youths of the best disposition, ruled happily their kingdom, whilst each lived, When Adelbald king of Wessex had held his kingdom in peace five years, 901. 27 Simeon MATT. WESTM. In the year of Grace 858, .... died Ethelbald bishop of Lichfield, to whom suc- ceeded Humbert, His son Ethelbald, in spite of the prohibition of Jesus Christ, and contrary to the custom of all the pagans, ascended his father’s bed, and took to wife, with great infamy, Judith daughter of Charles king of the Franks, and thus lawless, for two years and a half, he held the helm of the West-Saxons, after the death of his noble father. 859. 860. Died £thelbald king and was buried at Sherborne. His brother Ethelbert, as was fitting, joined Kent, Surrey, and Sussex also to his dominion. In his days a large army of pagans, came up from the MATT. WESTM. In the year of Grace 859, Zthelbald king of the West-Saxons, growing wise out of his error aforesaid, dismissed Judith he was cut off by an early death : all England mourned the youth of king Adelbald, and great woe was made for him. They buried him at Sherborne, and England afterwards felt how much it had lost in him. Adelbricht the brother of the aforesaid king, reigned after him over Wessex, who before was king of Kent. In his days came a naval host, and his step-mother, whose bed he had polluted, and having done penance, governed his kingdom with peace and justice, for the rest of his life; In the year 860, the 12th after the birth of the noble prince Elfred, Ethelbald died and was buried in Sherborne. After his death his brother Ethelbyrht added these pro- vinces to his own kingdom; that is Kent, Surrey and Sussex, with all their towns and territories, as was fitting. In the course of that year, a great army of pagans, com- 28 Savon Chronicle and the crews stormed Win- chester. And alderman Osric with the men of Hampshire, and alderman /thelwulf with the men of Berkshire, fought against the army, and put them to flight, and had possession of the place of slaughter. HARMONY OF Asset sea, and attacked and des- troyed the city of Winchester. As they were returning laden with booty to their ships, Osric, earl of Hampshire, with his men, and earl Ath- elwulf, with the men of Berkshire, confronted them bravely ; a severe battle took place, and the pagans were slain on every side; and, finding themselves unable to resist, they took flight like women, and the Christians were masters of the place of death. THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 860 destroyed the royal city which is called Winton. They were encountered by Osric duke of Hampshire; and Athulf duke of Berkshire: a battle ensued ; the pagans were routed, and the English gained the vic tory. CHARTERS rp 860. 1. BTHEL- peRuT of Wessex, subscribed also by « #thelred filius regis,” and others. JI, 68. 2, ATHELBALD king of Wes- sex, signed also by ‘* Athelberht rex,” “ Judith regis filius [sic MS.],” and others. 11, 69. 3. Athird charter, subscribed by ‘ ASTHELBEARHT rex,”, ‘‘ Athelred fili. regis,” ‘ El- freed fili. regis,” and otbers, without a date, is givenfin II, 70, as belonging to either 860, 861, or 862. (2) A. 861. CHARTERS 1n 861: none. (4) A. 862. (3) Here died S. Swithun tho bishop. As St Swithin is such a well-known personage, the following notice of him by MATTHEW of WESTMIN- STER, may amuse some of my . readers. ““In the year of Grace 862, Saint Swithin, bishop of the city of Win- chester, departed to the Lord. This holy man, whilst he still lived, was the possessor of many virtues, but was most famous for mildness and humility. It happened once, that this servant of God was sitting by chance with the workmen at Win- chester bridge, that his presence might stir them into activity: when lo, a woman carrying eggs for sale passed by on her way to the city. The workmen all ran round her, making fun, as men of that kind oft- en do, and broke all her eggs for her. When the news of this shameful deed and the poor woman’s complaint reached the bishop's ears,he sighed at her loss, and moved to kindness, made the sign of the cross over the broken eggs, whereby they all became whole again. Of the humble-mind- edness of this holy man, it is a memorable example, that, as oftén as he was about to dedicate a new church-building, he always went thi- ther on foot, and not on a horse orin a carriage, however long the journey might be. And that this might not furnish ridicule to the ignorant, or be set down by the proud for vain glory, he used to withdraw himself from the sight of men, and travel al- ways by night. He was a lover of solitary holiness and thought that he should sacrifice his interests to any external show. At length, when he was on the point of bidding farewell to this present life, he commanded his domestics, on their obedience to his episcopal authority, to bury his pody outside the church, where it might be trodden under the feet of passers-by, and wetted by the dew from heaven. His successor in the bishopric was Ealferth, a man suffi- ciently learned in church matters, who for some time had Wisely fulfil- led the duties for his predecessor: (5) A. 863. 6) A. 864. 8 Here the heathen army sat down in Thanet, and made peace with the men of Kent, and the men of Kent pro- mised them money for the peace ; and during the peace 2 In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 864, the pagans wintered in the isle of ‘Thanet, and made a firm treaty with the men of Kent, who pro- mised them money for adher- ing to their covenant; but After four years, from the death of king Athelbald, the pagans strengthen __ their position in the isle of Thanet, and promise to be at peace with the men of Kent, who on their part prepare money FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 864 Florence sea, and attacked and des- troyed the city of Winchester. As they were returning laden with booty to their ships, Osric, éarl of Hampshire, with his men, and earl Aith- elulf, with the men of Berkshire, confronted them bravely; a severe battle took place, and the pagans were slain on evéry side, and, finding themselves unable to resist, they took flight like women, and the Christians were masters of the place of death, Huntingdon landing destroyed Winches- ter: and so An ancient city fell That many years had ruled. Then duke Osric with [the men of] Hamptonshire, and duke Edelwlf with [the men of] Berkshire, fought against the same army; and, when they had put them to flight with great slaughter, our men were victorious. 29 Simeon ing from the sea, assaulted and destroyed the city of Winchester. But when the aforesaid army was on its way back to the ships, loaded with booty, Osric the worthy leader of the men of Hampshire, came up with his people, and the good earl Ethelglf with the men of Berkshire, man- fully met them with an im- mense army, and joining bat» tle, the pagans were slain on all sides by the English, who were aided by the angelic spirits. And when the dreadful ene- mies were unable to stand any longer for their wounds, a great multitude cruelly fell, others hid themselves among the thick bushes, and some like women, took to flight. The English, with fortune smiling upon them, were mas- ters of the field of death. (2) 861. MATT. WESTM. In the year of Grace 861, ... died Rethun bishop of Leicester, to whom sficceedead Aldred. (3) 862. Saint Swithin took his flight to heaven, the 10th Indiction, sixth before the nones of July [Jury 2] the 5th day of the week. CHARTERS in 862. 1. AETHEL- RED: subs. by A®lfred frater regis and others. II, 71. 2. ErneLBert king of Wessex: subscribed also by -* ZEtherred fil. regis,” ‘‘ Alfred fil. regis” and others. II, 73. (4) 863. CHARTERS 1n 863. 38, ETHEL- BERT, subscribed also by Ethered fil. reg. and others, Il, 74. 2. A charter of 'Epwarp kingof Mercia, &c. at II, 77, belongs to 860—865. (5) 864. The pagans wintered in the isle of Thanet, and made a firm treaty with the men of Kent, who pro- niised them money for adher- In the Sth year of king Adelbrict, the army of the pagans came to ‘Tenet; and, when the men ot Kent had purchased of them a truce with money, they suddenly broke away one In the year 864, the pagans wintered in the island which is called Thanet, and is sur- rounded on every side by the stream of the sea. They made a solemn treaty with the men of Kent, who 30 Savon Chronicle and the promise of money the army stole away by night, and ravaged all Kent to the eastward. MATT. WESTM. In the year of Grace 864, died Humbert bishop of Lichfield, to whom succeeded Kine- ferth. Asset the pagans, like cunning foxes, burst from their camp by night, and setting at naught their engagements and spurning at the promised money, which they knew was less than they could get by plunder, they ravaged all the eastern coast of Kent. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 865 ignorant of the future. But the Danes break their com- pact, and sallying out privi- ly by night, lay waste all the eastern coast of Kent. CHARTERS 1n 864. Burcrepd of Mercia, Juiy 25. subscribed also by « Aithelswyth regina.” IT, 79. ANNALS. anno 865. The Normans (7) A. 865. CHARTERS in 865, none. came into ee the middle of (9) A. 866. 1 Asthelberht governed his After one year king Athel- 1 And thelbryht reigned five years, and his body lies at Sherburne. CHARTERS rn 866. 1. Bure- RED king of Mercia, subscribed also by “ £thelswyth regina” and others. 11,80. 2. Another of Burerenp, /Ethelswyth and others, II, 81. 3. A charter of Eauuurns, [Il, 83] very mutilated and imperfect, is refered to some period between 860 and 866. Here 7thered, fEthelbyrht’s brother, succeeded to the kingdom of the West-Saxons. And the same year a great heathen army came to the land of the English nation, and took up their winter quarters among the East- Angles, and there were horsed; and the East-Angles made peace with them. * De Dayountio or-zra is probably a corruption of De Danra “from Denmark.” kingdom five years in peace, with the love and respect of his subjects, who felt deep sorrow when he went the way of all flesh. His body was honourably interred at Sher- borne by the side of his brother. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 866, which was the eighteenth of king Alfred, /Ethelred, brother of Athel- bert, king of the West Saxons, undertook the government of the kingdom. And the same year a large fleet of pagans came to Britain from the Danube,* and wintered in the kingdom of the Eastern- Saxons, which is called in Saxon East-Anglia; and there they became principally an army of cavalry. But, to speak in nautical phrase, my vessel to the byrht died, and his body rests peaceably in the monastery named Sherborne. Cuap. I], Or rus reign or KING ErueLrep. Ethered succeeded to the throne after the death of his brother Ethelbyrht. In the same year the fleets of the tyrant Ingware arrived in England from the north, and wintered among the East Angles, and having establish- ed their arms there, they get on their horses, and make peace with all the inhabitants in the neighbourhood. I will no longer commit power of the waves and of its sails, or keeping off from land steer my round-about course through so many calamities of wars and series of years, but will return to that which first prompted me to say, as has come to my knowled revered lord Alfred, king of to this’task ; that is I think it right in this place briefly to relate as much ge about the character of my the Anglo-Saxons, during the years that he was an infant and a boy. FROM A. D. 866 —-_ Florence ing to their covenant; but the pagans, like cunning foxes, burst from their camp by night, and setting at naught the promised money, which they knew was less than they could get by plunder, they ravaged all the eastern coast of Kent. 849 TO 901. 31 Huntingdon Simeon night, and plundered the promised to py them money, eastern parts of Kent. if they should keep the treaty. money, they remained quiet for a few days. But in the mean time, break- ing forth secretly by night from their camp, like foxes, and violating the truce, and despising the promise of But, oh horrible! they devastated the eastern coast of the Ken- tish people. They knew that they should get greater money by stolen booty than by peace: as also it happened. (6) 865. (7) 866. 1 thelbert governed his kingdom five years in peace, with the love and respect of his subjects, who felt deep sorrow when he went the way of all flesh. His body was honourably interred at Sher- born by the side of his brother. ZEthelred, brother of /Ethel- bert king of the West-Saxons, undertook the government of the kingdom. And the same year a large fleet of pagans came to Britain from the Danube,* and wintered in the kingdom of the Eastern- Angles, which is called in Saxon LEast-Anglia; and there they became principally an army of cavalry. + This ‘notice of Alfred’s early years occurs in Florence under 871, but is placed here in juxta-position with Asser and Simeon. + I think in right in this plac about his [Aurrep’s] character during the The same year, when Adel- brict had reigned five years over Wessex, and ten years over Kent, he tasted death. After him Adelred his brother received the insignia of the kingdom. This year there came into the country of the English a very large army of the pagans, whose leaders were Hinguar and Ubba, very brave but very cruel men. Hinguar was a man of great talent, but Ubba was a man of won- derful bravery. Passing the winter among the East-Angles, they receiv- ed from them a truce and horses, and for the sake of peace spared their strength for a while. e briefly to relate years that he was an infant and a boy. Thus king Ethelbyrht, for five years, peacefully, amia- bly, and honorably ruled the kingdom that had been intrusted to him; and it was to the great grief of his princes, bishops, and all his people, that he went the way of all flesh: leaving the government of his earthly kingdom, he began to be a partaker of the other. 2 He was buried near his bro- ther in Sherborne, where he awaits the comfort of a future resurrection. In the following year, that is 866, which was the 18th since the birth of Elfred, Ethelred the brother of Ethel- byrt king of the West-Saxons, undertook the government of the kingdom. In the same year a great fleet of pagans from Danubia entered the borders of Bri- tain, and so wintered on the kingdom of the Eastern-An- glia, which is called in the Saxon tongue East-angle, and there the large army became cavalry, riding and scouring here and there, carrying off an enormous booty, and sparing neither men nor women, widows nor maids, In these days the prince El- fred began with sweet medi- tation to be imbued with 32 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Savon Chronicle Asser He was beloved by his father and mother, and even by all the people, above all his brothers, and was educated alto- gether at the court of the king. As he advanced through the years of infancy and youth, his form appeared more comely than that of his brothers; in look, in speech, and in manners he was more graceful than they. His noble nature implanted in him from his cradle a love of wisdom above all things; but, with shame be it spoken, by the un- worthy neglect of his parents and nurses, he remained illiterate even till he was twelve years old or more; but he listened with serious attention to the Saxon poems which he often heard recited, and easily retained them in his docile memory. He was a zealous practiser of hunting in all its branches, and hunted with great assiduity and success; for skill and good fortune in this art, as in all others, are among the gifts of God, as we also have often witnessed. On a certain day, therefore, his mother was showing him and his brothers* a Saxon book of poetry which she held in her hand, and said, “‘ Whichever of you shall the soonest learn this volume shall have it for his own.” Stimulated by these words, or rather by the Divine inspiration, and allured by the beautifully illuminated letter at the beginning of the volume, he spoke before all his brothers, who, though his seniors in age, were not so in grace, and answered, “‘ Will you really give that book to one of us, that is to say, to him who can first understand and repeat it to you?”” At this his mother smiled with satisfaction, and confirmed what she had before said. Upon which the boy took the book out of her hand, and went to his master to read it, and in due time brought it to his mother and recited it. After this he learned the daily course, that is, the cele- bration of the hours, and afterwards certain psalms, and several prayers, contained in a certain book which he kept day and night in his bosom, as we ourselves have seen, and carried about with him to assist his prayers, amid all the bustle and business of this present life. But sad to say! he could not gratify his most ardent wish to learn the liberal arts, because, as he said, there were no good readers at that time in all the kingdom of the West-Saxons. This he confessed, with many lamentations and sighs, to have been one of his greatest difficulties and impediments in this life, namely, that when he was young and had the capacity for learning, he could not find teachers ; but, when he was more advanced in life, he was harassed by so many diseases unknown to all the physicians of this island, as well as by internal and external anxieties of sovereignty, and by continual invasions of the pagans, and had his teachers and writers also so much disturbed, that there was no time for reading. But yet among the impediments of this present life, from infancy up to the present time, and, as I believe, even until his death, he continued to feel the same insatiable desire of knowledge, and still aspires after it. Ethelwerd 866 * Rather ‘his brother,’ for in 861, when Alfred was 12 years old, Ethel best was king, FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 866 — Florence Huntingdon He was beloved by his father and mother, and even by all the people, above all his brothers, and was educated alto- gether at the court of the king. As he advanced through the years of ee and youth, his form appeared more comely than that of his brothers; in look, in speech, and in manners he was more graceful than they. But, with shame be it spoken, by the un- worthy neglect of his parents and nurses, he remained illilerate even till he was twelve years old or more; but he listened with serious attention to the Saxon poems which he often heard recited, and easily retained them in his docile memory. He practised hunting in all its branches, with great assiduity and success ; as in all the other gifts of God. On a certain day, therefore, his mother was showing him and his brothers a Saxon hook of poetry, which she held in her hand, and said, ‘‘ Whichever of you shall the soonest learn this volume shall have it for his own.” Stimulated by these words, or rather by the Divine inspiration, and allured by the beautifully illuminated letter at the beginning of the volume, he spoke before all his brothers, who though his seniors in age, were not so in grace, and answered, *« Will you really give that book to one of us, that is to say, to him who can first understand and repeat it to you?” At this his mother smiled with satisfaction, and confirmed what she had before said. Upon which the boy took the book out of her hand, and went to his master to read it, and in due time brought it to his mother and recited it. After this he learned the daily course, that is, the cele- bration of the hours and afterwards certain psalms, and several prayers, contained in a certain book which he kept day and night in his bosom, and carried about with him to assist his prayers, amid all the bustle and business of this present life. But sad to say! he could not gratify his most ardent wish to learn the liberal arts, because, as he said, there were no good readers at that time in a]l the kingdom of the West-Saxons. 33 Simeon heavenly doctrines; he was loved from his cradle by his father and mother with a wonderful love beyond all his brothers. Lastly, as his stature encreased during his youthful age, his form seemed more comely than his other brothers, and he shone alike remarkable in his counte- nance and in his graceful speech. As the stag thirsts for the water, so did he thirst that his inmost soul should be satiated, and his bosom be imbued with heavenly learning. But, oh shame! by the carelessness of his parents and attendants he remained illiterate even to the twelfth year of his age. The glorious young man and future king studied day and night to learn the Saxon poems, and was easy to be taught, industrious in the art of hunting, and incomparable in every perfection. On a certain day, therefore, his worthy mother was show- ing him and his brothers a Saxon book of poetry, which she held in her hand, and said, ‘“ Whichever of you shall the soonest learn this volume shall have it for his own.” Stimulated by the Divine inspiration, and allur- ed by the beautifully illumi- nated letter at the beginning of the volume, he answered his mother, “ Will you really give that book?’ At that his mother smiled with satis- faction, and confirmed what she had before said. Upon which the boy took the book out of her hand, and went to his master, shewed the book and read it, his teacher shew- ing him how to read it, and in due time brought it to his mother and recited it. His mother gave boundless thanks to the goodness of the Saviour, seeing that the grace of God was in the mind of her child. After this inflamed with the divine love, he learned cer- tain psalms, and the daily course, that is, the celebration of the hours, contained in a Essay 8 5 certain book which he kept day and night in his bosom, and carried about with him, 34 Saron Chronicle Asset HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 8 ao oC A. 867. Here the army went from East-Anglia over Humber- mouth to Eoforwic-chester [York] in North-humbria. And there was much dis- sension among that: people, and they had cast out their king Osbryht, and had taken to themselves a king, Atlla, of unkingly blood ; but late in the year they resolved that they would fight against the army; and therefore they gathered a large force, and sought the army at the town of York, and stormed the town, and some of them got In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 867, which was the nineteenth of the life of the aforesaid king Alfred, the army of pagans before mentioned removed from the East-Angles to the city of York, which is situated on the north bank of the river Humber. At that time a violent discord arose, by the instigation of the devil, among the inhabi- tants of Northnmberland; as always is used to happen among a people who have incurred the wrath of God. For the Northumbrians at that time, as we have said, had expelled their lawful king Osbert, and appointed a certain tyrant named Alla, not of royal birth, over the affairs of the kingdom; but when the pagans approached, by divine Providence, and the union of the nobles for the common good, that dis- cord was a little appeased, and Osbert and Alla uniting their resources, and assembl- ing an army, marched to York. The pagans fled at their approach, and attempt- ed to defend themselves within the walls to the city. The Christians, perceiving their flight and the terror they were in, determined to pursue them into the town and destroy its walls; which they succeeded in doing; for that city was not surrounded at that time with firm or strong walls: and After one year that army, leaving the eastern parts, crossed the river Humber into Northumberland to the city of Evorac, which is now commonly called the city of Eoferwic [York]. For there was then a great civil dissension between the inhabitants of that land, and they were so enraged that they also expelled their king Osbyrht from his seat ; and having confirmed their re- solves, they chose an obscure person for their king; and after some delay they turned their thoughts to raise an army and repulse those who were advancing. They collec- ted together no small bodies of troops, and reconnoitred the enemy: their rage was FROM A. D. 867 = Slorence Huntingdon 849 TO 901. 35 Simeon O happy race of men! O prudent king! you carry the key of wisdom, you love wis- dom, and shall be wise, doing judgment and justice upon the earth! Clerks, at- tend and see how your king carries the book in his bosom day and night, whilst you neither know nor wish to know the law of God. The same man, when he became king, lamented to himself that he had not been educated in the liberal] arts. 867. The army of pagans before mentioned removed from the East-Angles to the city of York, which is situated on the north bank of the river Humber. At that time a violent discord arose, by the instigation of the devil, among the inhabi- tants of Northumberland ; as always is used to happen among a people who have incurred the wrath of God. For the Northumbrians at that time, as we have said, had expelled their lawful king Osbriht, and appointed a certain tyrant named Ella, not of royal birth, over the affairs of the kingdom; but when the pagans approached, by divine Providence, and the union of the nobles for the common good, that dis- cord was a little appeased, and Osbriht and lla uniting their resources, and assem- bling an army, marched to York. The peeens fled at their approach, and attempt- ed to defend themselves within the walls of the city. The Christians, perceiving their flight and the terror they were in, determined to destroy the walls of the town, which they succeeded in doing ; for that city was not surrounded at that time with firm or strong walls, and In the second year of king Adelred, the aforesaid army, led by Hinguar and Ubba, came into Northumbria at Eoverwic [York] ; and there was among the people of that country a great discord, with the usual treachery, because they had cast off their king Osbrict, and had received another king, a degenerate man named Ellan: and therefore, having slowly come to an agreement, and assem- bled an army, they came to Eoverwic [Yorx], in which the pagan army was; and, having broken down the wall they rushed in and fought with them. CHARTERS rn 867. Erne.arp of Wessex, at Canterbury, subscrib- ed by forty others. II, 83. In the year 867, the 19th from the birth of king Elfred, the aforesaid army of pagans removed from the Eastern Angles to the city of York, which lies on the northern bank of the river Humber. At the same time a great dis- cord was kindled between the people of Northumberland, and most aptly; for he who loves hatred shall find it. For the Northumbrians at that time, had expelled their lawful king Osbert, and appointed a certain tyrant named AZlla, over the affairs of the kingdom; but when the pagans approached, by divine Providence, and the union of the nobles for the common good, that dis- cord was a little appeased, and Osbert and AElla uniting their resources, and assembl- ing an army, marched to York. The pagans fled at their approach, and the Christians perceiving their flight and the terror they were in, proved them- selves stronger than they. Saron Chronicle within, and there was an excessive slaughter made of the North-humbrians, some within some without, and the kings were both slain: and the remainder made peace with the army. BROMPTON. “ King Osbert, during a residence at York, wentout one day to bunt in a forest not far distant from the city, and on his return called at the bouse of Bruern Brocard, one of his princi- pal nobles, to refresh himself, after the fatigues of the cay. Bruern, knowing nothing of the king's com- ing, was gone down to the sea-side to secure the coast against pirates : and his wife, who was a lady of in- comparable beauty, and adorned with all the accomplishments which be- long to her sex, eritertained the king at dinner with due hospitality and splendour. Osbert was charmed with her beauty and her behaviour: as soon as dinner was over, he pretend- ed some secret business of great im- portance, and, attended to the door by some of his own servants, who were privy to his design, he led her to a private apartment, where he treated her with violence, and com- mitted a shameful breach of the faith which had been reposed in him. Having thus had his will. he return- ed to York, whilst the lady, whom he And the same year bishop Ealchstan died ; and he had the bishopric of Shireburne fifty years, and his body lies there in the town. A. 868. CHARTERS tn 868. 1. ErHE.: RED king of Wessex &c. II, 86. 2. CIALULF: subscribed by “ Athéred rex” and others. II, 87. 3. Burcnrep of Mercia, August 1, sub- scribed by Ethelrédus rex West- Saxoniz, Altredus frater regis West- Saxonie Edmundus rex West-Ang- lia [a mistake for East-Anglia] and others, II, 89. 4. ETHELSWITH, subscribed also by ‘' Aithelred rex Occidentalium Saxonum,” ‘‘ Alfred frater regis,” ‘“ Burgred rex Merci- orum ” and others. II, 94, HARMONY OF Asset when the Christians had made a breach as they had purposed, and many of them had entered into the town, the pagans, urged by despair and necessity, made a fierce sally upon them, slew them, routed them, and cut them down on all sides, both within and without the walls. In that battle fell almost all the Northumbrian warriors, with both the kings and a multitude of nobles; the remainder, who escaped, made peace with the pagans. had abused, lamented so bitterly, that her face was sore with weeping. Her husband, upon his return, asked the cause of so sudden a change, and such unusual sadness : upon which she told him all that had happened td her by the violence of the king. When she had finished the stoty, her husband comforted her, and bade her not to afflict herself, since he assured her, that because she had told him the truth, he would not love her less than he had done before; and, by God's good pleasure, would revenge both himself and her for the wrong which had been done them. In the same year, Ealhstan, bishop of the church of Sherborne, went the way of all flesh, after he had hon- ourably ruled his see four years, and he was buried at Sherborne. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 868, which was the twentieth of king Alfred’s life, The aforesaid revered king Alfred, but at that time occupying a _ subordinate station, asked and obtained in marriage a noble Mercian lady, daughter of /Ethelred, surnamed Mucil,* earl of the Gaini.+ The mother of this lady was named Edburga, of the royal line of Mercia, whom we have often seen with our own eyes a few years before her death. She was a venerable lady, and after the decease of her husband, years a widow, even till her own death. THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 867 excited: they joined battle, a miserable slaughter took place on both sides, and the kings were slain. Those of them who were left made peace with the hostile army. Immediately after this he sent for all his relations and friends, to whom he revealed the affront which had been put upon him, and his inten- tion to take speedy vengeance fur the same. To this they all consen- ted, and approving his design, took horse, and rode with him to York. The king, when he saw him, invited him in civil terms to draw near ; but Bruern, having all his relations at his back, defied the king, and re- nounced his allegiance, giving up all his lands and whatsoever else he held of him. This done, with- out any more words, Bruern with- drew, making no stay at all at court, Taking leave of his friends, he sailed straightway into Denmark, where he made a complaint to Codrin, king of the country, of the affront offered to him and his wife by Osbert, and desired his speedy suc- cour, that he might be in a condi- tion to take vengeance for the injury. Codrin and the Danes were rejoiced at this event, which gave them a sufficient excuse to invade Eng- land, that they might avenge the wrongs of Bruern, who was descend- ed from their blood.” In the same year died Eanulf, duke of Somerset ; also bishop Ealhstan, fifty years after his succession to the bishopric, in the diocese called Sher- borne. There also his body now reposes; and that of the above-named duke in the monastery called Glaston+ bury. After one year therefore, the ANNALS, Anno 858. A great famine. * ie. MICKLE, ‘the Bic.’ + Hence Gainsponoucu. she remained many FROM A.D, 849 TO 901, 868 = Slocence Huntingdon when the Christians had There were slain made a breach as they had pees and many of them ad entered into the town, along with the enemy, the pagans, urged by despair and necessity, made a fierce sally upon them, slew them, routed them, and cut them down on all sides, both within and without the walls. In that battle fell almost all the Northumbiian warriors, with both the kings and a multitude of nobles; the remainder, who escaped, made peace with the pagans; In the same year, Eallistan, bishop of the church of Sherborne, went the way of all flesh, after he had hon- ourably ruled his see four years, and he was buried at Sherborne. both kings, Osbrict and Ella and a numberless multitude of the Northumbrian nation, within the city and without ; and those who remained, made truce with the pagans, This year died bishop Alcs- tan; he was buried at Sher- borne, where he was bishop 50 years. 37 Simeott They fought cruelly on both sides, and both the kings fell. The rest who escaped made peace with the Dates, MATT. WESTM. In the year of Grace 867 ...... Then the wicked con- querors, the Danes, plundering the whole province of Northumbria up to the mouth of theriver Tyne, hav- ing conquered their enemies, made the country subject to themselves. The Northumbrian kings being slain, one Egbert, an Englishman by birth, gained the kingdom subject to the Danes, and held it 6 years. In that same year Ealhstan, bishop of the church of Sher- borne, left the course of this earthly life, when he had honourably ruled his bis- hopric for fifty years: he rests in the peace of the church, being decently buried in his episcopal see. 868. A comet-star was seen most plainly this year. The aforesaid revered king Alfred, but at that time occupying a _ subordinate station, asked and obtained in marriage a noble Mercian lady, daughter of Athelred, surnamed Mucil, earl of the Gaini. The mother of this lady was named Eadburg, of the royal line of Mercia, She was a venerable lady, and after the decease of her husband, she remained many years a widow, even till her own death. In the year 868, which was the 20th of king Elfred, he took a wife out of Mercia, to wit a Jady of noble birth, daughter of Ethelred earl of the Gaini, who was surnamed “Mucel” by the English, be- cause he was great in body and old in wisdom. 38 Saxon Chronicle Here the same army went into Mercia to Snotengaham {Norrineuam], and there took up their winter settle- ment. And Burgred king of the Mercians,, and his witan, begged of Ethered king of the West-Saxons, and Alfred his brother, that they would help them, that they might fight against the army. And then they went with the est-Saxon power into Mer- cia as far as Nottingham, and there met with the army within the fortress; and besieged them therein: but there was no great battle ; and the Mercians made peace with the army. Asset In the same year, the above- named army of pagans, leav- ing Northumberland, invad- ed Mercia and advanced to Nottingham, which is called in the British tongue, ‘“ Tig- gocobauc,’’ but in Latin, the ‘‘ House of Caves,” and they wintered there that same year. Immediately on their ap- preach, Burhred, king of Mercia, and all the nobles of that nation, sent messen- gers to Hthered, king of the West-Saxons, and his brother /Elfred, suppliantly entreat- ing them to come and aid them in fighting against the aforesaid army. Their request was easily obtained ; for the brothers, as soon as promised, assembled an immense army from all parts of their dominions, and entering Mercia, came to Nottingham, all eager for battle, and when the pagans, defended by the castle, re- fused to fight, and the Chris- tians were unable to destroy the wall, peace was made between the Mercians and pagans, and the two brothers Ethelred and Alfred, return- ed home with their troops. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 868 army of the pagans, of whose arrival we have spoken above, measured out their camp in a place called Snot- ingaham [Norttincuam ], and there they passed the winter. And Burhred king of the Mercians, with his nobles, consented to their remaining there without reproach. 868 Florence In the same year, the above- named army of pagans, leav- ing Northumberland, invad- ed Mercia and advanced to Snotingaham, which is called in the Brisish tongue, ‘ Tig- guocobauc,”’ but in Latin, the “‘ House of Caves,” and they wintered there that same year. Immediately on their ap- proach, Burbred, king of Mercia, and all the nobles of that nation, sent messen- gers to Athered, king of the ‘West-Saxons, and his brother fElfred, suppliantly entreat- ing them to come and aid them in fighting against the aforesaid army. Their request was easily obtained ; for the brothers, as soon as promised, assembled an immense army from all parts of their dominions, and entering Mercia, came to Nottingham, all eager for battle, and when the pagans, defended by the castle, re- fused to fight, and the Chris- tians were unable to destroy the wall, peace was made between the Mercians and agans, and the two brothers thelred and /Elfred, return- ed home with their troo ps. FROM A. D. Huntingdon King Adelred, in the third year of his reign, went to Snotingham ([Norrincuam] with his brother Alfred to help Burhred king of Mercia : for the aforesaid army had ‘come to Nottingham, and was there in the winter. 849 TO 901. 39 Simeon At that time the aforesaid army of pagans, leaving the Northumbrians, went on an unlucky visit to the city of Snotingham, which is called Tignocebanc in the British tongue, butin a Latin transla- tion means the House of Caves. Here these insidious strangers wintered that same year; and their coming was sufficiently unpleasing to all the people. The warlike king of the Mercians, named Burhred, and all his nobles took council with his earls and fellow-soldiers and all the people under him, how he should vanquish the ene- mies by valour in battle, and drive them out of the kingdom. He also sent swift messengers to Elfred that man of brilli- ant valour, and to Ethelred his brother, that they should render him brotherly help whereby they might conquer the enemy with victorious bravery: which they, like dauntless lions, did not delay to do. Then Elfred, roused to action, begins with rapid orders to call together his army, recol- lecting this within his bosom: He who hath a craven mind And holds himself as mean or poor, Within his breast will never find The heart to aim at golden store. A man who is fearful, and thinks himself needy or wretched, never fulfils what he longs for, unless he is brave in aiming at what he desires. His brother was kindled with like fury, and they came to Nottingham ready to stand against all temptations. But the pagans covered by the walls of the fortress threaten war, draw up their forces, and shew a numerous army. but they tremble, clearly see- ing that the Christian people with a hundred and a thou- sand times a thousand resist- ed their enemies, at the ex- hortation of their sacred 40 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Sarton Chronicle Asset Ethelwerd 868 A. 869. In the year of our Lord’s in- At the end of a year, there- Here the army again went to York, and sate there one year. A. 870. Here the army rode across Mercia into East-Anglia, and took up their winter quarters at Thetford. And the same winter king Eadmund fought against them, and the Danes got the victory, and slew the king, subdued all the land, and destroyed all the minsters which they came to. The names of their chiefs who slew the king were Ing- wair and Ubba. | The death of St Edmund is related at great length in the ANNALS, but the account, as it there stands, bears evident marks of being an ecclesias- tical legend, minute—as, all the ecclesiastical tales of that age are,— even to tediousness, and in this respect very different from all the secular histories of those times. Its details cannot be received without great suspicion, carnation 869, which was the twenty-first of king Alfred’s life, the aforesaid army of the pagans, gallopping back to Northumberland, went to York, and there passed the winter. ANNALS. Anno 869. There was, again, a great famine, a mortality among men, and a pest among cattle. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 870, which was the twenty-second of king Alfred’s life, the above-named army of pagans passed through Mercia into Kast- Anglia, and wintered at Thetford. In the same year Edmund, king of the LEast-Angles, fought most fiercely against them. But, lamentable to say, the pagans triumphed, Edmund was slain in the battle, and the enemy reduced all that country to subjection. fore, the army was transport- ed to the city of York, and there also they measured out their camp in the winter season. CHARTERS 1n 869, 1. Bure- RED of Mercia, subscribed also by Athelswith regina,” and others, 11, 94, 2. ErHewRep king of Wessex. II, 95. Again after a year they de- parted, and passed through Mercia into East-Anglia, and there measured out their camp for the winter at Thet- ford. King Edmund carried on war against them for a short time, but he was slain there by them, and his body lies entombed at a place call- ed Beadoricsuuyrthe, * and the barbarians obtained the victory, but with the loss of their king soon afterwards; for king luuar died the same year. * St Edmund’sbury, FROM A.D. 849 TO 870 = Florence The oratory of St Andrew the Apostle at Kemesege was built and dedicated by Alhun bishop of Winchester. Huntingdon £01. 41 Simeon leaders. At length, by the grace of Almighty God, the blowing of the storm ceased, the hearts of the wicked were appeased: they asked peace and a truce from the Chris- tians, as if they prayed to Christ himself to be merciful to them : Ruler, check the boisterous wave, And as thou rulest heaven above, Cause the earth to be at peace And bind it fast in love. Peace was made between the kings and the pagans, and they parted one from the other, like sheep from the goats. 869. The aforesaid army of the pagans, gallopping back to Northumberland, went to York, and there remained a whole year. + The cruelties of the Danes, as related by Ingulf, Brompton and Matthew of Westminster, would fill many pages and rather con- cern the history of the church, hav- ing fallen mostly on the monasteries. When therefore all the forces of the English were collected, and Hinguar saw his men besieged and unequal in strength, with the cunning of a les, and soothing words, he obtained a truce from the English, and returning to York, remained there cruelly one year.t In the year 869, which was the 21st of Elfred’s life, the aforesaid army again went to the nation of the Northum- brians, and there remained a year raving and raging, slay- ing and destroying numbers of men and women. BROMPTON. This year the city of Alclud, once so famous, and lying at the western end of the famous wall, was destroyed by the Danes. 870. The above-named army of pagans passed through Mercia into East- Anglia, and there wintered at Thetford. In the same year Edmund, the most blessed and glorious king of the East-Angles, as is read in his Passion, was martyred by the pagan king Inguar, in the Second Indiction, 12 Calends of Dec. [Nov. 20] being Sunday. CH RTERS rw 870. _Nocharters can be certainly ascribed to this year. There is one, of ETHELRED king of Wessex [vol. II, p. 97) without a date which therefore may belong to either of the years 867, 8, 9, 870 or 871. Essays In the year of our Lord’s Incarnation 870, which was the 5th of king Adelred, St Eadmund went to heaven. For the aforesaid armyof king Hinguar coming through Mercia to Thetford, remained there the winter, and wrought dreadful destruction on that wretched people. But king Eadmund, choosing to die rather than to see the desolation of his people, was taken by them, and shot by the arrows of those wicked men through his body, when it had been fastened to a tree. But the mercy of God wrought many signal miracles over his body. In the following year, whilst the rays of the sun were lighting the climes of the world, and the 870th year from our Lord’s incarnation was come, then dawned the day, on which king Elfred was in his 21st year. But the enormous multitude of the Danes, and, if I may so speak, their troops of legions, were gathered toge- ther, so that they seemed to be many thousands, and as if they had increased from a thousand to 20 myriads. They then went through Mercia to the East-Angles, and boldly wintered in the city of Theodford. But king Ead- mund, at that time, reigned over all the kingdoms of the East-Angles; a holy and just man, as the end of his blessed life proved. That same year the aforesaid king fought fiercely and manfully with his men against the army. But, because the merciful God foreknew that he was to arrive at the crown of mar- 42 Saron Chronicle THE INVASION OF EAsT ANGLIA, ACCORDING TO BROMPTON, AnosE FROM THE FOLLOWING STORY: “* There was a man of royal birth in the kingdom of Denmark, named Lodbroc, who had two sons, Hin- guar and Hubba. This man embarked one day with his hawk in a small boat, to catch ducks and other wild fowls on the adjoining sea coasts and islands, A terrible storm at length arose, by which Lodbroc was carried away. and tossed for several days At that same time they came to Medeshamstede, and burned and beat it down, slew abbot and monks, and all that place, which before was full rich, they reduced to nothing. And the same year died Asset over every part of the Ocean. After numberless perils, he was cast ashore on the coast of Norfolk, near the village of Redham, Here he was found having his hawk alone for his companion, and presented to king Edmund. That monarch, struck with the manly beauty of his form, re- tained him at his court, and heard from his own mouth the recital of his adventures. He was then asso- ciated with Berne the king’s hunts- man, and indulged in all the plea- sures of the chase, for in the exercise both of hunting and hawking he was remarkably graceful, and succeeded in capturing both birds and beasts according as he had a mind. This, however, produced jealousy in the mind of Berne the huntsman, who one day, as they went out together hunting, set upon Lodbroc unawares, and having foully slain him, buried his body in the thickets of the forest. In the same year Ceolnoth, archbishop Ceolnoth, archbishop of Canterbury, went the way of all flesh, and was buried peaceably in his own city. Then went AXthered and /Elf- red his brother, and took ZEthelred bishop of Wiltshire,and appointed him archbishop of Canterbury, because formerly he had been a monk of the same minster of Canterbury. All so soon as he came to Canterbury, and he was stablished in his archbishopric, he then thought how he might expel the clerks who (were) there within, whom the archbishop Ceolnoth had (before) placed there for such need* . . . as we shall relate. The first year that he was made archbishop, there was so great a mortality, that of all the monks whom he found there within, no more than five monks survived. Then for the* ... he (com- manded) his chaplains, and also some priests of his vills, that they should help the few monks who there survived to do Christ’s service, because he could not so readily find monks who might of themselves do the service ; and for this reason he commanded that the priests, the while, until God should give peace in this land, should help the monks. In that same time was this land much distressed by frequent battles, and hence the archbishop could not there effect it, for there was warfare and sorrow all his time over England ; and hence the clerks remained with the monks. Nor was there ever a time that monks were not there within, and they ever had lordship over the priests. Again the archbishop Ceolnoth thought and also said to those who were with him, “All so soon as God shall give peace in this land, either these priests shall be monks, or from elsewhere I will place within the minster as many monks as may do the service of themselves: for God knows that I........ deteh Ge rte tesa Te) HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 870 But Lodbroc was the master of a small dog of the harrier species, which he had nourished from its birth, and which loved him much. When Berne the huntsman returned home with the other hounds, this little dog remained alone with its master’s body. In the morning the king asked what had become of Lodbruc ; to which Berne replied, that he had parted from him yester- day in the wood, and had not seen him since. At that moment the harrier entered the hall, and went round, wagging its tail, and fawning on the whole company, and especi- ally on the king. When he had eaten his fill, he again left the hall: this occurred repeatedly, until some one at last followed the dog to see where he went, and, having found the body of the murdered Lodbroc, came and told the story to the king. Archbishop Ceolnoth also died that same year, and is buried in the city of Can- terbury. * The MS. is imperfect in these places. A. 871. Here the army came to Reading in Wessex. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 871, which was the twenty-third of king Alfred’s life, the pagan army, of hateful memory, left the East-Angles, and entering After one year therefore the army of the barbarians above- mentioned set out for Read- ing, and the principal object of the impious crew was to attack the West-Saxons; and FROM A. D 87) Florence. The affair was now diligently en- quired into, and when the truth was at last discovered, the huntsman was exposed on the sea without oars in the boat which had belonged to to Lodbroc. Ina few days he was cast ashore in Denmark, and brought before the sons of Lodbtoc, who putting him to the torture, demanded of him what had become of their father, to whom they knew the boat belonged. To this Berne replied, that their father Lodbroc had fallen into the hands of Edmund king of East-Anglia, by whose orders he had been put to death.” In the same year Ceolnoth, archbishop of Canterbury, went the way of all flesh, and was buried peaceably in that same city. whom the venerable fEthelred succeeded. To Huntingdon 819 TO 901. 43 Simeon tyrdom, he there fell gloriously. Of his passion I would fain insert some particulars into our history, that the sons of men may know and perceive how terrible is Christ the son of God in the counsels of men, and with what glori- ous triumph he adoms those whom he torments here under the name of suffering, that the saying may be fulfilled, He is not crowned except he strive lawfully, (Il Tus. ii, 5]. Now king Eadmund devoutly undertook the government of the East-Angles, and held it with the right hand of power, always adoring and glorifying Almighty God for all his good BROMPTON. When king Ed- mund was slain, his brother Edwold dreading the pleasures of the world seeing that a hard lot had fallen on himself and his brother, retired to the monastery of Carnelia in Dorset- shire near a clear well, which saint Augustine had formerly brought out of the earth by prayer to baptize the people in, and there he led a hermit’s life on only bread and water. MATT. WESTM. In the same year died Weremund bishop of Dommoc [Dunwicn], after whom that see was transferred to Helm- ham, and, in the place of two bis- hops, one of whom had his see at Dommoc, and the other at Helm- ham, one bishop was ordained, by name Wilred, who had for his successors, in the same place, the following: Athulf, £lfric, Theo- dred, Ethelstan, Algar, Alwin, ZElfric, another #Elfric, Stigand, 4Ethelm, and Herstan. things which he had enjoyed. The same year in which the illustrious king and martyr entered through the crown of martyrdom into the joys of heavenly felicity, Ceolnoth archbishop of the city of Dover, went the way of all flesh, and was buried by the clerks in the same city. 871. The pagan army, of hateful memory, left the East-Angles, and entering the kingdom of the West- Saxons, came to the royal In the 6th year of king Adel- red, a new army very great, like a flowing river that carries all along with it, went into Wessex as far as Reding; but not being able, In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 871, which was the 23rd of.king Alfred’s life, the pagan army, of hateful memory,left the East-Angles, and entering the kingdom of 44 Sarton Chronicle And three days after this, two of their earls rode forth. Then Alderman thelwulf met them at Unglafield, and there fought against them, and got the victory: and there one of them, whose name was Sidroc, was slain. About three days after this, king Athered and Alfred his brother led a large force to Reading, and fought against the army, and there was great slaughter made on either hand. HARMONY Asset the kingdom of the West- Saxons, came to the royal city, called Reading, situated on the south bank of the Thames, in the district called Berkshire. And there, on the third day after their arrival, their earls, with great part of the army, scoured the country for plunder, while the others made a rampart between the rivers Thames and Kennet on the right side of the same royal city. They were en- countered by /thelwulf, earl of Berkshire, with his men, at a place called Englefield, both sides fought bravely, and made long resistance. At length one of the pagan earls was slain, and the greater part of the army destroyed ; upon which the rest saved themselves by flight, and the Christians gained the victory. Four days afterwards, /thel- red, king of the West-Saxons, and his brother élfred, united their forces and marched to Reading, where, on their arrival, they cut to pieces the pagans whom they found outside the fortifica- tions. But the pagans, nevertheless, sallied out from the gates, and a fierce en- gagement ensued. At last, grief to say, the Christians OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 875 three days after they came, their two consuls, forgetting that they were not on board their fleet, rode proudly through fields and meadows on horseback, which nature had denied to them.t } This and many other passages of Ethelwerd are very obscure, But duke Adulf met them, and, though his troops were few, their hearts resided in brave dwellings: they point their darts, they rout the enemy, and triumph in abun- dant spoils. At length four days after their meeting, Ethered arrives with his army ; an indescribable battle is fought, now these, now those urge on the fight with spears immoveable; duke Athulf falls, who a short FROM A. D. 871 Slorence city, called Reading, situated on the south bank of the Thames, in the district called Berkshire. And there, on the third day after their arrival, two of their earls, with great pes of the army, scoured the country for plunder, while the others made a rampurt between the rivers Thames and Kennet on the right side of the same royal city. They were en- countered by thelulf, earl of Berkshire, with his men, at a place called in English Englefield, and in Latin ANGLORUM CAMPUS; both sides fought bravely, and made long resistance. At length one of the pagan earls was slain, and the a part of the army estroyed; upon which the rest saved themselves by flight, and the Christians gained the victory. Four days afterwards, king AEthered, and his brother Alfred, united their forces and marched to Reading, where, on their arrival, they cut to pees the pagans whom they ound outside the fortifica- tions. But the pagans, nevertheless, sallied out like wolves from the gates, and a fierce en- gagement ensued. At last, grief to say, the Christians 849 Huntingdon by reason of their numbers, to advance together, they proceeded in different bands and by different routes. Their leaders were two kings, Basreg and Aldene. After 4 days, then, CHARTERS rn 871. ALFRED king of Wessex, 1II,96. Itis nota contemporary charter, but a Latin translation, of a more modern date. Mr Kemble ascribes it to the twelfth century. 1. duke Edelwlf, meeting 2 consuls of the army at Engla-feld, fought and conquered them, and slew one cousul named Sidrac. and armed in triple mail. TO 901. 45 Simeon the West-Saxons, came to the royal city called At Reading, situated on the South bank of the river Thames, in the dis- trict which is now called Berkshire by the inhabitants of that country. On the third day from that on which these enemies of the English came, their earls with a great multitude gallopped along the side of that river, and carried off a great quan- tity of booty. Some of them tried to make a rampart between the river Thames and Kennet: but their design, and the work of the Danes was dissipated by the help of the English, that the words of the scholastic poet might be fulfilled : Though deck’d in Tyrian robes He shall not shun his fate ; The gems that wreathe his brow Draw down the people’s hate, &c. &e. And when those plunderers were setting manfully to their work, suddenly Ethelwlf the vigorous duke of Berkshire came down upon them, sur- rounded by his squadrons Seeing the multitude of the barbarians, the leader of the Christians said to his men, “ Their army is numerous, but yet we may treat them with contempt ; for though they attack us with the advantage of more men, yet our commander, Christ, is braver than they.” The Christians then meet the Danes, trusting in the protec- tion of the Christian name: the aforesaid duke exhorts his men especially to resist their adversaries, being posted with his legions at a place called Englafeld. Here they fought a fierce battle, in which many fell wounded or were killed on both sides. There fell a prince of the Danes with a great multitude of his army ; the others escaped by flight; and the Christians gained the palm of victory and were masters And after 4 days, king Edel- red and his brother with many folk came to Reding and fought with the army; and many fell on both sides, and the Dacians [Danes] were victorious. of the place of death. These things having thus hap- pened, when 4 days from that time had elapsed, the owerful king Ethelred, and Re brother Elfred, having assembled large armies, as is the power and the excellence of kings, came to Reding, desiring either to live glori- ously in their kingdom, or to die in battle for Christ. And when king Ethelred, powerful in arms, had arrived with his beloved brother at the gate of the fortress, slaying and 46 Saron Chronicle And alderman £thelwulf was slain, and the Danish- men had possession of the place of carnage. And about four days after this, king 7thered and Al fred his brother fought against the whole army at Ascesdun [Aspown], and they were in two bodies : in the one were Bachsecg and Halfdene the heathen kings, and in the other were the earls. And then king /thered fought against the division under the kings, and there king Bagsecg was slain ; and ZElfred his brother against the division under the earls. Asset fled, the pagans obtained the victory, and the aforesaid earl Aithelwulf || was among the slain. || MATT. WESTM. Eadulf. calls him Roused by this calamity, the Christians, in shame and in- dignation, within four days, assembled all their forces, and again encountered the pagan army at a place called /Escesdun [Asupown, ] which means the “ Hill of HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 87) time before had obtained the victory: the barbarians at last triumph. The body of the above-named duke is privately withdrawn, and carried into the province of the Mercians, to a place called Northworthige, but Deoraby [Drney] in the lan- guage of the Danes. Four days after king Athe- red with his brother Alfred fought again with all the army of the Danes at Asces- dune [Asupown,] and there was great slaughter on both sides : but at last king Ethe- red obtained the victory. the Ash.” The pagans had divided themselves into two bodies, and began to prepare defences, for they had two kings and many earls, so they gave the half part of the army to the two kings, and the other part to all their earls. Which the Christians perceiving, divided their army also into two troops, and also began to construct defences. But Alfred, as we have been told by those who were present, and would not tell an untruth, marched up promptly with his men to give them battle ; for king /Ethered remained a long time in his tent in prayer, hearing the mass, and said that he would not leave it, till the priest had done, or abandon the divine pro- tection for that of men. And he did so too, which after- wards availed him much with the Almighty, as we shall de- clare more fully in the sequel. Now the Christians had determined that king Athered, with his men, should attack the two pagan kings, but that his brother Alfred, with his troops, should take the chance of war against the two earls. Things being so arranged, the king remained a long time in prayer, and the pagans came up rapidly to fight. Then £lfred, though possessing a sub- ordinate authority, could no longer support the troops of the enemy, unless he retreated or charged upon them with- out waiting for his brother. At length he bravely led his troops against the hostile army, as they had before arranged, but without awaiting his brother’s arrival; for he relied in the divine counsels, and forming his men into a dense pha- FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 871 = Florence Huntingdon fled, the pagans obtained the victory, and the aforesaid earl /Ethelulf was among the slain. Roused by this calamity, the And after 4 d ki Christians, in shame and in- a ays, king Adelred and his brother dignation, within four days assembled all their forces, and again encountered the pagan army at a place called /Escesdun [Asupown, which means the “ Hill of the Ash.” The pagans had divided themselves into two bodies, and began to prepare defences, for they had two kings and many earls, so Alfred fought again at Esces- dune, against all their army which had been divided into 2 parts. In one division were the pagan kings Basreg and Aldene, against whom fought king Edelred, and he slew king Basreg: in the other division were the pagan consuls, against whom fought Alfred the king’s brother, they gave half of the army to the two kings, and the other half to all their earls, Which the Christians perceiving, divided their army also into two troops, and also began to construct defences. But Alfred marched up promptly with his men to give them battle; for king Xthered remained a long time in his tent in prayer, hearing the mass, and said that he would not leave it, till the priest had done, or abandon the divine pro- tection for that of men. And he did so too, which after- wards availed him much with the Almighty, as we shall de- clare more fully in the sequel. Now the Christians had determined that king thered, with his men, should attack the two pagan kings, but that his brother Alfred, with his troops, should take the chance of war against all the earls. Things being so arranged, the king remained a long time in prayer, and the pagans came up rapidly to fight. Then A®lfred, though possessing a sub- ‘ordinate authority, could no longer support the troops of the enemy, unless he retreated or charged upon them with- out waiting for his brother. At length he bravely led his troops against the hostile army, as they had before arranged, but without awaiting his brother’s arrival; for he relied in the divine counsels, and forming his men into a dense pha- 47 Simeon cutting down the enemy before and behind, the pagans on the other hand cut them down also; resisting with hostile rage. But, alas! oh grief! the enemies of the English that day obtained the victory. Ethelwlf, also, of Berkshire, who before had raged as a lion in battle, then fell with the rest of the faithful in Christ. The English people, stung with grief and daw, im- plored the aid of the angels, that they would deign to grant them the assistance of the divine support. Again then, after 4 days, they lead their troops against the aforesaid enemies ; they seize their arms, and post their legions at a place called Etscesdun, which may rever- ently be interpreted in the Latin tongue Mons Fraxint “The Ash-Mount.” There, famous men, and brave in battle, come forth to fight with all their force and with full good will. The Danes also, cunning as they are, dividing themselves into two bands, fight bravely with their men. They also had two kings and many dukes, who, using caution, gave half of the army to the two kings, and half to all the dukes. The English, perceiving this, themselves also appoint two bodies, and form machines and defences of warriors. But king Elfred goes forth with his legions most readily to battle, knowing without a doubt, that victory would not lie with a multitude of men, but in the pity and mercy of God. King Ethel- red, also, was in his tent at prayer, zealously hearing the mass, and the things which areof God. These holy mys- teries were of much benefit to the king and the Christian people, as will be shewn in sequel. Now the Christian people and the English had devoutly 48 Savon Chronicle and there earl Sidroc the elder was slain, and earl Sidroc the younger, and earl Osbearn, and earl Frena, and earl Hareld : and both divisions of the army were put to flight and many thousands slam: and they continued fighting until night. HARMONY OF THE Asset lanx, marched on at once to meet the foe. But here I must inform those who are ignorant of the fact, that the field of battle was not equally advantageous to both parties. The pagans occupi- ed the higher ground, and the Christians came up from below. There was also a single thorn-tree, of stunted growth, but we have ourselves never seen it. Around this tree the opposing armies came together with loud shouts from all sides, the one party to pursue their wicked course, the other to fight for their lives, their dearest ties, and their country. And when both armies had fought long and bravely, at last the pagans, by the divine judg- ment, were no longer able to bear the attacks of the Chris- tians, and having lost great part of their army, took to a disgraceful flight. One of their two kings, and five earls were there slain, together with many thousand pagans, who fell on all sides, covering with their bodies the whole plain of Ashdown.* * The site of this place is disputed, but it was probably Ashdown near Wantage. There fell in that battle king Begsceg, earl Sidroc the elder and earl Sidroe the younger, earl Obsbern, earl Frena, and earl Hareld; and all the pa- gan army pursued its flight, not only until night but until the next day, even until they reached the stronghold from which they had sallied. The Christians followed, slaying all they could reach, until it became dark. CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 871 BROMPTON. When mass was fully ended, the aforesaid king Ethel- dred hastened speedily into the battle. And although the Danes had pre-occupied the higher position of a mountain, he went up with his Christians from below, and de- feated his enemies, and with the lance which he carried in his hand, he manfully slew their king Oseg, and deprived of lifefanother king with the sword ae he, bore at his side. But it is proper that I should declare the names of those chiefs who fell there: king Berse [Bacsac], the veteran Sihtrix [S1proc] their consul the younger Sihtrix [Srproc] also, the consul Osbearn, the consul Frena, the consul Harald; and, so to speak, all the flower of the barba- rian youth was there slain, so that neither before nor since was ever such destruc- tion known since the Saxons first gained Britain by their arms. FROM A. D. 871 = Florence lanx, marched on at once to meet the foe. At length king Athered, hav- ing finished his prayers, came up, and, having invoked the great Ruler of the world, plunged into the fight. But here I must inform those who are ignorant of the fact, that the field of battle was not equally advantageous to both parties. The pagans occupied the higher ground, and the Christians came up from below. There was also a single thorn-tree, of stunted rowth. Around this tree the opposing armies came together with loud shouts from all sides, the one party to pursue their wicked course, the other to fight for their lives, their dearest ties, and their coun- try. And when both armies had fought long and bravely, at last the pagans, by the di- vine judgment, were no longer able to bear the attacks of the Christians, and having lost great part of their army took to a disgraceful flight. One of their two kings, and five earls were there slain, together with many thousand pagans, who fell on all sides, covering with their bodies the whole plain of Ashdown. There fell in that battle king Bagsege, earl Sidroc the elder and earl Sidroc the younger, earl Osbearn, earl Freana, and earl Harald; and the whole pagan army pursued its flight, not only until the night but until the next day, even until they reached the stronghold from which they had sallied. Essays 849 TO 901. 49 Simeon made up their minds to wage war bravely against their ene- mies, and that the brave king Ethelred, should fight with his myriads against the legions of the princes, namely one king of the English against two of the Danes; but king Elfred, with his dukes, fellow-soldiers, satraps, and people, was to take the lot of war, ashad been deter- mined, against all the dukes of the pagans. These things having been arranged on both sides, whilst king Ethelred was delaying a long time in prayer, and the pagans, ready for battle, had come quickly up to the place of deadly strife, Elfred, at that time second in the king- dom, was not able any longer to bear the hostile troops, unless he got the better of them either by battle or by death. On a sudden, starting up in his valour, he rushed with the holy squadrons of the English on the assembled multitudes of the Danes, the king came sheathed in arms and in prayer, who seeing that his brother’s army was beautifally drawn up, went forth like a warlike Judas to the battle. They fought on both sides with manly intent, and fell there by fifties, by hundreds, and by thousands. Those who fell for their country, were carried, as we may believe, to the country of eternal happiness: but the others were carried to him of whom it is said, that “He is the head of all iniquity.” “The kings not only exhorted their brave people with words, but also cut down their enemies with warlike valour. At last the Danes, seeing that the troops of their allies had fallen, were dis- turbed, were astonished, and were shaken; and boundless fear took hold of them. For the Danes were stricken with terror within their hearts, and no longer able to bear the attacks of the English in the engagement. They took to a disgraceful flight, and throwing away their swords, held out their right hands, and asked for peace. The kings, stretching out their swords, with difficulty appeased their warlike people. The vulgar herd ran this way and that way, and the English people pursued them throughout the wholeday. Many thousands were slain on that day, whose death the pious kings beholding, gave boundless thanks to God, who had given them such a palm of victory on that day. There, also, fell king Bergsecg and _ these dukes with him: that old Huntingdon And he slew 5 consuls, Sid- roc the elder, and Sidroc the younger, and Osbearn and Frena and Harolde: and their army was put to flight, and many thousands slain; and the battle lasted until the night. earl Sidroc, to whom may be applied that saying Tue an- CIENT OF EVIL Days. There fell, also, duke Sidroc the younger, and duke Osbern, duke Frana, and duke Har- ald, with their troops, who, choosing the broad and spa cious way, went down into the depths of thelake. They knew not the way of teaching nor understood its paths : it was kept far away from their faces. 50 Savon Chronicle And about fourteen days after this, king ASthered and fElfred his brother fought against the army at Basing, and there the Danes obtained the victory. And about two months after this, king ASthered and /l- fred his brother fought against the army at Meretun; and they were in two bodies, and they put both to flight, and during a great part of the day were victorious; and there was great slaughter on either hand; but the Danes had possession of the place of carnage. And there bishop Heahmund was slain, and many good men.* And after this battle there came a great ‘ sumor- lida’ to Reading. Ard after this, over Easter, king AEthered died; and he reigned five years, and his body lies at Winburne- minster. Asser After fourteen days had elapsed, king #thered, with his brother /Elfred, again joined their forces and marched to Basing to fight with the pagans. The eneiny came together from _ all quarters, and after a long contest gained the victory. BROMPTON. And then from that place [MERTON] a tyrant of the Danes named Somerled, marching as far as Reading. destroyed the city and all he found there. After this, Etheldred king of the West-Saxons fought with him, and having been there mortally wounded died on the 9th before the calends of May [Ap. 23] in the 5th year of his reign, and was buried at Wymburn. * MATT. WESTM. Hamund bishop of Sherborne, to whom suc- ceeded ASthelhege, After this battle, another army came from beyond the sea, and joined them. The same year, after Faster, the aforesaid king thered, having bravely, honourably, and with good repute, govern- ed his kingdom five years, through much tribulation, went the way of all flesh, and was buried in Winborne Minster, where he awaits the coming of the Lord, and the first resurrection with the just. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 874 Fourteen days after, they again took courage and a se- cond battle was fought at a place called Basing : the bar- barians came and took part over against them ; the fight began, and hope passed from the one side to the other; the royal army was deceived, the enemy had the victory, but gained no spoils, Furthermore, after 2 months the aforesaid king /Ethered renewed the battle, and with him was his brother Alfred, at Merantune [Merron], against all the army of the barbarians, and a large num- ber was slain on both sides: the barbarians obtained the victory. Bishop Heahmund there fell by the sword, and his body lies buried at Cegineshamme (Keynsuam]. Many others also fell or fled in that battle, concerning whom it seems to be a loss of time to speak more minutely at present. 10 There came a summer- army innumerable to Reading and were eager to fight against the army of the West- Angles : to their aid also came those who had already long time been ravaging. 1 Lastly, after the above-men- tioned battle, and after the Easter of the same year, died king Ethered, from whose family I derive my origin. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 87) —- Florence Huntingdon After fourteen days had Again, after 14 days, king elapsed, king AXthered, with his brother Alfred, again joined their forces and marched to Basing to fight with the pagans. ‘The enemy came together from all quarters, and after a long contest gained the victory., Again, when 2 months had passed, king /Ethered with his brother Alfred, fought with the pagans, who had divided themselves into 2 bands, at Meretun, and for a long time were victorious, having routed all their ene- mies. But they came back to the fight, many fell on both sides, and the pagans, gaining the victory, were masters of the field of death. The same year, after Easter, the aforesaid king /thered, having bravely, honourably, and with good repute,govern- ed his kingdom five years, through much tribulation, went the way of all flesh on the 9th before the calends of May [Ap. 23], and was buried in Winborne Minster, where he awaits the coming of the Lord, and the first resurrection with the just. Adelred and his brother Al- fred fought with the army at Basing, and the Danes con- quered. 51 Simeon When this glorious battle was ended, the kings, and all their people were filled with immense joy, seeing the flight of the Danes and the bravery of the English. After the lapse of 14 days, the excellent king Ethelred, not knowing that the year of jubilee brings with it forgive- ness, aided by the trusty help of his brother, got toge- ther his army, gathered his spoils, and distributed arms and many gifts to his fellow-soldiers. Those leaders of the people knew for certain that commonwealths will be safe, if those who study wisdom rule them, or if those who rule them study wisdom. Again the Danes and English were gathered together for battle, and when their utmost fury had been put forth, the pagans almost gained the victory. Again, after 2 months king Adelred and his brother Al- fred fought with the army at Merton, and many fell on both sides, and the Danes, after having long been beaten back, at last conquered. There was slain bishop Ed- mund and many nobles of England. After this battle a great army came in the summer to Reading. This year, after Easter, died king Adelred, and was buri- ed at Winburnhamminster [Wimsourn-Minster]; he reigned 5 years. In the same year, king Ethel- red full of years and perfect in goodness, after fighting so many famous battles, began to enjoy the happiness of a future life and everlasting kingdom with the King of all ages in the land of the living. Saron Chronicle Then fElfred the son of ZEthelwulf, his brother, suc- ceeded to the kingdom of the West-Saxons. And about one month after this, king Alfred with a small band fought against the whole army at Wiltun, and put them to flight for a good part of the day; but the Danes had possession of the place carnage. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS GEthelwerd 874 2 ANpdNoWI HAVE FOLLOWED UP Asser MY PLAN, DEAR COUSIN MATILDA, AND WILL BEGIN TO CONSOLIDATE MY SUBJECT; AND LIKE A SHIP WHICH, HAVING SAILED A LONG WAY OVER THE WAVES, ALREADY OCCUPIES THE PORT, TO WHICH IN HER PATIENT VOYAGE SHE HAD BEEN TENDING : 80 WE, LIKE SATLORS, ARE ALREADY ENTERING, AND AS I BRIEFLY INTI- MATED TO YOU IN MY FORMER EPISTLE, 80 ALSO IN THE PREFACES TO THIS PRESENT BOOK, AND WITHOUT ANY IMPROPRIETY I AGAIN REMIND You, AND THOUGH I CUT SHORT THE COURSE OF THAT WILICH IS VISIONARY, NOT IMPELLED BY NECESSITY, BUT THROUGH LOVE OF YOUR AFFECTION, J Now SEND YOU AGAIN MORE FULLY TO BE MEDITATED UPON CONCER- NING THE ORIGIN OF OUR FAMILY, AND SUFFICIENTLY EMBRACE THE STUDY OF YOUR SINCERITY. 3 Thus far then. 4 I will now leave obscurity and begin to speak concerning the sons of Athulf. They were five in number: the first was Ethelstan, who also shared the kingdom with his father : the second was Ethelbald, who also was king of the Western English : the third was Ethelbyrht, king of Kent: the fourth was Ethered, who after the death of Edelbyrht succeeded to the kingdom, and was also my grandfather’s grandfather : the fifth was Elfred, who succeeded after all the others to the whole sovereignty, and was your grandfather’s grand- father. 5 Wherefore I make known to you, my beloved cousin Matilda, that I receive these things from ancient tradition, and have taken care in most brief style to write the history of our race down to these two kings, from whom we have taken our origin. To you therefore, most beloved, I devote this work, compelled by the love of our relationship : if others receive them with haughtiness, they will be judged unworthy of the feast; if otherwise, we advise all in charity to gather what is set before them. 6 Let us return then to the story that we broke off, and to the death of the above-named Ethered. The same year, the aforesaid 7 His reign lasted 5 years, /Elfred, who had been up to that time only of secondary rank, whilst his brothers were alive, now, by God’s per- mission, undertook the government of the whole kingdom, amid the acclama- tions of all the people, and if he had chosen, he might have done so before, whilst his brother above-named was still alive; for in wisdom and other qualities he surpassed all his brothers, and moreover was warlike and victorious in all his wars. And when he had reigned one month, almost against his will—for he did not think he could alone sustain the multitude and ferocity of the pagans, though even during his brothers’ lives, he had borne the woes of many,— he fought a battle with a few men, and on every unequal terms, against all the arm of the pagans, at a hill called Wilton, on the south bank of the river Guilou, from which and he is buried in the mona- stery which goes by the name of Wimborne. 8 Cuap. III. OF THE REIGN OF Kine ALFRED. 9 After these things, Alfred obtained the kingdom when his brothers were dead,—he also was the youngest son of king Athulf—over all the provinces of Britain. But the army cf the Angles at that time was small on account of the king’s absence, who at the same time had performed his brother’s obse- quies, and although their ranks were not full, yet their hearts were firm in their FROM A. D. 87) = Florence The same year, the aforesaid /Elfred, who had been up to that time only of secondary rank, whilst his brothers were alive, now, by God’s per- mission, undertook the government of the whole kingdom, amid the acclama- tions of all the people.* And when he had reigned one month, almost against his will,—for he did not think he could alone sustain the multitude and ferocity of the pea though even during is brothers’ lives, he had borne the woes of many— he fought a battle with a few men, and on very unequal terms, against all the army of the pagans, at a hill called Wilton, on the south bank of 849 TO 901. Huntingdon Then Alfred his brother, son of Adelwlf, reigned over Wessex. * Here Florence gives the account of Alfred's youthful years, transfer- red to page 31, And about one month after, he fought with few men at Wiltont against the army, and for a long time drove them back; and after that, the Danes gained the victory. + BROMPTON says Watron in Sussex: but MATT. WEST. says “ Wilton on the south bank of_the river Guilo, from which that pro- vince is called Guiltoscira [W1LT- SHIRE].” 53 Simeon The aforesaid king being thus removed from this world, Elfred is chosen by the dukes and prelates of the whole nation, and not only by them but by all the people he is entreated to rule over them to do vengeance on the nations, and rebuke the people. When he had thus gained the rule of the whole nation, he always was a brilliant warrior, and victor in all his battles by the smiles of fortune and the agency of Christ. The aforesaid army - rebelled against him most fiercely, but, seeing the strength of the English, and knowing their own weakness, they turned their backs in 54 Saron Chronicle And this year nine general battles were fought against the army in the kingdom south of the Thames, besides which, Alfred the king’s brother, and single alder- men, and king’s thanes, oftentimes made incursions on them, which were not counted : and within the year nine earls and one king were slain. And that year the West- Saxons made peace with the army. Asser river the whole of that dis- trict is named. And after a long and fierce engagement, the pagans, seeing the danger they were in, and no longer able to bear the’ attack of their enemies, turned their backs and fled. But, oh, shame to say, they deceived their too audacious pursuers, and again rallying, gained the victory. Let no one be surprised that the Christians had but a small number of men, for the Saxons had been worn out by eight battles in one year, against the pagans, of whom they had slain one king, nine dukes, and innumerable troops of soldiers, besides endless skirmishes, both by night and by day, in which the oft-named Alfred, and all his chieftains, with their men, and several of his ministers, were engaged without rest or cessation against the pagans. How many thousand pagans fell in these numberless skir- mishes God alone knows, over and above those who were slain in the eight battles above mentioned. In the same year the Saxons made peace with the pagans, on condition that they should take their departure, and they did so. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 87s breasts, they rejoice in the fight, and repel the enemy ; but at length oppressed with fatigue, they cease from the fight. The barbarians hold possess- ion of a sterile field of battle: Afterwards also they spread themselves and ravage the country. During their foul domination there were three battles fought by the Angles, besides the battles before-mentioned, and eleven of their consuls, whom they call “ earls,”’ were slain, and one of their kings. Lastly, in the same year the Eastern Angles made peace with them. And the number of years to the encamping of the barba- rian army in Reading and to the death of king Ethelred and the succession of his bro- ther Alfred was the seventy- first from the time that Eg- bert had first consolidated the kingdom, and forty seven from the time that the Mer- cians and Western Angles carried on civil wars at the place called Ellandune, and king Egbert received the name of victor twenty-six years from the time that the battle was fought in Pedre- dan [PetuErron] ; and twenty years after the contest which was waged near the wood called Oday? andlastly five years from the 871 Slorence the river Guilou from which river the whole of that dis- trict is named. And after a long and fierce engagement, the pagans, seeing the danger they were in, and no longer able to bear the attack of their enemies, turned their backs and fled. But, oh, shame to say, they deceived their too audacious pursuers, and again rallying, gained the victory, and were masters of the place of death. Let no one be surprised that the Christians had but a small number of men, for the Saxons had been worn out by eight battles in one year, against the pagans, of whom they had slain one king, nine dukes, and innumerable troops of soldiers, besides endless skirmishes, both by night and by day, in which the oft-named Alfred, and all his chieftains, with their men, and several of his ministers, were engaged without rest or cessation against the pagans. How many thousand pagans fell in these numberless skir- mishes God alone knows, over and above those who were slain in the eight battles above mentioned. In the same year the Saxons made peace with the pagans, on condition that they should take their departure, and they did so. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. Huntingdon In this year were nine pitch- ed battles against the army in the kingdom on the south side of the Thames; besides the assaults which Alfred his brother and the king’s gene- rals often made. And this year were slain 1 king and 9 earls. And the nobles of Wessex made a truce with the army of the pagans. Simeon flight. But, oh shame! they turned again by the rash- ness of their pursuers, and were provoked again to bat- tle, and, gaining the victory, were masters of the field of death. In the same year, the Saxons made a treaty of peace with the same pagans, on condi- tion that they should depart from them. 56 Savon Chronicle Asser HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 871 arrival of the pagans in the country of the East Angles. And without long delay, they then went to Reading. A. 872. Here the army went from Reading to London, and there took up their winter- quarters: and then the Mercians made peace with the army. CHARTERS rn 872, 1. Wer- FRITH bishop [of Winchester] II, 98, 2. EruEvrep duke of Mercia, sub- scribed by ‘ Burhred rex Merci- orum,” ‘‘ thelswyth regina” and others. II, 99. It is without date, and may belong to either 872, 873, or 874. 3. WERFRITH bishop [of Winchester] II,100. A. 873. Here the army went into North-humbria, and took up their winter-quarters at Tork- sey in Lindsey: and there the Mercians made peace with the army. CHARTERS 1n 873. none. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 872, the twenty- fourth of king Alfred’s life, the above-named army of pagans went to London, and there wintered. The Mercians made peace with them. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 873, the twenty- fifth of king? Alfred, the above-named army, leaving London, went into the country of the Northum- brians, and there wintered in the district of Lindsey. And the Mercians again made treaty with them. After a year had elapsed from the time of their coming to Reading, they measured out their camp in the neigh- bourhood of the city of London. But the Mercians ratify a treaty with them, and pay a stipend. After one year the barbarians change their position to the neighbourhood of the city of Lindsey in a place called Torksey. The Mercian people renew their treaty with them. A. 874, Here the army went from Lindsey to Repton, and there took up their winter-quarters, and drove king Burgred over sea about twenty-two years after he had obtained the kingdom. And subdued the whole country: and Burgred went to Rome, and there remained and his body lies in St Mary’s church at the English school. CHARTERS 1n 874. none. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 874, the twenty- sixth since the birth of king fElfred, the army before so often mentioned left Lindsey and marched to Mercia, where they wintered at Repton. Also they compelled Burh- red, king of Mercia, against his will, to leave his kingdom and go beyond the sea to Rome in the twenty-second year of his reign. He did not long live after his After the lapse of a year, the barbarians at length re- move to a place called Rep- ton, and drive king Burhred from the kingdom beyond the sea. Twenty and two years are enumerated from the time that he first occupied his father’s kingdom. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 87 = Florence Huntingdon 57 Simeon 872. Died Alhun bishop of the Wiccii; and Werefrith, a nutseling of the church of Worcester, and a man most learned in the Holy Scrip- tures, was ordained bishop by /Ethelred the archbishop of Dover, on the 7th before the ides of June, [Junz 7] being Whitsunday.* The above-named army of pagans went to London, and there wintered. The Mercians made peace with them. In the Ist year of king Al- * Here Florence places a long ac- count of Alfred's learned men, which will be given hereafter. fred, the army came from Reding to London, and was there through the winter. And the Mercians made a truce with the army. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 872, the 24th from king Elfred’s birth, the aforesaid army of the pagans went to London, and there wintered ; and the Mercians made a truce with them. 873. The above-named army, leaving London, went into the country of the Northum- brians, and there wintered in the district of Lindsey. And the Mercians again made treaty with them. But, in his 2nd year, king Haldene led the same army to winter in Lindesei at Tor- cheseige. In the year 873, the 25th from the birth of Elfred king of the English, the army so often before mentioned, leav- ing London, went to the country of the Northum- brians, and there wintered : and the Mercians again made peace with them. 874. The army above mentioned left Lindsey, and marched to Mercia, where they wintered at Repton. Also they compelled Burh- red, king of Mercia, against his will, to leave his kingdom and go beyond the sea to Rome, in the 22nd year of his reign: he did not live long after his Essays In the 3rd year, they winter- ed at Rependune [Rerron]. Then were gathered together with him three other kings, Godrun, Oscetin, and An- wend, and they became in- vincible. And they drove beyond the sea king Burhred, who had reigned 22 years over Mer- cia. But Burhred went to Rome, and dying there, was buried in the church of St Mary at the English School. In the year of our Lord’s In- carnation 874, the 26th from the birth of Elfred king of the English, the army above- mentioned left the province of Lindsay, and entering Mercia, wintered at Repton. Burhred also, king of the Mercians they drove out of his kingdom and compelled to go to Rome, in the 22nd year of his reign. He did not live long to the 58 Savon Chronicle And that same year they committed the kingdom of the Mercians to the keeping of Ceolwulf, an unwise king’s thane; and he swore oaths to them, and delivered hosta- ges that it should be ready for them on whatever day they would have it, and that he would be ready both in his own person and with all who would follow him, for the behoof of the army. Asset arrival, but died there, and was honourably buried in the school of the Saxons, in St Mary’s church, where he awaits the Lord’s coming and the first resurrection with the just. The pagans also, after his ex- pulsion, subjected the whole kingdom of the Mercians to their dominion; but by a most miserable arrangement, gave it into the custody of a certain foolish man, named Ceolwulf, one of the king’s ministers, on condition that he should restore it to them, whenever they should wish to have it again ; and to guar- antee this agreement, he gave them hostages, and swore that he would not oppose their will, but be obedient to them in every respect. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 874 The above-named king did not abandon his hope in Christ, but made a journey to Rome and died there, and his body, laid in a worthy mausoleum, reposes in the temple of Christ’s blessed mother, which is now called the school of the English. They now break the peace, and devastate the lands of the Mercians. At the same time Ceolf possessed the kingdom of the Metcians. A. 875. Here the army went from Repton: and Healfdene went with some of the army into North-humbria, and took up winter-quarters by the river Tyne. And the army subdued the land, and oft-times spoiled the Picts, and the Strathclyde Britons. And the three kings,Godrum, and Oscytel, and Anwynd, went with a large army from Repton to Grantabridge, and sat down there one year. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 875, which was the 27th of king /Elfred, the above-named army, leaving Repton, divided into two bodies, one of which went with Halfdene into North- umbria, and having wintered there near the Tyne, reduced all Northumberland to sub- jection. CHARTERS tw 875. 1. CrEon- wor king of Mercia. II, 101. 2. Earpwo.r, subscribed also thus ; “« Filfred gratia Dei rex hance liber- tatem donationis mez _consensi Manuque mea propria roboravi et subscripsi.” and by others. II, 102. 3. CEoLWoLFr king of Mercia. II. 104. They also ravaged the Picts and the Strath-Clydensians. The other division, with Gothrun, Oskytel, and A- mund, three kings of the pagans, went to a place called Grantabridge, and there wintered. Lastly after a year, the bar- barians divide the kingdom into two parts. Halfdene the leader of the barbarians took one part namely the kingdom of the Northumbrians, and there he chose his winter-quarters near the river called the Tyne, and they ravaged the coun- try there on every side. But they also made frequent wars on the Picts and the men of Cumberland. Oskytel also, and Guthrum, and Annuth, their three kings, with an immense army, came from Repton to a place called Grantabridge [Cam- BRIDGE], and there remained twelve months. FROM A. D 87%} =—- Florence arrival, but died there, and was honourably buried in the school of the Saxons, in St Mary’s church, where he awaits the Lord’s coming and the first resurrection with the just. The Danish pirates also, after his ex- ee subjected the whole ingdom of the Mercians to their dominion; but by a most miserable arrangement, gave it into the custody of a certain foolish man, named Ceoluulf, one of the king’s ministers, on condition that he should restore it to them, whenever they should wish to have it again; and to guar- antee this agreement, he gave them hostages and swore that he would not oppose their will, but be obedient to them in every respect. 849 TO 901. Huntingdon The Danes then gave the kingdom of Mercia to a fool- ish king, one Ceolwlf, to keep for their own use. But he took an oath, and gave them hostages that he would res- tore to them the kingdom whenever they wished it, and that he would be ready to march to their aid, with all the men he could muster. 59 Simeon world after his arrival at Rome, because he went to Him who is the true life; and he was honourably buried in the church of St Mary, mo- ther of our Lord Jesus Christ, and ever a virgin, awaiting his second coming, when he shall largely give to the good their due rewards, and deal out their dreadful punish- ments to the wicked. The Danes, also, after his ex- pulsion, subjected the Mer- cian kingdom to their own rule. They gave it to a sol- dier of that same nation nam- ed Ceolwlf, on condition that, whenever they chose, they might have it back again, without deceit, and without harm. 875. The above-named army, leaving Repton, divided into two bodies, one of which went with Halfdene into North- umbria, and having wintered there near the Tyne, reduced all Northumberland to sub- jection. They also ravaged the Picts and the Strath-Clydensians. The other division, with Guthrun, Oskitell, and A- mund, three kings of the pagans, went to a place called Grantabridge, and there wintered., In the 4th year of king Al- fred, the army left Repton and was divided. King Alf- dene with one part, went into Northumbria, and was near the river Tine during the winter: and he seized the land and divided it out among his men, and they tilled it two years; and he often plundered the Picts. But the three kings of the Danes aforesaid with the greater part of the army came to Grantebridge and there remained 1 year. In the year of our Lord’s In- carnation 875, the 27th from the birth of king Elfred, the aforesaid army left Repton, and divided itself into 2 parts. One part with Hal- dene went into the country of the Northumbrians,and rava- ged it, and wintered near the river Tyne, and subdued all that nation under its domi- nion, and they plundered the Picts and the Stretcluttians (Stratu-Ciype Britons]. Eardulf the bishop and abbat Eadred, taking the body of St Cuthbert from the island of Lindisfarne, fled from place to place @ years before the face of the barbarians, with that treasure in their possession. The other part of that band with Gutthrum, and Oscytel, and Amund, kings of the pa- gans, came to a place named Grantabric [Camsnipce] and there wintered. 60 Savon Chronicle And that summer king /Elfred went out to sea with a fleet, and fought against the forces of seven ships, and one of them he took, and put the rest to flight. Asser In the same year, king Alfred fought a battle by sea against six ships of the pagans, and took 1 of them; the rest escaped by flight. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS CEthelwerd 8:75 Furthermore in the summer of the same year, king A/lfred came out with his army on board a fleet by sea, and the barbarians met them with seven tall vessels. A battle ensues, and the Danes are routed: the king takes one of their ships. A. 876. Here the army stole away to Wareham, a fortress of the West-Saxons. CHARTERS rn 876. None. And after- wards the king made peace with the army, and they gave the king hostages from among the most distinguished men of the army. And then they swore oaths to him on the holy ring, which they never before would do to any nation, that they would speedily depart his kingdom. And, notwithstanding this, that part of the army which was horsed stole away by night from the fortress to Exeter. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 876, being the twenty-eighth year of king Alfred’s life, the aforesaid army of the pagans, leaving Grantabridge by night, enter- ed a castle called Wareham where there is a monastery of holy virgins between the two rivers Frawn [Frome] and Trent, in the district which is called in British Dornevers but in Saxon Tuornszra, placed in a most secure situation, except that it was exposed to danger on the western side from the contiguity of the land. With this army Alfred made a solemn treaty, to the effect that they should depart out of the kingdom, and for this they made no hesitation to give as many hostages as he named. And they swore an oath over all the relics, which with king Alfred were next in veneration after the Deity himself, that they would depart speedily from the Kingdom. But they again practised their usual trea- chery, and caring nothing for the hostages or their oaths, they broke the treaty, and sallying forth by night, slew all the horsemen that the king had round him, and turning off into Devon, to another place called in Saxon Exanceaster, but in British Carr-wisc, which means in Latin, the city of Ex, situated on the eastern bank of the river Wisc, they directed their course suddenly towards the south sea, which divides Britain and Gaul, and there passed the winter. After one year, 8 The army which had been at Cambridge made a junction with the western army, a thing which they had not done before, near the town whichis called Werham, and ravaged the greater part of that province. 4 Also the king ratified a treaty of peace,with them and gave them money. 5 But they gave him hostages chosen out of their atmy, and made oath to him on their sacred bracelet which they had never done to the kings of the other districts, that they would quickly leave their territories. 6 But they broke the peace andcontravened their engage- ments, and the following year extended their troops into the province of Devon, where they passed the winter at Exeter. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 876 Slorence Huntingdon In the same year, king This year king Alfred fought Alfred fought a battle by sea against six ships of the pagans, and took one of them ; the rest escaped by flight. a battle by sea against 7 ships, 1 of which he took, the others fled. 61 Simeon But king Alfred, consoling himself with a sea-fight, found six ships at sea, and engaging boldly with them took one of them: the others fled in fear. 876. The aforesaid army of the pagans, leaving Grantebrycg by _ night, entered a castle called Ware- ham where there is a monas- tery of holy virgins between the two rivers Frawn[ Frome] and Trent, in the district which is called in Saxon Dornsera, placed in a most secure situation, except that it was exposed to danger on the western side from the contiguity of the land. With this army Alfred made a solemn treaty, to the effect that they should depart ont of the kingdom, and for this they made no hesitation to give as many hostages as he named. And they swore an oath over all the relics, which with king Alfred were next in veneration after the Deity himself, that they would depart speedily from the kingdom. But they again practised their usual trea- chery, and caring nothing for the hostages or their oaths, they broke the treaty, and sallying forth by night, slew all the horsemen that the king had round him, and turning off into Devon, to another place called in Saxon Exanceaster, but in Latin, the city of Ex, situated on the eastern bank of the same river, they directed their course suddenly towards the south sea, which divides Britain and Gaul. The following year, the army of the 3 kings came to Ware- ham in Wessex. But king Alfred made a truce with the army and received some of their nobles as hostages. And they made an oath to him, which they had never made to any other, that they would speedily leave his kingdom. The next night those of the army who had horses, went away secretly, and proceeded to Exanceastre [Exeter]. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 876, the 28th from the birth of king Elfred, the aforesaid army, leaving Cam- bridge by night, entered the castle which is called Ware- ham. Whose sudden coming the king of the West-Saxons fore- knowing made a treaty with them receiving hostages on the condition that they should leave his kingdom. But they in their usual man- ner, not caring for the hosta- ges and their oaths, broke the treaty one night, and turned off to Exeter which is called in British Carrwasc, in Latin Civitas aquarum, [City of Waters. |* * These notices of the march to Exeter are probably by anticipation : for the Saxon Chron. places it clearly in 877. and Asser, Florence and Huntingdon again notice it, as if under 877, 62 Saron Chronicle And that year Healfdene apportioned the lands of North-humbria: and they thenceforth continued ploughing and tilling them. This year Rolla overran Nor- mandy with his army, and he reigned fifty years. * The vision may be seen in the Annals but is not worth copying. Rollo’s history is well known. Asset In the same year, Halfdene, king of those parts, divided out the whole country of Northumberland between himself and his men, and settled there with his army. In the same year, Rollo, with his followers penetrated into Normandy. (This same Rollo, duke of the Normans, whilst wintering in Old Britain, or England, at the head of his troops, enjoyed one night a vision revealing to him the future. See more of this Rollo in the Annals.* HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 876 2 And in the course of the same year, 1 The tyrant Healfdene obtained the king- dom of the Northumbrians, all of whom he reduced to subjection. A. 877. Here the army came to Exeter from Wareham. 2 And king Alfred with his forces rode after the army which was mounted, as far as Exeter; and they were unable to overtake them before they were within the fortress, where they could not be come at. 1 And the fleet sailed round westwards: and then a great storm overtook them at sea, and there one hundred and twenty ships were wrecked at Swanawic. In the year 877, the pagans, on the approach of autumn, partly settled in Exeter, and partly marched for plunder into Mercia. The number of that disorderly crew in- creased every day, so that, if thirty thousand of them were slain in one battle, others took their places to double the number. Then king Alfred command- ed boats and galleys, i. e. long ships, to be built throughout the kingdom, in order to offer battle by sea to the enemy as they were coming. On board of these he placed seamen, and ap- pointed them to watch the seas. Meanwhile he went himself to Exeter, where the pagans were wintering, and having shut them up within the walls, laid siege to the town. He also gave order to his sailors to prevent them from obtaining any supplies by sea; and his sailors were encountered by a fleet of a hundred and twenty ships full of armed soldiers, who were come to help their countrymen. As soon as the king’s men knew that they were filled with pagan soldiers, they leaped to their arms, and bravely attacked those bar- baric tribes: but the pagans, who had now for almost a month been tossed and al- most wrecked among the Lastly their fleets put to sea and spread‘ their sails to the wind : but a lamentable storm came on, and the greatest part of them, namely a hun- dred of their chief ships, were sunk near the rock which is called Swanwich. FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 63 877 Florence 2 In the same year, Halfdene, the pagan king, divided out the whole country of Northumberland _ between himself and his men, and settled there with his army. 3 The same year, Rollo, with his followers penetrated into Normandy on the 15th cal. Dec. [Nov. 17]. Huntingdon This year Rollo came with his men into Normandy. Simeon 877. The following year the per- In the year of our Lord’s in- 4The pagan army left at Wer- jured army came from Ware- carnation 877, the 29th from ham with the fleet, went to Exeter. 1 Alfred collected his army and followed them; but, because they had already entered the city, he could not overtake them; but he forced them to give as many hostages and of as high rank as he should choose ; and he made a firm treaty with them, which they kept well for no short space of time; and they wintered there. But, before they arrived there, 120 of their ships were sunk by a storm at sea. ham to Exeter. King Alfred with many of his folk, followed the army, who had horses, but he could not overtake them before they reached Exeter. and the naval host, as they were rowing round, was overwhelmed by a sterm and 120 ships perish- ed at Swanawic [Swanwicy]. the birth of Elfred. CHARTERS rw 877. None. 64 Sarton Chrowicle And they there delivered to him hostages as many as he would have, and swore many oaths: and then they ob- served the peace well. And afterwards, during harvest, the army went into Mercia, and some part of it they apportioned, and some they delivered to Ceolwulf. Asser waves of the sea, fought vainly against them; their bands were discomfited in a moment, and all were sunk and drowned in the sea, at a place called Suanewic. In the same year the army of pagans, leaving Wareham, partly on horseback and partly by water, arrived at Suanewic, where one hundred and twenty of their ships were lost; and king Alfred pursued their land-army as far as Exeter; there he made a covenant with them, and took hostages that they would depart.] ft The same year, in the month of August, that army went into Mercia, and gave part of that country to one Ceol- wulf, a weak-minded man, and one of the king’s minis- ters; the other part they divided among themslves. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 877 t All that is included in brackets from [Tuts sAME RoLto (p. 62) is not found in the earliest MS. of Asser. The narrative is here very much confused and apparently in double. The barbarians renew their fraud and offer peace : hosta- ges were given, more than were demanded, to the effect that they would withdraw out of the territories of king Alfred ; and they did so. They devastata the kingdom of the Mercians and drive out all the free men. They erect their huts in the town of Gloucester. A. 878. CHARTERS tn 878. 1. ALFRED king of Wessex. II, 105. 2. Another of ALFRED, without date, (II, 106] is referred to some year between 871 and 878. Here during midwinter, after twelfth night, the army stole away to Chippenham, and overran the land of the West- Saxons, and sat down there. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 878, which was the thirtieth of king Alfred’s life, the army above-men- tioned left Exeter, and went to Chippenham, a royal villa, At the end of that year there- fore, this foul mob broke the compact which they had be- fore solemnly made with the Western Angles, and they take up their winter-quarters at Chippenham. FROM A. D. 878 Florence * Here Florence inserts “ King Alfred with many &c.” given in p. 63. On the approach of autumn, some of the pagans settled at Exeter, some went to Mercia. Part of which country they gave to Ceoluulf, to whose charge they had committed it, as has been stated: part they divided among them- selves, 849 TO 901. Huntingdon * Then the army gave him whatever hostages he asked for, and swore to keep the peace, and they kept it well. Then the army went into Mercia, and kept part of that kingdom, giving the rest to Ceolwlf. 65 Simeon That wick- ed army left Exeter. 878. The army above-men- tioned left Exeter, andj went to Chippenham, a royal villa, Essays In the 7th year of king Al- fred, when now the Danes were in possession of all the kingdom on the northern side of the Thames, and king Haldene was reigning in Northumberland, and the brother of Haldene was in East-Anglia, and the 3 kings aforesaid were with their king Ceolwlf in Mercia and London and Essex, but to king Alfred nothing was left save the land beyond the Thames; it seemed to the Danes to be a disgrace to them that even this should remain to him. The 3 kings therefore came to Chippenham in Wessex with a wonderful multitude of men who had lately come from Denmark, and covering the earth like locusts, since no 9 And going to the royal vill of Chippenham, there wintered, 66 Saron Chronicle And many of the people they drove beyond sea, and of the remainder the greater part they subdued and forced to obey them, except king fElfred. And he, with a small band, with difficulty retreated to the woods and to the fastnes- ses of the moors. Asset situated in the west of Wilt- shire, and on the eastern bank of the river, which is called in British, the Avon. There they wintered, and drove many of the inhabitants of that country beyond the sea by the force of their arms, and by want of the neces- saries of life. They reduced almost entirely to subjection all the people of that country. At the same time the above- named king Alfred, with a few of his nobles,and certain soldiers and vassals, used to lead an unquiet life among the wood- lands of the county of Somerset,in great tribulation ; for he had none of the necessaries of life, except what he could forage openly or stealthily, by frequent sallies, from the pagans, or even from the Christians who had submitted to the rule of the pagans, and as we read in the Life of St Neot, at the house of one of his cowherds. But it happened on a certain . day, that the countrywoman, wife of the cowherd, was preparing some loaves to bake, and the king, sitting at the hearth, made ready his bow and arrows and other warlike instruments. The unlucky woman espying the cakes burning at the fire, ran up to remove them, and rebuking the brave king, exclaimed :— Ca’sn thee mind the ke-aks, man, an’ doossen zee ’em burn? I’m boun thee’s eat’em vast enough, az zoon az ’tiz the turn. * The blundering woman little thought that it was king Al- fred, who had fought so many battles against the pagans, and gained so many victories over them. But the Almighty not only granted to the same glorious king victories over his enemies, but also permitted him to be harass- ed by them, to be sunk down by adversities, and depressed by the low estate of his followers, to the end that he might learn that there is one Lord of all things, to whom every knee doth bow, andin whose hand are the hearts of kings ; who puts down the mighty from their seat and exalteth the humble; who suffers his servants when they are elevated at the summit of prosperity to be touched by the rod of ad- versity, that in their humility they may not despair of God’s mercy, and in their prosperity they may not boast of their honours, but may also know, to whom they owe all the ___ things which they possess. We may believe that the calamity was brought upon the king aforesaid, because, in the beginning of his reign, when he was a youth, and influenced by youthfnl feelings, he would not listen to the petitions which ‘his subjects made to him for help in their necessities, or for relief from those who oppressed them; but he repulsed them from him, and paid no heed to their requests. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 878 The people were everywhere unable to resist: some of them were driven by the im- pious wretches over the sea into Gaul. King /Elfred was at this time straitened more than was be- coming. * This is in the Somerset dialect. FROM A. D. 878 Slorence situated in the west of Wilt- shire, and on the eastern bank of the river, which is called in British, the Avon. There they wintered, and drove many of the inhabitants of that country beyond the sea by the force of their arms, and by want of the neces- saries of life. They reduced almost entirely to subjection all the people of that country. At the same time king Alfred with a few of his nobles, and some of his vassals, used to lead an unquiet life among the wood- ‘lands of the county of Somerset, in great tribulation, for he had none of the necessaries of life, except what he could forage openly or stealthily, by frequent sallies, from the pagans, or even from the Christians who had submitted to the rule of the pagans.* * All writers on English History have had difficulty in finding any account in the Chroniclers of a defeat sufficiently severe to ac- count for Alfred’s fugitive condition in the early part of 878. The battle, which caused Alfred’s retreat into the marshes, seems to be preserved in the following narrative of John Brompton, but misplaced in 871, and altogether jumbled up with other events. “ When King Etheldred was dead, his brother, who hitherto, during the life of his brothers, had been of secondary rank, succeeded to the entire sovereignty of Wessex in the year of our Lord 872, and he was the first of all the kings of England who received regal unction, which was administered to him, as itis written, by Pope Leo at Rome. That same year the Danes pursued the new. king, and came up with him at Walton in Sussex, where King Alf- red, in the midst of the fight, fled from the field of battle, and escap- ed to the wood. From thence he went into Wessex, where he collec- ted all the people of his kingdom, and in a short time had so large an army, consisting of his own subjects and others, that the Danes did not dare to meet him in the field. He then went to.attack them in London, where they had taken up their residence: but the Danes, not venturing to give him battle, asked peace of him, and offered to let him choose out of them what- ever hostages he pleased, on condi- tion that they should leave his. do- minions, and never again enter them. On that same day, therefore, the hostages were given, and the 849 TO 901. Huntingdon one could resist them, they took possession of it for them- selves. Part, therefore, of the people fled',beyond the sea, part followed king Alfred, who hid himself with a few men in the marshes, and part sub- mitted to the enemy. Danes leaving London, marched the whole night, and never rested until they reached Exeter, which they surprised and occupied. When King Alfred heard this, he first hanged the hostages, and then followed the Danes with all his army to Exeter. The Danes, hearing that he was coming, abandoned thecity and went as far as Chippenham in Wessex; where they did much damage, plundering the country, and expelling the people from their habitations. But King Alfred came upon them there, and bravely en- countered them in a battle, where Hubba the brother of Hinguar, and Bruern Bocard, who had first con- ducted them from Denmark, were both slain, besides many others on both sides. At last the Danes pre- vailed, and Alfred, who had in too great haste marched against them with too small an army, escaped from the battle in the best manner that he could. The Danes, finding the body of Hubba among the slain, buried it amid loud lamentations, and placed over it a mound, which they called Hubbelowe, as it still is called to this very day in the county of Devon, where it is to be seen. «‘ When the barons of the counties of Somerset, Wilts, and Dorset, heard of the calamity that had be- fallen their king Alfred, they all as- sembled in great force at the place where he was ; for they were rejoic- ed to see him safe and sound, having believed that he was dead. Where- fore the king and the barons imme- diately took counsel about pursuing the Danes, and galloping after them with an immense army all that night, the next morning at the ninth hour 67 Simeon But king Elfred in those days suffered many tribula- tions, and led an unquiet life. they came up with them at Aben- dun. Alfred and his men immedia- tely assaulted them, and the battle which ensued was more valorously contested than any they had fought before: but the Danes resisted the English so bravely, that it is impos- sible to say on which side the loss of life was greatest. Thus the English, after having slain many of their enemies, were now reduced in num- bers and broken down by eight bat- tles fought this same year.” In the foregoing narrative the battle of Abendune is probably that of Edandune : and its connection with that of Chippenham is correct, though misplaced by 7 years. 68 Asset This particular gave much annoyance to the holy man St Neot, who was his relation, and often foretold to him, in the spirit of prophecy, that he would suffer great adversity on this account; but Alfred neither attended to the reproof of the man of God, nor listened to his true prediction. — Wherefore, seeing that a man’s sins must be corrected either in this world or the next, the true and the righteous Judge was willing that his sin should not go unpunished in this world, to the end that he might spare him in the world to come. From this cause, therefore, the aforesaid Alfred often fell into such great misery; that sometimes none of his subjects knew where he was or what had become of him. Sarou Chronicle And the same winter the brother of Inwer and of Healfdene came with In the same year the brother of Hynguar and Healfdene, with twenty-three ships, after twenty-three ships to Devon- shire in Wessex. And he was there slain, and with him eight hundred and forty men of his army: and there was taken the war-flag . which they called Raven. much slaughter of the Chris- tians, came from the country of Demetia [Souru-Wates], where he wintered, and sailed to Devon, where, with twelve hundred others, he met, with a miserable death, being slain while committing his mis- deeds, by the king’s servants, before the castle of Cynuit, into which many of the king’s servants, with their followers, had fled for safety. The pagans, seeing that the castle was altogether unprepared and unfortified, except that it had walls in our own fashion, determined not to assault it, because it was impregnable and secure on all sides, except on the eastern, as we ourselves have seen, but they began to blockade it thinking that those who were inside would soon surrender either from famine or want of water, for the castle had no spring near it. But the result did not fall out as they expected ; for the Christians, before they began to suffer from want, inspired by Heaven, judging it much better to gain victory or death, attacked the pagans suddenly in the morning, and from the first cut them down in great numbers, slaying also their king, so that few escaped to their ships.* HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 878 5 In the same year arrived Healfdene brother of the tyrant Inguuar with thirty galleys, in the western parts of the Angles, and besieged Odda duke of Devon in a certain castle, and war was stirred up on all sides. 6 The king of the barbarians fell, and eighty decads with him. 7 Atlast the Danes obtain the victory. *The ANNALS add hete: “ There they gained a very large booty, and amongst other things the standard called Raven, for they say that the three sisters of Hungar and Habba, daughters of Lodebroc, wove that flag and got it ready in one day. They say, moreover, that in every battle, whenever that flag went before them, if they were to gain the Victory a live crow would appear fly- ing on the middle of the flag; but if they were doomed to be defeated it would hang down motionless ; and this was often proved to be so.” FROM A. D. 878 —_ Hlorence In the same year the brother of Inguar and Halfdene, with twenty-three ships, after much slaughter of the Chris- tians, came from the country of Demetia [Soutn-Wates], where he had wintered, and sailed to Devon, where, with twelve hundred others, he met with - a miserable death, being slain while committing his mis- deeds, by the king’s servants before the castle of Cynuit, into which many of the king’s servants, with their followers, had fled for safety. The pagans, seeing that the castle was altogether unprepared and unfortified, except that it had walls in our own fashion, determined not to assault it, because it was impregnable and secure on all sides, except on the eastern ; but they began to blockade it, thinking that those who were inside would soon surrender either from famine or want of water, for the castle had no spring near it. But the result did not fall out as they expected; for the Christians, before they began to suffer from want, inspired by Heaven, judging it much better to gain victory or death, attacked the pagans suddenly in the morning, and from the first cut them down in great numbers, slaying also their king, so that few escaped to their ships. 849 TO 901. Huntingdon But now that king Alfred had neither land nor hopes of having any, the Lord looked down upon the remains of his people. For the brother of king Hal- dene came with 23 ships in- to Devonshire in Wessex. But the people of king Alfred slew him with 840 men of his army, and there was taken their standard called the Raven. 69 Simeon 2 That same year, Inguar and Healfdene, with 23 ships, sallied forth like fierce wolves from the country of Demetia [Sourn Wares], in which they had wintered, after much slaughter of the Christians which they had there perpe- trated, and after the burning of monasteries, and sailed to Devonshire, where they were slain with 1200 men by the brave servants of the king before the castle of Cynwith, for many of the king’s ser- vants, as has been said, had shut themselves up in that castle as a place of refuge. 70 Saron Chronicle And after this at Easter, king £lfred with a small band constructed a fortress at Athelney ; and from this fort- ress, with that part of the men of Somerset which was nearest to it, from time to time they fought against the army. Then in the seventh week after Easter he rode to Ecgbyrht’s-stane, on the east ef Selwood ; and there came to meet him all the men of Somerset, and the men of Wiltshire, and that portion of the men of Hanpesite which was on this side of the sea; and they were joyful at his presence. And on the following day he went from that station to Iglea, and on the day after this to Ethandun, and there fought against the whole army, and put them to flight, Asset The same year, after Easter, king #lfred, with a few fol- lowers, made for himself a stronghold in a place called fEthelingaeg [Arueney]. And from thence sallied with his vassals and the nobles of Somersetshire, to make fre- quent assaults upon the pagans. Also, in the seventh week after Easter, he rode to AKgbryhta’s stone [Brrx- ton] which is in the eastern part of the wood which is called Selwood, which means in Latin Silva Magna, the Great Wood, but in British Coit-mawr. Here he was met by all the neighbouring folk of Somer- setshire, and Wiltshire, and Hampshire, who had not, for fear of the pagans, fled beyond the sea; and when they saw the king alive after such great tribulation, they received him, as he deserved, with joy and acclamations, and encamped there for one night. When the following day dawned, the king struck his camp, and went to Acglea, where he encamped for one night. The next morning he re- moved to Ethandun, and there fought bravely and HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 878 1 Ethelnoth also duke of Somerset lived with a narrow retinue in a certain wood, 2 And they built a strong- hold in the island of Athelin- gay, which seems to have been situated in a marsh. 3 But the aforesaid king fought daily battles against the barbarians. 4 Having with him the pro- vince of Somerset only ; no others assisted him, except the servants who made use of the king’s pastures. Meanwhile, after the Easter} of that year, king Alfred t March 23, in 878. | fought against the army that was in Chippenham,at a place called Ethandune, and they obtain the victory. 878 Slorence The same year, after Easter, : king Elfred, with a few fol- lowers, made for himself, a stronghold in a place called /Ethelingaeig [ArTuetney]. And from thence sallied with his vassals of Somersetshire, to make fre- quent assaults upon the pagans. Also, in the seventh week after Easter, he rode to Egbriht’s stone [Brix- ton] which is in the eastern part of the wood which is called Selwood, which means in Latin Silva Magna, [the Great Wood]. Here he was met by all the neighbouring folk of Somer- setshire, and Wiltshire, and Hampshire who had not, for fear of the pagans, fled beyond the sea; and when they saw the king alive after such great tribulation, they received him, as he deserved, with joy and acclamations, and encamped there for one night. When the following day dawned, the king struck his camp, and went to Ecglea, where he encamped for one night. The next morning he re- moved to Ethandun, and there fought bravely and FROM A. D. Huntingdon INGULF. Not long after this, the king himself, feigning to be a glee- man, took his harp, and went into the camp of the Danes: where, being admitted into its most private places, he saw all the secrets of his enemies, and, when he had gratified his wishes, he withdrew without being found out and got back safely to Adelyngia, King Alfred, then, comfort- ed by this success, prepared a fortress at Ethelingeie Arnstney], and making this his stronghold, often fought against the army, with the help of the Somersetshire folk who lived near there. In the 7th week after East- er, he went to Licgbrichstan [Brixton], on the eastern side of Seleuude [Senwoop]. And there he was met by all the men of Somerset and Wilts and those who were left of the Hampshire men, all glad to see him. And the next day he went to fEglea (Chay uit]. And from thence the next day to Edendune [Ep- DINGTON ]. 849 TO 901. 71 Simeon 1 Having been consoled by an open oracle through St Cuth- bert, he fought against the Danes, at the time and place which that saint had ordered, and gained the victory, and ever from that time he was terrible and invincible to his enemies, and held saint Cuth- bert in especial honour. But how he conquered his enemies may be seen a little farther on. But king Elfred, trusting in the Lord God, and accompa- nied by a few companies of men, made a fortress in a place called Ethelingaige, in which residing with his fellow-soldiers, he often salli- ed from the fortress, and un- ceasingly crushed his foes. At the time of our Lord Jesus Christ’s resurrection, he did this. He left the fortress, and gathering his strength, afterwards, when 7 weeks of days and one over had been completed; that is 50 days, he came to Ecgbert’s stone, on the eastern side of the forest that is called in English Mucelwood, but in Latin Magna Silva [tHe Great Woop], and in British Corr- MAWUR. There all the people of Somerton, Wilton and Hampton met their beloved king; and, when they saw him, they rejoiced with boundless joy of heart, as if they received him back again from the dead. The third day after, he came with an imménse army to a place called Edderandun, 72 Saron Chronicle and pursued them as far as their fortress: and there he sat fourteen days. And then the army delivered to him hostages, with many oaths, that they would leave his kingdom, and also pro- mised him that their king should receive baptism : and that they accordingly fulfill- ed. And about three weeks after this king Guthrum came to him, with some thirty men who were of the most dis- tinguished in the army, at Aulre, which is near Athel- ney: and the king was god- father at baptism; and his chrismloosing was at Wed- more: and he was twelve days with the king; and he greatly honoured him and his companions with gifts. § dificia, evidently a mistake for BENEFICIA, gifts. Asset perseveringly against all the army of the pagans, whom, - with the divine help, he defeated with great slaughter, and pursued them flying to their fortification. Immediately he slew all the men, and carried off all the booty that he could find with- out the fortress, which he immediately laid siege to with all his army; and when he had been there fourteen days, the pagans, driven by famine, cold, fear, and last of all by despair, asked for peace, on the condition that they should give the king as many hosta-~ ges as he pleased, but should receive none of him in return, in which form they had never before made a treaty with any one. The king, hearing that, took pity upon them, and received such hostages as he chose ; after which the pagans swore mereover, that they would immediately leave the king- dom; and their king, God- yum, promised ta embrace Christianity, and receive bap- tism at king Alfred’s hands. All of which articles he and his men fulfilled as they had promised. For after seven weeks God- rum, king of the pagans, with thirty men chosen from the army, came to Alfred at a place called Alre, near Ath- elney, and there king Alfred, receiving him as his son by adoption, raised him up from the holy laver of baptism on the eighth day, at a royal villa named Wedmore, where the holy chrism was poured upon him. After his baptism he remained twelve nights with the king, who, with all his nobles, gave him many fine house.§ HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 878 But after the decision of the battle, the barbarians promise peace, ask a truce, give hos- tages, and bind themselves by oath. Their king submits to be baptized, and Alfred the king receives him from the laver in the marshy isle of Alney. Duke AEthelnoth also puri- fied the same at a place called Wedmore, and king; Alfred there bestowed upon him magnificent honors. A. 879. Here the army went to Cirencester from Chippen- ham, and sate there one year. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 879, which was the thirty-first of king Alfred, the aforesaid army of pagans leaving Chippenham, as they had promised, went to Ciren- cester, which is called in After a year from the time of the pagan army leaving Gloucester, they marched to Cirencester, and there win- tered. FROM A.D, 849 TO 901. 879 = Florence perseveringly against all the army of the pagans, whom, with the divine help, he defeated with great slaughter, and pursued them flying to their fortification. Immediately he slew all the men, and carried off all the booty that he could find with- out the fortress, which he immediately laid siege to with all his army, and when he had been there fourteen days, the pagans, driven by famine, cold, fear, and last of all by despair, asked for peace, on the condition that they should give the king as many hosta- ges as he pleased, but should receive none of him in return, in which form they had never before made a treaty with any one. The king, hearing their prayer, took pity upon them, and received such hostages as he chose; after which the pagans swore moreover, that they would immediately leave the king- dom; and their king, Guth- rum, promised to embrace Christianity, and receive bap- tism at king Alfred’s hands. All of which articles he and his men fulfilled as they had promised. ‘ For after seven weeks Guth- rum, king of the pagans, with thirty men chosen from the army, came to Alfred at a place called Aalr, near Ath- elney, and there king Alfred, receiving him as his son by adoption, raised him up from the holy laver of baptism and gave him the name of /Ethelstan, and the loosening of his chrysm was made on the 8th day at a royal vill named Weadmor. After his baptism he remained twelve nights with the king, who, with all his nobles, gave him many fine houses. 879. The aforesaid army of pagans leaving Chippenham, as they had promised, went to Ciren- cester, which is Essays Huntingdon And there he fought against the army and routed them and followed them to their 73 Simeon and found equally immense bodies of the pagans ready with an immense multitude for battle. When the sun’s bright ra” began to shine,the king and al the pride of his people clad themselves in their warlike ornaments, namely the threefold breastplate of faith, of hope, and of the charity of God. Rising from the ground, they boldly challenged to the battle, securely trusting in the cle- mency of their Creator, and protected by the ramparts of their dog who was standing by them, whose look shone, as that offa shining angel. The two nations fought through a great part of the day, and their voices, and the clatter of their arms were heard a long way off. : The great Beholder of all shines perceiving the inmost wish of his earthly king, granted to him the suffrage of the angelic power. He at length laid low his enemies and gained the victory, returning thanks to his heavenly Saviour with joy of heart. And whilst the king was smiling with his bands, the foemen, who remained, mourned with loud cries for the severity of their hunger and of the cold, and for fear of so great aking ; they ask for the mercies of peace—they who had always been the enemies of peace. fortress, and remained there 14 days. Then the army gave him hos- tages, and swore that they would leave his kingdom. They also promised that their king should be baptized ; and this was done. For Godrum their prince came to king Alfred and was baptized. Alfred became his god-father, when he had kept him with him 12 days, and he gave him many gifts at his departure. In the 8th year of Alfred, the aforesaid army went from Chippenham to Cirencester, and there passed the winter in peace. 10 They promise hostages, and hold out oaths in their righ. hands. The king, hearing all this, moved by his in-born cle- mency, grants all they re- quest. But their king, named Gut- thrum, bore witness that he wished to become a Christian, and was royally received under the hand of the most pious king in the purification of baptism. The same Gut- thrum was tinged with the baptism of Salvation, with 30 other elect men, and the king of the Saxons received him for his son of adoption. After he was baptized, he remained with him 12 nights ip great glory; to whom his spiritual father gave many and unspeakable gifts, and to all who received the faith of Christianity. In the year of our Lord’s In- carnation 879, the 31st from the birth of king Elfred, the aforesaid army of the pagans leaving Chippenham, as they 74 Saron Chronicle And that year a body of pi- rates drew together, and sat down at Fulham on the Thames. And that same year the sun was eclipsed during one hour of the day. HARMONY OF Asset British Carr Corr, and is situated in the southern part of the Wiccii,t and there they remained one year. In the same year, a large army of pagans sailed from foreign parts into the river Thames, and joined the army which was already in the country. They wintered at Fulham near the river Thames. In the same year an eclipse of the sun took place, between three o’clock and the evening, but nearer to three o'clock. THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 879 t Hence ‘ Wurcs wood forest’ Oxfordshire. In the course of the same year the sun was eclipsed. A. 880. Here the army went from Cirencester to East-Anglia, and settled in the land, and apportioned it. And that same year the army which previously had sat down at Fulham, went over sea to Ghent in France, and sate there one year. A. 881. Here the army went further into France, and the French fought against them: and In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 880, which was the thirty-second of king Alfred, the above named army of pagans left Ciren- cester, and went among the East Angles, where they divided out the country and began to settle. The same year the army of pagans, which had wintered at Fulham, left the island of Britain, and sailed over the sea to the eastern part of France, where they remained a year at a place called Ghent. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 881, which was the thirty-third of king Al- fred’s life, the aforesaid army A year after the eclipse, the aforesaid army struck their tents, and leaving Cirencester went into the country of the East Angles. And pitching their camp, re+ duced all the inhabitants of those parts to subjection. And it was now fourteen years since the barbarians first wintered in the country aforesaid, and ravaged it. In the same year, when they had reduced the district afore- said, they went in a vessel to Gaul and took up a position at a place called Ghent. They were the same men who had formerly measured out their camp at a place called Fulham. After a year, they attempt to proceed further; but the armies of the Franks assail them and gain the victory ; FROM A. D 849 TO 901. 88) Florence situated in the southern part of the Wiccii, and there*they remained one year. In the same year, a large army of pagans sailed from foreign parts into the river Thames, and joined the army which was already in the country. They wintered at Fulham near the river Thames. In the same year an eclipse of the sun took place, between three o’clock and the evening but nearer to three o’clock. Dunbert bishop of Winches- ter died, and was succeeded by Deneulf. This man, if we believe the story, for great ian of his life was not only evoid of learning, but was also acowherd. King Alfred when yielding to the fury of his enemies, and fleeing into the wood, lighted upon this man by ‘chance, as he wag feeding hisswine.* Perceiy- ing his talents he sent him to be taught letters, and after- wards, when he was better instructed, he made him bishop of Winchester: a thing worthy of great wonder. Huntingdon In the same year the foreign- ers, that is the Wicingi, col- lected a new army, and re- mained at Fulenham [Fox- Ham], on the Thames. This year the eclipsed. sun was * See Asser’s account of this in page 66, 75 Simeon had promised, went to Ciren- ceastre, which is called in British speaking Carrcert, and there they remained the space of one year. In that same year an immense army of pagans came from countries beyond the sea to the river Thames: and join- ing the aforesaid band, be- came their accomplices, as is the way with the wicked. An eclipse took place that same year between the 9th hour [8 o’ctock] and the evening (6 o’cLocx]. 880. The above named army of gland left Ciren- cester, and went among the East Angles, where they’ divided out the country and began to settle. The same year the army of pagans, which had wintered at Fulham, left the island of Britain, and sailed over the sea to the eastern part of France, where they remained a year at a place called Gendi, i. e. Ghent. In the following year the aforesaid king Godrum left Cirencester, and went into East-Anglia, and obtained that land and divided it. In the same year, the army that was at Fulham crossed the sea, and remained at Ghent one year. CHARTERS rn 880. 1, ETHELRED duke of Mercia, subscribed also by “ Filfred rex,” ‘“ Ego Athelfled conjunx [i.e. wife of duke Ethel- red],” and others. II, 107. 2. ETHELWoLF. II, 106. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 880, the 32nd from the birth of the glorious king Elfred, the often-mentioned army of the pagans left Ciren- cestre and went to the East- Angles, and dividing that country began to inhabit it. The pagans, who wintered in Fulanhame, left the island of Britain, and went on a visit to take villainous know- ledge of France; there they stayed one year. 881. The aforesaid army In the following year they fought with the French and defeated them. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 881, the 33rd from the birth of king Elfred, the aforesaid army, mounting on Savon Chronicle then was the army there horsed after the battle. Asset went higher up into France ; and the French fought against them; and after the battle the pagans obtained horses and became an army of cavalry. CHARTERS rw 881. None. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 88) the barbarians were put to flight. A. 882. Here the army went up along the banks of the Maese far into France, and there sate one year. And that same year king fElfred went out to sea with his ships, and fought against the forces of four ships of Danish-men, and took two of the ships, and the men were slain that were in them; and the forces of two ships surren- dered to him, and they were sorely distressed and wound- ed before they surrendered to him. In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 882, the 34th of king Alfred’s life, the above-named army steered their ships up into France by a river called the Mese [Meuse] and there wintered one year. In the same year Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, fought a battle by sea against the pagan fleet, of which he cap- tured two ships, having slain all who were on board; and the two commanders of two other ships, with all their crews, distressed by the battle and the wounds which they had received, laid down their arms and submitted to the king. After a year the aforesaid army passed into the upper districts of the Maese and measured out their camp at a place called Escelun [Ascuiona]. In the same year king Alfred put to sea and fell in with four ships ; which he defeat- ed, and destroyed two, the others surrendered. FROM A. D. 849 882 Florence of pee went into France; and the French fought against them; and after the battle the pagans obtained horses and became an army of cavalry. 882. The above-named army steered their ships up into France by a river called the Mese [Meuse] and there wintered one year. In the same year Alfred fought a battle by sea against the pagan fleet, of which he cap- tured two ships, having slain all who were on board ; and the two commanders of two other ships, with all their crews, distressed by the battle and the wounds which they had received, laid down their arms and submitted to the king. CHARTERS rn 882. None. TO 901. Huntingdon 77 Simeon horses, came into the borders of the French, which may appear wonderful, that the enemies dared shew them- selves against so brave and warlike a people. Then the French, with un- conquerable bravery, sallying manfully from the castles, and towns, cities and towers, were kindled with rage like lions, seeing the nefarious powers of the wicked men come forth, seeing the bad exult with joy and gladness, the good lie sunk in fear, the innocent mourn, the guilty to rejoice. Having taken wise counsel, the bold Frenchmen began a most severe battle with the pagans. At the end of which they returned in triumph: the pagans, having gained horses, gallopped this way and that. In those days many monas- teries among the same nation were shaken and desolated. For the brethren, also, of the convent of the most blessed Benedict, taking with them where they had been placed In the 8rd year, they went up the Maese into France. é At which time king Alfred took 4 ships in a naval battle, and slew the men who were on board. his relics from the tomb in the greatest beauty, they travelled this way and that. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 882, the 34th from the birth of the glorious king Elfred, the army of pagans drew their ships up the river called the Mese into the country of the Frankish nation, and there wintered one year. In the same year, lastly, Elfred the brave king of the Saxons sustained by the naval battle of his leaders, engaged against the pagan ships by sea. Of which, he, on an equal footing, defeated 2 ships by his powerful valour, and slew all who were in them. When he had de- feated them, this prince of princes gave due thanks to the Author of his safety. What then took place I will now relate. After this he severely wounded the prin- ces of the two ships with all their arms, with all their companions, who, helplessly laying down their arms, with bent thighs and suppliant prayers, gave themselves up to the great king, as long as the spark of vital heart should keep alive in them. 78 Sarton Chronicle A. 883. Here the army went up the Scheld to Condé, and sate there one year. 2 And that same year Sighelm and /&thelstan carried to Rome the alms which the king had vowed to send thither. 3 And also to India, to St Thomas and to St Bartholo- mew, when they sat down against the army at London. 4 And there,thanks be to God, they largely obtained the ob- ject of their prayer after the vow. 1 And Marinus the pope then sent ‘lignum Domini’ to king Alfred. 18 And he sent him great gifts, and part of the rood on which Christ suffered. 17 Who, at the prayer of Al- fred king of the West-Saxons, freed the English school. (5) A. 884. Here the army went up the Somme to Amiens, and there sate one year. 6 This year the benevolent bishop Zthelwold died. 16 And that same year died the good pope Marinus. Asset In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 883, which was the 35th of king Alfred’s life, the aforesaid army went up the river called Scald [ScuEtpt] to a convent of nuns called Cundoht [Conve] and there remained a year. 12 He also [pore Marinus] sent many gifts on that occasion, among which was no small portion of the holy and venerable cross on which our Lord Jesus Christ was suspended, for the general salvation of man- kind. 11 It was he who, in love for Alfred, king of the Anglo- Saxons, and at his request, freed the school of the Anglo- Saxons resident at Rome from all tribute and tax. 1 In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 884, which was the 36th of king Alfred’s life. 10 In the same year pope Martin, of blessed memory, went the way of all flesh. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 883 The next year the aforesaid army entered the parishes on the Scald, to a place called Cundath [Conpé ;] and there measured out their camp for the winter. CHARTERS rn 883. 1. Ernet- RED alderman, subscribed also ‘ AEl- fred rex hujus traditionis munifi- centiam signo sanctz crucis adfirmo’ and by others. IT, 110. 19 He [popz Marinus] sent as a present part of the thrice blessed cross of Christ, who is the salvation of the world. 18 Who also gave freedom to the school of the English, by the appointment of king Alfred. 1 After 1 year had expired, that pestilential army afore- said removed to the higher districts of the Somme, to a place called Embenum [Am- B1anI, Amiens], and there wintered. 17 In the same year died the blessed pope Martin. FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 884 Florence Huntingdon 883. In the 4th year the army The came to the Scat [ScuetpT] aforesaid army went up the river called Scaldad, to a convent of nuns called Cundoht [Conve] and there remained a year. Asser bishop of Sherborne died and was succeeded by Suithelm, who carried the alms of king Alfred to St Thomas in India, and success- fully came back from thence. 2 Pope Marinus. 4 Who also then sent to the aforesaid king many gifts, among which he gave him a no small] portion of that holy cross, on which our Lord Jesus Christ hung for the salvation of men. 3 He, for love of and at the request of Alfred king of the Angul-Saxons, kindly freed from all tribute and toll the school of the Saxons living at Rome. in Cundoet [Conné], and there remained one year. 2 And Alfred sent his alms to Rome, and also to Saint Thomas in India, according to a vow which he had made, when the hostile army win- tered at London. 1 This year pope Marinus sent to Alfred a piece of our Lord’s cross. 79 Simeon In the following year, that is in 883, the 35th year from the birth of the most famous king Elfred, that army, not to be named, drew their ships up the river called the Scald, and remained there one year. Guthred froma slave became a king. And the bishop’s see is re- stored at Cunkecestra [CuEs- TER-LE-STREET J, 9 He [pore Marinus] sent to him [Atrrep] many gifts, among which was a piece of the blessed cross, on which our Lord Jesus Christ hung for the salvation of all man- kind. 8 It was he who, for love of the benign king Elfred, set free the school of the Saxons, in the city of Rome, from all tribute. (1) 884. The aforesaid army of pagans entering the mouth} of the river Sunne, sailed up to Embenum, and there remain- ed one year. 11 In the same year pope Martin, of blessed memory, went the way of all flesh. 6 Then also died pope Marinus. 1 In the year of ourLord’s in- carnation 884, the 36th from the birth of the famous king Elfred. 7 At that time the prelate Marinus of blessed memory went the way of all flesh, yielding his breath to him from whom it came. 80 Sarton Chronicle (7) A. 885. 8 Here the afore-mentioned army divided itself into two ; the one part went eastward, the other part to Rochester, and besieged the city, and wrought another fortress round themselves. 9 And, notwithstanding this, the townsmen defended the city till king Alfred came out with his forces. 10 Then went the army to their ships, and abandoned their fortress; and they were there deprived of their horses, and soon after, in that same summer, departed over sea. 11 And that same year king fElfred sent a fleet from Kent to East-Anglia, and as soon as they came to the mouth of the Stour, there met them sixteen ships of pirates; and they fought against them, and captured all the ships and killed the men. 12 As they afterwards return- ed home with the booty, a large fleet of pirates met them, and then fought against them that same day, and the Danish-men had the victory. 13 The same year, before mid- winter, Carl king of the French died; he was killed Asset 2 The aforesaid army divided into two parts. 3 One body of them went into East France, and the other coming to Britain entered Kent, where they besieged a city called in Saxon Roches- ter, and situated on the eastern bank of the river Medway. Before the gate of the town the pagans suddenly erected a strong fortress, but yet they were unable to take the city, because the citizens defended themselves bravely, until king Alfred came up to help them witha large army. Then the pagans abandoned their fortress, and all their horses which they had brought with them out of France, and leaving behind them in the fortress the greater part of their prisoners, on the arrival of the king, fled immediately to their ships, and the Saxons imme- diately seized on the prisoners and horses left by the pagans ; and so the pagans, compelled by stern necessity, returned the same summer to France. In the same year Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons led his fleet, full of fighting men, out of Kent to the country of the East Angles, for the sake of plunder; and, when they had arrived at the mouth of the river Stour, immediately thirteen ships of the pagans met them,prepared for battle ; a fierce fight ensued, and all the pagans, after a brave resistance, were slain; all the ships, with all their money, were taken. 4 After this while the royal fleet were reposing, the pagans, who lived in the eastern part of England, assembled their ships, met the same royal fleet at sea in the mouth of the same river, and after a naval battle, the pagans gained the victory. 5 In the same year, also, Carloman, king of the West- ern Franks, whilst hunting HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 885 2 After a year they divide themselves into two parts : one to Lofenum, [Louvain] the other to Rochester ; and they laid siege to those towns. th 3 They also construct other smaller camps. 4 Defeat prevails among the inhabitants until the arrival of king Alfred with an army. The foul plague was van- quished, and sought rein- forcements. .... Some of them made for the sea-coasts. The same year they renewed their league, and gave hosta- ges to the English. 8 The same year, therefore, the aforesaid king Alfred sent his fleet into the country of the East Angles; and imme- diately on their arrival, there met them at a place called Stourmouth sixteen ships, which they forthwith rava- ged, and slew the captains with the sword. 9 The rest of the pirate-crew met them; they ply their oars, their armour shines over the constrained waters, the barbarians obtain the victory. 10 The same year‘died Char- les the magnificent king of the Franks, cut off by death —_ FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 885 Slorence 885. The aforesaid army divid- ed into two parts. One body of them went into East France, and the other coming to Britain entered Kent, where they besieged a city called in Saxon Hrof- ceastre and situated on the eastern bank of t’e river Medway. Before the gate of the town the pagans suddenly erected a strong fortress, but yet they were unable to take the city, because the citizens defended themselves bravely, until king Alfred came up to help them with a large army. Then the pagans abandoned their fortress, and all their horses which they had brought with them out of France, and leaving behind them in the fortress the greater part of their prisoners, on the arrival of the king, fled immediately to their ships, and the Saxons imme- diately seized on the prisoners and horses left by the pagans ; and so the pagans, compelled by stern necessity, returned the same summer to France. In the same year Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, led his fleet, full of fighting men, out of Kent to the country of the East Angles, for the sake of plunder; and when they had arrived at the mouth of the river Stour, immediately sixteen ships of the pagans met them prepared for battle ; a fierce fight ensued, and all the pagans, after a brave resistance, were slain ; and all the ships, with all their money, were taken. After this while the royal fleet was returning, the pagans, who lived in the eastern part of England, assembled their ships, met the same royal fleet at sea in the mouth of the same river, and after a naval battle, the pagans gained the victory. Carloman, king of the West- ern Franks, whilst hunting Essays Huntingdon 1 In the 14th year of king Alfred, part of the army which was in Gaul, came to Rochester: and besieging the city, began to make there another fortress: but at the king’s approach, they fled to their ships and crossed the sea, CHARTERS rn_ 885. ALFRED king of Wessex, II, 112, It is with- out a date, and is referred to some year between 880 and 885. 2 But king Alfred sent a naval armament from Kent to East-Anglia : 3 Who,when they had come to Stour-mouth, meeting 16 ships of the Wickings, de- feated them in battle. 4 But, as they returned victo- rious and laden with spoils, they met a great host of the Wickings, and engaging in battle with tnem were de- feated. 5 The same year a boar slew Charles king of France, son ll 81 Simeon 2 That unworthy army divided itself into two bodies. One of them went into East- France, the other coming into Britain went into Kent [to a city] which is called Rofecester. 3 Before its gate the pagans made a castle, and yet could not reduce the city; for its citizens defended themselves manfully, until king Elfred the defender of all the king- dom came up with a great army. On the arrival of the king, the Danes at once flee to their ships smitten with fear, leaving their fortress and the horses which they had brought with them from France, and the captives which they had taken from France of the same nation. 4 At the same time and in the same year, that same armipotent king directed his fleet full of warriors from Kent to the East-Angles. And when he was come to the mouth of the river Sture, immediately 13 ships of the pagans, prepared for battle, met them, and_ fighting bravely on both sides, all the pagans were slain, and all the ships and money taken. 5 But those of the Danes who were able to flee, collected their ships from all sides into one, and having joined in a sea-fight with the English, whilst they were sleeping in a lazy slumber, they [i.e. rus Eneiisu] were slain, an unarmed multitude : to whom may well be applied that which we read: “‘ Many shut their eyes, when they ought to be seeing.” 82 Saron Chronicle by a wild boar; and one year before this, his brother died: he too had the western kingdom: and they were both sons of Louis, who like- wise had the western king- dom, and died that year when the sun was eclipsed: he was son of Charles whose daughter Athelwulf, king of the West-Saxons, had for his queen. 14 And that same year a large fleet drew together against the Old-Saxons; and there was a great battle twice in that year, and the Saxons had the victory, and the Fri- sians were there with them. 15 That same year Charles succeeded to the western kingdom, and to all the king- dom on this side the Wendel sea, and beyond this sea, in like manner as his great- grand-father had it, with the exception of the Lid-wiccas. Charles was Louis’s son; Louis was Charles’s brother, who was father of Judith, whom king thelwulf had; and they were sons of Louis, Louis was son of the elder Charles, Charles was Pippin’s son. ‘I The words in brackets are supplied from the Annals. And that same year the army in the East-Anglia broke the peace with king lfred. Asset the wild boar, was miserably killed by a large animal of that species, which inflicted a dreadful wound on him with its tusk. 6 His brother Louis [III], who had also been king of the Franks, died the year before. These two brothers were sons of Louis, king of the Franks, who had died in the year above mentioned, in which the eclipse of the sun took place; and it was he whose daughter Judith was given by her father’s wish in marriage to Ethelwulf, king of the West Saxons. 7 In the same year also a great army of the pagans came from Germany into the country of the ancient Saxons, which is called in Saxon Ealdseaxum. 8 To oppose them the said Saxons and Frisons joined their forces, and fought bravely twice in that same year. In both those battles the Christians, with the mer- ciful aid of the Lord, obtain- ed the victory. 9 In the same year also, Charles, king of the Almains, received, with universal con- sent, all the territories which lie between the Tyrrhenian sea and that gulf which runs between the old Saxons and the Gauls, except the king- dom of Armorica. This Charles was the son of king Louis, who was brother of Charles, king of the Franks, father of the aforesaid queen Judith; these two brothers were sons of Louis, but Louis was the son of [the great, the ancient, and wise Charlemagne, who was the son of] Pepin.{ In the same year also the army of pagans, which dwelt among the East-Angles, dis- gracefully broke the peace which they had concluded with king Alfred. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 885 before the revolution of one year. 10 After him came his uterine brother who ruled over the western coasts of Gaul. They both were sons of Louis, who had formerly possessed the sole sovereignty ; his life had reached its termination dur- ing the eclipse of the sun aforesaid. He was son of the great king Charles, whose daughter Ethelwulf king of the English had taken to wife. 11 In the course of that year,a great number of barbarians landed and filled the coasts of the Old Saxons. 12 Two battles were fought soon after: the Saxons were the victors, and the Frisons also were present in the contest. 13 The same year Charles the Younger succeeded to the sovereignty of allthe western parts of Gaul as far as the Tyrrhenian sea, and, if I may so speak, of the dominions of his grandfather, except the province of the Lidwiccas [Armorica or Breracnr]. 14 His father was Lodvicus, brother of the middle Charles whose daughter was married to Ethelwulf king of the English. 15 Both of these were sons of Lodwicus, namely, Lod- wicus was son of Charle- magne who was the son of Pepin. In the course of that year, the above-named pestilential crew broke their engage- ments, and marched in arms against king Alfred. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 83 885 = Florence Huntingdon dimen the wild boar, was miserably of Louis, son of Charles the killed by a large animal of Bald, whose daughter Juhet that species, whieh inflicted a [Jupitu] king Edelwulf had dreadful wound on him with married. its tusk. His brother Louis [IIT], who had also been king of the Franks, died the 3rd year before. These two brothers were sons of Louis, king of the Franks, who had died in the year above mentioned, in which the eclipse of the sun took place; and it was he whose daughter Judith was iven by her father’s wish in marriage to Atheluulf, king of the West Saxons. In the same year also a great army of the pagans came from Germany into the country of the ancient Saxons. To oppose them the said Saxons and Frisons joined their forces, and fought bravely twice in that same year. In both those battles the Christians, with the mer- ciful aid of the Lord, obtain- ed the victory. In the same year also, Charles, king of the Almains, received, with universal con- sent, all the territories which lie between the Tyrrhenian sea and that gulf which runs between the old Saxons and the Gauls, except the king- dom of Armorica. This Charles was the son of king Louis, who was brother of Charles, king of the Franks, father of the aforesaid queen Judith: these two brothers were sons of Louis, but Louis was the son of [the great,the ancient, and wise Charlemagne, who was the son of] Pepin.* In the same year also the army of pagans, which dwelt among the East-Angles, dis- gracefully broke the peace which they had concluded with king Alfred. * Florence, copying Asser, omits the words in brackets. 6 In that same year a great army of pagans came from Germany into the country of the Old Saxons; against whom warlike men were gathered from all sides :?that is, Frisons and Saxons, and fought'manfully and bravely : in which two battles the Christian people, by permis- sion of God’s merciful piety, had the victory. ye? 84 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saron Chronicle Asset Wherefore, to return to that from which I digressed, that I may not be compelled by my long navigation to abandon the port of rest which I was making for, I propose, as far as my knowledge will enable me, to speak of the life and cha- racter and just conduct of my lord Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, after he married the above named respected lady of Mercian race, his wife; and, with God’s blessing, I will despatch it succinctly and briefly, as I promised, that [ may not offend the delicate minds of my readers by prolixity in relating each new event. ; His nuptials were honourably celebrated in Mercia, among innumerable multitudes of people of both sexes; and after continual feasts, both by night and by day, he was imme- diately seized, in presence of all the people, by sudden and overwhelming pain, as yet unknown to all the physicians ; for it was unknown to all who were then present, and even to those who daily see him up to the present time,—which, sad tosay! is the worst of all, that he should have protracted it so long from the twentieth to the fortieth year of his life, and even more than that through the space of so many years,— from what cause so great a malady arose. For many thought that this was occasioned by the favour and fascination of the people who surrounded him; others, by some spite of the devil, who is ever jealous of the good; others, from an un- usual kind of fever. He had this sort of severe disease from his childhood ; but once, divine Providence so ordered it, that when he was ona visit to Cornwall for the sake of hunting, and had turned out of the road to pray in a certain chapel, in which rests the body of Saint Guerir, and now also St Neot rests there,— for king /Elfred was always from his infancy a frequent visitor of holy places for the sake of prayer and almsgiving,— he prostrated himself for private devotion, and, after some time spent therein, he entreated of God’s mercy, that in his boundless clemency he would exchange the torments of the malady which then afflicted him for some other lighter disease; but with this condition, that such disease should not show itself outwardly in his body, lest he should be an object of contempt, and less able to benefit mankind; for he had a great dread of leprosy or blindness, or any such com- plaint, as makes men useless or contemptible when it afflicts them. When he had finished his prayers, he proceeded on his journey, and not long after he felt within him that by the hand of the Almighty he was healed, according to his request, of his disorder, and that it was entirely eradicated, although he had first had even this complaint in the flower of his youth, by his devout and pious prayers and supplica- tions to Almighty God. For if I may be allowed to speak briefly, but in a somewhat preposterous order, of his zealous piety to God, in the flower of his youth, before he entered the marriage state, he wished to strengthen his mind in the observance of God’s command- ments, for he perceived that he could with difficulty abstain from gratifying his carnal desires; and, because he feared the anger of God, if he should do anything contrary to his will, he used often to rise in the morning at the cock-crow, and go to pray inthe churches and at the relics of the saints. There he prostrated himself on the ground, and prayed that God in his mercy would strengthen his mind still more in his service by some infirmity such as he might bear, but not such as would render him imbecile and contemptible in his Cthelwerd 885 FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 885 — Slovence Huntingdon § This paragraph, together with those which follow, marked 1, 2, 3, 4,5, 6, 7, are given by Florence in 871, immediately following the words KINGDOM OF THE WEST-SAXONS, Pp. 33. § 2 Once, divine Providence so ordered it, that when he was on a visit to Cornwall for the sake of hunting, and had turned out of the road to pray in a certain chapel, in which rests the body of Saint Guerir, and now also St Noet rests there, he prostrated himself for private devotion, and, after some time spent therein, he entreated of God’s mercy, that in his boundless clemency he would exchange the torments of the malady which then afflicted him for some other lighter disease ; but with this condition, that such disease should not show itself outwardly in his body, lest he should be an object of comtempt, and less able to benefit mankind ; when he had finished his prayers, he proceeded on his journey, and not long after he felt within him that by the hand of the Almighty he was healed, according to his request, of his disorder, and that it was entirely eradicated. 1 In the flower of his youth, he wished to strengthen his mind in the observance of God’s command- ments, but he perceived that he could with difficulty abstain from gratifying his carnal desires and, because he feared the anger of God, if he should do anything contrary to his will, he used often to rise in the morning at the cock-crow, and go to pray in the churches and at the relics of the saints. There he prostrated himself on the ground, and prayed that God in his mercy would strengthen his mind still more in his service by some infirmity such as he might bear, but not such as would render him imbecile and contemptible in his Simeon 85 86 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saron Chronicle Asset worldly duties; and when he had often prayed with much devotion to this effect, after an interval of some time, Provi- dence vouchsafed to afflict him with the above-named disease which he bore long and painfully for many years, and even despaired of life, until he entirely got rid of it by his prayers ; but, sad to say! it was replaced, as we have said, at his mar- riage by another which incessantly tormented him, night and day, from the twentieth to the forty-fourth year of his life. But if ever, by God’s mercy, he was relieved from this infirmity for a single day or night, yet the fear and dread of that dreadful malady never left him, but rendered hlm almost useless, as he thought, for every duty, whether human or divine. The sons and daughters, which he had by his wife above mentioned were /thelflced the eldest, after whom came Ead- werd, then /thelgeofu, then A:lfthryth, and A®thelweard, besides those who died in their infancy, one of whom was Edmund.* Athelfled,when she arrived at a marriageable age, was united to Eadred, earl of Mercia; Ethelgeofu also was dedicated to God, and submitted to the rules of a monastic life. AEthelweard the youngest,by the divine counsels and the admirable prudence of the king, was consigned to the schools of learning, where, with the children of almost all the nobi- lity of the country, and many also who were not noble, he prospered under the diligent care of his teachers. Books in both languages, namely, Latin and Saxon, were both read in the school. They also learned to write; so that before they were of an age to practice manly arts, namely, hunting and such pursuits as befit noblemen, they became studious and clever in the liberal arts. Eadwerd and #lfthryth were bred up in the king’s court and received great attention from their attendants and nurses; nay, they continue to this day, with the love of all about them, and showing affability, and even gentleness towards all, both natives and foreigners, and in complete subjection to their father; nor, among their other studies which appertain to this life and are fit for noble youths, are they suffered to pass their time idly and unprofit- ably without learning the liberal arts; for they have carefully learned the Psalms and Saxon books, especially the Saxon poems, and are continually in the habit of making use of books. In the meantime, the king, during the frequent wars and other trammels of this present life, the invasions of the pagans, and his own daily infirmities of body, continued to carry on the government, and to exercise hunting in all its branches; to teach his workers in gold and artificers of all kinds, his falconers, hawkers and dog-keepers ; to build houses majestic and good, beyond all the precedents of his ances- tors, by his new mechanical inventions ; to recite the Saxon books, and especially to learn by heart the Saxon poems, and to make others learn them; and he alone never desisted from studying, most diligently, to the best of his ability; he attend- ed the mass and other daily services of religion ; he was fre- quent in psalm-singing and prayer, at the hours both of the day and the night. He also went to the churches, as we have already said, in the night-time to pray, secretly, and unknown to his courtiers; he bestowed alms and largesses on both natives and foreigners of all countries; he was affable and pleasant to all, and curiously eager to investigate things unknown. Many Franks, Frisons, Gauls, pagans, Britons, Scots, and Ethelwerd 885 * The word Edmund is supplied from Rudborne’s Chronicle, a late work, FROM A.D. 849 TO 901 885 Slorence worldly duties ; and when he had often prayed with much devotion to this effect, after an interval of some time, Provi- dence vouchsafed to afflict him with the disease of the fig which he bore long and painfully for many years, and even despaired of life. 3 But, sad to say! it was replaced at his mar- riage by another which incessantly tormented him, night and day, from the twentieth to the twenty-fifth year of his life and longer. 4 The sons and daughters, which he had by his wife Ealhswith above mentioned, were Agelfled the eldest, after whom came Ead- ward, then /Ethelgeovu, then Alfthrith and /Ethelward. Z&thelfled, when she arrived at a marriageable age, was united to Ethered, earl of Mercia ; Athelgeofu also was dedicated to God, and submitted to the rules of a monastic life. /thelwerd the youngest, by the divine counsels and the admirable prudence of the king, was consigned to the schools of learning, where, with the children of almost all the nobi- lity of the country, and many also who were not noble, he prospered under the diligent care of his teachers ; Huntingdon so that before they were of an age to practice manly arts, they became studious and clever in the liberal arts. Eadward and Alfthrith were bred up in the king’s court, not without learning the liberal arts; for among other stu- dies of this life, they have carefully learned the Psalms and Saxon books, especially the Saxon poems 5 In the meantime, king, Alfred during the frequent wars and other trammels of this present life, the invasions of the pagans, and his own daily infirmities of body, continued to carry on the government, and to exercise hunting in all its branches ; to teach his workers in gold and artificers of all kinds, his falconers, hawkers and dog-keepers ; to build houses majestic and good, beyond all the precedents of his ances- tors, by his new mechanical inventions; to recite the Saxon books, and especially to learn by heart the Saxon poems, and to make others learn them ; and he alone never desisted from studying, most diligently,to the best of his ability ; he attend- ed the mass and other daily services of religion ; he was fre- quent in psalm-singing and prayer, at the hours beth of the day and the night. He also went to the churches, in the night-time to pray, secretly, and unknown to his courtiers; he bestowed alms most largely, he was affable and pleasant to all, and curiously eager to investigate things unknown. 6 Many Franks, Frisons, Gauls, pagans, Britons, Scots, and 87 Simeon Now there were born to the king sons and daughters suf- ficiently beautiful and of be- coming form, whose names are here gathered; Eadward and Ethelward, Ethelfled and Ethelgifu, and Elfthrid. But Eadward the king’s son, and Ealfthrid his sister, were always brought up at the king’s court by the great care of their male and female tutors: for they studiously learnt both the psalms and the Saxon books and poems. Ethelward therefore his younger son, was placed in the schools of literary dis- cipline, with many sons of the soldiers, both noble and ignoble. Ethelfled their sis- ter was united in marriage to Eadred prince of the Mer- cians ; their sister Etbelgyfa was placed under the rules of the monastic life. 88 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Sarton Chronicle Asset Armoricans, noble and igno- ble, submitted voluntarily to his dominion ; and all of them, according to their nation and deserving, were ruled, loved, honoured, and enriched with money and power. : Moreover, the king was in the habit of hearing the scriptures read by his own countrymen, or, if by any chanee it so happened, in company with foreigners, and he attended to it with sedulity and solicitude. His bishops, too, and all ecclesiastics, his earls and nobles, ministers and friends, were loved by him with wonderful affection, and their sons, who were bred up in the royal house-hold, were no less dear to him than his own; he had them instructed in all kinds of good morals, and among other things, never ceased to teach them letters night and day; but as if he had no consolation in all these things, and suffered no other annoyance either from within or without, yet he was harassed by daily and nightly affliction, that he complained to God, and to all who were admitted to his familiar love, that Almighty God had made him ignorant of divine wisdom, and of the liberal arts ; in this emulating the pious, the wise, and wealthy Solomon, king of the Hebrews, who at first, despising all glory and riches, asked wisdom of God, and found both, namely, wisdom and worldly glory; as it is written, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” But God, who is always the inspector of the thoughts of the mind within, and the insti- gator of all good intentions, and a most plentiful aider, that good desires may be formed,—for he would not instigate a man to good intentions, unless he also amply supplied that which the man justly and properly wishes to have,—insti- gated the king’s mind within; as it is written, ‘“ I will hearken what the Lord God will say concerning me.” He would avail himself of every opportunity to procure coadjutors in his good designs, to aid him in his strivings after wisdom, that he might attain to what he aimed at; and, like a prudent bird, which rising in summer with the early morning from her beloved nest, steers her rapid flight through the uncertain tracks of ether, and descends on the manifold and varied flowers of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, essaying that which pleases most, that she may bear it to her home, so did he direct his eyes afar, a seek without, that which he had not within, namely, in his own kingdom. But God at that time, as some consolation to the king’s benevolence, yielding to his complaint, sent certain lights to iJuminate him, namely, Werefrith, bishop of the church of Worcester, a man well versed in divine scripture, who, by the king’s command, first turned the books of the Dialogues of pope Gregory and Peter, his disciples, from Latin into Saxon, and sometimes putting sense for sense, interpreted them with clearness and elegance. After him was Plegmund, a Mercian by birth, archbishop of the church of Canterbury, a venerable man, and endowed with wisdom ; /Ethelstan also, and Werewulf his priests and chaplains, Mer- cians by birth, and erudite. These four had been invited out of Mercia by king Alfred, who exalted them with many honours and powers in the kingdom of the West-Saxons, besides the privileges which archbishop Plegmund and bishop Werefrith enjoyed in Mercia. By their teaching and wisdom the king’s desires increased unceasingly, and were gratified. Night and day, whenever he had leisure, he commanded such Ethelwerd 885 FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 885 florence Armoricans, noble and igno- ble, submitted voluntarily to his dominion; and all of them, according to their dignity, like his own folk, were ruled, loved, honoured, and enriched with money and power. His bishops, too, and all ecclesiastics, his earls and nobles, ministers and friends, were loved by him with wonderful affection, and their sons, who were bred up in the royal house-hold, were no less dear to him than his own; he had them instructed in all kinds of good morals, and among other things, never ceased to teach them letters night and day. Huntingdon * This passage with the 3 follow- ing, is given in Florence in 872. * He [Werrrity} by the king’s command, first turned the books of the Dialogues of pope Gregory from Latin into Saxon, with clearness and elegance. He and in process of time Plegmund, a Mercian by birth, archbishop of the church of Canterbury, a venerable man, and endowed with wisdom ; Ethelstan also, and Werewulf his priests, Mer- cians by birth, and erudite, had been invited out of Mercia by king #lfred, who exalted them with many honours and powers to help him in gaining the learning which he so longed for. 3 By their teaching and wisdom the king’s desires increased unceasingly, and were gratified. 12 Essays 89 Simeon In those times the church of Christ was faithfully and gloriously ruled by arch- bishop Plegmund, a venera- ble man, who shone in the fruits of wisdom, being built upon four columns, of justice namely, prudence, tempe- rance, and fortitude. At the same time, Warfrid with devoutness of heart, was ennobling the rule of the city of Worcester. He it was, who by order and request of the king turned Gregory’s book of Dialogues into the Saxon tongue: and some- times interpreted it most ele- gantly, sense from sense. Also Ethelstan and Werwlf were distinguished _ priests whom he [Atrrep] invited to him out of Mercia, because that they were exceedingly and thoroughly superior in the learning of the divine law: he loved and honoured them with especial love; and by their learning and erudi- 90 Savon Chronicle Asser men as these to read books to him, for he never suffered himself to be without one of them, wherefore he possessed a knowledge of every book, though of himself he could not yet understand anything of books, for he had not yet learned to read any thing. a But the king’s commendable avarice could not be gratified even in this ; wherefore he sent messengers beyond the sea to Gaul, to procure teachers, and he invited from thence Grimbald,* priest and monk, a venerable man, and good singer, adorned with every kind of ecclesiastical discipline and good morals, and most learned in holy scripture. He also obtained from thence John,t also priest and monk, aman of most energetic talents, and learned in all kinds of literary science, and skilled in many other arts. By the teaching of these men the king’s mind was much enlarged, and he en- riched and honoured them with much influence. In these times, I also came into Saxony out of the furthest western coasts of Britaint ; and when | had proposed to go to him through many intervening provinces, I arrived in the country of the Saxons, who live on the right hand, which in Saxon is called Sussex, under the guidance of some of that nation ; and there I first saw him in the royal vill, which is called Dene. { He received me with kindness, and among other familiar conversation, he asked me eagerly to devote myself to his service and become his friend, to leave every thing which I possessed on the left, or western bank of the Severn, and he promised he would give more than an equi- valent for it in his own dominions. I replied that I could not incautiously and rashly promise such things; for it seemed to me unjust, that I should leave those sacred places in which I had been bred, educated, and crowned,|| and at last ordained, for the sake of any earthly honour and power, unless by compulsion. Upon this, he said, “ If you cannot accede to this, at least, let me have your service in part: spend six months of the year with me here, and the other six in Britain.” To this I replied, “ I could not even promise that easily or hastily without the advice of my friends.” At length, however, when I perceived that he was anxious for my services, though I knew not why, I promised him that, if my life was spared, I would return to him after six months, with such a reply as should be agreeable to him as well as advantageous to me and mine. With this answer he was satisfied, and when I had given him a pledge to return at the appointed time, on the fourth day we left him and returned on horseback towards our own country. After our departure, a violent fever seized me in the city of Winchester, where I lay for twelve months and one week, night and day, without hope of recovery. At the appointed time, therefore, I could not fulfil my promise of visiting him and he sent messengers to hasten my journey, and to inquire the cause of my delay. As I was unable to ride to him, I sent a second messenger to tell him the cause of my delay, and assure him that, if I recovered from my infirmity, I would fulfil what I had promised. My complaint left me, and by the advice and consent of all my friends, for the benefit of that holy place, and of all who dwelt therein, I did as I had promised to the king, and devoted myself to his service, on the condition that I should remain ‘with him six months in every year, either continuously, if I could spend six months with him at once, or alternately, three months in Britain and three in Saxony.§ For my friends hoped that they should sustain less tribulation and HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS CEthelwerds 885 * Grimbald was provost of St Omer’s. + John had been connected with the monastery of Corbie. tie. WaLEs. @ East Dene [or Dean] and West Dene are two villages near Chiches- ter. There are also other villages of the same name near East-Bourne. || This expression alludes to the tonsure, which was undergone by those who became clerks. § The original Latin continues, “ Et illa adjuvaretur per rudimenta Sancti Degui in omni causa, tamen Pro viribus,” which I do not under- stand,and therefore cannot translate. FROM A.D 849 TO 901. 91 885 Florence Huntingdon Simeon tion that pacific king was magnified above all the kings of the earth. 1. He also sent messengers beyond the sea to Gaul, to procure teachers, and he invited from thence, Grimbald, priest and monk, a venerable man, and good singer, adorned with every kind of ecclesiastical discipline and good morals, and most learned in holy scripture. He also obtained from thence John, also priest and monk, a man of most energetic talents. 2 Asser also came into Saxony out of the furthest western coasts of Britain, from the monastery of St Dewi. 92 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Savon Chronicle Asset harm from king Hemeid, * who often plundered that monas- tery and the parish of St Deguus, + and sometimes expelled the prelates, as they expelled archbishop Novis,t my relation, and myself ; if in any manner I could secure the notice and friendship of the king. At that time, and long before, all the countries on the right hand side of Britain belonged to king Alfred and still be- long to him. For instance, king Hemeid, with all the inhabitants of the region of Demetia, compelled by the vio- lence of the six sons of Rotri, had submitted to the dominion of the king. Houil also, son of Ris, king of Gleguising, and Brochmail and Fernmail, sons of Mouric, kings of Gwent, compelled by the violence and tyranny of earl Eadred and of the Mercians, of their own accord sought king Alfred, that they might enjoy his government and protection from him against their enemies. THelised, also, son of Teudyr, king of Brecon, compelled by the force of the same sons of Rotri, of his own accord sought the government of the afore- said king; and Anaraut, son of Rotri, with his brothers, at length abandoning the friendship of the Northumbrians, from which he received no good but harm, came into king Alfred’s presence and eagerly sought his friendship. The king received him honourably, admitted him as his son by confirmation from the bishop’s hand, and presented him with many gifts. Thus he became subject to the king with all his people, on the same condition, that he should be obedient to the king’s will in all respects, in the same way as Athered with the Mercians. Nor was it in vain that all these princes gained the friendship of the king. For those who desired to augment their worldy power, obtained power; those who desired money, gained money ; and in like way, those who desired his friendship, or both money and friendship, succeeded in getting what they wanted. But all of them gained his love and guardianship and defence from every quarter, even as the king with his men could protect himself. When therefore I had come into his presence at the royal vill, called Leonaford, I was honourably received by him, and remained that time with him at his court eight months ; during which I read to him whatever books he liked, and suchas we had at hand; for this is his most usual custom, both night and day, amid his many other occupations of mind and body, either himself to read books, or to listen whilst others read them. And when I frequently asked his leave to depart, and could in no way obtain it, at length when I had made up my mind by all means to demand it, he called me to him at twilight, on Christmas eve, and gave me two letters, in which was a long list of all the things which were in two monasteries, called in Saxon, Angresbury§ and Banu- wille ;{| and on that same day he delivered to me those two monasteries with all the things that were in them, and asilken pall of great value, and a load for a strong man of incense, adding these words, that he did not give me these trifling presents, because he was unwilling hereafter to give me greater ; for in the course of time he unexpectedly gave me Exeter, with all the diocese which belonged to him in Saxony§ and in Cornwall, besides gifts every day without number in every kind of worldly wealth, which it would be too long to enumerate here, lest they should make my reader tired. But let no one suppose that 1 have mentioned these pre- sents in this place for the sake of glory or flattery, or to obtain greater honour. I call God to witness, that I have Cthelwerd 885 * A petty prince of South Wales. + Or St Dewi. Probably by the parish of St Deguus is meant the diocese of St David's. Hence it is said, that Alfred gave to Asser the whole parish (omnis parochia) of Exeter. t Archbishop of St David's. {7 One MS. has Cungresbury—a place near Banwell. || Banwell in Somersetshire. § Wessex. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 93 885 florence Huntingdon Simeon Frorence, Huntrngpon, AND SIMEON ARE SILENT ON THE SUBJECT OF ASSER’S INTRODUCTION TO KING ALFRED, AND THE INTERESTING CONVERSATION WHICH TOOK PLACE BETWEEN THE TWO ON THAT AND OTHER SUBSEQUENT OCCASIONS. 94 Saron Chronicle Asset not done so; but that I might certify to those who are igno- rant, how profuse he is in giving. He then at once gave me permission to ride to those two rich monasteries and afterwards to return to my own country. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 885 A. 886. Here the army, which before had drawn eastward, went westward again, and thence up the Seine, and there took up their winter quarters near the town of Paris. That same year king Alfred repaired London; and all the English submitted to him, except those who were under the bondage of the Danish- men ; and then he committed the town to the care of alder- man /éthered. In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation, 886, which was the thirty-eighth since the birth of Elfred, the army so often beforementioned again fled the country, and went into the country of the West- ern Franks, directing their ships to the river called the Seine, and sailed up it as far as the city of Paris, and there they wintered and measured out their camp. They be- sieged that city a whole year, as far as the bridge, that they might prevent the inhabitants from making use of it; for the city is situated on a small island in the middle of the river; but by the merciful favour of God, and the brave defence of the citizens, the army could not force their way inside the walls. In the same year, Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, after the burning of cities and the slaying of the people, honourably rebuilt the city of London, and made it again habitable. He gave it into the custody of his son- in-law, Aéthered, earl of Mercia. To which king all the Angles and Saxons, who before had been dispersed everywhere, or were in cap- tivity with the pagans, voluntarily turned and sub- mitted themselves to his dominion. * [In the same year there arose a foul and deadly discord at Oxford, between Grymbold, with those learned men whom he had brought with him, and the old scholars whom he had found there, who, on his arrival, refused altogether to em- brace the laws, modes, and forms of prelection instituted by the same Grymbold. During three years there had been no great dissension between them, but there was a secret enmity which afterwards broke out with great atrocity, clearer than the light itself. To appease this quarrel, that invincible king Elfred, having been informed of the strife by a messenger from Grymbold, went to Oxford to put an end to the contro- versy, and endured much trouble in hearing the arguments and complaints which were brought forwards on both sides. The substance of the dispute was this: the old scholars con- Lastly, after a year, they went to the lower parts of Gaul, and fixed on a place to winter near the river Seine. Meanwhile, the city of Lon- don was besieged by king Alfred. Whom no civil discord could subdue, either by cunning or by force: all men received him as a saviour, and parti- cularly the Saxons—except the barbarians, and those who were then held prisoners in their hands. Also, after his army was strengthened, /ithred was appointed leader there by the aforesaid king, to guard the citadel. * The whole of this paragraph concerning Oxford is thought to be an interpolation, because it is not known to have existed in more than one MS. copy. FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 886 = Florence Huntingdon 95 Simeon 886. The army of pagans so often _beforementioned again left East France, and went into the country of the West- ern Franks, into the river called the Seine, and sailed up it as far as the city of Paris, and there they wintered. They be- sieged that city a whole year, but by the merciful favour of God, the army could not force their way inside the walls. In the same year Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, after the burning of cities and the slaying of the people, honourably rebuilt the city of London, and made it again habitable. He gave it into the custody of his son- in-law, Ethered, earl of : Mercia, To which king all the Angles and Saxons, who before had been dispersed everywhere, or were in cap- tivity with the pagans, voluntarily turned and sub- mitted themselves to his dominion. In the following year, the army of the Danes came up the Seine to the bridge at Paris, and there wintered. King Alfred besieged Lon- don, because a great force of Danes had pursued the French army. All the English at once sub- mitted to him and admitted for the Danes had fled. But the king gave the city into the care of duke Addred. him; In the year of our Lord’s in- carnation 886, the 88th from the birth of the glorious king Elfred, that army of Danes not to be named came again into the country of the Western French, and came to land in the river called Sigene [Serve]. They also went to Paris, and wintered there, cutting off the tho- roughfare of the bridge from the inhabitants. But by the true support of God, and the valour of the citizens in de- fending themselves, they could not break into that fortress. At the same time the king of the English, after the burning of cities, and the slaughter of people, honour- ably rebuilt and made habi- table the great city of Lon- don, which he gave into the ward of Ethelred the illus- trious duke of the Mercians. But all men, both Angles and Saxons, who had before been dispersed here and there with the pagans or set free from captivity, came freely into the king’s presence, submit- ting themselves voluntarily to his dominion. And he, as he was of a most merciful mind, indulged to all the patronage of his benignity. 96 Saron Chronicle Asset tended, that literature had flourished at Oxford before the coming of Grymbold, although the number of scholars was smaller than in ancient times, because many had been driven away by the cruelty and tyranny of the pagans. They also proved and showed, by the undoubted testimony of ancient annals, that the orders and institutions of that place had been sanctioned by certain pious and learned men, as for instance by Saint Gildas, Melkinus, Nennius, Kentigern, and others, who had all grown old there in literature, and happily administered everything there in peace and concord; and also, that Saint Germanus had come to Oxford, and stopped there half a year, at the time when he went through Britain to preach against the Pelagian heresy ; he wonderfully ap- proved of the customs and institutions above-mentioned. The king, with unheard of humility, listened to both sides care- fully, and exhorted them again and again with pious and wholesome admonitions to cherish mutual love and concord. He therefore left them with this decision, that each party should follow their own counsel, and preserve their own institutions. Grymbold, displeased at this, immediately de- parted to the monastery at Winchester,* which had been recently founded by king Alfred, and ordered a tomb to be carried to Winchester, in which he proposed, after this life, that his bones should be laid in the vault which had been made under the chancel of St Peter’s church in Oxford; which church the same Grymbold had built from its foun- dations, of stone polished with great care.] HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS ECthelwerd 886 + Hyde Abbey. f A. 887. In the year of our Lord’s in- Here the army went up through the bridge at Paris, and thence up along the Seine as far as the Marne, and thence up the Marne to Chezy, and then sat down, there, and on the Yonne, two winters in the two places. And that same year Charles king of the French died ; and six weeks before he died, Earnulf his brother’s son bereaved him of the king- dom. carnation 887, which was the thirty-ninth of king £lfred’s life, the above mentioned army of the pagans, leaving the city of Paris uninjured, because they could not suc- ceed against it, sailed up the river Seine under the bridge, until they reached the mouth of the river Materne (Marne]; where they left the Seine, and, following for a long time the course of the Marne, at length, but not without much labour, they arrived at a place called Caziei, a royal vill, where they wintered one year.t t Here follows the sentence In THE FOLLOWING YEAR &c. given under 888 at the end of Asser. In the same year Charles, king of the Franks, went the way of all flesh; but Arnulf, his brother’s son, six weeks before he died, bad expelled him from his kingdom. After his death five kings were Now the army, which were at that time ravaging the coun- try of Gaul, cut their way through the bridge of the cita- del of Paris, and devastated the whole country along the Seine, as far as the Marne, and above its vertex, as far as Catsig [Cuezy]},where they thrice fixed their winter quarters. In the same year also died Charles, king of the Franks, and his cousin Arnulf suc- ceeded to the kingdom, seven weeks before his uncle’s death. FROM A. D. 887 — Slorence 887. The above mentioned army of the pagans, leaving the city of Paris uninjured, because they could not other- wise provide for themselves, sailed up the river Seine under the bridge, until they reached the mouth of the river Materne [Marne]; where they left the Seine, and, following for a long time the course of the Marne, at length, but not without much labour, they arrived at’a‘place called Chezy, i. e. a royal vill, where they wintered one year. In the same year Charles, king of the Franks, went the way of all flesh ; but Arnulf, his brother’s son, six weeks before he died, had expelled him from his kingdom. After his death five kings were Essays 849 TO 901. Suntingdon In the following year, the army, leaving the bridge at Paris, went up the Seine as far as the Marne, and up the Marne as far as Cadzi, and they dwelt there and in Tonne* two years. * Noticed more fully by the other chroniclers: see in 888. 97 Simeon 6 In the year of our Lord’s incarnation 887, the 39th from the birth of the illus- trious king Elfred, the afore- said army, leaving that city of Paris, came to the Seine, thence to the mouth of the river called the Materre and then to a place called Caziei, i.e. a royal vill: in which place they wintered a whole year, 98 Savon Chronicle And then was that kingdom divided into five, and five kings were consecrated there- to. This, however, was done by permission of Earnulf: and they said that they would hold it from his hand, because none of them on the father’s side was born thereto except him alone. Earnulf then dwelt in the land east of the Rhine: and Rothulf then succeeded to the middle king- dom, and Oda to the western part, and Beorngar and Witha to the land of the Lombards and to the lands on that side of the mountain : and that they held in great discord, and fought two general battles, and oft and many times Jaid waste the land, and each repeatedly drove out the other. And that same year that the army went up beyond the bridge at Paris, alderman fEthelhelm carried the alms of the West-Saxons and of king £lfred to Rome. so often before mentioned, by one and the same day, to read and to interpret ; may explain this more fully to Asset appointed, and the kingdom was split into five parts; but the principal rank in the kingdom justly and deserv- edly devolved on Earnulf, save only that he committed an unworthy offence against his uncle. The other four kings promised fidelity and obedience to Earnulf, as was proper; for none of these four kings was hereditary on his father’s side in his share of the kingdom, as was Ear- nulf; therefore, though the five kings were appointed immediately on the death of Charles, yet the empire re- mained in the hands of Earnulf. Such, then, was the division of the kingdom ; Earnulf re- ceived the countries on thé east of the river Rhine; Hroththwlf [lopurr] the inner parts of the kingdom ; Oda the western part; Beorn- gar and Witha [Gurpo], Lombardy, and those coun- tries which are in that part of the mountains; but they did not keep these large do- minions in peace, for they twice fought a pitched battle, and often mutually ravaged their kingdoms, and drove each other out of their dominions. In the same year in which that [pagan] army left Paris and went to Chezy, /thel- helm, earl of Wiltshire, car- ried to Rome the alms of king ilfred and of the Saxons. In the same year also Elfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, divine inspiration, began, on but that I those who are ignorant, I will relate the cause of this long delay in beginning. On a certain day we were both of us sitting in the king’s chamber, talking on all kinds of subjects as usual, and it happened that I read to him book. He heard it attentively dressed me with a thoughtful mind, moment a book which he carried in daily courses and psalms, his youth, were written, same quotation in that book. @ quotation out of a certain with both his ears, and ad- showing me at the same his bosom, wherein the and prayers which he had read in and he commanded me to write the Hearing this, and perceiving HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 887 The kingdom was then di- vided into five, and so many kings in the same: but all things are done by the per- mission of King Earnulf, and they promised to be all under his subjection, because they were not like him, descended from the paternal stock; and he lived after this on the eastern side of the river Rhine. But Hrodulf occupied the middle parts of the kingdom, Odda the western parts, and Beorngar with Vuitha held the kingdom of the Lombards from the division of the Jovian mountain [Mount St Bernarv]. There they began a civil war; people assailed people; the lands of both were continually disturb- ed, nor was there any hope of quiet. The same year, in which the barbarians had settled on the bridge of Paris, duke Athel- helm received no small part of the money paid from the diocese of the English by the king for the people, and went to Rome. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 99 887 florence Huntingdon Simeon appointed, and the kingdom was split into five parts; but the principal rank in the About this time by the kingdom justly and deserv- factiousness of Ernulf, five edly devolved on Arnulf, kings were made in France. save only that he committed an unworthy offence against his uncle. The other four kings promised fidelity and obedience to Arnulf, as was proper; for none of these four kings was hereditary on his father’s side in his share of the kingdom, as was Ar- nulf ; therefore, though the five kings were appointed immediately on the death of Charles, yet the empire re- mained in the hands of Arnulf, Such then was the division of the kingdom; Arnulf re- ceived the countries on the east of the river Rhine ; Herothulf [Ropuxr] the inner parts of the kingdom ; Oda the western part; Beorn- gar and Witha [Gutvo], Lombardy, and those coun- tries which are in that part of the mountains; but they did not keep these large do- minions in peace, for they twice fought a pitched battle, and often mutually ravaged their kingdoms, and drove each other out of their dominions. In the same year Athel- elm, earl of Wiltshire, car- ried to Rome the alms of king Alfred and of the Saxons. In the same year also #lfred 8 At this time, also, Elfred king of the Anglo-Saxons king of the Saxons inspired so often before mentioned, by divine inspiration, began, on by the gift of God, was able one and the same day, to read and to interpret. to read and interpret the sacred writings. 100 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Sarton Chronicle Asser his ingenuous benevolence, and devout desire of studying the words of divine wisdom, I gave, though in secret, bound- less thanks to Almighty God, who had implanted such a love of wisdom in the king’s heart. But I could not find any empty space in that book wherein to write the quotation, for it was already full of various matters; wherefore I made a little delay, principally that I might stir up the bright intel- lect of the king to a higher acquaintance with the divine tes- timonies. Upon his urging me to make haste and write it quickly, I said to him, ‘‘ Are you willing that I should write that quotation on some leaf apart? For it is not certain whether we shall not find one or more other such extracts which will please you; and if that should so happen, we shall be glad that we have kept them apart.” ‘ Your plan is good,” said he, and I gladly made haste to get ready a sheet, in the beginning of which I wrote what he bade me; and on that same day, I wrote therein, as I had anticipated, no less than three other quotations which pleased him; and from that time we daily talked together, and found out other quotations which pleased him, so that the sheet became full, aud deservedly so; according as it is written, ‘“ The just man builds upon a moderate foundation, and by degrees as to greater things.’’ Thus, like a most productive bee, he flew here and there, asking questions as he went, until he had eagerly and unceasingly collected many various flowers of divine Scripture, with which he thickly stored the cells of his mind. Now when that first quotation was copied, he was eager at once to read, and to interpret in Saxon, and then to teach others; even as we read of that happy robber, who recog- nized his Lord, aye, the Lord of all men, as he was hanging on the blessed cross, and saluting him with his bodily eyes only, because elsewhere he was all pierced with nails, cried, “‘ Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom!” for it was only at the end of his life that he began to learn the rudiments of the Christian faith. But the king, inspired by God, began to study the rudiments of divine Scripture on the sacred solemnity of St Martin [Nov. 11], and he con- tinued to learn the flowers collected by certain masters, and to reduce them into the form of one book, as he was then able, although mixed one with another, until it became almost as large as a psalter. This book he called his Encutripion or Manvat [Hanp-soox ], because he carefully kept it at hand day and night, and found, as he told me, no small consolation therein. But as has already been written by a certain wise man, Of watchful minds are they whose pious care It is to govern well, so must I be watchful, in that I just now drew a kind of com- parison or similarity, though in dissimilar manner, between that happy robber and the king; for the cross is hateful to every one, wherever there is suffering. But what can he do, if he cannot save himself or escape thence? or by what art can he remain there and improve his cause? He must therefore whether he will or no, endure with pain and sorrow that which he is suffering. Now the king was pierced with many nails of tribulation though placed in the royal seat ; for from the twentieth year of his age to the present year, which is his 45th,* he has been constantly afflicted with most severe attacks of an un- known complaint, so that he has not a moment’s ease either Ethelwerd 887 * This must consequently have been written in a. D. 893 FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 101 g87 —_ Hlorence Huntingdon Simeon Namely on the holy feast day of St Martin bishop of Tours. Now the king was pierced with many nails of tribulation ; 9 He was though placed in the royal seat; for from the twentieth year afflicted with many tribula- of his age, as we have said, to his 45th and more, he was_ tions of this world, notwith- constantly afflicted with most severe attacks of an un- standing that he was placed known complaint, so that he had not a moment’s ease either in kingly power. from suffering the pain which it causes, or from the gloom 102 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saron Chronicle Asset from suffering the pain which it causes, or from the gloom which is thrown over him by the apprehension ofits coming. Moreover, the constant invasions of foreign nations, by which he was continually harassed by land and sea, without any interval of rest, were a just cause of disquiet. What shall I say of his repeated expeditions against the pagans, | his wars, and incessant occupations of government? Of the daily embassies sent to him by foreign nations, from the Tyrrhenian sea to the farthest end of Ireland?+ For we have seen and read letters, accompanied with presents, which were sent to him by Abel the patriarch of Jerusalem. What shall I say of the cities and towns which he restored, and of others which he built, where none had been before? of the royal halls and chambers, wonderfully erected by his command, with stone and wood ? of the royal vills constructed of stone, removed from their old site, and handsomely rebuilt by the king’s command in more fitting places? Besides the disease above mentioned, he was disturbed by the quarrels of his friends, who would voluntarily endure little or no toil, though it was for the common necessity of the kingdom; but he alone, sustained by the divine aid, like a skilful pilot, strove to steer his ship, laden with much wealth, into the safe and much desired harbour of his country, though almost all his crew were tired, and suffered them not to faint or hesitate, though sailing amid the manifold waves and eddies of this present life. For all his bishops, earls, nobles, favourite ministers, and prefects, who, next to God and the king, had the whole go- vernment of the kingdom, as is fitting, continually received from him instruction, respect, exhortation, and command; nay, at last, when they were disobedient, and his long patience was exhausted, he would reprove them severely, and censure their vulgar folly and obstinacy; and thus he directed their attention to his own will and to the common interests of the kingdom. But, owing to the sluggishness of the people, these admonitions of the king were either not fulfilled, or were begun late at the moment of necessity, and so ended less to the advantage of those who put them in execution ; for I will say nothing of the castles which he ordered to be built, but which, being begun late, were never finished, because the hostile troops broke in upon them by land and sea, and as often happened, the thwarters of the royal ordinance re- pented when it was too late, and blushed at their non-perform- ance of his commands. I speak of repentance when it is too late, on the testimony of Scripture, whereby numberless persons have had cause for too much sorrow when many in- sidious evils have been wrought. But though by these means, sad to say, they may be bitterly afflicted and roused to sorrow by the loss of fathers, wives, children, ministers, servant-men, servant-maids, and furniture and household stuff, what is the use of hateful repentance when their kins- men are dead, and they cannot aid them, or redeem those who are captive from captivity? for they are not able even to assist those who have escaped, as they have not wherewith to sustain even their own lives. They repented, therefore, when it was too late, and grieved at their incautious neglect of the king’s commands, and they praised the royal wisdom with one voice, and tried with all their power to fulfil what they had before refused, namely, concerning the erection of castles, and other things generally useful to the whole kingdom. Ethelwerd 887 t Wrst conjectures that we ought to read Hiberia, Sparn, and not Hibernia, IRELAND, in this passage. FROM A. D. 887 Florence which was thrown over him by the fear of its coming. Moreover, the constant invasions of foreign nations, by which he was continually harassed by land and sea, without any interval of rest, were a just cause of disquiet. What shall I say of his repeated expeditions against the pagans, his wars, and incessant occupations of government? Huntingdon of the cities and towns which he restored, and of others which he built, where none had been before ? of the buildings of gold and silver, incomparably wrought at his command? of the royal halls and chambers, wonderfully erected by his command, with stone and wood ? of the royal vills constructed of stone, removed from their old site, and handsomely rebuilt by the king’s command in more fitting places? He, sustained by the divine aid, did not suffer his government, once undertaken, to faint or hesitate, though sailing amid the manifold waves and eddies of this present life. For all his bishops, earls, nobles, favourite ministers, and prefects, continually received from him instruction, exhortation, and command; nay, at last, when they were disobedient, and his long patience was exhausted, he would reprove them severely, and censure their vulgar folly and obstinacy; and thus he directed their attention to his own will, andthe common interests of the kingdom. But if, owing to the sluggishness of the people, these admonitions of the king were either not fulfilled, or were begun late at the moment of necessity, and so ended less to the advantage of those who put them in execution; for instance the castles which he ordered to be | built,but which, being begun late, were never finished, because the hostile troops broke in upon them by land and sea, as often happened, the thwarters of the royal ordinance re- pented when it was too late, and grieved at their incautious neglect of the king’s commands, and they praised the royal wisdom with one voice, and tried with all their power to fulfil what they had before refused. turning over and over in his mind, gave forth a fragrance by were the fruits of his goodness. Who shall tell what 849 TO 901. 103 Simeon 10 For we have also seen and read letters and various gifts sent to him from Jerusalem by Abel the patriarch. 11 How he enlarged the dominions of his kingdom, and rebuilt the walls of the cities, and strengthened their defences which had been thrown down, and made others which before were not, what man, even if sustained by civic eloquence, can describe with the lips of exul- tation ? Who, moreover, shall tell how he enriched the Holy Places with ornaments and with kingly gifts? He was often disturbed in mind against the princes, and leaders of galleys, and all the race of the wicked, because they would not follow him in the studies on which he was bent. But yet, he alone, supported by the divine aid, like a skilful pilot, sought to steer his ship, that is the life of his own glorious mind, into the haven of a peaceful paradise. He was im the habit of keeping in frequent memory those verses: He who would hope with cautious A lasting seat to find [steps And with firm feet to keep his stand Against the blowing wind; &c. And lower down: Though down this world in ruin falls, And winds may swell the seas, Thou, shut within thy peaceful walls, Shalt spend thy days in ease, And smile at all the impotence And fury of the breeze. These things the pious king his unspeakable deeds which gifts he gave on festal days to his bishops, chiefs and soldiers? The poor then ee in jubilee: then orphans and widows applauded with unbounded joy of heart. He writer ; ‘¢ Money is precious when it has been transferred to others: Arrep] knew those words of the scholastic with the use of giving it ceases to be possessed.” He constantly admonished his bishops shining with heavenly brightness, to correct the faults of the people and restrain by bold chastisement the folly of the vulgar: and he not only admonished the shepherds of the people, but also commanded his dukes and chosen servants, to make themselves wisely serviceable to the common good of all the kingdom. 104 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saron Chronicle Asset Of his fixed purpose of holy meditation, which in the midst of prosperity and adversity he never neglected, I cannot with advantage now omit to speak. For, whereas he often thought of the necessities of his soul, among the other good deeds to which his thoughts were night and day turned, he ordered that two monasteries should be built, one for monks at Athelney, which is a place surrounded by impassable marshes and rivers where no one can enter but by boats, or by a bridge laboriously constructed between two other ~ heights ; at the western end of which bridge was erected a strong tower, of beautiful work, by command of the aforesaid king ; and in this monastery he collected monks of all kinds, from every quarter, and placed them therein. For at first, because he had no one of his own nation, noble and free by birth, who was willing to enter the mo- nastic life, except children, who could neither choose good nor avoid evil in consequence of their tender years, because for many previous years the love of a monastic life had utterly decayed from that nation as well as from many other nations though many monasteries still remain in that country ; yet, as no one directed the rule of that kind of life in a regular way, for what reason I cannot say, either from the invasions of foreigners which took place so frequently both by sea and land, or because that people abounded in riches of every kind, and so looked with contempt on the monastic life. It was for this reason that king Alfred sought to gather monks of different kinds to place in the same monastery. First he placed there as abbat, John * the priest and monk, an old Saxon by birth, then certain priests and deacons from beyond the sea; of whom, finding that he had not as large a number as he wished, he procured as many as possible of the same Gallic race, some of whom, being children, he ordered to be taught in the same monastery, and at a later period to be admitted to the monastic habit. I have myself seen a young lad of pagan birth who was educated in that monastery, and by no means the hindmost of them all. There was also a deed done once in that monastery, which I would utterly consign to oblivion, although it is an un+ worthy deed ; for throughout the whole of Scripture the base deeds of the wicked are interspersed among the blessed deeds of the just, as tares and darnel are sown among the wheat: good deeds are recorded that they may be praised and imi- tated, and that their imitators may be held in all honour; wicked deeds are there related, that they may be censured and avoided, and their imitators be reproved with all odium, contempt, and vengeance. For once upon a time, a certain priest and a deacon, Gauls by birth, and two of the aforesaid monks, by the insti- gation of the devil, and excited by some secret jealousy, became so embittered in secret against their abbat, the above mentioned John, that, like Jews, they circumvented and be- trayed their master. For whereas he had two servants, whom he had hired out of Gaul, they taught these such wicked practices, that in the night, when all men were enjoying the sweet tranquillity of sleep, they should make their way into the church armed, and shutting it behind them as usual, hide themselves therein, and wait for the moment when the abbat should enter the church alone. At length, when he should come alone to pray, and bending his knees, bow before the holy altar, the men should rush on him with hostility, and try to slay him on the spot. They then should drag his Cthelwerd 887 * Not the celebrated John Scotus Erigena. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 887 — Flovence §untingdon Among the other good deeds which he did, he ordered that two monasteries should be built, one for monks at Athelney, where he collected monks of all kinds. First he placed there as abbat, John the priest and monk, an old Saxon by birth. Essays 105 Simeon The same king had made a beautiful monastery in the place called Ethelingaige, close to which on the western side was placed a fortress that had been made very strong by the command and the labour of the aforesaid king. In this convent he collected from all sides monks of different kinds, and settled in that place. 106 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saxon Chronicle Asser lifeless body out of the church, and throw it down before the house of a certain harlot, as if he had been slain whilst on a visit to her.;.. This was their machination, adding crime to crime, as it is said, ‘‘The last error shall be worse than the first.” But the divine mercy, which always delights to aid the innocent, frustrated in great part the wicked design of the wicked men, so that it should not turn out in every respect as they had proposed. When, therefore, the whole of the evil counsel had been explained by those wicked teachers to their wicked agents, and the night which had been fixed on as most fit was come, the two armed ruffians were placed, with a promise of im- punity, to await in the church for the arrival of the abbat. in the middle of the night John, as usual, entered the church to pray, without any one’s knowing of it, and knelt before the altar. The two ruffians rushed upon him with drawn swords, and dealt him some severe wounds. But he, being a man of a brave mind, and, as we have heard say, not unacquainted with the art of self-defence, if he had not been a follower of a better calling, no sooner heard the sound of the robbers, before he saw them, than he rose up against them before he was wounded, and, shouting as loud as he could, struggled against them, crying out that they were devils and not men: for he himself knew no better, as he thought that no men would dare to attempt such a deed. He was, however, wounded before any of his people could come to his help. His attendants, roused by the noise, were frightened when they heard the word devils, and both these two who, like Jews, sought to betray their master, and the others who knew nothing of the matter, rushed together to the doors of the church; but before they got there those ruffians escaped, leaving the abbat half dead. The monks raised the old man, in a fainting condition, and carried him home with tears and lamentations ; nor did those two deceit- ful monks shed tears less than the innocent. But God’s mercy did not allow so bold a deed to pass unpunished ; the ruffians who perpetrated it, and all who urged them to it, were taken and put in prison, where, by various tortures, they came to a disgraceful end. Let us now return to our narrative. Another monastery, also, was built by the same king as a residence for nuns, near the eastern gate of Shaftesbury ; and his own daughter, Ethelgiva, was placed in it as abbess. With her many other noble ladies bound by the rules of the monastic life, dwell in that monastery. These two edifices were enriched by the king with much land, as well as perso- nal property. These things being thus disposed of, the king began, as was his practice, to consider within himself, what more he could do to augment and show forth his piety; what he had begun wisely, and thoughtfully conceived for the public benefit, was adhered to with equally beneficial result ; for he had heard it out of the book of the law, that ths Lord had promised to restore to him tenfold; and he knew that the Lord had kept his promise, and had actually restored to him tenfold. Encouraged by this example, and wishing to exceed the practices of his predecessors, he vowed humbly and faithfully to devote to God half his services, both day and night, and also half of all his wealth, such as lawfully and justly came annually into his possession ; and Ethelwerd 887 - FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 887 Florence Huntingdon Another monastery, also, was built by the same king as a residence for nuns, near the eastern gate of Shaftesbury , and his own daughter, Athelgeofu, a nun, was placed in it as abbess. These two edifices were enriched by the king with much land, as well as perso- nal property. Moreover he vowed humbly and faithfully to devote to God half of all his wealth, such as lawfully and justly came annually into his possession ; and 107 Simeon He also built another mon- astery near the eastern gate of the city called Sceftes- burg, intended for the resi- dence of nuns, wherein he dedicated to God as abbess his own daughter the virgin Ethelgyfa. He gave such large gifts and possessions to both these monasteries that they had enough for food and clothing as long as life should last. When these things which we have related were fully and firmly done, king Elfred, as was his wont, began with searching mind to look with- in the recesses of his breast, and to meditate upon that which is written in the divine letters; “‘ If you offer rightly, 108 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saron Chronicle Asset this vow, as far as human dis- cretion can perceive and keep, he skilfully and wisely endeavoured to fulfil. But, that he might, with his usual caution, avoid that which scripture warns us against: “If you offer aright, but do not divide aright, you sin,” he considered how he might divide aright that which he had vowed to God; and as Solomon had said, “The heart of the king is in the hand of God,” that is, his counsel, he ordered with wise policy, which could come only from above, that his officers should first divide into two parts the revenues of every year. When this division was made, he assigned the first part to worldly uses, and ordered that one-third of it should be paid to his soldiers, and also to his ministers, the nobles who dwelt at court where they discharged divers duties; for so the king’s family was arranged at all times into three classes. The king’s attendants were most wisely distributed into three companies, so that the first company should be on duty at court for one month, night and day, at the end of which they returned to their homes, and were relieved by the second company. At the end of the second month, in the same way, the third company relieved the second, who returned to their homes, where they spent two months, until their ser- vices were again wanted. The third company also gave place to the first in the same way, and also spent two months at home. Thus was the threefold division of the companies ar- ranged at all times in the royal household. To these therefore was paid the first of the three portions aforesaid, to each according to their respective dignities and peculiar services ; the second to the operatives, whom he had collected from every nation, and had about him in large num- bers, men skilled in every kind of construction; the third portion was assigned to foreigners who came to him out of every nation far and near, whether they asked money of him or not, he cheerfully gave to each with wonderful munificence according to their respective merits, according to what is written : “ God loveth a cheerful giver.” But the second part of all his revenues, which came yearly into his possession, and was included in the receipts of the exchequer, as we mentioned a little before, he, with ready de- votion, gave to God, ordering his ministers to divide it eare- fully into four parts, on the condition that the first part should be discreetly bestowed on the poor of every nation who came to him; and on this subject he said that, as far as human discretion could guarantee, the remark of pope St Gregory should be followed; “Give not much to whom you should give little, nor little to whom much, nor something to whom nothing, nor nothing to whom something.” he second of the four portions was given to the two monasteries which he had built, and to those who therein had dedicated themselves to God’s service, as we have mentioned above. The third portion was assigned to the school, which he had studiously collected together, consisting of many of the nobility of his own nation. The fourth portion was for the use of all the neighbouring monasteries in all Saxony and Mercia, and also during some years, in turn, to the churches and servants of God dwelling in Britain [Wales], Cornwall, Gaul, Ar- motica, Northumbria, and sometimes also in Ireland ; accord- ing to his means, he either distributed to them beforehand, or afterwards, if life and success should not fail him. When the king had arranged these matters, he remem- bered that sentence of divine scripture, “ Whosoever will Ethelwerd 887 FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 887 Florence this vow, with wonderful alacrity of mind, he wisely studied to fulfil. Huntingdon He ordered with wise policy which could come only from above, that his officers should first divide into 2 parts the revenues of every year. When this division was made, he ordered that one-third of the first part should be divided into three parts, of which he gave yearly the first part to his ministers, the nobles who dwelt at court where they discharged divers duties; for the king’s attendants were most wisely distributed into three companies so that the first company should be on duty at court for one month, night and day, at the end of which they were relieved by the second company and return to their homes, where they stayed 2 months attending to their own business. At the end of the second month, in the same way, the third company relieved the second, who returned to their homes, where they also spent two months, The third company also gave place to the first in the same way, and also spent two months at home. Thus was the threefold division of the companies ar- ranged at all times in the royal household. The second part was paid to the operatives, whom he had collected from many nations and had about him in large num- bers, men skilled in every kind of construction; the third portion was assigned to foreigners who came to him out of every nation far and near; whether they asked money of him or not,he cheerfully gave to each with wonderful munificence. But the second part of all his revenues, which came yearly into his possession, he ordered his ministers to divide care- fully into four parts, on the condition that the first part should be discreetly bestowed on the poor of every nation who came to him. The second of the four portions was given to the two monasteries which he had built, and to those who therein had dedicated themselves to God’s service. The third portion was assigned to the school, which he had studiously collected together, consisting of many, both noble and ignoble, of his own nation. The fourth portion was for the use of all the neighbouring monasteries in all Saxony and Mercia, and also during some years, in turn, to the churches and servants of God dwelling in Britain [Wales,] Cornwall, Gaul, Ar- morica, Northumbria and sometimes also in Ireland ; accord- ing to his means, he distributed to them. When the king had arranged these matters, 109 Simeon and divide not rightly, you have sinned.” He reflected too, from his heart, on what is said by Solomon that wisest of kings, “The heart of the king is in the hand of Almighty God.” He also divided his income into 8 parts. The first por- tion of his income he gave yearly to his warriors : the second, to the workmen whom he had gathered out of many nations: the third to foreigners who came to him from every quarter. For he knew that ‘God loveth a cheerful giver.” For he was placed among manifold thorns of tribula- tion, although he was en- throned in the royal power. 110 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saron Chronicle Asset give alms,ought to begin from himself,” and prudently be- gan to reflect what he could offer to God from the service of his body and mind ; for he proposed to consecrate to God no less out of this than he had done of things external to him- self, Moreover, he promised, as far as his infirmity and his means would allow, to give up to God the half of his ser- vices, bodily and mental, by night and by day, voluntarily, and with all his might; but, inasmuch as he could not equally distinguish the lengths of the hours by night, on ac- count of the darkness, and ofttimes of the day, on account of the storms and clouds, he began to consider, by what means and without any difficulty, relying on the mercy of God, he might discharge the promised tenor of his vow until his death. After long reflection on these things, he at length, by a useful and shrewd invention, commanded his chaplains to supply wax in a sufficient quality, and he caused it to be weighed in such a manner that when there was so much of it in the scales, as would equal the weight of seventy-two pence, he caused the chaplains to make six candles thereof, each of equal length, so that each candle might have twelve divisions + marked longitudinally upon it. By this plan, therefore, those six candles burned for twenty-four hours, a night and day, without fail, before the sacred relics of many of God’s elect, which always accompanied him wherever he went; but sometimes when they would not continue burning a whole day and night, till the same hour that they were lighted the preceding evening, from the violence of the wind, which blew day and night without intermission through the doors and windows of the churches, the fissures of the divi- sions, the plankings of the wall, or the thin canvass of the tents, they then unavoidably burned out and finished their course before the appointed time; the king therefore consi- dered by what means he might shut out the wind, and so by a useful and cunning invention, he ordered a lantern to be beautifully constructed of wood and white ox-horn, which, when skilfully planed till it is thin, is no less transparent than a vessel of glass. This lantern, therefore, was wonder- fully made of wood and horn, as we before said, and b night a candle was put into it, which shone as brightly with- out as within, and was not extinguished by the wind; for the opening of the lantern was also closed up, according to the king’s command, by a door of horn. By this contrivance, then, six candles, lighted in succession, lasted four and twenty hours, neither more nor less, and, when these were extinguished, others were lighted. When all these things were properly arranged, the king, eager to give up to God the half of his daily service, as he had vowed, and more also, if his ability on the one hand, and his malady on the other, would allow him, showed himself a minute investigator of the truth in all his judg- ments, and this especially for the sake of the poor, to whose interest, day and night, among other duties of this life, he ever was wonderfully attentive. For in the whole kingdom the poor, besides him, had few or no protectors ; for all the powerful and noble of that country had tuned their thoughts rather to secular than to heavenly things: each was more bent on secular matters, to his own profit, than on the public good. He strove also, in his own judgments, for the benefit of both the noble and the ignoble, who often perversely quar- Ethelwerd + Unctas POLLICIS. 887 FROM A. D. 849 TO 901. 887 florence Huntingdon he promised, as far as his infirmity and his means would allow, to give up to God the half of his ser- vices, bodily and mental, by night and by day, voluntarily, and with all his might. Wherefore he began to consider, by what means and without any variation, he might discharge the promised tenor of his vow until his death. He at length, by a useful and shrewd invention, commanded wax to be given him in a sufficient quality, and weighed against penny pieces : and when there was so much of it in the scales, as would equal the weight of seventy-two pence, he caused the chaplains to make six candles thereof, each of equal length, so that each candle might have twelve divisions marked longitudinally upon it. By this plan, therefore, those six candles burned for twenty-four hours, a night and day, without fail, before the sacred relics of many of God’s elect, which always accompanied him wherever he went. Moreover the king was a minute investigator of the truth in all his judg- ments, as in all other things. Simeon 111 112 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Savon Chronicle Asser relled at the meetings of his earls and officers, so that hardly one of them admitted the justice of what had been decided by the earls and prefects, and in consequence of this pertinacious and obstinate dissension, all desired to have the judgment of the king, and both sides sought at once, to gratify their desire. But if any one was conscious of injustice on his side in the suit, though by law and agreement he was compelled, however reluctant, to go before the king, yet with his own good will he never would consent to go. For he knew, that in the king’s presence no part of his wrong would be hidden; and no wonder, for the king was a most acute investigator in passing sentence, as he was in all other things. He inquired into almost all the judgments which were given in his own absence, throughout all his dominion, whether they were just or unjust. If he perceived there was iniquity in those judgments, he summoned the judges, either through his own agency, or through others of his faithful servants, and asked them mildly, why they had judged so unjustly; whether through ignorance or malevo- lence; i.e., whether for the love or fear of any one, or hatred of others; or also for the desire of money. At length, if the judges acknowledged they had given judgment becanse they knew no better, he discreetly and moderately reproved their inexperience and folly in such terms as these: “ I wonder truly at your rashness that, whereas by God’s favour and mine, you have occupied the rank and office of the wise, you have neglected the studies and labours of the wise. Either, therefore, at once give up the discharge of the tem- poral duties which you hold, or endeavour more zealously to study the lessons of wisdom. Such are my commands.” At these words the earls and prefects would tremble and endeavour to turn all their thoughts to the study of justice, so that, wonderful to say, almost all his earls, pre- fects, and officers, though unlearned from their cradles, were sedulously bent upon acquiring learning, choosing rather la- boriously to acquire the knowledge of a new discipline than to resign their functions; but if any one of them from old age or slowness of talent was unable to make progress in liberal studies, he commanded his son, if he had one, or one of his kinsmen, or, if there was no other person to be had, his own freedman or servant, whom he had some time before advanced to the office of reading, to recite Saxon books before him night and day, whenever he had any lei- sure, and they lamented with deep sighs, in their inmost hearts, that in their youth they had never attended to such studies ; and they blessed the young men of our days, who happily could be instructed in the liberal arts, whilst they execrated their own lot, that they had not learned these things in their youth, and now, when they are old, though wishing to learn them, they are unable. But this skill of young and old in acquiring letters we have explained to the knowledge of the aforesaid king.* * Asser’s work here leaves off abruptly, which is the more remarkable, because, in a former passage of his work, he has shewn by his mode of speech, that he was alive in the 45th year of King Alfred’s life, that is in 893 [see p. 100]. Here therefore we lose sight of Asser, and introduce the Annals in his place to make the 6 columns perfect. It may be remarked that Florence who has copied Asser almost word for word, has only a general likeness of phraseology to the Annals, like the other chroniclers. Ethelwerd 887 FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 887 = Hlorence Huntingdon He inquired into almost all the judgments which were given in his own absence, throughout all his dominion, whether they were just or unjust. If he perceived .there was iniquity in those judgments, he summoned the judges, either through his own agency, or through others of Lie faithful servants, and asked them mildly, why they had judged so unjustly ; whether through ignorance or malevo- lence ; i. e. whether for the love or fear of any one, or hatred of others ; or also for the desire of money. At length, if the judges acknowledged they had given judgment because they new no better, he discreetly and moderately reproved their inexperience and folly in such terms as these: “ I wonder truly at your rashness, that whereas by God’s favour and mine, you have occupied the rank and office of the wise, Pe have neglected the studies and labours of the wise. ither, therefore, at once give up the discharge of the tem- poral duties which you hold, or endeavour more zealously to study the lessons of wisdom. Such ‘are my commands.” At these words the earls and prefects would tremble and endeavour to turn all their thoughts to the study of justice, so that, wonderful to say, almost all his earls, pre- fects, and officers, though unlearned from their cradles, were sedulously bent upon acquiring learning, choosing rather la- boriously to acquire the knowledge of a new discipline than to resign their functions ; but if any one of them, from old age or slowness of talent was unable to make progress in liberal studies, he commanded his son, if he had one, or one of his kinsmen, or, if there was no other person to be had, his own freedman or servant, whom he had some time before advanced to the office of reading, to recite Saxon books before him night and day, whenever he had any lei- sure: but the old men lamented with deep sighs, in their inmost hearts, that in their youth they had never attended to such studies ; and they blessed the young men of our days, who happily could be instructed in the liberal arts, whilst they execrated their own lot, that they had not learned these things in their youth, and now, when they are old, though wishing to learn them, they are unable. Essays 1 5 Simeon CHARTERS tn 887. None, 113 114 Saron Chronicle A. 888. Here alderman Beocea car- ried the alms of the West- Saxons and of king £lfred to Rome. And queen Athelswith, who was king Alfred’s sister, died on the way to Rome, and her body lies at Pavia. And that year /thelred archbishop of Canterbury, and alderman /thelwold died in the same month. A. 889. Asset * In the following year they entered the mouth of the river Jonna [Yonne], not without doing much damage to the country, and there remained one year. * This is displaced, in Asser, Florence and Simeon, for the sake of the connection. Annals Here there was no journey to Rome, except that king /Elfred sent two couriers with letters. A. 890. Here abbat Beornhelm car- ried the alms of the West- Saxons and of king Alfred to Rome. And Godrum the Northern king died, whose baptismal name was /Ethelstan ; he was king AElfred’s godson, and he abode in East-Anglia, and first settled that country. And that same year the army went from the Seine to Sant- laudan [St Lo], which is be- tween Brittany and France ; and the Bretons fought against them, and had the victory, and drove them out into a river, and drowned many of them. This year Plegemund was chosen of God and of all the people to the archbishopric of Canterbury. A. 890. Died Guthram king of the pagans, who also at his bap- tism took the name of Athel- stan. He was the first who reigned among the Last- Angles after the passion of the sainted king Eadmund, and he divided that country, and tilled, and first inhabited it. He died, therefore, in the 14th year after he receiv- ed baptism, and was buried in the royal vill called Head- leaga [Heaptey] among the East Angles. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 888 CHARTERS 1n 888. None. In the same year died queen Lthelsuuith. In the lapse of the same year also, archbishop /A&thel- red died, and Athelbald commander in Kent. After one year abbat Byrn- helm carried to Rome the alms for the people, and principally those of the west- ern English and of king Alfred. Then also Guthrum, king of the northern English, yielded his breath to Orcus. He had taken the name of Ethelstan, as he came out of the baptismal laver, from his godfather, king éJfred, and had his seat among the East- Angles, since he there also had held the first station. In the same year, the afore- said army of barbarians re- moved from the river Seine to a place called Sandlaudan (Saint Lo], situated between the Bretons and the Franks ; but the Bretons met them in arms, and obtained the vic- tory, and followed them to the windings of a certain river, and there not a few of them were drowned in the waters. A. 891. Here the army went east- ward; and king Earnulf, with the East-Franks and Saxons and Bavarians, fought against that part which was mounted before the ships came up, and routed them. And three Scots came to king /Elfred in a boat without any oars from Ireland, whence they had stolen way, be- A. 891. 3 The great army of pagans came from the eastern king- dom of the Franks as far as Boulogne. One year afterwards, the bands of the aforesaid army visited the eastern parts of France; king Arnulf met then; a fight of cavalry took place before the fleets arrived, and an army of eastern Franks came up. Saxons and Bavarians; the pagans spread their sails to flee. In the same year, three FROM A. D. 895 Slorence 888. * Inthe following year they entered the mouth of the river Jonna [Yonne], not without doing much damage to the country, and there remained one year. 2 The noble chief, named Huntingdon 849 TO 901. 115 Simeon 7 But in the following year 12 In the year of our Lord’s incarnaticn 888, 7 They entered the mouth of a river called the Ionna, not without much damage to the country, and there dwelt one year. 13 Prince Beocca, carried the alms of king Alfred and the West- Beocca carried to Rome the Saxons to Rome. 3 In the same year the king’s sister /Ethelsuuith, queen of Burhred king of. the Mer- cians, died and was buried at Ticinum. 4 In which year, also, duke fEthelwold and /&thelred archbishop of Dover died in the same month. alms of king Elfred. On that journey died Ethel- suith the king’s sister, and she was buried in Pavia. (1) 889. subscribed also by ‘ Athelred dux,” subscribed also by several CHARTERS in 889. 1. Wer- subregulus et patricius Merciorum,” others, II, 120, and bearing no date FRitH, [bishop of Winchester] ‘‘ AEthelfled,’ and others. IJ, 118. is referred to 871—889. 4. ALFRED II, 117. 2. Aurrep king of Wessex, 38. A third charter of “ Hurrep king: no date. II, 122, (6) 890. 8 Abbat Bornhelm carried to In the 19th year of king In the year 890, abbat Rome the alms of king Alfred and of the West-Saxons. 9 The Northman king Guth- rum, whom, as we have said before, king Alfred received from the sacred font and gave him the name of /thel- stan, died this year. 10 This man lived with his followers in East-Anglia, and first inhabited and possessed that island after the martyr- dom of St Edmund the king. 11 The same year the pagan army so often spoken of leaving the Seine, went to a place called Santlaudan, situated between France and Armorica. Against whom fought the Britons, who, having slain some, put others to flight, and drowned others in the river, remained masters of the field. 5 To whom succeeced, in the archbishopric, Pleigmund who was excellently instruct- ed in literature. Alfred, king Godrun the Dane, who was son of king Alfred and reigned in East- Anglia, was removed from this world. CHARTERS rn 890. None. This year the army went from the Seine to Sanlaudan which is between Bretagne and France. But the Bretons fought with them, and driv- ing them into a certain river, slew many of them. Here Plegmund was elected archbishop by God and all the people. Beornhelm carried to Rome the alms of king Elfred and of the West-Saxons. In the same year died Guth- rum king of the Northum- brians. King Elfred, as is read above, raised him from his baptism, and called him Ethelstan. In this year the aforesaid army went from the Seine to Sanlaudan, situated between Bretagne and France: but they were put to flight by the Bretons, and the greater number of them drowned in the nearest river. (7) 891. 13 The army of pagans above mentioned, leaving West France, went into East France; but, before their ships could come to them, the emperor Arnulf, with the Eastern Franks, Old Saxons and Bavarians, fought against their land army and defeated them. In the following year, the army went towards the east, and king Arnulf with the French, and Saxons, and Bavarians, fought against the army, and drove them back. CHARTERS Nn ALFRED ‘August 2. 891. King AI, 123, In the year 891, Heathured undertook bishopric. the 116 Saron Chronicle cause they desired for the love of God to be in a state of pilgrimage, they recked not where. The boat in which they came was made of two hides and ahalf, and they took with them provi- sions sufficient for seven days; and then about the seventh day they came on shore in Cornwall, and soon after went to king /®lfred. Thus they were named: Dub- slane, and Macbeth, and Maclinmum. And Swifneh, the best teacher among the Scots, died. A. 892. And that same year, after Easter, about Rogation week or before, the star appeared which in Latin is called cometa; some men say in HARMONY OF} {THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 89) chosen men of Hibernian race, bumming with piety, leave their country: they privately form a boat by sewing ox-hides; they put into it provisions for a week; they sail seven days and seven nights, and arrive on the shores of Cornwall: here they left their fleet, which had been guided, not by the strength of their arms, but by the power of Him who rules all things, and set out for the court of king Alfred, who with his senate rejoice in their coming. From thence they proceeded to Rome, and, as is customary with teachers of Christ, they essay to go thence to Jeru- salem... Their names were, Dufslane the first; Macbeathath, the second; Magilmumen, the third, flourishing in the arts, skilled in letters, and a dis- Annals (2) A.892. 1 Comets appeared after Easter, and about the time of Rogations. English that it is a hairy star, because a long radiance streams times on each side. from it, sometimes on the one side, and some- tinguished masters of the Scots. Also in the same year, after Easter, a comet appeared, which some think to be an omen of foul times, which have already past; but it is the most approved theory of philosophers, that they fore- tell future things, as has been tried in many ways. A. 893. Here in this year the great army, about which we for- merly spoke, came again from the eastem kingdom westward to Boulogne, and there was shipped; so that they came over in one pass- age, horsesand all; and they came to land at Limene- mouth with 250 ships. This port is in the eastern part of Kent, at the east end of the great wood which we call Andred; the wood is in (8) A. 893. 3 And thence with 350 ships to the mouth of the river Limen, and there, not far from the river, made a strong fortress at a place called Apuldran. 5 The river Limin runs out of the great wood, called And- readesweald, which wood covers a space of ground in length from east to west 120 miles or more, and in breadth 30 miles. One year after the barbarians fought king Arnulf, they go to Boulogne, and there build a fleet, and pass over into England. There they station their fleet in the Limnean port, at a place called Apoldre [ApPLE- porE, in Kenv,] and destroy an ancient castle, because there was but a small band of rustics within, and there they make their winter camp. length from east to west 120 miles or longer and 30 miles broad: the river of which we before spoke flows out of the weald. On this river they towed up their ships as far as the weald four miles from the outward harbour, and there stormed a fortress: within the fortress a few churlish men were stationed, and it was in part only constructed. Then soon after that Hasten with eighty ships landed at the mouth of the Thames, and wrought himself a for- tress at Middleton , and the -other army did the like at Apuldre. A. 894. In this year, that was about a twelve-month after these had wrought the fortress 6 That same year Hasteng came with 80 ships to the mouth of the river Thames and made for himself a strong tower at Middeltun [Mitton } on the south side of the Thames. whole winter. And the number of years, In the course of this year, a large fleet belonging to Hesten arrives on the banks of the river Thames, and found a citadel on the coasts of Kent, at a place called Middleton [Mitton] : They encamped there the from the glorious nativity of our Saviour was 900, all but seven. in FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 894% Slorence 14 Three Scotchmen, Dusblan, Mahbethu, Malmumin, desir- ing to lead a pilgrim’s life for the Lord, taking with them provision for one week, fled privately out of Ireland, and went on board a boat made of nothing but two hides and a half, and after seven days, arrived in a wonderful man- ner, without sail or tackling, in Cornwall, and afterwards went up to king Alfred. 15 In the same year died Swifneh the learned teacher of the Scots. Huntingdon 117 Simeon (12) 892. In the same year, also, the star called a Comet, was seen about the time of Rogation. CHARTERS 1n_ 892. 1. King ALFRED, subscribed also by Ead- weard filius regis and others. II, 124. 2. King ALFRED; sub- scribed also, among others, by «s thelwald filius regis.” II, 124. In the year 892 Died Wlfhere bishop of York, in the 39th year of his archiepiscopacy. 893. The naval and equestrian army of the pagans, leaving East Thames went to Bononia and crossing thence with their horses in 250 ships to Kent, came to land at the mouth of the river Limen, which flows out of the great wood named Andred. They drew their vessels up into the wood four miles from the river’s mouth, and_ there Afterwards that great army returned into England with all their things in 250 ships to the fort of Limene; which port is in the eastern part of Kent near the great wood of Andredeslaige, which con- tains 120 miles in length and 30 in breadth. Landing from their ships, they built a castle at Awldre. destroyed a half-built castle inhabited by a few countrymen, and built for themselves another fort at a place called Apultreo. And not long after the pagan king Hesten with 80 vessels entered the mouth of the Thames, and built for himself a fortress at a royal vill called Middeltun. In the meantime Hasteng came with 80 ships to the port of the Thames, and made acamp at Middletune [Miron]. In the year 893 CHARTERS 1n 893. None. 894. The pagans, who inhabited CHARTERS tn 894. None. 2 In the year 894 1 The East Saxons and Nor- thumbrians gave hostages, 118 Savon Chronicle Annals the eastern district,the North- : humbrians and the East-Angles had given oaths to king ZElfred, and the East-Angles six hostages; and neverthe- less, contrary to their plighted troth, as oft as the other armies went out with all their force, they also went out, either with them or on their own part. On this king £lfred gathered together his forces, : and proceeded until he encamped between the two armies, as near as he could for the wood fastnesses and the water fastnesses, so that he might be able to reach either of them in case they should seek any open country. From this time the enemy always went out along the weald in bands and troops, by whichever border was at the time without forces: and they also were sought out by other bands, almost every day, either by day or night, as well from the king’s force as also from the burgs. The king had divided his forces into two, so that one half was constantly at home, the other half in the field ; besides those whose duty it was to defend the burgs. The army did not come out of their stations with their whole force oftener than twice: once when they first came to land, before the forces were assembled; a second time when they would go away from their stations. 7 Not long after he made another on the north side of the Thames, at a place called Beanfleot. Then had they taken much booty, and would at that time go northward over the Thames into Essex towards their ships. Then the king’s forces outrode and got before them, and fought against them at Farnham, and put the army to flight, and retook the booty; and they fled over the Thames where there was no ford; then up along the Colne into an island. Then the forces there beset them about so long as they there had any provisions: but at length they had stayed their term of service, and had consumed their provi- sions; and the king was then on his way thitherwards with the division which warred under him. While he was on his way thither, and the other force was gone homewards, and the Danish-men remained there behind, because their king had been wounded in the battle, so that they could not carry him away, then those who dwelt among the Northhumbrians and among 9 The beginning of the reign of king Charles the boy: his knight was Hagano, 10 That same year the city of York was taken by the Normans; but bishop Seba by God’s help escaped. 11 This year also, Alfred king of the West Saxons fought against the Northmen at Fearnhame. He cut them to ieces, and wounded their ing, and put them to flight and took much spoil from them and they were compell- ed to pass beyond the river Thames into Essex; but many of them perished in the Thames. country of the East-Angle king Saint Edmund. Ba HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 894 After the Easter of that year. the army which had come from Gaul leave their camp, and trace the intricacies of a certain immense wood, which is called Andredessuda, and they extended as far as the Western Angles. Slowly as they go, they ravage the adjoining pro- vinces, Hampshire and Berk- shire: These things were told to the heir Edward, son of king Alfred, who had been exer- cising himself in the southern parts of England. And twice in the year they counted the spoil which they had obtained by fraud, in the land which borders on the southern bank of the Thames. The filthy crew which were then in possession of the East Angles, suddenly re- moved to a place called Bamfleet ; and there the allied band divided ; some of them re- mained, and some of them went beyond the sea. After this they reach the Western Angles, who meet them with threatening arms and dense array at Farnham. They exult, freed by the arrival of the prince, like sheep under the protection of the shepherd; the tyrant is wounded, and his troops are driven across the river Thames into the northern countries. Meanwhile, the Danes are held besieged in Thorney isle. Earl Ethered, setting out from the city of London, lent his aid to the prince. The barbarians asked peace and a treaty: hostages are given, they promise by oath toleave the kingdom of the aforesaid king; their words and deeds agree together without delay. g Lastly, they set out for the formerly governed by the And their ships fl from the Limnean port to I ee Ra o Meresige a place in Kent. FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 119 894 Florence Huntingdon Simeon Northumberland, made a and swore to be true to king solemn peace on oath with king Alfred: as also did Elfred against the aforesaid those who dwelt in East-Anglia, giving six hostages. pagans who had already But they broke the treaty, and, as often as the armies in come back to England. Kent left their castles to plunder, they also went out to plunder, either with them, or alone, wherever they could. When this was known, king Alfred, taking with him part of his army, and leaving the other part at home, as was his wont, and placing others for garrisons in the castles and cities, marched hastily into Kent, where he laid out a camp, in a place naturally very strong because it was surrounded on all sides by water, high rocks and overhanging woods ; so that, if the enemies went out into any of the plains to plunder or fight, he could join battle with them without delay. But they, now on foot, now on horse-back, plundering in bands, frequented those districts, which they saw were not occupied by the king’s troops. But, contrary to their expectation, not only some from the royal forces, but also from the cities, attacked them almost every day and night, and so annoyed them, that they all left Kent and went forth together from their quarters to plunder, for they had gone out together to plunder whilst they first began to live in those places. 1 But afterwards he took an oath to king Alfred, that he - would hurt him in nothing. But the king gave many gifts to him and his wife, and his children; one of whom the king himself had held in baptism, and the great duke Edred the other. But Hasteng, always unfaith- . ful, built a camp at Beam- But this time they took a fled. greater and more plentiful booty, and determined to cross the river Thames, and enter Essex, and so, with their booty, to meet the naval band, which they had sent beforehand. But, being overtaken by the king’s army, they fought a battle with them at Feornham, and having lost their booty together with the horses which they had brought with them from foreign parts, they were all put to flight, and crossing the Thames where there was no ford, they took refuge in an island situated within the stream of the river Colne, a ne blockaded, until foo ile : ; ‘ rarely . i e round, and another army relieved the Eine «sony, and the tne ae Ee ieee up with the other half of his i nt home, and king A’ a aoe eine i their ‘king was much wounded,and that they could not carry 120 Sarton Chronicle the East-Anglians gathered some hundred ships and went about south ; and some forty ships about to the north, and besieged a fortress in Devon- shire by the north sea; and those who went about to the south besieged Exeter. When the king heard that, then tumed he westward towards Exeter with all his force, except a very strong body of the people eastward. These went onwards until they went to London; and then with the townsmen, and the aid which came to them from the west, they went east to Beamfleet. Heesten was then come there with his band which before sate at Middleton; and the great army was also come thereto, which before sate at Apuldre near Limene- mouth. The fortress at Beamfleet had been ere this constructed by Heesten, and he was at that time gone out to plunder; and the great army was therein. Then came they thereto, and put the army to flight, and stormed the fortress, and took all that was within it, as well the property, as the wo- men, and the children also, and brought the whole to London ; and all the ships they either broke in pieces or burned, or brought to Lon- don or to Rochester; and they brought the wife of Hesten and his two sons to the king: and he afterwards gave them up to him again, Annals But king Alfred heard that a large part of the pagan army, which had been driven thence, had gone by sea and sailed to Exeter ; wherefore he led with him his army of horse and _ foot-soldiers, and fighting sternly against them, defeated them there and put them to flight. Meanwhile, by command of king Alfred, Adhered earl of the Mercians, together with the citizens of London, and other prudent warriors with- out number, came to Beam- fleot, and besieged the for- tress of the pagans,broke into it, and gained there number- less spoils in gold, silver, horses and garments. Among which, also, the wife of Hasteng with his two sons were led to London, and brought before king Alfred ; whom the king at once ordered to be given up, because her sons were, one of them son [cop-son] of king Alfred, the other ef earl Adhered. But, when Hasteng again came to Beanfleat, he rebuilt there the castle which had been broken down. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Cthelwerd 894 In the course of the same year, Hasten breaks away with his band from Bamfleet, and devastates all Mercia, until they arrive at the end of Britain. In the same year Danaasuda, in Beamfleote, was destroyed by the people, and they divide the treasure among them, After this, Sigeferth, the pirate, lands from his fleet FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 894 Florence him with them, remained there. But king Alfred had not yet completed his march to attack the enemy, when lo, Huntingdon 4 But a messenger came to king Alfred saying, “A hundred ships are come from Northumberland and East- Anglia, and are besieging 121 Simeon news is brought that the Exeter.” pagans who inhabited North- umberland and East-Anglia had collected together 240 ships, that some of them in 100 ships had sailed round the south coast of England, and the others in 40 ships round the north coast: that the one party had besieged Exeter, the others a fortress in Devonshire with a large body of men. When the king heard these things, he was not daunted by the rashness of the enemy, but became furious at his men being besieged. Without delay, he recalled all his cavalry, and marched to Exeter, leaving, however, a small body of men to finish the subjugation of the enemy he was following. These, proceeding to London, with the citizens and others who had come to help them from the western coast of England, advance to Beanflot; for they had heard that the greatest part of the army, which had settled at Apultreo, had gone thither, and that king Haesten had come there with his army from Milton and had there built a fortress, but at that moment they were gone forth to plunder. For the same king, a short time before, had made peace with King Alfred, and given several hostages, and had moreover at the request of King Alfred, given his two sons to be regenerated in the laver of salvation ; one of them was taken from the fountain by King Alfred himself, the other by the noble duke thered. But Haesten, going to Bean- flot, quickly made there a fortress, and immediately plundered the lands of And when he had gone out to “Ethered the father of his children. A severe battle was therefore fought with the pagans, and the Christians, at the first shock, put them to flight, destroyed their works, and seizing on all they could find, carried with them the women and children to London. Some of the ships they broke to pieces, some they burnt, and carried the rest either to London or Rochester. They also took the wife and two sons of Haesten, before he came back to Beanflot from plundering, and_ these they carried to king Alfred. But he did them no harm, because one of them, as we have said before, was his [cop] son, the other the [cop] son of duke #thered ; but he confirmed the peace between them, and having received hostages not only restored the wife and sons of Haesten, at their father’s request, but also gave him a Essays plunder upon the king, the king broke into the aforesaid camp, and there took his wife, and children, and money, and booty, and ships; but he gave back to Hasteng his wife and sons, because he was their god-father. 16 122 Saron Chronicle because one of them was his godson, and tbe other Ethe- red’s the alderman’s. They had become their god- fathers before Hesten came to Beamfleet, and at that Annals time Hesten had delivered to him hostages and taken oaths: and the king had also given him many gifts; and so likewise when he gave up the youths and the woman. But as soon as they came to Beamfleet, and the fortress was constructed, then plundered hé that very part of the king’s realm which was in the keeping of /Sthered his compater; and again, this second time, he had gone out to plunder that very same district when his fortress was stormed. Now the king with his forces had turned westward towards Exeter, as I said before, and the army had beset the burgh: but when he arrived there, then went they to their ships. While the king was thus busied with the army there, in the west, and both the other armies had drawn to- gether at Shoebury in Essex, and there had constructed a fortress, then both together went up along the Thames, and a great addition came to them, as well from the East- Anglians as from the North- humbrians. They then went up along the Thames till they reached the Severn; then up along the Severn. Then Ethered the alderman, aud Athelm the alderman, and /Ethelnoth the alder- man, and the king’s-thanes who where then at home in the fortified places, gathered forces from every town east of the Parret, and as well west as east of Selwood, and also north of the Thames, and west of the Severn, and also some part of the North- Welsh people. When they had all drawn to- gether, then they came up with the army at Buttington Then he went to Sceobyrig, and there built a very strong fortress, and was joined by the army which had settled at Apuldran. And moreover a great multi- tude came to him from the East Angles and Northum- brians ; who hastening up- wards beyond the river Thames, went plundering to the bank of the river Severn, and there at Buttington built a strong tower. But soon Adhered earl of the Mercians, with the earls Eathelm and Eathelmnoth, and also with the other faithful servants of the king, laid siege to the town on all sides, until food failed the pagans, so that they ate the flesh of their horses, and, at last, compelled by hunger, they go out to battle against those who were on the eastern side of the siege. Many fell there on both sides, but, with God’s help, the Christians gained the victory, and the Danes were put to flight. They went back to East-Anglia, from whence they had come. HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 894 in Northumbria, and twice devastates the coast, after which he returns home. In the course of one year also, died Guthfrid, king of the Northumbrians, on the birth-day of Christ’s apostle, St Bartholomew, whose body is buried at York in the high church. The army, which was then in the eastern part of the country, supplied them with reinforcements, and the Northumbrian, in the same way. The illustrious duke Ethelm, with a squadron of cavalry, and duke Ethelnoth, with an army ‘of Western-Angles, followed behind them, and Ethered, earl of the Mercians, pressed after them with great impetuosity. The youth of both people join battle, and the Angles obtain the victory. These things are said by ancient writers to have been done at Buttington, and the exertions of the Danes ap- peared futile; they again ratify peace, give hostages, and promise to leave that part of the country. When two years were com- pleted, from the time that an immense fleet came from Boulogne to Limne a town of the Angles, duke Ethel- noth set out from the western parts of the Angles, and goes from the city of York against the enemy, who devastate no small tracts of land in the kingdom of the Mercians, on the west of Stanford; 1. E. between the courses of the river Weolod and a thick wood called Ceoftefne. on the bank of the Severn, and there beset them about, on either side, in a fastness. When they had now sat there many weeks on both sides of the rive in the west in Devon, against the fleet, food; and having eaten a great part of r, and the king was then were the enemy distressed for want of their horses, the others being starved with FROM A. D. 849 TO 894 Florence large sum of money. Meanwhile the pagan army from Beanflot, as we have said, being routed by the Christians, went to a city in Essex called Sceobyrig, and built there for themselves a strong fortress. Many of the pagans from East-Anglia and Northum- berland having joined them, they plundered first the banks of the Thames, and then of the Severn. Resenting their attacks, those noble leaders, ZEthered thelm Athelnoth and other servants of the king, whom he had left for garrisons in the fortresses, towns and cities, not only on the eastern side of the Perrot, but also on the western side of Selwood, and not only on the southern but also on the northern bank of the river Thames, collect a numerous army against the enemy, to which also was added an auxiliary force of Welshmen who lived on the western bank of the Severn. When these were assembled Huntingdon Whilst, therefore, the king is going thither, the army, that was at Awldre, invaded Essex, and made a camp at Scobrih. And issuing thence, they went as far as Budingtune near the Severn, and there made a camp. From which, however, they were driven out by force, and fled to their camp in Essex. But those who had besieged Exeter, hearing of the king’s coming, fled to their ships, and stopped out at sea, plun- dering. 901. 123 Simeon This year died king Guthred. into one body, they pursued the enemy, and overtaking them at Buttington on the bank of the river Severn, laid siege, on both sides of the river, to the fortress in which they had taken refuge. Several weeks passed over; some of the pagans died of hunger, some of them, when they had eaten their horses, burst from the fortress and gave battle to those who were on the eastern side of the river, but when many thousands of the pagans had been slain, and all the others were put to flight, the Christians obtained the victory. In this battle the noble Ordeah, and many of the king’s servants were slain. And when the pagans who fled, returning to East-Saxony, had come to their fortress and their ships, winter now coming on, they again gather a large army out of East-Anglia and Northumberland, and having placed their wives; their money and ships in East-Anglia, and left their fortresses, they march without A fourth army came that same year from Northumberland as far as Leicester ; but were there besieged, and afflicted by so sore a famine, that they ate even their horses. 124 HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Saron Chronicle Annals Ethelwerd 894 hunger, then went they out against the men who were encamped on the east bank of the river, and fought against them: and the Christians had the victory. And Ordheh a king’s-thane was there slain, and also many other king’s-thanes were slain; and of the Danish-men there was very great slaughter made; and that part which got away thence was saved by flight. ‘When they had come into Essex to their fortress and to their ships, then the survivors again gathered a great army from among the East-Angles and the North-humbrians before winter, and committed their wives and their ships and their wealth to the East- Angles, and went at one stretch, day and night, until they arrived at a western city in Wirral, which is called Lega-ceaster. Then were the forces unable to come up with them before they were within the fortress: nevertheless they beset the fortress about for some two days, and took all the cattle that was there-without, and slew the men whom they were able to overtake with- out the fortress, and burned all the corn, and with their horses ate it in every evening. And this was about a twelvemonth after they first came hither over sea. The aforesaid army of pagans wintered in the island which is called Mersey. A. 895. A. 895. And then soon after that, in this year, the army from Wirral went among the North-Welsh, for they were unable to stay there: this was because they had been deprived both of the cattle and of the corn which they had plundered. When they had turned again out of North-Wales with the booty which they had there taken, then went they over North-humbria-land and LEast-Anglia, in such wise that the forces could not overtake them before they came to the eastern parts of the land of Essex, to an island that is out on the sea, which is called Mersey. And as the army which had beset Exeter again turned homewards, then spoiled they the South-Saxons near Chichester; and the townsmen put them to flight, and slew many hundreds of them, and took some of their ships. Then that same year, bofore winter, the Danish-men who had sat down in Mersey, towed their ships up the Thames, and thence up the Lea. This was about two years after they had come hither over sea. A. 896. CHARTERS tn 896. None. In that same year the fore- mentioned army constructed a fortress on the Lea, twenty miles above London, After this, in summer, a great body of the townsmen, and also of other people, went onwards until they arrived at the Danish fortress; and there they were put to flight, and some four king’s-thanes were slain. Then after this during harvest, the king encamped near to the town, while the people reaped their corn, so that the Danish-men might not deprive them of the crop. Then on a certain day the king rode up along the river, and observed where the river might be obstructed, so that they would be unable to bring out their ships. And they then did thus: they constructed two fortresses, on the two sides of the river. When they had already begun the work, and had encamped there-beside, then perceived the army that they should not be able to bring out their ships. They then abandoned them, and went across the country till they arrived at Cwatbridge by the Severn; and there they constructed a fortress. Then the forces rode westwards after the army: and the men of London took possession of the ships; and all which they could not bring away they broke up and those which there were ‘stalworth’ they brought to London: moreover the Danish-men had committed their wives to the keeping of the East-Angles before they went out from their fortress. Then sat they down for the winter at Cwatbridge. This was about three years after they had come hither over sea to Limene-mouth. A. 897. After this, in the summer of Hasteng, with the armies that CHARTERS 1n_ 897. Duke this year, the army broke up, adhered to him, in the 3rd Ethelwolf. UH, 127. some for East-Anglia, some year after they came to the for North-humbria, andthey mouth of the river Thames who were moneyless procured and to the mouth of the river FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 125 897 — Slorence Huntingdon Simeon intermission and enter the city of Legions, called in Saxon Legeceastre, at that time deserted, before the army of JElfred and the underking Aithered, who were following, could overtake them. Some of them, however, they took and put to death, re-taking all the sheep and oxen which they had gained by plunder: they then besieged the city two days, and gave some of the standing corn to their horses, burning the rest. Ail this was done after the revolution of one year from the time when they had left the coasts of Gaul, and entered the mouth of the Limene. 895. The before-named army of the pagans, not having the In the 23rd year of king Alfred, the Danes, who were in Leicester, went round CHARTERS 1n _ 895. King ALFRED, subscribed also by Pleg- mund archbishop of Canterbury, means of subsistence—for through North Wales and Eshelbald of Yoretineopher Danan, the Christians had taken Northumberland to Mersey, apbas." “ Eadredus comes," Ethel- every thing from them— an island in Essex. redus Gainorum dux,” ‘‘ Eilswytha enter the land of the South- meginas: jand, —carthelredus : dun, 2 . Merciorum,” II, 125. ern Britons, and devastating Ye it far and wide, carry off with them a very great booty. And, because they did not dare to return through Mercia for fear of the Mercians, they went first through Northumberland, then through the Mediterranean Angles, and having taken their wives and ships in East-Anglia, entered an island called Meresig situated on the sea-coast in the eastern part of East-Saxony. Afterwards, roused by the But the army that had be- The aforesaid army which sufferings of his men afore- said, he [Atrrep] reached Exeter, & the pagans terrified at his coming, fled to their ships, and so returning to their seats, near the city which is called in English Cissaceas- tre, in the province of the South-Saxons, they carried off booty. sieged Exeter, was caught plundering near Ciceastre, where they lost many of their men, and lost some of their ‘ships. besieged Exancestre, ravaged every thing round Cissaces- tre. But not long after they were put to the rout by those who were in the city, many of them were slain, and many of their ships were taken. But being routed by the inhabitants of that city, the greater part of them were wounded or slain, and many of their ships taken. 2 896. 1 In the same year they drew their ships up the river Thames, and afterwards up the river Ligea, and began to build for themselves a for- tress near the river, 20 miles from London. In the summer-time, a great part of the citizens of Lon- don, and many from the neighbouring places, endea- vour to destroy the fortress which the pagans had made for themselves, but their re- sistance was so great, that the Christians are put to flight and four of king Al- In the following year, the army that was on the river Lee, made a camp near that same river, 20 miles from London. 1 And afterwards, in the winter,'they drew their ships up the Thames into the river Luye [Lea]. But the Londoners came to that camp, and fighting with the Danes, slew 4 of their leaders, and Almighty God at a timely moment gave the victory to his true followers. When the Danes had fled into their camp, the king caused the water of the Lea to be divided into three arms, that they might not be able to convey back their ships on it. The Danes, perceiving this, left their ships, and went as far as Quadruge near the Severn, and there made a camp, and wintered on the spot: having sent their wives for safety into East-Anglia. The king with his army pursued them. But the Londoners carried to London some of their ships which they had left, and burnt the rest. fred’s officers are slain. But the king himself, in the autumn, measured out his camp not far from the city, in order to prevent the pagans from carrying off the crops of the provincials. But one day as the king was riding along the river’s bank, he considered where he could find a favorable place for blocking up the river, that the Danes might not be able to extricate their ships; and without delay, he ordered his men to begin making a barrier on both sides of the river. When the pagans perceived this, they again committed _ their wives to the care of the East-Anglians, and leaving their ships, went on foot a rapid march to a place called Quatbricg, and having built for themselves a fortress, they passed the winter there. Meanwhile the Londoners carried some of their ships to London and broke up the rest. 897. 126 Savon Chronicle themselves ships there, and went southwards over sea to Annals Limen, crossed the sea’ with- out gain and without honour, HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 897 the Seine. Thanks be to God the army had not utterly broken down the English nation ; but during the three years was it much more broken down by the mortality which broke out among cattle and among men, and most of all by this, that many of the most eminent king’s-thanes in the land died during the three years: some of whom were, Swithulf bishop of Rochester, and Ceolmund alderman of Kent, and Beorhtulf alderman of Essex, and Wulfred alderman of Hamtunshire, and Ealheard bishop of Dorchester, and Eadulf the king’s-thane in Sussex, and Beornwulf the ‘wic-reeve’ at Winchester, and Ecgulf the king’s horse-thane, and many also besides these, though I have named the most famous. That same year the armies from among the East-Anglians and from among the North-humbrians harassed the land of the West-Saxons, chiefly on the south coast, by pre- datory bands; most of all by their ‘zscs,’ which they had built many years before. Then king Alfred commanded long ships to be built to oppose the escs; they were full-nigh twice as long as the others; some had sixty oars, and some had more: they were both swifter and steadier, and also higher than the others. They were shapen neither like the Frisian nor the Danish, but so as it seemed to him that they would be most efficient. Then some time in the same year, there came six ships to Wight, and there did much harm, as well as in Devon, and elsewhere along the sea- coast. Then the king commanded nine of the new ships to go thither, and they obstructed their passage from the port towards the outer sea. Then went they with three of their ships out against them; and three lay in the upper part of the port in the dry; the men were gone from them ashore. Then took they two of the three ships at the outer part of the port, and killed the men, and the other ship escaped; in that also the men were killed except five: they got away because the other ships were aground. They also were aground very disadvantageously : three lay aground on that side of the deep on which the Danish ships were aground, and all the rest upon the other side, so that no one of them could get to the others. But when the water had ebbed many furlongs from the ships, then the Danish-men went from their three ships to the other three which were left by the tide on their side, and then they there fought against them. There was slain Lucumon the king’s reeve, and Wulfheard the Frisian, and bbe the Frisian, and Ethelhere the Frisian, and fEthelferth the king’s geneat, and of all the men, Frisians and English, seventy-two ; and of the Danish-men one hundred and twenty. Then, however, the flood-tide came to the Danish ships before the Christians could shove theirs off, and they therefore rowed them out: nevertheless, they were damaged to such a degree that they could not row round the Sussex land; and there the sea cast two of them on shore, and the men were led to the king at Winchester; and he commanded them to be there hanged : and the men who were in the single ship came to East-Anglia, sorely wounded. That same summer no less than twenty ships, with their crews, wholly perished upon the south coast, That same year died Wulfric, the king’s horse-thane ; he was also ‘Wealh-reeve.’ but, having lost many of his companions, he put in at the mouth of the river Seine. A. 898. In this year died thelm, alderman of Wiltshire, nine days before midsummer {June 15}: and this year died Heahstan, who was bishop of London. CHARTERS ry _ 898, 1. King ALFRED, subscribed also ‘ Ead- weard rex hance regis donationem Stabilito” and by others. II, 128. A. 899. CHARTERS 1n 899. 1. Wer- FRITH, bishop of Winchester, LI, An. 898. The emperor Arnulf died, and Louis his son was raised to be king. In the same year Rollo with his army besieged the city of Chartres, but the bishop of that same city, named Walthelm, a most religious Meanwhile, after four years from the time that the above- named king died, there was a great discord among the English, because the foul bands of the Danes still re- mained throughout North- umberland. man, called Richard duke of Burgundy and Ebal count of Poictiers to his help, and bearing ;in his hands the shift of the blessed Virgin Mary, he drove back duke Rollo by the divine will, and freed the city. 129. 2. Another of Werrrirn, without a date, is at II, 131. 3. A third, of King ALFRED, and sub- scribed “Signum A.dwardi filiiregis,” at II, 130, has no date, but must belong to some year about this time, FROM A.D. 849 TO 901. 899 Florence In the summer-time; the army of the pagans, which had wintered at Quatbricge, went partly to East-Anglia, partly to Northumberland, ome of them remained there but others, getting possession of some ships, went to the river Seine before-mentioned. O with what frequent vexa- tions, with how severe suffer- ings, in what a dreadful and lamentable manner, was all England annoyed, not only by the Danes, who had then occupied the parts of Eng- land, but also by those chil- dren of Satan. But it suf- fered much more, for three years, by a murrain among the cattle, and the death of noble men, who about that time departed this life. Among whom was Suithulf prelate of the church of Rochester, Ealheard bisho of Dorchester, Ceolmun duke of Kent, Beorhtulf duke of Essex, Eadulf the king's officer in Sussex, Beornulf provost of Winches- ter, Ecgulf the king’s strator, and many others, but these were the most noble. In the same year, the army of the pagans, settled in East- Anglia and Northumberland, carrying off booty along the sea-coasts, severely harassed the land of the West-Saxons, mostly in long and swift gal- leys, which themselves had made some years before. To oppose these other ships were made by Alfred’s orders, twice as long, higher, swifter and less shaky, so as to beat the above-named ships of the enemy in strength. When 127 Huntingdon Simeon Thus, during the three years aforesaid, namely from the time that the Danes had entered the port of Limene, these did much harm to the English, but themselves suffered much greater harm. But in the 4th year, the army was divided: some went into Northumberland, some into East-Anglia, and _ others crossing the sea, entered the Seine. But afterwards, some ships of the Danes came near the shores of Wessex, and making frequent invasions, at one time plundering, and at another fighting, they did no small damage to the provincials of Wessex. Of the many fights that then took place, I will relate fone, as having been attended with an unusual issue. King Alfred caused some long ships, of 40 oars or more, to be got ready against the aforesaid ships of the Danes. And whilst six of the Danish ships were lying somewhere on the coast of Devonshire, they were surprised by nine of the king’s ships. The Danes seeing this, moved against them with three only of their ships, for the other three were stranded and could not move because the tide was out. Six ships, therefore, of the English fought against three of the Danes: whilst the other three went against the three Danish ships that were stranded. The three Danish ships fought long and desperately against the six ; but numbers at last prevailed, and two of the Danes were taken ; the third fled, after all her crew had been killed except five. This being done, when the English wished to return to their companions which were near the Danish ships on the opposite shore,they were stranded ; and the Danes seeing this, left their own ships and fought against the English who were in the three ships. Then might you have seen the English people of the six ships looking at the battle, and unable to bear them help, beating their breasts with their hands, and tearing their hair with their nails. The English fought manfully, and the Danes bravely attacked them. Forty two Eaglishmen were slain, and 120 of the Danes. But the Danes slew Luche- man the commander of the king’s fleet who pressed upon them too boldly; on which account the English gave way a little, and the Danes almost seemed to be victorious. But, lo! the tide came up, and floated the vessels : the Danes got out to sea, and the 9 English ships were too late to overtake them. But a foul wind assailed the victorious Danes and cast two of their ships on shore: the crews were taken, brought before the king, and hanged at Winchester: but those who were in the third ship, landed, much crippled, in East-Anglia. In that same year, 20 ships with their crews were cast away round the northern coasts. these were sent out to sea, the king ordered them to take alive all they could, and to slay the rest. Wherefore it came to pass that 20 ships of Danish pirates were taken alive in that same year; of whom some were slain, some brought alive to the king, and hanged on the gallows. 898. 899. In the year 899 128 Saron Chronicle A. 900. A. 901. This year died /Elfred, son of Athulf, six days before All-Hallowmass [Ocr. 26]. He was king over the whole English nation, except that part which was under the dominion of the Danes; and he held the kingdom one year and a half less than thirty years. And then Edward his son succeeded to the kingdom. Slorence 900. Heahstan bishop of London died; to whom succeeded Theodred. LEardulf bishop of Lindisfarne died, to whom succeed the religious Cuth- ard. 901. That famous, warlike, victo- rious [kine]; the zealous protector of widows, pupils, orphans, and poor; skilled in the Saxon poets; dear to his own race, affable and liberal to all; endued with prudence, fortitude, justice, and temperance; most pa- tient under the infirmity, which he daily suffered; a most discreet inquisitor in executing justice; vigilant and devoted in the service of God; Alfred king of the Angul-Saxons, son of the pious king Atheluulf; having reigned 29 years and 6 months, died, in the 4th In- diction, on Wednesday the 6th before the calends of No- vember, [Ocr. 27], and was buried at Winchester in the New Minster, where with the just he awaits a glorious resurrection. * Some of the MSS. of Asser re- cord, in anote written by a later hand, that king Alfred died on the 26th of October, a. D. 900, in the thir- tieth of his reign ‘The different dates assigned to the death of Al- fred,” says Sir Francis Palgrave, ‘afford a singular proof of the un- certainty arising from various modes of computation, The Saxon Croni- cle and Florence of Worcester agree in placing the event in 901. The first ‘ six nights before All Saints fer the last, with more precision, ‘ Indic- tione quarta, et Feria quarta, 5 Cal. and ‘re Ssxon Chronicle, in another Annals A. 900. Alfred, truly so called, a man most strenuous in all things in battle, and the noble king of the West-Saxons, but pru- dent and religious and most wise, this year, to the great sorrow of all his people, went the way of all flesh, on the 7th before the calends of November [Ocr. 26] in the 29 and half ’th year of his reign: in the 51st year of his age, Indiction 6. He was buried becomingly and with kingly honour in the royal city of Winchester, in the church of St Peter prince of the apostles. His tomb also is still extant, made of the most precious porphyry marble. CHARTERS 1n 900. None. CHARTERS 1 901. 1, ETHeEL- RED duke of Mercia, II, 136. 2; Anonymous, II, 133. The first of these, if given after Oct. 26, when king Alfred died, belongs to the reign of his son Edward the Elder. The latter furnishes no clue to its exact date. Three other Charters, found at II, 135, 138, 140, 141, bear the date of 901,and the name of Ed- ward : they were consequently given after Oct. 25, 901. Huntingdon King Alfred, having reigned 28 years and half over all England, except those parts which were subject to the Danes, felt the sting of death. Of his toilsome rule, and irremediable afflictions, we have thought it right to speak in versification : HARMONY OF THE CHRONICLERS Ethelwerd 901 Lastly, in the same year, king Alfred departed out of this world ; that immoveable pillar of the Western Saxons, that man full of justice, bold in arms, learned in speech, and, above all other things, im- bued with the divine instruc- tions. For he had translated into his own language, out of Latin, unnumbered volumes, of so varied a nature, and so excellently, that the sor- rowful book of Boethius seemed, not only to the learned, but even to those who heard it read, as it were, brought to life again. The monarch died on the seventh day before the feast of All Saints [Ocr. 25], and his body rests in peace in the city of Winton. Pray, O reader, to Christ our Redeemer, that he will save his soul! : Simeon King Elfred died when he had reigned 28 years. To whom succeeded his son Edward, who had been dili- gently admonished by his father especially to honour Saint Cuthbert. Bishop Eardulf also died in Cunceceastre, wither he had transferred the body of Saint Cuthbert ; with which he had fled during 9 years from place to place, in much hard- ship, and went before the army of the pagans. To whom succeeded Cuth- eard in the bishopric. Innate nobility hath given thee honour, Brave Alfred; and thy honour hath brought toil, Thy toil hath given thee lasting reputation. Joy mixed with grief was thine, hope blent with fear, When victor, thou didst fear to fight o’ the morrow ; Beaten, wast ready for tomorrow’s fight, Thy robes dropp’d sweat, thy sword dropp’d blood, and shewed, How heavy task it was to be a king. Through all earth’s climes none but thyself e’er lived, With power to breathe ’ neath such calamities. Defeat ne’er struck the sword from his hand’s grasp, Nor could the sword cut short his thread of life. But now his toils of life and rule are done, And may Christ give him rest and rule for ever. Nov.’ Simeon of Durham, in 899, passage, in 900. The concurrents of Florence of Worcester seem to afford. the greatest certainty, and the date of 901 has therefore been preferred.” | IL SKETCH OF THE ANGLO-SAXON MINT. Although the researches of English and Continental Antiquaries prove the very close resemblance in many respects between the manners and customs of the Franks and the Anglo-Saxons, one vast difference is clearly apparent; namely, the constitution of their mints. While the coinage of the Franks consisted, for the far greater part, of gold, that of our Anglo-Saxon forefathers, with the exception of the styca of copper, struck in the mints of Northumbria only, consisted almost exclusively of silver, of which the sole denominations that have come down to us, are the penny and the half-penny, very few specimens, however, of the latter being known. Ruding, in his Annals of the comage of Great Britain, has the following remarks : “ Those, who deny that the Saxons possessed any knowledge of the art of coinage before they landed in Britain, will find it extremely difficult to point out the source from whence they derived it after their arrival; for the Anglo-Saxon money bears not, either in form, type or weight, the least resemblance to those coins which at that time were the current specie of this Island.” After observing that “the barbarous workmanship of the British coins could not have excited their attention,” he expresses his surprise that the Britons should have continued their own rude method of coining “in preference to the beautiful specimens of Roman art, which were constantly before their eyes.” Essays le 130 SKETCH OF THE SAXON MINT. It is very clear from this that the laborious author of the Annals had but slight practical acquaintance with the subject, however valuable his work may be regarded as a compilation from written documents. To the general reader a detailed des- cription of the various rude coins which must have been struck and circulated in this country after the departure of the Romans, would be tedious, and, without the assistance of illustrations, wholly impracticable. Long ere the once masters of the world withdrew for ever from their Island possession, their coins had ceased to be “beautiful specimens of art,” and long previous to the introduction of Christianity among the Anglo-Saxons, they attempted to copy the degenerate types of the Roman money. Nor was the desire to imitate better examples abandoned on the introduction of Christianity, as we may perceive in some of the pennies of Edweard the first, on which is an evident attempt to copy the representation of the gate of the pratorian camp as found on the coins of Rome, from the reign of Diocletian to that of Theodosius. A coin of Ciolwulf, found at Preston, furnishes still stronger evidence, since the reverse is a palpable copy of the common reverse of the gold coins of Valentinian, on which are represented the two sitting figures of the emperors crowned by Victory hovering above them.’ It is thus evident that the Anglo-Saxons did not disdain the best models of coinage then existing, and that the rudeness of their own money is not attributable to an unwillingness to copy but rather to a want of ability to execute coins equal to the rude ex- amples of the Roman currency at its worst period. As regards the weight of the Anglo-Saxon penny, it was ori- ginally of 24 grains, hence the term “ penny weight.” Now the Quinarius or half denarius of the Roman Empire, from the time of Arcadius and Honorius to the reign of Justin, is of very common occurrence even at this day, and no doubt circulated abundantly throughout the Roman dominions. It weighs on an average 24 grains, a fact which leads to the inference that the Saxon penny was accommodated in weight to the Roman coins which must have continued in circulation long after they were minted, and were pro- (1) This coin is engraved in the Numismatic Chronicle, vol. v, p. 10. It is not unlikely that the Victory here represented is intended by the Anglo-Saxon artist to represent the third personage of the Trinity: see on this subject a note by the writer in the Numismatic Chronicle, vol. xii, p. 79. SKETCH OF THE SAXON MINT, 131 bably, for a considerable period, current throughout those coun- tries which had been wrested from the Romans by the Teutonic tribes. It is not contended that these tribes had not a style of their own, but it may be safely asserted that the influence of Roman art is visible in their ornaments and utensils ; while the necessity of some conformity with an almost universal coinage was imperative. Notwithstanding this, we find many Saxon coins totally dissimilar in type to those of the Romans; on a consider- able number the name of the King, and that of the Moneyer alone appears without any attempt to represent an effigy, but this, as before observed, cannot be attributed so much to design as to want of skill; on the contrary, when it does appear, as on many of the pennies of Alfred, it is very plainly an attempt to imitate the Imperial effigy on the coins of the lower empire with the diadem encircling the head. In the reign of Athelstan, notices of the Saxon mints first occur. In the laws of that King it is declared that no one shall mint money except within the walls—surTan on port, * that those who work in a wood or elsewhere unauthorised shall suffer amputation of the hand,’ and that there shall be in Canterbury seven moneyers; in Rochester, three; in London, eight; in Winchester, sia ; at Lewes two; at Hastings, one; at Chichester one; at Hampton, two; at Wareham, two; at Exeter, two; at Shaftsbury, ¢wo; at the other towns one.' The English numismatists of the last century have discussed at considerable length the possibility of the Anglo-Saxons having struck gold in their mints. We shall not here review their argu- ments; it will be sufficient to observe that the evidence on either side is often inconclusive, and at times at utter variance with facts, while examples are cited which only serve to shew the utter want of practical acquaintance with the subject. While one side maintained that no gold was ever coined in the Anglo-Saxon mints, simply because we have no written record of the fact, the other produced examples in opposition to this opinion, in utter ignorance that the pieces thus adduced as evidence were of Merovingian origin. Pegge not only attempted to prove the Anglo-Saxon origin of one of these coins, but did not hesitate to assign it to the mint of York in the beginning of the tenth century. (2) Aithelstanes Domas, c. 14. (3) slea man of pa hand pe he pet fil mid worhte. Isrp (4) Elles to bam oSrum burgum, I. thelstanes Domas, c. 14. 132 SKETCH OF THE SAXON MINT. Some years since a gold piece bearing the stamp of the very common pennies of Edward the Confessor was shown in London. Some of our best numismatists were satisfied of its authenticity, but admitting this to be established beyond a doubt, it affords of itself no evidence of an Anglo-Saxon coinage in gold. Pieces, - however, assimilating in weight to that of the Merovingian gold triens and of rude fabric, have been discovered in England, and there is also a coin in the national collection at Paris, on the reverse of which DOROVERNIS occurs. This piece is assigned by French numismatists to England. It is of much neater fabric than the great majority of the Merovingian gold coins.’ Besides these, there are some coins adjusted to the same weight, having a bare head, evidently not a regal portrait, and the legend LVND. These pieces have never been discovered on the continent, while examples have been found in and near London. The remarkable find of Merovingian coins on Bagshot heath included some of these pieces, and if it cannot be actually proved that they are of Anglo-Saxon mintage, it will be exceedingly difficult to assign to them any other origin.° Whether the pieces called sceattas, of which examples are given in Ruding’s Ist and 2nd plate, are the earliest attempts of the Anglo- Saxons to coin money, may perhaps be questioned, but there ap- pears no reason for doubting that these may be reckoned among their first efforts at a regular comage; several are without the Christian symbol, but, as many appear with it, it is probable that they are almost coeval with each other. As the word sceat signi- fies in Anglo-Saxon a part or portion, and as scatt in the Gospels of Ulphilas is used indifferently for a pound, a penny, or money generally, it was probably applied to those pieces which are by numismatists called sceattas, as the chief national coin then in general use by the Anglo-Saxons, the Roman copper money, doubt- less still in circulation, supplying the smaller denominations ; yet at the end of the seventh century it appears to have been the smallest coin in actual currency, as we may infer from the proverb NE scEAT NE SCILLING 1. e.-“ from the least to the greatest.” The penny is first mentioned in the laws of Ina. The derivation of the name is still open to the investigations of the etymologist. Some have derived it from the Celtic pen, a head; and although (5) Numismatic Chronicle, jvol. ii, p. 204; and vol. iv, p. 120. (6) Ibid. vol. vi, p. 171. SKETCH OF THE SAXON MINT. 133 this may be questioned, since the Saxon coins do not always bear the regal head, we have the example in later times of the ¢estoon, a name given to the first English shilling, notwithstanding most of the English coins from the Conquest to that period, bore the royal portrait. Examples of the Saxon penny and the half penny, have come down to us, though, as already observed, but very few of the latter. Of the farthing, no specimens exist in the cabinets of our collectors, a remarkable fact when the value of the penny in Saxon times is considered. In the laws of Canute the half penny is stated to be the value of the wax charged on every hide of land for teéntT-cEsceot church sceat, or church lights.’ The styca, a small copper coin about the size of the sceatta, appears to have been struck solely by the princes of Northumbria and. the arch-bishops of York. Its value occurs incidentally in the gospel of Saint Mark, where the “two mites” are termed stycas.* Some of our numismatic antiquaries have maintained that the pound, the mancus, the mark, the ora, the thrymsa and the shilling, were current coin and not merely money of account. There cannot be a doubt that the shilling was the division of the pound, and that the term is derivable from scyLan, to divide. With the exception of the mancus, these denominations appear not to designate coined money, but we frequently meet with mancusses of gold and mancusses of silver in Anglo-Saxon wills and charters, and a piece of money first noticed by M. de Longpérier throws evident light on the subject. On the 24th of March, 1842, this gentleman communicated to the Numismatie Society of London an account of a gold coin of king Offa in the cabinet of the Duc de Blacas, of the weight and size of the gold Arabic Dinar. It is, as usual with these coins, nearly covered with oriental characters, but in the centre are the words OFFA. REX. M. de Longpérier thinks with reason, that this is a specimen of the often men- tioned but long sought for mancus, and he founds his opinion upon the fact that the Arabic word nakasha is rendered in Freytag’s Dictionary, cudit nummos, while the passive participle, mancush, is very often used by Arabic writers, and signifies a coin whether of gold or silver. The piece in question is doubtless a copy by (7). Healf-penig-werS wexes zt alcere hide. C. 12. (8) Twegen stycas, beet is, feorSung peninges. Marx, xii, 42. 134 SKETCH OF THE SAXON MINT. an Anglo-Saxon moneyer of an Arabic dinar with the name of Offa interpolated; and as the discovery of Arabic coins in hoards of Saxon money shews that they circulated in Europe at this period, there seems every reason to believe that this remarkable and unique example was adjusted to the weight of the gold Arabic dinar. In the Numismatic Chronicle, vol. v, p. 128, will be found our remarks confirming the opinion entertained by M. de Long- périer which are as follows :—“Ruding, after observing that the word Mancus, is variously written Mancos, Mancs, and Mancuse, supposes the term to be derived from Italy, and notic- ing the conjectures of other writers, who suppose it to be formed from manu cusum, concludes that the term cusus could not have reference to simple weight. It is singular that he goes on to remark on the probability of the coin, as well as the name, being imported, without suspecting their Arabic origin. The mancus, according to Archbishop Aelfric, was equal in value to thirty pennies,’ and in the laws of Henry the Ist we find it so estimated.' Now the weight of the gold penny of Henry the third is a little more than forty five grains, and it was current for twenty pence, its value being subsequently raised to twenty four pence or two shillmgs. The weight of the gold Arabic dinars of this period is about 66 grains, or one third more than that of the gold penny,— a fact which seems to set at rest all doubt as to the correctness of M. de Longpérier’s conjecture that the coin with the name of Offa is really a specimen of the long sought for mancus. That Arabic coins were occasionally current in England during the Anglo-Saxon period we may believe from the circumstance of their forming a part of the treasure discovered recently at Cuer- dale. It is true that these coins are silver, but it may be safely conjectured that they represent the mancus of silver, mancusses of gold and silver being mentioned in the writings of this period.”— The money of our Anglo-Saxon princes generally bears the (9) Libra on Leyden is Pund on Englisc. fif penegas gemaciga¥ anne scillinge and prittig penega anne mancs, Saxon Gram. by Aelfric. (1) Overseunesse regis est, in causis communibus, xx manc. que facient 50. sol. Leg. Hen. I, xxxv, § 1. (2) Since this was written, a work has been published by the Royal Academy of Sweden, entitled “ Numi Cufici Regii Numophylacii Holmiensis, quos omnes in terra Suecia repertos.”” Upsale, 1848, to which the reader is referred for evidence of the circulation of these coins in Europe. SKETCH OF THE SAXON MINT. 135 title REX, but on some of Anlaf’s pennies we find CYNYNC. Those of the sole monarchs do not differ materially from the coins of the Heptarchy. Ecgbeorht’s and Ethelwulf’s bear SAXONIORUM and the latter OCCIDENTALIUM. Among the many varieties of the types of Edward the Confessor, there is one which differs from any in the Anglo-Saxon series : it represents the king seated in a chair of state, crowned and holding the septre and the globe, a mode of representation revived on the gold penny of Henry the Third. It is a fact worthy of notice, that the pennies of William the Conquorer were struck on the model of those of the last Anglo- Saxon monarch; indeed many can only be distinguished by the legend, which is given in the Anglo-Saxon character and language, a striking proof of the policy of this tyrant, who, while rigorously upholding his authority, prudently forbore to meddle with the coinage of his newly acquired territory. IIT. DESCRIPTION OF ALL THE COINS OF KING ALFRED NOW REMAINING. Of the coins of Alfred, formerly very rare, we now possess a considerable variety. Some of their types are in the highest degree interesting, and their succession is easily determined by comparison with those of the coins of contemporary princes and prelates, and with one another. 1. ELFEREDM~X+ Bust to the right. + TATA MONETA Moneyer’s name between two semi- circular segments enclosing his designation. British Museum. Pu. I, Fie. 1. 2. + ELFRED MX~+ } Same types as the last. + DVDD MONETA ae E Put he S The occurrence of the letters MX on these two coins is remar- kable. There are coins of Ethelred, the brother and predecessor of Alfred, of the same type as these, which read REX + AEDEL- RED M, and might be understood as indicating a claim on the part of Ethelred to the sovereignty of Mercia. But such can hardly be the meaning of these letters on the coins of Alfred. On the contrary, I should prefer taking them, on these, as well as on the coins of Ethelred, as expressing the place of mintage. 3. ELFERED REX S t the above. TILEPEINE ee Hine: iypes as the anove Britisn Museum. Px. I, Fie. 3. These three coins are very different in their workmanship from 18 Essays 138 COINS OF KING ALFRED. those of a similar type which follow; and in this respect they more closely resemble the coin of Ethelred above referred to, than any others of his coins. 4. + AELBRED RE + } Same types as the above. CIALMOD MONETA Britis Museum. Pu. I, Fie. 4, This type presents the following names of moneyers ; . BIARNVLF DVDD MANNING TATA BOSA DVNN OSHERE TIDBALD CIALMOD HEBECA SEFRED TILEPEINE DEIGMVND IARNRED SIGESTEF VVIEARD and VVLEARD. 5. + AELBRED RE+ Bust to the right. SIEESTEF MONETA This type differs from the forego- ing, having the arcs of the segments broken in the middle, and bent inwards. I know of no other coin of this type. British Museum. Pl. I, Fie. 3. 6. + AELBRED RE+ Bust to the right. CIALVLF MONETA In three lines separated by bars curved at the ends. British Museum. PL. I, Fre. 6. This type presents the following names of moneyers ; CIALVLF DVING EDELVLF. Coins of the three last types are always of very base metal, and, like those of Ethelred and of Burgred King of Mercia, rarely exceed 20 grains in weight. The spelling of the king’s name with B is remarkable: no other instance of this spelling is to be found on the coins of Alfred, although the use of B for F in some Saxon names is not uncommon. I place these coins first, because their resemblance to the coins of Ethelred and Burgred leads me to consider them as being Alfred’s earliest coinage. Of that which I think should follow, a fragment only remains. 7....ED REX Bust to the right. The remains of its reverse shew that when perfect it presented the same type and the same legend, EBERED MONETA, as the beautiful unique penny of archbishop Ethered, with the head, (probably of Alfred), in the same collection as this. British Museum. Pl. I. Fre. 7. The two coins which follow are the only ones to which we KING ALFRED'S COINS, PL. I. AELFRED ‘ ee DD \ EVE WMD il os iwh. Dec! uo a “i SOINS, Pu. 1. ! ws LFRED'’S iN KING AELFRED 8 & KING ALFRED°’S COINS, PL. IY. AELFRED sedans DH. Haigh Del? Wikies! St KING ALFRED°’S COINS, PL.V. D.H. Haigh Delt KING ALFRED°’S COINS, PL.VI. AELFRED EADVVEARD Ez Dd? D Vauyh De WOE De -rghaw KING ALFPRED°S COINS, PL.VIl. COINS OF KING ALFRED. 139 cannot satisfactorily assign a place in the series, as they are quite different in their types from all the rest. 8. ALFRED + Bust to the right. AT GLEAPA A tau connected at its extremities with the edge of the piece by beaded lines. Brittsa Museum, PI. I, Fie. 8. This coin is remarkable, not only on account of its type, but for the legend on the reverse being in Saxon, instead of in Latin, for the prefix AT to the name of the mint, and for its being the earliest coin known of that mint, viz. Gloucester. The prefix AT to the names of places was not unusual during the Heptarchic period, as any one conversant with charters of that period will acknowledge. The following extracts may be adduced in illustra- tion of this. Bissenos agros quam incole hujusce regionis sic vocitant, At Ulenbeorge. CHARTER OF CoENRED Kine oF Mercia, A.D. 709. In loco qui dicitur et Beathum XC manentium, et in aliis multis locis: hoc est et Stretforda XXX cassatos; et Sture XXXVIII. Simili etiam vocabulo et Sture in Usmerum XIII manentium, 4 Breodune XII, &c. CuartTeR of HEATHORED Bp, oF WorcestTeER, A. D. 781. See also the instance At Sandwich. p. 13 of the Harmony of the Chroniclers in this volume. 9. -+AELFRAD REX Written cross-wise. + LVDAMON. WILiiam AssHETON Ese. Pl. I. Fie. 9. The neatness and elegance of this coin remind us of the coins of Offa king of Mercia; and its reverse type closely resembles that of some of the Mercian coins. The cruciform disposition of the obverse legend finds a parallel on the reverses of the coins of Ethelwulf and Ethelbert. 10. During the progress of some excavations in St Paui’s Churchyard, London, in the year 1841, there was found a piece of lead, nearly an inch and a half square, and half an inch thick, having on each side a deeply indented impression from the obverse and reverse of a penny die of Alfred, of the type which next de- mands our attention. It would seem to have been a trial piece, ‘struck from an unfinished die, and it is defaced on the obverse, apparently to prevent an improper use being made of it. The moneyer’s name seems to have been EALDVLF. C. R. Smitu Ese. Pl. I, Fre. 10, A coin in the British Museum (21), one in Mr Cuff’s collection (20) and a fragment in that of the late Sir John Twisden, were 140 COINS OF KING ALFRED. all that were known of this type before the disinterment of the Cuerdale hoard. In that hoard fifteen specimens were found, including the fragments 17 and 18; and of the whole number of this type now known all the important varieties will be found figured in Plate IT. 11. + ALFRED REX SA+ Bust to the right. EADVLF MONETA A crosssaltire within a lozenge, which is connected with the margin of the coin by a beaded line ; three pellets at one side. Rev. T.*F. Dymock. PI. II, Fie. 1. 12. ELFRED REX Similar bust. LIAFVALD MON. This differs from the preceding in having a cross bar at each angle of the lozenge. WIi.tiiaAmM AssHETON Esa. Pl. II, Fie. 2. 13. AELFRED REXS Similar bust. DVNNA MONETA Same type with a pellet ‘at each side of the lozenge. J. D. Curr Esa. Pi. II, Fic. 3. 14. ELFRED REX Similar bust. + OTRHTMVND for TORHTMVND. ‘The lines which connect the lozenge with the margin are not beaded in this specimen. British Museum, Pl. II, Fie, 4. 15. AELFRED REXSAX Similar bust. VVLFRED MONETA Same type as 13, with three pel- lets on each side of the lozenge. Witiram AssHeTon Esa. Pl. If, Fie. 5. 16. ELFRED RE Similar bust. CIOLVVLF MONETA Similar type with an ornament attached to each side of the lozenge. British Museum. Pl. Il, Fie. 6. 17..:.DREX SAX Similar bust. EDLEM ... ETA Similar type, with a cross attached to one side of the lozenge. British Museum. Pl. Il, Fic. 7. 18...: ED REX SAX Similar bust. .. LF MONETA Similar type, with a cross attach- ed to each side of the lozenge. British Museum. PL‘II, Fre. 8. 19. ALFRED REX SI Similar bust. LIAFVALD MONE Similar type, with a pellet on each side of the lozenge externally, and in each angle internally. Rev J. W. Martin. PI. II, Fie. 9. 20. + ELFRED REX SAX 2 Similar bust. COINS OF KING ALFRED. 141 REGINGIED MONETA. ‘This differs from the last in hav- ing crosses instead of pellets on each side of the lozenge. J. D. Curr Ese. Pi. II, Fie. 10. 21. X AELFRED REX Similar bust. + DIARMVND Similar type, a cross within the lozenge, and a crescent attached to each side of the beaded lines which connect the lozenge with the margin. British Museum. Pl. Il, Fee. 11. 22. X AELFRED REX Similar bust. + BVRGNOD Similar type; a pellet at each side of the lozenge, another in each angle of the cross enclosed therein, and a curved line connecting each opposite pair of crescents. J. Kenyon Esa. Pl. II, Fie. 12, 23. + ELFRED REX Similar bust. + TIRVVALD Similar type; a bar across each side of the lozenge ; a plain marginal line within the usual bead- ed margin ; two of the lines connecting the lozenge with the mar- gin indented, two plain. WILLIAM Assneton Esa. ,' Pl. II, Fre. 13. The date of execution of these coins is ascertained by their resemblance to the more common type of those of Ceolwulf II, king of Mercia, A. D. 874. The busts differ on all, but some, especially 13 and 15, are close imitations of those on the coins of the Roman emperors, and the diadem on all is clearly of Roman origin. There is a marked difference in workmanship between those which read REX SAXONUM and those which read simply REX. The former were probably minted in Alfred’s paternal dominions of Wessex. The following are all the names of moneyers which occur on coins of this type : BVRGNOD EADVLF LVLLA VVLFRED CIOLVVLF EALDVLF TORHTMVND DIARMVND HEAHSTAN — REGINGIED DVNNA LIAFVALD TIRVVALD Before I proceed to notice the coins of Alfred which come next in succession, I must draw the attention of my readers to two coins which are not indeed English, but are the evidence of the former existence of English coins of the same type, and hold out to us the expectation of such being discovered at some future time. In my Essay on the coins of East Anglia, I have noticed 142 COINS OF KING ALFRED. coins of two princes, Ethelred and Oswald, on which we are presented with a type originally French, but adopted by them, the front or portico of a type, and here we have two other coins of the same type which are evidently blundered imitations of the coins of English Kings. NELRF. . . REX Front of a temple. + QVENTOVVICI A cross with a pellet in each angle. EDENATREX } Same types. + QVENTOVVGI BritisH Museum. Pt. VII, Fie. land 2. This place Quentowic is already notorious for blundered imi- tations of the coins of Cnut or Canute struck in England at Ebraice and Cunnetti, (for all the coins with the name of this mint found at Cuerdale and elsewhere, were clearly blundered; not one of them presenting anything like a correct legend on their obverse;) and here we have from the same place two other blundered imitations of coins of Alfred and of Ethelstan: for I think there can be no doubt that the obverse legends of these coins are intended for AELFRED REX, and EDELSTAN REX, respec- tively. It would appear probable, that the Northmen, when they went to France, carried with them English money, and during their occupation of Quentowic, employed ignorant moneyers to strike coins in imitation of them. It is to be observed that in genuine French coins of this type, the legend on the temple face of the coins is always XPISTIANA RELIGIO, or the name of the place of mintage. Only on these blundered coins, and on those undoubtedly English coins above referred to, do we find that type used as an obverse accompanying the name and title of the king. I consider it, then, extremely probable that future discoveries of coins, lost or concealed about the year 880, may make known to us genuine pieces of this type, both of Alfred and of Ethelstan, and for this reason I give these two pieces a place in the accom- panying plates of Alfred’s coins. Mr Assheton’s beautiful and unique penny of Ceolwulf II of Mercia, figured in Mr Hawkins’s account of the Cuerdale coins, leads me to place next in succession the following coin, and then the London coins, between which and the penny of Ceolwulf it is, as it were, a connecting link. 24. DENI FIA XRX+ Victory hovering over two emperors COINS OF KING ALFRED. 143 seated, a device copied from the coins of Valentinian and others of the lower empire. LONDONIA = in monogram. ANDREW Moore Esa. M.D. ‘PL. VII, Fi. 3. I do not myself consider this to be a coin of Alfred. On the contrary I prefer reading the obverse legend ALF DENE XRX +, which is precisely the reading on the obverse of a half-penny found with this at Cuerdale, and assigning it to Halfdene I, whose dominions were properly Northumbria, but who, in common with the other sea-kings, ravaged the whole island. Whether, how- ever, it be considered to be of Alfred or of Alfdene, it answers the same end, of serving as a connecting link between the coin of Ceolwulf and those which follow, of London. Of these, up- wards of fifty specimens are now known, the principal varieties of which will be found in Plate III. All have on the obverse the bust of the king, generally turned to the right, but in three instances to the left, and on the reverse the monogram of Lonpon. 25. ALFRED REX 26. . ALFRED REX 27. - ELFRED RX 28. ELFRED RE It is not improbable that this coin may have been minted by the authority of Ethelred, the brother of Alfred, who appointed him to the government of London. The obverse legend is more like his name than that of Alfred: still it is but a blundered specimen. 29. ALFRD REX J. D. Curr Esa. Pu. TII, Fre. 1. J. Kenyon Esa. Pu. III, Fia. 2. _—— Pt. III, Fie. 3. British Museum. - — 4. 30. ALFRED REX ao. ae 31. ALFRED REX ae oe 32, ELFRED REX o = ee 33. ARLFREDRE |. mp Ne 34. ALRAD RE Rev, T.F. Dymock. PI. VII, — 4. 35. EDERED RE Wititam Assueron Esa. PIII, — 10. 36. ALFREDR J. A. Wiaan Esa. a — ik 144 COINS OF KING ALFRED. 37. AELFRED RE Joun BruMeELL Esa. Pl. VII — 5 38. ALFXED REX Wini1aMm AssHETON Esa. Pl. III — 12. 39. AELF BriTisH Museum. _ — 13. 40. CIV REI W. iH. Sueprarp Esa. = — -M. The last five are half-pennies, all that are known of this class of Alfred’s coins, and the earliest specimens that have occurred in the English series of this denomination of money. Nos. 36 and 37 were found at different times amongst gravel dredged from the bed of the Thames, 38 and 39 in the Cuerdale hoard, and 40 was for many years prior to that discovery in Mr Sheppard’s collection. The two following, although they do not bear the name of Alfred, or of any other king, are of the same class and date as the foregoing. 41. EROT BOLT Bust to the right, of very different form from that on any of Alfred’s coins. LONDONIA in monogram. BriTisH Museum. Pl. V, Fie. 1. 42. HERIBERT Bust to the right, bearded. LINCOLNIA In monogram. J. Kenyon Esa. Pi. V, Fie. 2. I know not how to explain the legend on 41; it is proba- bly the name of a moneyer blundered. There is a coin, in the British Museum, similar to 42, but with a beardless bust and a blundered legend EREENER on the obverse: (Ruding, Pl. 15, Fic. 9). These are the earliest coins known from the mint of Lincoln. The date of the London coins I am inclined to fix almost immediately after the rebuilding of that city by Alfred in 881. It had been destroyed by the Danes nine years previously. There is another class of these coins much rarer than the above, which present the moneyer’s name on their reverses. 43. ALFRED REX Bust to the right. TILEVINE MONETA. The usual monogram. Rev. J. W. Martin. Pl. IV, Fie. 3. 44. AELFRED REX Similar bust. HEAEVVLF The usual monogram, British Museum. PL. IV, Fie, 4. 45. ALFRED RE — Similar bust. HEREVVLF The usual monogram. J. Kenyon Esa, PLIV, Fie. 5. COINS OF KING ALFRED, 145 46. ALFRED RE _ Similar bust. VINVR DVL Both the monogram and the moneyer’s name on this piece appear to be blundered. This type presents the names of the following moneyers : AELFSTAN HEAEVVLF HEREVVLF TILEVINE VINVRDVL. 47. ALFRED REX Bust to the right. ADELVF MO. The monogram on this coin is certainly not of London, though, like the Lincoln monogram, formed on the same model. I cannot discern in it the name of any place of importance in Alfred’s time; the most natural way of reading it seeming to be ROISENG, which may possibly indicate a mint at Rishangles in Sussex, anciently Ris-angra. It is a coin of very superior design to any of the London coins. Three specimens of it were found at Cuerdale, and are in the possession, respectively, of Mr Assheton, Dr Smith, and the British Museum. The pre- sent drawing was made from the two former, one coin supplying the defects of the other. Pu. IV, Fie. 6. Before I proceed to the coins which are clearly the next in suc- cession to the above, I must not omit to notice a singular coin which is figured in Hall’s plates. By the combination of the bust on the obverse, of a design similar to that of the London coins, with a reverse type peculiar to the coins of Edward the Elder, and the name of a moneyer which does not occur on any of those of Alfred, I was at one time induced to condemn the original of this engraving as a for- gery. The discovery however of many of the originals of the figures in Hall’s Plates, previously supposed fictitious, in the Duke of Devonshire’s collection, taught me to hesitate in pronouncing decisions of this kind. The re-appearance too on a coin of Ed- mund from that collection, now in the British Museum, of a type previously supposed peculiar to the coins of Edward the Elder, and as far as we know disused during the reign of Athelstan, (the type of the flower), has shaken my suspicions of the genu- ineness of the coin now under discussion, which had arisen from the apparent inconsistency in the dates of its obverse and reverse types. We now come to consider the coins of Alfred, without portraits, which appear of later date than any of those above described, and 19 Essays 146 COINS OF KING ALFRED. again we have a connecting link between the two classes in the following curious and unique piece. 48. + EL ER ED RE A small cross; no inner circle. TILEVINE MONETA LONDONIA in monogram. Joun Huxtasie Esa. Pu. IV, Fre. 8. 49. EL ER ED RE A small cross. LUI COLLA in two lines, between them three monograms. British Museum, Pt. IV, Fie. 9. On the Lincoln coin (42) we had the name of the mint in monogram, and that of the moneyer written at full length. On this, the order is reversed, the name of the mint is written at length, and that of the moneyer in monograms, for I read them HE RE BE the greater part of the name HEREBERT. 50 +ELFREDRE A small cross. A large cross occupying the field of the coin with the letters CNVT attached to its extremities, and those of the word REX inter- calated between them. British Museum. Pu. IV, Fre. 10. By the type of its reverse this piece is connected with that nume- rous class of the Cuerdale coins which I have elsewhere ascribed to one of the sea-kings who invaded England in the days of Alfred ; (not, as Mr Hawkins seems to think, to that Cnut who was so famous in English history more than a century later ;) Cnut was a name exceedingly common amongst the Danish princes, and there certainly was one of this name, contemporary with Alfred, ason of Ragnor Lodbrog and a sea-king. It is no fanciful or anagrammatic way of reading which I propose, but one by no means uncommon in Byzantine coins of the same period. It is simply taking the letters in the order in which the cross is formed CNVT. This reading has the unanimous sanction of the most eminent Continental numismatists, and I believe is now generally _ admitted by our own. In fact, no other has been or can be pro- posed, which has even the slightest probability to recommend it. This coin is not the least important link in the chain of proof that the lately discovered coins of Siefred or Sievert, and of this Cnut, are English. 51. +ELFREDRE A small cross, VVINEMON An ornament. British Museum: Pu. IV, Fre, 11. COINS OF KING ALFRED. 147 52. -+ELFREDRE A small cross. CVBVVLF In two lines. British MusEvm. Pu. V, Fic. 1. 53. + ELFREDRE Same type, the letters unusually VVINIG MONE —_In two lines as before. [small. British MusEum. Pu. V, Fie. 2. os zi SIREMEELE } Same types as the foregoing. ee cares Serene } Same types as the foregoing. British Museum. Pu. V, Fic. 4. This type seems to call for particular remark. Although in common with the rest it has the name and title of Alfred on the obverse, yet it has on its reverse a legend which seems to give us the name and title of Ethelstan followed by the name of a mint GELDA. This may be Geddestone in Norfolk, or it may be read EDELS tani Regis GELDA i. e. “ tribute or money of king Ethelstan.” I leave these conjectures to the reader’s judgement, myself pre- ferring the former as being most in analogy with other contem- porary coins. 56. +ELFREDRE A small cross with a pellet in each CVDBERHT In two lines. [angle. British Museum. Pu. V, Fig. 5. 57. + SAA } Same types as the last. 58. + ei RVALOMO Same types as the foregoing. British Museum. Pu. V, Fie. 7. 59. AELFREDREX A small cross. BYRNELM+ In two lines. British Museum. Pu. V, Fic. 8. 60. + ALFREDRE A small cross. The reverse legend of this coin is in characters which have hitherto eluded all attempts to explain them. BrititsH Museum. Pu. V, Fie. 3. Britisa Museum. Pu. V, Fie. 6. British MusEum. Pu. V, Fie. 9. 61. + ALFREDEE A small cross. EAVVALD In two lines. British Museum. Pu. V, Fie. 10. OF BTRN LOMO} Same type asthe last. Bairisuy Museum. Pu. V, Fie. 1. On this type we have the following names of moneyers : 148 Some of the above readings are blundered, and there are others even more so. COINS OF KING ALFRED. ABENEL CIRESRIEN EDELYNE LVDIG ADELVLF CVOBERHE EBELVINE LVLLA AELFSTAN CVBBERHT EDELVLF OSVVLF ALFPALD CVBVVLF EDERED RANHERE ADELSTAN CVNEVLF ELDA SAMSON ADERED DEALLA EREFERD SIGEVVALD ALVYDA DEALING FERLYS SIMVN BEDRERN DELA FOLEARD STFANVS BEAGSTAN DIARVALD FRANBALD TILEVVNE BEGSTAN DIARLO GARIINE TILEVVINE BERHTERE DVDIG GODA TILEVOIE BEORNMAR ODVNNA GVOHERE TIRVEALD BEORNMER DVNNING HEAVVLF TIRVALD BEREHALD EAETAN HELICOLI VIGBAD BERNRED EADVALD HEREMOD VIGBALD BERBERH EADVEALD HEREFERD VVINE BERNVALD EADVVALD HEREVVLF VVINIG BIORNRED EALDVVLF HEREMVND ~=VVINIGERVS BOFA EGBER HVNBERHT VVNBERHT BORA ECVLF HREAEAM VVYNBERHT BRIDARD ECVVLF IENERAM PYNBERHT BVGA ECPVLF IVDELBAND ~— P.BERET BVRNEREA ECPVVLF LVDG VVLFRED BYRNELM EDEISTAN LVDEI Some of these moneyers add to their names their designation M0. MON. MONE. MONET. or MONETA, and two, ELDA and SIMVN the words ME FECit. The most remarkable feature on the coins 51 to 58 and indeed on 48 to 50 is the division of the obverse legend into four groups so as to give to the type a cruciform appearance. This is a feature so peculiarly English, being found only on these coins of Alfred, and on those of his contemporary Ethelstan (Guthrum) of East-Anglia, that its appearance on the money of Siefred, is another strong argument for their English origin. There is nothing of the kind to be observed on any continental coins; one of the emperor Otto III struck at Verona, about the close of the century, which at first sight might be taken to resemble these, is really of a very different design: it must in fact be read as the cross is formed, VE. RO NA and the letters are so placed that they COINS OF KING ALFRED. 149 can be read at one view without turning the piece, just as in No. 50. Nos 59, 60 present a variation from this, dividing the obverse legend into three groups instead of four. This coinage, which from its resemblance to that of Ethelstan (Guthrum) of East- Anglia, I feel justified in supposing, commenced between A. D. 880 and 890, must have been continued until the end of the reign of Alfred. We do not indeed observe the peculiarity just noticed on the coins of Alfred’s son and successor: for the greater length of the name Eadweard would not admit of such an arrangement : but some coins of this, ex. gr. No. 59, in every other respect cor- respond exactly with those of Edward the Elder. As the work of which these pages form a part is devoted to the illustration of the life and writings of Alfred, this seems a proper place for introducing a few remarks supplementary to what I have advanced in my Essay on the coins of East-Anglia, and the result of subsequent research. I there endeavoured to shew the probability that Ethelstan, known in history as the eldest son of Ethelwulf, and king of Kent, was also a king of East-Anglia and a predecesser of S. Edmund. I was not then aware how intimate a connexion existed between this Ethelstan and his youngest brother Alfred, supposing as I then did that he died when Alfred was but two or three years old. Now however, I am convinced, and that chiefly by Dr Whitaker’s arguments in his life of S. Neot, that S. Neot, who exercised so remarkable an influence over Alfred, was no other than this Ethelstan under a religious name. In the year 823, Egbert King of Wessex sent his son Ethelwulf _ with an army into Kent, and the latter subdued and wrested from the Mercian yoke, not only that kingdom but those of Essex, Sur- rey and Sussex as well. These kingdoms then became and for many years continued to be an appanage of the West-Saxon crown. They were bestowed at first upon Ethelwulf, who upon the death of Egbert and his own accession to the throne of Wes- sex in 837, bestowed them upon Ethelstan his eldest son, by some supposed to have been of illegitimate birth, by others the fruit of an earlier marriage than that which produced the four brothers, Ethelbald, Ethelbert, Ethelred, and Alfred. Ethelstan continued to govern these kingdoms until the year 851, when he is mention- ed as having defeated the Danes at Sandwich. But after that year he appears no more in history, and that about that time he ceased to govern Kent, seems probable from the fact that two 150 COINS OF KING ALFRFD. years later, A. D. 853, Duke Ealhere, who had been his colleague at the battle of Sandwich, is mentioned as fighting another battle but without him. Further, in the year 855, we find Ethelbald, his brother, the eldest son of the second marriage, styled king, and that whilst Ethelwulf was living; and his dominions would seem to be the same as those which Ethelstan had governed, viz. Kent, Essex, Surrey, and Sussex. In that year, Ethelwulf being then at Rome, King Ethelbald conspired with Alhstan, Bishop of Sherborne, and Eanwulf Earl of Somersetshire, to deprive his father of his dominions, and on his return they actually attempted to drive him from his kingdom. A compromise was made where- by Ethelbald was raised to the West-Saxon throne, and Kent with the other three provinces were left to his father Ethelwulf, who in the following year, A. D. 856, signs himself simply king of Kent, in a grant by himself of the Lordship of Lenham, to that Duke Ealhere who has already been mentioned in connection with Ethelstan. It appears, further, that about the year 851, Ethelwulf was a great benefactor to the monastery of Glastonbury, conveying thereto several manors, and that with his consent Earl Ethelstan gave other lands to the same monastery, together with his own person. The life of St Neot, by John of Tynemouth, tells us that he was a son of Edulph, king of the West-Angles and of Kent, that he retired from the world and became a monk at Glastonbury : that some years afterwards with only one attendant he retired to a solitude in Cornwall; that after seven years spent there he went to Rome, and on his return gathered together a Society of monks and became their superior: that at this time he was frequently visited by Alfred for the purpose of obtaining his counsel and _ blessing: that before his death, which must have taken place about the year 876 he foretold the troubles that were coming on Alfred: that after his death he appeared to Alfred on two occa- sions, once in his retreat in Athelney to announce the end of his troubles, and again before the battle of Ethandune to encourage him with the promise of victory. Besides this life there are two others, both said to have been written by William Ramsay a monk of Croyland, (though for my part I cannot believe them to be by the same hand), one in verse the other in prose. The former speaks of St Neot as the son of Edulph king of Kent, and of his being of the same blood as king COINS OF KING ALFRED. 151 Alfred (called Zlvred), the latter that he was born of a royal race which reigned in the eastern parts of Britain, and that he was a near relation of Alfred (called Helored). Lastly, the pictured life of St Neot in the windows of his church in Cornwall, express- ly tells us that he was a king, and that he resigned his crown to his younger brother. This much then is common to Ethelstan and to St Neot; each was a son of Ethelwulf king of Kent, and brother of Alfred, and each was a king succeeded by a younger brother. But Ethelstan disappears from the page of history in 851, and about that time St Neot appears for nineteen or twenty years later : at the begin- ning of the reign of Alfred he was abbot of a monastery in Corn- wall, and the various changes which had chequered his career since his retirement from the world, his noviciate at Glastonbury, his successive ordinations, his monastic life, his seven years’ soli- tude in Cornwall, his journey to and return from Rome, and his establishment of his monastery, would well fill up that space of time. Glastonbury was the monastery to which St Neot retired, and to Glastonbury about the year 851 we find Ethelstan giving lands together with his own person. All this to me is conclusive that Ethelstan and St Neot were one and the same person: that Ethelstan when he left the world took another name vewr%s i. e. “the renewed one,” indicative of his purpose of walking in new- ness of life, and that by this name he was ever after known. Ad- mitting this identity, we see the reason why, when Guthrum embraced the Christian faith, Alfred his godfather chose for him the name of Ethelstan (whilst he allotted to him as his kngdom one of the ancient dominions of Ethelstan) for it was that of one very dear to him, and lately deceased, the last survivor of his four brothers, who had been to him more than a brother, a spiri- tual father whilst living, and after his departure to receive the heavenly crown for which be laid aside his earthly one, a protect- ing saint. The name he gave to Guthrum, as well as the domin- ions he assigned him were those which his brother Ethelstan had given up for the love of God. Ethelstan, then, born probably at the commencement of the ninth century (for he is said to have been an old man when he retired into Cornwall, which could scarcely have been later than 863), succeeded his father Ethelwulf in the kingdom of Kent in 837; yet reigned also in East-Anglia before that time, and even as early as the days of Beornwulf and 152 , COINS OF KING ALFRED. Ludica, Kings of Mercia, and continued to reign until nearly the days of St Edmund, A. D. 855 (for the series of his coins extends over the whole of that period, about a quarter of a century); re- signed his crown to his younger brother Ethelbald, and abandoned the world : became a monk at Glastonbury under the name Neo- tus: retired thence to a solitude in Cornwall ; after leading the life of a hermit there for seven years went to Rome and returned to establish a monastery in the same place : then became the coun- sellor of his youngest brother Alfred, and departed to a better life shortly before Alfred’s troubles. Yet immediately afterwards, another was raised up in one of the kingdoms which nearly thirty years before had owned his sway, to perpetuate his name, Guth- rum, the noblest of the pagan sea-kings changed by divine grace into Ethelstan the Christian king, the god-son of Alfred. Returning from this digression for which I hope the interesting nature of the subject will be admitted as an excuse, I come now to conclude my notice of the coins of Alfred by discussing a few pieces which undoubtedly belong to the last ten years of his reign, and must have been issued contemporaneously with some of those last described. 63. + ELFRED REXPLEEN. A small cross. EDALVVLMO In two lines. BritisH Museum. Pu. VII, Fie. 6. 64. AELFRED REX DORO. A small cross. BVRNVALD MO In two lines. British Museum. Pu. V, Fra. 12. 65. + AELFRED REX D0 A cross. + SCEADMVNRE The letter A. British Museum. Pu. VII, Fia. 7. 66. + FFELFREDRC +CECADMVNDRES — Same ‘Pes as the last, a; = SSAIT NY same types as the last (two of the spaces in the legend filled by amulets). BritisH Musreux, Pi. VII, Fie. 9. The date of issue of all the above seems to be clearly fixed. On 63 we have, in addition to the name and title of Alfred, the first letters of the name of Plegmund, who became archbishop of Canterbury, A. D. 890. On 64, representing a large class of Al- COINS OF KING ALFRED. 153 fred’s coins, and on 65, we have the first letters of the name Doro- vernia, shewing that they were minted at Canterbury, and connect- ing them also with one type of the money of archbishop Plegmund. This last, 65, and the two varieties which follow, 66 and 67, toge- ther form a connecting link between the coins of Alfred and those which bear the name of St Edmund, martyred king of East-Anglia. These have generally been supposed to be of ecclesiastical origin and to have been minted in the monastery founded in honour of St Edmund at Bury. My opinion, founded on a careful conside- ration of the evidence of the coins themselves, and the circum- stances of the two principal discoveries of them, is that they were neither ecclesiastical nor wholly confined to East-Anglia, but that they were simultaneously minted, chiefly in that but in other parts of England as well, in honour of S. Edmund, after the death of Ethelstan (Guthrum) and before the close of the ninth century. The first of the three here given, connects them with Alfred, and with Canterbury, and it is not unreasonable to suppose that it was at his suggestion, and by his authority, that this coinage was issued. On these Canterbury coins and on others, which, though blun- dered, appear to be of the same class, we have the following names of moneyers : BIAERED BRVNED DVNNINE EDELYINE BIAERD BVRNVALD EADVALD HEREFRED BIRAVAD CERMAN ELESTAN HVNFRED BIRIVALD DIARVALD EDELSTAN TIRVALD. There is a peculiarity to be observed on the coins which follow, viz. that they have their legends both in obverse and reverse dis- posed in lines, two, three, or four. With the exception of the coins of earl Sitric, all other coins of the English series, on which the obverse presents a linear legend, have a circular one on the reverse. 68. ALFRED+ORSNA FORDA _ In three lines. BERNVALRMO. In two lines. J. Kenyon Esa. Pu, VI, Fie. 1. 69. ELFRED ORSNA FORDA In three lines as before. BERNVALDNO In two lines, having between them a cross raised on steps. BuritisH Museum. Pu, VI, Fie. 2. 20 Essays 154 COINS OF KING ALFRED. 70. ELFRED ORSNY FORDA In three lines as before. BERNVALDIO In two lines. W, AssHETON Esa. Pu. VI, Fie. 3. The name of the city of Oxford on these coins is usually read Orsnaford; My Sainthill has suggested that it should be read ' Oksnaforda, and I believe he is right. 71. This coin has a blundered legend both on the obverse and the reverse, but the former seems to be intended for ALFRED BERNVALDMO and the latter is evidently intended for ORSNAFORDA. It is, then, a distinct variety of the preceding coins, having the moneyer’s name along with that of the king on the obverse and that of the mint on the reverse. British Museum. Pu. VI, Fie. 4. 72. On this piece we can just make out the name of Alfred on the obverse, but the rest of the legend is so much blundered as to defy explanation. It is certainly not an Oxford coin, but may take its place here, as holding out to us the expectation of future discoveries of coins from other mints similar to those of Oxford. It will be observed that a part of the obverse legend is common to that of the reverse. 73. EVE RAT. In two lines: between them a cross on a a single step. ME FECIT. In two lines. J. Kenyon Esa. Pu. VI, Fie. 6. This beautiful half-penny, together with the Oxford penny, 69, and the halfpenny, 72, are connected by their type with some of those of Stefred, discovered along with them at Cuerdale. 74. + AELFRED REX SAXONVM. In four lines. ELI MG— _—_In two lines. — GaRLanp Esa, Pu. VI, Fie. 7. The weight of this piece is 1643 grains. If it were intended for a coin, it must be supposed to be a quarter of the mancus. The mancus of silver should weigh 675 grains, and its quarter 1682 grains. 75. --AELFRED REX SAXONVM. In four lines. EXA : J. Kenyon Ese. Pu. VI, Fie. 8. 76. +-AELFRED REX SAXONVM PIN British MusEum. Pu. VI, Fic. 9. COINS OF KING ALFRED. 155 77. A fragment of a similar coin. British Museum. Pu. VI, Fie. 10. The title on these coins Rex"Saxonum occurring in connection with the names of the mints of Exeter, 75, and Winchester, 76 and 77, seems to confirm my conjecture that the coins which also present this title in Pl. II are of West-Saxon origin. In con- nexion with these I give two similar coins of Alfred’s son and suc- cessor Edward minted at Bath. Pu. VI, Figs. 11, 12. raE FORMER IN THE BRITISH MuskuUM, THE LATTER IN MaCurr’s COLLECTION. A METRICAL ENGLISH VERSION OF KING ALFRED’S POEMS: TO ILLUSTRATE ANGLO-SAXON POETRY IN GENERAL. INTRODUCTORY NOTE. That the poems, of which king Alfred is known to have been the writer, are in themselves a better illustration of Anglo-Saxon poetry in general, than any laboured essay on the subject, has been already observed by the author of this version, in the short preface to the separate edition of the work.* But as these essays are professedly a regular series, having for their object to illustrate the Manners, Literature &c. of the ninth century, it seems desirable—if only as a matter of mere form—not to let this version, with its running commentary, appear a second time before the public without a few words on the poetry and general poetic character of our ancestors. It is a great draw-back to our appreciation of early poetry, that the help of rhythm and music can no longer be obtained. These are the most frail and fleeting of all the graces that wait upon the Fine Arts. It would seem, too, asif the very physical character of musical instruments were as transitory as the music itself. It appears, by the result of historical research, that the instruments used in different ages vary so considerably, that even those which pass under the same name, have never borne exactly the same form, and often not even the same adaptation to the uses of the musician. A very large, and in many cases, a very heterogeneous assort- ment of instruments, are all included under the name of HaRP: and, though this instrument, as far as we know, was the only one generally used by the Saxons, yet we have little or no clue to a knowledge of its shape, size, or principle of construction. This is the more to be lamented, because almost every fragment that remains of Anglo-Saxon poetry bears evident marks of having been written to be sung to the harp. Thus, then, we have no external aid to guide us to the metrical principles of the ancient Anglo-Saxon Poems, and are, therefore, driven by necessity to an examination of those now existing, as the only source from which we can derive a scanty information on this subject. The eminent historian of the Anglo-Saxons, Mr Turner, has, * King Alfred’s Poems, now first turned into English metres, by M. F. Tupper esq. London, 12mo, A. Hall, Virtue and Co. 1850. THE ANGLO-SAXON POETRY. 159 with his usual diligence, discovered a passage in the works of venerable Bede, which aids us wonderfully in this enquiry. Tn defining rhythm, Bede says, “ It is a modulated composition of words, not according to the laws of metre, but adapted in the number of its syllables to the judgment of the ear, as are the verses of our vulgar [or native] poets. Rhythm may exist without metre, but there cannot be metre without rhythm, which is thus more clearly defined. Metre is an artificial rule with modulation; rhythmus is the modulation with- out the rule, Yet, for the most part, you may find, by a sort of chance, some rule in rhythm; but this is not from an artificial government of the syllables. It arises because the sound and the modulation lead to it. The vulgar poets effect this rustically; the skilful obtain it by their skill. Thus that celebrated hymn is very beautifully made like iambic metre: Rex eterne! Domine ! Rerum creator omnium! Qui eras ante secula ! Such are other Ambrosian poems, and those not afew. So they sing the hymn on the day of judgment, made alphabetically, in the form of the trochaic metre : Apparebit repentina Dies magna Domini, Fur obscura velut nocte, Improvisos occupans. Thus, then, it appears that the Anglo-Saxon poetry is not based upon a rigid metrical system of quantity like that of the Ancient Greeks and Romans, or upon the almost equally rigid system of accent, like that of the modern European nations ; but is adapted in the number of its syllables to the judgment of the ear. Let us then see what peculiarities an investigation of the existing Anglo- Saxon poems will furnish us with. 1. They consist entirely of short lines, containing not always the same number of syllables, but zearly the same number, accord- ing to the judgment of the ear. 2. A second peculiarity is the almost total omission of particles. This Mr Turner considers to be a peculiarity of all rude nations. It may however be no more than an instance of the usual tendency of poetry to omit all such small words as impede the expression of poetic thought, or are unnecessary to the greatness of the poetic conception. u In instance of these two peculiarities may be adduced the Pee lines of King Alfred’s poems, which rendered literally run thus ; Thus Alfred [to] us [The] king of [the] West Saxons Old spells told, Displayed [his] craft. 160 THE ANGLO-SAXON POETRY. And again the first lines of Metre I : Tt was years ago Out of Scythia That [the] eastern Goths [Their] shield men led. 3. The third feature of Anglo-Saxon verse—for we must enumerate them very briefly—is their periphrastic nature, obser- vable in almost every portion that remains. Take for example that beautiful description of the exile of Oslac in the Saxon Chronicle, A. D. 973: And then was eke driven out, Hoary-headed hero, Beloved hero, Wise and word-skilled, Oslac from this land, Over the water’s throng, Over rolling waters Over the whale’s domain, Over the ganet’s bath ; Of home bereav’d. All these lines express no more than the first and third alone express, and yet how beautifully are they varied—they remind us of Hebrew poetry. 4. The same specimen displays to us the fourth peculiarity of Anglo-Saxon poetry, metaphor. It will be remarked that the sea is therein described not only as the ‘rolling waters,’ but as the “ganet’s bath’—the ‘ whale’s domain.’ 5. Inversion oF worps. This peculiarity is derived from the strong likeness which the Anglo-Saxon bears to all the Teutonic dialects, including the modern German. It is observable in almost every piece of Saxon verse that has come down to us, remarkably so in the ballad of king Edgar [Sax. Chron. A. 973]. Here was Edgar, Akemanscester : Ruler of Angles, But it the islanders, In full assembly Beorns, by another word, Hallowed king, Name Bath. At the old city Another example of the same style is found in a short poem, given, also, in the Saxon Chronicle, about the murder of king Edward called the Martyr (979) : The earthly murderers And on earth wide spread. Would his memory They who would not erewhile On earth blot out ; To his living body bow down, But the lofty Avenger They now humbly Hath his memory On knees bend In the heavens To his dead bones. 6. The last and most interesting feature of our ancestral poetry was its alliteration,—a sort of rhnyme—not that rhyme which, re- curring regularly at the ends of the lines, leads the reader to expect its recurrence, and, whether rightly or wrongly, is now THE ANGLO-SAXON POETRY. 161 looked upon as one of the ornaments which all poetry, in modern tongue, requires, but a rhyme, irregularly recurring, at very un- certain intervals, and as often at the beginnings as at the ends of the verses, nay even sometimes limited to a single letter, generally an aspirate or sibilant, occurring at the beginning of two following words. Of this peculiarity, very numerous instances will be found in the following version of king Alfred’s poems, to which the reader’s attention is now invited. J. A. G. THE TRANSLATOR’S PREFACE. The “ Poems of king Alfred” are here for the first time given to the English reader in a rhythmical dress: and that, without any known or meant sacrifice of faithfulness, any ill-judged attempt at “improvements” or additions, any other wish than the simple one of making Alfred’s mind known to us his distant child- ren, as much as possible in his own words. The writer has aimed everywhere at these five points: 1. To be literal. 2. To keep the still used words of our ancient Anglo-Saxon tongue wherever he could, and to throw aside all Latinized and other mixed forms of expression. 3. To vary the metres at least as often as Boe- thius, never admitting a false or doubtful rhyme. 4. To keep constantly in view the alliterations, the parallelisms, the frequently recurring echoes both in sense and in sound, which are principal features of the Anglo-Saxon poetry. 5. To catch the spirit, and not the notes alone, of Alfred’s harp, and to be at once easy and exact, rhymed (often doubly and trebly) and yet, as a first rule, representing what Alfred really said, and not what a modern may put into his mouth for rhyme’s sake. It will readily be believed, that, if these five rules have been at all regarded, the work here done has been one of no small difficulty: to use the neat phrase ssays 21 162 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. of Peter Bertius in his preface to Boethius, it may seem “ Exiguum mole munus,” but it is “ingens pondere.” And now let the present writer give praise where it is due to those riper scholars in this ancient field of literature, whose labours have principally helped him. Mr Fox’s prose version of the Metres of Boethius, as paraphrased by King Alfred, has been one mainstay in the matter; and Dr Bosworth’s admirable dictionary another. At the same time, laborious study, a not in- frequentindependence as to the rendering of certain passages, and an earnest obedience to the five good rules above, leave (it is hoped) some balance of account to the writer’s credit. Nothing is easier than to find fault; but in many cases nothing is more difficult than to propose a remedy. Let then the critical scholar, who may possibly see much to blame in this version, attempt the matter for himself; and then he will estimate the difficulty of such conditions as these; at once to avoid Latinisms, and to speak in modern flowing English,—to render Alfred faithfully, and yet to preserve rhyme and rhythm in a multitude of metres. M. F. T. Cable of contents. OPENING. Thus #lfred us Eald-spell reahte I. Or Rome anv Boetutus. Hit wes geara iu Thet Gotan eastan - II. A Sorrowrut Fytrte. Carmina qui quondam studio flo rente peregi Hweet ic liotha fela III. A Fyrre or Desparr. Heu quam precipiti mersa profundo iala on hu grimmum IV. A Psatm vo Gop. O stelliferi conditor orbis £ala thu scippend V. Or Trousie anp rts Curr. Nubibus atris Thu meaht be there sunnan VI. Or Cuance. Quum polo Phebus roseis quadrigis Tha se wisdom eft KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 163 VII. Or Content, anp HumBieness. Quisquis volet perennem Tha ongon se Wisdom VIII. Or Primat Innocence &c. Felix nimium prior ztas Sonaswa se Wisdom IX. Nero. Novimus quantas dederit ruinas Hwet we ealle witon X. Or Fame, anp Deartu. Quicunque solam mente precipiti petit Gif nu heletha hwone XI. Or Gop’s Wisz GovERNMENT. Quod mundus stabili fide An scippend is XII. Uses or ADVERSITY. Qui serere ingenuum volet agrum Se the wille wyrcan XIII. Or Inwarp Likines. Quantum rerum flectat habenas Te wille mid giddnm XIV. Tue Emptiness or WEALTH. Quamvis fluente dives auri gurgite Hwet bith them welegan XV. Nero’s BAasEnEss. Quamvis se Tyrio superbus ostro Theah hine nu XVI. Or SELF-RULE. Qui se volet esse potentem Se the wille anwald agon XVII. True GREATNESS. Omne hominum genus in terris Thet eorthwaran XVIII. Or Sinrun PLeAsuRE. Habet omnis hoc voluptas, Eala thet se yfla XIX. WHERE TO FIND TRUE JOYS. Eheu! quam miseros tramite devio Eala thet is hefig dysig XX. Or Gop ann His CREATURES. O qui perpetua mundum rationegubernas, Eala min Drihten! thet thu eart XXI. OF mnwarD LIGHT. Huc omnes pariter venite capti, Wel la monna bearn XXII. Or THE INNER MIND, AND THE OUTER SIN. Quisquis profunda mente vestigat verum, Se the efter rihte XXIII. True Happiness. Felix qui potuit boni Sie thet la on eorthan XXIV. Tue Sout’s HERITAGE. Sunt etenim penne volucres mihi Ic hebbe fithru 164 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. XXV. Or Evin Kines. Quos vides sedere celso Geher nu an spell XXVI. Or Circe AND HER COMPANY. Vela Neritii ducis Ic the meg eathe XXVII. Or Toterance. Quid tantos juvat excitare motus Hwy ge efre scylen XXVIII. Or Heaventy Wonpers. Si quis Arcturi sidera nescit Hwa is on eorthan nu XXIX. Or tue Stars AND SEASONS. Si vis celsi jura tonantis Gif thu nu wilnige XXX. Or tHe TRUE Sun. Puro clarum lumine Phebum Omerus wes XXXI. Or Man’s UpriGHTNESS. Quam variis terras animalia permeant figuris ! Hwat thu meaht ongitan PROVERBS, OR THE PARLIAMENT AT SHIFFORD OPENING. Thus #lfred us Eald-spell reahte; Cyning West-sexna Creft meldode. Leoth-wyrhta list. 5 Him wes lust micel, Thet he thiossum leodum Leoth spellode, Monnum myrgen, Thy les zlinge Utadrife Selflicne secg. Thonne he swelces lyt Gymth for his gilpe. 15 Ic sceal giet sprecan, Fon on fitte, Fole-cuthne red, Helethum secgean, Mislice cwidas ; 10 Hliste se the wille, 20 Thus to us did Alfred sing A spell of old ; Song-craft the West-Saxon king Did thus unfold : Long and much he long’d to teach His people then These mixt-sayings of sweet speech, The joys of men ; That no weariness forsooth, As well it may,— Drive away delight from truth, But make it stay. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 165 So, he can but little seek For his own pride : A fytte of song I fitly speak, And nought beside : A folk-beknown and world-read thing I have to say ; To all the best of men I sing,— List, ye that may. A short metre, and one full of echoes, is that which is best fitted to the genius of Anglo-Saxon verse, so as to represent it fairly. The writer in the first instance wrote another version of this opening rhyme ; but saw cause to reject it, as not being literal enough, and because for the metre’s sake he was obliged to inter- polate two lines. The reason why it is here below inserted is, (not by way of proof of extraordinary pains-taking, for the same sort of labour has occurred in other portions of this version, but) be- cause it is considered by a learned friend as worthy of preservation. To the writer’s mind, a sin against faithful rendering was fatal, and he prefers the more literal rhyme just already given to the reader. Here then is the rejected one: fElfred told to us A tale of olden time; The King of the West-Saxons thus Shewed forth his skill in rhyme. For long he longed to teach His people pleasant things, In mingled changes of sweet speech, And many counsellings,— The dear delight of men ; Lest weariness forsooth Should drive away unfairly then The selfsame word of truth. He thereby little sought For any selfish praise ; [But of these people only thought To give them good always. | 166 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. I thus will speak and say What all the folk shall read ; List ye that may, and like my lay, Let all the good give heed. From the circumstance of the third person being used in these lines (a custom far from unusual with authors in every age and nation) some have supposed that Alfred did not writethem. The truth seems to lie in the opposite opinion: not merely from the prevalent moral resemblance to Alfred’s mind ; as in that shrewd hint of the evils of dullness, in the eschewal of vain glory, & ;-— but chiefly from the text itself. After disclaiming self praise, recommending rhymes, and announcing the author, Alfred comes simply to the first person, ‘Ic sceal sprecan, I sHaLt speak: it may be more learned to doubt, but it is far more sensible to believe. This Opening rhyme does not occur in the Latin: it is a bit of original Alfred. In this, as in others of these metres, there is a great satisfaction in seeing how easily they fall into modern rhymes, without a sacrifice of faithfulness. However, when (instructed by Dr Bosworth) we remember that of the 38,000 words of Modern English 23,000, or more than 3ths, are Anglo-Saxon,—this harmony will appear less wonderful. But,—what a pity it is that any of the fine old root-words of our tongue should have been forgotten : for example, in this very Opening song, how is it we have lost ‘myreg’—as good a word as ‘pleasure,’ and the root of ‘merry’ ?—and ‘ gilpe, vain-glory ?—and ‘spell’ (not quite yet obsolete) story ?—and ‘ list’ (surely as good a word as art) ?— ‘ fitte’ a song—leoth’ a poem,—and many more? We have of late years been throwing away, by the hundred, the stout old props of our strong north-country speech, and have substituted in their stead the sesquipedalia verba of Southern Europe. Nothing then can be more wholesome than to return for awhile to such good plain stuff as Alfred’s stalwarth Anglo-Saxon : it is a right bracing air ;—may the reader enjoy the sport as much as the writer. We have here before us fresh fields and a fair brooklet of English running water. KING ALFRED’S I. Or Rome anp Hit wes geara iu, Thette Gotan eastan Of Sciththia Sceldas laddon, Threate gethrungon, 5 Theod-lond monig. Setton suthweardes, Sige-theoda twa ; Gotene rice Gear-mzlum weox ; 10 Hefdan him gecynde Cyningas twegen, Redgod and Aleric, Rice gethungon. Tha waes ofer muntgiop 15 Monig atyhted Gota gylpes full, Guthe gelysted, Fole-gewinnes. Fana hwearfode 20 Scir on sceafte ; Sceotend thohton Italia Ealle gegongan, Lind-wigende, 25 Higelaestan ; Swua efne from muntgiop, Oth thone maeran wearoth, Thaer Sicilia Sae-streamum, 30 In eglond micel Ethel maersath. Tha waes Romana Rice gewunnen, Abrocen burga cyst. 35 Beadu-rincum waes Rom gerymed ; Raedgot and Aleric Foron on thaet faesten, Fleah Casere 40 Mid tham aethelingum Ut on Grecas. Ne meahte tha seo wea laf Wige forstandan, Gotan mid guthe ; 45 Gio monna gestrion Scealdon unwillum Ethel weardas : Halige athas : Waes gehwaetheres waa. 50 Theah waes mago-rinca. Mod mid Grecum, Gif hi leod-fruman Laestan dorsten. Stod thrage on tham 55 Theod waes gewunnen, Wintra maenigo ; Oth thaet wyrd gescraf, Thaet the Theodrice, Thegnas and eorlas 60 Heran sceoldan. Waes se Heretema, Criste gecnoden ; Cyning selfa onfeng Fulluht theawum. 65 Faegnodon ealle Romwara bearn. And him recene to Frithes wilnedon. He him faeste gehet, 70 Thaet hy eald-rihta /Elces mosten. Wyrthe gewunigen, On thaere welegan byrig, Thenden God wuolde, 75 Thaet he Godena geweald Agan moste. He thaet eall aleag. Waes thaem aethelinge POEMS. Boeruivs. Arrianes 80 Gedwola leofre Thone Drihtnes e, Het Johannes, Godne Papan. Heafde beheawon : 85 Naes thet haerlic daed Eac tham waes unrim Othres manes, Thaet se Gota fremede, Godra gehwilcum. 90 Tha waes ricra sum, On Rome byrig, Ahefen Heretoga, Hiaforde leof, Thenden Cynestole 95 Creacas wioldon. i Thaetjwaes rihtwis-rinc. Waes mid Romwarum Sinc-geofa sella. Siththan longe he 100 Waes for weorulde |wis, Weorth-myrtha georn, Beorn boca gleaw, Boitius, Se haele hatte : 105 Se thonne hlisan gethah. Waes him on gemynde, Maela gehwilce, Yfel and edwit, Thaet him eltheodge, 110 Kyningas cythdon. Waes on Greacas hold, Gemunde thara ara, And eald-rihta. The his eldran 115 Mid him abton longe, Lufan and lissa. Angan tha listum ymbe, Thencean thearflice, Hu he thider meahte. 120 Grecas oncerran ; Thaet se Casere, Eft anwald ofer hi Agan moste. Sende aerend-gewrit 125 Eald-hlafordum, Degelice : And hi for Drihtne baed, Ealdum treowum, Thaet hi aeft to bim, 130 Comen on tha ceastre ; Lete Greca witan Raedan Romwarum, Rihtes wyrthe. Lete thone leodscipe. 135 Tha tha lare ongeat Theodric Amuling, And thone thegn oferfeng ; Heht faestlice, Folc-gesithas 140 Healdon thone here-rine. Waes him hreoh sefa Ege from tham eorle ; He hine inne Heht on carcerne 145 Cluster belucan. Tha waes mod-sesa Miclum gedrefed ; Boetius Breac longe aer, 150 Wiencea under wolenum, He thy wyrs meahte Tholian tha thrage, Tha hio swa thearl becom. Waes tha ormod eorl, 155 Are ne wende, Ne on tham faestene, Frofre gemunde ; 168 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. Ac he neowol astreaht Ne wende thonan aefre Nither of dune ; 160 Cuman of thaem clammum; Feol on tha flore, Cleopode to Drihtne, 165 Fela worda sprec, Geomran stemne, Forthoht thearle : Gyddode thus. It was long of yore That the Gothic rout, Forth from Scythia’s eastern shore, Led their shieldmen out; Thronged with swarms of war The lands of many a clan, And in the South set firm and far Two tribes to trouble man. Yearly waxed and grew Those Gothic kingdoms twain, And Alaric and Redgast too ‘Right royally did reign. Then down the Alps the Goth Made haste to force his way, In haughty pride all fiercely wroth, And lusting for the fray : Their banner fluttered bright, While all Italia through Shot ruthless in their linden might The shielded warrior crew, Forth from the Alpine drifts To great Sicilia’s coast, Where in the seastream it uplifts Its lofty island boast. Then Rome’s old rule was crush’d, Her costliness despoil’d, And by that host, with battle flush’d, The city’s beauty soil’d. Alaric and Raedgast The fastness first they seek, While Czesar with his chiefs fled fast For safety to the Greek. Essays KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 169 Then could the wretched band, Left mournfully behind, No more the warring Goth withstand, Nor much of mercy find. Unwillingly their trust The warders then gave up, None to his oath was true and just ; And full was sorrow’s cup. Yet to the Greek outyearn’d The people, as at first, And for some daring leader burn’d, To follow whom they durst. The people wore their woes Many a wintry year, Till weird-ordain’d Theodric rose, Whom thane and earl should hear. To Christ the chief was born, And water wash’d the king, While all Rome’s children blest the morn, That peace with it should bring. To Rome he vowed full fast Her old-time rights to yield, While God should grant his life to last, The Gothic power to wield. He did forswear all that : The Atheling he lied, To please Arius God forgat, And falsely slipp’d aside. He broke his plighted oath, And, without right or ruth, Good John the pope against all troth Beheaded for the truth. A shameful deed was there ; And heaps of other ill Against the good this Goth did dare In wickedness of will. 22 170 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. A man there was just set For heretoch in Rome, Loved by the lord whose bread he ate, And dear to all at home : Dear also to the Greek, When he the town did save ; A righteous man, whom all would seek, For many gifts he gave. Long since was he full wise, In worldly wit and lore, Eager in worth and wealth to rise, And skill’d on books to pore. Boethius was he hight ; He ate shame’s bitter bread, And ever kept the scorn in sight Outlandish kings had said. He to the Greek was true, And oft the old-rights told, Which he and his forefathers too From those had won of old. Carefully then he plann’d To bring the Greek to Rome, That Cesar in his rightful land Again might reign at home. In hidden haste he plied With letters all the lords, And prayed them by the Lord who died To heed his earnest words. Greece should give laws to Rome, And Rome should Greece obey ; The people longed to let them come To drive the Goth away. But lo! the Amuling Theodric found out all, And bade his fellows seize and bring This highborn chief in thrall. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 171 He feared that good earl well, And straightly bade them bind Boethius in the prison-cell, Sore troubled in his mind. Ah! he had basked so long Beneath a summer sky, Il) could he bear such load of wrong, So heavy did it lie. Then was he full of woe, Nor heeded honour more ; Reckless he flung himself below Upon the dungeon floor ; Much mourning, there he lay, Nor thought to break his chains, But to the Lord by night and day Sang thus in sighing strains. This poem also is Alfred’s own: and has not in any way been suggested by Boethius. It serves, in an able and effective manner, to introduce the Metres that follow, giving a slight historic sketch of Rome and its fortunes at the time of Boethius’s imprisonment. In Gibbon’s ‘ Decline and Fall’ all the matters here hinted at are detailed at length: as it is not our wish to encumber this version with needless notes, the reader can if he pleases there refer to the history of Theodoric’s invasion and government. Meanwhile, a few words in this version require explanation: e. g. ‘ sceldas leeddon’ ‘led their shields,—as we would now say of a general, he sent so many hundred ‘ bayonets’ to the flank &c. : ‘lind wigende’ lime or linden-fighters—so called from their bucklers or spear shafts having been made of lime-wood: ‘hlaf’ is a ‘loaf’; ‘ord’ a ‘ beginning or cause’ : hence ‘ hlaford’ is a ‘ patron’ or a ‘lord whose bread he ate :’ ‘ heretoga’ is a ‘ general or chieftain’ ; Boe- thius was in fact ‘consul,’ but, as in the case of ‘atheling’ for ‘prince, it is thought best to keep to the word of Alfred. So also of ‘ Amuling ;’ which signifies the descendant of Amul. Boethius (prenamed Anicius Manlius Torquatus Severinus, and allied to those noble families) flourished as a Roman citizen and a Chris- tian writer toward the close of the fifth and the beginning of the 172 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. sixth century of our era. He was educated in Greece, where he spent the first years of his life, and married a Sicilian lady of Greek extraction, by name Elpis: these serve to explain the fact of his Philhellenism referred to in the text. After having filled the highest office of state himself and having lived to see his sons Patricius and Hypatius Consuls also, he was sent to a prison in Pavia, for having stood up against the usurpations of Theodoric. He appears to have lived only six months in the prison, and then to have been cruelly executed: but the greater part of those six months he must have spent both wisely and well in the elegant prose and ingenious verse of “The consolations of Philosophy.” In the second volume of this edition, King Alfred’s prose Boethius will be given in full to the reader: the present work concerns the poetry. John Bunyan, we may remember, as well as the holy Paul, severally have put a prison to the like good uses: but Boethius has been censured, and with some reason, for not adding (what Alfred every where supplies) the consolations of religion to those of philosophy. His metres, 26 in number, are varied and ingenious: they have been systematized by Theodore Pulman ; but it would here be out of place to descant upon them: our text is Alfred, not Boethius. II. A Sorrowrut Fytre. Carmina qui quondam studio florente peregi,——Flebilis, heu, mzestos cogor inire modos. Hwet ic liotha fela, Wel hwer blindne. 20 Lustlice geo ; On this dimme hol. os Sanc on selum, Dysine forlzddon ; Nu sceal siofigende, And me tha berypton Wope geweged, 5 Redes and frofre, Wreccea giomor, For heora untreowum. 25 Singan sar-cwidas. The ic him efre betst Me thios siccetung hafath Truwian sceolde, Agzled—thes geocsa, Hi me towendon Thaet ic tha gednemeg 19 Heora bacu bitere, Gefegean swa fegre ; And heora blisse from. 30 Theah ic fela gio tha Forhwam wolde ge, Sette soth cwida. Weoruld frynd mine, Thonne ic on selum wes, Secgan oththe singan, Oft ic nu miscyrre 15 Theat ic gesellic mon Cuthe sprece, Were on weorulde ? 35 And theah uncuthre Ne synt tha word soth, #Er hwilum fond. Nu tha gesa]thane magon Me thas woruld szltha Simle gewunigan. Lo! I sang cheerily In my bright days, But now all wearily Chaunt I my lays ; KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 173 Sorrowing tearfully, Saddest of men, Can I sing cheerfully, As I could then ? Many a verity In those glad times Of my prosperity Taught I in rhymes ; Now from forgetfulness Wanders my tongue, Wasting in fretfulness Metres unsung. Worldliness brought me here Foolishly blind, Riches have wrought me here Sadness of mind; When I rely on them Lo! they depart,— Bitterly, fie on them! Rend they my heart. Why did your songs to me, World-loving men, Say joy belongs to me Ever as then? Why did ye lyingly Think such a thing, Seeing how flyingly Wealth may take wing ? The original is the opening poem of Boethius; whereof very little is here adopted by Alfred ; but it is almost entirely an inde- pendent poem. This may fairly be regarded as a picture of Alfred’s own mind in the dark times of his adversity. He reviews past glories,—hints at a confession of some of those early sins of worldliness and arrogance whereof Asser has spoken,—rebukes flatterers, and lies down alongside of Boethius in his dungeon, with that sympathy which a brotherhood in grief alone can give. I, 174 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Ill. A Fyrre or Desparr. Heu, quam praecipiti mersa profundo— Mens hebet, et propria luce relicta, Zala on hu grimmum Thone ecan gefean ‘And hu grundleasum Thringth on tha thiostro Seathe swinceth Thisse worulde, a F Tht sweorcende mod, SOE oe 1 Thonne hit tha strongan 5 Mod 1s Raat mu Stormas beatath, ode gelumpen : f Weoruld bisgunga : Nu hit mate ue wal Thonne hit winnende, #or Gode godes, 5 His agen leoht uton gnornunge, An forleteth, 10 Fremdre worulde : And mid uua forgit Him is frofre thearf. Axas! in how grim A gulf of despair, Dreary and dim For sorrow and care, My mind toils along When the waves of the world Stormy and strong Against it are hurld. When in such strife My mind will forget Its light and its life In worldly regret, And through the night Of this world doth grope Lost to the light Of heavenly hope. Thus it hath now Befallen my mind I know no more how God’s goodness to find, But groan in my grief Troubled and tost, Needing relief For the world I have lost. Here also we have almostall Alfred; it is in fact an expansion of the two first lines of Boethius as given above, and not a trans- KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 175 lation of the whole ode ; which is of much more considerable length. Like the former morsel, it recals the days when our deserted king sang his sorrows to his lonely harp in the neat herd’s hut, or on the marsh of Athelingay. IV. A Psaum to Gop. O stelliferi conditor orbis, ——Qui perpetuo nixus solio ala thu scippend Scirra tungla, Hefones and eorthan ; Thu on heah setle Ecum ricsast. 5 And thu ealne:hrethe Hefon ymbhwearfest. And thurh thine halige miht, Tunglu genedest That hi the to herath ! 10 Swylce seo sunne Sweartra nihta Thiostro adwesceth, Thurh thine meht. Blacum leohte 15 Beorhte steorran Mona gemetgath, Thurh thinra meahta sped ; Hiwilum eac tha:sunnan. Sines bereafath 20 Beorhtan leohtes, Thoune hit gebyrigan maeg Thet,swa geneahsne Nede weorthath. . Swelce thone mzran 25 Morgensteorran, The we othre naman, Efensteorra Nemnan herath; Thu genedest thone, 30 That he there sunnan Sith bewitige, Geara gehwelce ; He gongan sceal, Beforan feran. 35 Hwat thu faeder wereest Sumur lange dagas, Swithe hate : Thaem winter dagum Wundrum sceorta 40 Tida getiohhast ! Thu thaem treowum selest Suthan and westan; Tha aer se swearta storm Northan and eastan 45 Benumen haefde Leafa gehwelces, Thurh thone lathran wind. Eala hwaet on eorthan, Ealla gesceafta 50 Hyrath thinre haese ; Doth on heofonum swa some, Mode and maegne ; Butan men anum, Se with thinum willan 55 Wyrceth oftost. Wella thu eca, And thu almihtiga, Ealra gesceafta, Sceppend and reccend, 60 Ara thinum earmum, Eorthan tudre, Monna cynne, Tharh thinra mehta sped! Hwi thu ece God, 65 /Efre wolde, : Thaet sio wyrd on gewill, Wendan sceolde Yflum monnum, Ealles swa swithe ? 70 Hio ful oft dereth Unscyldegum. Sittath yfele men Giond eorth-ricu, On heah setlum ; 70 Halige thriccath Uuder heora fotum. Firum uncuth, Hwi sio wyrd swa wo Wendan sceolde. 80 Swa sint gehydde, Her on worulde, Geond burga fela, Beorhte craeftas, Unrihtwise, 85 Eallum tidum, Habbath on hospe, Tha the him sindon Rihtes wisran, Rices wyrthran, 90 Bith thaet lease lot Lange hwile Bewrigen mid wrencum. Nu on worulde her, Monnum ne deriath, 95 Mane athas. Gif thu nu waldend ne wilt Wirde steoran, Ac on self-wille Sigan laetest ; 100 Thonne ic wat thaet te wile Woruld-men tweogan, Geond foldan-sceat, Buton fea ane. Eala min Dryhten. 105 Thu the ealle ofersihst Worulde gesceafta, Wlit nu on moncyn, Mildum eagum ; Nuhi on monegum her 110 Worulde ythum, Wynnath and swincath Earme eorth-waran Ara him nu tha! 176 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. O Tuovu, that art Maker of heaven and earth, Who steerest the stars and hast given them birth, For ever Thou reignest upon Thy high throne, And turnest all swiftly the heavenly zone. Thou, by Thy strong holiness, drivest from far In the way that Thou willest each worshipping star ; And, through thy great power, the sun from the night Drags darkness away by the might of her light. The moon, at Thy word, with his pale-shining rays Softens and shadows the stars as they blaze, And even the Sun of her brightness bereaves Whenever upon her too closely he cleaves. So also the Morning and Evening Star Thou makest to follow the Sun from afar, To keep in her pathway each year evermore, And go as she goeth in guidance before. Behold too, O Father, Thou workest aright To summer hot day-times of long-living light, To winter all wondrously orderest wise Short seasons of sunshine with frost on the skies. Thou givest the trees a south-westerly breeze, Whose leaves the swart storm in its fury did seize By winds flying forth from the east and the north And scattered and shattered all over the earth. On earth and in heaven each creature and kind Hears Thy behest with might and with mind, But Man and Man only, who oftenest still Wickedly worketh against Thy wise will. For ever Almighty One, Maker and Lord, On us, wretched earthworms, Thy pity be pour’d; Why wilt Thou that welfare to sinners should wend, But lettest weird ill the unguilty ones rend ? Evil men sit, each on earth’s highest seat, Trampling the holy ones under their feet ; Why good should go crookedly no man can say, And bright deeds in crowds should lie hidden away. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. — 177 The sinner at all times is scorning the just, The wiser in right, and the worthier of trust ; Their leasing for long while with fraud is beclad ; And oaths that are lies do no harm to the bad. O Guide, if Thou wilt not steer fortune amain But lettest her rush so self-will’d and so vain, I know that the worldly will doubt of Thy might, And few among men in Thy rule will delight. My Lord, overseeing all things from on high Look down on mankind with mercy’s mild eye, In wild waves of trouble they struggle and strive, Then spare the poor earthworms, and save them alive ! This is one of the best known of King Alfred’s paraphrases, and is almost worthy of its holy subject ; for elevation of sentiment and breadth of view not easily exceeded by any uninspired writer. The metre here adopted is a long line only in appearance; for it has a regular break in the middle, and is in fact nearly the same as the 149th psalm : one very appropriate in an address to the Glorious Creator. The Sun and Moon exchange genders in the Anglo-Saxon language; asin the modern German. Mr Fox refers us to an asserted instance of this interchange in Shakspeare, lst Henry IV, A. 1.8. 2, which however is very doubtful; where Prince Hal likens “ the blessed Sun himself to a fair hot wench in a crimson taffety.” It is much more to the point to take notice that in Hebrew the same peculiarity of genders is observable, where the moon is masculine: while the sun is usually feminine. We may add this verbal evidence to those adduced by Turner, bearing upon the Asiatic origin of the Saxons, whom he, with great pro- bability, considers to be the Sacee of Herodotus. —_——— Essays 9 3 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. V. Or Trovusie AnpD ITs Cure. Nusisvs atris,——Condita nullum Thu meaht be thaere sunnan Sweotole gethencean, And be aeghwelcum Othrum steorran, Thara the aefter bungum Ey Beorhtos¢ scineth ; Gif him wan fore Wolcen hangath, Ne maegen hi swa leohtne Leoman ansendan, Er se thicca mist Thinra weorthe. Swa oft smylte sae Sutherne wind, Graege glas-hluthre 1S Grimme gedrefeth : Thonne hie gemengath, Micla ysta Onhrerath hron-mere ;. Hrioh bith thonne 20 Seo the aer gladu On-siene waes, Swa oft aespringe Utawealleth Of clife harum, 25 Col and hlutor, And gereclice Rihte floweth, Irneth with his eardes ; Oth him on innan felth 30 Muntes megen-stan, And him on middan geligeth, Atrendlod of them torre. He on tu siththan Tosceaden wyrth, 35 Scir bith gedrefed, Burna geblonden ; Broc bith onwended, Of his riht ryne, Rythum toflowen. 40 Swa nu tha thiostro Thinre heortan willath Minre leohtan Lare withstondan : And thin mod-gethonc 45 Miclum gedrefan. Ac gifthu nu wilnast, Thet thu wel mege, Thaet sothe leoht, Sweotole oncnawan, 5e Leohte geleafan ; Thu forlaetan scealt. Tdle ofer-saeltha, Unnytne gefean ; Thu scealteac yfelneege 55: An-forlaetan, Woruld-earfotha ; Ne most thu wesan for thaem Ealles to ormod. Ne thu the aefre ne laet 60 Wlenca gewaecan, The laes thu weorthe for him. Mid ofer-mettum Eft gescended, And to upahafen 65 For orsorgum, Woruld-gesaelthum Ne eft to waclice Geortreowe /Eniges godes : 70: Thonne the for worulde- Witherwearda maest Thinga threage ; And thu the selfum Swithost onsitte 70 Forthaem simle bith Se mod-sefa Miclum gebunden mid Gedrefnesse : Gif hine dreccean mot 80 Thissa yfla hwaether, Innan swencan. Forthaem tha twegen tregan, Teoth to somne With thaet mod foran 85 Mistes dwoleman ; Thaet hit seo ece ne mot Hinan geond scinan [mistum, Sunne for thaem sweartum 4Er thaem hi geswithrad weor- (then. 90 Ye may learn by the stars and the sun Shining on cities so bright, If the welkin hangs dreary and dun, To wait in the mist for the light. So too, the calm sea, glassy-grey, The southwind all grimly makes riot, And whirlpools in strife stir away The whale-pool that once was so quiet. So also, outwelleth a spring, All clear from the cliff and all cool, Till midway some mountain may fling A rock to roll into the pool. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 179 Then broken asunder will seem The rill so clear-running before, That brook is turn’d out of its stream, And flows in its channel no more. So now, in thy darkness of mind, Thou willest my wisdom to spurn, Withstanding, by trouble made blind, The lessons thou never wilt learn. Yet now, if ye will, asye may, The true and pure light clearly know, Let go the vain joys of to-day, The weal that brings nothing but woe. And drive away bad unbelief, The fears of the world and its care, And be not thou given to grief, Nor yield up thy mind to despair. Nor suffer thou glad-going things To puff thee with over-much pride, Nor worldliness lifting thy wings To lure thee from meekness aside : And let not, too weakly again, Ills make thee despair of the good, When hunted by peril and pain, And haunted by misery’s brood. For always the mind of a man Is bound up with trouble below, If riches or poverty can Engraft it with sin or with woe. Because the twin evils make dun The mind in a misty swart shroud, That on it eternity’s sun Is dim till it scatters the cloud. It really is a pity to rob Alfred of his originality by representing all or any of these poems as servile translations from Boethius, or 180 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. even free paraphrases. The truth is, a good deal of ingenuity is required to discover in many cases a resemblance at all. Alfred has taken up the tune of Boethius, and begins a theme in the key-note of the Latin, but is soon hurried away by the rapidly recurring alliterations of his own free harp and tongue and so becomes original. With respect to Anglo-Saxon poetry, in most instances it is far from an easy task to discover much regularity of rhythm, or anything like exactitude of rhyme. The present metre however is an exception; it pleases the eye and the ear alike. Generally speaking, doubtless, a great deal depended on the bardic harp and the inspiration of the moment : rhyme and rhythm which now in our ignorance escape us, and an alliterative jingle, which our modern taste despises, might have been made acceptable by stress and accent properly laid, by eloquent pauses and stirring bursts of Song. How meagre and dull, for instance, our ‘God save the Queen’ would look, if we knew nothing of the noble air to which it is set; and how much to further disad- vantage would it be seen, if in the lapse of centuries transcribers had here and there omitted a rhyme or a line, or had jumbled them all together, so as to have hidden away the rhythm! Suppose such a case as that Mr Haynes Bayley may, centuries hence, (if this atv tasts so long,) find an editor to mark out one of his best songs in the following learned manner ; O no we never mention her her name is never heard my lips are now forbid to speak that once familiar word from sport to sport...... This instance may provoke a smile,—but it is instructive notwithstanding ; possibly, the Junian manuscript and others may do our Alfred similar injustice; and, at any rate, the discoverer is still to arise who shall help us to the tunes which doubtless rendered all harmonious. Perhaps we know as yet very little about the matter: for example; Dr Hickes, one of our most learned scholars in this line, maintains that the Anglo-Saxon rhythm is redug:ble to the rules of Latin prosody : so ridiculous KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 181 does this seem to another equally distinguished man, Mr Tyrwhitt, the editor of Chaucer, that he does not scruple to say he can make out no metre at all in the so called poems, which are merely an inflated style of prose ; while a more recent living writer, by way of reconciling such contrarieties, marks out his lines indeed with the symbols of dactyls, spondees, trochees, and anapests, but unluckily the words are too stubborn for his gratuitous prosody. The case seems to be, that the metres were very various; emphasis and harp-accompaniment made up for many a syllable ; the thing would be monotonous in uninspired hands, but stirring enough under the touch of genius; which might rise or fall, be tender or impassioned, forte or piano, at its own free will. At present our wisdom is to take random shots at the true metre, if existing and discoverable at all, by translating Alfred into a great variety, as here done: and for all else, the nearest approximation we can make seems to amount to such a play of words as ‘ whirl- pool’ and ‘ whalepool,’ ‘ scattered’ and ‘shattered’ and the like ; together with short staccato sentences; interweaved synonymes, and parallel phrases ; and, now and then, a sort of dancing measure. The writer however throughout has desired to make the metrical part (whatever may have been his Parnassian pains in this respect, ) a secondary matter: the first thing to be considered every where is the Wise King’s mind and meaning. VI. Or CHANGE. Quum polo Phoebus roseis quadrigis——Lucem spargere cceperit, Tha se Wisdom eft Thonne weaxeth hrathe Word hord onleac, Feldes blostman, Sang soth-cwidas, Fegen thaet hi moton. 20 And thus selfa cweth. Ac se stearca storm, Thonne sio sunne 8 Thonne he strong cymth, Sweotolost scineth, Northan and eastan, Hadrost of hefone; He genimeth hrathe. Hrethe bioth athistrod Thaere rosan wlite. 25 Ealle ofir eorthan And eac tha ruman se, Othre steorran: 10 Northerne yst, Forthaem hiora birhtu ne bith Nede gebaeded, Auht [birhtnesse] Theat hio strange geond styred To gesettane On stathu beateth. 30 With there sunnan leoht. Eala thaet on eorthan, Thonne smolte blaewth 15 Auht festlices Suthan and westan wind, Weorces on worulde, Under wolcnum ; Me wunath aefre ! Then did Wisdom again Unlock his word-hoard well, 182 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. And sang in soothful strain The truths he had to tell. When with clearest blaze The bright sun shines in the sky, The stars must quench their rays Over the earth so high ; For that, set in the light Of her that rules by day, Their brightness is not bright, But dimly dies away. When the wind south-west Under the cloud blows low, Field-flowers wax their best Fain to be glad and grow. But when East and by North The stark storm strongly blows, Speedily drives he forth All beauty from the rose. So, with a stern needs-be The northern blast doth dash And beat the wide waste sea That it the land may lash. Alas, that ever on earth Nothing is fast and sure ; No work is found so worth That it for ever endure. Very little need here he added, beyond the perpetual protest against the idea that Alfred does more than take hints from Boethius : justice is done to neither side by the word translation, or even paraphrase: for Alfred often omits two thirds of Boethius, and makes up by two-thirds of his own. To shew how united our modern and ancient English are, there are nearly forty KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 183 words in this short poem unchanged from the royal minstrel’s Anglo Saxon: and nearly the same ratio will be found to pervade most of the other metres. VII..Or Content, anp HumBLenEss. Quisaquis volet perennem——Cautus ponere sedem, Woruld-earfotha: Oththe hi eft se retha Ren onhrereth Ss ymbhoga thyssa Woruld-saeltha Wrathe drecce. Tha ongon se Wisdom Sumes ymbhogan, 55 His gewunan fylgan ; Ungemet gemen. Glio-wordum gol, Ac se the tha ecan ' Gyd zt spelle ; Agan wille, Song soth-cwida 5 Sothan gesaeltha, Sumne tha geta. He sceal swithe flion 60 Cweth he ne herde, Thisse worulde white; Thzt on heanne munt, Wyrce him siththan Monna enig His modes hus, Meahte asettan 10 Ther he mage findan Healle hrof-feste. Eathmetta stan, 65 Ne thearf eac heletha nan Ungemetizstne Wenan thaes weorces, Grund-weal gearone : Thaet he wisdom mzge Se to-glidan ne thearf, With ofermetta 15 Theah hit wecge wind, 7Efre gemengan. Woruld-earfotha, 70 Herdes thu aefre, Oththe ymbhogena, Thaet te aenig mon Ormete ren. On sond beorgas Forthem on there dene Settan meahte 20 Drihten selfa, Faeste healle ? Thara eadmetta 45 Ne maeg eac fira nan Eardfest wunigath. Wisdom timbran, Ther se Wisdom 4 Thaer thaer woruld-gitsung Wunath on gemyndum. Beorg oferbraedeth. Forthon orsorg lif Baru sond willath Ealnig ledath 80 Ren forswelgan. Woruld-men wise, Swa deth ricra nu Buton wendinge, Grundleas gitsung Thonne he eall forsihth Gilpes and aehta, 30 Eorthlicu good ; Gedrinceth to dryggum And eac thara yfela 85 Dreosendne welan : Orsorh wunath ; And theah thes thearfan ne bith Hopath to tham ecum Thurst aceled. The ther efter cumath. Ne maeg haeletha gehwaem, 35 Hine thonne eghwonan, Hus on munte #Elmihtig Good 90 Lange gelaestan ; Singallice, Forthaem him lungre on Simle gehealdeth, Swift wind swapeth. Anwunigendne, Ne bith sond thon ma. 40 His agenum With micelne zen, Modes geselthum, 95 Manna aengum, Thurh metodes gife : Huses hirde ; Theah hine se wind Ac hit hreosan wile, Woruld-earfotha Sigan sond aefter rene. 45 Swithe swence, Swa bioth anra gehwaes And hine singale 100 Monna mod-sefan, Gemen gaele ; Miclum awegede, Thonne him grimme on, Of hiora stede styrede, Woruld-saeltha wind Thonne he strong dreceth 50 Wrathe blaweth ; Wind under wolenum, Theah the hine ealneg, 105 Again, as his wont, began Wisdom a song, And spoke out his spells as he wander’d along. He said, On a mountain no man can be skill’d With a roof weather-proof a high hall to upbuild. 184 KING ALFRED’S POEMS, Moreover, let no man think ever to win By mixing pure wisdom with over-proud sin. Heard ye that any built firmly on sand, Or caught hold of wisdom with gain-getting hand ? The light soil is greedy to swallow the rain ; So now doth the rich, in his measureless gain Of honours and havings, drink deep of such weal, Yea, down to the dregs, and still thirsty will feel. A house on a hill-top may never long stay, For quickly the swift wind shall sweep it away ; And a house on the sand is no better at all; In spite of the house-herd, in rain it shall fall. So, failing and fickle is every mind When rack’d by the rage of this world-trouble wind ; And measureless cares, as a quick-dropping rain Unstopping, stir up the mind’s welkin with pain. But he who would have everlasting true bliss, Must fly from the glare of a world such as this : And then let him make a strong home for his mind Wherever true Lowliness’ rock he can find ; A settled ground-anchor that never shall slide, Though trouble attack it by tempest and tide ; For that, in Lowliness’ valley so fair The Lord, and mind-wisdom for ever live there. Therefore leads always a quiet-like life The wise in the world without changes or strife, When heedless alike of earth’s good and earth’s ill, He watches in hope of an after-world still. Such an one evermore God ever kind Happily keeps in the calm of his mind; Though wild winds of sorrow against him are hurl’d, Though always annoyed by the cares of the world, Though wrathful and grim are these trouble-dark gales, And Care, in its anguish, or anger assails. KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 185 By way of comparing Alfred with Boethius, in a fair average instance, here follows a literal translation of the Latin ode whereof the lines above,—also literally rendered from the Anglo Saxon,— are commonly supposed to be a paraphrase. “Whoever prudently desires to build an everlasting house, and firmly wills that it be not thrown down by the blasts of roaring Eurus, and ventures not to despise the sea threatening with waves, let him avoid the top of a high mountain, and thirsty sands : the former froward Auster drives against with all his might : the latter, dissolving, refuse to sustain the pendulous mass. Avoid- ing the dangerous portion of a luxurious residence, remember for stability to fix thy house on the humble rock. Though the wind mingling the sea with ruins should roar like thunder, thou, happily hidden in the strength of a quiet rampart, shalt live thy life serenely, and laugh at the wrath of the sky.” As this is so very dissimilar from the poem above, the reader will of course suppose that our present version is at fault ;—but, whatever other deficiencies it must confess to, that of unfaithful- ness is not one: we have honestly represented Alfred, with scarcely a word added for rhyme’s sake. And how beautifully does the Christian King improve on the philosophizing senator: we are here reading the blest experiences of one taught to be humble in the school of adversity. Essays 2 4 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. VIII. Or Primat Innocence &c. Felix nimium prior ztas, —Contenta fidelibus arvis. Sona swa se Wisdom Thas word hefde Swetole areahte, He tha siththan ongan Singan soth-cwidas, And thus selfa cweth. Hweet sio forme eld Fold-buendum Geond eorthan-sceat, sEghwam dohte ! Tha tha anra gehwem On eorth-westmum Genoh thuhte: Nis hit nu tha swele. Neron tha geond weorulde welige hamas, Ne mislice Mettas ne drincas. Ne hi thara hregla Huru ne gemdon, The nu driht-guman Diorost letath ; Forthem hiora nenig’ Nes tha gieta. Ne hi ne gesawon Sund-buende, Ne ymbutan hi Awer ne herdon. Hwet hi firenlusta Frecene weron, Buton swa hi meahton Gemetlicost Tha gecynd began, The him Crist gesceop. And hi zene on daege 4Ston symle, On aefen-tid, Eorthan waestmas, Wudes and wyrta. Nalles win druncon Scir of steape ; Naes tha scealea nan The mete oththe drine Maengan cuthe, Waeter with hunige. Ne heora waeda thon ma Sioloce siowian : Ne hi siaro-craeftum Godweb giredon. Ne hi gimreced Setton searolicc. Ac hi simle him, Eallum tidum, Ute slepon, Under beam-sceade. Druncon burnan waeter, Calde wellan. Naenig cepa ne seah Ofer ear-geblond, 15 20 30 35 40 45 50 a a Ellendne wearod ; 6o Ne huru ymbe scip-hergas Sae-tileas ne herdon : Ne furthum fira nan Ymb gefeoht sprecan. Naes theos eorthe besmiten 65 Awer tha geta Beornes blode. The hi ne Dill-rude, Ne furthum wundne wer, Weoruld-buende Gesawan under sunnan. Naenig siththan waes Weorth on weorulde, Gif mon his willan ongeat Yfelne mid eldum : He waes aeghwaem lath Eala thaet hit wurde! Oththe wolde God, Thaet on eorthan nu. Ussa tida, 80 Geond thas widan weoruld, Waeren aeghwaer Pere Under sunnan! Ac hit is saemre nu, Thaet theos gitsunc hafath 85 Sumena gehwelces, Mod amerred : Thaet he maran ne recth : Ac hit on witte Weallende byrnth, 90 Efne sio gitsung The naenne grund hafath ; Swearte swaefeth, Sumes on lice Efne tham munte, 95 The nu monna bearn Etne hatath ; Se on iglonde Sicilia Swefle byrneth, 100 Thaet mon helle fyr Hateth wide Forthaem hit simle bith, Sin-byrnende ; And ymbutan hit 105 Othra stowa Blate forbzrnth, Biteran lege. Eala hwaet se forma Feoh-gitsere 110 Waere on worulde, Se thas wong-stedas Grof aefter golde, And aefter gim-cynnum ; Hwaet he frecnu gestreon 115 Funde maenegum, Bewrigen on weorulde, Waetere oththe eorthan ! Soon as Wisdom thus had sung, He began, with plainer tongue, Sooth to sing his sayings thus, And himself to speak to us. O how full of blessing then Was the first glad age to men! KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 187 When earth’s fruitful plenty came (Not as now,) to all the same; When through all the world were there No great halls of costly care ; No rich feasts of meat or drink ; Neither did they heed or think Of such jewels, then unknown, As our lordlings long to own ; Nor did seamen aye behold Nor had heard of gems or gold. More; with frugal mind they fared ; And for pleasures only cared, As at Christ’s and kindred’s voice They were bidden to rejoice. Once in the day, at eventide, They ate earth’s fruits, and nought beside ; No wine they drank, their stoup was clear ; No cunning slave was mingling near Meats and drinks, to glut their greed, Or make the heated honeymead ; No silk-sewn weeds wish’d they to wear, Nor good-webs dyed with crafty care Nor set on high with skilful power The mighty dome, or lofty tower. But, under the sweet shade of trees They slept at all times well at ease, And, when thirsting, gladly took Water from the running brook ; Never trader wandered o’er Seas to seek a foreign shore, Never had one heard indeed Of ships to till the briny mead ; Nowhere yet with blood of men Was the earth besmitten then, Nowhere had the sun beheld Steel that struck, or wound that well’d. Those who work’d an evil will Won not worship for their ill; All would then have loathed them sore: O that this could be once more! 188 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. O that God would now on earth Make us all so purely worth ! But alas, men now are worse ; Lust of getting sets a curse As a clog upon each mind, Reckless other good to find. Lust of gain unfathomed glows In the heart with bubbling throes ; Swart it hes, and sweltering deep, Like old Etna’s boiling heap, Which, in Sicily’s broad isle, Burns with brimstone many a mile, So that men around it tell, Of its fires as fires of hell, For that ever still it burns Bitter everywhere by turns. Woe! that ever should have been In this world the sinner seen, Who was first so basely bold As to dig for gems and gold: Cares for many then he found Darkly hidden in the ground, Dangerous wealth and deadly worth In the deeps of sea and earth. Alfred and Boethius get nearer together in this ode, which is not wonderful, as there is very little to draw out the wise thought- fulness of Alfred’s mind. Accordingly, he cared not to suffer his harp to make digressions: it is merely a contrast between the golden age and the age of gold. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. IX. Nero. Novimus quantas dederit ruinas——Urbe flammata, patribusque czsis, Hwaet we ealle witon Hwelce aerleste, Ge neah ge feor, Neron worhte, Romwara cyning, Tha his rice waes Hehst under heofonum, To hryre monegum, Waelhreowes gewed Waes ful wide cuth, Unriht-haemed, Arleasta fela, Man and morthor, Misdaeda worn, Unrihtwises Inwid-thoncas! He het him to gamene, Geara forbaernan, Romana burg, Sio his rices waes Ealles ethel-stol. He for unsnyttrum, Wolde fandian, Gif thaet fyr meahte Lixan swa leohte, And swa longe eac, Readra settan, Swe he Romane Secgan geherde, Thet on sume tide, Troia burg. Ofertogen hefde Lega leohtost, Lengest burne Hama under hefonum. Nes thaet herlic ded, Thet hine swelces gamenes Gilpan lyste, Tha he ne earnade Elles wuhte ; Buton thet he wolde. Ofer wer-thiode, His anes huru. Anwald cythan. Eac hit geszlde, © Et sumum cierre, That se ilca het Ealle acwellan Tha ricostan Romana witan, And tha ethelestan Eorl gebyrdum, The he on them folce Gefrigen hefde : And on uppan Agene brothbor, And his modor mid, Meca ecgum, Billum of-beatan. He his bryde ofslog Self mid sweorde : And he symle wes Micle the blithra 20 25 30 40 45 50 55 60 On breost cofan, Thonne he swylces morthres 65 Mest gefremede. Nailes sorgode, Hweether siththan 4, Mihtig Drihten Ametan wolde Wrece be gewyrhtum, Woh-fremmendum. Ac he on ferthe fegn. Facnes and searuwa. Waelhriow wunode. Wiold emne swa theah Ealles thisses maeran Middan-geardes. Swa swa lyft and lagu Land ymbelyppath, Gar-secg embe-gyrt Gumena rice Secge sitlu ; Suth-east and west, Oth tha northmestan Naessan on eorthan ; Fall thet Nerone, Nede oththe lustum, Heatho-rinca gehwile, Heran sceolde. He haefde him to gamene Thonne he on gylp astag, Hu he eorth-cyningas Yrmde and ewelmde. 70 75 80 85 90 Wenst thu thaet se anwald 95 Eathe ne meahte Godes aelmihtiges Thone gelp-scathan, Rice beraedan, And bereafian His anwaldes, ‘Thurh tha ecan meaht ; Oththe him his yfeles Elles gestioran ? Eala gif he wolde. Thaet he wel meahte, Thaet unriht him, Eathe forbiodan ! Eawla thaet se hlaford Hefig gioc slepte, Sware on tha swyran Sinra thegena. Ealra thara haeletha. The on his tidum Geond thas laenan worold Liban sceoldon. He on unscyldgum Eorla blode His sweord selede Swithe gelome. Thaer waes swithe sweotol, Thaet we saedon oft, Thaet se anwald ne deth Awiht godes, Gif se wel nele The his geweald hafath. All know too well, abroad or near at home, What evils Nero wrought, that king of Rome, When, highest under heav’n, his rule was then The dread and overthrow of many men. The madness of this savage bred betimes Lust, murder, vile misdeeds, a bad man’s crimes; 3 2 100 5 120 189. 190 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. He gave the word of old to wrap in flame Rome’s self,his kingdom’s seat,to make him game ; Wishing in wicked wantonness to know Whether the fire so long and red would glow As erst in Troy, he heard that Romans said, The mounting fire burn’d longest and most red. Base deed, in such fierce frolic to delight, Aimless and vain, unless to mark his might. And, once it happened, at a certain hour, He would again show forth his frantic power, And bade the richest men of Rome be slain, Each earl of highest birth, each wisest thane : With swords and bills he hewed until they died His mother, brother, yea, and his own bride,— Ever the blither in his own bad breast When he had done such murders cruellest. Nothing reck’d he that soon the mighty Lord Would mete out wrath to sinners so abhorr’d, But in his mind, that fed on wicked wiles, Remain’d a savage, wreath’d in cunning smiles. Still, even he so ruled this middle earth Far as the land hath air and sea for girth, Far as the sea surrounds all men and things, The seats of warriors and the thrones of kings, That from the South and East and furthest West And Earth’s high head-land reaching northernest, All to this Nero willing worship gave, And every chief by force became his slave, Till *twas his game,when pride had puff’d his mind, To hunt and kill the kings of human-kind. But thinkest thou that God’s all holy might Could not with ease this haughty sinner smite, And scathe his pride, and drive him from the helm, Or quench his guilt, and so berid the realm ? O that he would, as well he might with ease, Ever forbid such wrongful works as these ! Woe, that this lord should cast so heavy a yoke On all men’s necks, both thanes and serving folk, KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 191 Who, for the harmful season of his power, Lived in this world their quickly passing hour : Woe, that his sword was often weltering then With blood of highborn earls and guiltless men. Clearly in this, our saying shone out bright, That power can do no good, as well it might, If he who rules, wills not to rule aright. Here also Alfred stays with Boethius, so long as he is giving the portrait of an evil king; but the moral of the picture is all his own. For some strange reason or other, Boethius, though a Christian, perpetually forgets that Religion is the highest form of Philosophy. X. Or Fame anp Deatu. Quicumque solam mente precipiti petit, —-Summamque credit gloriam ; Gif nu hzletha hwone Hlisan lyste ; Unnytne gelp Neenige thinga Eorthan-sceatas. Is thet unnet gelp! Agan wille; Eala ofermodan, 35 Thonne ic hine wolde 5 Hwi eow alyste, Wordum biddan, Mid eowrum swiran, Thet he hine eghwonon Utan ymbe thohte, Sweotole ymb sawe, Selfra willum Thet swere gioc, Symle underlutan? 40 Suth-east and west. 10 Hwy ge ymb thet unnet Hu widgil sint Ealnig swincen, ‘Wolcnum ymbutan, Thet ge thone hlisan Heofones hwealfe, Habban tiliath, Hige-snotrum Ofer thioda ma 45 Meg eathe thincan 15 Thonne eow thearf sie? Thet theos eorthe sie, Theah eow nu geszle, Eall for thet other, Thezt eow suth oththe north, Ungemet lytel, Tha ytmestan Theah hio unwisum Eorth-buende 50 Widgel thince, 20 On monig thiodise —On stede stronglic, Miclum herien. Steorleasum men. Theah hwa ethele sie, Theah meg thone wisan Eorl gebyrdum. On gewit-locan, Welum geweorthath, 55 There gitsunge 25 And on wlencum thio, Gelpes scamian, Duguthum diore ; Thonne hine thes hlisan Death thes ne scrifeth, Heardost lysteth. Thonne him rum forlet And he theah ne meg Rodora waldend. 60 Thone tobredan, 30 Ac he thone welegan Ofer thas nearowan, Wedlum gelice, 192 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Them wes Caton nama? Efn merne gedeth h Elces thinges. Hi weron gefyrn Hweer sint nu thes wisan 65 Forth-gewitene. Welandes ban. Nat nenig mon 105 Thees gold-smithes, Hweer hi nu sindon, Hwet is hiora here, The wes geo merost? Forthy ic cweth thes wisan, Buton se hlisa an 70 Se is eac to lytel; Welandes ban: i Forthy engum ne meg Swelcra lariowa, : 110 Eorth-buendra Forthem tha mago-rincas Se creft losian, Maran wyrthe weron, The him Crist onlenth. On worulde. Ne meg mon efre thy eth 75 Ac hit is wyrsenu, Thet geond thaseorthan, 115 /Enne wreccan, His creftes beniman, The mon oncerran meg Sunnan onswifan, And thisne swiftan rodor, 80 Of his riht-ryne, Rinca enig ! Hwa wat nu thes wisan Welandes ban; On hwelcum in hlewa 85 Hrusan theccen? Hwerr is nu se rica Romana wita, Aighwer sindon Hiora gelican ; Hwon ymb sprece: Sume openlice Ealle forgitene. 120 Thet hi se hlisa Hiw-cuthe ne meg Fore-mzre weras, Forth gebrengan. Theah ge nu wenen, 125 And wilnigen, Thet ge lange tid And se aroda Libban moten: The we ymb sprecath ; 90 Hwet iow efre thy bet Hiora heretoga Bio oththe wince ; 130 Se gehaten wes, Fortham the nane forlet Mid them burhwarum, Theah hit lang thince, Brutus nemned ? Death efter dogor rime, Hwerr is eac se wisa, 95 Thonne he hefth Drihtnes leafe? And se weorth-geoma, Hwet thonne hebbe 135 And se feest-reda Heletha enig Folces hyrde : Gum et them gilpe, Se wes uthwita Gif hine gegripan mot 100 Se eca death, f£lces thinges i Cene and creftig, ALfter thissum worulde? 140 If any man will be so vain As now for fame to lust, The empty praise of men to gain And in such folly trust, Him would I bid to gaze around The circle of the sky, And think how far above the ground The heav’n is wide and high. How small this world to wisdom’s ken Set against that so vast, Though ours may seem to witless men Huge, wide, and sure to last. Yet may the wise in heart feel shame That once his thirst was strong For silly greediness of fame That never lasteth long. Such lust of praise he may not spread Over this narrow earth, Essays KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 193 *Tis folly all, and of the dead, A glory nothing worth. And you, O proud, why wish ye still And strive with all your care _ The heavy yoke of your own will Upon your necks to bear ? Why will ye toil yet more and more For glory’s useless prize, And reach your rule from shore to shore Unneeded and unwise ? Though now ye reign from South to North And, with an earnest will, The furthest dwellers on the earth Your dread behests fulfil. The greatest earl of wealthiest praise However rich or high, Death cares not for him, but obeys The Ruler of the sky, © With even hand right swift to strike, At His allowing word, The rich man and the poor alike The lowborn and his lord. Where are the bones of Weland now, So shrewd to work in gold? Weland, though wise, to death must bow That greatest man of old: Though wise, I say ; for what Christ gives Of wisdom to a man, That craft with him for ever lives Which once on earth began : And sooner shall a man’s hand fetch The sun from her due course, Than steal from any dying wretch His cunning oe by force. 194 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Who then can tell, wise Weland’s bones Where now they rest so long ? Beneath what heap of earth and stones Their prison is made strong ? Rome’s wisest son, be-known so well, Who strove her rights to save, That mighty master, who can tell Where Brutus has a grave ? So too, the man of sternest mould, The good, the brave, the wise, His people’s shepherd, who hath told Of Cato, where he lies? Long are they dead : and none can know More of them than their name : Such teachers have too little now Of all their worthy fame. Now too, forgotten everywhere, The like to them have found But little kindly speech or care From all the world around ; So that, however wise in worth Such foremost men may stand, No home-felt praises bring them forth For fame throughout the land. Though now ye wish long time to live, And pine to have it so, What better blessing can it give Than now ye find below ? As Death lets none go free at last When God allows his power, If Death For-ever follows fast, How short is this world’s hour ! In the second volume of the Jubilee Edition (Cardale’s Boe- thius,) we shall be told all about this Weland, whom to please KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 195 his people and perhaps himself, (for Alfred was a worker in gold also,) we find here substituted for the Fabricius of the Latin ode : Ubi nunc fidelis ossa Fabricii jacent ? Alfred allows himself to go off at a tangent, as playing upon the word faber a workman, to praise the famous goldsmith, whom the poet’s harp alone has now immortalized. XI. Or Gov’s Wisz GoverNMENT. Quod mundus stabili fide——Concordes variat vices, An sceppend is, And eall holma-begong. 60 Butan elcum tweon, Swa hefth geheathzrod, Se is eac wealdend Hefon-rices weard Woruld-gesceafta, Mid his anwealde, Heofones and eorthan, 5 Ealle gesceafta ; : And heah se: Thet hiora eghwile 65 And ealra thara With other winth ; The ther in wuniath And theah winnende, ‘Ungesewenlicra, Wrethiath feste And eac swa same, 10 fEghwilc other, Thara the we eagum Utan ymbclyppeth, 70 On lociath, Thy les hi toswifen. Ealra gesceafta. Forthem hi symle sculon Se is elmihtig; Thone ilcan ryne Them oleccath 15 Eft gecyrran, Ealle gesceafte, The zt frymthe, vey The thes ambehtes Fader getiode, Awuht cunnon. And swa edniwe, Ge eac swa same Eft gewiorthan ; Tha thes auht nyton, 20 Swa hit nu fagath,— Thet hi thes theodnes Frean eaid geweorc ; 30 Theowas sindon. Thet te winnende. Se us gesette Witherweard gesceaft, Sido and theawas, Feste sibbe Eallum gesceaftum 25 Forth anhealdath. Unawendendne, Swa nu Fyr and weter, 85 Singallice ; Folde and lagu stream, Sibbe gecynde; Manigu othru gesceaft Tha tha he wolde, Efn swithe him, Thet thet he wolde, 30 Giond thas widan worulde, Swa lange swa he wolde, Winnath betweox him, 90 That hit wesan sceolde, And swatheah magon Swa hit eac to worulde sceal Hiora thegnunga, Wunian forth. And geferscipe, Forthem efre ne magon 35 Feste gehealdan. Tha unstillan Nis hit no thet an, 95 Woruld-gesceafta, Thet swa eathe me, Weorthan gestilde ; Witherweard gesceatt Of them ryne onwend, Wesan etgadere, The him rodera weard 40 Symbel géferan : Endebyrdes, Ac hit is sellicre, 100 Eallum gesette. Thet hiora enig ne meg Hefth se alwealda Butan othrum bion; Ealle gesceafta Ac sceal wuhta gehwile Gebzt mid his bridle ; 45 Witherweardes hwet-hwugu Hafath butu gedon; Habban under heofonum, 105 Ealle gemanode, Thet his hige And eac getogen; Durre gemetgian, Thet hi ne moten /Er hit to micel weorthe. Ofer metodes est 50 Heith se elmihtiga ZEfre gestillan : Eallum gesceaftum 10 Ne eft eallunga Thet gewrixle geset, Swithor stirian, The nu wunian sceal ; Thonne hi sigora-weard Wyrta growan, His geweald-lether 55 Leaf grenian, Wille onleten. Thet on herfest eft 115 He hafath tham bridle Butu befangen Heoton and eorthan, Hrest and wealuwath. Winter bringeth Weder ungemet cald; 196 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Swifte windas. Lufan and sibbe, Sumor eftercymeth, 120 Thes geferscipes Wearm gewideru. Freond-redenne : Hwet tha wonnan niht Tilath anra gehwile 165 Mona onlihteth, Agnes willan, Oththet monnum deg Woruld-gesceafta Sunne bringeth, 125 Winnath betweox him, Giond thas sidan gesceaft, Oththet thios eorthe Heith se ilea God Eall forweortheth : vo Eorthan and wetere And eac swa same, Mearce gesette. Othra gesceafta Mere-stream ne dear 130 Weorthath him selfe Ofer eorthan sceat, Siththan to nauhte. Eard gebredan Ac se ilca God 175 Fisca cynne, Se thet eall metgath, Butan frean leafe : Se gefehth fela Ne hio zfre ne mot 135 Folca to somne, Eorthan thyrsce-wold And mid freondscipe Up ofer steppan ; Feste gegadrath. 180 Ne tha ebban thon ma Gesamnath sinscipas, Foldes mearce ofer. Sibbe gemengeth Faran moton. 0 Clenlice lufe. Tha gesetnessa Swa se creitga eac, Sigora wealdend, Geferscipas 185 Lifes leoht fruma, Feste gesamnath, Let thenden he wile, Theat hi hiora freondscipe, Geond thas meran gesceaft 145 Forth on symbel, Mearce healden. Untweofealde, Ac thonne se eca, Treowa gehealdath, 3190 And se zlmihtiga, Sibbe samrade, Tha geweald-letheru Eala sigora God! Wile onletan, 150 Weer this moncyn Efne thara bridla, Miclum geselig, The he gebette Gif hiora mod-sefa 195 Mid his agen weorc, Meahte weorthan Eall zt frymthe ; Statholfast gereaht, Thet is witherweardnes 155 Thurh tha strongan meaht Wuhte gehwelcre. And ge endebyrd, The we mid them bwidle Swa swa othra sint 200 Becnan tiliath ; Woruld gesceafta. Gif se thioden let Were hit la thonne Tha toslupan, 160 Murge mid monnum, Sona hi forletath Gif hit meahte swa! One, only One, made all the heavens and earth ; Doubtless, to Him all beings owe their birth ; And, guided by His care, Are all, who therein dwell unseen of us, And these whom we can look at, living thus In land and sea and air. He is Almighty: Him all things obey, That in such bondage know how blest are they, Who have so good a king; Those also serve, who thereof know not aught ; Dutiful work, however little thought, As bondslaves they must bring. He hath set out in kindred kindness still Duties and laws to work his changeless will, And, after his own mind, That which he will’d, so long as will he would, ‘He will’d that everything for ever should Thenceforward keep its kind. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 197 Never may restless things to rest attain, And from that settled circle turn in vain Which order’s God hath given ; He hath set fast, and check’d them each and all By the strong measured bridle of his call To rest, or to be driven, As he, great Word, the leathern reins of might Holds loose in his right hand, or draws them tight ; For he hath stretch’d along His bridle over earth, air, sea, and beach, That all things, leaning fastly each on each, By double strife stand strong. For, ever as at first the Father bade, In the same ways of running that he made Still changing though unchanged, By strife most steady keeping peace most true Our Free-Lord’s handicraft, so old yet new, Is evermore arranged. Thus earth and seastream, fire and water thus, And all great things about or far from us, Betwixt themselves hold strife, Yet so good fellowship all fastly keep, And render bondage true, and duty deep To him who lent their life. Nor only thus, that, each the rest to please, Whitherward things together dwell at ease, But, far more strange than so, Not one, but on its thwarter still depends And lives on that which while it harms befriends, Lest it too great should grow. Wisely the mighty Framer of the world Hath set this turn-about for ever twirl’d, Yet ever still to stay ; The sprouting wort shoots greenly from its root, And dying, then, in harvest yields its fruit To live another day. 198 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. Winter brings weather cold, swift winds and snow; Summer comes afterward with warming glow ; By night outshines the moon ; Till o’er his wide-seen world the day up-springs, And to all men the sun returning brings Her welcome brightness soon. So also, God hath bounded sea and land: The fishy kind, except at his command, On earth may never swim : Nor can the sea earth’s threshold overleap, Nor can the earth, beyond the tide at neap, O’erstep the sea’s wide rim. These things the Source and Spring of life and light, The Lord of wielded might, by his will’s right, Biddeth their bounds to keep, Until the Everliving one makes burst The curbing bridle set on all at first, And so unreins the deep. By rein and bridle in a hint I teach The waywardness of all things each on each; For, if the Ruler will’d The thongs to slacken, things would soon forsake All love and peace, and wilful evil make Instead of good fulfill’d. Each after its own selfish will would strive, Till none of things on earth were left alive In such bewrestling stern ; And in like manner other things unseen Would be as if they never then had been, All brought to nought in turn. But the same God, who meteth all things thus, Makes folk to be at peace with all and us, In friendship true and fast : He knits together in a love most fond Unending wedlock, and the kindred bond For evermore to last. KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 199 So too, the skill’d All-worker well unites The fellowship of men in friendly rights, That they may live at peace In simple truthfulness and single strength Thenceforth for ever of one mind at length To make all evil cease. O God All-conquering ! this lower earth Would be for men the blest abode of mirth If they were strong in Thee, As other things of this world well are seen ; O then, far other than they yet have been How happy would men be! ——— This is a famous specimen of Alfred’s moral and natural philo- sophy: he enlarges upon the antagonistic idea, the ‘pugnantia semina’ of Boethius, till he “ vindicates the ways of God with man,” and shows how the green world could have rolled in placid order out of the opposed forces of a chaos. It were possible, on each occasion, to multiply notes to any amount, but the reader will be better pleased if we pass on speedily. XII. Uses or ApvErsIty. Qui serere ingenuum volet agrum,—Liberat arva prius fruticibus, Se the wille wyrcan /Er ofer eldum, Westmbere lond, Egesan ne brohte. Atio of them ecere, Swa thincth anra gehwem, 35 fErest sona Eorth-buendra, Fearn and thornas, 5 Sio sothe geszlth, And fyrsas swa same wiod : Symle the betere, Tha the willath And thy wynsumre, Wel hwer derian The he wita ma, 40 Cleanum hwete : Heardra hentha, Thy les he citha-leas 10 Her adreogeth. Licge on them lande. Thu meaht eac mycle thy eth Is leoda gehwem On mod-sefan, Thios othru bysen Sotha geseltha 45 Efn behetu, Sweotolor gecnawan, Thzt is thet te thynceth 15 And to heora cyththe Thegna gehwelcum Becuman siththan, Huniges bi-bread Gif thu up atyhsth, Healfe thy swetre, AErest sona, 50 Gif he hwene zr And thu awyrtwalast. Huniges tere 20 Of gewit-locan. Bitres onbyrgeth. Leasa geseltha. Bith eac swa same Swa swa londes-ceorl Monna eghwilc, Of his zcere lycth 55 Micle thy feegenra Yfel theod monig. Lithes wethres, 25 Siththan ic the secge, Gif hine lytle ar That thu sweotole meaht Stormas gestondath, Sotha gesazltha And se stearca wind Sona oncnawan : 60 Northan and eastan. And thu zfre ne recst Neznegum thuhte 30 Eniges thinges, Deg on thonce, Ofer tha ane, Gif sio dimme niht, Gif thu hi ealles ongitst 200 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Whoso wills to till a field, Well to bear a fruitful yield, Let him first pluck up and burn Thorns and thistles, furze and fern, Which are wont clean wheat to hurt Lying lifeless in the dirt. And this other likeness too Well behoves us all to view, Namely, that to those who eat Honeycomb, it seems more sweet If a man, before the tear Of honey, taste of bitter cheer. So, it falls that all men are With fine weather happier far If a little while before Storms were spread the welkin o’er, And the stark wind East by North Lately rush’d in anger forth. None would think the daylight dear If dim night they did not fear ; So, to every one of us, On the broad earth dwelling thus, Joy more joyous still is seen After troubles once have been. Also, thine own mind to please, Thou shalt gain the greater ease, And shalt go where true joys grow If all false joys thou forego, As ill weeds are pull’d with toil By the landchurl from the soil. And hereafter, thee I tell, True joys there await thee well; Aye and here, if these be first, Thou for nought beside wilt thirst, But all else shall fail to please If thou truly knowest these. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 201, This is a nice consolatory bit of our good king’s Christian philo- sophy : and strangely better than the thirteen lines of Boethius, whereon the ode of Alfred is hung. In our version every word is Anglo-Saxon English; and we have been careful to preserve the pretty phrase ‘ huniges teare, as closer, and more poetical too, than (as the writer at first rendered the words,) Tf a man before the drop Of honey, taste the bitter sop. XIII. Or Inwarp Lixines. Quantas rerum flectat habenas —-Natura potens, quibus immensum Tc wille mid giddum Get gecythan, Hu se zlmihtiga Ealra gesceafta Bryrth mid his bridlum, 5 Begth thider he wile, Mid his anwealde Ge endebyrd, Wundorlice Wel gemetgath. 10 Hafath swa geheathorad Heofona wealdend, Utan befangen Ealla gesceafta, Gereped mid his racentan, 15 Thet hi aredian ne magon Thet hihi efre him Of aslepen: And theah wuhta gehwile, Wrigath to-heald, 20 Sidra gesceafta. Swithe onhelded With thes gecyndes, The hi cyning engla, Fader et frymthe, 25 Feste getiode. Swa nu thinga gehwilc, Thider-weard fundath, Sidra gesceafta, Bugon sumum englum, 30 And moncynne; Thara micles to feola,, Worold-wuniendra, Winth with gecynde. Theah nu on londe, 35 Leon gemete, Wynsume wiht, Wel atemede, Hire magister Miclum lufige, 40 And eac ondrede, Dogora gehwelce ; Gif hit efre geszlth, Thet hio eniges Blodes onbyrgeth. 45 Ne thearf beorna nan Wenan there wyrde, Thet hio wel siththan, Hire taman healde : Ac ic tiohhie 50 Thet hio thes niwan taman, Nauht ne gehicgge ; Ac thone wildan gewunan Wille gethencan Essays 2 6 Hire eldrena. 55 Onginth eorneste Racentan slitan, Ryn grymetigan, And erest abit Hire agenes 60 Huses hirde ; And hrathe siththan, Heletha gebwilcne, The hio gehentan meg. Nele hio forletan 65 Libbendes wuht. Neata ne monna: Nimth eall thet hio fint. Swa doth wudu-fuglas, Theah hi wel sien Tela atemede: Gif hi on treowum weorthath Holte to middes, Hrethe bioth sorsewene Heora lareowas, 75 The hi lange er, Tydon and temedon. Hi on treowum wilde, Eald-gecynde, A forth siththan, 80 Willum wuniath ; Theah him wolde bwilc, Heora lareowa, Listum beodan, Thone ilcan mete, 85 The he hi zror mid Tame getede; Him tha twigu thincath Emne swa merge, Thet hithes metes nerecth 90 Thincth him to thon wynsum, Thzt him se weald oncwyth ; Thonne hi geherath Hleothrum bregdan. Othre fugelas; 95 Hi heora agne Stefne styriath. Stunath eal geador Wel-winsum sanc, Wudu ea'lum onewyth. 100 Swa bith eallum treowum, The him on ethele bith, Thet hit on holte Hyhst geweaxe. Theah thu hwileneboh, 105 Byge with eorthan, He bith upweardes, Swa thu an forletest : 202 KING ALFRED’S Widu on willan, Went on gecynde. 110 Swa deth eac sio sunne, Thonne hio on sige weortheth, Ofer midne deg, Mere condel, Scyft on ofdele, 115 Uncuthne weg Nihtes genetheth : North eft and east Eldum oteweth, Brencth eorth-warum 120 Morgen mete torhtne. Hio ofer moncyn stihth A upweardes, Oth hio eft cymeth, Ther hire yfemest bith 125 Eard-gecynde. Swa swa elec gesceaft, Ealle megene, Geond thas widan woruld, Wrigath and higath, 180 Ealle megene, Eft symle on lyt With his gecyndes, Cymth to thonne hit meg. POEMS. Nis nu ofer eorthan 135 Enegu gesceaft, The ne wilnie thet hio, Wolde cuman. To tham earde, The hio of becom, 140 Thet is orsorgnes, And ecu rest ; Thet is openlice, #Elmihti God. Nis nu ofer eorthan 145 Ainegu gesceaft, The ne hwearfige Swa swa hweol deth. On hire selfre ; Forthon hioswa hwearfath, 150 Thezt hio eft cume,. Ther hio eror wes. Thonne hio erest sie Utan behwerfed ; Thonne hio ealles wyrth 155 Utan becerred ; Hio sceol eft don Theat hio er dyde, And eac wesan, Thet hio zror wes. 166 I will with songs make known How the Almighty still Bridles all things from his throne And bends them to his will, By His wielded might Set wonderfully right. The Ruler of the skies Hath well-girt all things so, Binding them in such strong ties, Aside they cannot go, And may not find the way Whereby to slip astray. And each living thing On this crowded earth Firmly to the bent doth cling Which it had at birth From the Father’s hand King of angel-land : Thus each one we find Of beings in their turn, Save some bad angels and mankind Thitherward doth yearn ; But those too often force Against their nature’s course. KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 203 A lioness may be such A tame and winsome beast, . That she may love her master much Or fear him at the least ; But if she taste of gore She will be tame no more: Let it not be thought That she will then be mild, But back to her old likings brought Be as her elders wild, In earnest break her chain And rave and roar amain; Will first her keeper bite, And then all else beside, Cattle or men, each living wight, Will seize, whate’er betide, All she can find will seize, Her ravening to appease. So the wood finches too Though timely tamed they be, If to the woods escaped anew . Again they flutter free, However train’d and taught Their teachers then are nought : But wilder evermore They will not leave the wood, . Though by their trainers, as of yore, Enticed by tempting food ; So merry seem the trees That meats no more may please. All winsome then is found . The wide weald sounding strong With other birds that sing around, And so, these find their song, Stunning one’s ears with noise Of their woodland joys. 204 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. Thus too, every tree, Grown high in its own soil, Though thou shalt bend its boughs to be Bow’d to the earth with toil, Let go, it upward flies At its free will to rise. Thus also, when the sun, Great candle of the world, After the mid-day down doth run To unknown darkness hurl’d, Again she brings to earth Bright morn’s North Eastern birth. Upward, she ever goes, Up, to her highest place : So, every creature kindly grows According to its race, And strives with all its might To take its nature’s right. There is not now one thing Over this wide earth That doth not all its longings fling About its place of birth, And safely there find rest In God Almighty blest. There is not one thing found Over this wide world But on itself with endless round It, like a wheel, is twirl’d, So turning to be seen As it before hath been: For, when at first it moves, Right round it turns amain ; And, where it once has gone, behoves To go that way again; And, as it was before, To be so evermore. KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 205 XIV. Tue Emptiness or WEALTH. Quamvis fluente dives auri gurgite——Non expleturas cogat avarus opes, Hwet bith them welegan Suth west and east, Woruld-gitsere, His anwalde eall 15 On his mode the bet, Underthieded, Theah he micel age Ne mot he thara hyrsta Goldes and gimma, 5 Hiona ne ledan, And gooda gehwes Of thisse worulde, hta unrim, Wuhte thon mare 20 And him mon erigen scyle Hord-gestreona, ZEghwelce deg, Thonne he hither brohte, /Ecera thusend ? 10 Tha se Wisdom tha this lioth Theah thes middan geard. asungen hefde, tha ongan he eft And this manna cyn, spellian and eweth. Sy under sunnan, What is a man the better— A man of worldly mould, Though he be gainful getter Of richest gems and gold, With every kind well filléd Of goods in ripe array, And though for him be tilléd A thousand fields a day ? Though all this middle earth be Beneath his wealdom thrown, And men and all their worth be South East and West his own, He cannot of such treasure Away with him take aught, Nor gain a greater measure Than in his mind he brought. Wisdom having sung this lay, Again began his spell to say,— 206 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. XV. Nero’s BasENEss. Quamvis se Tyrio superbus ostro,—-Comeret, et niveis lapillis. Theah hine nu Se yfela unrihtwisa Neron cynincg, Niwan gescerpte, Wlitegum wedum, 5 Wundorlice Golde geglengde And gim-cynnum ; Theah he wes on worulde, Witena gehwelcum, 10 On his lif-dagum, Lath and unweorth, Fieren-full. Hwet se feond swa theah, His diorlingas 15 Duguthum stepte, Ne meg ic theah gehycgan Hwy him on hige thorfte, Athy sel wesan. Theah hi sume hwile 20 Gecure butan creftum, Cyninga dysegast, Neron hy thy weorthran Witena enegum. Theah hine se dysiga 25 Do to cyninge, Hu meg thet gesceadwis Scealc gereccan, Thet he him thy selra Sie oththe thince? Though Nero now himself, that evil king Unrighteous, in his new and glittering robe Deck’d wonderfully for apparelling With gold and gems and many a brightsome thing, Seem’d to be greatest of this earthly globe, Yet to the wise man was he full of crime Loathly and worthless in his life’s daytime : And though this fiend his darlings would reward With gifts of rank, my mind I cannot bring To see why he to such should grace afford : Yet if some whiles a foolish king or lord Will choose the simple all the wise above, A fool himself to be by fools ador’d, How should a wise man reckon on his love ? XVI. Or SELF-RULE. Qui se volet esse potentem,— Animos domet ille feroces; Se the wille anwald agon, Thonne sceal he erest tilian That he his selfes, On sefan age, Anwald innan : 5 Thy les hi efre sie, His untheawum, Eall uniderthyded. Ado of his mode Mislicra fela 10 Thara ymbhogona, The him unnet sie: Late sume hwile Siofunga And ermtha thinra. 15 Theah him eall sie, Thes middan geard, Swa swa mere-streamas Utan belicgath, On eht gifen, 20 Efne swa wide, Swa swa wesmest nu, An iglond ligth, Ut on garsecg, Ther nengu bith 25 Niht on sumera, Ne wuhte thon ma On wintra daeg Toteled tidum, Thet is Tile haten ; 30 Theah nu anra hwa Ealles wealde Thes iglandes, And eac thonan KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 207 Oth Indeas . Easte-wearde ; Theahhe nutheteall | Agan mote, Hwy bith his anwald Auhte thy mara, Gif he siththan nah 35 His selfes geweald Ingethances, And hine eorneste, Wel ne bewarenath, 45 Wordum and dedum, With tha untheawas, The we ymb sprecath? He that wishes power to win, First must toil to rule his mind, That himself the slave to sin Selfish lust may never bind: Let him haste to put away All that fruitless heap of care : Cease awhile thy sighs to day, And thyself from sorrow spare. Though to him this middle earth For a garden all be given, With the seastream round its girth, East and west the width of heaven ; From that isle which lies outright Furthest in the Western spray, Where no summer sees a night, And no winter knows a day ; Though from this, far Thule’s isle, Even to the Indian East, One should rule the world awhile With all might and power increas’d, How shall he seem great or strong If himself he cannot save Word and deed against all wrong, But to sin is still a slave ? XVII. True GREATNESS. Omne hominum genus in terris——Simili surgit ab ortu : Thet eorthwaran Falle hefden, Fold-buende Fruman gelicne ; Hi of anum twem, Ealle comon, Were and wife On. woruld innan ; And hi eac nu get Ealle gelice 10 On woruld cumath, Wlance and heane. Nis thet nan wundor, Forthem witan ealle Thet an God is 15 Ealra gesceafta, 208 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. Frea moncynnes, Feder and scippend. Se there sunnan leoht Seleth of heofonum, 20 Monan and thysum merum steorrum. Se gesceop men on eorthan, And gesamnade Sawle to lice. Et fruman erest. 25 Fole under wolenum Emn 2thele gesceop, /£ghwilene mon. Hwy ge thonne efre, Ofer othre men, 30 Ofermodigen, Buton andweorce, Nu ge unethelne #Enig ne metath ? Hwy ge eow for ethelum 35 Up ahebben nu? On them mode bith Monna gehwileum Tha riht zthelo The ic the recce ymb; 40 Nales on them flesce Fold-buendra. Ac nu eghwile mon, The mid ealle bith His untheawum. 45 Underthieded ; He forlet arest Lifes frum-sceaft, And his agene JEthelo swa selfe ; 50 And eac thone feder, The hine zt fruman gesceop. Forthem hine anethelath /Elmihtig God, Thet he unethele 55 A forth thanan Wyrth on weorulde, Towuldre ne cymth. All men and all women on earth Had first their beginning the same, Into this world of their birth All of one couple they came : Alike are the great and the small; No wonder that this should be thus ; For God is the Father of all, The lord and the maker of us. He giveth light to the sun, To the moon and the stars as they stand The soul and the flesh He made one, When first he made man in the land. Wellborn alike are all folk _ Whom He hath made under the sky; Why then on others a yoke Now will ye be lifting on high ? And why be so causelessly proud, As thus ye find none are illborn ? Or why, for your rank, from the crowd Raise yourself up in such scorn ? In the mind of a man, not his make, In the earth-dweller’s heart, not his rank, Is the nobleness whereof I spake, The true, and the free, and the frank. KING ALFRED'S, POEMS. 209 But he that to sin was in thrall, Illdoing wherever he can, Hath left the first lifespring of all, His God, and his rank as a man : And so the Almighty down-hurl’d The noble disgraced by his sin, Thenceforth to be mean in the world, And never more glory to win. Unless one were to forage about for parallel passages, or to descant upon Alfred’s good philosophy as texts; or to furnish tables of the words identical to both English and Anglo-Saxon, or to speculate upon the possibilities of metre, there really seems little reason to disturb the patient reader with many notes; let him, instead, have the satisfaction of knowing that our verse is no loose paraphrase, but a close rendering, and that several of these metres seem to be analogous with the short and tripping lines of early minstrelsy. It will be remembered that the true ballad line (as in Macaulay’s Lays of Rome), though sometimes written long- wise, is in truth an eight-syllable stanza of short lines, and not a four-syllable of long ones: that great German epic, the Niebe- lungenlied (lately translated with uncommon ability and closeness by William Nanson Lettsom esq.) is an instance strictly in point: and further on (see Metre XXVIII) we have rendered Alfred in a similar measure. XVIII. Or Sinrunt Pieasure. Habet omnis hoc voluptas,——Stimulis agit furentes, Eala thet se yfla, Eall forweorthan, Unrihta gedeth, Gif hio yrringa Wratha willa Awuht stingeth, Woh-hemetes, Swa sceal sawla gehwile 15 Thet he mid ealle gedrefth, 5 Siththan losian, Anra gehwylces Gif se lichoma Monna cynnes Forlegan weortheth Mod fulneah thon ! Unriht-hemede; Hweet sio wild beo, Bute him zr cume 20 Theah wis sie, 10 Hreow to heortan, Anunga sceal, ry he hionan wende. Essays 210 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Alas that the evil unrighteous hot will : Of lawlessly wanton desire should still Be a plague in the mind of each one! The wild bee shall die in her stinging, tho’ shrewd, So the soul will be lost if the body be lewd, Unless, ere it wend hence, the heart be imbued With grief for the deed it hath done. XIX. WHERE TO FIND TRUE JOYS. Eheu, quam miseros tramite deviop— Abducit ignorantia ! Eala thaet is hefig dysig, Hygeth ymbe se the wile, And frecenlic, Fira gehwileum, Thet tha earman men 5 Mid ealle gedweleth Of them rihtan wege, Recene aladed ! Hwether ge willen On wuda secan 10 Gold thet reade, On grenum triowum ? Ic wat swa theah, That hit witena nan Thider ne seceth ; 15 Forthem hit ther ne wexth, Ne on wingeardum Wilitige gimmas. Hwy ge nu ne settan On sume dune 20 Fisc net eowru, Thonne eow fon lysteth Leax oththe cyperan? Me gelicost thincth, Thet te ealle witen, 25 Eorth-buende, Thoncol-mode Thet hither ne sint, Hwether ge nu willen Wethan mid hundum 30 On sealtne sz, Thonne eow secan lyst Heorotas and hinda Thu gehycgan meaht Thet ge willath tha 35 On wuda secan Oftor micle, Thonne ut on se. Is thaet wundorlic Thaet we witan ealle 40 Thaet mon secan sceal Be sae-warothe, And be ea-ofrum, Ethele gimmas, Hwite and reade, 45 And hiwa gehwes ? Hweet hi eac witon, Hwer hi ea-fiscas Secan thurfan, And swylcra fela 50 Weoruld-welena : Hi thet wel doth, Geornfulle men, Geara gehwilc. Ac thaet is earmlicost 55 Ealra thinga, Thaet tha dysegan sint On gedwolan wordene, Efne swa blinde, Thet hion breostum ne magon Eathe gecnawan, Hweer tha ecan good, Sotha gesaeltha Sindon gehydda: Forthaem hi aefre ne lyst 65 /Efter spyrian, Secan tha gesaeltha. Wenath samwise, Thaet hi on this laenan megen Life findan 70 Sotha gesaeltha, Thaet is selfa God. Ic nat huic maege Naenige thinga Ealles swaswithe, 75 On sefan minum, Hiora dysig taelan Swa hit me don lysteth ; Ne ic the swa sweotole Gesecgan ne maeg. Yorthaem hig sint earmran, And eac dysegran, Ungeszligran, Thonne ic the secgan mege, Hi wilniath ‘Welan and aehta, And weorthscipes To gewinnanne ; Thonne hi habbath thaet Hiora hige seceth, 90 Wenath thonne, Swa gewitlease, Thaet hi tha sothan Gesaeltha haebben, Oh! it is a fault of weight, Let him think it out who will, And a danger passing great Which can thus allure to ill Careworn men from the right way, Swiftly ever led astray. KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 211 Will ye seek within the wood Red gold on the green-trees tall ? None, I wot, is wise that could, For it grows not there at all: Neither in winegardens green Seek they gems of glittering sheen. Would ye on some hill-top set, When ye list to catch a trout Or a carp, your fishing-net ? Men, methinks, have long found out That it would be foolish fare, For they know they are not there. In the salt sea can ye find, When ye list to start and hunt With your hounds, the hart or hind? It will sooner be your wont In the woods to look, I wot, Than in seas where they are not. Is it wonderful to know That for crystals red or white One must to the sea-beach go, Or for other colours bright, Seeking by the river side Or the shore at ebb of tide? Likewise, men are well aware Where to look for river-fish ; And all other worldly ware Where to seek them when they wish ; Wisely careful men will know Year by year to find them so. But of all things ’tis most sad That they foolish are so blind, So besotted and so mad That they cannot surely find Where the ever-good is nigh And true pleasures hidden lie. 212 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Therefore, never is their strife After those true joys to spur ; In this lean and little life They half witted deeply err, Seeking here their bliss to gain, That is, God Himself, in vain. Ah! I know not in my thought How enough to blame their sin, Nor so clearly as I ought Can I show their fault within ; For, more bad and vain are they And more sad than I can say. All their hope is to acquire Worship, goods, and worldly weal ; When they have their mind’s desire, Then such witless Joy they feel, That in folly they believe Those True joys they then receive. —_— Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs, of thistles?” ‘Alfred is of the Wise Teacher's school : and bids us seek the chief good beyond this evil world. XX. Or Gop anp His Creatures. O qui perpetua mundum ratione gubernas,—Terrarum ccelique sator, qui tempus ab 2vo Eala min Drihten ! Merthum gefraege Theet thu eart elmihtig, And madi er 6 Micel modilic, Witena gehwylcum ! KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Hwaet thu ece God! Ealra gesceafta Wundorlice Wel gesceope, Ungesewenlicra, And eac swa same, Gesewenlicra ; Softe wealdest Scirra gesceafta, Mid gesceadwisum Megne and crefte. Thu thysne middan geard From fruman erest, Forth oth ende, Tidum todeides, Swa hit getzesost wes Endebyrdes : Thet hi eghwether Ge arfarath Ge efteumath. Thu the unstilla Agna gesceafta To thinum willan Wislice astyrest, And the self wunest Swithe stille, Unanwendendlic, A forth simle! Nis nan mihtigra, Ne nan merra, Ne geond ealle tha gesceaft, Efnlica thin. Ne theaenig ned-thearf naes Aefre giet ealra Thara weorca, The thu geworht hafast ; Ac mid thinum willan Thu hit worhtes eall. And mid anwalde Thinum agenum, Weorulde geworhtest, And wuhta gehwat ; Theah the nenegu Ned-thearf were eallra Thara mertha! Ts thaet micel gecynd Thines goodes ; Thencth ymb se the wile : Forthon hit is eall an Elces thincges, Thu and thet thin good ; Hit is thin agen, Forthem hit nis utan, Ne com auht to the. Ac ic georne wat, Thzt thin goodnes is E\mihtig good, Eall mid the selfum. Hit is ungelic Urum gecynde : Us is utan cymen Eall the we habbath Gooda on grundum, From Gode selfum. Neft thu to enegum Andan genumenne, Fortham the nan thing nis Thin gelica; Ne huru enig Elcreftigre; Forthzem thu eal good, Anes getheahte, Thines gethohtest, And hi tha worhtest. Nas eror the Enegu gesceaft, The auht oththe nauht Auther worhte. Ac thu butan bysne, Brego moncynnes, 4E| elmihtig God, Eall geworhtest Thing thearle good ; Eart the selfa Thet hehste good ! Hwet thu halig feder, /Eiter thinum willan, Woruld gesceope, Thisne middan geard, Meahtum thinum, 15 20 30 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 Weorada Drihten, Swa thu woldest self: And mid thinum willan Wealdest ealles ! 100 Forthem thu sotha God, Selfa dalest Gooda eghwilc ; Forthem thu geara er, Ealle gesceafta 105 FErest gesceope, Swithe gelice, Sumes hwethre theah Ungelice ; Nemdest eall swa theah 110 Mid ane noman, Ealle togedere, Woruld under wolenum. Hwet thu wuldres God! Thone anne naman 115 Eft todeldes, Fader, on feower: Wes thara folde an, And water other, Worulde dzles, 120 And fyr is thridde, And feowerthe lyft ; That is eall weoruld Eft togedere. Habbath theah tha feower 125 Frum-stol hiora; Ehgwilc hiora Agenne stede : Theah anra hwile With other sie 130 Miclum gemenged ; And mid megne eac Feder zlmihtiges Feste gebunden, Gesiblice, 135 Softe togedere, Mid bebode thine, Bilewit fader! Thet te heora enig Othres ne dorste 146 Mearc ofergangan, For metodes ege ; Ac gethweorod sint Thegnas togedere, Cyninges cempan. 145 Cele with heto, Wet with drygum, Winnath hwathre. Weter and eorthe Westmas brengath ; 150 Tha sint on gecynde Cealda ba twa, Weter wet and ceald, Wangas ymbe-licgath. Eorthe zl greno 155 Eac hwethre ceald lyft 1s gemenged, Forthem hio onmiddum wunath Nis thaet nan wundor Thaet hio sie wearm and ceald160 Wet wolcnes tier Winde geblonden ; Forthem hio is on midle, Mine gefrege, Fyres and eorthan. 165 Fela monna wat Thzet te yfemest is Eallra gesceafta Fyr ofer eorthan, Folde neothemest. 170 Is thaet wundorlic, Weroda Drihten! Thet thu mid getheahte Thinum wyrcest ; Thaet thu thaem gesceaftum 175 Swa gesceadlice Mearce gesettest, And hi ne mengdest eac. Hwet thu thaem wettere Wetum and cealdum, 180 Foldan to flore Feste gesettest ; Forthem hit unstille, ZEghwider wolde Wide toscrithan, 185 Wace and hnesce ; 213 214 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Ne meahte hit on him selfum. Soth ic geare wat £fre gestandan : Ac hit sio eorthe 190 Hilt and swelgeth eac. Be sumum dele, Theat hio siththan meg, For them sype weorthan Geleht lyftum. 195 Forthem Jeaf and gers, Braed geond Bretene, Bloweth and groweth, Eldum to are. Eorthe sio cealde 200 Brength waestma fela, Wundorlicra, Forthaem hio mid thaem waetere Weorthath gethawened. Gif thaet nere, 205 Thonne hio were Fordrugod to duste, And todrifen siththan Wide mid winde ; Swa nu weorthath oft 210 Axe giond eorthan Eall toblawen. Ne meahte on thaere eorthan Awuht libban, Ne wuhte thon ma 215 Weetres brucan, Oneardian finige crefte, For cele anum : Gif thu, cyning engla, 220 With fyre hwet-hwugu, Foldan and lagu-sream Ne mengdest togeedere ; And gemetgodest Cele and heto 225 Crefte thine, Thaet thaet fyr ne maeg Foldan and mere-stream Blate forbernan, Theah hit with ba twa sie 230 Feste gefeged ; Fader eald geweorc. Ne thincth me thet wundur Wuhte the lesse, Thet thios eorthe maeg, 235 And egor-stream, Swa ceald gesceaft, Crefta nane, Ealles adwescan Thet thaet him on innan sticath Fyres, gefeged Mid frean crefte. Thet is agen craft Eagor-streames, Wetres and eorthan, 245 And on wolenum eac, And efne swa same Uppe ofer rodere. Thonne is ther fyres Frum-stol on riht 250 Eard ofer eallum Othrum gesceaftum Gesewenlicum, Geond thisne sidan grund ; Theah hit with ealle sie 255 Eft gemenged Weoruld-gesceafta: Theah waldan ne mot, Thet hit enige Eallunga fordo 260 Buton thes leafe, The us this lif tiode: Theet is se eca, And se z)mihtiga, Eorthe is hefigre 265 Othrum gesceaftum, Thicre gethruen; Forthem hio thrage stod Ealra gesceafta Under nithemest, 270 Buton them rodere, The thas ruman gesceaft ZEghwylce dege, Utan ymhwyrfeth, And theah there eorthan 275 #£fre ne othrineth ; Ne hire on nanre ne mot Near thonne on othre Stowe gestzppan. Striceth ymbutan 280 Ufane and neothane, Efen nezh gehwether. fEghwile gesceaft, The we ymb sprecath, Hefth his agenne 285 Eard on sundran, Bith theah with thaem othrum Eac gemenged. Ne maeg hira aenig Butan othrum bion. 290 Theah hi unsweotole Somod eardien ; Swa nu eorthe and weter Earfod tecne, Unwisra gehwem, 295 Wuniath on fyre ; Theah hi sint an Sweotole them wisum. Is thaet fyr swa same Fest on them wetre, 300 And on stanum eac Stille geheded : Earfoth hawe is. Hwethre ther hafath Feder engla 305 Fyr gebunden Efne to thon feste, Thet hit fiolan ne meg Eft aet his ethle, Thaer thaet other fyr 310 Up ofer eall this Eard faest wunath. Sona hit forlaeteth Thas laenan gesceaft, Mid cele ofercumen, $15 Gif hit on cyththe gewit ; And theah wuhta gehwile Wilnath thider-weard, Thaer his maegthe bith Maest aetgaedre. , 320 Thu gestatholadest, Thurh tha strongan meaht, Weroda wuldor cyning4 Wundorlice, Eorthan swa faeste, 325 Thaet hio on enige Healfe ne heldeth, Ne meg hio hider ne thider Sigan the swithor The hio symle dyde. 330 Hwet hi theah eorthlices Auht ne heldeth, Is theah efn ethe Up and of dune, To feallanne 335 Foldan thisse ; Them anlicost, The on ege bith Gioleca on middan, Glideth hwethre 340 Eg ymbutan. Swa stent eall weoruld Stille on tille, Streamas ymbutan, Lagu-floda gelac. 345 Lyfte and tungla, And sio scire scell, Scritheth ymbutan, Dogora gehwile, Dyde lange swa. 350 Hwet thu thioda God, Thriefalde on us Sawle gesettest, And hi siththan eac Styrest and tihtest, 355 Thurh tha strongan meaht ; Thaet hire thy lesse On them lytlan ne bith Anum fingre, The hire on eallum bith 360 Them lichoman, Forthem ic lytle er, Sweotole sede, That sio sawl were KING ALFRED'S POEMS. Thriefald gesceaft, 865 Thegna gehwilces : Forthem uthwitan Ealle seggath, Theat te an gecynd 4Elcre saule 370 Yrsung were, Other wilnung ; Is sio thridde gecynd Thaem twaem betere, Sio gesceadwisnes. 375 Nis thaet scandlic craeft, Forthaem hit naenig hafath, Neat buton monnum. Haefth tha othra twa Unrim wuhta. 380 Hefth tha wilnunga Wel hwilc neten, And tha yrsunga _ Eac swaselfe. Foithy men habbeth 385 Geond middan geard, Eorth-gesceafta Ealle oferthungen ; Forthzm the hi habbath Thes the hi nabbath, 390 Thone enne creit The we zr nemdon, Sio gesceadwisnes Sceal on gehwelcum There wilnunge 395 Waldan semle, And irsunge Eac swa selfe. Hio sceal mid getheahte, Thegnes mode, 400 Mid andgite Ealles waldan Hio is thet meste megen Monnes saule, And se selesta 405 Sundor crefta. Hwet thu tha saule, Sigora waldend, Theoda thrym-cyning, Thus gesceope, 410 Thet hio hwearfode On hire selfre, Hire utan ymb, Swa swa eal deth Rine swifte rodor: 415 Recene ymbscritheth Dogora gehwilce, Drihtnes meahtum Thisne middan geard : Swa deth monnes saul, 420 Hweole gelicost, Hwerfeth ymbe hy selfe, Oft smeagende Ymb thas eorthlican Drihtnes gesceafta, 425 Dagum and nihtum. Hwilum hi selfe Secende smeath Hwilum eft smeath Ymb thone ecan God, 430 Sceppend hire ; Scrithende farth Hweole gelicost, Hwerfth ymb hi selfe. Thonnehio ymb hire scyppend 435 Mid gescead smeath, Hio bith upahefen Ofer hi selfe ; Ac hio bith eallunga An bire selfre 440 Thonne hio ymb hi selfe Secende smeath. Hio bith swithe fior Hire selfre beneothan, Thonne hio thes lenan 445 Lufath and wundrath Eorthlicu thing, Ofer ecne red. Hwet thu ece God, Eard forgeafe 450 Saulum on heofonum; Selest weorthlica Ginfesta gifa, God zlmihtig! Be ge earnunga Anra gehwelcre. Ealle hi scinath Thurh tha sciran neaht Hadre on heofenum ; Na hwethre theah Ealle efenbeorhte. Hwet we oft gesioth Hadrum nihtum, Thet te heofon-steorran Ealle efenbeorhte, 4Efre ne scinath, Hwet thu ece God, Eac gemengest Tha heofoncundan Hither with eorthan ; Saula with lice Siththan wuniath : This eorthlice And thet ece samod, Saul in flasce. Hweet hi simle to the Hiona fundiath, Forthem hi hider of the 4Gror comon ; Sculon eft to the. Sceal se lichama Last weardigan Eft on eorthan, Forthem he er of hire Weox on weorulde. Wunedon et somne Efen swa lange Swa him lyfed wes From them zlmihtigan, The hi zror gio Gesomnade. That is soth cyning, Se thas foldan gesceop, And hi gifylde tha Swithe mislicum Mine gefrege, Neata cynnum, Nergend user. He hi siththan asiow Seda monegum Wuda and wyrta, Weorulde sceatum. Forgif nu ece God, Urum modum, Thet hi motento the, Metod alwuhta, Thurh thas earfothu Up astigan: And of thisum bysegum, Bilewit fader, Theoda waldend, To the cuman ; And thonne mid openum Eagum moten Modes ures, Thurh thinra megna sped, ZEwelm gesion Eallra gooda ; Theet thu eart selfa, Sige Drihten God! Ge tha eagan hal Ures modes, That we hion the selfum Siththan moten Afestnian, Feder engla! Todrif thone thiccan mist, The thrage nu With tha eagan foran Usses modes Hangode hwyle, Hefig and thystre. Onliht nu tha eagan Usses modes Mid thinum leohte, Lifes waldend ; Forthem thu eart sio birhtu, Bilewit fader, Sothes leohtes : And thu selfa eart Sio fzste rest, Feder elmihtig ! 455 460 465 470 475 480 485 490 495 500 505 510 520 525 530 540 215 216 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Eallra sothfestra, Buton geswince. Hwet thu softe gedest, Thu eart selfa weg, Thet hi the selfne 545 And latteow eac, 555 Gesion moten. Lifgendra gehwes : Thu eart eallra thinga, And sio wlitige stow Theoda waldend ! The se weg to ligth. Fruma and ende. The ealle to Hweet thu, feder engla, 550 A fundiath, 560 Fall thing birest Men of moldan Ethelice, On tha mean gesceaft ! O thou, my Lord Almighty, great and wise, Wellseen for mighty works, and marvellous To every mind that knows thee, Ever Good! Wondrously well all creatures Thou hast made, Unseen of us or seen; with softest band Of skilful strength thy brighter beings leading, Thou from its birth forth onward to its end This middle earth by times hast measured out As was most fit ; that orderly they go And eftsoon come again. Thou wisely stirrest To thine own will thy changing unstill creatures, Unchangeable and still thyself for ever! No one is mightier, greater than Thou art, No one was made thine equal : need was none, Of all these works which thou hast wrought, to Thee ; But, at the willing of thy power, the world And everything within it didst thou make, Without all need to Thee of such great works, Great is thy goodness,—think it out who will ; For it is all of one, in everything, Thou and Thy good; thine own ; not from without, Neither did any goodness come to Thee : But, well I know, thy goodness is Most Good All with thyself: unlike to us in kind ; To us, from outwardly, from God himself, Came all we have of good in this low earth. Thou canst not envy any; since to Thee Nothing is like, nor any higher skilled ; For thou, All good, of thine own thought didst think, And then that thought didst work. Before Thee none Was born, to make or unmake anything, But Thou without a model madest all, Lord God of men, Almighty, very good, KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 217 Being thyself of all the Highest good! Thou, Holy Father, thou, the Lord of hosts, After thy will, and by thy power alone, The world, this midway garden, didst create ; And by thy will, as now thy wisdom would, Wieldest it all! For thou, O God of truth, Long time of old didst deal out all good things, Making thy creatures mainly well alike, Yet not alike in all ways; and didst name With one name all together all things here, “The World under the clouds.” Yet, God of glory, That one name, Father, thou didst turn to four : The first, this Earth-field; and the second, water ; Shares of the world: third, fire, and fourth, air: This is again the whole world all together. Yet have these four each one his stead and stool, Each hath its place; tho’ much with other mixt ; Fast by thy might, Almighty Father, bound, Biding at peace, and softly well together By thy behest, kind Father! so that none Durst overstep its mark, for fear of Thee, But willing thanes and warriors of their King Live well together, howsoever strive The wet with dry, the chilly with the hot. Water and Earth, both cold in kind, breed fruits : Water lies wet and cold around the field. With the green earth is mingled the cold air, Dwelling in middle place : it is no wonder That it be warm and cold, blent by the winds, This wide wet tier of clouds ; for, in my judgment, Air hath a midway place, ’twixt earth and fire : All know that fire is uppermost of all Over this earth, and ground is nethermost. Yet is this wonderful, O Lord of Hosts, Which by thy thought thou workest, that distinctly Thou to thy creatures settest mark and bound And dost not mingle them: the wet cold water Thou fixest it the fast earth for a floor, For that itself, unstill and weak and soft Alone would widely wander everywhere, Essays 218 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Nor (well I wot it sooth) could ever stand. But the earth holds, and swills it in some sort, That through such sipping it may afterward Moisten the aery-lift: then leaves and grass Yond o’er the breadth of Britain blow and grow, Its praise of old. The cold earth bringeth fruits More marvellously forth, when it is thawed And wetted by the water: if not so, Then were it dried to dust, and driven away Wide by the winds; as often ashes now Over the earth are blown: nor might on earth Aught live, nor any wight by any craft Brook the cold water, neither dwell therein, If thou, O King of Angels, otherwhile Mingledst not soil and stream with fire together ; And didst not craftwise mete out cold and heat So that the fire may never fiercely burn Earth and the sea stream, though fast linked with both, The Father’s work of old. Nor is methinks This wonder aught the less, that earth and sea, Cold creatures both, can by no skill put out The fire that in them sticks, fixt by the Lord. Such is the proper use of the salt seas Of earth and water and the welkin eke, And even of the upper skies above. There, is of right the primal place of fire; Its birth-right over all things else we see Throughout the varied deep, tho’ mixt with all Things of this world, it cannot over one Rise to such height as to destroy it quite, But by His leave who shaped out life to us, The Everliving and Almighty One. Earth is more heavy and more thickly pack’d Than other things; for that it long hath stood Of all the nethermost: saving the sky Which daily wafteth round this roomy world, Yet never whirleth it away, nor can Get nearer anywhere than everywhere, Striking it round-about, above, below, KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 219 With even nearness wheresoe’er it be. Each creature that we speak of hath his place Own and asunder, yet is mixt with all. No one of them may be without the rest, Though dwelling all together mixedly : As now the earth and water dwell in fire, ‘A thing to the unlearned hard to teach, But to the wise right clear : and in same sort Fire is fast fixt in water, and in stones Still hidden away and fixt, tho’ hard to find. Yet thitherward the Father of angels hath So fastly bound up fire, that it may Never again get back to its own home Where over all this earth sure dwells the fire. Soon would it leave this lean world, overcome Of cold, if to its kith on high it went ; Yet everything is yearning thitherward Where its own kindred bide the most together. Thou hast established, thro’ thy strong might, O glorious king of hosts, right wondrously The earth so fast, that it on either half Heeleth not over, nor can stronger lean Hither or thither, than it ever did. Since nothing earthly holds it, to this globe *T were easy up or down to fall aside, Likest to this, that in an egg the yolk Bides in the middle, tho’ the egg glides round. So all the world still standeth on its stead Among the streams, the meeting of the floods : The lift and stars and the clear shell of heaven Sail daily round it, as they long have done. Moreover, God of people, thou hast set A threefold soul in us, and afterward Stirrest and quick’nest it with thy’strong might So that there bideth not the less thereof In a little finger than in all the body. Therefore a little before I clearly said That the soul is a threefold workmanship 220 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. In every man: because the wise all say That ire is one whole part in every soul, Another, lust; another and the third Far better than these twain, wise-mindedness : This is no sorry craft; for only man Hath this, and not the cattle: the other two Things out of number have as well as we ; For ire and lust each beast hath of itself. Therefore have men, thro’out this middle sphere Surpassed Earth’s creatures all; forthat they have What these have not, the one good craft we named. Wisemindedness in each should govern lust And ire, and its own self; in every man With thought and understanding ruling him. This is the mightiest mainstay of man’s soul, The one best mark to sunder it from beasts. Thou mighty king of peoples, glorious Lord, Didst fashion thus the soul, that it should turn Itself around itself, as in swift race Doth all the firmament, which quickly twirls Every day around this middle sphere, By the Lord’s might : so doth the soul of man Likest a wheel whirl round about itself, Oft-times keen searching out by day and night About these earthly creatures of the Lord : Somewhile herself she probes with prying eye : Somewhile again she asks about her God The Ever One, her Maker; going round Likest a wheel, whirling around herself. When she about her Maker heedful asks, She is upheaved above her lower self: She altogether in herself abides When, seeking round, she pries about herself : But furthest falls beneath herself, when she With love and wonder searcheth out this earth, With its lean lusts, above the lore for ever! Yea,more; Thou, Evergood! to souls in heaven Givest an heritage, Almighty God, KING ALFRED’S POEMS. ‘ 221 And worthiest lasting gifts, as each hath earned. They thro’ the moonlit night shine calm in heaven ; Yet are not all of even brightness there, So oft we see the stars of heaven by night They shine not ever all of even brightness. Moreover, Ever-Good! thou minglest here Heavenly things with Earthly, soul with flesh : Afterwards soul and flesh both live together Earthly with heavenly : ever hence they strive Upward to thee, because they came from thee, And yet again they all shall go to thee! This living body yet once more on earth Shall keep its ward, for-that it theretofore Wax’dinthe world: they dwelt (this body and soul) So long together as to them gave leave The Almighty, who had made them one before ; That is in sooth the King! who made this world And fill’d it mixedly with kinds of cattle, Our saviour and near helper, as I trow. Thence he with many seeds of woods and worts Stock’d it in all the corners of the world. Forgive now, Ever Good! and give to us That in our minds we may upsoar to thee, Maker of all things, thro’ these troublous ways ; And from amidst these busy things of life, O tender Father, Wielder of the world, Come unto Thee, and then thro’ thy good speed With the mind’s eyes well opened well may see The welling spring of Good, that Good, Thyself, O Lord, the God of Glory !—Then make whole The eyes of our understandings, so that we, Father of angels, fasten them on Thee ! Drive away this thick mist, which long while now Hath hung before our mind’s eyes,heavy and dark. Enlighten now these mind’s eyes with thy light, Master of life ; for thou, O tender Father, Art very brightness of true light thyself ; Thyself Almighty Father, the sure rest Of all thy fast and true ones; winningly 222 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Thou orderest it that they may see Thyself. Thou art of all things origin and end, O Lord of all men; Father of angels, thou Easily bearest all things without toil, Thou art thyself the way and leader too, Of every one that lives, and the pure place That the way leads to: all men from this soil Throughout the breadth of being, yearn to Thee. Alfred here expands twenty-eight lines of Boethius into a magni- ficent psalm, worthy of the Christian poet and philosopher. In all this, how strangely in advance, not only of his own age, but positively of ours! Religion and learning, poetical expression, and pure moral feeling,—every excellence is here :—we will not attempt. To gild refined gold, to paint the lily, Or add a perfume to the violet. Let Alfred, through our earnestly attempted faithfulness, speak for himself. The translation is literal. XXI. Or mnwarp LIGHT. Huc omnes pariter venite captiim—Quos fallax ligat improbis catenis Wel la monna bearn, Hyhtlicu hyth Geond middan geard ! Heaum ceolum Friora eghwile Modes usses; Fundie to them Mere smylta wic; Ecum gode, 5 Theat is sio ana hyth 25 The we ymb sprecath ; The efre bith, And to them geselthum, /Efter tham ythum The we secgath ymb. Se the thonne nu sie Nearwe gehefted 10 Mid thisses meran Middan geardes Unnyttre lufe, Ura geswinca, Ysta gehwelcre, Ealnig smylte. 30 Thet is sio frith-stow, And sio frofor ana Eallra yrminga, Sece him eft hrethe /Efter thissum Fulne friodom, 15 Weoruld-geswincum. 35 Thet he forth cume Thet is wynsum stow, To them gesalthum, 4Efter thissum yrmthum, Saula redes. To aganne, Forthem thet is sio ana rest 20 Li Ac ic georne wat, Eallra geswinca, Thet te gylden mathm, 40 KING ALFRED’S Sylofren sinc, Stan-searo gimma nan, Middengeardes wela, Modes eagan Eire ne onlyhtath, Auht ne gebetath Hiora scearpnesse, To there sceawunga Sothra geszltha. Ac hi swithor get, Monna gehwelces Modes eagan, Ablendath on breostum, Thonne hi hi beorhtran gedon. Forthem eghwile thing 55 The on this andweardan Life licath, Leznu sindon Eorthlicu thing, A fleondu. Ac thet is wundorlic Wlite and beorhtnes, The wuhta gehwes Wlite geberhteth, 45 50 6o POEMS. 223 And efter them, Eallum waldeth. Nele se waldend Thet forweorthan scylen Saula usse ; Ac he hi selfa wile Leoman onlihtan, Lifes waldend ! Gif thonne heretha hwilc, Hlutrum eagum Modes sines meg A&fre ofsion Hiofones leohtes Hlutre beojhto, Thonne wile he secgan, Thet there sunnan sie Beorhtnes thiostro, Beorna gehwylcum, To metanne With thet micle leoht Godes zimihtiges, 85 Thet is gasta gehwem, Ece butan ende, Eadegum saulum ! 65 70 75 80 Well,—O ye children of men in mid earth! Every freeman should seek till he find That, which I spake of, good endless in worth ; These, which I sing of, the joys of the mind. Let him who is narrow’d and prison’d away By love of this middle earth empty and vain, Seek out for himself full freedom today, That soul feeding joys he may quickly attain. For, such of all toil is the only one goal, For sea-weary keels hythe-haven from woes, The great quiet dwelling that harbours the soul Still calm in the storm, and from strife a repose. That is the peace-place, and comfort alone Of all that are harm’d by the troubles of life, A place very pleasant and winsome to own After this turmoil of sorrow and strife. But right well I wot that no treasnre of gold Nor borders of gemstone, nor silvery store, Norall of earth’s wealth the mind’s sight can unfold Or better its sharpness true joys to explore : But rather, make blind in the breast of each man The eyes of his mind than make ever more bright, For, sorry and fleeting as fast as they can Are all who in this flitting earth can delight. 224 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Yet wondrous the beauty and brightness is seen Of that which hath brighten’d and beautified all So long as on this middle earth they have been, And afterward happily holds them in thrall. For the Ruler he wills not that soul should be nought, Himself will enlighten it Lord of life given! If any man then with the eyes of his thought May see the clear brightness of light from high heaven, Then will he say that the blaze of the sun Is darkness itself to the glory so bright Which Great God Almighty shines out on each one Of souls of the happy for ever in light. Scarcely asingle word of Alfred is to be found in Boethius : and the ode isin fact an independent poem. It is charming to take note how constantly our Christian King is looking forward to his heaven- ly inheritance. To the writer it has been true and deep delight thus to fill the mind with the pure philosophy of Alfred, and then to let his homilies flow out into these new shapes : as it were, gold, melted anew in an earthen crucible, and poured out into the popular moulds of modern metres. May this work be in its measure for good! Alfred, in his free paraphrase of the more Horatian Boethius, and in the very few other fragments that remain to us of that first rate Head and Heart, is so full of Christian wisdom, moral beauty, excellent learning, piety, and power, that some small service cannot but be done to Good and Truth, by the publication of these Metres. XXII. OF THE INNER MIND, AND THE OUTER SIN. Quisquis profunda mente vestigat verum, Cupitque nullis ille deviis falli. Se the efter rihte Mid gerece, Wille inweardlice /Efter spyrien, Swa deoplice, Theet hit todrifan ne meg Monna enig; Ne amerran huru KING ALFRED'S POEMS. nig eorthlic thincg ; He erest sceal Secan on him selfum, Thet he sume hwile Ymbutan hine 4éror sohte; Sece thet siththan On his sefan innan ; And forlete an, Swa he oftost mege, Elene ymbhogan Thy him unnet sie; And gesamnige, Swa he swithost mege, Ealle to them anum, His ingethonc. Gesecge his mod, That hit meg findan, Eall on him innan, That hit oftost nu, Ymbutan hit Ealneg seceth, Gooda eghwyle. He ongit siththan Yfel and unnet, Eal thet he hefde On his incofan, ror lange ; Efne swa sweotole, Swa he on tha sunnan meg Eagum andweardum Onlocian. And hi eac ongit His ingethonce Leohtre and berhtre, Thonne se leoma sie Sunnan on sumera, Thonne swegles gim, Hador heofon-tungol, Hlutrost scineth. Forthem thes lichoman Leahtras and hefignes And tha untheawas, Eallunga ne magon Of mode ation Monna enegum, Rihtwisnesse. Theah nu rinca hwem, Thes lichoman, Leahtras and hefignes And untheawas Oft bysigen Monna mod-sefan, Mest and swithost Mid there yflan Oforgiotolnesse ; Mid gedwol-miste Dreorigne sefan Fortith mod foran Monna gehwelces, Thzt hit swa beohte ne mot 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 Blican and scinan, Swa hit wolde gif Hit geweald ahte. Theah bith sum corn Szdes gehealden Symle on there saule Sothfzstnesse, Thenden gadertang wunath Gast on lice. Thes szdes corn Bith simle aweaht Mid ascunga, Eac siththan, Mid goodre lare, Gif hit growan sceal. Hu meg enig man Andsware findan Thinga eniges, Thegen mid gesceade, Theah hine rinca hwilc Rihtwislice A®iter frigne, Gif he awuht nafath On his mod-sefan, Mycles ne lytles Rihtwisnesses, Ne geradscipes? Nis theah znig man That te ealles swa Thes geradscipes Swa bereafod sie, Thet he andswate Enige ne cunne Findan on ferhthe, Gif he frugnen bith. Forthem hit is riht spell, Thet us reahte gio, Eald uthwita Ure Platon ; He cweth thet te eghwile Ungemyndig Rihtwisnesse, Hine hrethe sceolde Eft gewendan Into sinum Modes gemynde: He meg siththan. On his run-cofan Rihtwisnesse Findan on ferhte, Feste gehydde Mid gedrzfnesse Dogora gehwilce, Modes sines, Mest and swithost; And mid hefinesse His lichoman ; And mid them bisgum, The on breostum styreth Mon on mode Mela gehwylce. The man that after right with care Will inwardly and deeply dive, So that none earthly thing may scare Nor him from such good seeking drive, First in himself he shall find out That which beyond he somewhile sought, Within his mind must search about Essays And leave behind each troublous thought ; 29 70 75 80 90 95 100 105 110 115 120 125 130 225 226 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. This at the soonest, as he may, Such care were harm to him and sin; Then let him haste and hide away To this alone, his Mind within. Say to this mind, that it may find What oftest now it seeks around, All in, and to, itself assign’d Every good that can be found ; He then will see that all he had In his mind’s chamber thought and done, Was evil long afore and bad, Clearly as he can see the sun: But his own mind he shall see there Lighter and brighter than the ray Of heaven’s star, the gem of air, The sun in clearest summer day. For that the body’s lusts and crimes And all its heaviness in kind Utterly may not any times Wipe out right wisdom from man’s mind : Though now in every man such wrong, Those lusts and crimes and fleshly weight, Worry the mind both loud and strong And make it half forget its state. And though the mist of lies may shade Man’s dreary thought that it be dull And be no more so bright array’d An if ’twere pure and powerful, Yet always is some seed-corn held Of sturdy truth within the soul, While flesh and ghost together weld, And make one fixt and gather’d whole. This seed-corn waxes evermore, By much asking quickened so, As well as by good wholesome lore, That it quickly learns to grow. KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 227 How may a man right answer find To anything ask’d well and fit, Unless he keenly store his mind That it have much or little wit ? Yet is there no man so bereaved Of knowledge, that he cannot bring Some answer well to be received If he be ask’d of anything. Wherefore it is a spell of right Which our own Plato, long of old, That ancient wise and worthy wight, To all of us most truly told; He said, that each who wisdom sought, Forgetful, should to Memory turn, And in the coffer of his thought Right-wisdom hidden would discern, Through all the drift of trouble there, And all this body’s heavy clay, And busy toil, and daily care Which stir the breasts of men alway. Alfred here, more in the wake of Boethius, becomes a Platonist, rather than a Christian. It is an old Antinomian contrivance to separate the soul from the deeds done in the body: but it will not do: body and soul are mated so together that each is respon- sible for the other. However, there are some great truths here hinted at: “hzeret profecto semen introrsum veri,” conscience is never quite extinguished; there are ruins of good even in the basest. The writer considers it almost an unfair advantage thus to annotate his own work, and therefore he often abstains from much that might be added in illustration: but, almost in self defence, he requests the reader not to imagine that Alfred is mis- interpreted or added to, even in such an expression as “the coffer of his thought,’—the original is run-cofan—thus also, “ Right- wisdom” is rihtwisnesse : and so, with many other like words. 228 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. XXIII. True Happiness. Felix qui potuit boni——Fontem visere lucidum: Sie thet la on eorthan ces thinges Geszlig mon, Gif he gesion mzge Thone hlutrestan Heofon-torhtan stream, )helne eweim Z£lces goodes! And of him selfum Thone sweartan mist, Modes thiostro 10 Meg aweorpan ! We sculon theah gita, Mid Godes fylste, Ealdum and Jeasum 15 Thinne ingethonc Betan bispellum ; Thet thu the bet mage Aredian to.rodorum Rihte stige ; 20 On thone ecan eard Ussa saula. Look! for on earth a happy man In everything is he, Who Heaven’s shining river can Good’s highborn well-spring see ; And of himself may scatter back His mind’s own mist of swarthy black. By God’s good help, we will as yet With spells of olden leaven Inform thy mind that thou mayest get To read the way to heaven ; The right way to that happy shore Our soul’s own country evermore. This is but a very small portion of the ode of Boethius, which details the story of Orpheus and Eurydice; Alfred has translated it, and probably into metre: but itis not given, as such, in Fox’s Boethius. We may here mention, that Alfred has omitted to metricize several little bits of Boethius :—but there is, after all, considerable difficulty in deciding where, in such Ossianic measures, “ Ealdum and leasum bispellum” are “the spells of olden leaven,” which perhaps were intentionally prose ends and verse begins. omitted.— XXIV. Tue Sour’s Henrirace. Sunt etenim penne volucres mihi, Que celsa conscendant poli: Ic hebbe fithru Fugle swiftran, Mid them ic fleogan meg Feor fram eorthan, Ofer heane hrof Heofones thisses. Ac ther ic nu moste, Mod, gefethran Thinne ferth-locan, Fethrum minum, 10 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Oththet thu meahte Thisne middan geard, 4Elc eorthlic thing, Eallunga forsion. Meahtes ofer rodorum Gereclice Fetherum lacan ; Feor up ofer Wolcnu windan, Whitan siththan ufan Ofer ealle. Meahtes eac faran Ofer them fyre, The fela geara for Lange betweox Lyfte and rodere ; Swa him zt frymthe, Feder getiode. Thu meahtest the siththan, Mid there sunnan, Faran betweox Othrum tunglum. Meahtest the full recen, On them rodere ufan, Siththan weorthan ; And thonne samtenges Zit them z)-cealdan, Anum steorran, Se yfmest is Eallra tungla ; Thone Saturnus Sund-buende hatath Under heofonum. He is se cealda Eall isig tungel, Yfemest wandrath, Ofer eallum ufan Othrum steorrum. Siththan thu thonne Thone upahafast, Forth ofer-farenne, Thu meaht feorsian. Thonne bist thu siththan Sona ofer uppan Rodere ryne swiftum. Gif thu riht ferest, Thu thone hehstan heofon Behindan letst. Thonne meaht thu siththe Sothes leohtes Habban thinne del, Thonan an cyning Rume ricsath, Ofer roderum up; - And under swa same, Eallra gesceafta Weorulde waldeth. Theat is wis cyning, Thet is se the waldeth, I have wings like a bird, and more swiftly can fly 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 Giond wer-thioda, 70 Ealra otbra Eorthan cyninga. Se mid his bridle, Ymbe bated hefth Ymbhwyrft ealne 75 Eorthan and heofones. He his gewald-lether Wel gemetgath, Se storeth 4, Thurh tha strongan'meaht, 80 Them hredwene Heofones and eorthan. Se an dema is, Gesteththig, Unawendendlic, 85 Wilitig and mere. Gif thu wyrfst on Wege rihtum, Up to them earde, Thet is ethele stow, 90 Theah thu hi nu geta Forgiten hebbe. Gif thu efre Eft ther an cymest, Thonne wilt thu secgan, 95 And sona cwethan, This is eallunga Min agen cyth, Eard and ethel. Ic wes zr hionan 100 Cumen and acenned, Thurh thisses cre{tgan meaht. Nylle ic zfre hionan Ut witan : Ac ic symle her, 105 Softe wille, Mid feder willan, Feste stondan. Gif the thonne efre Eft geweortheth, 110 Thzt thu wilt oththe most, Weorolde thiostro, Eft fandian, Thu meaht eathe gesion Unrihtwise 115 Eorthan cyningas, And tha ofermodan Othre rican, The this werige fole Wyrst tuciath ; 120 Thet he symle bioth Swithe earme, Unmehtige £lces thinges ; Emne tha ilean, 125 The this earme fole, Sume hwile nu, Swithost ondredeth. Far over this earth to the roof of the sky, And now must I feather thy fancies, O mind, To leave the mid earth and its earthlings behind. Stretch’d over the heavens, thou mayst with thy wings Sport in the clouds and look down on all things, Yea, far above Fire, that lieth betwixt The air and the sky, as the Father hath mixt. Thence with the sun to the stars thou shalt fly, Thereafter full quickly to float thro’ the sky To the lonely cold planet, which sea-dwellers call Saturn, on heaven the highest of all. 229 230 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. He is the icy cold star in the highest That wanders the farthest, and yet as thou fliest Higher, and farther, and up shalt thou rise Yea, to the top of the swift rushing skies! If thou dost rightly, e’en these shalt thou leave : And then of the true light thy share shalt receive, Where up over heaven, the Only King reigns, And under it all the world’s being sustains. This, the Wise King, this is He who is found To rule o’er the kings of all peoples around ; With his bridle hath bitted the heaven and earth, And guides the swift wain by his might driven forth. He is the One Judge unswervingly right, Unchanging in might and unsullied in light ; When to his dwelling place back thou dost roam, However forgotten, it still is thy home. If ever again thou shalt thitherward go, Soon wilt thou say, and be sure it is so, “ This is mine own country in every way, «The earth of my birth, and my heirdom for aye : “ Hence was I born, and came forth in my time « Thro’ the might of my Maker, the Artist sublime, “ Nor will I go out evermore but stand fast, «* At the will of my Father come hither at last.” And if it should aye be again that thou wilt Come back to the world in its darkness and guilt, Thou shalt easily see of these kings and these proud Who worst have down-trodden this woeridden crowd, That they too are wretched and woefully poor Unmighty to do anything anymore, These, ay even these, beneath whose dread yoke Now somewhile are trembling this woeridden folk. There is a good deal both of the poetic rapture and the philoso- KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 231 phic judgment in this ode: and Boethius, though enlarged upon, is pretty closely followed : Huc te si reducem referat via, Quam nance requiris immemor, Hee, dices, memini patria est mihi: Hine ortus hic sistam gradum. &. However, all the Godliness of the poem is exclusively Alfred’s : Boethius continually forgets the Christian in the philosopher. XXV. Or Evin Kuines. Quos vides sedere celso—Solii culmine reges. Geher nu an spell Be them ofermodum And thegnunga, And thes anwaldes 65 Unrihtwisum Eorthan cyningum : The we ymbe sprecath ; Gif him enig thara Tha her nu manegum 5 Ofhende wyrth, And mislicum Ic wat thet him thinceth Wedum wlite-beorhtum Thzt he thonne sie 70 Wundrum scinath ; Becropen on carcern, On heah-setlum, Oththe cothlice Hrofe getenge: 10 Racentan gereped. Golde gegerede, Ic gereccan meg, And gimcynnum ; Thet of ungemete 15 Utan ymbe standne f£lces thinges, Mid unrime Wiste and weda, _ Thegna and eorla, 15 Win-gedrinces, Tha bioth gehyrste And of swet-metann, Mid here-geatwum, Swithost weaxath 80 Hilde torhtum ; There wrennesse Sweordum and fetelum Wod-thrag micel, Swithe geglende ; 20 Sio swithe gedraefth And thegniath Sefan ingehygd Thrymme mycle Monna gehwelces : 85 le othrum ; Thonan mest cymeth And hi ealle him. Yfla ofermeta, Thonan mid thy thrymme 25 Unnetta saca. Threatiath gehwider, Thonne hi gebolgene weorthath Ymb-sittenda Him wyrth on breostuminne 90 Othra theoda ; Beswungen sefa on hrethre And se hlaford ne scrifth, Mid them swithan welme The them here waldeth, 30 Hat-heortnesse ; Freonde ne feonde, And hrethe siththan, Feore ne ehtum ; Unrotnesse 95 Ac he rethig-mod, Eac gerezpeth, Rest on gehwilcne, Hearde gehefted. Rethe hunde 35 Him siththan onginth Wuhta gelicost. Sum tohopa Bith to upabefen Swithe leogan. 100 Inne on mode, Thes gewinnes wraece For them anwalde, ‘Wilnath thet irre The him anra gehwile 40 Anes and othres. His tir-wina Him thet eall gehet To fultemath. His recelest, 105 Gif mon thonne wolde Rihtes ne scrifeth, Him awindan of Ic the sede er Thes cyne-gerelum,— 45 On thisse selfan bec, Clatha gehwilcne,— Thet sumes goodes And him thonne oftion Sidra gesceafta, 110 Thara thegnunga, Anlepra zle And thes anwaldes, A wilnode, The he her hefde ; 50 For his agenum Thonne meaht thu gesion Eald-gecynde. Thet he bith swithe gelic Unrihtwise _ 115 Sumum thara gumena, Eorthan cyningas ; The him geornost nu Ne magon efre thurhtion Mid thegnungum 55 Awuht goodes, Thringath ymbe utan. For them yfle, Gif hi wyrsa ne bith, The ic the zr sede. 120 Ne wene ic his na beteran. Nis thet nan wundor, Gif him thonne efre, Forthem hi willath hi, Unmendlinga, 60 Them untheawum, Weas geberede, Thet him wurde oftogen Thrymmes and weda, The ic the er nemde, Anra gehwelcum, 125 A undertheodan. 232 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. Sceal thonne nede nige stunde. Nearwe gebugan: Ther he wolde 4 To thara hlaforda Winnan onginnan, r Hefte dome, 130 And thonne on them gewinne, The he hine eallunga Thurhwunian ford 140 /Er underthiodde. Thonne nefde he Theat is wyrse get, Nane scylde ; Thet he winnan nyle Theah he oferwunnen Wid them anwalde, 135 Weorthan sceolde. Hear now a spell of the proud overbearing Kings of the earth, when unrighteous in mind : Wondrously bright tho’ the weeds they are wearing, High tho’ the seats where their pomp is enshrin’d, Goldclad and gemm’d and with hundreds roundstanding Thanes and great earls with their chain and their sword, All of them chieftains in battle commanding, Each in his rank doing suit to his lord : While in such splendour each rules like a savage, Every where threatning the people with strife, Lo, this lord heeds not, but leaves them to ravage Friends for their riches and foes for their life ! Ay, and himself, like a hound that is madden’d, Flies at and tears his poor people for sport, In his fierce mind too loftily gladden’d With the proud power his chieftains support. But, from his robes if a man should unwind him, Stripp’d of such coverings kingly and gay, Drive all his following thanes from behind him, And let his glory be taken away ; Then should ye see that he likens most truly Any of these who so slavishly throng Round him with homage demurely and duly, Neither more right than the rest, nor more wrong. If then to him it should chance in an hour All his bright weeds from his back be offstripped, All that we speak of, his pomp and his power, Glories unravell’d and garments unripp’d,— If these were shredded away, I am thinking, That it would seem to him surely as though He to a prison had crept, and was linking All that he had to the fetters of woe. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 233 Rightly I reckon that measureless pleasure, Eating and drinking and sweetmeats and clothes, Breed the mad waxing of lust by bad leisure Wrecking the mind where such wickedness grows : Thence cometh evil, and proud overbearing ; Quarrels and troubles arise from such sin, When in the breast hotheartness is tearing With its fierce lashes the soul that’s within. Afterward, sorrow imprisons and chains him; Then does he hope, but his hope is a lie : Then again, wrath against somebody pains him, Till he has recklessly doom’d him to die. In this same book before I was speaking, Everything living is wishing some good But the bad kings of the earth, who are wreaking Nothing but ill, as is fitting they should. That is no wonder, for slaves very willing Are they to sins,—as I told thee before,— And to those lords whose chains they are filling Straitly and strictly must bend evermore : This is yet worse, they will not be winning Standing-room even against such ill might ; Still, if they will, they struggle unsinning, Tho’ they should seem overthrown in the fight. A striking picture of a tyrannical lord paramount surrounded by his feudal barons and princes. It is an old legend in the life of Alfred that he began his reign rather too roughly, insomuch that St Neot rebuked him for harshness: whereupon the king repented : in this view it is a fine trait to see the great monarch in the zenith of his power utterly denouncing evil kings: it is like David’s penitence : a witness, indeed, against his past sin, but far more strenuously testifying his present holiness. 30 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. XXVI. Or Circe AND HER COMPANY. Vela Neritii ducis, —Et vagas pelago rates Ic the meg eathe, Ealdum and leasum Spellum and reccan Sprece gelicne Efne thisse ilcan, The wit ymsprecath. Hit geszlde gio, On sume tide, Thet Aulixes Under-hefde Them Casere Cyne-ricu twa. He wes Thracia Thioda aldor; And Retie Rices hirde. Wes his frea-drihtnes Fole-cuth nama Agamemnon ; Se ealles weold Creca rices. Cuth wes wide, Thet on tha tide, Troiana gewin Wearth under wolenum. For wiges-heard, Creca drihten, Camp-sted secan. Aulixes mid An hund scipa Ledde ofer lagu-stream, Set longe ther,— Tyn winter full. Tha sio tid gelomp, Thet hi thet rice Gereht hefdon, Diore gecepte Drihten Creca, Troia burh, Tilum gesithum ; Tha tha Aulixes Leafe hefde, Thracia cyning, Thezt he thonan moste, He let him behindan, Hyrnde ciolas, Nigon and hund nigontig. Nenige thonan Mere-hengesta Ma thonne enne, Ferede on fifel stream, Famig-bordon ; Thrierethre ceol ; Thet bith thet meste Creciscra scipa. Tha wearth ceald weder, Stearc-storma gelac: Stunede sio brune Yth with othre, Ut feor adraf On wendel-sz, Wigendra scola, Up on thet igland, Ther Apollines Dohtor wunode, Deg-rimes worn. Wes se Apollinus /Etheles cynnes, Tobes eafora, Se wes gio cyning ; Se licette Litlum and miclum, Gumena gehwyleum, Thet he God were, Hehst and halgost. Swa se hlaford tha, Theat dysige fole 15 20° 30 40 45 55 60 65 70 75 On gedwolan ledde, Oththet him gelyfde Leoda unrim; Forthem he wes mid rihte Rices hirde, Hiora cyne-cynnes. Cuth is wide Thet on thatide, Theoda eghwile hefdon Herora hlaford For thone hehstan God ; And weorthedon, Swa swa wuldres cyning ; Gif he to them rice wes On rihte boren. Wes thes lobes feeder God eac swa he. Saturnus thone Sund-buende Heton heietha bearn : Hefdon tha megtha, fElene efter othrum, For ecne God. Sceolde eac wesan Apollines, Doothr dior-boren, Dysiges folces, Gum-rinca gyden; Cuthe galdra fela Drifan drycreftas. Hio gedwolan fylgde Manna swithost, Manegra thioda. Cyninges dohtor Sio Circe wes Haten for herigum, Hio ricsode On them iglonde, The Aulixes Cyning Thracia, Com ane to Ceole lithan. Cuth wees sona Eallre there menige The hire mid wunode, Ethelinges sith. Hio mid ungemete Lissum lufode Lith-monna frea; And he eac swa same, Ealle megne, Efne swa swithe, Hi on sefan Iufode; Thet he to his earde fEnige nyste Modes mynlan, Ofer mzgth giunge ; Ac he mid them wife Wunode siththan ; Oththet him ne meahte Monna enig Thegna sinra Ther mid wesan; Ac hi for them yrmthum Eardes lyste, Mynton forletan Leofne hlaford. Tha ongunnion werean Wer-theoda spell; Sedon thet hio sceolde, Mid hire scinlace, Beornas forbredan ; And mid balo-creftum ‘Wrathum weorpan, On wildra lic Cyninges thegnas: Cyspan siththan, 80 85 90 100 105 110 115 120 130 135 140 145 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 235 And mid racentan eac, 155 Long lyfdon Repan menigne. Leasum spellum, Sume hi to wulfum wurdou, Wisson hweethre, Ne meahton thonne word forth- Thet thet gewit ne meg 200 bringan ; Mod onwendan,— Ac hio thrag-mzium Monna enig Thioton ongunnon. 160 Mid drycraeftum : Sume weron eaforas, Theah hio gedon meahte A grymetedon, Thaet thalichoman 205 Thonne hi sares hwet Lange thrage Siofian scioldon. Onwend wurdon, Tha the leon waron 165 Is thaet wundorlic Ongunnon lathlice Maegen craeft micel, Yrrenga rynan, Moda gehwilces 210 Thonne hi sceoldon Ofer lichoman Clipian for corthre. Laenne and saenne ! Cnihtas wurdon, 170 Swylcum and swyleum, Ealde ge giunge, Thu meaht sweotole ongitan, Ealle forhwerfde Thaet thaes lichoman 215 To sumum diore, Listas and craeftas, Swelcum he eror, Of thaem mode cumath On his lif-dagum, 175 Monna gehwylcum, Gelicost wes ; fEnlepra aele, Butan tham cyninge, Thu meaht eathe ongitan 220 The sio cwen lufode. Thaet te ma dereth Nolde thara othra, Monna gehwylcum Enig onbitan 180 Modes untheaw, Mennisces metes ; Thonne mettrymnes Ac hi ma lufedon Lznes lichoman. 225 Diora drohtath, Ne thearf leoda nan Swa hit gedefe ne wes, Wenan there wyrde, Nefdon hi mare 185 Thet thet werige flesc Monnum gelices, Thaet mod Eorth-buendum, Monna eniges, 230 Thonne ingethone Eallunga to him Hefde anra gehwyle /Efre maeg onwendan; His agen mod ; 190 Ac tha untheawas That waes theah swithe #Elces modes. Sorgum gebunden, And thaet ingethonc 235 For them earfothum /Elces monnes, The him onszton. Thone lichoman lit Hwet tha dysegan men, 195 Thider hit wile. The thysum drycreftum From old and leasing spells right easily Can I to thee tell out a tale like that Whereof we lately spake——It chanced of yore That, on a time, Ulysses held two kingdoms Under his Czesar: he was prince of Thrace, And ruled Neritia as its shepherd king. His head-lord’s folk-known name was Agamemnon Who wielded all the greatness of the Greeks. At that time did betide the Trojan war Under the clouds well known: the warrior chief, Lord of the Greeks, went forth to seek the battle. Ulysses with him led an hundred ships Over the sea, and sat ten winters there. When the time happen’d that this Grecian lord With his brave peers had overthrown that kingdom The dear-bought burgh of Troy,—Ulysses then The king of Thracia, when his lord gave leave That he might hie him thence, he left behind Of all his horn’d sea-keels ninety and nine. 236 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Thence, none of those sea horses, saving one, Travell’d with foamy sides the fearful sea ; Save one, a keel with threefold banks of oars, Greatest of Grecian ships. Then was cold weather, A gathering of stark storms ; against each other Stunn’d the brown billows, and out-drove afar On the Mid-winding sea the shoal of warriors, Up to that island, where, unnumbered days, The daughter of Apollo wont to dwell. This same Apollo was of highborn kin, Offspring of Jove, who was a king of yore. He schemed so, as to seem to every one, Little and great, that he must be a God, Highest and holiest! So the silly folk This lord did lead thro’ lying ways, until An untold flock of men believed in him: For that he was with right the kingdom’s chief And of their kingly kin. Well is it known That in those times each people held its lord As for the God most high, and worshipp’d him For King of Glory,—if with right of rule He to the kingdom of his rule was born. The father of this Jove was also a God, Even as he: him the sea-dwellers call Saturn: the sons of men counted these kin One after other as the ever Good! Thus also would Apollo’s high born daughter Be held a goddess by the senseless folk, Known for her druid-craft, and witcheries. Most of all other men she followed lies ; And this king’s-daughter, Circe was she hight, Circe for Church, as having many with her. She ruled this isle, whereto the Thracian king Ulysses, with one ship, happened to sail. Soon was it known, to all the many there That dwelt with her, the coming of the prince ; She without measure loved this sailor-chief, And he alike with all his soul loved her, So that he knew not any love more dee Even of home, than as he loved this maiden ; KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 237 But lived with her for wife long afterward ; Until not one of all his thanes would stay, But, full of anguish for their country’s love, They meant to leave behind their well loved lord. Then on the men she ’gan to work her spells ; They said, she should by those her sorceries Make the men prone like beasts : and savagely Into the bodies of wild beasts she warp’d By baleful craft the followers of the King. Then did she tie them up, and bind with chains. Some were as wolves; and might not then bring forth A word of speech ; but now and then would howl. Some were as boars; and grunted ever and aye, When they should sigh a whit for sorest grief. They that were lions, loathly would begin To roar with rage when they would call their comrades The knights, both old and young, into some beast Were chang’d as each aforetime was most like In his life’s day : but only not the king, Whom the queen loved: the others, none would bite The meat of men, but loved the haunt of beasts, As was ill fitting ; they to men earth-dwellers Had no more likeness left than their own thought. Each still had his own mind, tho’ straitly bound With sorrow for the toils that him beset. For e’en the foolish men who long believed Thro’ leasing spells in all this druidcraft, Knew natheless that no man might change the wit, Or mind, by such bad craft: tho’ they might make That for long while the bodies should be changed. Wonderful is that great and mighty art Of every mind above the mean dull body. By such and such things thou mayest clearly know That from the mind come one by one to each And every man his body’s lusts and powers. Easily mayst thou see that every man Is by his wickedness of mind more harm’d Than by the weakness of his failing body. Nor need a man ween ever such weird-chance, As that the wearisome and wicked flesh 238 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Could change to it the mind of any man, But the bad lusts of each mind, and the thought Of each man, lead his body where they will. A few things require a word or two of comment in this poem. “The tale whereof we lately spake,” in Alfred’s original intro- duction, probably was that of Orpheus and Eurydice, omitted as unmetrical from our 23rd metre. A Ceesar, a Kaisar, or perhaps a Czar, (tsar in Persian) means to a Northman a headman, or king paramount, as was Agamemnon. ‘Rices-herden’ may fairly be rendered shepherd king: so also ‘hyrnde ciolas,’ horned keels ; or, as we should less literally put it, beaked prows. The Fifel- stream, is probably the archipelago : as the Wendel-sz, or winding sea, isthe Mediterranean. Take notice how clearly Alfred deduces idolatry from king and heroworship : not a word of all this whole- some homilizing occursin Boethius. He calls sorceries, ‘drycraeftas’ druidcrafts. He plays upon the word Circe,—which also means in Anglo-Saxon a kirk or church, as accounting for her many followers. Cnihtas is here rendered knights; which may not be strictly accurate; it is something like making a Childe, a child; however it conveys the sense as well as the sound better than ‘men’ or ‘followers. How finely Alfred drains the moral of these false enchantments, andasserts the mind’s supremacy. XXVII. Or ToLerance. Quid tantos juvat excitare motus,—Et propria fatum sollicitare manu ? Hwy ge zfre scylen After mon-cynne, Unriht-fioungum Geond thisne middan geard, Eower mod drefan, Egeslic hunta ! Swa awa mere flodes Abit on wathe. Ytha hrerath 5 Nyle he enig sweth Is-calde se, : Efre forletan, Wecggath for winde? fir he getede Hwy othwite ge Theat he hwile zr 30 Wyrde eowre, /Efter spyrede. Thet hio geweald nafath ? 10 Is thet earmlic thing, Hwy ge thes deathes Theat his gebi The eow Drihten gesceop Buneanee ee Gebidan ne magon, Ungeselige men 35 Bitres gecyndes ; Hine er willath Nu he eow elce deg 15 Foran tosciotan. Onet toweard ? 4 Swa swa fugla cyn, x iy magon ge gesion Oththe wildu dior, at he symle spyreth Tha winnath betwuh 40 Etter eghwelcum ZEghwyle wolde ' Eorthan tudre, 20 Other acwellan. Diorum and fuglum ? Ac thet is unriht, Death eac swa same £ghwelcum men. ? KING ALFRED'S POEMS. 239 Theat he otherne, 45 That is thet he lufige Inwit-thoncum, Godra gehwilene, Fioge on feerthe, Swa he geornost mage ; Swa swa fugl oththe dior. Mildsige yflum, Ac thet were fihtost, Swa we [zr] sprecon. 60 Thet te rinca gehwyle 50 He sceal thone monnan Othrum gulde Mode Infian, Edlean on riht, And his untheawas Weorc be geweorhtum Ealle hatian, Weoruld-buendum, And ofsnithan, 65 Thinga gehwilces : 55 Swa he swithost mage. Why ever your mind will ye trouble with hate, As the icy-cold sea when it rears Its billows waked-up by the wind ? Why make such an out-cry against your weird fate, That she cannot keep you from fears, Nor save you from sorrows assign’d ? Why cannot ye now the due bitterness bide Of death, (as the Lord hath decreed,) That hurries to-you-ward each day ? Now can ye not see him still tracking beside Each thing that is born of earth’s breed, The birds and the beasts, as ye may ? Death also for man in like manner tracks out, Dread hunter! this middle earth through, And bites as he runs evermore ; He will not forsake, when he searches about, His prey, till he catches it too And finds what he sought for before. A sad thing it is, if we cannot await His bidding, poor burghers of earth, But wilfully strive with him still; [hate Like birds or wild beasts, when they haste in their To rage with each other in wrath And wrestle to quell and to kill. But he that would hate in the deep of his heart Another, unrighteous is he, And worse than a bird or a beast ; But blest is the man who would freely impart To a brother, whoever he be, Full worth for his work at the least : 240 A beautiful improvement and enlargment upon the 12 lines of KING ALFRED’S POEMS. That is, he should love all the good at his best, And tenderly think of the bad, As we have spoken before ; The Man he should love with his soul—for the rest His sins he should hate, and be glad To see them cut off evermore. Boethius : who however ends with a very fair apothegm, Dilige jure bonos, et miseresce malis : yet, how much better is Alfred’s truly Christian sentiment, Hate the sin, but love the sinner ! XXVIII. Or HeEaventy Wonbers. Si quis Arcturi sidera nescit——Propinqua summo cardine labi, Hwa is on eorthan nu Unlerdra, The ne wundrige Wolcna fereldes, Rodres swifto, Ryne tunglo; Hu hy elce dege Utan ymbhwerfeth Eallne middan geard ? Hwa is mon-cynnes, Thet ne wundrie ymb Thas wlitegan tungl ; Hu hy sume habbath Swithe micle Scyrtran ymbehwearft; Sume scrithath leng Utan ymb eall this? An thara tungla Woruld-men hatath Wenes thisla, Tha habbath scyrtran Scrithe and fereld, Ymbhwerft lassan Thonne othru tungl ; Forthem hi there eaxe Utan ymbhwerfeth, Thonne north-ende Nean ymbcerreth. On there ilean Eaxe hwerfeth Eall ruma rodor ; Recene scritheth, Suth-heald swifeth Swift untiorig. Hwa is on worulde, Thet ne wafige, Buton tha ane, The hit zr wisson, Thet menig tungul Maran ymbhwyrft Hafath on heofonum ; Sume hwile eft, Lesse gelithath, a 10 20 25 35 40 Tha the lacath ymb eaxe ende. Oththe micle mare Geferath tha hire mid ore, Ymbe thearle thregeth. Thara is gehaten Saturnus sum, Se hefth ymb thritig Winter-gerimes Weoruld ymbcyrred. Bootes eac Beorhte scineth, Other steorra cymeth Efne swa same, On thone ilean stede, Eft ymb thritig Gear-gerimes, Ther hi gio tha wes, Hwa is weoruld-monna, Thet ne wafige Hu sume steorran Oth tha sz farath, Under mere-streamas Thes the monnum thincth? Swa eac sume wenath, Thezt sio sunne do. Ac se wena nis Wuhte the sothra. Ne bith hio on zfen, Ne on er-morgen, Mere-streame tha near, The on midne deg ; And theah monnum thyncth, Thet hio on mere gange, Under se swife, Thonne hio on setl glideth. Hwa is on weorulde, Thet ne wundrige Fulles monan, Thonne he feringa Wyrth under wolenum Wlites bereafad, Betheaht mid thiostrum ? Hwa thegna ne mege Eac wafian Elces stiorran ? Hwy hine scinen Scirum wederum Befora there sunnan, Swa hi symle doth Middel nihtum, With thone monan foran, Hadrum heofone ? Hwet nu heletha fela 50 a a 60 70 80 85 90 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. ‘ 241 Swelces and swelces Thet hit seldnor gesihth Swithe wundrath ; Swithor wundriath : And ne wundriath Theah hit wisra gehwaem Theat te wuhta gehwilc, 100 Wundor thince Men and netenu, On his mod-sefan 135 + Micelne habbath Micle lesse. And unnetne Under-statholfeste Andan betweoh him, Ealneg wenath, Swithe singalne ? 105 Thet thet eald gesceaft Is thet sellic thincg /Efre ne were,— 140 Thet hi ne wundriath Thext hi seldon gesioth; Hu hit on wolenum oft Ac swithor giet, Hearle thunrath ; Weoruld-men wenath Hrag-mzlum eft 110 Thzt hit weas come, Anforleteth ? Niwan geselde; 145 And eac swa same, Gif hiora nengum, Yth with lande Hwyle er ne otheowde. Ealneg winneth ; Is thet earmlic thine ! Wind with wege. 115 Ac gif hiora enig Hwa wundratp thes? A&ire weortheth, 150 Oththe othres eft, To thon firwet-georn. Hwy thet is mege Thet he fela onginth Weorthan of wetere? Leornian lista, Wlite torht scineth 120 And him lifes weard Sunna swegle hat ; Of mode abrit 155 Sona gecerreth Thet micle dysig, Is mere enlic Thet hit oferwrigen mid On his agen gecynd, Wunode lange ; Weortheth to wetre. 125 Thonne ic thet geare, Ne thincth thet wundor micel, Thet hine wundriath 160 Monna enegum, Meniges thinges, Thet he maege geseon The monnum nu Dogora gehwilce ; Wertho and wunder Ac theet dysie fole 103 Wel hweer thynceth. Who now is so unlearned among people of the world, As not to wonder at the clouds upon the skies unfurl’d, The swiftly rolling heavens and the racing of the stars, How day by day they run around this mid earth in their cars: Who then of men doth wonder not these glittering stars to see, How some of them round-wafted in shorter circles be, And some are wanderers away, and far beyond them all, And one there is which worldly men the Wain with shafts do call. These travel shorter than the rest, with less of sweep and swerve They turn about the axle, and near the north-end curve, On that same axle quickly round turns all the roomy sky, And swiftly bending to the south untiring doth it fly. Then who is there in all the world that is not well amazed (Save those alone who knew before the stars on which they gazed) That many some-whiles on the heavens make a longer bend, And some-whiles less, and sport about the axle of the End: Or else much more they wander quickly round the midway spheres Whereof is one, hight Saturn, who revolves iri thirty years, Bootes also, shining bright, another star that takes His place again in thirty years of circle that he makes. Essays 242 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Who is there then of worldly men, to whom it doth not seem A thing most strange that many stars go under the sea-stream, As likewise some may falsely ween that also doth the sun, But neither is this likeness true, nor yet that other one. The sun is not at eventide, nor morning’s early light Nearer to the sea-stream than in the mid-day bright, And yet it seems to men she goes her wandering sphere to lave When to her setting down she glides beneath the watery wave. Who is there in the world will wonder not to gaze Upon the full-moon on his way, bereft of all his rays, When suddenly beneath the clouds he is beclad with black ? And who of men can marvel not at every planet’s track ? Why shine they not before the sun in weather clear and bright, As ever on the stilly sky before the moon at night ? And how is it that many men much wondering at such Yet wonder not that men and beasts each other hate so much ? Right strange it is they marvel not how in the welkin oft It thunders terribly, and then eftsoons is calm aloft, So also stoutly dashes the wave against the shore And fierce against the wave the wind uprises with a roar ! Who thinks of this? or yet again, how ice of water grows, And how in beauty on the sky the bright sun hotly glows, Then soon to water, its own kin, the pure ice runs away ; But men think that no wonder, when they see it every day. This senseless folk is far more struck at things it seldom sees, Though every wise man in his mind will wonder less at these ; Unstalworth minds will always think that what they seldom see Never of old was made before, and hardly now can be. But further yet, the worldly men by chance will think it came, A new thing, if to none of them had ever happ’d the same ; Silly enough !—yet if of them a man begins to thirst For learning many lists and lores that he had scorn’d at first, And if for him the Word of life uncovers from his wit The cloke of that much foolishness which overshadow’d it, Then well of old I wot he would not wonder at things so Which now to men most worthily and wonderfully show. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 243 To teach his ignorant people all that he himself had learnt, was ever our Great King’s aim: and so in these poems, likely enough then soon to become the ballads of the poor sung from village to village by the welcome wandering minstrels, Alfred has sought to include a little piece of every kind of knowledge. Here then we have the astronomy of those times, aod meteorology, and other daily unnoticed wonderstouched upon. The ‘ northende,’ the ‘eaxe’ of the ‘ruma’ sky, and all the wandering stars round it are the subject of this verse; which ends as always with a recognition of the gracious Word of Life: and the same sort of thing is still further enlarged upon in our next metre. XXIX. Or THE Stars AND SEASONS. Si vis celsi jura tonantis, —-Pura sollers cernere mente. Git thu nu wilnige Weoruld-Drihtnes And eft zfter sunnan, On setl glideth, Heane anwald West under weorulde. 55 Hlutre mode Wer-thioda his Ongitan giorne ; 5 Noman onwendath, Gemal-megene Thonne niht cymeth; Heofones tunglu ; Hatath hine ealle Hu hi him healdath betwuh /Efen-stiorra. 60 Sibbe singale, Se bith there sunnan swiftra, Dydon swa lange. 10 Siththan hi on set] gewitath, Swa hi gewenede Ofirneth : Wuldres ealdor, Thet is ethele tungol,— Et frum-sceafte, Oth thet he be eastan weortheth, Thzt sio fyrene mot Eldum othewed, 66 Sun ne gesecan 15 zr thonne sunne. Snaw cealdes weg, . : Monna gemero. o Hwet tha meran tungl habbath, 70 Auther othres rene ‘2thele tungol— A ne gehrineth, 20 Emne gedeled fir tham thet other Deg and nihte, Ofgewiteth. Drihtnes meaktum. Ne huru se steorra Sunnes and mona, 75 Gestigan wile Swithe gethwere ; West-dzl wolcna, 25 Swa him et frymthe, Thone wise men Feder getiohhode. Ursa nemnath. Ne thearft thu no wenan Ealle stiorran Thaet tha wlitegan tungl 80 Sigath efter sunnan, Thaes theowdomes Samod mid rodere, 30 Athroten weorthe Under eorthan grund. Er domes daege. He ana stent. Deth siththan ymbe Nis thet nan wundor ; Moncynnes fruma, oe. 80) He is wundrum fest Swa him gemet thinceth,—— Upende neah 35 Forthon hi he healfe Eaxe thes roderes. Heofones thisses . Thonne is an steorra, On ane ne let Ofer othre beorht; fi |mihtig God, 96 Cymeth eastan up Thy laes hi othra fordyden Air thonne sunne; 40 /thela gesceafta, Thone monna bearn, Ac se eac God Morgen-stiorra hatath, Kalle gemetgath Under heofonum : Sida gesceafta, 9 Forthem he helethum deg Softa gethwerath. Bodath efter burgum ; 45 Hwilum thet drige Brengeth efter Drift thone wetan, Swegeltorht sunne, Hwylum hi gemengeth, Samad eallum deg. Metodes crefte, 100 Is se forrynel Cile with hzto, Feger and sciene ; 50 Hwilum cerreth eft Cymeth eastan up Aétror sunnan ; On up rodor, 41 beorhta leg. 244 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Leoht lyfte, 105 Siteth self cyning B Ligeth him behindan And thios side gesceaft Hefig hrusan del ; Thenath and thiowath,. Theah hit hwilan er He thone anwaldeth Eorthe sio cealde Them geweltlethrum,— 155 On inna hire 110 Weoruld gesceafta. Heold and hydde, Nis thet nan wundor, Haliges meahtum. He is weroda God, Be thes cyninges gebode, Cyning and Drihten Cymeth geara gehwem, Cwucera gehwelces ; 160 Eorthe bringeth 115 JEwelm and fruma fEghwyle tudor: Fallra gesceafta ; And se hata sumor, Wyrhta and sceppend Heletha bearnum, Weorulde thisse ; Geara gehwilce, Wisdom and & 165 Giereth and drigeth 120 Woruld-buendra. Geond sidne grund, Ealle gesceafta Sed and bleda: On herendo: Herfest to honda Hio nane ne sendath Her buendum, Thet eft cumath. 170 Ripa receth. 125 Gif he swa gesteththig Ren efter them, Ne statholade Swylce hagal and snaw, Ealle gesceafta, Hrusan leccath, Eghwylc hiora On wintres tid,— Wrathe tostencte 175 Weder unhiore. 130 Weorthan sceolden; For them eorthe onfehth ZEghwyile hiora Eallum sedum, Ealle to nauhte Gedeth thet hi growath. Weorthan sceoldon, Geara gehwilce, Wrathe toslopena. 180 On lencten tid, 135 Theah tha ane lufe Leaf up spryttath. Falle gesceafta Ac se milda metod, Heofones and eorthan Monna bearnum, Hebben gemene, On eorthan fet Thet hi thiowien 185 Eall thet te groweth 140 Swilcum thiod-fruman, Westmas on weorolde ; And fegniath thet Wel forthbrengeth hit, Hiora fader waldeth. Thonne he wile, Nis thet uan wundor; Hefona waldend : Forthem wuhta nan 190 And eowath eft 145 /Efre ne meahte Eorth-buendum; Elles wunian ; Nimth thonne he wile Gif hi eall megene Nergende God. Hiora ord-fruman And thet hehste good Ne thiowoden, On heah setle 150 Theodne merum! co If now thou art willing the lord of the world His highness and greatness clearsighted to see, Behold the huge host of the heavens unfurl'd How calmly at peace with each other they be! At the first forming the Glorified Prince Order’d it so that the sun should not turn Nigh to the bounds of the moon ever since Nor the cold path of the snow circle burn. Nay, the high stars never cross on the skies Ere that another has hurried away ; Nor to the westward will ever uprise Ursa the star,—so witting men say. All of the stars set after the sun Under the ground of the earth with the sky: That is no wonder; for only this one, The axle, stands fastly and firmly on high. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 245 Again, there’s a star more bright than them all, He comes from the east before the sun’s birth, The star of the morning,—thus him ever call Under the heavens the children of earth. For that he bodes day’s-dawn to men’s homes After him bringing the sun in his train, Fair from the east this forerunner comes And glides to the west all shining again. People rename him at night in the west, Star of the evening then is he hight, And when the setting sun goes to her rest, He races her down more swift than the light. Still he outruns her, until he appears Again in the east, forerunning the sun, A glorious star, that equally clears The day and the night, ere his racing be run. Thro’ the Lord’s power, the sun and the moon Rule as at first by the Father’s decree ; And think not thou these bright shiners will soon Weary of serfdom till domesday shall be : Then shall the Maker of man at his will Do with them all that is right by and bye: Meanwhile the Good and Almighty one still Setteth not both on one half of the sky, Lest they should other brave beings unmake ; But, evergood, He still suffers it not ; Somewhiles the dry with the water will slake, Somewhiles will mingle the cold with the hot. Yea, by His skill, otherwiles will upsoar Into the sky fire airily-form’d, Leaving behind it the cold heavy ore Which by the Holy One’s might it had warm’d. Bv the King’s bidding it cometh each year Earth in the summertime bringeth forth fruit, Ripens and dries for the soildwellers here _[root. The seed, and the sheaf, and the blade, and the 246 Very few words in these literally rendered metres are not pure unlatinized English,—the same as used by Alfred: even to fore- runner, ‘ Forrynel, ‘ wintres-tid,’ and ‘lencten-tid’ and ‘ thios side gesceaft thenath and thiowath,’ &c, and ‘ this wide handiwork is KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Afterward rain cometh, hailing and snow, Wintertide weather that wetteth the world, Hence the earth quickens the seeds that they grow And in the lententide leaves are uncurl'd. So the Mild Maker for children of men Feeds in the earth each fruit to increase, Wielder of heaven ! he brings it forth then ; Nourishing God !—or makes it to cease. He, Highest Good, sits on his high seat Self-king of all, and reins evermore This his wide handiwork, made (as is meet) His thane and his theow to serve and adore. That is no wonder, for he is The King, Lord God of hosts, each living soul’s awe, The source and the spring of each being and thing, All the world’s maker and wisdom and law. Everything made,—on His errands they go, None that he sendeth may ever turn back ; Had he not stablished and settled it so All had been ruin and fallen to rack ; Even to nought would have come at the last : All that is made would have melted away : But in both heaven and earth, true and fast, All have one love such a lord to obey, And are full fain that their Father should reign ; That is no wonder, for else should each thing Never have life, if they did not remain True to their Maker, man’s glorious King. his thane and his theow’; &c. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. XXX. Or tue True Sun. Puro clarum lumine Phoebum——Melliflui canit oris Homerus : Omerus wes East mid Grecum, On them leodscipe, Leotha creftgast ; Firgilies 5 Freond and lareow, Them meran sceope Magistra betst, Hwet se Omerus Oft and gelome 10 There sunnan wlite Swithe herede; Ethelo creftas, Oft and gelome, Leothum and spellum, 15 Leodum reahte. Ne meg hio theah gescinan, Theah hio sie scir and beorht, Abwergen neah Ealle gesceafta; Ne furthum tha gesceafta The hio gescinan meg Endemes ne meg Ealle geondlihtan Innan and uian. Ac se aelmihtega Waldend and wyrhta Weorulde gesceafta, His agen weore Eall geondwliteth, Endemes thurhsyhth Ealle gesceafta. Daeth is sio sothe Sunne mid rihte be thaem We magon singan Swyle butan lease. 20 25 30 35 247 Homer, among the Eastern Greeks, was erst The best of bards in all that country-side ; And he was Virgil’s friend aud teacher first, To that great minstrel master well allied. And Homer often greatly praised the sun, Her highborn worth, her skilfulness most true ; Often by song and story many a one He to the people sang her praises due. Yet can she not shine out, tho’ clear and bright, Everywhere near to every thing all ways, Nor further, can she shed an equal light Inside and out on all that meet her rays. But the Almighty Lord of worldly things, Wielder and Worker, brightly shines above His own good workmanship, and round all flings An equal blaze of skilfulness and love ! That is the true Sun, whom we rightly may Sing without leasing as the Lord of Day. Alfred is here commonly accused of an anachronism: but really without any cause. Was not Homer in spirit the friend and teacher of the Roman Epic Poet ? if the Iliad had never existed, should we ever have heard of the Aineid !—No :—let us vindicate 248 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. the self-taught Anglo-Saxon even here ; and not cease further to admire how he brings all his knowledge to the footstool of his God.— XXXI. Or Man’s Upricutness. Hwet thu meaht ongitan, Gif his the geman lyst, Thet te mislice Manega wuhta Geond eorthan farath 5 Ungelice . Habbath blioh and faerbu, Ungelice And maeg-wlitas. Manegra cynna 10 Cuth and uncuth, Creopath and scinath Eall lichoma. Eorthan getenge, Nabbath hi aet fithrum fultum, 15 Ne magon hi mid fotum gangan, Eorthan brucan, Swa him eaden waes. Sume fotum twam Foldan peththath, 20 Sume fier-fete ; Sume fleogende Windeth under wolenum. Yet more, thou mayst know, If it list thee to mind, That many things go Over earth in their kind, Unlike to the view In shape as in hue. Known or unknown Some forms of them all On earth lying prone Must creep and must crawl ; By feathers help’d not, Nor walking with feet, As it is their lot Earth they must eat. Twofooted these, Fourfooted those, Each one with ease Its going wellknows, Some flying high Under the sky. Bith theah wuhta gehwile Onhnigen to hrusan ; 25 Hnipath of dune, On weoruld wliteth ; ‘Wilnath to eorthan; Sume ned-thearfe, Sume neod-fraece. 30 Man ana gaeth, Metodes gesceafta, Mid his andwlitan Up on gerihte. Mid thy is getacnod, 35 Thaet his treowa sceal, And his mod-gethonc, Ma up thonne nither Habban to heofonum. Thy les he his hige wende 40 Nither swa thaer nyten. Nis thaet gedafenlic Thaet se mod-sefa Monna aeniges Nither-heald wese, 45 And thaet neb upweard. Yet to this earth Is everything bound, Bowed from its birth Down to the ground, Looking on clay And leaning to dust, Some as they may And some as they must. Man alone goes Of all things upright,— Whereby he shows That his mind and his might Ever should rise Up to the skies. Unless like the beast His mind is intent Downwards to feast,— It cannot be meant That any man So far should sink Upwards to scan Yet—downwards to think! KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 249 This ends the list of the metrical paraphrases of Boethius, as given by King Alfred. A few of the odes were omitted by him,— probably from want of leisure to set them to music: but in the prose version of Boethius we shall probably find all such deficien- cies supplied. Meanwhile, to make an end. The writer is more humbly aware than the severest possible critic would wish to make him, how little light he, for his part, has been able to throw upon Anglo-Saxon Metre in general. The fact seems to him to be, that there must have been supplied a running harp accompaniment which, with vocal adlibita also, made up the rhythm and possibly now and then the echoing rhyme, of the words as downwritten. Take any modern oratorio, and judge how little we can guess its melodies from the mere words. There would be naturally very little to guide us in words alone, if we remember that poetry in those early times of our tongue was far more the harper’s craft than the scribe’s. At the same time the present writer has so varied his measures (more often than Boethius) that, even be it but by chance, he may have lighted now and then on some appro- ximation in English to the ancient poetry of the Anglo-Saxons. KING ALFRED’S PARLIAMENT AT SHIFFORD, A METRICAL FRAGMENT FROM THE ANGLO-SAXON. * At Shifford many thanes were set ; There book-learned bishops met, Earls and knights, all awsome men, And Alfric, wise in lawsome ken: * We have to add the interesting fragment here appended : the authorship is disputable ; but there is no doubt that it is a genuine echo of the words of Alfred, especially the latter part, the beautiful pathos of which, as addressed 39 the dying Alfred to his son and successor 3 Essa 8 250 KING ALFRED'S POEMS. There too England’s own darling, England’s shepherd, England's king, Alfred! them he truly taught To live in duty as they ought. Alfred, England’s king and clerk, Well he loved God’s holy work : Wise was he and choice in speech, First of England skill’d to teach. Thus quoth Alfred, England’s love, “ Would ye live for God above ? “ Would ye long that He may show “ Wiselike things for you to know, “ That you may world’s worship gain, « And your souls to Christ attain?” Wise the sayings Alfred said ; “ Christ the Lord I bid thee dread ; “ Meekly, O mine own dear friend, « Love and like him without end; “ He is Lord of life and love, « Blest all other bliss above, « He is Man, our Father true, « And a meek mild Master too ; “ Yea, our brother; yea, our king; “‘ Wise and rich in every thing, “So that nought of His good will “ Shall be aught but pleasure still «To the man who Him with fear “In the world doth worship here.” Thus quoth Alfred, our delight ; “ He may be no king of right “ Under Christ, who is not fill’d “ With book lore, in law wellskill’d ; “ Letters he must understand, “ And know by what he holds his land.” Edward the Elder, is truly affecting. The Anglo-Saxon of this fragment has come down to us in a much more modern form, and is therefore not given here. The antiquary will here- after find it among the original texts. KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 251 Thus quoth Alfred, England’s praise, England’s pride and joy always : “ Karl and atheling “ Both be under the king, “ The land to lead “ With duteous deed ; “ Both the clerk and the knight “ Equally hold by right : “ For as a man soweth “ Thereafter he moweth, “ And every man’s doom “ Shall come to his home.” Thus quoth Alfred; “To the knight ; “Tis his wisdom and his right “To lighten the land “ By the mower’s hand “ Of harvest and of heregongs ; “ To him it well belongs “ That the Church have peace “ And the churl be at ease “ His seeds to sow, “ His meads to mow, “ His ploughs to drive afield “In our behoof to yield; “ This is the good knight’s care “To look that these well fare.” Thus quoth Alfred : “ Wealth is but a curse, “If wisdom be not added to the purse. “ Though aman hold an hundred and threescore “ Acres of tilth, with gold all covered o’er “ Like growing corn,—it all is nothing worth, “ Unless it prove his Friend, not Foe, on earth. “ For wherein, saving for good use alone, “ Does gold-ore differ from a simple stone ?” Thus quoth Alfred: “ Never let the young “ Despair of good, nor give himself to wrong, 252 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. “ Though to his mind right come not as it should, « And though he take no joy in what he would. “ For Christ when he will “ Gives good after ill, “ And wealth by his grace “ In trouble’s hard place, “ And happy the mind “ That to Him is resign’d.” Thus quoth Alfred :—* When a child is wise, “That is indeed a father’s blessed prize. “‘ Hast thou a child ?—while yet a little one, “ In man’s whole duty timely teach thy son ; «When he is grown, he still shall keep the track «« And for all cares and troubles pay thee back. « But, if thou leave him to his evil will, «When grown, such duties will be galling still, « For thy bad teaching he shall curse thee sore, « Andshall transgress thy counsels more and more ; “ Better for thee an unborn son, I wot, “Than one whom thou the father chastenest not.” _ Thus quoth Alfred :—* If thou growest old, “ And hast no pleasure, spite of weal and gold, “ And goest weak ;—then, thank thy Lord for this, “That he hath sent thee hitherto much bliss, “ For life, and light and pleasures past away ; “ And say thou, come and welcome, come what may ! Thus quoth Alfred :—* Worldly wealth and strength “ Come to the worms, and dust, and death at length, “ Though one be king of earth and all its power, “ He can but hold it for life’s little hour. “ Thy glorious state will work thee grievous fate, “ Unless thou purchase Christ, before too late. “ Therefore in living well, at God’s behest, “ By serving Him we serve ourselves the best. “So, rest thou well that He will send thee aid, “ As Salomon the King right wisely said, “ He that does worthy good on earth has wit, “ At last he goeth where he findeth it.” KING ALFRED’S POEMS. 253 Thus quoth Alfred :—*« My dear son, come near, “ Sit thou beside, and I will teach thee here. “T feel mine hour is well-nigh come, my son; “ My face is white; my days are almost done : « Soon must we part; I to another throne, “And thou in all my state shalt stand alone : “T pray thee,—for mine own dear child thou art, “Lord of this people, play their father’s part, “ Be thou the orphan’s sire, the widow’s friend, ‘Comfort the poor man, and the weak defend, “With all thy might “ Succour the right, “ And be strong “ Against the wrong : “ And thou, my son, by law thyself restrain, “So God shall be thy Guide, and glorious Gain ; “Call thou for help on Him in every need, “And He shall give thee greatly to succeed. And now, Reader, (by old prescription, “ candid, gentle, and benevolent,”) you here have had set out before you somewhat of the very mind of Alfred, and that as much as might be in his own pure words : a wholesome feast of reason and most curious interest ; for the first time (though after a thousand years,) served in such sort as that you may confidently feed on it with ease, and perhaps not without pleasure. You have here had evidence of the deep country’s-love and high sense of duty that dwelt in our first great King of old: in that, notwithstanding the continual torments of a chronic disease, the constant vicissitudes of invasion or conquest, and the ceaseless cares and anxieties of government, Alfred still found time himself to learn, and then to teach his half barbarian people. To this end, he used the common speech of his own Anglo-Saxon realm, instead of the language of the learned: herein standing almost alone among the teachers, not only of that day, but of almost all others. Bede, Alcuin, and John Erigena, with every body else a thousand years ago, and all but every body ever since, wrote and taught in Latin: butit better pleased our noble-minded King to condescend to the instruction of his humblest subjects through the means of their mother-tongue. 254 KING ALFRED’S POEMS. Thus, as we have seen, he did his best to give them an insight, however small our more enlightened age may deem it, not only into those highest matters of morals and religion, but also into such good earthly food for man’s mind here below, as physics, history, geography, astronomy. All this argued the King to be himself the liberal-minded scholar, as well as the pure-minded Christian : and in these more independent and democratic days of wide-spread knowledge, we cannot sufficiently estimate the good practically accomplished by such a man as Alfred, at once the Ruler and the Teacher of his people. For the present version, let it be repeated that no attempt has been made to “improve upon” the original : and as little licence as possible has been permitted for filling up a stanza, or gaining a rhyme. So then if, according to the genius of the Anglo-Saxon fitte or song, Alfred aims at bringing the same sounds upon the ear, and the same sense upon the mind, over and over again, those modern abominations of criticism, alliteration and tautology, must be regarded not as faults but beauties; not symptoms either of carelessness or of a mere ear-tickling jingle, but marks of heed- fulness and art, and according to the character of early bardic ballads. These metres, for the most part, are here rendered into such primitive English as that a Saxon may readily understand every word of them. But it does not follow that, because some words appear to be Latin, they are not also Anglo-Saxon: for instance Alfred uses some very similar to MAGISTER, CASTRUM, OVIS, CARCER, and many others: and, as every linguist is aware, there are several words which prove our common origin, being common to nearly every nation under heaven. In conclusion, let the reader not read these modern thoughts of ours the last, but just look once again at those most touching words of Alfred to his son, wherewith, as a dying speech, we suitably make an end to these few snatches of his Poetry. V. HISTORY AND POLITICAL STATE OF EUROPE IN THE NINTH CENTURY, The Age of King Alfced Che Great. HISTORY AND POLITICAL STATE OF EUROPE IN THE NINTH CENTURY, THE AGE OF KING ALFRED THE GREAT. Although the period of general European history, from which it is proposed to offer some illustrations of the times of Alfred the Great, belongs, strictly speaking, to the latter half of the ninth century, it is from its earliest days that the point of depar- ture will be most advantageously taken in an attempt to trace the series of changes which the states of Europe underwent in the course of the century, and to arrive at a satisfactory appre- hension of the principles which were developing themselves in its political system. The year 800 was rendered a memorable epoch by the investi- ture of the king of the Franks and Lombards with the ensigns of imperial dignity, at the hands of the pope, and amidst the accla- mations of the Roman people; and if there be truth in the metaphor which represents the reign of Charlemagne as a bridge between two wild and gloomy regions,—the zone of barbarism on one side, and of feudalism on the other,—that event may be considered as the key-stone in the mighty fabric which his genius had reared or restored out of the ruins of the Western Empire. His reign, prolonged for fourteen years, was yet too short to admit of the empire’s attaining, under the circumstances of the times, the coherence and stability indispensable to the maintenance of its integrity — sceptre fell to feebler hands. Essays 258 STATE OF EUROPE As in other instances of brilliant but transitory supremacy, both in ancient and modern times, its dissolution was as rapid as the conquests on which it was based. Perhaps no period of European history, on a cursory view, presents a field more barren of interest than the age which suc- ceeded the reign of Charlemagne. None can well oppose greater difficulties to an attempt to draw out from the tangled web of contemporary annals a thread of narrative which may serve for a guide through the confused labyrinth of events, and for a clue to the discovery of the conflicting elements which were indis- tinctly working out a new order of things in the political state of Europe. The mind recoils from contemplating the condition of anarchy and wretchedness into which society was again plunged ; and neither the long series of intestine wars originating in the con- tests of the descendants of Charlemagne for fragments of his vast empire, nor their feeble struggles against the aggressions of the barbarous hordes which, when his powerful arm was withdrawn, renewed their assaults on all the frontiers,—alike inglorious,— shed any lustre on the annals of the age. Nor is it an easy task to trace on a chart of reduced compass the variable outlines of kingdoms created, severed, reunited or absorbed, and the vicissi- tudes of the empire, at times restored to almost its original inte- grity, till it was at length finally resolved into its constituent segments. Some idea may be formed of the intricacy in which the details of this period of history are involved, from the fact that nearly forty of the immediate descendants of Charlemagne, Frankish emperors and kings, attained imperial or royal dignity, in the fluctuations of the times, within a century after his death ; besides many other powerful chiefs, who in the final dismemberment of the empire carved out for themselves independent states, and sought to legitimatize their assumption of power by claims of descent from the great Emperor, in whose blood the Franks recognised the right of sovereignty, as in the heroic times of Greece all the great families traced their lineage from one com- mon source. But however intricate and uninviting the path which lies before us may, on a hasty glance, appear to be, if it is pursued with IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 259 diligence, it will open views circumscribed by no narrow and clouded horizon. Light breaks through the surrounding gloom. Amidst the general confusion which prevailed during the greater part of the ninth century,—international wars and barbarian invasions, the rivalry of imperfectly amalgamated races, with various elements of power struggling for supremacy, and none sufficiently preponderating to acquire the mastery,—amidst all these disorders, and springing out of these conflicts, may be dis- covered the germs of political systems destined to have an endur- ing influence in the frame of the European common-wealth. The foundations were being laid for the ascendancy of that terri- torial aristocracy which in the next century, under the organiza- tion of the feudal system, gave to Europe at least the benefits of external security with internal order and subordination. And from the dismemberment of the empire of Charlemagne sprung those national monarchies which,—for a long period overshadow- ed by the power of the nobles,— at length rose to supremacy, and subsisted until lately, under forms more or less constitutional, in the greater part of the European kingdoms. The history of the ninth century therefore requires a careful examination, if we wish to form precise ideas of the political state of Europe in the middle ages, and of the origin of those forms of government and territorial arrangements which have come down to our own times. Nor can it be uninteresting, in such a work as this, to have that portion of European history, which comprises a period nearly contemporaneous with the life of Alfred the Great, sketched in lines parallel with his own; although there were but few occur- rences, and no political relations, in that age, connecting the Anglo-Saxon kingdom with the states of the continent. Indeed for nearly six centuries after the severance of Britain from the Roman empire, its connection, both political and social, with the rest of Europe was very slight, except as respected ecclesiastical affairs, in which the missionary origin of the conversion of the Saxons linked it to the Holy See more intimately than any other national church. It was not till the Norman conquest, two centuries later, that those multiplied relations arose—whether dynastic or territorial, of tenure, of institutions and of language, which, as it were, bridged over the channel and brought England again into the European system. 260 STATE OF EUROPE In the time of Alfred, the Frank kings were united by family compacts or engaged in mutual hostilities, to which the Anglo- Saxon monarch was equally alien. It might have been politic that both should have combined to form a powerful league against the northern invaders, the common enemy; but in those unsettled times each party was too much occupied with his own affairs to have any leisure either for forming or keeping up distant relations, and only strove with desultory efforts to repel the in- vaders from his own shores. On the whole, therefore, it is in the way of contrast, rather than of connexion, that the times of Alfred are to be viewed with reference to the other European kingdoms of that age. The chronology of the century singularly facilitates a clear apprehension of its most important eras and events. It opens with the coronation of Charlemagne at Rome, the culminating point of his ambition, in the year 800; a most important epoch. Alfred was born towards the close of the first half of the century, just when the tripartite division of the empire had been consum- mated by the congress of Mersen in 847, a compact renewed in 849, the very year of Alfred’s birth. That partition of the dominions of Charlemagne was a second memorable era. Alfred lived to see the close of the century, dying in 901, when the final dismemberment of the empire had been effected ; Lewis third of that name and the last of the emperors of his blood, having been crowned in 900. Charles de Sot, the imbecile, retain- ed but the shadow of power; for France, as well as nearly the whole of western Europe, was now parcelled out into a number of smaller kingdoms and independent dutchies and counties. Misrule and anarchy again prevailed. New swarms of barbarians of the race of the Huns, were ravaging the eastern frontier of Christendom; the Saracens had established themselves on the coasts of Italy and Provence; and the Normans were on the eve of wrenching from the feeble hands of Charles Je Sot one of the finest provinces of France. The death of Alfred therefore nearly coincides with a third important epoch. All interest in the political state of Europe during the ninth century centres in the Carlovingian empire, as it subsisted entire for nearly the first half of the century under Charlemagne and IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 261 his son Louis le Debonnair, and as it was apportioned and divided, during the second half, among their successors. The empire re- united nearly all the countries which had been subject to the rule _ of the Western Cesars and had partaken of the Roman civiliza- tion. Viewed in its widest extent,—as including the tributary nations beyond the proper frontier—the Elbe and the Baltic may be considered its extreme limits on the north; the Mediterranean, the Adriatic, or perhaps the Save, on the south; the Oder, the Carpathian mountains, the Danube or the Theiss on the east; and the ocean and narrow seas, from the gulf of Gascony to the mouth of the Elbe, on the west. The first kingdoms founded by the Franks, after they crossed the Rhine, were those of Austrasia and Neustria, in Gaul, on the north of the Loire. Round these respective centres were grouped the kingdoms aud territories which were the fruits of their subse- quent conquests. To Austrasia, having the Rhine and the Meuse for its northern and eastern boundaries, the Scheld on the west and the Vosges on the south, the victories of Pepin annexed the country between the Rhine, the Danube, and the Rhetian Alps, the antient Vindelicia ; from which was formed the kingdom of Almaine or Bavaria. Those of Charlemagne northward on the Elbe added Saxony and Thuringia to the German branch of the empire. In Gaul, the victorious arms of the Franks had gradually con- solidated all the surrounding states with their original kingdom of Neustria. They became masters of the ancient Burgundian kingdom of the Goths between the Rhone and the Grecian Alps, from Provence on the shores of the Mediterranean to the Vosges where it met the Austrasian fontier, and to the sources of the Rhone; including, therefore, great part of modern Switzerland. The great province of Gothia or Septimania, afterwards called the Narbonnese, situated between the Rhone and the Garonne, with the dutchy of Gascony, extending from the Garonne to the Pyrenees, and bounded by the Atlantic on the west, completed the circuit of the south of Gaul. The central region, occupied by the Aquitani and lying between the two last named provinces and the circuitous course of the Loire, opposed the greatest resistance to the arms of the Franks. Their final subjugation was the first enterprise of Charlemagne’s reign ; and the kingdom of Aquitain, 262 STATE OF EUROPE subsequently founded, took its place among the satellite sovereign- ties of the Neustrian Franks. Brittany on the north-west, strong in its peninsular position, its rugged surface, and the brave and independent character of its ancient people, yielded a reluctant submission to the power of the great emperor; to whom its dukes, as well as those of Gascony in the south-west, rendered a doubtful allegiance. Thus the whole of Gaul was included in the dominions of the restored empire. In Spain, the narrow angle of territory between the Pyrenees and the Ebro, the modern Catalonia, formed a province, with Barcelona for its capital, which was debateable ground between the Franks and the Saracens; and the counts of the Spanish marches guarded with difficulty that advanced frontier of the empire. In the valleys of the Asturias the descendants of the Christian exiles who escaped from the conquest of the Moors, joined to the hardy Basques, maintained their freedom and nourished their strength till the waning crescent should give the signal for rushing from their mountain fastnesses to restore the ancient kingdom of the Visigoths and re-establish the cross in the cities of Spain. With these small exceptions, the whole of the peninsula was included in the Saracen caliphate of Cordova; a section of Europe suffici- ently important and interesting to demand hereafter a separate notice. In Italy, the arms of Pepin had wrested from the Greek emperor the exarchate of Ravenna and the Pentapolis, as Romagna was then called,—on the shores of the Adriatic. His piety or his prudence had induced him to cede those territories to the Pope; but whatever rights beneficiary and administrative were conferred by that memorable dotation, it seems clear that those of suzerainty, at least, were reserved to himself and his successors, patricians of Rome and kings or emperors of the Franks. The Gothic kingdom of Lombardy, subjugated by Charlemagne, may be considered the central seat of the Frankish dominion in Italy, as the kingdoms of Austrasia and Neustria were in Germany and Gaul. With the iron crown of the Lombard kings Charlemagne assumed the style of king of Italy ; and with their rich territories in the north—he succeeded to their rights over the great Lombard dukedom of Beneventum, in the south of the peninsula, composing more than half of the present kingdom of Naples; rights, however, fiercely IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 263 resisted by the powerful dukes who claimed independence in the government of that fine territory. Finally, when Charlemagne, king of the Franks and Lombards, was invested with the imperial crown, and hailed Caesar and Augustus by the acclamations of the Roman people, he succeeded to the prerogatives of the western emperors over the city and state of Rome, and whatever rights those lofty titles gave him pretensions to assert ; not the least of which was, that the election of the Popes was subject to his control and required the confirmation of the emperor. These presogatives and the rights of suzerainty, as yet undefined, vested in such hands as Charlemagne’s, conferred a real power over the most powerful vassals who struggled for independence in the government of their great fiefs. The dominion of the Eastern emperors in Italy was now re- duced to a fragment of territory and an empty title. Venice founded in the lagunes of the Adriatic by refugees from the Lom- bard invasion, together with the Greek cities of Naples, Gaeta, and Amalfi on the shores of the Mediterranean, which retained the institutions of municipalities and were enriched by the wealth their maritime position and active industry created, were gradually establishing their independence and becoming the types of the great Italian republics of the middle ages. These free cities, however, either from the force of old associations or the policy of attaching themselves to a weak and a distant power instead of submitting to a powerful and neighbouring master, still paid a nominal allegiance to the Greek emperor. In the case of Venice, indeed, the Latin writers vaunt of its complete subjugation by Pepin son of Charlemagne and titular king of Italy. But the Italians give a more correct account of the issue of his enterprise. They admit that Pepin gradually reduced all the islands, till the Venetians, driven to extremity, retired on the Rialto, which thenceforth became their citadel and seat of government. Having there concentrated their forces, they sallied forth and burnt the fleet of Pepin, which had grounded in the shallows of the Lagunes. This signal success and their unapproachable position left them afterwards nothing to fear for the maintenance of their indepen- dence. The Doges of Venice formed alliances with the Greek cities on the northern shore of the Adriatic, and laid the founda- tions of the dominion which they afterwards extended on that 264 STATE OF EUROPE coast. But here their position was more accessible, and Istria and Dalmatia were reckoned among the provinces of the empire connected with its Italian states. The actual sovereignty of the Greek emperors in Italy in the ninth century was confined to an unimportant territory at its eastern extremity, where part of Apulia and Calabria with Bari for the capital, dignified after the extinction of the exarchate of Raven- na, with the empty title of the Theme of Lombardy, was all that remained of their dominions in the west. Indeed, though their Byzantine capital was seated on the hither side of the Bosphorus, and the barbarized provinces of Greece and Macedonia were sub- ject to their rule, the emperors of Constantinople can scarcely be considered at this period as an European power. With so wide a field before us it is therefore happily needless that we should more than incidentally notice the political relations of the series of emperors who, with savage despotism or oriental apathy, filled the Byzantine throne between the Isaurian and the Mace- donian dynasties. A frontier treaty with Charlemagne, another with the Caliphs of Spain for mutual cooperation against those of Bagdad, some pompous embassies to the Frankish kings, and the tardy and infrequent appearance of their fleets on the southern shores of Italy, were the slender tokens of the intervention of the Greek emperors in the affairs of western Europe. Exterior to the great aggregation of kingdoms which composed the body of the Carlovingian empire, a vast zone almost equal in extent to the immediate territories af the Franks, peopled by nations mostly of Sclavonic origin, embraced its northern and eastern flanks. It extended from the Baltic to the gulf of Venice, and was backed again by still more savage and unknown tribes who wandered over the deserts of northern and eastern Europe ready in turn to pour their swarms on any frontier where the pro- gress of civilization might advance—not to speak of the Scandina- vian tribes, whose piratical descents on every coast will form a melancholy feature in the course of this enquiry, but whose his- tory belongs to another division of the present work. | The victories of Charlemagne over the nations more immedi- ately in contact with his hereditary dominions, the Saxons, the Moravians and the Bohemians, enabled him to extend the bounds IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 265 of his empire to the Oder, the Carpathian mountains, the Danube and the Theiss. But these warlike nations submitted impatiently to a foreign master. They became tributaries rather than sub- jects, and were waiting the opportunity which the decline of the empire speedily afforded them, of throwing off the yoke and asserting their national independence. Such being a geographical sketch and a view of the relative positions of the dominions of the Franks in the last years of Charlemagne, it may easily be conceived that no arm less power- ful, no mind less vigorous than his, could enforce the allegiance of so many peoples, differing in race, in customs, and in language, held together by no common interests, and over which the rights of sovereignty materially varied. But viewing the empire in its integrity, it must not be supposed that under Charlemagne himself, with all the power of his arms and all the vigour of his administration, it presented the aspect of order and tranquillity which its traditions seem to convey.’ Scarcely a year passed but Charlemagne was at the head of his armies, at one time to curb the barbarians on the Elbe, at another to chas- tise the insubordinate vassals of Brittany or Beneventum; now, to repel the incursions of the Sclaves on the Oder or the Danube, and again to secure or enlarge his Spanish frontier on the Ebro. It is foreign to our purpose to consider the character of Char- lemagne’s legislative and administrative policy, except as it may be hereafter necessary to glance at its connection with the revolu- tions, the elements of which are to be discovered in the very foun- dation of the empire. The leading principles of his government were unity, the conservation and extension of the remains of Roman civilization, incessant conflict with barbarism within and without. He reformed, protected, and endowed the church; he made it his instrument and auxiliary ; but he ruled it with a stern hand. The ascendancy of the bishops over the temporal power was deferred till the period from which we propose to take our next point of view ;—that of the popes to a stilllater age. Char- lemagne founded schools and encouraged learning—surrounding (1) The chronicles of the times record Charlemagne’s annual expeditions as part of his regular routine of action, with as much uniformity as they register his solemnization of the great feasts of the church and his hunting in the forests of the Vosges or the Ardennes. 34 Essays 266 STATE OF EUROPE himself with the most accomplished men of the age, when scholars were statesmen as well as philosophers. It was from the abbies and schools of England and Ireland that Charlemagne and his successors drew some of the most able men who enjoyed his confidence and were employed in their wise measures for the diffusion of knowledge. We remark with satis- faction that the intellectual state of the British islands was then superior to that of the continent. Ireland, long illustrious for learning and sanctity, had found in her inaccessible position, secu- rity from the ravages of the successive hordes of barbarians, who nearly obliterated all remains of civilization in the continental states. In England the Saxon invaders soon settled down, and the establishments for study and science which Christianity intro- duced were not broken up till the great irruption of the Danes, and at the period of which we speak were quietly pursuing their labours. It was from York that Charlemagne invited Alcuin his chief counsellor and the principal instrument of his great designs for the improvement of his people; and Alcuin obtained from the Anglo-Saxon monasteries the greater part of the manuscripts, both of profane and sacred literature, which he caused to be copied and used in the schools of France and Germany. The death of Charlemagne produced no immediate change in the imperial system. The impress which his genius had made on the face of European society was not quickly effaced, and we shall find its stronger lines distinctly visible during the reigns of two of the kings, who after his death occupied the imperial throne. The administrative forms were the same, when the spirit which animated them had departed. The great barbarian nations which he subjugated, though they frequently invaded the frontiers and ultimately succeeded in establishing national sovereignties, never again penetrated into the interior of the empire ; learning was still encouraged, and the church was further reformed ; and, amidst most of the divisions which followed, the struggle for unity was maintained, though the centre of power was afterwards transferred alternately from Germany to France. It is probable also that the genius and example of Charlemagne were not without some influence on the fortunes of the Anglo- Saxon kingdom. Alcuin of York must have familiarized him IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 267 with its affairs; and he was in intimate relation with several of its kings. There is extant a letter from Charlemagne to Offa king of Mercia, in which he promises to protect strangers and merchants in his dominions, and begs the prayers of the Anglo-Saxon king for the soul of his dear deceased friend pope Adrian. Eginhard, his secretary and historian, informs us that Eardulf king of Northumberland, being expelled from his country, re- paired to Charlemagne, who was then at Nimeguen, and return- ing with ambassadors from the emperor and the pope was restored to his kingdom by their influence. Egbert, also a banished man, was trained in the school and the camp of Charlemagne. Having held a high rank and been intrusted with important employ- ments both civil and military in his service,’ Egbert was raised to the throne of Wessex the year before Charlemagne consummated his great achievements by adding the prestige of the imperial dig- nity to his sovereign rights of birth or of conquest over the Roman populations of Italy, of Germany, and of Gaul. In the polished court of Charlemagne, and in the society of the accom- plished and learned men that great prince drew around him, Egbert would have learnt the importance of promoting the civiliza- tion of his rude Anglo-Saxon subjects: while his design of uniting the Heptarchy shews with what a vigorous hand he carried out the leading feature in the policy of his illustrious friend. Our own Alfred also, if we are not greatly mistaken, caught some of his inspiration from recollections which were still fresh in the memory of men, and in the traditions of his own family. * The impression may have been deepened by his residence at the (2) As a count of the empire he appears to have been entrusted with the defence of the Saxon march against the incursions of the Danes across the Elbe, on the banks of which, between Hamburgh and the sea, Egbert founded the town and castle of Esselfelt. He was afterwards employed, with other commissioners, in negociating a treaty of peace with the Danish king, which was approved by Charlemagne. (3) The difficulties in which the question of Alfred’s relation to Judith is involved, have raised doubts as to the anthenticity of the anecdote which refers Alfred’s first acquisition cf letters to the teaching of his mother. The story of his permitting the cakes to burn on the hearth of the cottage at Athelney has been also doubted. For ourselves, we are unwilling to consign to the region of the fabulous, incidents which have an air of truth and nature and rest upon very respectable evidence. These stories have become ‘“ household words,” inseparably connected with the name of Alfred. Even literary scepticism, we are inclined to think, is sometimes carried too far. 268 STATE OF EUROPE court of Charles the Bald, and afterwards by intercourse with his step-mother Judith who was the daughter of that king. However this may be, the policy of Alfred was in many essential particulars . identical with that of the great emperor. We find the same in- domitable spirit of resistance to barbarian invaders; the same disposition to compromise, on terms of suzerainty, with powerful chiefs holding independent sections of territory ; the same efforts for the civilization both of native subjects and of foreigners who had established themselves within or on the borders of their proper dominion, for the restoration of union and order, and the encouragement of learning; the same enlightened cooporation with the church. Alfred’s sphere of action, indeed, was more circumscribed ; but these volumes contain abundant evidence that in all the nobler qualities of the mind and heart,—unselfish- ness, patriotism, love of his people, deep religious feeling,—in all the moral virtues and in intellectual powers, — the Anglo-Saxon king was immeasurably superior to the Frank emperor. On the death of Charlemagne, his only surviving son, Lewis,— le Debonnaire of the French, the pius of the Latin writers—in- herited all his father’s dominions, except Italy, which his elder brother Pepin had governed with the title of king, his son Bernard succeeding him on his death shortly before that of Charlemagne. The Italian people, ever impatient of the yoke of German domi- nation, had encouraged the young prince, on the accession of the new emperor, to aspire at the establishment of a national and independent sovereignty ; but the enterprise failing, Bernard was thrown into captivity and miserably perished under circumstances of cruelty which cast a stain on the character of his uncle ; and though he was not directly culpable, caused him afterwards the deepest remorse and a most painful expiation. All the dominions of Charlemagne were thus united under the sole government of Lewis; and the early years of his reign were otherwise prosperous. The insurrections of the tributary nations, who had flown to arms on the death of the late emperor, were speedily quelled. The integrity of the empire was secured, am- bassadors from the Greek emperor and the caliph of Cordova offered their congratulations; and the mission of Anscaire into Sweden for the conversion of the pagans of Scandinavia, with the foundation of an episcopal see at Hamburgh, evinced the piety of IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 269 Lewis and extended his influence in the north of Europe. The imperial household was purified from the scandals which the lax morality of Charlemagne‘ had introduced. The reformations of the church, commenced by him, were enforced with a rigour of discipline long unknown, and, as Lewis inherited his father’s love of letters, his court was frequented by learned men. The people oppressed by Charlemagne found in his son an upright and lenient judge. “Thus,” says an eloquent writer, “ the inheritance of conquest and spoliations fell into the hands of asimple and just man; who chose at any cost to make reparation. The barbarians who recognised his sanctity, submitted their dis- putes to his arbitration. He sat on the judgment seat in the midst of his people, like an easy and confiding father. He went about repairing, comforting, restoring; and it appeared as if he would have willingly given away the whole empire in making reimbursement.” Lewis le Debonnaire was by no means wanting in either courage or military conduct, and in his early years he had success- fully led the Frankish armies against the Saracens in Spain; but he was deficient in the sterner qualities necessary for holding the helm of the state with a firm hand in those unsettled times. It was his misfortune to reign under circumstances when a powerful genius seconded by an energetic character could hardly have arrested the developement of the germs of separation which were springing up on all sides. He had to combat two principles of dissolution which were entailed on the inheritance of Charle- magne, to reconcile the political unity and central government of the imperial monarchy with the forms of succession which were the custom of the Franks from the time of Clovis. The struggle was beyond his strength. His too facile disposition made him the tool of intriguing churchmen, the slave of turbulent nobles, and, worst of all, the victim of the ambition of his own unnatural sons. Lewis’s first and most fatal error was pregnant with all the disastrous consequences which, in the sequel of his own reign and during the remainder of the century, desolated Europe. (4) Charlemagne had many concubines, and his daughters led very irregular lives. 270 STATE OF EUROPE Scarcely was he seated on the throne of the united kingdoms which composed the empire of Charlemagne, than, following the vicious precedent of the Frankish sovereigns, he associated his eldest son Lothaire in the title of emperor ‘with the government of Italy, giving to his second son, Lewis the German, the kingdom of Bavaria; and to Pepin, his third son, the kingdom of Aqui- taine. The suzerainty of the lesser kingdoms was reserved to Lothaire as the eldest brother and emperor, and the act of creation was accompanied with a solemn protest against its being con- strued into a dismemberment of the empire and by oaths of fidelity from Lewis and Pepin to Lothaire ;—a protest which proved empty words,—oaths which were a solemn mockery. Lewis’s second marriage, shortly afterwards, with Judith, an accomplished but intriguing princess, was another imprudence ; and the birth of a son by that union, called Charles the Bald, increased the complication of affairs. The customs of the age and the uxoriousness of a weak monarch concurred in requiring that this favourite son should also be invested with royal dignity ; and as the appanage of the young prince was severed from the territories assigned to his brothers; fresh seeds of discord were planted in the family of Lewis. Our slight sketch of the course of affairs at this period will only admit a rapid glance at the principal events and influences which foreshadowed and prepared the way for the great crisis in European affairs which was now imminent, and we are spared the task of following the page of history while it describes the calamities which the civil wars, fomented by the ambition, the rivalry, and the intrigues of the sons of Hermengarde, inflicted on Europe and on their too easy father during the closing years of his reign. But it is impossible not to pause for a moment before the tragic spectacle of the discrowned dishonored monarch seek- ing refuge from the insults of his people in the camp of his rebel- lious sons, his queen and child torn from his embraces, and a sup- pliant in vain, like another king Lear, to those on whom nature, duty and gratitude imposed the strongest obligations for reverence and honour. The imprudence of the act which, in dividing, had utterly shat- tered the sovereign power, was only equalled by the weakness of IN THF TIME OF KING ALFRED. 27 the abject humiliation with which the unhappy Lewis submitted himself to the judgment of the Frankish bishops assembled at Compiegne. His tender conscience touched with remorse for the involuntary share which he had taken in the murder of his nephew Bernard, he was the more disposed to plead guilty to the long list of political offences,—headed by that very serious charge,— on which he was arraigned. Condemned to a public penance, deposed from his sovereign rank and stripp’d of the ensigns of imperial dignity, Lewis was led to a convent, the asylum which the reverential spirit of that age, amidst all its barbarism, assigned to fallen royalty. In a more advanced state of society, revolu- tionary tribunals ventured to inflict a keener sentence—while exile appears to be the penalty with which modern civilization has learnt to be satisfied in dealing with the errors or malversation of kings. The degradation of Lewis had made him an object of disgust to his barons and of contempt to his people. But the sad specta- cle which had not touched the hearts of his sons soon roused the feelings of his subjects to the commiseration of fallen greatness.— The bishops were satisfied with his submission to their judgment ; the ascendancy of the church had been signally exhibited; and in an assembly at Thionville they annulled the sentence of the emperor’s degradation. Lewis was restored to his rank and to the exercise of his sovereign authority, but his spirit was broken and his career nearly ended. The influence of Judith prevailed with him, in the first moments of his just indignation, to deprive Lothaire and Lewis, his son Pepin being now dead—of their dominions and to confer the whole on Charles. But still placable and forgiving, he was again reconciled with Lothaire, and a year before his death at the diet of Worms, he divided them between Lothaire and Charles, except Bavaria which was left to Lewis the German. On his death-bed he sent a crown and a sword to Lothaire, charging him to be faithful to Judith and Charles. Lewis he forgave though he was again in arms in consequence of the emperor’s last disposition of his dominions; “ But let him look to himself,” he said, “ who despising God’s command has brought his father’s grey hairs to the grave.” The unity of the empire ceased with Lewis le De- bonnaire. In the course of the century it was more than once 272 STATE OF EUROPE re-established for short intervals ; but henceforth it was the shadow of a great name. The glory was departed. The partition of his dominions made by the late emperor gave the eastern provinces beyond the Meuse, the Jura and the Rhone to his eldest son Lothaire already dignified with the title of emperor, and king of Italy; and the western kingdoms of Neustria and Aquitaine, with the rest of France (except Provence which as part of the kingdom of Burgundy belonged to Lothaire) to Charles the Bald. Lewis the German retained his original kingdom of Bavaria; while Pepin II, on the death of his father of that name— the third son of Lewis Debonnaire by Hermengarde—made pre- tensions to the kingdom of Aquitaine which his father had held. The death of Lewis, in 840, was the signal for the renewal of the jealousies and animosities which had distracted his reign. The title of emperor appeared to confer on Lothaire the suze- rainty of the crowns of Neustria and Bavaria, and inflated with magnificent ideas of his prerogative he assumed a tone of superi- ority which the kings Charles and Lewis were not disposed to brook. The attempt of Lothaire to resuscitate the empire was indeed a bootless enterprise. He had not only to resist the ambition of his two powerful brothers, but the spirit of the age was opposed to universal empire and becoming favourable to national monarchies; so that the instinct of the people coincided with the personal interests of the two kings, whose independence appeared incompatible with the existence of an empire. Nor was this all; for the difference of race was another element in the struggle which ensued. It may be viewed in some measure, as a contest between the two great races of the conquerors and the vanquished, of the Franks of Germany and Gaul against the Romans of Italy, and the Roman-Gaulish population of the Narbonnese province and Aquitaine. They fought under the standards of the grandsons of Charlemagne, accepted as national kings, to overthrow the system which he founded, when by the establishment of an imperial throne he confounded all nationalities and centred all power in the chief of the conquering race. In this great quarrel, involving such various principles and interests, Pepin II ranged himself on the side of the emperor; and the pope, as an Italian prince and the centre of a system IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 273 which aimed at universal dominion naturally favoured his preten- sions. On the other hand, the great body of the bishops and clergy supported the cause of the kings. The faithful were scandalized by the endeavours of Lothaire to enlist the heathen Danes and Saxons, and Pepin the infidel Saracens of Spain, in the number of their adherents; while Charles was considered the creature and champion of the church. The fate of Europe in 841 hung upon the event of the battle of Fontenay,‘ in which the royal brothers and nephews brought their unnatural quarrel to the issue of the sword, and Frank met Frank :—those of the Rhine against those of the Seine. The slaughter of brave and noble warriors was so great that, as the writers of the times lamented, the empire was left defenceless. against the ravages of the barbarians; but the battle was indeci- sive, except so far as its results may have inclined the contending parties to listen to terms of peace, when, on their again meeting in arms the year following, the bishops interposed to stay the further effusion of blood. A tripartite division of the empire, agreed on between the three brothers Lothaire, Lewis and Charles—to the exclusion of their nephew Pepin—was carried into effect by the treaty of Verdun.° 843. This partition treaty deserves particular notice ; for it laid down the main land-marks of the great European kingdoms as they continued to exist for a long course of years. The bases were taken from the statu-quo of the three princes in Lombardy, Bavaria and Neustria; and the remaining provinces of the empire were grouped round these several centres with some due regard to natural boundaries and national idiosyncrasies. Lothaire, the emperor, had Italy and all the country comprised within the Alps, the Rhine and the Scheld, together with the antient kingdoms of Burgundy, comprising the territories from the source of the Saone to its confluence with the Rhone and along the left bank of the Rhone to the sea. To Lewis of Bavaria was allotted all Germany beyond the Rhine, with the three cities of Worms, Spire, and May- ence on its left bank. Charles the Bald retained the countries situated between the Scheld, the Meuse, the Rhone, the Ebro, and the two seas. Thus each of the kings had in his lot part of (5) Fontenai near Auxerre; not Fontenoy memorable for another great battle. (6) An island of the Saone near Macon in Burgundy. 35 Essays 274 STATE OF EUROPE the national territory of the Franks :—Lewis the German their original seats beyond the Rhine, Lothaire the Austrasian kingdom intermediate with Neustria, the key of their position in France, which fell to Charles the Bald. This partition of the empire loosened the ties which held in subjection the barbarous nations on the northern and eastern frontiers. The Saxons, the Moravians, and the Bohemians were already in rebellion, struggling for their emancipation, which shortly gave new kingdoms to Europe. Meanwhile the Frank kings were dividing territories they could hardly call their own ; for the Northmen had penetrated into the heart of France, had taken Nantes and Bourdeaux, and burnt Rouen and the fau- bourgs of Paris; the Saracens of Africa were besieging Rome, and the Beneventines, the Bretons and the Gascons were in arms for the assertion of their antient independence. The exigency of the times demanded that the royal brothers should act in concert, and two years after the peace of Verdun, they assembled in con- gress to consult on the means of securing their thrones against present and future dangers. 847. At the congress of Mersen,’ which may be considered as the sequel to the partition treaty, the three brothers contracted for their mutual support against foreign and domestic enemies. They pledged themselves to respect the hereditary rights of the young princes their children, saving the supremacy of their uncles ; and in order to find some guarantee for the stability of their posi- tion in the interests and instincts of the populations of their re- spective states, it was stipulated that the vassals should be secured in their titles to the absolute proprietorship of their domains, and that justice should be administered to the freemen of their realms according to the antient laws of their several races; to the abori- ginal inhabitants by the Roman code which prevailed before the conquest ;—to the Franks by their own traditional customs. The brothers Lewis and Charles met again two years after- wards at Kiersy-sur-Oise, and entered afresh, with significant ceremonies, into a family compact. Such treaties of alliance, accompanied by concessions to national rights, again renewed from time to time, having been contracted without sincerity and (7) A palace on the Meuse near Maestricht. IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 275 infringed without scruple, their repetition only exhibits the weak- ness and the apprehensions of the Frankish kings—their doubts of the good faith of each other, and their fears of the powerful aristocracy which was on every side rising to independence. The judicious remark of Des Michels* on the frequent renewal of these compacts is applicable to all times : “ L’on peut reconnaitre que dans les circonstances ot la tendence des choses est magni- festement contraire a la politique des gouvernemens, la fréquence des congrés n’est qu'une témoignage de l’impuissance des rois. ° The review of European affairs which has now been brought down to the close of the first half of the ninth century, would be incomplete without some brief reference to the great kingdom in the western peninsula, which, having been but incidentally con- nected with the history of the Frank empire, is reserved for a separate notice. We have seen that the only territories possessed by Christian powers in Spain were the mountainous district on the north, the cradle of the kings of Leon and Navarre, and the narrow angle of country lying between the Pyrenees and the Ebro—a march rather than a province—dependent on the kings and emperors of the Franks. With these exceptions, the Saracens possessed the whole of the peninsula, containing the present kingdoms of Spain and Portugal, and maintained the integrity of their empire during all the changes which affected the rest of the continent. Not entering into the system and unmoved by the convulsions of central Europe, the Mosarabian kingdom of Spain for a leng- thened period enjoyed internal tranquillity, and made advances in civilization and in material prosperity, which may well have been envied by its less fortunate Christian neighbours. Abdal- rahman, its founder, who was contemporary with Charlemagne and the caliph Harun-al-Rashid, reigned with a lustre which even their renown did not eclipse. The last of the Ommadian princes of the east, he had escaped the massacre of his race by the rival sect and family of the Abassides, and was a fugitive among the Bedouins of Africa, when the sheiks and elders of the (8) Des Michels, Histoire Generale du Moyen Age. (9) ‘ We have here an illustration of the principle that whenever the tendency of things is clearly contrary to the policy of a government, the frequency of congresses is only a proof of the weakness of kings.” Isip. 276 STATE OF EUROPE Arabs in Spain, refusing allegiance to the new sultans of Bagdad, chose him for their sovereign. Landing on the coast of Andalusia, he was conducted in triumph by Granada and Seville to Cordova, a city so beautiful and attractive by its natural position that it well deserved the preference of the new caliph in selecting it for his residence and the capital of his government. Seated in the rich valley washed by the Guadalquiver, within a few miles of the lateral chain of the Sierra Morena, the sultry climate of Andalusia was tempered by the mountain breezes; while abun- dant waters were poured into the city for the irrigation of its luxuriant gardens and the service and refreshment of the inhabi- tants. Abdalrahman and his successors added all that art and magnificence could devise for the use and embellishment of their principal city, establishing at Cordova an independent caliphate which, taking its name from that capital, was continued in the family of the Ommiades for nearly three centuries. The greatest part of the reign of Abdalrahman, and particularly the first years, were troubled by intestine factions and foreign invasions. The caliphs of Bagdad were not disposed to submit to a revolution which rent from the successors of Mahomet so fair a portion of their dominions, without strenuous efforts to reestablish their power in Spain. They fomented discontents among the emirs of the new caliph and the rival creed, and instigated the Moors of Africa to make a descent upon a territory of which ambition and sectarian fanaticism alike forbad the separation from the rule of the commander of the faithful. Scarcely had Abdalrahman defeated and expelled the Moslem invaders in the south, when an enemy still more powerful, of a more hostile creed, appeared on his northern borders. History has preserved the names of the rebel emirs, traitors alike to their sovereign and their faith, Aben-al-Arabi, Abou-Taher, and Ben-Yousouf, who repaired to the court of Charlemagne and offered him their homage with the possession of the cities they governed on the frontier of Spain. Induced by their representa- tions, Charlemagne assembled a great force composed of two corps d’armées, which crossing the Pyrenees in two divisions were led in person by the Frank monarch into the Spanish march. As his first operation was to reduce Pampeluna and rase its walls, there seems reason to believe, what the Arabian historians assert IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 277 and the great subsequent incident of the campaign appears to confirm, that the Navarrese, as well as the Gascons, were in alliance with the Saracens to resist an invasion which equally menaced the independence of all. The chronicles give a very summary account of the expedition. They represent Charlemagne as receiving the submission of Bar- celona, the chief city of those parts, and of the towns of Huesca and Girona; but whether subdued by force of arms or delivered up by their traitorous governors does not exactly appear. How- ever, Charlemagne took hostages for their future allegiance, and, withdrawing his forces over the Pyrenees, was assaulted by the Gascons in his retreat at the pass of Roncesvalles. They threw his whole army into confusion, cutting off his rear guard to a man, including some of his most distinguished officers, among whom was Roland or Orlando, count of the Breton march. The Frank writers gloss over this defeat as a mere desultory attack of guerilla mountaineers, who were indebted for their par- tial success to the nature of the ground and to an ambush in the thick forest which covered the flanks of the Pyrenees. They magnify the fruits of the expedition as having effected the subju- gation of “all the cities of Spain,’ and they represent Charle- magne as returning conqueror of the Spaniards, the Gascons and the Navarrese ; though at the same time they speak of his “ mis- adventure,” in terms which seem to indicate, in covert phrase, the extent of his chagrin at the disastrous issue of his expedition. The Arabian historians declare that Charlemagne’s army was defeated on its advance to the Ebro, and they agree with the romances of the middle ages in describing Mussulman and Chris- tian, Asturian and Gascon, as mingling their ranks at Roncesvalles on that fatal day which the muse of Ariosto has rendered for ever illustrious. The truth seems to be that the army of the Franks was in full retreat when it was attacked in the passes of the Pyrenees; an alliance having been formed by all the powers of Spain, however differing in other respects, to resist and expel the intrusive king.. The attack on his rear was the result of this combination, of the danger of which he had become sensible when he hastened his retreat; though the Frank chronicles attribute it to tidings he had received of the revolt of the Saxons under Witi- kind, demanding his immediate return. 278 STATE OF EUROPE At all events, if in his dreams of universal empire Charlemagne seriously meditated the conquest of Spain, this signal reverse must have served to dissipate the illusion. But one can hardly conceive that he would have proclaimed a Champ de Mai, and assembled two immense armies in France, merely to chastise the independent Gascons and Basques, and receive the submission, already pledged, of some cities on the Ebro. Ten centuries after- wards, the great hero of that age, the victorious leader who claim- ed the succession and aspired to follow in the steps of the first emperor of the French, met his first reverses on the soil of Spain; the passes of the Pyrenees again witnessed the disasters of their retreating army, and, by a singular coincidence, it was from the plains of Saxony that the tidings came which recalled the impe- rial troops for the defence of the German frontier. After the retreat of Charlemagne, the caliph of Cordova immedi- ately regained possession of Barcelona and the other frontier towns, and the Spanish march remained as before debateable ground, the possession of which was always precarious and often nominal ; the emirs or counts transferring their allegiance to the Christian or the infidel power, as their interests for the time dictated. Relieved from the apprehension of foreign invasions, though re- bellions and insurrections, which he was often in arms to quell, did not allow him to enjoy much repose, Abdalrahman found leisure to cultivate the more congenial arts of peace. The sciences flourished under his enlightened protection; for the caliph him- self was an accomplished prince, and is celebrated for a soft and insinuating eloquence, and a delicate vein of poetry, specimens of which are still extant. He embellished Cordova with stately buildings, surrounding it with immense fortifications, the remains of which are still seen; and he laid the foundations of the great mosque, on the model of that of Damascus, which is now the Catholic cathedral; but which he did not live tofinish. He died in 788, full of years and of honour; “principe prudente ed de mucho valor,” as Mariana pithily sums up his character. He was succeeded by his son Haschem who in the early part of his reign successfully encountered the Asturian Christians, and reviving the claims of the Visigoth kings of Spain to the province of IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 279 Septimania, crossed the Pyrenees and defeated with great slaughter the troops which the count of Toulouse had levied against him. Having burnt the faubourgs of Narbonne, he withdrew into Spain, dragging into slavery a vast crowd of prisoners, and loaded with booty. The fruits of this expedition supplied him with the means of completing the great mosque at Cordova which had been begun by Abdalrahman. The roof of this magnificent building was sup- ported by 1500 columns of marble; 24 gates of bronze, the principal of which was plated with solid gold, admitted the faith- ful; and when at solemn festivals their devotions were prolonged into the watches of the night, 6000 lamps fed with fragrant oils shed a sweet perfume and a soft radiance over its vast area. The Catholic worshipper may still trace verses of the Koran inscribed on the walls, attesting the creed for which it was founded. He may shudder as they remind him of the infidel who for so many centuries held possession of his noble land, but in the lapse of a thousand years he may probably fail to remember the benefits which the supremacy of the Moslems conferred on Spain. Other magnificent buildings, a library, palaces, new streets, the noble bridge of twenty-seven arches over the Guadalquiver, repair- ed or reconstructed, made Cordova the most splendid of the European cities of that age. During the peaceful reign of Haschem, the other towns of Spain received similar embellishments, mosques were built and schools founded ; industry was encou- raged; and following the wise and equitable administration of his fathers, justice was equally rendered, without distinction of creed, to Christians and Mahometans, the former of whom were conci- liated by toleration in the free exercise of their religion. During the troubled reign of El-Hakem, son of Haschem, the caliph’s cruel and arrogant temper, wars on the frontier and the insurrections of rebellious emirs, interrupted for a while the tranquillity, and checked the rising prosperity, of the Saracen empire in Spain. It was during his reign that Lewis le Debonnaire led his father’s troops against the infidels on the Spanish frontier, a sort of crusade congenial to his pious temperament. He con- ducted it with spirit and success, Barcelona being taken and its governor sent in chains to Aix-la-chapelle ; and the supremacy of the Franks was for a time reestablished in the Spanish march. 280 STATE OF EUROPE But these advantages were short-lived, and the clouds which hung over Spain during the reign of Al-Hakem were dispelled when his son Abdalrahman the Second, a prince worthy of that great name, succeeded to the caliphate. He was received with acclamations by the people, whose confidence he had gained by the part he had taken in affairs during the misrule of his father Al-Hakem. The early part of the reign of Abdalrahman II was nearly cotemporaneous with that of Lewis le Debonnaire, but its aspect was widely different. A consummate general, as well as a wise and skilful politician, he recovered the losses which had been sustained on the frontier of the Ebro, retook Barcelona, and reestablished the ascendancy of the Saracens in the Spanish march. The incursions of the Christian princes of the Asturias and Navarre were restrained, and the Northmen, expelled from the coast of Lusitania, never succeeded in gaining a footing in Spain. Musa, the most formidable of the rebellious emirs, was reduced by the vigour of his arms, and Abdalrahman justly deserved the proud title of E/-Mouzaffer, the “ Victorious”, by which he is known in the Arabian histories of Spain. But higher still is the glory which is attached to his name as the patron of science and the arts, and the promoter of every thing which could conduce to the improvement, the happiness, and the prosperity of his subjects. Poets and philosophers ’ flocked to his court to do him honour, and lent their aid in diffusing the love of science and the arts among the Arabs of Spain. All the time he could spare from state affairs was devoted to conversation with the enlightened men who were admitted to his familiar intercourse. Music lent her aid, the marble halls and voluptuous gardens of the caliph and his nobles echoed with melody, romance and song; and they formed the recreation of an imaginative people on the delicious banks of the Guadalquiver, the Guadiana, and the Tagus. Literature in all its branches, history, poetry, philosophy, unfolded the treasures of the past and occupied itself in preparing new offerings for future ages. © Astronomy, child of the east, was transplanted to a still congenial climate; chemistry and medicine revealed their secrets and saw a new school founded in the west; and the acute genius of the Arabs cultivated with success the abstruser sciences. Great indeed was the advance of the Arabs in every branch of IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 281 intellectual science and every form of industrial art. That original and picturesque architecture, distinct alike from classic and Gothic models, the remains of which still attract and delight the traveller, embellished the cities of Spain. Colonies from Africa and Asia introduced the Nabathzan cultures, and to them she is indebted for the palm, the mulberry and the sugarcane, as well as for the system of irrigation taught by the Moors, which with the mechanical contrivances for raising water above its natural level, converted the arid slopes of the Sierras into luxu- riant gardens and fruitful vineyards. The mines of gold and silver, for which Spain had long been celebrated, were successfully worked; pearl and coral fisheries were established on the coasts ; and every industrial process which could invite the labours of an intelligent people and the encouragement of an enlightened government, was diligently pursued. Under such circumstances,— with an impregnable frontier, exemption from foreign wars, civilization advancing and order and tranquillity maintained by the firm administration of a line of wise and prudent sovereigns— the Arabian kingdom in Spain was in the middle of the ninth century the richest and most populous of European countries.” At the outset of our present undertaking, a summary glance on the course of affairs during the ninth century suggested certain marked epochs, corresponding with its natural divisions—and each of them distinguished by different phases of the political phcenomena,—as convenient points for our departure, for an intermediate rest, and for the final term of the enquiry. Two of them, fixed at the middle and the close of the century, had the further advantage of being nearly coincident with the dates of the birth and death of Alfred. Our first point of view, taken from the beginning of the cen- tury, exhibited the empire of the Franks, under Charlemagne, at the zenith of his power, in all its extent and integrity. Following the course of events during the reign of his successor Lewis le Debonnair, we have seen the sovereign power completely shat- (10) Mariana, Istoria. Cardonne Histoire de ]’Afrique et de "Espagne sous la domina- tion des Arabes. Essays 36 282 STATE OF EUROPE tered, and the unity of the empire become nearly nominal. It expired with him; and the results of the battle of Fontenay, with the treaties of the sons of Lewis for the partition of his dominions and for a mutual concert which vainly aimed to supply the place of the unity they had dissolved, have brought us to the close of the first half of the century. From thence taking our second general point of view, we find the empire of Charlemagne divided into three great kingdoms, with still inherent and growing tendencies to further dissolution, which will be developed in its progress to the final dismember- ment with which the century closed, and which is the term of our present essay. As however two important European kingdoms, branches of the former western empire, did not enter into the system of Charle- magne and his successors, they found no place in our review of events and influences connected with the Carlovingian empire. Of these two independent states, the Saracen caliphate in Spain was therefore reserved for a separate notice; while of the state of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom in Britain at this period, the “ Harmony of the Chronicles” and other portions of the present volumes will furnish ample and authentic records. But it must be also remembered that at the time to which our survey of European affairs is now brought, Alfred the Anglo- Saxon king comes,—so to speak, upon the stage of history ; and though, as we have already remarked, his relations with the con- tinental states were but slight, it cannot be supposed that a prince of his enlightened character was an unobservant spectator of events which were changing the face of Europe. The expedition he sent forth to penetrate into the far East, and his own notes on the voyage of Othere ' into unknown regions towards the North- pole, bespeak an extended range of observation which could not have overlooked the revolutions of neighbouring states. Alfred must have retained some personal recollections of European courts, and in his earlier years was connected with the family (1) Industry and civilization must have made some progress in these early times in the Scandinavian peninsula, for Othere speaks of a herd of 600 tame rein-deer. Travellers who at this day find such herds depasturing on the higher Fjelds, and wonder how they have been reclaimed, may learn that a thousand years ago tame deer were used as decoys. IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 283 of Charles the Bald through Judith his step-mother, a daughter of that prince. She afterwards married Baldwin the powerful count of Flanders and her relationship with Alfred was renewed by the marriage of Baldwin II her son with Elfrida, Alfred’s daughter. It may be observed, in passing, that in these alliances may be traced the first connexion,—afterwards so intimate both politically and commercially,—between the English and the in- dustrious Flemings, who were already rising to wealth and impor- tance under the prosperous reigns of Baldwin and his successors, counts of Flanders. It has been not unreasonably supposed that Alfred himself furnished supplies of historical matter for the Saxon chronicle, that exact record of national occurrences which also contains frequent notice of important events in the Frankish kingdoms, and in some instances gives details which show an intimate acquaint- ance with political influences beyond the mere record of exterior events. At any rate we cannot suppose Alfred to have been less informed than the annalist of his own reign and country, as to what was passing in the rest of Europe. We have no exact means of knowing how the communication between the two sides of the channel was maintained; but we have abundant evidence in the continental collections how wide was the correspondence maintain- ed between enlightened men of different countries during that period of great intellectual movement as well as of vast political changes. There were also frequent journies undertaken by church- men and other members of the Anglo-Saxon community to Rome, the centre of all intrigues, the resort of all nations. Scarcely a year passed that Alfred did not send messengers of high rank to the holy see with offerings of devotion and expressions of respect for the person of the reigning pope, receiving in return marks of the esteem and consideration in which he was held. Queen Ethelswith his sister died and was buried at Pavia in her way to Rome in 888, a year memorable for the dismemberment of the empire and its division into a number of independent kingdoms: of which one of those accurate entries in the Anglo- Saxon chronicle just referred to gives a very particular account. We feel justified therefore in assuming—and it is not an uninterest- ing thought to accompany us in following the course of events 284 STATE OF EUROPE during the remainder of the century—that while Alfred with singleness of heart was consolidating the security and order of his own sea-girt dominions, he watched with interest those ceaseless changes and divisions which the faithless policy and the restless ambition of his brother kings, and the animosities of their imper- fectly amalgamated peoples, combined to effect in the distribution of territory and power on the continent of Europe during his own more fortunate career. Neither the equitable partition of the empire made pursuant to the treaty of Verdun nor the family compact of Mersen, again and again renewed, succeeded in establishing the peace of Europe. It was still the theatre of conflicting interests ; and pressed on the east by tribes of the Sclavonian race, on the shores of the channel by the invading Northmen, and on the south by the Saracens of Africa and Spain, it was impossible that society in any country should become settled and regulated. Each of the Frank kings was harassed in turn by intestine disturbances and frontier irrup- tions—and, as there was no real union and mutual cooperation, each was left to fight his own battle. In the division of the empire, the claims of the younger Pepin to the kingdom of Aquitaine had been set aside in favour of his uncle Charles the Bald. But Pepin was at no loss to find adherents among the turbulent barons of his father’s ‘territories; and, un- scrupulous in his alliances, the infidel Saracens of Spain and the pagan Northmen were arrayed under his banners with the hardy Britons of the duke Noménoé and the troops of Sancho king of Navarre, and of the powerful dukes and counts of Toulouse and Barcelona, all ready to assist in the dismemberment of the empire. Alternately restored and expelled, a king and a fugitive, escaping from the monastery in which he had been immured, and the ton- sure, it was supposed, had sealed his political death, the young pretender’s spirit and enterprise enabled -him for several years to maintain an unequal contest and embroil the very heart of his uncle’s dominions in his repeated attempts to assert his rights. In Italy, another young prince of the blood of Charlemagne, Louis, eldest son of the emperor Lothaire, exhibited equal spirit, attended with greater success, in defence of the imperial rights IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 285 and the kingdom of which he had received the investiture from his father Lothaire. He chastised the seditious populace of Rome for electing a pope without the emperor’s participation : struggled with vigour to reduce to submission the powerful and almost independent duke of Beneventum; and harassed the Moorish pirates of Africa who had penetrated as far as Rome, burnt the suburbs, and carried off the sacred vessels from the shrine of the apostles. Formidable in their flight as in their advance, they fought the Franks before they reached their ships, and the booty of Rome perished in the shipwreck of their fleet. But the capital of Christendom owed its salvation as much to the heroism of the pope Leo IV, as to the valour of the imperial troops. Born a Roman, the courage of the first ages of the republic glowed in his bosom. He repaired the walls and armed and animated the citizens for their defence. The splendid and useful reign of Leo IV is rendered particularly memorable by his having surrounded with walls the quarter of the Vatican, which was formed by the strangers who gradually settled about the tombs of the apostles and afterwards called the Leonine city. A pope of such distinguished merit was worthy of being the spiritual father of Alfred the Anglo-Saxon king, who when a child was sent to Rome attended by an honourable escort, and having been received by Leo as his adopted son in the rite of confirmation was ‘also consecrated and anointed king, and sent back, we are told, to his country, with the blessing of St Peter the apostle. 855. Two years’ afterwards we find the young prince again at Rome, in company with his father Ethelwulf, who loved him, as we are informed, more than his other sons, and treating him with this distinction and causing him to be consecrated king at so early an age—seems to have given an augury of his future preeminence. LEthelwulf and the young prince, attended by a splendid retinue of Anglo-Saxon nobles, in passing through France, were hospitably entertained by the wise and accomplished Grimbald; and the king Charles the Bald, receiving them with (2) A passage inserted in a later edition of the Saxon Chronicle and given in the “Harmony,” p. 18, suggest a doubt whether Alfred did not remain at Rome during this interval, or even till after the death of Ethelwulf. This version would remove some difficulties, but it is at variance with all the other authorities. 286 STATE OF EUROPE honour, caused them to be conducted through his dominions with every respectful attention. Ethelwulf bore rich presents to the shrines of the apostles, and was received with the distinction which his piety and munificence demanded. The royal pilgrims spent a whole year at Rome, diligently occupied in prayers and alms-deeds. Nor was the Anglo-Saxon king unmindful of the interests of his people; for he rebuilt the English college or school founded by king Ina, which had been destroyed by fire some years before and for which Alfred, not unmindful, obtained some immunities in after times. Ethelwulf also, observing the penitents and exiles degraded by wearing in publics fetter of iron, procured a decree that no Englishman should undergo that indignity. It was an eventful year that the English princes spent at Rome. Leo IV died in the month of July or August, and Alfred may have arrived in time to receive the last blessing of the aged pontiff who two years before adopted him as his son in confir- mation, and gave him the kingly title and unction. It is not improbable that the penetrating mind of Leo had detected the germs of premature thought and intellect in the Anglo-Saxon prince, for whom he appears to have conceived a sincere regard. Whether Alfred arrived in time to receive the blessing or knelt over the newly closed tomb of his illustrious friend,— young as he was, he could not have passed through such scenes unmoved. And then followed the election and inauguration of the new pope, attended with all that magnificent and stately ceremonial, bor- rowed from antient usages, with which Rome has always dignified her solemn offices. The presence of the Anglo-Saxon princes gave additional splendour to the gorgeous pageant. Nor were scenes of a different character wanting. The displeasure of the emperors Lothaire and Lewis at the election of Benedict * having (3) Benedict 1V was consecrated in the month of September. It is a curious circum- stance that king Alfred was at Rome at the very time, which is commonly assigned for the election of the female pope, who, known as Pope Joan, is said to have filled the papal chair on the death of Leo [V,—a scandal, if such it be, not invented by protestants, for the story was current in the Roman church long before the reformation. It has all the character of a romance, and is evidently one of those monkish legends which composed the popular reading of the middle ages. The heroine of the tale was of English extraction, and her love—as in modern fictions, that essential element was not wanting—for a young monk, also a countryman of Alfred’s, gives interest to the first scenes of the drama. Her elopement in male attire and admission as a monk into the monastery of Fulda, the escape of the guilty couple, their journeyings to Athens and to Rome,—the poignancy of her grief at the loss of IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 287 been made without the imperial sanction occasioned the nomi- nation of a rival pope, who was supported by a faction of the populace with all that violent turbulence for which the people of Rome were distinguished. Benedict was obliged to flee, after personal ill-treatment, from the fury of the faction; but the firmness of the bishops prevailed, and his return in triumph restored tranquillity. It was an eventful year; the emperor as well as the pope was numbered with the dead during the pilgrimage of the royal Anglo- Saxons. Feeling that his death was approaching, the conscience of Lothaire became alarmed at a retrospect of the enormous crimes of which he had been guilty—perjury, murder and well nigh parricide. He retired to the monastery of Pruim, and, assuming the habit of a monk, waited with trembling apprehen- sion the approach of the king of terrors. The horrors of his death-bed appalled the brotherhood. The monks relate the con- test between the good and evil angels for his departing soul; but declare that their prayers prevailed.‘ In his son Lewis, the new emperor, fourth of his family, the Romans hailed their saviour and defender, and Alfred may have been admitted to familiar intercourse with a prince in many respects worthy of his imitation. The valour and patriotism of Lewis endeared their king to the people of Italy, and his death, after a long reign, left them a prey to the factions and wars which attend a disputed inheritance. Whatever interest Alfred may have taken in the scenes accom- panying the political occurrences which took place during his residence at Rome, there can be no doubt but his opening mind her lover, and the sanctity arising from her profound melancholy, which, joined to her reputation for learning, paved the way for her subsequent elevation—all betray the real character of the story. Nor were there wanting touches of that coarse humour which we find in the carvings and “illustrations” of the age. What can be more ludicrous than the story of the ‘ perforated chair’ which forms the episode of the tale,—invented proba- bly from an antient sedile of marble, used in bathing, some treasure of art from the ruins of the baths of Hadrian or Dioclesian, being made use of in the inauguration of the popes —and the scene to which it gave rise? ‘Mas est,” cried the deacon to the solemn assem- bly.“ Deo gratias! ” responded the bishops and clergy. (4) Chronicle of Father Richard. In Chron. Sithiensi Sti Bertini, the contest is de- scribed more graphically; “ita ut circumstantibus corpus ejus trahi et detrahi videretur; sed monachis orantibus, demones sunt fatigati.” This was written in the 14th century: the “pull monk, pull devil,” is an instance of additional embellishment, several centuries afterwards, not uncommon in such records. 288 STATE OF EUROPE must have been powerfully affected by the display of the choicest and most perfect productions of skill and industry which either the eastern or western world could offer, assembled in the capi- tal of Christendom, as well as by the monuments of antient art which surrounded him on every side. The great object of inte- rest and devotion to the pilgrims of those days were the tombs of the apostles St Peter and St Paul on the Vatican hill, without the antient walls of Rome, but round which Leo IV had just drawn a line of defence. Those consecrated shrines were not yet spanned by the wondrous dome raised over them by the genius of Buona- rotti, but the traveller of our days may follow the footsteps of the Saxon princes to many a basilica which after the lapse of a thou- sand years retains the primitive form and the antient structure of the first ages of the church. One edifice, in particular, the devo- tion of which to sacred uses was then comparatively recent, could not fail of being visited with peculiar interest, as even now it attracts the notice of every thoughtful pilgrim from our northern isle. We speak of the house of Gregory the Great, the residence of the Anician family, converted by himself into a church and monastery, where the hall in which he daily fed the indigent, and other relics of his piety and munificence, are still shewn ;—of Gregory the spiritual father of a long line of Anglo-Saxon princes and like Leo IV, whose memory was yet fresh, the saviour of Rome from barbarian spoliation. If turning from the Christian antiquities we follow the footsteps of Alfred among the purer remains of antient art, the temples, the amphitheatres, the triumphal arches, which have survived the casualties of so many revolutions, we may easily believe that many a precious relic which disappeared during the intestine tumults of Rome in the middle ages, or was worked up in the construction of the fortified palaces of her turbulent nobles, met the wondering eyes of the young Anglo-Saxon prince, erect in all its original beauty and grandeur. Was Alfred fully impressed with the interest attending these imperishable records of past times? did he associate with them the former glories of the masters of the world? Perhaps not: of mere book-learning we are informed he was ignorant for several years afterwards, but we are of the number of those who think IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 289 that its value may be much over-rated, and that nothing more tends to expand the youthful mind than familiar association with persons of superior intelligence and the opportunities for observa- tion which travel, and particularly foreign travel, affords. These the young Alfred fully enjoyed, and among other instances of early developement which the records of the times afford us, we are not willing to believe that having these opportunities,—with great natural abilities, and the noble spirit already moving within him,—Alfred wandered in ignorance among the striking remains of antient grandeur, while neither the learned Grimbald nor the enlightened men of the courts of Charles the Bald and Leo the Fourth, nor any of his compatriots in the Anglo-Saxon school at Rome, took the pains of informing his young mind and satisfy- ing his curiosity respecting the mighty race whose history was connected with the relics of the past to which he was twice con- ducted. One thing we do know,—that when in after years he ad- dressed himself to the task of instructing his unlettered subjects, the remains of Roman civilization were the fountains to which he had recourse, and it is easy to conceive from what recollections he drew the inspiration. We leave Ethelwulf and Alfred to spend the year at Rome while we turn to what was passing in other parts of the empire. Lothaire, violating even in his death-bed repentance a solemn con- stitutional law which had decreed in a national assembly that there should be no further sub-division of the imperial dominions, divided his states between his three sons. He bequeathed to Lewis the eldest, already associated in the title of emperor, the kingdom of Italy. To his second son Lothaire, he gave the provinces between the Rhine and the Alps,—the Cis-Rhenane Austrasia, henceforth called from him Lotharingia or Lorraine. To Charles his youngest son were allotted the provinces on the Rhone, part of the antient kingdom of Burgundy, in right of which he assumed the title of king of Provence. Two new kingdoms were thus added to the three into which the empire was divided by the partition treaty of Verdun, and new elements of strife were introduced among the posterity of Charlemagne. In France a faction of the Aquitanians, the people between the Seine and the Loire, who appear ae than any other of the popu- 3 Essays 290 STA'TE OF EUROPE lation of Gaul to have been impatient of regular government and given to change, had invited Lewis the German, to accept the crown of Aquitaine, but that prince was too much occupied in defending his frontier against the Bohemians and Moravians to listen at present to their offer. The pretender Pepin had been expelled, and tendering their allegiance to Charles the Bald, to whom the kingdom had been allotted in the division of the empire, the counts and nobles of Aquitaine requested him to give them his young son Charles for king, but “ despising his youth,” they soon repented their choice, and Pepin was restored. The disaffec- tion was not confined to Aquitaine but throughout the whole of France the counts, becoming every day more powerful and inde- pendent, were continually in a state of insubordination. To add to the misery and anarchy of the kingdom; the Northmen, no longer satisfied with their annual piracies on the coasts, were pene- trating, by the Loire and the Seine, into the interior of the country, occupying Rouen and Orleans, and carrying fire and sword through whole districts. No one felt himself secure from their ravages, and from the weakness of the government and the want of concert between the king and his nobles, there was no organization which could make head against the invaders. Ethelwulf returning from Rome in the autumn of 856 claimed the hand of Judith the daughter of Charles the Bald which had been already promised him. In his future step-mother—who was of years scarcely marriageable—and her brother Charles, the boy-king of Aquitaine who had now returned from his mockery of a government in that turbulent province, Alfred must have found congenial associates. The court of Charles the Bald, not- withstanding the troubles of the times, was distinguished for the enlightened men which the patronage of Charles drew round him, and the school of the palace in which the royal children were edu- cated was illustrious for the ardour with which learning and science were cultivated. Judith herself to great personal charms, added attainments far beyond the usual range of small accomplish- ments. Captivated by her wit and beauty, the aged and pious Ethelwulf was probably led to commit a great imprudence, to say the least, in contracting so unseemly and disproportioned an union, for Judith was now scarcely thirteen years old. Her future career was far from creditable, and she seems to have inherited IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 291 not only the talent and the grace, but other very questionable in- gredients in the character of her namesake and grandmother the empress Judith, wife of Lewis le Debonnaire. We are however inclined to think that whatever difficulties may lie in the way of admitting the commonly received opinion which assigns to Judith the first important steps in the education of Alfred,—and however her tender years may have incapacitated her for performing the more serious duties of a step-mother towards a youth but little younger than herself,—the connection was highly favourable to the developement of the intellectual character of the young prince. Their relations from the first must have very much resembled those of brother and sister; and, sad to say, such soon became, on the death of Ethelwulf, their actual position. The influence of an accomplished elder sister, in all the free inter- course to which their near relationship gave occasion, on the opening mind of Alfred must have been great ; while to Judith, transplanted from the most polished court and enlightened school in Europe to the ungenial atmosphere of the Anglo-Saxon king- dom and the society of its uncivilized nobles, the companionship of Alfred, fresh from the vivid impressions of foreign travel, must have proved a source of reciprocal satisfaction and have drawn forth all her stores of information. However this may be, the nuptials of Ethelwulf and Judith were celebrated at the palace of Verberie with a magnificence which little indicated the perplexities of a tottering government and a realm’s decay. In Hincmar the archbishop of Rheims, who gave the nuptial benediction, the youthful Alfred saw the greatest states- man, the most powerful subject, and the most enlightened, if not the profoundest, scholar, of the age. The ritual, composed for the occasion, is still extant, and its pure, majestic and solemn tone is worthy of the best ages of the Church. The fondness of Ethel- wulf for his beautiful bride, or the pretensions of the Frank court, required that, contrary to the usages of the kingdom of Wessex, Judith should be received as queen as well as wife, and, anointed and crowned by Hincmar, she took her place on the throne by the side of her royal husband. Returning to his own country, the Anglo-Saxon nobles and people, devotedly attached to Ethelwulf, acquiesced in the unusual 292 STATE OF EUROPE arrangement and received Judith as their queen. Their arrival served at once to dissolve the traitorous conspiracy which his eldest son Ethelbald had formed against his authority during his absence. But the clemency of Ethelwolf and the wise policy of his nobles allotted to Ethelbald the western part of his father’s dominions in order to prevent the irremediable evil of a son warring against his father, or rather “ of the whole nation carrying on civil war, either on the one side or the other.” The German customs, common alike to the Franks and the Anglo-Saxons, justified this partition, but we hear of no further attempts at usurpation, or family divisions, among the Anglo-Saxon princes ; and it was to the union of the three brothers after the death of Ethelwulf, and more especially to Alfred’s magnanimous postponement of his own pretensions and Ethelred’s ultimate good faith, that their country owed its power of resisting with so much determination the inva- sions of the Danes. On the contrary, it is to the total want of moral principle in the Frank princes, their unnatural animosities and disregard of the most solemn treaties and family compacts,—intrigues renewed on every fresh succession,—that we may attribute, above all other causes, the decay of the sovereign power, and the final disruption of the European commonwealth. This fatal propensity appears to have run in the blood of the descendants of Charlemagne : each of them not only conceived himself intitled by birth to be a king, but was ready to grasp, as opportunity offered, at every addition of territory which his ambition prompted, no matter by what means, or at whose expence: and unfortunately the feelings and the interests of the people of the several European states but too well seconded the projects of the princes. The dissensions among the sons of Lewis le Debonnaire which broke up the empire into three great kingdoms were renewed on a lesser scale upon the death of the emperor Lothaire, and the subdivision of his third share between his sons Lewis, Lothaire and Charles. Their squabbles, their reconciliation, and the adjustment of their claims demand no further notice in a dissertation such as this. They are of less importance, as the two new kingdoms of Lorraine and Provence were very shortly absorbed, on the death of the (1) Asser ; in the Harmony &c. p. 20 of this volume. IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 293 young kings Lothaire and Charles without issue, in the greater kingdoms. But, here again, the grasping ambition of the princes of the house of Charlemagne was eminently exhibited ; for, instead of being reunited in the person of Lewis, the natural heir to the third portion of the empire from which they had been severed, those kingdoms were now divided between his uncles, Lewis the German and Charles the Bald. Nor did these two more powerful princes, though they acted in concert in this spoliation, respect the integrity of their own se- veral dominions as established by the treaty of Verdun. It has been already mentioned that the rebellious Aquitanians had offered to transfer their allegiance from Charles to Lewis; but the latter, occupied by his wars against the Sclaves, had hitherto been only able, in compliance with those overtures, to send his son Lewis into Aquitaine where he made no permanent impression. Lewis the German, however, watched his opportunity, and while Charles the Bald was embarrassed by the incursions of the North- men, he led his German Franks across the Rhine, and was joined by the rebellious counts of Neustria, Aquitaine and Brittany. Charles unable to face such a formidable combination, though he assembled some forces and the armies of the two brothers were in presence near Brienne, was compelled to flee, and Lewis pos- sessed himself of nearly the whole of his dominions, rewarding his adherents by the distribution of abbies and royal domains. But the power which had interposed between the brothers in arms after the battle of Fontenay, and proposed or dictated terms for the great settlement of European affairs which was carried into effect by the treaty of Verdun, again interfered. The bishops assembled in the council of Metz, deputed three of their number, in 859, to threaten Lewis with the censures of the church for the crime of which he had been guilty in invading his brother’s kingdom and exposing it to the ravages of his army. Lewis sub mitted to the judgment of the bishops, humbly “ begging” that, if in any thing he had offended them, they would be good enough to pardon him, so that he might proceed to speak in safety with them. Their threats and remonstrances preserved the kingdoms of Neustria and Aquitaine for Charles the Bald, who on his part acknowledged his abject dependence upon the bishops at the 294 STATE OF EUROPE council of Savonnieres held shortly afterwards to restore peace between the kings of the Franks. “After being elected by you,” he said to the assembled Fathers, “and the other bishops and faithful nobles of the realm, and consecrated king according to the traditions of the church, I ought neither to have been de- throned nor supplanted without having been heard and judged by the bishops, by whose ministration I have been consecrated king, and who have been called the thrones of the Divinity. In them God sits, and through them he renders judgement. At all times I have shown myself ready to submit to their paternal cor- rections and castigatory judgments—and I am so now.” In the times of Lewis le Debonnaire we saw the bishops of Neustria sitting in judgement on the emperor, condemning him to a public and disgraceful penance, degrading him from his rank, and again restoring him to power, when it seemed fit to them, We have since seen them interfere on two memorable occasions to hold the balance between rival kings, and virtually dictate the terms on which their differences were adjusted. In short, we are alive to the fact of the complete ascendancy of the church at this period. But it must not be confounded with the domination of the papacy, the era of which had not just arrived, and to the growth of which it was opposed. Nor can the subject be dis- missed with a sneer at the superstition of the age, and the en- croaching and selfish spirit of the church. For any survey of the revolutions of the ninth century must be imperfect which does not convey some idea of the origin, the nature, and the influences on government and society, whether for good or evil, of the power which we have seen so signally exerted and have represented as so completely predominant. We speak of the continental states; for circumstances were different in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms where the clergy had not yet risen above their proper level. The bishops, indeed, had an influential voice in the national assemblies, and sat with the temporal magistrates in administering justice in the county courts. They were the counsellors of the sovereign, and were employed in important affairs of state. The clergy were already an estate of the realm. But the free institutions of the Anglo-Saxons were favourable to the maintenance of the balance of power, and all minds and interests were so absorbed in the one great object of IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 295 defending the country, that no class thought of trenching on the province of another. Nor were the personal characters of those who were at the head of affairs in church and state such as tended to disturb this equilibrium. The bishops were not intri- guing or ambitious, and the kings did not expose themselves by their vices to the censures of the church. It may be said that Ethelwulf was in many respects the counterpart of Lewis the Pious; but Alfred and Edward the Elder were kings of too much energy of character to allow any scope for ecclesiastical ascen- dancy. It was not till the times of Odo and Dunstan and the feeble reigns of such kings as Edred and Edwy and Edward the Martyr, that the royal power in England was prostrated at the feet of the bishops, as it had been a century before in the other states of Europe. It has been already remarked that, on the fall of the western empire, the Church was the only guardian of what remained of the Roman civilization. The bishops and clergy formed the link between the new barbarian sovereignty and the populations on which it was intruded. They attached themselves to the former for the restoration of unity and order; they used their influence for the protection of the latter, with which they were intimately connected, against the tyranny of their new masters who appro- priated to themselves almost all the property, and would have -arrogated all the authority in the conquered states, if brute force alone could have accomplished it. But knowledge is power ; the clergy were the depositaries of whatever learning and intelligence had escaped the irruption of barbarism; the cities and towns which surrounded the cathedrals and greater abbies were the nur- series of industry and the arts, and the refuge of the better class of the free native populations which sought to escape the domina- tion of the new lords of the soil. In these municipalities were preserved the memory, and in some sort the enjoyment, of those civil institutions which had secured to them a certain degree of freedom even under the despotism of the Roman emperors. As the senate and people of Rome had, under similar circumstances, sheltered themselves under the wings of the popes, investing them by their voluntary submission with an authority which was reflected back in benefits to themselves, so did these provincial municipalities find patrons and protectors in the bishops and supe- 296 STATE OF EUROPE rior clergy with whom they were locally connected. Every where the bishops became the representatives of whatever remained of nationality in the conquered territories. All other powers in the state were alien and intrusive. But the native populations, when their subjugation had been effected by the sword, had to be governed by civil authority. They had retained the privilege of having justice administered to them after the forms and upon the principles of the Roman jurisprudence, instead of according to the barbarous and unwritten customs of their conquerors. This was another element of power in the clergy, among whom, almost exclusively, juridical science was cultivated. The general ignorance of the Frank nobles, and their contempt for every profession but that of arms, caused many of the functions of the magistracy, even as to police and civil causes, to be delegated to the bishops and clergy in their several jurisdictions; and the same causes drew the most eminent and intelligent members of the order round the person of the sovereign, as his counsellors and agents in all great affairs of state. Their personal interests, withal, had not been neglected ; for the Frank kings were profuse in grants to the bishops and abbots which placed them as to revenue and territorial influence upon a footing of equality with the counts and nobles. The enfran- chisement of their villains, and the superior cultivation of their estates, made the churchmen the most popular, as well as the richest, members of the landed aristocracy. . In addition, then, to their spiritual authority—of which there is no need to speak—and to their influence as the natural repre- sentatives of the native populations, the bishops and superior clergy of those times acquired vast temporal power as enlightened statesmen and magistrates, as well as great proprietors. The penetrating mind of Charlemagne had not failed to per- ceive the advantages to be derived from the cooperation of the church in his great designs for promoting the fusion the civiliza- tion and the well ordering of the heterogeneous populations of which his accumulated states were composed. During his reign there was the strictest alliance between church and state. But IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 297 while he invested the clergy with power and privilege, and enriched them with munificent endowments, he carefully retained the reins of power, and if there was any encroachment on their respective provinces, it was on the part of the emperor who with- out hesitation decided, proprio motu, on questions which be- longed exclusively to the spiritual jurisdiction. The intimate alliance between the two powers was maintained under the successors of Charlemagne: but with this difference, that in the decadence of the temporal sovereignty the church retained all the advantages she had received, rose more and more to the supremacy which the progress of events marked out for her, and instead of the handmaid, became the mistress of kings. While they were engaged in internecine wars, the counts were insubordinate, the peoples antagonistic, and kingdoms shattered, the church alone in her hierarchical constitution was the model of order and unity, and maintained with vigor her corporate and independent existence, when every other power was in a state of dissolution. The dissensions of the princes, the grand children of Charlemagne, raised her to the rank of arbiter in their quarrels ; their perfidies and crimes enabled her to assume the attitude of their judge ; and their impotence impelled them to have recourse to her as their patron and protector against the turbulence of their subjects. The government of the Frankish kingdoms, from the latter years of Lewis le Debonnair, was in fact an ecclesiastical aristocracy ; though the bishops did not ostensibly exhibit their power except upon great occasions, when to rebuke or sit in judg- ment upon the misconduct of kings—however usurped an author- ity—was admitted to be their prerogative of divine right. In the ordinary administration of affairs, their part was that of counsel- lors and delegates of the sovereign, whose person and attributes were invested with all the respectful homage which the traditions of the church derived from their relations with the Christian emperors. It has been intimated that the ascendancy of the clergy was not founded merely on a blind and ignorant superstition. There was enough of that doubtless, in the temper of the age, but the spiritual power never could have acquired the consistency it did, nor carried with it the concurrent assent of society, unless it had Essays 38 298 STATE OF EUROPE been based on great moral principles and exercised for salutary purposes. The age was not arrived when mailed bishops were marshalled in the ranks of contending armies, and the vices of the clergy were a scandal to their order. The discipline of the church had been restored and was maintained with vigour. The schools of the monasteries were encouraged ; architecture, music, agriculture, all the arts and processes of industry which had survived the barbarism of preceding centuries and were struggling against its new aggressions, found their refuge in the bosom of the Church and were mainly connected with its functions. All movement, moral and intellectual, was in the clergy, and a power thus usefully employed—which could rebuke the vices of kings, step in between them when armies were in presence, and cause them to sheath their fratricidal swords,—a power which was essentially national and was ready to maintain the independence and interests of national kingdoms,—could not fail of being respected. We are accustomed to associate with the ambition of the clergy ideas of the narrow and scholastic range of their own attainments and the desire to stifle all free enquiry by others, which are not altogether applicable to the times of which we treat. The most eminent ecclesiastics were greatly indebted for their moral and social preeminence to their enlightened character as statesmen, taking large views and having great experience in political affairs. Even as churchmen, questions of faith and doctrine had become so complex and difficult, and rules of discipline and the relations of the church with civil society so extensive and complicated, that much general information and a great developement of mind were required in those who took part in the administration of affairs. Scarcely a year passed without ecclesiastical councils and synods, the debates of which sharpened the intellect and kept alive the intelligence which dealt both with spiritual and temporal affairs,— alike the subject of discussion and included in the decrees of those assemblies. In the reign of Charles the Bald, about the period to which our review has now brought us, two great religious questions divided the opinions and called into exercise the keenest faculties of the theologians of France. One, proposed by Pascasius, abbot of Corbie, had reference to the nature and manner of the divine IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 299 presence in the Holy Eucharist. The other controversy, raised by Gotteschalk a German monk, involved the unfathomable ques- tions of the divine prescience and the freedom of the human will. The subject belongs to the intellectual or literary rather than to the political history of the age, and we advert to it only for the purpose of remarking the free and extensive range of thought with which these intricate questions were canvassed. In the fierce encounter bishop was engaged against bishop, and council against council. John the Scot, an Irishman from the isle of saints, master of the school of the palace and the intimate friend of Charles the Bald, who was invited by Hincmar to defend the orthodox faith, in treating of these abstruse subjects boldly asserted the right of private judgment. Without directly attacking the popular belief, he advocated the claims of reason to inquire for itself, and gave the first impulse to the movement of intel- lectual liberty which, after a long struggle, succeeded in setting free the human mind from the shackles of an unreasoning and implicit submission to authority. It is probable that John Erigena exceeded his commission ; for Gotteschalk experienced harsh treatment at the hands of Hincmar. But it is as a statesman, rather than as a theologian, that we have to deal with the character of the greatest churchman of the age. Descended from a noble family of Aquitaine, the early part of Hinemar’s life was divided between the court and the cloister ; in both of which he displayed so much ability and discretion that Charles the Bald attached him to his interests and raised him in 845 to the archiepiscopal see of Rheims, the highest ecclesiastical dignity in his dominions. He had now full scope for the exercise of his great talents; indeed for the greater part of his public life, a period of nearly forty years, he may be said to have governed France, as well as to have exercised an important influence in the other European kingdoms, maintaining an extensive correspon- dence with all the most eminent persons of the age. Haughty and imperious in temper, and possessed of high notions of the authority of the church, Hincmar does not appear, as far as we are able to gather from his correspondence and the other records of the times, to have formed any express design to lower the royal authority or to build upon its ruins the ascen- dancy of the church. The part he took seemed rather to have 300 STATE OF EUROPE been forced upon him by external circumstances ; and his zeal was directed equally—as a faithful minister of the crown—to the promotion of Charles’s interest both in foreign and domestic affairs, and the good government and defence of his dominions, and,—as a spiritual chief—to the maintenance of the liberties of the national church, of which he is esteemed the founder. These he strenuously asserted against all encroachments of kings on the one hand, and popes on the other; and the tendency of the age to the distribution of power and territory amongst an increas- ing number of independent communities, coincided with the efforts of Hincmar to maintain the rights of national churches and their bishops and metropolitans. Though the supremacy of the popes was thus postponed, they did not suffer their pretensions to be altogether dormant; and the times of which we treat afford several memorable instances both of their success and of their failure, when they seized occasions to extend the rights of the holy see beyond the limits within which it had been hitherto confined. When the sons of Lewis le Debonnair were in arms against him, and pope Gregory IV, ex- pousing their cause, came to their camp in Alsace, a report was spread that he intended to excommunicate the emperor and the bishops of France if they did not submit to his decision of the quarrel; but the bishops indignantly retorted that if the pontiff came to excommunicate, he should return excommunicated.’ The pope prudently abandoned the cause of the rebellious princes, pretending that he came only to reconcile the father with the sons. At a later period, to which our review of the course of events has now brought us, Lothaire king of Lorraine was excommuni- cated by Nicholas the First for repudiating his wife Theutberga, in order to live with Waldrade, whose near relations the archbishop of Cologne and the bishop of Treves had induced the council of Metz to sanction the divorce. But Nicholas cancelled the decree of the council, and separated the bishops from the communion of (2) “Si excommunicans adveniret, excommunicatus abiret.” Agobard archbishop of Lyons treats the subject of papal interference in firm and temperate language in his letter to the emperor Lewis De comparaTIONE UTRIUSQUE REGIMINIS, ECCLESIAST. ET POLITIC. Si Gregorius papa irrationabiliter et ad pugnandum venit, et pugnatus et repulsus recedet: si pro quiete et pace populi, ct vestra, laborans nititur, bene et rationabiliter obtemperandum est illi, non repugnandum.” Letters of Agobard in Bouquet. Vol. v1, p. 366. IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 301 the church. Adrian his successor received at Monte Cassino the first of all the kings of Europe who crossed the Alps to implore pardon of the pope of Rome. Lothaire and Waldrade, throwing themselves at his feet, did penance for their crime, and were dismissed with threats of the vengeance of Heaven unless their repentance was sincere. The death of Lothaire within a week [869] was regarded as the just punishment of his insincerity. His death furnished occasion for another papal interposition which was not equally successful. Lewis the German and Charles the Bald, as we have already seen, divided his dominions ; Lewis usurped Transjuran Burgundy, while Charles was crowned king of Lorraine. Pope Adrian expoused the cause of the right heirs, and threatened to excommunicate Charles. It was upon this occasion that Hincmar addressed to the pope the two celebrated letters, in one of which he rebuked the pontiff for his interference in temporal affairs; and in the other maintained the royal prero- gatives against the pretensions of the holy see in terms which singularly contrast with the submission which the bishops were exacting from their kings. He reconciles the seeming inconsis- tency by alleging that it is the kings, “who are constituted by God to command on earth, who have permitted the bishops to rule their affairs in accordance with their sovereign decrees.” Ad- rian found it necessary to temporize, replying to the letters of Hincmar with fulsome compliments on Charles’s justice and love of letters; and offering him the succession to the empire which he had no more right to confer than he had to interfere in the affairs of Lorraine. While the Frank kings were intriguing to add new states to the dominions which they were unable’ to defend against foreign invaders, their nobles rebellious, and the people so harassed by the ravages of the Northmen, that they rose en masse, without leaders, to make an ineffectual effort for their expulsion from the banks of the Seine,—the Anglo-Saxon princes, acting in con- cert, and “rendering,” as Simeon of Durham states, “ brotherly help to each other,” were making heroic efforts to drive the barbarians from their shores. The lion-hearted Alfred, with an unselfish devotion content to occupy a subordinate station, was ever in the foremost rank of his brother’s armies, and a united people, confident in their chiefs, seconded all their efforts and 302 STATE OF EUROPE were ever ready to renew the contest in defence of their country and their religion. The Franks were at least equal to the Anglo-Saxon people in courage and the use of arms, and the population of Neustria and Aquitaine must have been as numerous as that of Wessex and the other Anglian kingdoms south of the Humber. How then do we account for the difference in the vigour with which the contest was maintained on the two sides of the channel, and in the ultimate issue of the long protracted struggle ? was it that the flower of the chivalry of the Franks perished in the fatal field of Fontenay, that fratricidal battle in which the slaughter on both sides was so great that, as the chroniclers lament, there were not warriors left to defend their common country ? We are inclined to think that the accounts of the slaughter are exag- gerated, and the lamentations for the result heightened by the terrors of the monkish annalists. Was it that the native popula- tions of Gaul were not yet fused with the conquering race, and that their dubious fidelity to Frankish counts and lords did not warrant their training them to the use of arms and arraying them thus against the enemy, as would appear from the tumultuary movement recently mentioned ? Was their zeal in the cause too weak to induce them to enter heartily into a combined struggle against the new race of invaders ; or, was it that the government of the Frank kingdoms being in the hands of churchmen, exhor- tations and homilies took the place of muster-rolls,—the relics of the saints were carried to the front of battle instead of the stan- dards of war,—and treasures of gold and silver were lavished in purchasing a disgraceful truce from barbarians who hardly respected treaties dictated at the point of the sword? All these circumstances may have contributed in various degrees to the different results of the war with the Northmen on the opposite sides of the channel. But we are inclined to think that the proximate cause of the success of the Anglo-Saxon kings and people, is to be found in the union of the princes with each other and with their subjects, and their unreserved devotion to the single object of repelling or reducing the invaders. The return of Judith to her own country dissolved the only tie which connected the Anglo-Saxon with the Frank princes. The young widow of Ethelwulf had formed a revolting alliance with IN THE TIME OF KING ALFRED. 303 his eldest son Ethelbald, between whom and Ethelbert their father’s dominions were divided. On the death of Ethelbald, after a reign of only five years, she quitted for ever her adopted coun- try, and selling, we are told, all her property, repaired to the court of her father Charles the Bald. Some interest attaches toa woman who it is supposed had a considerable share in forming the charac- ter of the young Alfred ; and we find with regret that she speedily formed a shameful connection with Baldwin Bras-de-fer, a Flemish noble of distinguished ability, with whom by the help of her brother Lewis she eloped from the palace of Senlis where she was guarded and treated as a queen. In the first moments of his indignation at the dishonour done to his family, Charles the Bald invoked the censures of the Church on the guilty couple. They fled to Rome, expressed deep contrition for their fault, and by the medi- ation of the pope Nicholas I, Charles was induced to sanction their legitimate union. He gave to Baldwin all the country between the Scheld, the Sambre, and the sea, the antient territory of the Foresters, creating him count of Flanders, “that he might be the bulwark of the Frank kingdom against the Northmen.” Baldwin built Bruges as a fortress to coerce their inroads. After a long and active life he left behind him the character that “Flan- ders never had a man his superior in talent and warlike ability,” and we may hope that Judith wore the coronet of Flanders with more honour than her Anglo-Saxon crown. Her son Baldwin the second,—called, from his grandfather Charles Baldwin the Bald— succeeded as count of Flanders; and it is pleasant to find that the relationship of Judith with Alfred was renewed by the marriage of her son to Elfrida, daughter of Alfred; the germ perhaps, as we have already had occasion to remark, of the intimate and long continued connection between the Flemings and the English, the two nations which in the earliest times distinguished themselves by industrial and commercial progress. * The death of the emperor Lewis the second—who, with various fortune, had spent a long life in defending Italy against the Sara- cens, and his own authority against the Lombards of Beneventum —opened to Charles the Bald the long wished for opportunity of (3) From Arnulph, song of Baldwin I] and Elfrida, was descended Matilda wife of William the Conqueror. In a generation later than Elfrida, no less than five grand-children of Alfred, daughters of his son Edward the elder, intermarried with continental princes,—two 304 STATE OF EUROPE arriving at the summit of his ambition. The pope John VIII, faithful to the promise of his predecessor Adrian, and disregarding the rights of the German princes, as the elder branch of the Carlo- vingian family, offered the title of emperor, with the crown of Italy, to the French king, which Charles, with equal disregard to the rights of his brother Lewis, did not hesitate to accept. The year 875—four years after Alfred the Great was raised to the throne of the united Anglo-Saxon kingdoms on the death of his brother Ethelred,—witnessed the coronation of Charles the Bald as emperor and king of Italy. But so insecure was his tenure of his hereditary dominions, that the Christmas in which he was crowned at Rome was spent by Lewis, in the middle of France, in Charles’s own palace of Attigny. As the new emperor returned, he received the iron crown of Lombardy at Milan, leaving his of whom were of the highest rank,—Charles the Simple, and the emperor Otho the Great. The following pedigree shews all the marriages referred to in the text and in this note: (1st wife) =Ethelwulph=(2d wife) Judith, d. of Charles the Bald, k. of | France, 856. sx ( | Ethelbald = Judith ALFRED Baldwin = Judith 2nd mar. THE Great. Bras-de-fer, | 3rd mar. 858. co. Flanders 867. d. 880 seas | (2) Edgiva = Edward = (1) Elfleda Elfrida= Baldwin IT (the | the El | 929. Bald) c. of Flan- der. | ders, 918. | | pts a oo Oo : 2 Ne} = & 5 -aureymby