Qass Book -^ — I %s^ — *Öl»ft THE LIFE OF KING ALFRED By dr. REINHOLD PAULI. A TRANSLATION REVISED BY THE AUTHOR. EDITED BY THOMAS WRIGHT, Esq., M.A., F.S.A. LONDON: RICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET, ■Publtöl)er in ©itJinan) to ^tv ^Hajfot». yi LONDON: Printed by Samuel Bf.ntley and Co Bangor House, Shoe Lane. PREFACE OF THE EDITOR. Among the great historical personages of the Middle Ages, few stand out in bolder relief than Alfred, the West-Saxon. While he may be com- pared in many respects with Charlemagne, although not equal with him in the extent of his power, or in the glory of empire, yet he was superior to him so far as the saviour of his own people must always be regarded as greater than the conqueror of others. He had fallen on the evil days of his country, and this circumstance perhaps helped to increase the contrast between the active and intelligent mind of the King and the moral and intellectual darkness with which he was surrounded, Alfred found learning dead, or nearly so, and he restored it at least to life; the laws were almost powerless, till he gave them force ; the church was debased, and he raised it ; the land was ravaged by a fearful enemy, from which he delivered it. It was an age in which it was not easy for the energies of an individual to effect such reforms, and we might be IV PREFACE OF THE EDITOR. inclined to suppose that history had exaggerated the picture, were it not for those lasting memorials, his own writings, which show us that he possessed a mind far in advance of the time in which he lived. Nevertheless, in whatever light we regard him, we shall find in everything that he was rather a restorer than a creator. Although a great warrior, he was not an ambitious one, and there was nothing ag- gressive in his policy, no indication of a desire to extend the limits of his rule. He did not seek to be the founder of an empire. His laws are only those by which his subjects had been ruled^ under former kings, newly arranged and compiled. In church matters he followed the example of his predecessors in profound reverence for the see of Rome, though perhaps with less of bigotry. Even in literature, he was but a translator ; and in what he did for the encouragement of learning, he only went with a stream which had already set in. There was a spirit of nationality among the An- glo-Saxon people, which led them to love their own language and to cherish its literature, and with this spirit Alfred was identified from his youth. The clergy throughout the Middle Ages regarded the Latin language as the only representative of learn- ing, and they looked with a jealous eye at all attempts at transferring knowledge to the vulgar tongue. It was the national spirit alluded to that in Alfred's time had led to the neglect of the Latin tongue, and, while the King was complaining of this PREFACE OF THE EDITOR. V neglect, he was actually showing his own leaning to the spirit which had caused itj by translating books from Latin into Anglo-Saxon. Nor must we disguise from ourselves that, with all Alfred's great qualities, the circumstance which gave him most celebrity, and which caused his countrymen to be so long and so warmly attached to his memory, was that of his having become, for the sake of his coun- try's freedom, a homeless wanderer in the woods, exposed to all the adventures and dangers of the ordinary outlaw. Our Anglo-Saxon forefathers had a peculiar attachment to the character of the outlaw, and they loved to trace their heroes in such adven- tures as were said to have befallen the King in the wilds of Athelney. The want of a really good life of Alfred in the English language was much to be regretted. The materials, it is true, are scanty, and many of them of very doubtful value ; yet, with a sound critical mind to sift, comjDare, and make inductions, much might be done towards picturing the great King as he really thought and acted. This has been attempted by Dr. Pauli, and I think with success, and the following pages merit Avell to be laid before the English reader in the language which we derive immediately from that which Alfred spoke. If we have any fault to find with the manner in which our Author treats his subject, it is that, in his admira- tion of his hero, he has unintentionally ado])ted too much of the style of the panegyrist ; that on one VI PREFACE OF THE EDITOR. side he shows a sort of chivalrous sensitiveness at the. slightest incident which would intimate the possibility of casting a blot, however small, on the object of his adoration, while on the other it is evident that he gives up with great reluctance even a palpable fable if it tends to enhance his glory. These are weaknesses which are easily forgiven, and they detract very little indeed from the value of the book now ushered into the presence of the English public. I have just observed that the materials for the " History of Alfred " are scanty, compared with its importance. They consist chiefly of the concise narrative of the " Anglo-Saxon Chronicle," which was composed, at all events, not later than the following century, and the authority of which no one can reasonably doubt. After this comes the celebrated "Life of Alfred," professing tobe com- posed by his Bishop, Asser. A few years ago, I stated some reasons which led me to suspect the authenticity of this book, but the opinion I had thus put forth, was controverted first by Dr. Lin- gard, and now again by Dr. Pauli. I confess that my own suspicions on the subject are not at present diminished, but in this place I would wish to abstain from controversy. As I have already intimated, it is with much pleasure that I introduce the translation of Dr. Pauli's " Life of Alfred " to the English reader. It is but justice to myself to say, that it was placed in PREFACE OF THE EDITOR. Vll my bands to edit, as it was passing rapidly through the press ; but, if I had had more time, I do not think that I could have made it more acceptable to the reader than it will be for its own merits. As the Author states in his preface, it was written for Germany; and in revising it I have added a few notes on matters which seemed to me to require explaining to English readers ; and, for the same reason, I have taken the liberty of altering the orthography of many of the names. Alfred, Ed- ward, and such proper names, have become part of our language ; there can be no doubt that Anglo- Saxons would have written them Alfred, Eadweard, &c., but there is no more reason for our printing them so in a modern English book, than there would be for printing csfter for after, eall for all, and the like. Several recent English antiquaries have, it is true, introduced the practice of giving such names in their old orthography, but it is at best but a piece of learned pedantry, and is cal- culated only to make the book repulsive to the general reader ; which appears not to be the case in Germany. On the whole. I fear I have hardly carried my alterations in this respect far enough, for I have allowed one or two names that occur in the notes to retain their old orthogra[>liy, us they seem to be quoted like the titles of books. THOMAS WJUailT. London, May 1852. THE LIFE OF KING ALF E ED, TO HIS EXCELLENCY DR. C. C. J. BUNSEN, PRIVY COUNCILLOR AND AMBASSADOR OF HIS MAJESTY THE KING OF PRUSSIA, THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED. PREFACE. The following Work M'as planned at Oxford, in the November of the eventfnl year 1848, at a time when all German hearts trembled, as they had sel- dom done before, for the safety of their Fatherland ; and, more especially, for the preservation of that particular state which Providence has chosen to be the defence and safeguard of Germany. On my first receiving- intelligence of the state of things at home, 1 felt, on many accounts, great dissatisfaction at being abroad ; and the only thing capable of dis- pelling for a few hours my sorrowful reflections, was my daily visit to the ancient and venerable Bodleian Library, which is so rich in literary treasures of all kinds ; and, more especially, in manuscripts. De- spite of every other consideration, however, the history of the sufferings and victories of Alfred the West-Saxon, derived immediately from the original authorities themselves, wound itself insoiisil)Iy around my heart. I resolved on selecting the Life of this most ex- cellent Prince as the starting-point for my fnturo XIV PREFACE. researches in English History, in which department of literature a wide field has lately been opened for my exertions, in consequence of the prospect I have of continuing Lappenberg's " History of England," as that distinguished author has been compelled, by a severe affection of the eyes, to give up the idea of completing it himself. The preparatory studies for my work on Alfred were rapidly progressing, when circumstances oc- curred to prevent my continuing them, and did not allow me to proceed with the work itself before the following Autumn. At length, however, after many interruptions, some of them for a considerable period, the book is finished. Almost two years have passed away since it was commenced, and still are the eyes of the whole world fixed, although with different feelings, on the settlement of matters in our German Fatherland. It has been my constant aim to paint, to the best of my abilities, the high moral position which Alfred occupies in the organic development of free Eng- land, and to this end I have always, speaking with a due regard to the present state of historical re- search in Germany, had recourse to those sources which are most worthy of credit. On looking through my work, I am aware that it contains many grave defects, which I have found it impossible to remedy. They consist, partly in the dangerous at- tempt to combine pure research with a narration of what has really taken place, and partly in my own PREFACE. XV 11 nskil fulness to make up for the paucity of my authorities by a more practised style. Fn the article of criticism, also, I know that I am not free from fault ; but this must be attributed to the fact of my judgment being' swayed by a partiality for the object of my remarks, and not to idle carelessness : conse- quently, I await, with confidence, the decision of every just and upright judge. As a German, I have written this book principally for Germans, and, I hope, in strict accordance with the true spirit of German research. What I owe to the learning of my countrymen, the reader Mill find faithfully acknowledged in its proper place. For the main body of the work I am indebted to the native country of the Anglo-Saxon ; and I must also acknowledge my thankfulness for the personal friendship of many sound English scholars, such as Kemble and Thorpe, and for the friendly attentions of the officers of the Bodleian Library, the British Museum, and other large libraries. That I have retained the English mode of writing the Anglo-Saxon, which, however, I derived from the manuscripts themselves, may also be regarded an act of homage to the land of Alfred's birth. To assist me in my labours I either used only such works as were published in England itself, or derived my information from manuscripts whose varied or- thography I did not venture to alter to that so logi- cally carried through every possible German dialect by Jacob Grimm. May the great master of this XVI PREFACE. excellent system pardon me if he should ever per- ceive that this omission on my part was only occa- sioned by my desire to advance etymological re- search ; and that, in many cases, it involved a ques- tion of tacitly throwing a new light upon the idiom of the ninth century. For everything else, let the book speak for itself. London, 29>th October, 1850. " Oll Englalaude eac oft wsevon cyningas sigesfseste Jnirh god. Swa swa we secgan geliyrilon. Swa wses iElfred cyning. J)e ofl gefealit wiS Denan. OÖSaet he sige gewann and bewerode his leode." — Homilia Saxonica, sec. XI. MS. Bibl. Bodl. Junius 23, fol. 114 6. CONTENTS. PA6E Introduction .... . ,1 SECTION I. Rise of the Kingdom of the West-Saxons. — Its Rvdcis descended from Woden. — Former Ages. — Egberht. — Athel- wulf . . . . . . .27 SECTION II. Alfred's Youth, from 849 to 8G6.— King Athelred's Ac- :ssion . . . . . . .70 SECTION III. The Years of Training from 866 to 871 . .113 SECTION IV. The Years of Trial, from 871 to 881 . . . 142 SECTION V. Alfred's Labours in Church and State . . . 194 Supplement to Section V. . . , . 268 XX CONTENTS. SECTION VI. PAGE Alfred as an Author, and as the Instructor of his People in all kinds of Useful Knowledge . . . . 274 SECTION VII. Renewed Struggle and Confirmation of Existing Institu- tions. — The Kingdom is transmitted, more powerful than ever, to Edward I. . . . . .328 SECTION VIII. Alfred in his Family, and as a Man . . . 364 APPENDIX. I. Fragments from Alfred's Writings . . . 391 a. Preface to Boethius . . . .391 I. From Orosius ..... 393 a. Alfred's Germania . . . 393 ß. Ohthere's Description of his Voyage . 395 y. Wulfstan's Description of his Voyage . 398 c. Preface, Introductory and Concluding Verses of the Translation of Gregory the Great's Pastoral . . . . .401 d. Preface to the Translation of Gregory the Great's Dialogues . . . . .406 e. Preface to the Anthology from St. Augustin's Soliloquies . . . .407 /; Alfred's Will . . . . .408 II. Alfred's .Jewel . . . . .414 III. A Register of the History of Wessex, from the Year 838 to the Year 901 ... . 415 LIFE ALFRED THE GREAT, INTEODUCTION. At the time when Theoderic the Great raised his empire upon the ruins of Rome, his people had neither attained the tranquillity necessary for the permanent occupation of a country, nor sufficient power of themselves to withstand, for any length- ened period, the influence of the still classic ground of the South. The mighty emigration of nations, also, from east to west, was as strong as ever, and, in little more than a quarter of a century after the conqueror of Odoaccr was dead, almost every trace of him and his works had disappeared with the independence of the Goths. Charlemagne, at the head of his Prankish warriors, had conquered for himself the entire sovereignty of Germany, and the imperial crown of the Western Empire : never since his time has any one individual among the Germans been powerful enough to unite so many dilFcront races of this great nation under one sceptre. But n 2 INTRODUCTION. although those landmarks of his authority which he himself set up against the Sclaves, Moors, and Scan- dinavians, were afterwards pushed forward rather than drawn back, and his magnificent and vigorous institutions and laws preserved their importance, especially among the Franks, for centuries after- wards, still was his empire for ever divided by his descendants. The influence of Rome, which had now assumed a new form, and was again in the course of development, was not the immediate cause of this ; it was rather the impulse felt by the various Germanic nations to separate themselves according to the difference of their races, as well as the geographical nature of the countries in which they had settled, and with that feeling of political independence which they inherited from Charle- magne himself, to form themselves into detached independent states. Alfred, the West-Saxon, the only English sove- reign that ever bore the name of "Great,"* had infinitely greater hardships to undergo, and, during the principal part of his life, far more serious dif- ficulties to struggle with than any other celebrated sovereign of German origin; but, in spite of all this, and with the most untiring perseverance, he laid the foundation for institutions which have not been destroyed down to the present day^ and which form one of the brightest links in the strong chain of the political development of the sturdy Saxon element in the island of Britain ; at the same time it is certainly true that the isolated position of the * He was first so called after the 1 6th century. INTRODUCTION. 3 country in which his snbjects had settled, and the natural disposition of the latter, had their share in bringing about this result. It would almost seem as if that branch of the Angles and Saxons which detached itself from the vigorous parent-stem of the continent, gave birth, on the fruitful soil of the island, to healthier shoots in a shorter space of time than the Franks in conquered Gaul, or even the Old Saxons themselves in their own country. Charlemagne's priests and nobles went to study under the Anglo-Saxons ; and the learned Alcuin ardently sighed for permission to return from the Frankish court to the Library of the Monastery at York. At the period of Alfred's death, his relation, Henry, the father of Otto the Great, who was destined to transport the imperial authority of Rome to Germany, was a young man, and Christian culture was only beginning to be developed among his Saxon subjects. If we cast a glance on those three German princes who enjoy the epithet of " Great," it seems as if the historical records of them all had been subjected to the same fate, namely, to be confound- ed, at an early period, with popular tradition. But what a difference is immediately perceptible ! For the nations that spoke the German language, the form of Theoderic soon melted into the vapoury outline of a dim and gigantic hero long celebrated in the ballads of all Germans. Charlemagne became a European hero in German and Celtic poetry as well as in the Romances, although the traces of his historical existence arc plain enough, and Kiiihard Ji 2 4 INTRODUCTION. has given all future ages a true picture of his per- sonal characteristics. Alfred's name, on the con- trary, has been affected by that kind of mythos alone, which, even now-a-days, is actively employed in obliterating all traces of the lives and deeds of celebrated men for those who look with circum- scribed vision upon the page of history. Alfred's praises, too, have been sung in the songs of his people,* but the old Pagan charm of such songs had long been broken. The church, on the other hand, which was greatly indebted to him, has zealously introduced his person into its legends, and most of the later accounts of him which we have received from the monks were possibly dictated by a spirit of pious fraud in their cells. Who will dare to decide which of these two shells of fiction it is most difficult to break, in order to arrive at the solid kernel of real history that is contained within ? * See the so-called Proverbs of King Alfred, published by Kemble in his "Solomon and Saturn," 1848, p. 226. [And in Wright and Haliwell's " Reliquias Antiquse," I. p. 170, where they were first printed.] Alfred, Englene herd, Englene darhng, in Enkelonde he was king. — Alfred he was in Enkelonde a king wel swife strong and lussum fing ; he was king and cleric, full wel he louede Godes were ; he was wis on his word and war on his werke; he was pe wisiste mon ]iad was in Engelonde on. INTRODUCTION. 5 Although Alfred lived at a period when his individuality stood out in bold relief, without being- enveloped in the vapoury cloud of fiction, and in a country where, at a very early period, the sober prose of serious actuality excluded the lighter poetry of the South, he was not fortunate enough to possess among his followers a Cassiodorus or an Einhard. At the first o'lance we mio-ht feel inclined to o o comi)are Asser with the last-named historian, but if we take the trouble to examine the " Gesta iE.1- fredi " a little more carefully, we are assailed by one doubt after another, as to whether the work in question can, in the form it has been transmitted to us, really be the production of that bishop who was so intimate a confidant of his king. Again and again has criticism tried its strength against this little performance, without being able to come to a decision on this important question. Far be it from me to undertake such a task in its full extent ; And Layauiou's " Brut." ed. Sir Fr. Madden, 18i8, I. }). 2G9 : Seoööen ])cr ajfter Monie hundred wintrc Com Alfred ])C king, Englelondes deorling, and Avrat ])e lagen on Englis, etc. Bolii [)OiMns belong to the commencement of the 13th century, when the English people, in their first struggles for the estahlish- ment of their constitution, entrenched themselves once more behind the Saxon clement, and, no doubt, found great pleasure in calling to mind the supporters of their ancient greatness. [The two poems alluded to belong to the twelllh century. — Ed.] 6 INTRODUCTION. indeed, I doubt very much whether it ought, after all, to be treated so unconditionally. As far as I am aware, no one, with the exception of Th. Wright, in the " Biographia Literaria Britan- nica," I. pp. 405 — 413, has ever denied the authen- ticity of the book entirely ; on the contrary, the first scholars both of England and Germany have steadfastly maintained that it was really written by Asser, and is one of our best authorities for a life of the great king.* I do not presume to differ from this opinion ; I merely wish to state more particu- larly what portions of the work appear to me, after mature deliberation, to be genuine, and what por- tions strike me as interpolations or forgeries. Unfortunately we do not possess a single good manuscript of the Life ; the most ancient one, for- merly MS. Cotton. Otho A. XII. and which was as old as the tenth century, was lost in the disastrous fire, by which Sir Robert Cotton's library suffered so greatly in the year 1731. Luckily, however. Wise, in his edition of Asser,| has preserved his collations of the original; and from these we learn that several passages of the other MSS., and especially those which were afterwards the most strongly suspected ones, were not to be found in it. These have been taken from a well known collection, published at * In Pertz "Monum. Hist. Germ." I. p. 449, N. 34, Asser is mentioned as " vitse iElfredi auctor cosevus." Compare Lappen- berg's "Geschichte von England," L § xLviii. p. 311, and Kemble's more recent work, " The Saxons in England," II. p. 42, N. ] " Annales Rerum Gestarum ^Elfredi, auctore Asserio Mene- vensi," rec. F. Wise, Oxon. 1722, 8. INTRODUCTION. / a later period, under the name of the " Chronicon Fani S. Neoti, sive Annales Johannis Asserii," which is nothing more or less than a bad com- pilation from the " Saxon Chronicle," and various legends totally at variance Avith history. These have found their way into the MS., which was completed very late in the sixteenth century, and into Arch- bishop Parker's Editio Princeps, a. 1574: Avhether from neglect, or intentionally, is not quite clear.* Wise's just criticism, however, saved the text of the tenth century. In addition to this, it is a well known fact, that Florence of Worcester introduced the larger portion of the biography in his " Chronicle." It becomes, therefore, necessary immediately to include the latter work in our investigation. At the very outset it must strike the reader as a remarkable circumstance that, though the "Chronicle" agrees with the Bio- graphy word for word, Asser is not once mentioned as the author's authority ; in fact, Florence mentions him only twice altogether, first, when speaking of the year 872, when, on the occasion of Werfrith's elevation to the Bishopric of AVorcester, he gives a list, which is greatly out of ]ilace, of the learned men who did not shine at Alfred's court till some time afterwards ; and, secondly, in the following totally inexplicable notice for the year 883 : — " Assero Scireburncnsi episcopo defuncto, succedit Suithelmus," etc., when we know from Asser him- self that it was not until about the year 885 that he first laid the foundation for his future intimacy * " Monuincnla Hislorica Brilaniiica," Preface, pp. 70, 80. 8 INTRODUCTION. with the king'. We learn from the " Anglo-Saxon Chronicle," also, that Asser, Bishop of Sherburne, did not die before the year 910, and we find his signature appended to genuine documents as late as the year 909.''' We can make nothing of this notice ; and all we can do, therefore, is to suppose that it originated in the misapplication of a marginal note.f It is in vain that we endeavour to discover the motives which induced Florence to pass over in silence the name of the author from whom he copied whole portions of his own work, word for word ; perhaps, while taking what materials he thought fit, he did not deem it necessary to allude more particularly to a book that was so well known at the commencement of the twelfth century.:]: But did he entirely follow Asser ? Is it not more probable that both he and Asser, Avhen writing the annalistic portions of their works for the years 850 to 887, made use of the same Latin translation, or even the original of the " Saxon Chronicle ? " This supposition appears highly probable. It then be- comes, however, a matter of doubt whether the purely annalistic portions of Asser's work were not possibly added, at some later period, to the strictly biographical sections of the original Life, which have reached us in a somewhat episodic form ? According to the Cottonian MS. which was lost, * Kemble, "Cod. Diplom." N. 335, 337, 1077, 1082, 1087. t Compare Thorpe, in his new edition of " Florent. Wigorn.' Chron." I. p. 9. I Florence died July 7, 1118, II. p. 72, ed. Thorpe. INTRODUCTION. 9 they were there as early as the tenth century, and belonged, therefore, to a much earlier period than that at which Florence wrote, so that this peculiar and uncommon mingling' of annals and biography could again have belonged to Asser, and been the original form of his work. Lappenberg* seems in- clined to believe that the annalistic portions must, from certain details, especially in the years 879, 884, 885, 886, 887, be attributed to Asser himself, but the manner in which their purport invariably agrees in every other instance, with that of the chronicles, refutes this opinion at once. We have more than one good reason for believ- ing that the Anglo-Saxon chronicles, which, accord- ing to the most ancient copy that we have, did not begin to be regularly kept under Alfred till a little after the year 890, were at first worked up, after Latin models, from very various sources, and at a time when the necessity of cultivating the language of their native country was more than usually felt by Alfred and his contemporaries. Asser, who was a Welshman, must have understood Saxon. AVlien he was writing the life of his king, in the year 893,t he could consult the chronicles reaching up to 890, but with the first continuation of them, which treats of the latter part of Alfred's life, and Avhich was not compiled until the following century he could not possibly be acquainted. He might certainly have had a Latin edition of the chronicles, from * "Göttiiiger Gel. Aiiz." Apr. 1, 1841. t Asser in " Mou. Hist. Brit." p. ■1-92, " ;i vigosiiiio a-latis anno us(]ue !ul cjuadragosinium 'jiiindnn annum rjticni nunc aam gefeohte. Again, those passages which are not to be found in the more ancient copies of the chronicles are wanting in Asser also; for instance — A. 870. The section : " and fordidon ealle ]?a mynstre," etc. up to " }?a hit wearS to nan J^ing." A. 871. and heora ]?8er wearö o5er ofslegen. j^aes nama waes Sidroc. A. 877. and se sciphere segelode west ymbutan. In Florence's " Chronicle"" other elements, also, have penetrated, and we must not conceal the fact that now and then we meet with information that is to be found neither in the earlier chronicles, nor in the " Gesta Ji^lfredi ;" for instance : a. 862, Obitus Sti Swithuni, which is to be found only in INTRODUCTION. 11 the two latest chronicles, and which, like the ac- count of Asser's death under the year 883, is not old. It is, therefore, difficult to say, whether Florence took the annals of the years 850 to 887 from Asser's work, and merely made his own addi- tions, or whether, as is also possible, he derived his information from the same sources, but after Asser had set him the example. We will now proceed to the biographical por- tion of the work properly so called. This, as Ave before remarked, consists, at present, of episodes of various lengths, and which in many places appear imperfect. The following are the principal ones : — A. 849. The commencement relating to Alfred's descent and birth, taken from the genealogy of the West-Saxons. — Florence, a. 849. A. 855. Quarrel between Athelwulf and his son Athelbald ; the horrible history of Queen Eadburh. —Florence, a. 855. A. 866. Concerning Alfred's youth and desire for learning. — Florence, a. 871. A. 867. Dissertation on Northumbria more de- tailed than in the chronicle. — Florence, a. 867. A. 868. Alfred's marriage. — Florence, a. 868. A. 871. A fuller description of the battle of iEscesdune. — Florence, a. 871. A. 878. A fuller description of the battle of Ethandune. — Florence, a. 878. A. 884. The long section concerning the king's bodily infirmities and his family; and also con- cerning the learned men at his court. — Florence, A. 871, 872. 12 INTRODUCTION. Concerning Asser's own position with his prince, and a dissertation on Wales. A. 887. The long episode concerning Alfred's studies and illness, his cares of state, religious foun- dations, and love of justice, with which the book terminates. I must here remark that, in the MS. Cotton., the last section, at least from the words, " ingeni- osam benevolentiam," as far as " locupletatim di- tavit " (pp. 491-495), was in a more recent hand- writing. Portions of all these sections are repeated by Florence word for word ; sometimes, when they become too long towards the end, he cuts them down, while at others he inserts them under another year, as may be seen in the foregoing table. The introductory phrases to each episode, which are always written in a peculiar style — the genuine text of Asser, I hope — are the only portions that he invariably omits. P. 473, A. 866. Sed ut more navigantium loquar, ne diutius navim undis et velamentis concedentes, et a terra longius enavigantes longum circumferamur inter tantas bellorum clades et annorum enume- rationes, ad id, cjuod nos maxime ad hoc opus incitavit, nobis redeundum esse censeo : scilicet aliquantulum autem mese cognitioni innotuit, etc.* * Compare the exactly similar manner in which he introduces his subject, ^Ethelweard, IV. p. 514, " Monum. Hist. Brit." " veluti advecta navis per gurgites undarum longinqua spatia tenet," etc. Both of them, as true sons of Britain, take their only metaphor from naviii'ation. INTRODUCTION. 13 P. 484. A. 884. Igitiir iit ad id, iinde digressus sum, redeara, ne diuturna navigatione portum opta- tum quietis omittere cogar, aliqiiantiilum, quantum notiti?e me?c innotuerit, etc. As we might have expected, the account of the ships built by the king in the year 877, is also wanting ; nor is it to be found in the MS. Cotton. This passage is certainly open to grave doubts, as, in the desperate state in which he was then situ- ated, Alfred would hardly have thought of a naval expedition against the enemy. The account was most probably founded on that in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles of a sea-fight in the year 875. In the year 878, Florence omits the entire story of Alfred's residence with the cowherd, which dates from the " Vita Sti Neoti," compiled towards the end of tlie tenth century, and of which only the opening sentences appear to have been contained in the MS. Cotton. Lastly, Florence mentions nothing of the much suspected clause concerning the origin of the University of Oxford in the year 886, which Camden found only in the MS. Savil., where either he himself or some one else had inserted it, out of love for the Alma Mater, and in whose authenticity, especially after what Lappenberg, " Geschichte von England," I. p. 339 et seq. has said upon the subject, no man with the least degree of common sense now-a-days believes. With the exception of these three portions of the work, I am of opinion that the remaining episodes, even judging them principally by the text 14 INTRODUCTION. itself, are the genuine production of Asser. The story of Queen Eaclburh, which is questioned by Wright, p. 409, was to be found in the MS. Cotton. The phrase "multis habetur incognitum," may be accounted as a point in favour of Asser. He had lived for a short time only with the West- Saxons, and may be supposed to have previously known but little of the events which had occurred among them more than eighty years before, and he no doubt wrote the account with a double pleasure, having so often heard it, as he particularly remarks, from his veracious king himself.* In conclusion, I beg to call the reader's attention to certain separate facts. It certainly remains a matter of mystery why Asser, a. 871, omits the battle of Merton, when we know, from the Anglo- Saxon calendar, that it happened on the 22nd March. The reason why he places the events, which are mentioned in the chronicle under the year 885, a year earlier, is evident from the fact that they are distinctly noticed by the annalists of the Continent as happening in the year 884.t In the year 883, not only do we miss, as was to be ex- pected, the account of the death of Asser, Bishop of Sherburne, but also the account of the embassy to Home and the East, for which the most ancient chronicles, as well as Florence, are our authority. These are points which can only be explained by the defective condition in which we received the * P. 471, "a domino meo iElfreclo Aiigulsaxonum rege vevidico." t Lappeiiberg, in " Göttinger Gel. Anz." Jan. 1852. INTRODUCTION. 1 5 work. Tbe same holds good with regard to the question, why Asser, who himself informs us, p. 492, that he wrote the book in the five-and-fortieth year of the king's age, that is about 893, continues the biography no further than 887? But I look upon this circumstance rather as another j^roof of the authenticity of the work,* as there is no mention of the contest which had recommenced with the Danes, and which, especially after the death of King Guthorm-Athelstan, of East-Anglia, a. 890, threatened to break out afresh, but which did not become imminent, or come to a final decision until after 893. From this it is, also, probable that Asser might have used a copy of the *' Saxon Chronicle " which closed with the year 887. Wright, p. 411, is most certainly not Avarranted in supposing that no part of the life was composed previous to the end of the tenth century, because the translation of St. Neot had taken place in the year 974, and that a life of this saint, from which the pretended work of Asser was derived, could not be written until after that event, and that, more- over, the real author was some monk of St. Neot, who had assumed the name of the well-known friend of the great king. Such an assumption rests entirely upon those passages which have been proved not to be genuine. We must be careful also not to speak, like Mr. Wright, too contemptu- ously of the style of the little work ; we sometimes meet with beauties which no one can deny. I will content myself with calling the reader's attention to * Lappciiberf^, in " ( iöflinircM- Gel. Anz.'' Aiiril !, ISM-. 16 INTRODUCTION. two passages, in both of which there is a description of the king's diligence. P. 486. Veluti avis prudentissima, quae primo mane charis e celhilis consurgens sestivo tempore, per incerta aeris itinera cursum veloci volatu dirigens, super multiplices ac diverses herbarum, olerum, fruticum flosculos descendit probatque quid maxime placuerit, atque domum reportat. P. 491. Velut apis fertilissiraa longe lateque gronnios interrogando discurrens, multimodos divinse scripturse flosculos inhianter et incessabiliter con- gregavit, quels prsecordii sui cellulas densatim replevit. Such passages are seldom to be met with in the dry monastic productions of the Middle Ages ; they contain sentiments which could only spring from deep natural feeling, and tend to prove that Asser was a man who united the fresh and buoyant tem- perament of a child of Nature with the spirit of true poetry. Thorpe, in his translation of " Lappenberg's His- tory," II. p. 326, N. i., is of opinion that those who doubt the authenticity of the book may adduce the expression, vasalli, under the year 878 (p. 480), as a point in their favour ; but this objection is most satisfactorily disposed of by a document, Kemble, " Cod. Diplom. Anglos." N. 216, which was most certainly written in the year 821, and which con- tains the following passage : — " Expeditionen! cum xii. vasallis et cum tantis scutis." If we suspect vasallus (in MS. Cotton., fasellus), we must also sus- pect the phrase curtus regis, which we find three INTRODUCTIOX. 1 7 times, pp. 473, 485, 488, as well as several other specimens of peculiar Latinity, such as gronnius, p. 491, gromiosus, p. 480, and cambra, p. 491. If the reader will consult Du Gauge for these words, he will find for most of them still more ancient authorities. The expression, vasallus, occurs, as is well known, so far back as in the capitulars of Charlemagne. It is remarkable for us to find in the mouth of this Welshman the name of our nation, Gentes Theotiscae, p. 471. That it was a Briton — and who else could it be but Asser of Wales? — who was engaged in the composition of the work,* is evident also from the frequently-recurring addition of the Celtic names of different places to the Saxon and Latin ones : P. 470. The island of Thanet was called by the Britons Ruim.f f . 475. Snotengaham was called Tigguocobauc, in Latin, Speluncarum domus — all of which is faithfully copied by Florence. P. 477. Wilton is situated on the Guilou. P. 478. Thornsaetas were called Durngueis. P. 479. Eaxanceastre was called Cairwisc. P. 480. Flumen quod Britannice dicitur Abon. P. 481. Selwudu, silva magna, Coitmaur. P. 482. Cirencester, Cairccri. Asser was writing especially for his countrymen.:!: * In his recent preface to his "Florent. Wigorn." p. vii. N. 3, Thorpe takes this as another proof in favour of Asser. \ Might be taken from Nennius, Ruichim, " INIonum. Hist. Brit." p. 63. I Lingard, " History and Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon C 18 INTRODUCTION. I shall here conclude, for the present, my ob- servations concerning this important little work, which, from its imperfections and peculiarities, has unfortunately been often attacked ; but, in the course of the following pages, we shall frequently have occasion to refer to many disputed points, as well as to Asser's own life, which must ne- cessarily be closely connected with that of his king. We shall confine our remarks to a much smaller compass in speaking of the other authorities con- sulted for this work; they are those which are available for the entire Anglo-Saxon period, and their value and relation to each other have been most ably shown by Lappenberg in the introduction to his excellent history. The most ancient and important authority for our purpose is naturally the "Anglo-Saxon Chro- nicle." We have seen how a portion of the " Gesta J^Llfredi " was taken from it. On comparing the form of the letters contained in the oldest copy we now possess with those of other genuine books of the time of Alfred, and duly allowing for the break which is visible in the manuscript immediately after the year 891, we have not the slightest grounds for doubting that it was written during the last ten years of the king's reign. We have, indeed, every right to suppose that it was at this period that the record of passing- events first began to be written in the language of Church," IL p. 426, adduces some excellent arguments against Wright. INTRODUCTION. 1 9 the people. Not the least weighty reason for this supposition is, that commencing from about the year 853, or, in other words, soon after Alfred was born, the remarks on each year gradually became longer, and the Chronicle loses more and more its primitive form of a mere calendar. The whole portion, too, containing Alfred's life, is pretty well the same in five of the manuscripts which have reached us, and which in many other instances differ from one another. The only exception is the MS. Cotton. Domitian A. VIII., the most modern but one, which gives the whole period up to about the year 1000, in a very defective and unprecise epitome, written in Saxon and Latin. This epitome is particularly scanty during Alfred's life-time, which is a remark- able circumstance, as it is generally supposed that this manuscript was written in Canterbury. The Cambridge manuscript and the MSS. Cott., Tib. A. VI., and Tib. B. I., all of which can be proved to have emanated from somewhere within the bound- aries of the kingdom of Wessex, agree most won- derfully, during the ninth century, in every material point. The MS. Cott. Tib. B. VI. offers, during this period, but very few instances of deviation from the tenor of the others, and follows completely the foregoing ones. This copy, however, which origin- ally came from Worcester, is always one year behind the three more ancient ones ; and this appears to have also been the case in our most ancient MS. In this particular it agrees, therefore, with the northern historians, such as Simeon of Durham, whose calculation of time, as Kemblc lias i)articu- c 2 20 INTRODUCTION. larly remarked, is generaily more accurate than that commonly used in the South of England. None of the editions we have yet had of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, not even the most modern one published by the Record Commission, in the "Monumenta Historica Britannica," have ever suc- ceeded in placing in a proper light, the peculiarity and relative worth of the various manuscripts written at very different periods, in different places, and in different dialects, nor in giving to the public a text that was worthy of the present state of criticism. We purpose investigating more minutely this remarkable production of the early Middle Ages on some future occasion. ^Ethelweard's dry chronicle is nothing more than an early adaptation of the Saxon annals into bar- barous Latin. Here and there, however, we per- ceive signs of some other popular authorities having been laid under contribution. It is very seldom, however, that any portion of his work is espe- cially devoted to Alfred's Life; and it is, certainly, a remarkable fact, that he who was himself a de- scendant of the royal house of Wessex should, after a lapse of little more than a hundred years, not have seized the opportunity of being somewhat more diffuse where his great ancestor was concerned. No part of his work is so horribly and hopelessly mutilated as the third chapter of the fourth book, in which he treats of Alfred. The last edition of this work, as of the one mentioned before it, is contained in the " Mon. Hist. Brit." We have already spoken of Florence ; an ex- INTRODUCTION. 21 cellent edition of liis works lias lately been pub- lished for the English Historical Society, by Thorpe. In this edition I believe that we may, in many instances, find the most genuine text of the real Asser. Simeon of Durham, who, in the compilation of his Chronicle, is much indebted to Florence, gives us, occasionally, some original matter, especially in the year 883, M^hen speaking of the more northern parts of England. His work was last printed in the " Mon. Hist. Brit." Ingulph, Abbot of Croyland, who is said to have been the Secretary of the Conqueror, relates in the work attributed to him, and which is chiefly filled with matters concerning the history of his monas- tery, all sorts of stories, selected by him either from mere whim or unauthentic documents : this seems to proceed from his little acquaintance with the authorities at his command. But how was it pos- sible for an Englishman full of Norman prejudices, and during the first fifteen or sixteen years after the Conquest, not to become confused in relating what he had heard of the state of the conquered country more than two centuries previous? It appears, however, by his description of Alfred's horometer, that he had first heard an account of that and then became acquainted with Asser's book. In citing his work we use Sir II. Savile's edition of the " Reruni Anglicarum Scriptores post Bedam pra?cipui," Francofurti, 1603.* * [It must not be concealed, that very serious doubts have been thrown on tlio authenticity of the history which goes under 22 INTRODUCTION. Henry of Huntingdon has, unfortunately, never yet met with a competent editor, not even in the last edition of his works, published in " Mon. Hist. Brit.," although he deserved to do so more than any other English historian of the Middle Ages. The attractive and lively manner in which he writes his descriptions of the various battles is, in all proba- bility, to be attributed to his intimate acquaintance with old popular ballads, and must be noticed with regard to our work, and especially the sea-fight in the year 897. William of Malmesbury enjoys the reputation of being a writer of a higher class, who knew how to impart a certain charm to the old dry form of the Chronicle by the floridness of his style ; his con- clusions, however, are far from being always right, and it is impossible to overlook his mistakes. The best edition of the "Gesta Reg. Angl.," is that of the English Historical Society, edited by Th. D. Hardy, London, 1840. Most of the information for which we are in- debted to the old French Chronicle, in rhyme, of Geoffrey Gaimar, is taken from the Anglo-Saxon Annals ; but the copy of them which the poet used, must have differed now and then from that which has reached us. Besides these, he had other authorities as well. The first edition of his work is to be found in the " Mon. Hist. Brit." The other historians, such, for instance, as Ailred tlie name of Ingulf, and at all events its character is sufficiently suspicious to hinder us from putting faith in statements which are not supported by other evidence. — Ed.] INTRODUCTION. 23 of Rievaux, Roger of Wendover, Matthew of West- minster, etc., who treat of the Anglo-Saxons, have occasionally been laid under contribution. Two most important authorities, which are of great assistance for everything connected with the period of which we are writing, are The Laws of Alfred, in Thorpe's excellent edition of the " Ancient Laws and Institutes of England," London, 1840, and Kemble's " Codex Diplomaticus M\i Saxonici," in which excellent collection, however, the number and genuineness of the manuscripts in the ninth century correspond neither with those of the pre- ceding, nor of the following one. Of the more recent publications, I am most in- debted to the "History of England" by Lappen- berg. I found this work, consulted simultaneously with the translation of it executed by Thorpe, and enriched with additional matter both by him and the author, to be the most beautiful and surest guide in penetrating the labyrinth of early English history. The arrangement of it is one that is, naturally, far from exhausting the Life and Age of Alfred the Great : it leaves sufficient for the bio- grapher to glean a plenteous harvest. The case is exactly the same with regard to Lappenberg's pre- decessor, the industrious Sharon Turner, and to his successor Kemble, who, in a series of separate essays, contained in his last work, " The Saxons in England," has treated the public and private affairs of the Anglo-Saxons in the most ingenious manner. The literature of modern times, also, furnishes 24 INTRODUCTION. US with works especially dedicated to Alfred's life. The title of the first work of this description : " The Life of Alfred or Alvred, the first Institutor of subordinate Government in this Kingdome, and Refounder of the University of Oxford, Together with a Parallel of our Soveraigne Lord, King Charles, untill this yeare 1634," by Robert Powell, London, 1634, is sufficiently indicative of the spirit in which the book is written, and of what is to be learned from it. At a subsequent period, under the Restoration, the learned Spelnian composed a biography of Alfred, of which Hearne published an English edition, with additions of his own, in 1709 '/' both these works, however, in spite of the praiseworthy care with which they were written, are very insup- portable from the multitude of quotations, in which some later and mere secondary authority, who has not yet had the honour of being printed, is placed on the same and even a higher footing than our best authors. It appears, too, especially in the ac- counts of the sufferings of Alfred, and of his coun- try, as if the same monkish spirit that animated Oxford in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries influenced her in the seventeenth as well. Albrecht von ITaller was the first German, who, * Sir John Spelman, "^Elfredi Magni Vita," fol. Oxon. 1678, formerly written in English, and first translated into Latin by Dr. Obadiah Walker, of blessed memory. Spelman's " Life of Alfred the Great," published with additions and remarks by Thomas Hearne, Oxf. 1709. INTRODUCTION. 25 in his book, " Alfred, König der Angel-Sachsen," Göttingen und Bern, 1773, wrote on this subject. He relied implicitly on 8j)elman for his materials, and purposed to give a picture of moderate mon- archy. In addition to this there was also too much imagination and fiction in his book, ^\llich would, otherwise, have been readable enough. A. Bicknell, " Life of Alfred the Great, King of the Anglo-Saxons," London, 1777, proposed to set the diiFuse labours of his predecessors before his reader in a more attractive shajDO : he also treats the affairs of the church, as was the custom of his time, in a very offhand, and even contemptuous tone, but he had not the least idea of original research, and indulges, consequently, in the most arbitrary suppositions. F. S. Count von Stolberg relates the life of Alfred in his own agreeable manner. He procured the materials for his work (Münster, 1815) from Turnei-'s " History of the Anglo-Saxons," in which the subject was certainly handled for the first time with extraordinary love. " A History of Alfred the Great," translated from Turner's " History of the Anglo-Saxons," together with the Lodbrokar-Quida in the original text, and with a metrical translation by Dr. Friedrich Lorenz, Hamburgh, 1828. The most recent work, "The Life of Alfred the Great," by the Rev. J. A. Giles, London, 1848, deserves to be mentioned, merely from the fact of its being the last ; it is neither distinguished by 26 INTRODUCTION. sound criticism, nor by a graceful style. It cer- tainly redounds but little to the credit of England, that so excellent a subject as the life of Alfred, " Old England's Darling," has never, even at the thousandth anniversary of Alfred's birth, been treated in a manner befitting its importance. SECTION I. RISE OF THE KINGDOM OF THE AVEST-SAXONS. ITS RULERS DESCEND- ED FROM WODEN. FORMER AGES. EGBERHT. ATHELWULF. It certainly furnishes matter for reflections of a peculiar nature to find, on looking into one section of the " Saxon Chronicles " for the year 855, the contents of which had certainly been familiar to the Scops from the earliest times, and which were most probably committed to writing during Alfred's reign, that the genealogy of the reigning family of the West-Saxons is traced up to Woden, and the most powerful gods.* Alfred, who, more than any other * This curious monument has reached us, in its fullest ami least mutilated state, first, in the four most ancient manuscript copies of the chronicle, where the genealogy descends to King Athelwulf, and likewise in a fragment, which is bound up with the MS. Cotton. Tib. A. III., and comes down as late as Edward II. (1987). To judge by the date and the form of the writing, it is quite as old as our second most ancient MS. (Cott. Tib. A. VI.) ; but there is no absolute necessity for its having formerly belonged to this MS., as some one has supposed, in the Cata- logue of the Cottonian Collection ; it is far more probable, that it is the remains of some other copy of the Chronicle, which has since been lost. From these documents the genealogy was first taken by Asser, iEthelwcard and Florence. Florence has also given us other genealogies besides that contained in his Chronicle. The example of these writers is ibllowcd by almost all subsequent historians, but the mutilation and omission of foreign-sounding names increases with each successive historian. 28 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. king of the Middle Ages, was devoted with his whole soul to the belief in the eternal truths of the Christian religion, could not and would not prevent his people from remaining thoroughly con- vinced, as they always had been, of the intimate relation of his royal house with the primitive Pagan divinities. In the most ancient history of the Saxons, as in that of every other nation, gods and heroes were lost in the same kind of dissolving views, being at last looked on as nothing more than old mythic kings. It was not until the confidence in the race of Cerdic, and, with that confidence, the belief in the ancient traditions was destroyed, that foreign conquerors succeeded in placing themselves firmly upon the English throne. These traditions, however, were substantially the same with the Anglo-Saxons as with all the other races of Ger- man origin. They all traced their descent up to God, and even named themselves after the gods. This deeply-rooted conviction of their divine origin is, therefore, found among the Goths as well as the Langobards and Scandinavians ; in fact, these gene- alogies, which were preserved and continued with so much care, very often show the same names and the same line of succession among totally different races. Of all these genealogical tables, however, that of the West-Saxon kings is the fullest, and affords a strong proof of the early importance of the race, and of the old legends and expectations which, from the darkest ages, were current respecting it. It has lately been proved * that the first place * By J. M. Kemble, in his interesting German work : " Ueber THE ROYAL HOUSE OF WESSEX. 29 among all the names in these tables belongs to the name of Woden, the sole god, and that bj far the greater majority of the others are merely epitliets for one and the same divine personage. Some of these latter, ho^Yever, are of remarkable importance if we go back to the origin of the race from which King Alfred and, although, perhaps, connected by a very slight link, the present sovereign of Great Britain are sprung. We find among them the mythic hero Sceafa, who, being placed in a boat in the midst of the breakers that surround the con- tinent, and being delivered to the mercy of the waves, is tost about by them until he reaches the fabulous island of Scanzia. After Christianity had been established, probably in Alfred's time, the genealogy of the Old Testament, which goes back to Noah and Adam, was brought down to this same Sceafa. We also find the god Beowulf, whose shadow is cast upon the hero of the great Anglo- Saxon Epos, Beowulf Wsegmunding. Another name is that of Geat, who is a national god in the mythology of every German race.* In the account given by Tacitus, the three principal German races sjn-ing from the three sons of the divine JMannus ; and the demigods were the divine ancestors of the North. The people, therefore, traced their oM-n descent from the gods, as well as that of their kings (lie Staninitafehi der Westsachscn," München, 1830, pp. i), 27. lie gives the result of his investigations in his " Treatise on Beowulf," II. p. III. — XXIX. Compare also J. (iriiuin, " Dcutsclie Mythologie," pp. 340—342. Second Ed. * Kenil)le, a. a. o. pp. 15, 18, 22. 30 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. and heroes. With respect to the latter, the Saxons were fully convinced of their divine origin, long- after the light of Christianity had shed its blessings over them. Their Alfred's birth, also, was divine. The first person of this race, which goes back to the most remote ages, that can lay the least claim to the consideration of the historian, is Cerdic, the founder of the West-Saxon kingdom, although even he is surrounded by the twilight of fable. Not quite fifty years had elapsed since the first arrival of the two brothers, the fabulous heroes, Hengist and Horsa, ere Cerdic, with his son Cynric, landed on the south coast of England, at a place called, in the Chronicle, Cerdicesore.* Numbers of sea- going hordes of the same race continued to flock after them in unbroken succession for the next ten years. In the place where Port, to whom the legend probably gave the name of the spot itself, set foot on British ground as a victorious com- batant, his memory is preserved up to the present time, remaining as a sure geographical proof of the small beginning of that race of princes who were destined gradually to unite the whole southern part of Britain under their sway. Step by step, and conquering in many a bloody fight, did Cerdic and his valiant son strip the Briton, who in vain offered the most desperate resistance, of his land, especially after the arrival, in the year 514, of Stuf and Wihtgar, two nephews of the first conqueror, at the head of reinforcements from home. Almost from the beginning, the founders of * " Chron. Sax." a. 494. DEATH OF CERÜIC. 31 Wessex were distinguished from the rulers of the other Saxon and Anglian kingdoms by their utter and untamable recklessness; they not only fell upon the common foe of all the Germans fighting their way towards the west, namely, the Celts, m ho were doomed to nearly total destruction, but turned their weapons with as little compunction against those of their own race. In the great emigration of nations, the Jutes also had landed in Kent, in the territory which was afterwards Wessex, and in the Isle of Wight ; they formed the first layer, as it were, of the German settlers, on which the Saxon race after- wards rose. Cerdic wrested from them the beau- tiful island which now guards the entrance to Eng- land's greatest port of war, and gave it in fee to his nef)hews, Stuf and Wihtgar, who, on the father's side, were themselves Jutes.* When Cerdic died, forty years after his first landing, he had worn the royal crown of the West-Saxon kingdom for sixteen years.f The kingdom at that time embraced the present counties of Hampton, Dorset, and portions of Somerset, which even the heroic King Arthur himself, after in vain resisting the valiant sons of Woden, was compelled to acknowledge. These are facts which we have no reason to doubt, as they are sufficiently proved by the rapid rise of Wessex. Fable has certainly laid her hand * See Lappcnberg, " Gcscliiclite von England," I. p. 112. f It was the battle of Ccrdicesforcl (Cliarford) which confirmed his royal authority: " Chron. Sax." a. 519, "and siöSan ricsadon Westseaxna cynebcarn of ))ani dajgo ;" and from that tlay reigned tlic royal descendants of the West-Saxons. 32 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. on the heroic person of Cerdic, as she has done on that of his British rival. This is sufficiently evident from the figures which have reached us, for Cerdic's forty years' residence on English ground, as well as his sixteen years' rule as crowned king, offers us an instance of the same chronological trickery for a period with which only fiction is acquainted, as that which has already been shown to exist in the dates assigned to Hengist and his successors.* This is not the place for enumerating each sepa- rate combat on both sides, or for explaining the public and private relations of the conquerors to the conquered Britons ; all these topics have long since been satisfactorily discussed by those distinguished historians who have treated the w^hole of this por- tion of English history, as far as the generally de- fective materials at their disposition would admit. The end that we propose to ourselves is, to bring forward more particularly any points in the history of Wessex, when the development of this kingdom strikes out in some new direction, exerting an im- portant influence on its future greatness. Ceawlin, who succeeded to the sovereignty on Cynric's death, followed, with untiring perseverance, in the footsteps of his predecessors, and after dis- playing more than ordinary energy in his battles with the Teutons and Britons, rendered Wessex the most powerful among all the neighbouring states. In the year 568, he contended with Athel- berht of Kent for the dignity of the Bretwalda ; f * Lappenberg, p. 72. I This word does not mean principal King, or supreme Ruler BATTLE OF WEDNESBEORG. 33 he remained in possession of the fiold, and obtained the supremacy over all the other German kings of the island. He then, in innumerable battles, drove back the Briton behind the Severn and the neigh- bouring mountains of Wales, and it appeared as if the daring conqueror of Wessex was the one selected to unite the numerous small Teutonic principalities under one sceptre. Their belief in the old heathen gods was, as yet, unshaken ; and if this true de- scendant of AYoden had been but fortunate enough to carry out his plans ; if, relying upon his own personal strength and the power of his well-disci- plined followers, he had been able to stand forth in the same manner as, at a later period, the Frisian Radbod, or the Saxon Widukind, who can assert that the light-haired Angles, being thus materially strengthened by a union of their forces, would not have victoriously withstood even the apostles of Gregory the Great ? It is, therefore, of the greatest importance for the history of the following centuries that the Jutes of Kent, the Angles of Mercia, and the Christian Britons of Wales clearly perceived on which side the danger threatened them, and that they immediately concluded a defensive and offen- sive treaty, for the general good, against the com- mon foe, who had tried to make them bend under his allegiance. The great battle of Wodnesbeorg, a place situated within the boundaries of Wessex of Britain, as has lately been supposed, but, accouling to Keinblc "The Saxons in England," II. pp. 20, 21, Powerful Ruler, and, according to five copies of the " Chron. Sax." is derived from the adjective, Irylen, fractus, dissipatus. D 34 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. itself, and now in Berkshire, followed in the year 5.91. But the god, under whose divine protection his valiant descendant fought, turned the light of his countenance from him ; he was completely de- feated, and retired into exile, where he died two years afterwards. The dignity of the Bretwalda was then transferred to Kent, and Ceawlin's dimin- ished territories descended to a brother's son. This person, in his turn, was succeeded, as early as the year 597, by his brother; Ceolwulf, a man actuated by exactly the same spirit as his uncle. The throne of the West-Saxons fell to him at the precise epoch that Augustin landed on the Kentish coast, and that the new doctrine of Salvation entered, after the baptism of King Athelberht, on its vic- torious career, pursuing uninterruptedly its progress towards the north, so that, in the space of a few years, the whole of the eastern coast of England, the kingdoms of the East- Angles and of the Nor- thumbrians had acknowledged the influence of the Cross. No apostle of the new faith had, however, ventured to penetrate into Wessex, the names of whose princes had a wild and terrible reputation in all the other kingdoms of the island ; and this rei3u- tation of untamed heathendom Ceowulf had as yet preserved for his people. In speaking of him, the " Saxon Annals"* tell us that he was continually victorious in the wars which he was always waging against the kindred Angles, as well as against the Welsli, Picts, and Scots. In the year 607, we find him at war with the neighbouring state of Sussex, * "Chrou, Sax." A. 597. RIGHT OF SUCCESSION. 35 which was destined ere long- to become tributary to him. But his own valour and that of his immedi- ate successors merely enabled them to defend their former possessions ; with the loss of the dignity of the Bretwakla, Wessex lost also its supremacy for a very long period. It w^as menaced both from within and without. In spite of the meagreness of the accounts that we are acquainted with, there is a hopeless con- fusion to be remarked in the line of succession of the various princes. This is also the case, under similar circumstances, with all primitive German races : the right of succession descending from father to son was never a rule, and has only been estab- lished at a more recent period. How many cen- turies was it ere a regular principle was observed in the succession, and the people ceased to proclaim the strongest or the handsomest man as their chosen ruler, without being in the least influenced by the more intimate or distant degree of relationship in which he stood to his predecessor! Like all other nations, the West-Saxons clung fast to one royal race, that of Woden ; but brother and cousin, son and nephew, followed one another j^romiscuously, and sometimes several of them were kings at the same time. As we have seen, after the complete defeat of Ceawlin, he was followed, although he had several sons, by his nephew Ceolric, who, although he, too, was not childless, was succeeded by his brother Ceolwulf. After the latter's death, in Gil, the crown again returned to the family of his elder 36 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. brother, but divided among several persons. Cyne- gils was very far from being the sole reigning prince, as Cwiehelm and others exercised an authority completely independent of bis. Each one com- manded a separate portion of the West-Saxon race, and only joined their forces against a common foe, as was the case at the battle of Beamdune.* This division of one and the same nationality among dif- ferent rulers must have weakened it considerably, and, in fact, we soon begin to perceive its effect. What was true of the Frankish Merovingians, at exactly the same period, when this constant division of the empire was not without its evil consequences, was also true, only on a much smaller scale, of the West-Saxons, notwithstanding that their state, as we have seen, contained in itself the germs of cen- tralisation from the very commencement. To this frittering away of their force must be added the fact that the danger from without continued to become more and more menacing. The West-Saxon kings, the true descendants of Woden, seem never to have given up the idea of standing forth as the champions of the old German heathendom until they were finally converted. Cwiehelm, apparently out of hatred for the Christian faith, sent a murderer to the court of King Eadwine of Deira, whither the gospel had already penetrated. The treacherous plan proved, however, abortive, thanks to Lilla, a servant of the king, who saved his sovereign's life at the expense of his own. The king, justly indignant, proceeded to attack the West- * "Chron. Sax." A. 614. CHRISTIANITY IN WESSEX. oi Saxons. He killed five of their kings,"'' and then became a Christian. In the same year, too, Penda, an energetic heathen, began to reign in Mercia, and, in an incredibly short period raised his dominions, which contained Christians and Heathens, Teutons and AVelsh, to the rank of an important kingdom. In the year 628, he met the West-Saxons in the field. Cynegils offered him the most determined resistance at Cirencester, so that it was a drawn battle, and the two commanders concluded a treaty of peace. The glory of the old heathen faith, how- ever, lasted longest in Mercia, for in a short time the apostles of the new tenets made their appear- ance even among the West-Saxons. Family con- siderations for the house of King Oswald, of North- umbrian Bernicia, with whom they were related, were probably the more remote cause of this. Be- sides, the Nuncio of Pope Honorius, Bishop Bernius, who was furnished with full powers to preach the gospel to the uttermost extremities of the island, thought that the time for penetrating even the con- fines of the West-Saxon territories w^as at last arrived. Nor had he mistaken the period when the supremacy of the sons of Woden appeared to be broken up; and, in the scanty records of the Chronicle for the year G35, we find an account of Cynegils' baptism ;f and in those for the year G36, a notice of that of Cwichelm. Cuthred, likewise, the son and successor of the latter, became a Chris- * Bede, " Hist. Eccles." II. p. 9. " Chron. Sax." a. 026. t Betle, "Hist. Eccles." III. p. 7, says that Oswald, Kiiif;' of Bernicia, was his godfather. 38 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tian, and founded for Bernius the first West-Saxon bishojDric at Dorchester. As was the case in all the kingdoms of the newly converted Angles, a re- action took jDlace among the West-Saxons. Cen- wealh, Cynegils' son, had hardly obtained the supreme authority before he openly returned to Paganism, and took a sister of Penda the most powerful of the heathen kings, as his wife. But he was doomed to be ruined by the wildness of his own conduct. He repudiated his wife; and Penda, having declared war against him, drove him from his dominions, 645. It is possible that many of the West-Saxons were even then zealous disciples of those who preached the new faith, and consequently lent Cenwealh no assistance in what he undertook. During the three years of his exile, which he passed at the court of King Anna of East-Anglia, he be- came himself a Christian. It appears as if, by this act, he drew down upon the head of his devout and hospitable host, that scourge of the weak, the wild Penda. He, himself, however, returned home, and met with a brotherly reception from his relation, Cuthred, whom he in consequence rewarded with landed estates and the dignity of a viceroy. For the next twelve years he appears to have been the chief king of the West-Saxons. The period of his reign is, on two accounts, not without importance. In the first place, he may justly be regarded as the founder of ecclesiastical institutions in Wessex ; for it was there that they showed a tendency to assume a national character before doing so in any other part of the island. A foreigner, Agilbert by NATIONALITY OF CHURCH OF WESSEX. 39 name, had been made bishop after Birinus ; he Mas a Frank, and it Avas not long before persons com- plained that this foreign prelate could not speak to them in their own language. Simultaneously with this, as Wessex was far too extensive for one diocese, King Cenwealh proposed dividing it into two, and founded, in consequence, a new see at Winchester, to which he appointed Wini, a Saxon, educated abroad, as bishop. The Frank felt himself deeply aggrieved at this ; he laid down his oflice and re- turned to his own country, where he was, shortly afterwards, created Archbishop of Paris.'"" But even with Wini was this arbitrary king unable to re- main on very good terms ; three years subsequently he expelled him from his holy office, which was again filled by a foreigner, one Leutherius, a nephew of Agilbert, whom the latter had himself recom- mended. Besides being mixed up in these ecclesiastical disputes, Cenwealh was placed in a difficult position with regard to temporal matters. Although the kingdom of Mercia had finally been converted to Christianity, the hostile jiosture it had assumed to- wards Wessex, remained essentially the same. Pen- da's son, Wulfhere, who was a Christian, repeatedly ravaged the neighbouring country with war ; he even once wrested from Cenwealh the Isle of Wight, and gave it to the King of Sussex.f Cenwealh suc- ceeded, however, in preserving his kingdom in the * Bede, "Hist. Eccles." III. p. 8. "Chrou. Sax." a. fiOO. \ " Chron. Sax." a. GGl. It was here that Christianity was first preached (o the Julish population. 40 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. most essential point ; he was always victorious in his contests with the Britons, thereby strengthening the boundaries of his dominions towards the north and west. On his death, which occurred in 672, his resolute wife, Seaxburh, seized on the reins of government for a year : this is a proof that the royal house possessed at that period no worthier successor than this woman. But this queen, whose name suf- ficiently denotes that she was the pride and bulwark of her race, is certainly not the least in that wonder- ful list of remarkable females, which extends through the whole history of Britain, from Boadicea down to Elizabeth, even supposing v/e are not inclined to join William of Malmesbury in his enthusiastic admiration for her.* Unfortunately, at the expira- tion of a year, Seaxburh disappears from the scene of action, leaving the kingdom of Wessex during the next fifteen years, once more, as far as the kingly succession is concerned, in a state of the greatest confusion. According to the Chronicles, which are scarcely anything more tban mere genealogical lists, Cenfus, a great-grandson of Ceolwulf, possessed the supreme command during the next two years. This fact is the more credible, as King Alfred himself adopted it, most probably in his manual, from which William of Malmesbury and, occasionally, others are accus- tomed to procure their information.! From 674 to * W. Malmesb. "Gesta Reg. Angl." I. p, 32, ed. Hardy. " Chron. Sax." a. 672. t Our authority on this occasion is " Florent. Wigorn. Geneal." p. 093. " Deinde Kenfus duobus annis secundum dicta regis REIGN or CENT WINE. 41 676> Cenfus was followed by his son, yEscwine, who, like his predecessor, waged war with Wulfhere, the Mercian. On his death, or even perhaps simulta- neously with hiin, Centwine, Cenwealh's brother, appeared as king ; his attention was principally directed to the south-western borders of his king- dom, where the Britons of Cornwall, urged on and supported by their brethren of the transmarine country of Armorica, and taking advantage of the internal divisions among the West-Saxons, had re- course to arms to make good their pretensions to the provinces which had been wrested from them. They succumbed, however, before the courage of the Teutonic warriors, and we have no hesitation in allowing Centwine the merit of having been the first to lay the foundation of the depeydence of the provinces of Devonshire and Cornwall on the West- Saxon crown.* The frequent intercourse with the Celtic princi- palities of the West, and, indeed, the influence of the nationality of the latter upon the German ele- ment is, at this period, established, more especially by the constant blending of facts and names in the history of both nations; as is the case in the Annales Cambrinc, and has long since been satisfactorily proved. f The similarity between the name of Centwine's rebellious relation, Ceadwealh, and that iElfredi, juxta Chronicum Aiig-licam vero, iilius ejus .Escwiuus fere tribus aunis roguavit." * " Chron. Sax." a. 682 — "Centwine gefiynule brytwcalas o]> see." " Florent. Chron." a. 081, 1, p. 37 — " occicknitak^s Briloncs." \ Lappenberg, p. 250. 42 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. of the Welsh prince, Cadwaladyr, is not mere chance. The British annals, undoubtedly, sometimes attri- buted the exploits and history of the Saxons to some similarly named hero of their own ; but no one can help remarking the Celtish-sounding appellation of the first of the two princes just mentioned. He and his brother, Mul, were the sons of the viceroy Cenberht, most probably by a British mother.* Their own history must be regarded as proof of this. After the unsuccessful issue of his ambitious endeavours to obtain the throne, young Ceadwealh, who was the last of the Saxons who still clung to the old mythology, was outlawed by King Centwine ; here- upon he threw himself into the Andred-weald that separated the marks f of Sussex and Wessex. The * I here follow Kemble's theory in his essay, " On the Names- Surnames, and Nicknames of the Anglo-Saxons," London, 1846, pp. 4, 5, where it is asserted that the name Mul signifies nothing else than a mule, f][j,iovog. May not the similarly soundhig names of Cativolcus, King of the Eburones, Cses. " De Bello Gall." VI. 31, and of the Gothonian Catualda, in Tac, "Ann." IL 62, have owed their origin to a similar mixture of Celtic with German blood 1 In connection with the name, Mul, I beg to direct the reader's attention to the similar sound existing between our own words, Welsh or Walch and Wallach (gelding). •j- [It may be necessary to explain to the English reader that the term marh was applied by the ancient Germans, to the divi- sion of land on which a certain number of freemen settled to possess and cultivate. It is derived from onearc, a boundary. The term has been introduced into English antiquarianism by Mr. Kemble, in his " Saxons in England," who considers that the same system and name existed here as on the Continent. Dr. Pauli means, it is presumed, that the Andred-weald separated the culti- vated districts of Sussex from those of Wessex. — Ed.] INSURRECTION OF CEADWEALH. 43 woods afforded liim shelter while he was collecting a dissolute army, consisting partly of native Britons and partly of hybrids, who had returned to their old heathen superstitions, and, as renegades, troubled themselves but very little about matters of faith. If the reader will only call to mind how, in the early period of every German state, those who had sprung from the marriage of Germans with members of the conquered race could not boast of a perfect state of freedom, and if he will further assume that King Ine * was the first who regulated these unions among the West-Saxons, he will not be surprised at seeing Ceadwealh assume such a menacing position in so short a time. The individuals composing the army, followed their leader with alacrity, as they were placed in exactly the same situation as he was himself; their origin, their unbelief, and the sentence of outlawry, which they had incurred after rising in insurrection, were all shared equally by him. With followers like these, who fought for existence and honour at the same time, did Ceadwealh hold the South-Saxons, whose territory was a continual sub- ject of dispute between Wessex and JNIercia, in a state of continual fear and terror, until, on the death of the South-Saxon king, the Ealdormcn, Berhthun and Athelhun, succeeded in dislodging liim from the natural fortress in which he was posted. But his power was not yet broken, and he still con- tinued to aspire to the throne of Wessex. The next circumstance we read of, without being acquainted with the details of the matter, is that King CentMinc * Lappoiibci«^, \). 258. 44 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. abdicates and retires into a monastery,* while Cead- xvealli succeeds him as King of the West-Saxons. At this period he had not been baptized, although the fiery bishop Wilfred of York, who was then residing in Sussex, after having been driven from his holy office, or, perhaps even his own Christian mother f had won him over to favourable sentiments towards Christianity. Animated, however, by his natural wild passion, he first took terrible revenge on his enemies among the South-Saxons, and then, in conjunction with his brother Mul, a handsome, robust young man, utterly destroyed the entire Jutish population of the Isle of Wight, who, like himself, were still attached to Paganism. Finally, at the request of Mul, who v/as actuated by the same indomitable impulse as himself, he allowed him to lay waste the kingdom of Kent with fire and sword. Mul, however, having madly ventured too far into the enemy's territory, was, with twelve of his fol- lowers, surrounded in a hut by the Kentish army, and burnt alive.J For this deed his brother ex- acted the most terrible retribution by the pillage of the province, and the slaughter of its inhabitants; but, all of a sudden, he was touched with remorse, and laid down the crown in favour of his relation * This fact has been firmly established by Lappeiiberg, p. 253, N. 2, on the authority of an old poet in Alcuin's, work, who, according to Mai (Auctores classici, e codd. Vatic. V. p. 387), is no other than Aldhelm. ■j" According to Kemble's supposition in the passage last quoted, with which compare Bede, "Hist, Eccles." IV. p. 16. I "Chron. Sax." a. 687. " W. Malmesb." I. § 35. "Henric. Huntingd." IV. p. 722. ine's reign. 45 Ine; an irresistible inward feeling drove him to Rome, where he was baptized by Pope Sergius, at Easter, G89. Eight days afterwards he died, on the 20th April, still dressed in the white garments w^orn at the ceremony.* Are we not almost tempted to believe that the whole is some Welsh or British legend? Like some fiery meteor, that, after glisten- ing for a short time, and announcing war and havoc, suddenly disappears, so does Ceadwealh shoot through the history of Wessex. The six-and-thirty years' reign of Ine, whose descent f and degree of relationship to Ceadwealh is another point that cannot be clearly made out, owing to the differences in the separate genealogies, has far higher claims to our respect than the reigns of the other princes of this little state, which was continually torn by feuds and a disputed succession. It is true, however, that even in Ine's time there was no lack of wars with the neighbouring states. Things remained, as far as the Britons were con- cerned, in the same posture as before; and even Ine's name has sometimes been confounded in the historical monuments of the Welsh with that of their own Yvor. According to some of the Saxon genealogies, Ine was actually a brother of the two Saxo-Britons, Ceadwealh and Mul. At any rate he * Bede, " Hist. Eccles." V. p. 7. " Henric. Iluntingd." IV. p. 723. "Paul. Diac. Hist. Langob." VI. p. 15. All pilgrims were certain of being hospitably received by Enneliiid, the Kentish (iueen of the Langobards. f We meet with his father, Cenred, as subregulus. According to the most satisfactory arguments, he was descended in a right line from Ceawlin. See Lappenberg, p.25{). 46 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. demanded from the King of Kent additional satis- faction for the murder of the latter, who was com- pelled to submit to the payment of a large sum as blood-money ; in fact the sum named by the Chro- nicle is so large, that we have some difficulty in reconciling it with the currency of the period. With the hated Mercians war was continually carried on, and, in the year 715, the two armies again engaged at a place called Wodnesbeorh, the present Wenborough, in Wilts. It is, however, a source of satisfaction to find that this prince was the first of all the West-Saxon kings, who, although continually engaged in war, actively devoted his attention to the development of the resources of his kingdom. Following the example set by the kings of Kent, he caused the laws of his people to be com- mitted to writing ; these laws have reached our days in the shape of the collection that was made by order of King Alfred. We shall refer to the con- tents and importance of this collection at the proper time. We are also struck, during the lifetime of this prince, with the rapidity with which the develop- ment of ecclesiastical matters progressed, and also with the civilization of the West-Saxons, which was closely connected with it. This could certainly only have been the case with the approbation of the reigning sovereign. The conflict between the foreign and native elements of the infant church had con- tinued uninterruptedly from the days of Ceadwealh. We have already spoken of the latter's position towards Wilfred. This restless man, who had been BISHOP ALDHELM. 47 driven from his diocese at Yorlv, tbroiigh his enthu- siasm for a national development of the church in opposition to the pretensions of Theodore the Greek, Archbishop of Canterbury, and who, for many years, keeping his object steadily in view, had wandered from one diocese to another, had returned under the protection of his yet unconverted patron into Wessex. His mind was there as active as ever, and, for some time, he held one of the two bishop- rics. The foreigner Leutherius is not again men- tioned, and we find at Winchester, towards the end of the seventh century, Hedde, a native, as chief of this diocese. On the death of the latter, in the year 703, Ine thought fit to separate another see from Winchester, and fix the episcopal residence at Sher- burne, in Dorsetshire. He chose a most distin- guished individual as the first bishop, namely, the learned priest and poet Aldhelm, who, we have every right to suppose, was nearly connected with him. It is well known "' how Aldhelm, who was a youth of good family, and even most probably de- scended from the royal house of Wessex, Avas im- pelled by his love of learning to Canterbury; how, under the eyes of Theodore and the Abbot Hadrian, he attained that complete mastery over the classic * The principal authority conccrnino- him, if wc except Bede, "Hist. Eccles." V. 18, is a pupil and monk of his monastery. This monk, William, -wrote a" Vita Aldhelmi," which is generally marked in the MSS. as lib. V. of the " Gesta Pont.," but is found singly in Wharton, " Anglia Sacra," pp. 2, 599. Some old manuscripts of this life are shorter than the printed text, l)ut all contain the details which William took from the notices in " King Alfred's Ilaud-hoc." 48 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tongues of Greece and Rome which was only to be obtained at places such as Canterbury, and how, returning' to his monastery of Malmesbury^ which was buried in the solitude of the forests near the Severn, he afterwards, both by his pen and tongue, by metrical compositions in his own language, and by Latin poems, instructed the people as well as the church, both at home and abroad, with the most gratifying results. That which his great contem- porary Bede, in the north of England, and the silence of his cell at Wearmouth, effected by means of the most stupendous labour, namely, the pre- servation of knowledge and civilization, when they were threatened with destruction, and the effects of whose works were apparent soon after their publication throughout Europe — that did Aldhelm also effect, with untiring perseverance in the south, although his labours were, perhaps, of a more practical description. It is true that his Latin writings and poems were intended for the Roman Catholic Church, the protectress and cause of all the civilization of those times ; but we also learn, thanks to our Alfred, that he preached in the highways, and placed himself upon bridges, in order to sing to the people religious songs, whose old poetical form and familiar sound must have exer- cised an incalculable influence upon the stubborn and half barbarous natures of those living near the place. If Bede's mind was of a scientific and rather speculative turn in various branches of know- ledge, Aldhelm's nature, on the other hand, was a purely lyrical one, whose native liveliness, and deep INE AND WINFRED. 49 German feeling never ftiiled to produce an effect upon the roughest disposition. Of his activity in his more limited capacity as Bishop of Sherburne, until the period of his death, in 709, we know next to nothing, although he doubtless sowed many of the seeds of those crops which, in Alfred's day, yielded so abundant a harvest.* How Ine in his endeavours to serve the church came into contact with Winfred, who was subse- quently the great apostle of the north-west of Germany, and how he dispatched him as his repre- sentative to the Archbishop of Canterbury is related in the life of that celebrated man.f Internal troubles, and the conspiracies entered into against him by two princes, or Athelings, of his house, cast a gloom over the last years of the king's reign. He overcame these cares, however, and was principally indebted for this to the coura- * [Aldhelm and Bede can hardly be considered strictly as contemporaries, for, though Bede was twenty-seven years of age when Aldhelm died, as men of letters they belonged to different ages. The latter, whose literary life was that of his youth and earlier manhood, belonged to the school of the south, where poetry and the more elegant branches of learning were cultivated, and the influence of Avhich was rapidly disappearing at the com- mencement of the eighth century, before the love of more practical science, which was nourished in the northern and colder school, of which Bede was one of the earlier re])rescntatives. The direct influence of Aldhelm on the civilization of Wessex is perhaps rather problematical. — Ed.] f " Willibaldi vita S. Bonifocii aji. Portz, Men. Germ." ^ II. p. 337. [The English rearler will And a full account of Bonifacet in the " Biographia Britannica Literariu," Anglo-Saxon period. — Ed.] E 50 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. geoiis assistance of his strong-minded wife, Atliel- burli. But shortly afterwards, in the year 725, being tired of the burden of royalty, he followed the suggestion of this same queen, abdicated his throne, and, in company with her, made a pilgrim- age to Rome, where they both finished their lives in fasting and prayer.* Ine was succeeded by his wife's brother, Athel- heard. It appears that the transmission of the crown to a member of the female line, although that also belonged to the House of Cerdic,f was destined to occasion many internal divisions and serious troubles in the kingdom, as, at the epoch of Ine's abdication, there was still issue on the male side of his house, and all the kings next in succession had to defend themselves against the pretensions of other princes of royal blood. During the very first years of his reign, Athelheard was engaged in hostilities in order to put down the claims of the Atheling, Oswald. It is not, there- fore, surprising that the Britons, who had been so often defeated, should take advantage of these dis- sensions, and endeavour to free themselves from the yoke, or that they should really, on some occa- sions, have gained the advantage over Athelheard. f It was only by the greatest exertions that the latter was enabled to defend himself and his kingdom * Bede, " Hist. Eccles." V. 18. " Chron. Sax." and "Florent." I. p. 51, give the date of 728. ] Athelburh is called, " filia regii generis et aninii," in " Wil- liam of Malmesbury," I. >§ 35. :j: " Florent. Chron." I. p. 52. ACCESSION OF CUTIIRED. 51 against another foe, Athelbald, King of Älereia, who was every day becoming more powerful. On Athelheard's death, which happened about 739, Cuthred, another prince of his house, filled the same difficult jiosition. At first he was only enabled to overcome the neighbouring Britons with the assistance of that old enemy of his house, the King of Mercia, but immediately he had effected this, the Mercian, who was willingly joined in his victorious expeditions by Angles, South-Saxons and Welsh, became once more his dreaded opponent. Nearly at the same time, a much more dangerous enemy rose up, in his immediate neighbourhood, in the person of the daring Ealdorman, Athelhun.'" According to a trustworthy narrative, this chief, who was one of the most valiant warriors of his day, did not submit until after some desperate combats, and until he had received a wound which com- pelled him to lay down his arms. Some short time subsequent to this, Athelhun rendered his king a service which eventually proved of incal- culable importance for Wessex. He was the per- son to whom in the year 752 the command-in- chief of the Saxon army against Athelbald of Mercia was entrusted. With the colours of the kingdom, and the golden dragon glancing upon them, in his hand, he rushed at the head of his soldiers into the ranks of the enemy near Bur- ford. The Mercian standard-bearer fell beneath * So called in the "Chronicle," a. 750; and in " Ilcnric. IIuntiii<^d." IV. p. 728, he is (lesi|;nated, " audacissiiuus consul." E 2 52 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. the blows of his sword ; and Athelbald, who, until then^ had never met his equal in the field, trembling at the sight of such valour, determined the fortunes of the day by flying precipitately from the scene of action.""" This combat, in which the West-Saxons were fighting for their indepen- dence, gained for them the supremacy, which Mercia had so long disputed with them, and from this time their kingdom made good its right to rank as the first in the island, even against Offa himself. Two years after this victory that had been at- tended with such important consequences, Cuthred died without any direct heir, and to the great detri- ment of his kingdom. The short reign of his suc- cessor, Sigeberht, who, from the similarity of his name, would rather appear to have belonged to the royal house of Essex than to the race of Cerdic, and who became so arrogant, from an idea of his power, that he was guilty of repeated acts of the most horrible tyranny against the freeborn West-Saxons, perishing, eventually, by an outlaw's death in the * The best authority concerning Athelhun and his heroic courage, is " Henric. Huntingd." IV. p. 728, who has certainly taken the materials for his description of the battle of Burford from old war-songs, which now and then appear to be re-echoed in his Latin rhymes, and which were, doubtlessly, as far as re- gards language and poetical feeling, far more majestic and power- ful than even the poetical descriptions of the battles of Brunan- burh and Maldon, which, although of a far more recent date, are at present of such inestimable value to us. See, on this subject, Lappenberg, pp. 220, 264, who uses the words of this chronicler when describing the battle. DEATH OF CYNEWULF. 5!} Andred-weald, after having first been driven from house and home — together with the election by the assembled nobles of one of Cerdic's descendants, Cynewulf, who reigned in Sigeberht's place for three-and-thirty years — affords us another strong proof that the internal affairs of the country were far from being placed on a satisfactory basis, and that it was especially requisite that the succession should follow some fixed rule, which might protect the kingdom from tyrants and the princes from usur- })ers. With the exception, however, of a few hasty sketches of warlike expeditions undertaken by this sovereign against Wales and Mercia, we have but very few accounts left of him. His violent death is, perhaps, the only circumstance which even the national annals themselves narrate at unusual length. The account runs as follows : — Cynewulf had gone secretly to Morton in Devonshire, on some love intrigue, without entertaining the least suspicion that the Atheling Cyneheard, a brother of the dethroned Sigeberht, had designs upon his life and crown. The traitor surrounded with his followers the castle in which the king was stopping, and as the latter was endeavouring to defend himself against the assailants rushing in at the doorway, he was, immediately on perceiving the Atheling, disarmed and struck to the ground. The cries of the woman woke up the small number of the king's followers, who, in their turn, fell, fighting valiantly, after re- jecting all Cyneheard's offers of life and lands, the only person that escaped being a Briton, wlio had been detained as a hostage in Morton. 'J'his Briton, 54 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. although badly wounded, assembled, probably the next morning, the royal retinue which had been left at some little distance behind, under the com- mand of two or three noblemen. On riding up to the castle, they found the corpse of their king lying before the door, which was closed. The Atheling began by treating with them for the crown, and offered the most advantageous terms, if they would. come over to his party. But they answered unhe- sitatingly that after the murder of their beloved king, they would never cease to pursue his mur- derer. They then made an appeal to their kinsmen in the castle, to return with them and leave the rebel's cause, but their kinsmen refused, observing that their own followers had, the day before, re- fused to do the same thing. A second warm en- gagement took place in consequence, under the castle-walls, until the followers of the murdered king, forcing their passage through the doorway, cut down the whole of their opponents to the number of eighty-four ; only one person, a godson of the Atheling, escaped.* The crown was now given, by election, to Beorh- * My account is taken from the passage in " Chron. Sax." ■which is certainly rather confused, and is placed under the date of 755 instead of 783. For this reason Thorpe, " Flor. Wigorn." I. p. 61, n. 1, is inclined to regard it as a more modern interpo- lation, hut it is, most undoubtedly, the remains of some old song, whose original form can still sometimes be traced in various in- stances of alliteration, and in the dialogue maintained by the two armies, that is carried on in the first person. Compare Lappen- berg, " Florent." I. p. 60, •' W. Malmesb." I. ^ 42, and " Henric. Huntingd.' IV. p. 731. BEORHTRIC ELECTED KING. 55 trie, another member of the royal house, while he who had the greatest claim to it was passed over. This person Avas a great-grandson of King Ine's brother Ingild, named Ealhmund, who had obtained the royal crown of Kent, most probably by similar means to those which, in former years, Ceadwealh had employed against Sussex. Ealhmund's son, Egberht, a bold and ambitious young man, remem- bered his claims to the throne of his original coun- try, and the new ruler could only maintain his position by obliging the pretender to leave the kingdom and even the island. As long as Beorhtric lived, Egberht never again ventured on any mea- sures in support of his pretensions. JNIeanwhile, the West-Saxons found that they had been in no- wise deceived in their last choice, for the whole of Beorhtric's reign was more peaceable and happy than that of any king that had ever preceded him. It is true that, at this period, on the coast near Dorchester, the forerunners of evil days made their appearance in the shape of three vessels of those piratical Northmen, who were destined, ere many years had passed, to overrun the rich island in its entire length and breadth ; but with the excep- tion of a few acts of plunder and the murder of the port-reeve of the place and his followers, who had gone down to meet them on their landing, in order to levy the usual dues, they committed, on this occasion no further depredations.*'' A lasting peace had been concluded with IMercia, * " Chron. Sax." A. 787. " -lEthchveard, C'hroii." III. pvoem. p. 509, " Floreiit." I. p. 62. 56 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. as Beorhtric, immediately after mounting the throne? had married Eadburh, the daughter of the great king Offa. For a considerable period the sword was now laid aside, and the hands which had formerly wielded it busied themselves far more profitably with the ploughshare. But in the person of his wife, the king was fostering a viper in his own house. She was descended from a mother who, on one occasion, drove a dagger into the bosom of her own son-in- law, and thinking that her influence with her hus- band was diminished in consequence — for she was very skilful in forwarding the interests of her native country — she did not for an instant hesitate in put- ting poison in the cup of the Ealdorman Worr, a young and talented favourite of the king. But Beorhtric also tasted the drink and died, a victim to his wife's machinations.* Eadburh fled, laden Avith treasures, and, after a long and unsettled life in the country of the Langobards, met with a wretched and shameful end. f Thus perished Beorhtric exactly at the period that Charlemagne was on his way to Italy, in order to receive the imperial crown from the hands of the Pope at Rome. During his absence, Egberht, who had passed the thirteen ^ years of his exile in the . * Not before 801; according to "Cod. Dipl." No. 180, all these events did not happen until the year 802. f Asser, " Gesta ^Elfredi," p. 471. Asser, as before remarked, p. 11, relates this story, and the subsequent fortunes of the miser- able queen at considerable length, having first heard them from the lips of his royal friend. Asser's account is copied by "Florent. Wigorn. " I. p. 76, and "Simeon. Dunelm. Chron." p. 672. I The number IIL instead of XIII. is a graphical error of the EGBERHT AND CHARLEMAGNE. 5/ Fmnkish camp, complied with the invitation of his adherents, and resolved on an immediate return home in order to take possession of the throne, Avhich no one now dared to dispute with him. His long residence and familiarity w^ith Charle- magne were not without the most marked and lasting influence upon the development of his own personal character and the future history of his reign. A lively intercourse had long since been established between the Franks and Anglo-Saxons, and not only did the two nations .barter their mer- chandise in the way of commerce, but they were united by manifold political relations of a friendly kind and by a community of intellectual interests. Both, too, were enoacred in wars with the same foe, for the Celts of the Continent still religiously cherished their old ties of blood with the Celts of the Island of Britain, and it was, even then, easy to perceive that the Christian Germanic element on both sides of the Straits would surely be endan- gered by the foe that had just begun to rise up from the sea. Besides, the necessities of the Church and her mission induced Charlemagne, as they had induced his ancestors, to maintain a con- stant communication Avith the learned and religious islanders, and not to allow the bonds of friendsliip to grow slack between him and the different courts " Chron. Sax." a. 836. This error has been copied Uy " Flovciit. Wigoni." I. p. 09, and "Henric. Huntingd." IV. ji. 733. Accord- ing to the same authorities, it was Offii, who, ininiediately subse- quent to his son-in-law's accession to the throne, ure blode of Bernewolf, ]>ev he toke his dede." King Beornwulf did not fall, however, until two years later. SUPREMACY OF EGBERHT. 63 Baldred. The latter immediately fled over the Thames towards the north, and never more beheld his throne or country. Sussex, Kent and Essex, as well as Suthrige (Surrey) now entirely lost their independence ; all the various royal races had either perished or degenerated, the small states were them- selves sensible of their weakness, and from this period we find the whole of them united to the crown of the West-Saxons, but in such a manner that one, or more of them, was also granted to the heir-apparent for the time being as a feoff. For many years afterwards they still remained distinct in their boundaries, rights, and usages. In the year 825, Beornwulf was defeated and killed in a battle with the East-Angles. His suc- cessor, Wiglaf, having been overcome by Egberht, had at first some trouble in escaping the effects of his anger and revenge, and ultimately becoming a tributary ruler. Egberht compelled even the East- Angles to acknowledge his supremacy, and actually penetrated with his host into their country on the other side the Humber, while his warriors in the West conquered the old Mona to which they gave their own German name.'"' All these circumstances happened in the course of a few years, but they were the results of the con- flicts and the experience of some centuries. Out of the numerous petty states there had arisen a new ruling power mightier than that of the old, fabulous Bretwaldadom. Egberht's supremacy smoothed the path for still greater centralisation and union * Lapponberg-, p. 276. 64 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. in aftertimes. This prince is usually mentioned in terras of praise as being the destroyer of the hept- archy. But this is an error, if we allude to the existence of seven different principalities, for he added to his crown more than seven petty king- doms, some of which had themselves been composed of a number of smaller principalities ; besides, the royal dignity was still preserved, for a long period subsequent to this, both in Mercia and among the Northumbrians, although in the case of the latter it was under the dominion of the Northmen, while in Mercia it was tributary to Wessex. But there cannot be the least doubt that Egberht defeated every attempt that any other state may have made to rival him in his proud rank. The kingdom of Wessex, from its geographical position and extent, now imposed respect on all other powers ; it embraced a round tract of country, shut up, as it were, within itself, and which, stretching away in a southern direction from the Thames, until it was bounded by two arms of the sea, contained, in addition to the old possessions, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, the counties of Dorset, Wilts, Somerset, Berks, the southern half of Oxfordshire, Devonshire, with its mixed population, and the greater portion of Gloucestershire. Its dependen- cies were, in the first place, the several small ])rinci- palities of the North and South Britons in Wales and Cornwall, and, secondly, the Teutonic states of Sussex, Kent and Essex. The intermediate country of Mercia, whose constant endeavour it had ever been to extend its limits, at the same time that it EXPLORING SHIPS OF THE NORTHMEN. G5 preserved its very existence, by the sword, and whose territories, even at a later period, reached north of the Thames down to the mouth of that river, was reduced, considering its position and former importance, to a hardly less decided state of subjection ; the condition of the Anglian states on the eastern coast was still more uncertain. One thing, however, had been attained by Egberht ; he had, in the common interest of all parties, drawn these separate states nearer to one another. By thus rendering their union closer, he had, above ail things, put it in the ])ower of the collective Teutonic element, to withstand, although, perhaps, with unspeakable difficulty, the hosts of invading Northmen. Nor was this national scourge long before it a]3- peared. The crews of the three exploring ships, that had on one occasion put in at Dorchester, no doubt informed their friends at home of the lovely island they had seen, where agriculture and com- merce were then beginning to bloom into pros- jierity. Even in Egberht's time, the Northmen j)aid his coasts a visit in great numbers. We can- not here enter into the historical reasons which compelled this wild and rapacious, but afterwards so richly endowed race, to leave their poor and naked native country and trust themselves in shoals to the waves, to seek for booty, and as soon as fate ordained it and fortune smiled, to find new homes on some more happy shore. I will merely remind the reader that it is not impro- bable that the Scandinavians had long been firmly 66 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. established in the small islands to the north of Scotland as well as in Scotland itself and in Ireland. In the beginning- of the ninth century, however, important changes in the North may have driven large numbers from their native soil, and thus, as I think we are justified in supposing, it was the Danes of the Scandinavian continent and islands who now began to disturb the whole of Europe. The causes of this were, no doubt, the same which had once compelled all the Germans to commence their emigration. The naval expe- ditions of the daring Vikings were, in fact, but the continuation of that expedition which had formerly been directed from the interior of the continent to the sea-shore ; with this difference, however — that the pagan Northmen set out from their own element to conquer the country around the coast. They found that they could most easily effect this on the eastern coast of England and Neustria, where Teutons had settled before them, but they also pushed their excursions as far as the South of Spain,'"' and far down the Mediterra- nean. This last instance of a national exodus, was destined by its influence, to unite the most remote extremities of the universe to one another and to be felt even by the Sclaves in the North-east and the Caesars of the Eastern Empire. * As early as the year 843, fifty-four of their ships appeared before Lisbon, and coasted thence in a southerly direction, up the Guadalquiver, as far as the Avails of Seville. See Conde, " His- toria de la dominacion de los Arabes en Espana," Madr. 1820, L p. 283 ; this book is derived from Arabian sources. INVASION BY THE DANES. 67 But to return to England. The Danes bad landed, in the year 831, on the island of Sheppey, and they appeared, in the year following, before Charmouth, in Dorsetshire, with five-and -thirty ships. They found King Egberht unprepared, for, although he led on his army in person, it was obliged to give way before the foe. He immediately assembled the nobles of his kingdom in London, and held a coun- cil with them as to the best means of defence. Consequently, when the Danes showed themselves again, in the year 835, they found both the king and his people better prepared, and were either cut to pieces or driven back at Hengestesdune.* This fleet, like most of those that attacked the south of England, had probably come from Ireland, and was in communication with the Britons of the opposite island, for it is noticed, as the last act of Egberht's reign, that he severely punished the Welsh, even including such as had entered into similar treaties with the Danes, in the kingdom of the Carlovingians, for the assistance they had ren- dered these pirates, while he threatened those in his own hereditary dominions with total destruction. This prince had, indeed, effected great things, when his end approached, in tlie year 838 ;t but he had not the satisfaction of leaving his son a * " Chron. Sax." ; '' Flor. Wig." I. p. G9 ; Lappenbcrg, pp. 270, 287. f lie dill not die in 8^3 G, as Lappenbcrg, in conformity with the " Chron. Sax." a. 830, says. There is a deed of his given by Kemble, " Cod. Diplom." N.239, Indict, i. ; and N. 210, in which Athelwulf ratifies a gift of his father, written in (he year 830, !••' 2 68 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. kingdom free from the cares which this new foe must necessarily occasion. This son, Athelwulf, as far as we can glean from authorities worthy of credit, was Egberht's sole heir by his wife Redburh.* Athelwulf 's dispo- sition and character were but too well adapted to strengthen his father's apprehensions, for his tastes had been the very reverse of warlike from his earliest youth, and he soon manifested an inclination of al- lowing himself to be influenced by others, especially the higher clergy. If Egberht imitated the Emperor Charlemagne's example, and, in fact, equalled it in many respects, his son resembled the pious Louis, who, through his concessions to the clergy, allowed his power to be wrested from him, and occasioned the most mournful dissensions in his own family. We shall have occasion to resume this parallel at a future period. Devoted, therefore, to a state of tranquillity, with all its peaceful enjoyments, Athel- wulf found in the protection of the Church, refuge and consolation against all the cares and exertions, which, during the greater portion of his reign, were not spared him. It is, probably, to the gratitude of the Church, for the many marks of his favour and munificence, that we must attribute the fact of some of its historians having transmitted to us the strange assertion that this prince was originally intended for the Church, and that at the time of Indict, ii., — " primo videlicet anno regni JiÖeluulfi regis post obitum patris sui." Compare also Hardy on " W. Malmesb." II. § 107. * " Caradoc," ed. Wynn, p. 27. ATHELSTAN NOT ATHELWULF's BROTHER. GO his father's death, he had already filled some of its highest offices, from which he received a dis- pensation from the pope himself, simply on accomit of the succession. This statement appears extremely strange and improbable ; it also seems to have some connection with the two assertions, in accordance with which Athelstan, King of Kent, is sometimes styled Athel- wulf ^s son, and sometimes his brother. Had Athel- stan been really a son of Egberht, and of this fact we do not possess a single satisfactory proof, there would have been nothing to prevent the eldest son from following his inclination, and, as a member of the Church, avoiding the cares of state. On the other hand, we find that this very Athelwulf was, in the year 824, dispatched by his father to take possession of Kent, where he was to remain at the head of the government, with the title of king. In no one document, of all those that have reached us, do we find the slightest trace of his ever having been an ecclesiastic ; but we learn from all of them, that in the years 828 and 830 he was King of Kent, and he unquestionably remained so till his father's death.* Athelstan, on the contrary, is never once mentioned during Egberht's lifetime, either in historical works or documents ; immediately after Athelwulfs accession, however, he is mentioned by both these authorities, as the ruler of Kent. * Kemble, " Cod. Diplom." N. 223 : " Tro vcmcdio aiiiina) mete et filii nostri iEtheluulfi, quern regem constituimus in Cantia," a. 828, hid. vi. N. 224., signed also: "yEtheluulf rex Cantuariorum," a. 830. Ind. viii. 70 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. In the Saxon annals it is stated that his father delivered to his keeping this kingdom, together with the territories belonging to it, which, ever since they had been won, were always entrusted to the eldest son, or to the heir-apparent of Wes- sex. All documents, too, are always signed by him : Athelstan rex.* Athelwulf, therefore, had been already once married when heir-apparent, and for this reason could be neither a priest nor a bishop, and, if he had the command of a warlike expe- dition, when his father had sat upon the throne four- and-twenty years, he could very well have a son grown up. But it is very probable that the latter, who was so much older than all the other children, and died before his father, was the offspring of a different mother,! and was not descended from Queen Osburh, and that, consequently, Athelwulf not only married twice, but thrice. After what has been here stated, no one can hesitate in reject- ing, unconditionally, both assertions, namely, that which refers to Athelwulf 's priesthood, and that which states that Athelstan was not his son, but his brother ; what strengthens our position still more is, that both these facts are related by nearly the same authorities.^ * " Chron. Sax." a. 836 ; Kenible, " Cod. Diplom. " N. 241, 252, 254, 259, 264. In the charters marked 256 and 1047, we even find, " ^theluulfo rege presente atque J^thelstano fiUo ejus." t Roger de Wendover, " Flores Historiar." I. p. 279, ed. Coxe, and " Matth. Westmonast." a. 837, in speaking of iEthelstan, say: "Non de matrimonio natum;" but their evidence stands ■alone and is too recent. ] "Henric.-Huntingd." lib. iv. p. 734, v. p. 737, is the most ATHELWULF'S ADVISERS. 71 Having thus disposed of this point, we will re- turn to the history of Athelwulf. This weak prince appears to have allowed himself to be ruled, in turn, by one or other of two men, who acted as his advisers to the exclusion of all other persons. One of them, Ealhstan, Bishop of Sherburne, was a man exactly resembling, in taste and disposition, the prince's father. That wliich was seldom true of the dignitaries of the Anglo-Saxon Church, and when true was generally censured, but which was afterwards one of the distinguishing marks of the Norman ecclesiastics, was true of him, — he grasped» the sword more willingly than the crozier, and de- rived his greatest enjoyment from warlike deeds. We have already seen him follow the prince to the field of battle ; he was, in fact, a warrior and a statesman. The other, the learned Swithun, is said to have been appointed the prince's tutor, when ancient of all. Pie states that Athelwulf was Bishop of Win- chester, and Athelstan Egberht's son. He is followed by " ("hron. Mailros. ap. Fell." I. p. 14-2, and "Roger de Hoveden," ed. Savile, pp. 412, 413, The old poetical chronicler, too, of the twelfth cen- tury, Geffrci Gaimar, " L'Estorio des Engles," v. 2482 (in the " Monum. Hist. Brit,") writes thus : — " Adelstan estait al rci frere, Li uns estait frere Edclwolf" " .Job. Brom. ap. Twysden x. Scriptt." p. 802, calls Athelwulf) " episcopus Wintoniensis," but makes Athelstan his youngest son, who died very young ! W. Malmesb. " Dc gestis Pontif." H. ^ 242, ed. Savile, says that Athelwulf had received consecration, from which only the Pope, whose name does not agree with the statement, could release him, but in the book " Dc Gestis Reg. Angl." n. § 108, Athelstan is made his son. The most recent copy but one of the Saxon Chronicle, MS. Cotton, Domit. A, 72 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. the latter was yet very young, and he it was espe- cially, who strengthened his pupil's predilection for the Church, and knew how to turn his weak- nesses to the best account.* While the activity of the former was conspicuous in the first years of the king's reign, as long as a dangerous foe had to be repulsed, the influence of the latter could not be mistaken in times of peace, when the church raised her head higher than ever. The memory of the first never met with the gratitude that was its due; Swithun's name soon appeared among those of the saints in the calendar. The cry of war and the note of preparation against the hordes of piratical invaders resounded through- out the land, when King Egbert died. About the same time the Ealdorman Wulfheard drove back four-and-thirty ships from before Hamtun (South- ampton); but in the island of Portland, the Danes remained in possession of the field, after a despe- VIII., calls Athelstan, his (Egberht's) " oSer sunu ;" but we have already noticed, in the Introduction to our work, the small value of this MS. for the section in question. Lappenberg, p. 292, seems inclined to believe something of Athelwulf's preferment in the Church, but in the " Translation," II. p. 23, both accounts meet with a far smaller degree of credence. It is almost laugh- able, though very characteristic of the historians of the Middle Ages, to find in Spelman's "Vita iElfredi," p. 2, n., all the dig- nities which the later chronicles heaped upon Athelstan, collected in one passage, in which he is termed : " Monachus, diaconus, presbyter, episcopus Wintoniensis electus " or " consecratus ;" the rhyming chronicler, Harding, goes so far as to make a car- dinal of him ! * " Gotselini Vita Swithuni in Acta Sanct. Juli." I, p. 327 ; " W. Malnicsb. de Gestis Pontif." ii. §. 242. COMBATS WITH THE DANES. 73 rate struggle. In the following year, hordes of Danes again attacked the lands of the East-Angles and men of Kent, and slew great numbers in Lon- don, Canterbury, and Rochester. Not long after this King Athelwulf headed his followers in per- son ; but, as his father had once done before him, w^as obliged to retreat before the crews of five-and thirty vessels, at Charm outh.* The calamity with which the country was visited appeared to be- come more threatening every day. All the line of coast, wherever the Teutons had settled, was filled with dread; and the wild pirates soon appeared north of the Humber, where their projects were greatly assisted by the continual disputes about the throne. In Wessex it was not before the year 845 that the Ealdormen, Eanulf and Osric, with their levies fi-om Somerset and Dorset, and with the aid of the valiant Ealbstan, succeeded in offer- ing the enemy a serious check at the mouth of the small river Parret ; in the year 851, Ealdorman Ceorl gained another hard-fought battle near AVic- ganbeorh, in Devonshire, while King Athelstan of Kent, whose dominions were especially exposed to the devastations of the invaders, was the first who attempted, with his Ealdorman Ealhhere, to meet his daring antagonists on their own element. Ilis first successful naval engagement was fought off Sandwich ;f the Saxons took eight ships and put the others to flight, after having killed great numbers * Sec "Chron. Sax." from 837 to 841. t "Chron. Sax." a. 815, HFA; Asser, "Vita yElfrcdi," p. 409; " Flovciil. Wigoni." I. p. 73. 74 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. of their crews. But all these successes did not prevent other hordes, whose numbers appeared in- terminable, from passing the next winter in the island of Thanet, nor a stupendous fleet of three hundred and fifty sail from appearing in the spring, at the mouth of the Thames, whence their crews spread themselves over the neighbouring banks, and, following the course of the river, penetrated with fire and sword, into the north, where the Mer- cian king, Beorhtwulf, in vain endeavoured to arrest their progress. As they were returning thence, laden with booty, and intending to pass through Surrey to regain their ships, they were successfully attacked by King Athelwulf and his son, Athel- bald, near Aclea (Ockley), and after a desperate struggle partially destroyed.* Two years later we find the men of Surrey and Kent fighting under their Ealdormen, Huda and Ealhhere, in the island of Thanet ; but, although the victory at first ap- peared to lean towards their side, they were at length obliged to give way before their stubborn foe, with the loss of their two leaders, and after * " Chron. Sax." a. 851, says: "and fser ])set mseste wfel ges- logoii, ]>e we secgan hyrdon o]? ]>ysne andweardan dseg." Was this account contemporaneous ■? The writer certainly appears to know nothing of Alfred's battles, in whose reign, as is well known, there were two very formidable invasions of the Danes, and several desperate engagements. The same account, too, is adopted by Asser, p. 469, and " Florent. Wigorn." I. p. 73. — Lap- penberg, p,291, Translation, II. p. 22, has most satisfactorily shown, from the "Annals of Prudent. Trecens." a. 850, ap. Peitz, Mon. Germ. I. p. 445, that the large fleet in question was a part of the expedition of.Rörik, a nephew of the Danish prince, Harald Klak. VICTORY OF THE DANES. 75 great numbers on both sides had been killed or drowned. Subsequently to this, the Danes again passed the winter on the island of Sheppey,'" but, for a time, made no more descents upon the English coast. As may be remarked, their enterprises were always conducted by fits and starts, each one being followed by a pause, during which tbey were either compelled by their losses to remain quiet awhile, or else turned their attention towards particular tracts of the continent. Since the period when Egberht first came in contact with them during the year 832, they had continually spread war and conster- nation on all the borders of his kingdom, but for the next eight years there was a cessation of hos- tilities. Shortly after the victory of Aclea, Athelwulf had complied with the entreaties of Burhred, who had lately become King of Mercia, and lent him the aid of his victorious arms in an expedition against the inhabitants of North Wales. Both kings penetrated as far as the island of Mona, and compelled King Roderic Mawr to acknowledge their authority.f These were the last warlike operations of Athel- wulf 's reign ; the rest of his life is so closely inter- woven with that of his celebrated son, that it be- longs to the followins^ section. * " Chvon. Sax." A. 853 ; "Florcnt. Wigorii." I. p. TL; Asscr, p. 170. I Sec Lappcubcrg, p. 293. 76 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. SECTION 11. alfhed's youth, from 849 to 866. — king athelred's accession. With the sources of information which we now possess, and which, year after year, either contain nothing-, save accounts of warlike expeditions and sanguinary battles, or entirely consist of dry tes- tamentary documents, it is a difficult task to arrive at a correct notion of the interior economy of the country, and the domestic habits of its inhabitants in those early times : it is, if anything, a work of still greater difficulty to become acquainted with the details of the lives of single individuals; and, especially, of such as by their birth and station took precedence of the rest of the people. A few names, and some facts here and there, which have fortunately been preserved, are the only mo- numents and M^aymarks to guide the traveller in his weary journey through the desert and the ob- scurity. The embarrassment which the historian feels in this case, almost borders on despair, fill- ing him with regret united to the consciousness of his own inability when he undertakes to write of England, as it was in the days of its first hero and preserver. It is only the hope of having, BRAVERY OF THE ANGLO-SAXONS. 77 like the sailor upon the pathless sea, faithfully fol- lowed every guide for a safe voyage, and, when all other resources failed, of having boldly pursued some unknown course, which might, however, for- tunately conduct to the nearest port, which gives the writer courage never to lose sight of the ob- ject he has in view, and causes him to think that, in addition to the reader's indulgence, he may per- haps merit his approbation as well. From what has been said, Athelwulf appears to have been little fitted for the difficult task of preserving a country like England, just beginning to rise into greatness, from the sudden danger which threatened it. The first attack of the Bar- barians, however, had passed over, without their having been enabled, strictly speaking, to obtain a firm footing among the Teutonic inhabitants of the island ; and, indeed, in a large portion of the interior of the country their name was scarcely known. The Anglo-Saxon population, too, thanks to the warlike elements on which their whole constitution was based, had shown themselves, on land at least, quite as worthy of their birth as the hostile hordes of kindred race with whom they fought. As yet, too, there was no want of leaders, who, fighting bravely sword in hand, only left the victorious Barbarians masters of the field when it was strewed with their own corpses; or else by their courage and skill, succeeded in obtaining the victory themselves. We have seen how even Athelwulf roused himself to action, and how, when his embarrassments were over, he could yet draw 78 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. more tightly the reins of his power over the Britons. For a short time the people breathed freely again ; the peasant followed his plough with- out interruption, and the pious once more sang and read the praises of God in churches and mo- nasteries, and instructed the people in the prin- ciples of their belief and all kinds of useful knowledge, although the age could not boast of any one like the great masters who had existed in the preceding century. Indeed, even before the inroads of the Danes, the state of education was beginning visibly to decline. Ever since the reign of Egberht, which had been so productive of im- portant results, the old boundaries between the various provinces and districts were becoming less marked every day ; in the place of so many petty princes, there was now one who reigned supreme over them all, and in the states that had formerly been separate, the nobles, freemen, and bondsmen, formed the same classes of the collective popula- tion. All had assisted in the last defence of their native land, and the common bonds of descent and religion exerted their due influence on the Angles and the Saxons. The King, who was the commander-in-chief in time of war, and, in times of peace, the richest and most powerful landed proprietor of his king- dom, lived, like his subjects, in strict accord- ance with the ancient customs; he consulted his nobles and the free part of the population on the public affairs, and assured himself of their assist- ance in case the country should be threatened by THE king's mode OF LIFE. 79 external danger. Ilis private property alone was managed by him as he chose, and for his own ex- clusive advantage. We know that out of his immense landed possessions Athelwulf was accus- tomed to make the most munificent presents; at one time to some faithful servant of his retinue, and at another to a valiant warrior for the vic- tory he had gained, while, on other occasions, he would give large sums to churches and monas- teries for the salvation of his own soul. Some- times, too, he would, with the authority of the assembled Witan, relieve newly-obtained tracts of country from the burdens under which they for- merly lay. In times of peace, this, with the ex- ception of the favourite pleasure of the chase, and the fulfilment of his duties as supreme judge, formed the whole occupation of the prince, as it did of every other landed proprietor. The mea- sures necessary for the defence of the country, for the wellbeing of church and state, and for the preservation of his own private estates de- manded his presence everywhere, especially in times of trouble, and the King, more than any other person in the land, still continued to lead a wandering life. The Saxons of that period did not possess, any more than did the Franks, an ancestral palace or capital Avliere they were sur- rounded by their family and their court; the latter was always lodged, during its journeys, in the royal villas tliat were scattered all over Wessex and the states that had fallen under its authority. Tlius, in the first year of his reign, we find Atliel- 80 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. wulf residing on some royal property situated in Kent, on the little river Stour; in the following- year he is at Hamtun, in all probability busied with the preparations for his first expedition against the Danes ; in 845, he w^as again in Kent, at a place called on Weg ; two years later he had taken up his quarters in the castle at Can- terbury; and in 854 he was in Wiltun.* Be- sides the episcopal residence of the archbishop, he may also have honoured with his presence the two cathedrals of his own native province, as their bishops were his principal ministers. There, too, were the graves of his ancestors, and in one of them w^-ere his own ashes destined to repose. Wherever he went he was followed by his family, his officers and his servants. His eldest son, Athel- stan, a child of his youth, was the only one who possessed independent authority, having been sole ruler of Kent and the neighbouring territories ever since his father's accession to the throne ; the separate districts of the small states in other parts of the kingdom were under the authority of Ealdormen. The first object that claims our attention is the King's family. Soon after he became King of Kent, which was about the year 830, Athelwulf married Osburh, the daughter of his cupbearer, Oslac. Both she and her father were sprung from an ancient and celebrated race ; their ancestors * See the charters in Kemble, N. 241, 246, 259, 260, 272, which contain an account of the donations alluded to in the text. CHARACTER OF OSBURH. 81 were Jutes, descendants of the brothers Stuf and Wightgar, who had formerly received the Isle of Wight in fee from their uncle, Cerdic. The names of tlie father and daughter afford indis- putable evidence of their unmixed Teutonic origin, and, according to the ideas which were still preva- lent in those times, of their divine descent. It is probable that Oslac possessed landed property in the old Jutish settlements in Kent. The young king invested him with one of the first dignities of his court, that of cupbearer, and, consequently, married Osburh at a time when he was already surrounded by royal state ; another fact which proves that Athelstau, whom we soon find men- tioned as being grown up, could not be Osburh's son. History has preserved but few particulars concerning this excellent woman ; her career is, unfortunately, enveloped in a thick veil. The daughter of a noble race, her soul was as noble as her blood; her piety was remarkable, and all that she cared for was the welfare of her chil- dren ;* in a word, she must have been the very model of a loving German mother. Her whole energy was devoted to her family, and we never find the least trace of her having taken a part in public affairs. She never, for instance, signed a public document, as queens and royal princesses were so often in the habit of doing both prior and subsequent to her time. Jn fact, Asser says that * Asser, p. 469, has preservcil a "(Miealogy of her. ami (alls her; " Religiosa iiiniiiim fh'niiiia, uobilis iiigenio, noldlis ct genere." G 82 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. in consequence of the horrible occurrence in which Eadburh had played so prominent a part, Osburh could not desire to be aught else than the wife of her king. History is, therefore, silent as regards her, and does not penetrate as far as to the details of her quiet, domestic life; but that her existence and labours were of this kind may be gathered from the little that a faithful friend learned from her son. Osburh had borne her husband a number of children in quick succession ; these, without a doubt, passed their childhood at their mother's side. Athelbald, the eldest, was already a youth in 850, for from that period he accompanied his father to the different meetings of his nobles, ""'^ and even into the field. He was present when the Danes were defeated at Aclea. The two sons, Athelberht and Athelred, who came next in age, were but a few years younger, and, as far as we can gather from authentic sources, appear never to have busied themselves in public affairs during their father's lifetime. The next child was a daughter, Athelswith, who, immediately after the successful conclusion of the expedition against the Welsh, was married to Burhred of Mercia, although, as in those times was so frequently the case, she was at most not more than fifteen years old. It was at Easter 853, that the two kings met at Chippenham, where one of Athelwulf's royal villas was situated, * Kemble, "Cod. Diplom." N. 264, in which Athelbald "filius regis" signs a donation of land, in Kent, to the valiant Ealhhere, a. 850, Ind. xii. BIRTH OF ALFRED. 83 to celebrate the marriage with all due solemnity.* Athelswith subsequently accompanied her husband to his dominions, and, shortly afterwards, we meet with her as Queen of the Mercians, for the latter did not follow the course pursued, for very good reasons, by the West-Saxons, and raised no objec- tion to women taking an active share in the man- agement of public affairs. Scarcely four years previous to these nuptials, in the year 849, Osburh had given birth to her youngest and last child — her Alfred. The date of the day on which the boy first saw the light has, unfortunately, not been preserved, but it must have fallen in the first half of the year, in all like- lihood, shortly after Christmas or New-year's-day.f The place of his birth is, however, known to us ; it was Wantage,! a royal seat in Berkshire. At * " Chron. Sax." a. 853. Asser, p. 470. t Asser, p. 467, begins thus : " Anno dominicae incarnationis 849 natus est J^Ifred Angulsaxonum rex ; " and his account is copied by " Florent. Wigorn." I. p. 70, " Simeon Dunehn. de Gestis Reg, Angl." p. 674, "Roger de Wendover," I. p. 284, and " Matih. Wcstnionast." a. 849. More recent writers fix on the year 848 ; this may, perhaps, be accounted for by the fact of the birth-day falling somewhere in the beginning of the new year, which, according to our mode of reckoning, would bring it to about Christmas, 848, I Asser, p. 467, " In villa regia, quae dicitur Wanating, in ilia paga quae nominatur Bcrrocscire ; quae paga talitcr vocatur a berroc silva, ubi buxus abundantissimo nascitur." We shall see how affectionately Alfred speaks of the place at an advanced period of his life. As late as the "Domesday-book," I. p. 57 a, the place was crown-land, until Richard I. converted it into a fief for one of his vassals ; cf Lysons, " Magna Hrifannia," I. p, 405. G 2 84 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. that time, the country around, which rises with a gentle slope, was thickly wooded, but, at present, the smiling little town, which since the days of the Saxon has lent its name to a Hundred, is situated in the midst of pleasant meadows and luxuriant clusters of trees, through which the traveller is whirled on one of the greatest rail- roads in England. What were the first objects which offered them- selves to the boy's young mind ? They were, doubtless, the soul-invigorating sight of the na- tural beauties around, the green hue of forest and of plain, and the blue canopy of heaven with its clouds, chased by a fresh wind over the island. And then, when his father and his household left the place, and proceeded to some distant royal resi- dence, the child's eye rested, no doubt, upon the boundless and ever-lovely ocean — " where the whale reigns supreme in the heaving waves, and the sea-gull bathes itself."'"' But in those times, that same sea was covered by the vessels of those lawless hordes, at whose coming every man grasped his sword, and of whose ferocity and heartlessness Alfred must have been told in the first words his infant ear could understand. In the midst of war- like bustle, and in the free breeze of heaven, the boy grew up visibly, to the great delight of his parents, handsomer in appearance and more amiable in conversation and behaviour than any of his * The Anglo-Saxon poets called the sea, " hwseles eöel," Andreas, v. 274, ed. J. Grimm, and " ganotes bse'S," Beowulf, v. 3719. Alfred's childhood. 85 brothers. The charm inspired by this mildness of disposition was greatly increased by his innate'"' desire to do honour to his noble birth by the development of an equally noble mind ; but it must not, however, be supposed that he enter- tained any ideas of what is at the present day termed a good education. In those times, the Church, who was the only teacher, occupied herself merely with the instruction of those who had devoted themselves to her especial service : it was a rare exception when a great layman, a king or noble, for instance, was driven, by a thirst for knowledge and a consciousness of its utility, to learn to read and write. The exercises of his youth were confined to the strengthening of his body by Avarlike games and by the chase, while, in the case of all nations of German origin, the mind was, at an early age, gladdened and im- proved by the songs of the sages of the land. It Mas the mother or the nurse who first related to the child the deeds of heroes in bygone ages, and how they fought with men and monsters. If ever any mother was acquainted with all the po- etical treasures of her country, which yet lived intact in the hearts and mouths of all, it was Osburh, to whom Alfred was never tired of list- ening. His young heart found delight, by day and night, in the mighty lays that sang of his ancestors and of his people. It was through Osburh that the child, who was * Asscr, wliü IS, ill Uu^^ iublancc, our only aullionly, bays, p. 473, •' ab iucuiiabulib." 86 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. then exceedingly young — he could hardly be four years of age — first learned one of these songs. The occasion of his doing so is touchingly narrated by Asser, and is to the following effect. One day, his mother showed him and his brothers a beautiful book full of Saxon poetry, and said: — " Whichever of you children can first learn this book by heart shall have it." As if in obedience to some divine inspiration, and being also greatly tempted by the initial letter of the book, which was richly orna- mented and coloured in the highest style of art of those times, little Alfred stepped before his brothers, who were only his superiors in age and not in sweetness, and hastily replied by putting to his mother the question, " Will you really give it to whichever of us can learn it quickest, and say it by heart?" Osburh smiled with pleasure, and said : " Yes, I will." Alfred immediately took the book from her hands, and, going to his tutor, read it through with him. After he had read it, he brought it back to his mother and recited it from memory.* * Asser, p. 474. " Cum ergo quodam die mater sua sibi et fratribus suis quendam Saxonicum poematicse artis librum, quem in manu habebat, ostenderet, ait : ' Quisquis A-estrum dis- cere citius istum codicem possit, dabo illi ilium ;' qua voce, immo divina inspiratione instinctus, et pulchritudine principalis litterse illius libi-i illectus, ita matri respondens, et fratres suos, eetate quamvis non gratia seniores, anticipans, inquit: 'Verene dabis istum librum uni ex nobis, scilicet illi, qui citissime intelligere et recitare eum ante te possit 1 ' Ad hiec ilia arridens et gaudens atque affirmans : 'Dabo,' infit, 'illi;' tunc ille statim toUens librum de manu sua magistrum adiit et legit ; quo lecto matri vetulit et recitavit." Flor. Wig. p. I. 86, Sim. Dunelm. p. 676, give similar accounts. ALFRED'S THIRST FOR KNOWLEDGE. 87 Who would wish to doubt the authenticity of this story, in spite of all the objections which may be raised against it ? The reader will, how- ever, justly require that the assertion of the truth of the story, as well as the supposition that the circumstance took place at so early a period of Alfred's life, should be satisfactorily proved. The first difficulty certainly arises from the present faulty state of the text of our biography. In the sentence which now precedes the story, we are told that it was only in his twelfth year that the boy had been enabled to quench his thirst for know- ledge, as, up to that period, neither his parents nor those in attendance on him had given them- selves any trouble about instructing and educating him,* and yet the very person who promises him the book and excites his love of learning is his mother. We also learn that there is a tutor in the house. No — if the theory broached in the Introduction is at all correct, namely, that only certain fragments of the genuine biography have reached us, it will then appear very evident that the text has been mutilated in this episode, where - events both prior and subsequent to it have been huddled together and put down under the year 8 60, when Alfred was not twelve but eighteen years of age, and was beginning to think of him- self becoming the head of a family. Again, the carelessness imputed to his parents is certainly not aj)plicablc to Osburli, and it was therefore, without * " liuligiia siiomiu i)arciituiii ct iiutritoruin iuciiiia ; " and, a low linos yvovious: "cum comniuiii ct in<;onli pat.ris siii aniore." 88 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. doubt, King Athelwulf and the Prankish Princess, Judith, whom the King afterwards married, that were blamed by the real Asser. That this foreign step-mother — and this is ano- ther point to be observed — cannot possibly have caused the children to be taught to read Saxon poems, as some writers have affirmed,* but rather, as she herself was hardly thirteen when she mar- ried, that she can have cared but little for her step-sons, some of whom must have been older than herself, has lately been most satisfactorily proved. t The account tells us particularly that Alfred and his brothers were with their mother. This can only apply to Athelberht and Athelred, and perhaps to their sister, who might not yet have been married. The children, therefore, were living with their mother, which could not pos- sibly have been later than 853, in which year the youngest w^as sent far from home. We may even confidently assert that, shortly afterwards, this affectionate mother died. No writer mentions her any more, and only some more recent ones ^ have asserted that Athel-wulf discarded the mother of his children, merely confiding to her their * Turner's " History of the Anglo-Saxons," book iv. ch. 5, and Petrie, the editor of the " Corpus Historicum," p. 474, pubhshed under the auspices of the Record Commission. Asser distinctly says, " mater sua," and Sim. Dunelm. p. 676, copying Asser and Florence, uses the words : " dignissima ejus genitrix." t Thorpe on " Florent. Wigorn." L 86, n. 3. I Even Lappenberg, pp. 296, 311. Th. Wright, " Bicgraphia Britan. Liter." L p. 385. In Thorpe's Translation, IL p. 41, a much more probable account is given. ALFRED'S LOVE FOR POETRY. 89 education, while lie himself, who Mas then an old man, espoused the youthful princess. But although this prince was certainly of a weak disposition, we are not justified in setting him down as so heartless as such conduct would make him : besides which, it is a matter of great doubt, whether the Church and her ministers, whom he so strove to please in everything that he did — whether a man like Swithun, for instance — would have connived at such a step. Tt would be inexplicable, too, that Asser, Florence, William and others, should be ignorant of an atrocious act of this descrip- tion. Osburh died, probably, before her husband set off for Rome. Her death was tranquil, as her whole life had been ; she lived merely as the mother of her children and not as queen, and therefore our authorities have nothing to relate concerning her. That, however, it was to her alone that Alfred owed his love for national poetry, and became acquainted, when still very young, with the lays that the book contained, he himself most unquestionably told Asser, and the account we have received was really written by the latter, although it has yet to be inserted in its proper place. In conclusion, we will make one observation on the language used. The mother does not require her son to read the book ; she only wishes the poems to be learnt, and this is how her son un- derstood her. He goes, in consequence, to the teacher, probably his and his brothers' tutor, and reads, that is, he getb tlie tutor to read liie poems, 90 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. and learns them by heart from repeating them after him.'"' In this same year 853, the boy, who by his af- fection and other brilliant qualities had completely gained his parents' hearts, was sent to Rome. It is difficult to say what can have actuated his father to take this step ; we can only attribute it to the respect which the latter entertained for the capital of the Christian world, and for the representative of Christ upon earth, which caused him to hope that he should obtain from him such favours as the Bless- ing and Anointing, which former popes had con- ferred on the sons of Pepin and of Charlemagne. It was his ardent wish that his favourite son, whom in his heart he desired to be his successor on the throne, should, to this end, receive the blessing of the Bishop of Rome as a kind of prophetic confir- mation of the fulfilment of his wishes. Alfred made the long and wearisome journey, with a large re- tinue of the noble and plebeian dependents of his father.j- On his arrival in the Eternal City, Leo IV., who was then pope, received him in a manner * That this, in those times, was a usual method of" teaching and of learning, has been remarked by Thorpe on "Florent. Wigorn." I. p. 86, n. 3. I would also call the reader's attention on the various uses of etymologically-similar words, such, for instance, of the old northern, rcedha, Goth, rodjan, loqui. Ags. redan, where, according to J. Grimm, "Gram." I. p. 469, n. 2, ed. iii., " the sig- nifications of loqui and legere may be expressed by recitare." I may also refer the reader to the Greek Xeyeiv and the Latin legere. I "Magno nobilium et etiam ignobilium numero constipa- tum," Asser, p. 470. That Bishop Swithun accompanied the prince, is supported by no proof. ATHELWULF AND THE ROMISH CHURCH. 91 befitting" his rank, and the consideration enjoyed by his father; lie anointed him as king-, and adojited him as his spiritual son.* The young prince does not seem, however, to have stopped long in Rome on this occasion ; after his father's wish had been fulfilled, he returned home with his retinue, but was destined very soon again to undertake the arduous journey in the company of his father himself. This is the proper place to discuss a little more fully Athelwulf 's position with regard to the Ro- mish Church. In the preceding pages we have only had two opportunities of mentioning the develop- ment of ecclesiastical affairs in the kingdom of the West-Saxons. We then hinted at a feeling of nationality which was striving to obtain recogni- tion ; but such a feeling, in a small and isolated state, that counted no primateship among its bi- shoprics, could, in the time of Ine, be followed by no very important results ; the archbishop had, from the period of the first conversions, resided in Kent. It was he who convoked the synods for the whole island, and ratified the acts of the bishojis. To him, * Such is the account, against which no historical ohjection can he raised, given hy Asser, p. 470, and " Chron. Sax." a. 853 (the three most ancient MSS.). Still it is possible that the account of this first journey was occasioned by misplacing that of the year 855, Into what absurdities, however, some writers have fallen is shown by Hearne, " Spclman's Life of King yElfrcd," p, 17, n. 2, where, according to all sorts of obscure MSS. of the latter portion of the Middle Ages, Alfred is not only described as the first and only King of England who was ever anointed, but is said to have been anointed, after his father's return from his successful expedition, as King of South Wales and Prince of Wales ! 92 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. too, did Ine send young Winfred as his representa- tive. As long as the kingdom of Kent obeyed its own hereditary princes, the influence even of the more powerful states was very trifling. But, at an early period, Mercia had obtained the superiority in these matters ; and the mighty Offa and King Cenwulf had even attempted to found an archbi- shopric in their own country at Litchfield. Their plan, however, failed, on account of the constant opposition of the archbishops of the period.* Some years later, when Egberht finally reduced the Mer- cians, all share in the political and ecclesiastical affairs of Kent was simultaneously taken from them. Their mere shadow of a king, Baldred, immediately took to flight upon the approach of Athelwulf, who thereupon probably resided in the immediate neighbourhood of the archbishop for fourteen years. Kent remained with Wessex, and thus, through the union of all the southern states of the island, must the primacy, which had formerly been founded by the great Gregory, have gained considerable additional strength. During the follow- ing century we hear nothing more of any collisions between the civil and ecclesiastical powers ; and the synods also, which were not untrequent under the Mercian kings, seem almost to have fallen into disuse. This circumstance would lead us to suppose that the two powers in question now worked well together, but it may also have been partially caused by the heavy misfortunes which then oppressed the whole country. Until nearly the end of this cen- * Lappcnbcrg, pp. 228, 233. THE SAXON CHURCH. 93 tury, we never even hear of an Arelibisliop of Can- terbury distingiiisliing himself by his personal qua- lities or his actions ; their names, and the dates of their deaths, are all that we find concerning them. Of greater importance than any archbishop, were, during Athehvulf's reign, the two individuals we have already mentioned, and on whose adminis- tration reposed at that time Church and State. While Ealhstan was exerting himself in the field to defend the various united kingdoms, Swithun remained with the King, intent only on increasing the ecclesiastical powder. Although we are ac- quainted with very few facts that we can rely on, in the life of the latter, we yet know sufficient to justify us in believing that his influence is every- where to be recognized in Athelwulf 's weak con- duct. It was Swithun who strengthened the King more and more in the idea that, with the splen- dour of the Church that of the royal power was closely united, Perhajjs, too, he may have pointed to the brilliant example of Charlemagne, in whose states the close union with Rome had been of es- sential service to the temporal ruler in the preser- vation of his empire. A completely similar ])rocess was then going on in England. From the period of Augustine's arrival in the island, the inhabitants had kept up an uninterrupted communication with Rome, and it was not long before an establishment was founded in that capital, for the reception of their ])ilgrims, and the instruc- tion of their clerg}'. We iiave already seen two kings of the Wost-Saxons die there, and it was 94 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. from the hands of the Pope at Rome, that the English archbishoiDS received the pallium, and many bishops consecration. Offa's name was not less familiar in St. Peter's than it was at the court of Charlemagne. In the year 799, the Primate Athel- heard, accompanied by Cyneberht, a bishop of the West-Saxons, proceeded to Rome.* As early as the first year after his father's death, Athelwulf entertained the project of undertaking this pil- grimage. It is said that a vision that appeared to some one or other, and which alarmed every one, was the cause of his asking the pious Louis for a free passage through his states. f Besides this, how- ever, he was inspired by the same feeling which had formerly not permitted his ancestors to remain quietly on their thrones ; and it is very sure that Swithun was not silent on the great advantage that would ensue from such an undertaking. But the precarious position of his kingdom kept the King for a long period at home, and it was not until it seemed probable that the Saxons would overcome the Danes, that he first sent his beloved son to Italy, and shortly afterwards made far more magni- ficent preparations for his own journey. Accordingly we find that, in the beginning of the year 855, after having called together a general assembly of his empire, at which he set apart a tenth of his own private property for the benefit of the Church, as well as the salvation of his own soul, * " Chron. Sax." a. 709. t "Prudent. Tree." a. 839, ap. Pertz, "Mou. Germ." pp. 1, 433. VISIT TO ROME. 95 and those of bis ancestors,* lie set off for Rome, accompanied by his favourite son, and a magnificent retinue. His way lay through the dominions of the friendly King of the Franks. Charles the Bald received him on his passage with every mark of honour, provided him with all necessaries, and him- self accompanied him to the limits of his kingdom. f After passing the Alps, and traversing Lombardy, the pilgrims reached Rome, where they remained an entire year.ij: How must the boy, who had now grown older both in spirit and understanding, as well as in body, since his first short stay there, have been astounded at the sight of this magnificent capital ; he saw and appreciated what a great and civilized people, what the emperors, and what a flourishing Church had effected. The impressions then received by his sensitive mind, remained rooted there. We behold them at a later period, again appearing in the Saxon king, who, spite of the love which he had inherited from his mother for his people and their language, had still a feeling * I will not cite move than this flict from Asser, p. 470 : that A thelwulf passed a law that a tithe should be paid by his whole kingdom is an early fiction, from which emanated the documents in Kcmble, " Cod. Dipl." N. 270, 272, 275, 27G, 1048, 1050, 1051, 1052, 1053, 1054, 1057, in which the deception is most evident. Compare Thorpe, on "Florent.Wigorn." I. p. 74, n. 1, and Kcmble's thorough investigation of the matter with the aid of all docu- ments and other authorities, "Saxons," II. pp. 480 — 490. \ Asser, p. 470, and particularly " Prudent. Tree. Aunal." a. 855, ap. Tertz, " Mon, (jerm." I. ]), 449. I Asser, p. 470, " ibitjuc aimo integro coninioiatus est;" " Chron. Sax." a. 855. 96 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. for what we now term the Classical, and always en- deavoured to gratify his innate inclination to enjoy the same in defiance of the greatest difficulties. His father, meanwhile, passed the time after his own fashion. Being freed from the cares of state, he appears to have given himself up entirely to the most fervent acts of devotion, and to have proved by the most liberal donations his great par- tiality for the Romish Church. He was, indeed, able to appear as a very different and much more power- ful sovereign than his ancestors, Ceadwealh and Ine, who had come to Rome in order to die and be buried near the saints. He left so many splendid memorials of his presence behind him, that they were thought worthy of being held up to the grate- ful recollection of posterity, in the lives of the Popes. This king, whose foreign sounding name they did not even know how to spell, offered, as presents, a golden crown weighing four pounds, two vases of the purest gold, a sword richly set in gold, two pictures of real gold, silver and gilt Saxon vessels, stoles ornamented with gold and purple stripes, white silk vestments ornamented with figures for the priests to say Mass, besides other costly gar- ments for those performing service in the church. In addition to this he gave, with the consent of the Pope, Benedict, large sums of gold and silver to the temple of St. Peter, to the bishops, and to the clergy, as well as to the upper and lower classes of Rome.'"" We are actually astonished at the * Anastasius, " De Vitis Pontif. Roman." ap. Muratori, " Script. Rer. Italic." IH. pp. 251, 252. " Hiijus temporibus rex ATHELWULF MARRIES JUDITH. 97 magnificence displayed by a King of Britain in tLe ninth century. lie also restored the Saxon scliool, that had been twice destroyed by fire since its foundation, and enriched it with the most wealthy livings. He set apart from his private property, for the salvation of his soul, the sum of three hundred mancuses, wdiich were to be duly sent to Rome. Of this sum, a hundred mancuses were des- tined to fill with oil the lamps of St. Peter's, on Easter eve and Easter morning; a hundred were devoted to the same object in St. Paul's ; while a hundred were set apart as a gift to the apostolic father himself.* It was this bequest which gave rise to the so-called Peter's Pence, or Rome-scot, which, in later times, the islanders looked upon as so insupportable a burden, and which Rome would never give up until she lost all power in Eng- land. In such occupations did the year pass away, and the royal guests of Benedict III. began to think of returning home. Charles the Bald again played the part of host, and Athelwulf remained some months at his court. In July, 856, Judith, the eldest daughter of his host, was betrothed to him, and on the first of October the marriage was solemnly celebrated in the royal palace of Verberie, on the Oise. Ilincmar, Archbishop of Rheims, united the royal pair, and also placed the crown on the bride's head : this last ceremony was contrary to the cus- Saxonum nomine . . . causa orationis vcniens — ct post paucos dies vitam finivit ct pcriexit ail Dominum." * Asser, p. 472. H 98 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. torn of the West-Saxons, but the vain Charles would not have it omitted in his daughter's ease. In com- pany with his richly portioned and youthful queen, Athelwulf now proceeded on his journey, and crossed over with his retinue to England.* Whatever may have induced the aged monarch to marry so young a wife,j- whether it was the prospect of begetting more heirs, or the pride of being connected by the ties of relationship with the King of the Franks, there is no reason for believing that Osburh had lived to behold this mark of her husband's folly ; but this act of folly is the cause of history being for some time silent on the subject of the noble Osburh's son; it can only speak of the consequences of the marriage. During the king's long absence, but especially on the intelligence of his new m.arriage, and of Judith's being raised to the dignity of queen, his kingdom broke out in a revolt, which proceeded from his own flesh and blood : and probably was based on other causes than the ostensible ones. * " Prudent. Tree. Annal." a. 856, ap. Pertz, I. p. 450. " Edilwulf, rex occidentalium Anglorum, Roma rediens, Judith, filiam Karli regis, mense Julio desponsatam Calendis Octobribus in Vermeria palatio in matrimonium accipit, et earn, Ligmaro Durocortori Remorum episcopo benedicente imposito capiti ejus diademate reginse nomine insignit, quod sibi suaeque genti eatenus fuerat insuetuni : patratoque regiis apparatibus utrimque atque muneribus matrimonio, cum ea Britanniam, regni sui ditionem, navigio repetit." — "Chron. Sax." a. 855. Asser, p. 470; compare Hardy on " W. Mahiiesb." II. § 109, n. 1. f Charles the Bald had married Ermendrud towards the end of the year 842. " Prudent. Tree. Annal." a. 842, ap. Pertz, I 439 ; compare Tliorpe, on " Florent. Wigorn," I. p. 86, n 3. REVOLT OF ATHELBALD. 99 Relying on tliese same causes, Atliclbald not only intended a revolt against Lis father, but also a change in the form of the government itself. Athelbald was at present the eldest ; and, as he is said to have been five years king at his death, he must, on the disappearance of Athelstan, of whose end we know nothing, and about the time that his father set out for Rome, have begun to reign in the provinces belonging to the heir- apparent. It is even probable that wliile Athel- Avulf was on his pilgrimage, Athelbald, supported by the bishops and other dignitaries, reigned as ruler of the entire kingdom. From all that can be gleaned concerning this young man in the meagre accounts that we have of him, his disposition and taste must always have been diametrically opposed to those of his father, who was so fond of peace and the magnificent ceremonials of the church. He stands out daringly and boldly from his father. It is well known that all our sources of information are derived from the pens of ecclesiastics; all these censure in the severest terms the prince's revolt ; not one adduces anything in palliation of his conduct, and hardly one dares to say the least good of him at his death. In spite, however, of this unanimity of the witnesses against him, it is not to be denied that he was actuated by very cogent reasons. It was not the mere desire of rei^ninff that induced him to draw his sword against his father: Athcl- wulfs weakness of niiud had been proved to the world by his marriage, and the same mournful 100 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tragedy that had been enacted on the occasion of the union of Louis the Pious with the elder Judith, was now performed over again. Athelbald feared that the country would be parcelled out into a still greater number of divisions in case of further issue; and he also feared that the arrogant pre- tensions of the church would occasion similar en- croachments to those made in the case of Louis and his youngest son. It is probable that he had long been prepared for every emergency, but did not break out into open revolt until he received intelli- gence of Judith's betrothal.* The names of his ad- herents speak loudly in his favour, and prove pretty clearly against what party the movement was di- rected : they are those of the Bishop of Sherburne, Ealhstan, that friend to valour and temporal power, and of the not less brave Eanulf, Ealdorman of the Sumorssetas (Somerset), both which persons stood next to the king in his Saxon hereditary dominions, and were highly respected and feared by the people.f It appears probable, however, that Alfred himself agreed with the account given by Asser and his copyists, in which the revolt is stigmatised as an infamous act and an unheard of crime against every feeling of humanity, and one which could only be attributable to the daring, bold character of Athel- bald, who, with his accomplices, had merely engaged * It is to this fact that Asser seems to alkide in his twice re- peated introduction to his account of the re^'olt : " biterca tanien ^thelwulfo rege ultra mare tantillo tempore immoranfe," p, 470; and, " Nam redeunte eo a Roma," etc. ■] Asser, p: 470. " Florent. Wigorn." L p. 75. ATHELWULF RETURNS FROM ROME. 101 in a vulgar conspiracy, under cover of the thick wood called Sehvudu, on the confines of Somerset. The same authorities go on to state that the i)rince's advisers had, against all la\vs, both human and di- vine, fully coincided with him in the opinion that the kino- oudit to be dethroned. o o Such was the storm that had gathered over England, when Athelvvulf, still full of the plea- sure occasioned by his journey to Rome and his recent marriage, landed on his native shores. It is said that, on his arrival, the whole popula- tion joyfully received him, and expressed their determination to drive his traitorous son and all his fellow-conspirators out of the kingdom, while the nobles of the entire Saxon country sided with the father.* A conflict between father and son now appeared imminent ; in what country of the Germans has not this been the case? The popu- lation took part on both sides, and it seemed as if the belligerents were prepared for any extre- mities, and that a civil war would soon claim its bleeding victims.f It is to be attributed only to the indescribable mildness of Athelwulf's dispo- sition, and the excellent advice given him, that the leaders on both sides, with the consent of the assembled nobles, came to an arrangement by which * Asser, 4-71 ; " Florent. Wigorn." I. p. 75 ; even the " Cliron. Sax." has, " And after J'am to his Icodum com and liie jncs gefegene wajron." MS. Cott, Tib. B. IV. lias only : " and gesund ham com." f " ()uin immo tota cum gcnte ambobus rcbellante, atroeiiis et crudelius per dies singulos quasi eludes intestina augeretur," etc. 102 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. matters were settled without a sword being drawn. But the terras agreed on afford another proof of what Athelbald desired when he rose up in revolt, and furnish us with the most satisfactory evidence that all the Saxon nobility did not go to meet Athelwulf and tender him their military service on his landing. A division was made, by which Athelbald received Wessex, which formed the more considerable part of the kingdom, while Athelwulf obtained Kent, and the provinces belonging to the heir-apparent, over which he had formerly reigned in the time of Egberht. There is no doubt that the very name of a crowned queen was obnoxious to the West-Saxons and that they had therefore willingly sided with Athelbald ; both achieved their ends. On the other hand, what Asser says of Athelwulf is perfectly true, if he speaks of the latter as King of Kent, and if, to the end of his life, his wife was allowed to share with him the royal throne without the slightest opposition on the part of his nobles. From the very nature of the whole affair, no other terms could have been accepted, although the re- bellious son reigned as sovereign where, according to all law, the entire power belonged to the father."^'" We may, however, affirm that the man- * Asser, p. 471: "Ubi pater justo judicio regnare debuerat, ibi iniquus etpertinax filius regnabat — et Juditham — juxta se in regali solio suo sine aliqua suorum nobilium controversia et odio usque ad obitum vitse suae contra perversam illius gentis consue- tudinem sedere imperavit." To this Asser joins the so oft- mentioned story of Queen Eadburh. Compare also Thorpe, on "Florent. Wigorn." I, pp. 75, 76, n. L athelwülf's will. 103 iier in which Athelbald acted saved the country from still greater calamities, by preserving the supe- riority for Wessex. On the other side, the great tact manifested in properly giving way proves, be- yond a doubt, that Swithun had something to do with the matter, although his name is nowhere mentioned. Athelwulf did not long survive his return from Rome, and his quarrel with his son. To all ap])ear- ance, the last months of his life were passed in peace, but it is not unlikely that, after M'hat had taken place, his heart was broken. Before setting- out on his return, he had left directions, in his will, concerning the succession of his sons, and his personal property ; he also assigned large sums to the church and the poor, for the salvation of his soul, an object that always lay nearest his heart. In order that there might be no disputes among his heirs after his death, he directed that his do- minions should be divided between his two eldest sons — Athelberht receiving as his share Kent, but being excluded from the throne of Wessex. In case Athelbald should die without issue, Athelred and Alfred were to succeed him in the order they were mentioned. His private estates were parcelled out among his sons, his daughter, and his other relations. Whatever he possessed in ready money was set aside for his children and the salvation of his soul. He directed that, on each of his nume- rous estates, for every ten bondsmen one })oor man, no matter whether he was a native or a stranger, should be provided with meat, drink, and clothing, 104 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. by all his descendants, until tlie day of judgment, the only condition named being, that the land was to be inhabited by men and cattle, and not lying fallow. How much of this money annually found its way to Rome has been mentioned before. These testamentary directions were signed by the Witan at a meeting of the nobles of the kingdom.* Soon after this Athelwulf died on the 13th January, 858, and was buried at Winchester.f Athelwulf left no issue by his young queen, who, for a short time longer, is still mixed up with the history of Wessex. In the course of the same year in which her first husband died, Judith gave her consent to a proceeding that is unprecedented among heathens as well as Christians ; she allowed Athelbald, her eldest step-son, to take her to wife, so little did she heed the solemn words with which * The will itself has not reached us. Asser, p. 472, has given the most copious extracts from it, and, after him, " Florent. Wigorn." I. p. T7. King Alfred, in the introduction to his own will, in Saxon (Kemble, "Cod. Diplom." N. 314), and in Latin (ibid. N. 1067), mentions the clause concerning the division of the kingdom and the King's private landed estates. In spite of Asser's wish to establish the good intentions of the old King, it is difficult to disprove that he wished to make Kent hereditary in the family of his second son, and it was only Athelberht's caprice, combined with other important causes, which, at a later period, saved the southern part of England from a lasting division of territory. t " Florent. Wigorn." L p. 78 : " defuncto autem Idibus Januarii." " Prudent. Tree. Annal." 858, ap. Pertz, I. p. 451. " iEthelweard, Chron." III. p. 512: "post annum." "Henric. Huntingd." v. p. 737, "decimo nono anno regni sui." Compare Hardy on " W. Malmesb." II. § 117, n. 6. ATIIELBALD MARRIES JUDITH. 105 Hincmar, the primate of the Frankisli empire, had blessed her first marriage.* The clergy, who were already highly incensed at the unnatural defiance shown by Athelbald towards his father, were still more irritated against him by this infamous act, and the opinions of his contemporaries are eagerly adopted by later writers, and repeated by them in still stronger terms.f At all events, it was a bold and insolent act on the part of Athelbald, and one which was not very w^ell calculated to wan for him, who was already hated, the good-will of his subjects. Witliout considering what he was about to do, without respect for his father or any feeling of religion, he took the Frankish damsel into his house, and she, at the sight of a youthful husband, soon became the accomplice of his crime. But Athelbald dared even more than this in marry- ing a queen. i It is true that we have no certain proof that the West-Saxons raised their voices against this sinful deed as they had done, not long * See the form of service for marriage and for coronation in "Bouquet, Script. Rer. Gall." vii. 621, 622: " Ut non videas alienum virum ad concupiscendum eum, et non inccclieris in corpore vel corde tuo," etc. f "Prudent. Tree. Annal." a. 858: " Relictam ejus, Judith reginam, Edelboldus filius ejus uxorem ducit." Asser, p. 472 : " Juthittam cum magna ab audientihus infiimia in matrimonium duxit." Com])are "Florent. Wigoni." 1. c. Simeon Dunelm., p. 67«, "bigulph." p. 853 (ed. Francof.), " W. Malmesb." II. ^ 117. I A most remarkable document, the genuineness of which cannot be doubted, is that in Kemble, "Cod. Diplom." N. 1058. It is signed : " ^öell)al. W. Mulniesb. II. <§ lis, lias: "Sdenuc dulcitc-niue." Iiii^uliib. 112 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. p, 863, invents for himself: "Iste validissimus adolescens et Danorum triumphator invictus." Henric, Huntingd. V. p. 739, represents him as having reigned ten years in Kent. According to Hardy's supposition, "W. Malraesb." II. § 118, n. 2, he died somewhere or other in the month of February. William allows him a quinquennium, as he does his predecessor and successor, thus, perhaps out of mere chronological trickery, not taking into account the two years and a-half in Kent. ACCESSION OF ATHELRED, 113 SECTION III. THE YEARS OF TRAINING FROM 866 to 871. Athelred, the third brother, now mounted the throne, in conformity with the line of succession which had formerly been agreed on. Following the example of his predecessors, he still kept up the connection of Kent and Sussex with his own more immediate kingdom,* although, accord- ing to the then prevailing custom, it was iVlfred who ought to have reigned in those provinces. But the existing state of affairs demanded impera- tively that the old custom should not be observed ; the south-eastern coast of the island was that which of all others was the least secure from an unex- pected attack of the foe, and nothing but a mutual union of all portions of the kingdom under one supreme head, could be productive of anything like a successful attempt at defence. Nor can we perceive any signs of Alfred's having laid claim to a share of power ; on the contrary, he perceived what was advantageous to the country, and what was not, and, in the very outset, rendered the most impor- tant services to the King, his brother, and to the kingdom, by his submissive obedience. There is * He always signs himself: " yEthelred rex occidentalium Saxonum necnon et Cauluaviormn." Kemblo, N. 294, 295, 298, 1061. I 114 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. no mention made of any difference between him and his brother ; and we may, therefore, suppose that Alfred occupied the highest place immedi- ately next the King, as whose deputy he exercised authority over all the various states. He was the first prince of the blood, and the acknowledged heir to the throne and the royal property."' The nature of his claims to the latter was settled at a general meeting of the representatives of the kingdom, immediately subsequent to Athelred's accession. Alfred had expressed a wish that the inheritance left by his father and his two brothers should be divided, in order that he might take the management of his own share himself. To this, however, Athelred replied, that he had entered into possession of the property so much sooner than his younger brother, and had made so many additions of all kinds to it, that it would prove a difficult task to come to a fair division, but he promised that he would leave the whole property after his death to no other than Alfred. With this arrangement Alfred was per- fectly contented. It was not until some years afterwards, when the kingdom was threatened with destruction by the Pagan foe, that the two brothers made some different arrangements for the sake of their descendants.f * He is called : " Frater regis," in Kemble, N. 29S, " Filius regis (Prince)," N. 106L As long as his brother is alive, Asser, pp. 475, 476, 477, calls him always " secundarius." t See Alfred's Testament, Kemble, N. 314, which according to the historical introduction, can hardly have been drawn up earlier than somewhere in the years 880-885. NEW INVASION OF THE DANES. 115 The time was now come, when, in presence of a more general danger, the history of England itself becomes more general, and we must, therefore, before proceeding any further with our more especial subject, the Life of Alfred, cast a glance or two beyond the limits of the West-Saxon dominions. Towards the end of the year 8G6, the whole Germanised eastern coast of the island was exposed to a more violent and terrible attack of the Danes than any ever before known. At the head of their fleets, we now behold, for the first time, the wild forms of their kings, although as yet merely represented by tradition as gigantic and cruel ; but as soon as they are mentioned in the English annals, this people of robbers and conquerors, step more and more from out the northern darkness, in which they had hitherto been enveloped. Instead of their former disconnected expeditions, we can now perceive a fixed plan ; and it is evident that, at this period, they had determined on forming permanent settlements along the coast, from which they might sally forth into the interior of the island, so rich in cattle and crops, and be enabled to plunder with less diffi- culty than they had before exj)erienced. The separate lives and deeds of the several indi- viduals are, however, far from being clear; and it would be a ho})eless task to attempt weaving into a continuous history the poetical legends which the Scandinavians founded on the victories of their heroes, and the short notices of their names and actions contained in the English chronicles, as even I 2 116 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. the most recent of these notices are obscured by the influence of northern myths. Neither events nor names coincide in time or place. We are told, for instance, that it was during- the preceding century that the dreaded and terrible king, Regnar Lodbrog, after fighting in Northumbria, perished horribly in iElle's serpent-tower, and yet history does not men- tion the fact of the brothers Ingvar and Ubba coming over to take revenge on the Northumbrians for their father's death, until we meet with them in East-Anglia, on board the fleet we have last- mentioned. Again, — in order to be revenged upon the adulterous king, Osberht, the nobleman, Biörn Butsecarl, is reported to have invited over the Dane, Guthorm ; and yet the latter does not ac- tually appear, until we find him in the provinces to the south of the Humber.* The real motives of the Danes' attacks, and the success with which they were crowned must not be sought for in stories of this kind, which, despite of the historical foundation on which they are raised, belong entirely to the department of fiction ; these motives are to be found in the simple fact that this rapacious people had discovered the weakest point of their opponents, and therefore directed the whole force of their attack on the two enfeebled states in question. As we have seen, the supremacy of Wessex was less firmly established in these states, than in the whole southern portion of the island. Had the Scandinavian pirates waited a very few years longer, * See the details and authorities of both kinds in Lappenberg, Translation, II. pp. 30-32. PROGRESS OF THE DANES. 117 it is possible that Athelwiilf's descendants Mould have succeeded in giving the finishing blow to the disputes concerning the throne among the northern Angles, as well as to the weakness of their eastern countrymen ; and it would then have been seen which of the two were the stronger, the heathen or the Christian Teutons. As matters stood, how- ever, it was fated that the former, taking advantage of the want of unanimity among their ojiponents, should gain ground with incredible rapidity. It must have been a very considerable number of ships, in which a fresh east wind, such as is usual in autumn, wafted over the invaders from their island home in a direct line to that point where the large and shallow Wash does not offer the least obstacle to a landing. The East-Angles did not even wait to engage with the mass of heathens, when their principal leader Ingvar made his ap- pearance ; on the contrary, they came to an agree- ment with them ; they found them winter quarters, and furnished them horses for the expedition they contemplated making in the spring.* As soon as the weather became milder, the Danes sallied forth, and proceeded by land to York, where a powerful usurper of the name of MWe, who did not belong- to the royal house of ßernicia, had deprived Os- berht, the rightful prince, of his throne, and reigned five years in his stead ; the weaker faction, how- ever, still remained in arms, and the consequence was, that the country was plunged in a state of the * M'hroii. Sax." a. 806. 118 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. greatest wretchedness.* On the approach, along the banks of the Humber, of the pagan host, spread- ing desolation all around, the two rival kings, in obedience to the will of their nobles, and influenced by fear, had forgotten their feud, and united their forces for the common defence. On the first of November, the Danes had made themselves mas- ters of York, and from thence, stretched as far as the Tyne. Wherever they went, churches and monas- teries were stript of their treasures, and the build- ings themselves devoted to the flames. Towards the end of the winter, the Northumbrians, headed by their two kings and eight earls, advanced to the attack, hardly leaving the plunderers time to collect their scattered forces and fly in all haste to York. Here the latter resolved to defend them- selves behind the castle-walls ; although at that time, as Asser remarks, they were not particularly strong. The Christians had followed the fugitives so closely that a great number entered the place simultaneously with them, while the others set about pulling down the walls. When the Danes perceived that they were menaced in their only stronghold, they were driven, on the 21st of March, 868,f by rage and despair to endeavour to cut their way through their opponents who were valiantly * The principcal authority is Simeon de Dunehn. " Ecclesia," II. p. 6, A. 867, Twysden; also Asser, p. 474, who, though less chronologically correct, is more lively in his description. Com- pare, also, " Chron. Sax." a, 867, and " Florent. Wig." I. p. 80. I " Die Palmarum," Florent, ed. i. ; this day fell, however, on the 21st March, 867. THE DANES IN MERCIA, 119 forcing tlieir iiitrenchments. The Nortliumbrians fell back before tLe fury of their attack and the terrible effect of their weapons, leaving large num- bers dead upon the field, and among others, a great many nobles and the two kings. The Chronicler of Durliam expresses no regret at the death of the latter, as they were themselves the principal causes of their country's misfortune, and, besides that, bad both laid violent hands upon the property of the Church. The kingdom, which long years of anarchy had reduced to a state of the most utter helplessness, was now entirely in the hands of the Northmen, and such of the inhabitants as had escaped destruc- tion were compelled to submit to a degrading peace. In the country north of the Tyne, it pleased the Danes to set up as king a certain Egberht, a crea- ture of their own, but they themselves kept posses- sion of the more southern districts, from Mdience they might undertake any future enterprises, and it was soon evident what was the object they had in view. As soon as winter approached, they invaded the neighbouring kingdom of Mercia, and made themselves masters of the castle of Nottingham. Here, in accordance with the plan they had adopted on their landing, and at York, they intended re- maining quiet during the cold season, and then pro- ceeding on further predatory excursions in the spring. But, in the meanwhile, King Burhred had ])laced himself on his guard. He had summoned his Witan in all haste, and had agreed with them on the ex- j)cdiency of dispatching messengers to his two 120 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. brothers-in-law, the King and Prince of the West- Saxons, with the most pressing entreaties for the latter to raise their ban and arriere-ban, and march to his assistance against the insolent invaders.* We must here pause for a while in the history of the war, in order to speak of the immediate occasion of the West-Saxons first meeting that foe with whom they were destined to contest many a bloody field, and to describe the intimate con- nection which at present existed between them and the Mercians, as well as the chronological succession of events in Alfred's life. This time no hostile vessel had appeared in a West-Saxon port ; and during the first two years of King Athel- red's reign, his people were not obliged to have recourse to arms. In the absence of warlike deeds, our authorities have only mentioned two events : the first is the death of Bishop Ealhstan, which happened about the same time that those old foes of this valiant prince of the church, the Danes, had made themselves masters of York. This re- markable man had reached a great age, during fifty years of which he had been a bishop ; and, through all the storms of his life, maintained his position until he died peaceably at Sherburne, and was buried in the royal vault there.f The defence of the king- * " Chron. Sax." a. 868. Asser, p. 475. t Asser, p. 475 : " Postquam episcopatum per quinquaginta annos honorabiliter rexerat, in pace in Scireburnam sepultus est." Similarly, " Chron. Sax." a. 867. W. Malmesb. " Gesta Pontif." II. 247, " Magnse in seculo potentise." Simeon Dunelm. " de Gestis Reg. Angl." p. 677. Henric. Huntingd. v. 738. Florent. Wigorn. a. 867, ed. i., mentions more minutely the services he ALFRED'S MARRIAGE. 121 dorn was now left to younger hands ; beside the king, who was destined shortly to distinguish him- self by his valour and courage, stood his brother Alfred, who had already grown up to man's estate. As, by his beauty and amiable disposition he had, when a child, been the delight of his parents and all his relations, so as a young man, he was now the pride and hope of the whole body of the people. The second piece of information relating to these times, for which we have to thank Asser, concerns him. It is to the effect that, in his twentieth year, that is, in the year 868, Alfred had demanded the hand of Ealhswith, daughter of Athelred Mucel (the Great), Earl of the Gainishmen.""' She was descended from the royal family of Mercia by her mother, Eadburh, a most worthy lady, who, on her husband's death, had lived a pious life until she died herself; a fact which Asser, who had fre- quently met her, states as an eye-witness.f Her father, who enjoyed the honourable surname of Great,J was the chief of his own district, and ap- rendered to the state in his campaig-ns against Kent and East- Anglia, as well as his share in Athelbald's insurrection. * Gainsborough, in Lincohishire, still bears the name of this district t Asser, p. 475, does not mention Ealhswith's name in this passage, but says of her mother : " Quam nos ipsi propriis oculo- rum obtutibus non paucis ante obitum suum annis frequenter vidi- mus, venerabilis scilicet focmina," etc. Com. " Flor. Wig." I. p. 81. J [The surname Mucel no doubt referred to Athelred's mag- nitude (if body, and not to greatness of mind, and it would, perhaps, be better (ranslated Atlielred tlie Big. — Ed.] 122 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. pears to have taken an active share in the public affairs of the kingdom of Mercia.* The choice of the prince, who was already connected with the Mercians by the marriage of his sister, was a wise one, and his union was destined to bind the two states still more closely to one another. The nuptials were celebrated in Mercia, and pro- bably where the bride herself resided, with great solemnity according to the ancient custom. The number of guests, both male and female, was very great, and the revels were kept up day and night. It was in the midst of these rejoicings that Alfred was suddenly attacked by an illness, the sight of which struck dumb the loud joy of the guests, and for which neither they nor all the physicians of the day could account. Many among those assembled there suspected that some one had secretly be- witched the prince by some magical charm, or that the devil himself had come to tempt him, out of his mere hatred of virtue. Others again thought that it was some unusual form of fever, or the unexpected return of a painful malady to which he had been subject at an early age. We are informed what the malady really was in an account which is not quite clear ; and, with respect to the details, very suspicions.! On his * There is a Mucel who signs Burhred's charters, in the years 864 and 866, Kemble, N. 290, 291, 292, " Chron. Sax." a. 903, mentions the death of the Ealdorman, Athulf, Ealhswith's brother. ■ t The account of the two ilhiesses is to be found in Asser^ pp. 474, 484, 485, 492, and was also in the " MS. Cot." This account is followed by Florent. Wigorn. L pp. 87, 88, but otherAvise and better arranged, and by more recent writers, such as Roger de ALFREDS ILLNESS. 123 passing from childhood to youth, he is reported to have had a desperate conflict with the lusts of the flesh. On the one hand he Avas sorely allured by temptation, while on the other, his unbounded de- votion for all that was good and noble, held him back from the paths of vice. He was accustomed to rise as soon as it was day, and, casting himself before the altar, to pray to God for help and strength. He used to beg for some protection against his passions, for some corporal suffering which might arm him against temptation, so that Wendover, L p. 321, and Matth. Westmonast. a, 87L It is, how- ever, worthy of remark, that the more ancient chroniclers, such as iEthehveard, Plenric. Huntingd., and W. Mahnesb. mention nothing about his bodily sufferings. The details in Asser appear liable to suspicion for the following reasons. Why is the story not connected with the account of Alfred's marriage, a. 868, which is its chronological place, or with the section, p. 474, where his training, when a youth, is mentioned "? We find it, however, in the year 884, sixteen years after his marriage, and introduced by a description of it, evidently torn from the old fragments of the work, and introduced by a later writer, in a most clumsy manner, in the wrong ])lace. The train of ideas, also, is of the most wretched description, not preseiTing the proper order, but com- pletely reversed and beginning first with the marriage, and then continuing with the sudden attack of illness, and the Ficus, and finishing with its mystic cause. The same words, too, are re- peated, as, for instance, " in prima3vo juventutis suae flore." I repeat that, in the whole form of the narration, in its bad arrange- ment and vague repetitions, I can only recognise some badly-pre- served remains of the genuine Life, to which have been added certain particulars, especially such as those which partake of the wonderful, and the account of St. Neot. I abide by the facts re- lated by Asser, and prefer to give them in the text, without any curtailment, only otherwise arranged, than to allow improbabilities like these to pass without remark. 124 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. his spirit might be enabled to raise him above the weakness of the flesh. On this, we are told, Heaven sent him his illness, which Asser describes as a kind of eruption : for many years it caused him the most horrible torture, which was so intense that he himself began to despair of his life. One day, as he had gone out hunting into Cornwall, he dis- mounted from his horse, in the midst of the lonely plains and hills, at the Chapel of St. Gueryr, where, shortly afterwards, St. Neot also sojourned and died. The royal youth, who from his childhood had zealously visited all holy places, prostrated himself in silent devotion and prayed to God for pity. The fear of being rendered, by his bodily in- firmities, or perhaps by leprosy or blindness, inca- pable of exercising the royal power, or despicable in the sight of the world, had long obtained possession of his soul, and induced him to pray for his deliver- ance from such a plague. Every other lighter trial he was willing to undergo, provided it only spared him for what he was accustomed to look on as his destined office. Not long after his return from this hunting expedition, and in consequence of his fer- vent prayers, we are informed that all signs of his malady disappeared. And now, in the very moment that he had taken to himself a wife — in the very moment that the marriage- guests were drinking and carousing noisily in the festive halls, the evil against which he had prayed overtook him. He was suddenly seized with fear and trembling ; and, to the very hour that Asser wrote, to a good old age, he was ALFRED'S ILLxNESS. 125 never sure of not being attacked by it. There were instants when this visitation seemed to render him incapable of any exertion, either intellectual or bodily ; but the repose of a day, a night, or even an hour, would always raise his courage again. Under the weight of this bodily infirmity, which was probably of an epileptic nature, he learned, by the force of his unyielding will, to overcome the heaviest cares that ever weighed upon any ruler engaged in a contest with a most terrible foe, and, under the weight of corporeal weakness and the cares of the outer world, to jDrosecute unceasingly his great purpose, and raise the intellectual stan- dard of his people as well as his own. Hardly had he taken a share in i)ublic affairs — hardly had he laid the foundation for a household of his own, ere this heavy burden was placed upon him : how great and how varied must have been the course of train- ing to which he subjected himself to enable him to be prepared for his subsequent days of misfor- tune, and to preserve his courage and his hope un- diminished ! Some short time had probably elapsed since his marriage and the first appearance of his invidious disease, and Alfred had already returned with his young bride into his brother's dominions, when the messengers of the Mercian king arrived to pray for the speedy assistance of the West-Saxons. On receiving the intelligence, the brothers did not lose an instant, but liaving summoned a large army from all parts of tlie kingdom, they led them straight to Mercia, where they effected a junction witli the 126 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. forces of that state. Bishops, abbots, and a num- ber of priests are said, on this occasion, to have willingly renounced the exemption from military service that had formerly been granted them, and to have joyfully taken their places in the ranks of the army, of their own accord, with their weapons in their hands, in order to increase the strength of the combatants.'"' They had to drive the foe from that very part of the country whence Alfred, not long before, had carried home his bride. When they reached Nottingham, with the unanimous desire of coming to a pitched battle, the Danes, relying upon the strength of the walls, shut themselves up in the castle. The hostile forces merely engaged now and then in a few skirmishes, for the besieged would not venture on a great and decisive contest. The Saxons were, unfortunately, not prepared to attempt to storm the fortress in the regular form ; the thickness of the walls withstood all their efforts. Besides this, the winter had arrived, and the short space of time for which the levies were obliged to serve was nearly expired, so that, after a treaty had been concluded between the Mercians and the heathens, by which the latter engaged to depart, the princes had no alternative but to return home with their forces. According to one account, it was * Such is the account to be found m a document given in "Ingulph." p. 863 (Kemble, N. 297), the authenticity of which is, however, doubtful. It is a remarkable circumstance, that ^thelweard, IV. p. 513, mentions nothing of the assistance ren- dered by the West-Saxons, but says that Burhred at once came to an arrangement with the Danes. INGVAR AND UBBA. 127 Ingvar who, by his fox-like slyness and hypocritical words, brought about this arrangement.* This commencement of the contest did not pro- mise much for its speedy conclusion. It is true that, shortly afterwards, the Danes retired towards the north, and settled again for some time in York, but the people had not been able to expel them forcibly from the country, and recover the booty which they had amassed. Nor was it long ere a portion of the heathen forces again set out towards the south, and pursued their way, unopposed, through the Mercian territory into the country of the East- Angles. At their head marched the terrible forms of the brothers, Ingvar and Ubba, the two most courageous and most cruel of all the sea-kings — Ingvar of the mighty mind, and Ubba of the won- derful daring.f Besides them, there were in this array other leaders, whose names have been saved, by their fearful reputation, from oblivion. They pitched their camp in the very heart of the country, at Thetford.t About the same time, or a little sooner, another division from the Humber had landed at Lindsey; the rich monastery of Bardeney was plundered and given to the flames, and its inmates massacred. The * Asser, p. 475. "Chron. Sax." a. 868 : "And fone here ])per gemetton on pam gewcorce and hine inne besseton and yvcr nan hefiglic gcfeolit ne wearö and myrce fri'S namon wicS pone here." licnric. Iluntingd. V. p. 738 : " Vulpeculaii asUii ia verbisque dc- linitis iiiducias ab Anglis impetravit." f "Ilcnvic. Iluntingd." V. p. 738 : " Ilinguar erat iugcntis in- genii, Ubba vero fortitudinis admh-andoe."' \ Asser, p. 475. 128 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. Ealdorman of that district, Algar the younger, to whom the West-Saxon brothers had taken a great liking, on account of the courage he had shown during their last expedition, immediately assembled the valiant population of that marshy country. The nobles, with their dependants, flew to arms, and even the rich monasteries of the neighbourhood contributed a numerous force. Those from the monastery of Croyland were led on by the lay brother Toli, whose valiant reputation in former times was known throughout Mercia. On St. Mau- rice's day (21st Sept., 869), they met the Danes at Kesteven, and engaged in a desperate fight. Three heathen kings fell on the first charge, and, when the foe turned and fled, Algar pursued them up to the entrance of their camp. During the following night, however, the kings Guthorm, Bagsecg, Osky- tel, Healfdene, and Amund, and the Jarls Frene, Ingvar, Ubba, and the two Sidrocs arrived in the camp. As soon as the intelligence of their arrival spread through the Anglian ranks, the courage of most of them sank within their breasts, and hardly a fourth of his forces remained with Algar. But he and his trusty comrades, who were ready to hazard everything in defence of their native land, after having first received the holy sacrament, made their preparations for the last desperate struggle. Toli and Morcar of Brunne led on the right wing, Osgod of Lindsey, and Harding of Rehal, the left, while the valiant Algar himself commanded the centre. The Danes, who had buried their kings in the early morning, now rushed forward, excited by DESTRUCTION OF CROYLAND. 129 revenge, against this handful of Christians. Tiie latter, however, beat back the first attack, and stood, during the wliole day, as firm as a rock, exposed to a rain of missiles. But, towards even- ing, the crafty foe pretended to fly, and the Angles, paying no attention to the commands of their leaders, rushed impetuously in pursuit of them. All was now lost ; the heathens faced about and easily mowed down the scattered ranks of the Angles. Algar, Toll, and a few others only, still defended themselves for a short time upon a hill, fighting with the courage of very lions, until they, too, covered with numerous wounds, fell over the bodies of their slaughtered brothers. Only a few youths escaped to tell the monks at Croyland of this fearful defeat. All idea of saving the clergy of the monastery, with their treasures, was out of the question ; already was the horde of plunderers at hand spreading havoc with fire and sword all around. Croyland, then, four days later, Medeshamstede (Peterborough), and soon afterwards, Huntingdon and Ely shared a common fate; every one, with the exception of a few who escaped from the uni- versal destruction, was put to the edge of the sword ; while the sacred edifices were devoted to the flames, and the gold and silver shared by the j)lunderers.* The East-Angles api)ear not to liave offered so * See the detailed and very lively description of the battle and consequent devastation in Ingulpli, pp. 8(13 878, whom, as Abbot of Croyland, wc arc here justirHd in believing. K 130 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. determined a resistance as their northern neigh- bours. It is true that the Eaklorman, Ulflietul, lost no time in marching against the Danes, who had pitched their quarters in Thetford ; but he fell, with his whole army, after a short conflict. In the winter of 870, the gentle-hearted King Ead- mund, the last scion of the royal race of Old-Saxony, having neglected to march with his neighbours to the field in the common cause, ventured on a battle, and fell into the hands of the cruel Ingvar. During all the tortures of a painful martyrdom, which he suffered in consequence, the unfortunate king gave proof of the most undaunted courage and unbending determination ; he died for his faith, triumphing in death, although he had not been able to conquer while living : his name stands high in the list of Catholic saints.* East-Anglia now ceased to be a Christian state. Guthorm kept it as his own share — Northumbria having been portioned out among several other leaders. After the country about the coast had thus been seized on, and the last off-shoots of the reigning families had disappeared, the whole interior of the island lay exposed to the heathens. Mercia had already been unable to offer any resist- ance, and everything now depended on the West- Saxons being sufficiently powerful to save the Saxon race, and defend the Christian religion against the attacks of heathen barbarism. The winter had not passed over ere a large band of Northmen, under the command of those of their * " Chron. Sax." a. 870. Asse r, p. 475. " Florent. Wigorn." A. 870. For details, see Lappenberg, Translation, II. pp. 38, 39. THE DANES AT READING. 131 leaders for whom it had not been possible to pro- vide on the eastern coast, set sail in quest of land and booty in Wessex. The leaders were the two kings, Bag-secg and Healfdene, the Jarls, Osbearn, Frene, Harald, and the two Sidrocs, who, like Guthorm and others, wished to conquer for them- selves principalities among the West-Saxons. They entered the Thames with their ships, and, in a short time, their hordes spread over the southern portion of the West-Saxon coast, carrying every- thing along with them like some mighty stream ; * their numbers were so great that they could only proceed in separate bodies. They soon reached the royal castle of Reading, which is situated in Berk- shire at the point where the little river Kennet, flowing down from the south, falls into the Thames. Without striking a blow^ they obtained possession of this place, whence they could sally out at their ease on their plundering expeditions, and where, as at York, there was at all times water communication with the sea. As early as the third day after their arrival, two of the Jarls, on horseback, and accom- panied by a considerable part of their army, left their fleet behind them, and rode quickly on-ward into the woods and forests around to obtain intelli- gence and fodder.f INIeanwhile, those who remained * "Henric. Iluiilingd." v. 738 : " Excrcitus novus ct maximus quasi fluvius inundans et omnia secum volvcns." t iEtlielweard : " Obliti classc aut ccrte exploratinnis vilu turn cclcies aut asterni numinis (?) per arva sylvasque fcruntur." — "Chron. Sax," a. 871. Asser, p. 476. yEthclwcavd, IV. p. 513. Florcnt. Wigorn. I. p. 82, all speak of the following combats, and supply one another's deficiencies very satisfactorily. K 2 132 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. behind threw up a rampart between the Thames and the Kennet, to the south of the town,* so that being protected on two sides by the two rivers, and on the third by their fortifications, they might have a place to which they coukl bring their booty, and where tliey might be prepared to repel any attack. At so early a period of the year the West-Saxons were totally unprepared for a visitation of this kind ; Athelwulf, the Ealdorman of the district, assembled, however, a small number of brave followers, with whom he advanced to meet those Danes who had ridden out into the country. He came up with them near Englafeld (Englefield in Berkshire), attacked them valiantly, and, after a contest, which was car- ried on with the greatest animosity for some time, and in which one of the Jarls,t with a number of his party, was slain, he compelled them to take to flight. Four days after this first rencontre, Athelred and Alfred appeared before Reading with their hastily raised levies, and cut down without mercy all the heathens they found without their gates. The grand object was to rescue this place, which was one of the most important in the kingdom, from the hands of a dangerous enemy. But the latter, always great in cunning, craftily seized on the * " A dextrali parte." — Asser. t Three MSS. of the " Chron. Sax." (lettered B, C, D, accord- ing to their age), call this Jarl, incorrectly, " Sidroc." Asser and the chronicles give him no name at all ; and, according to all accomits, the two Sidrocs fell at ^Escesdune. Compare Lappen- berg, Translation, IL p. 41, n. I. BATTLE OF iESCESDUNE. 133 moment when the Saxons were encamped in the plain, and then, all at once, rushed out upon them, like so many wolves, from all the gates. A severe conflict now took place; at one instant fortune seemed to favour the weapons of the Christians, and at the next, those of the Heathens ; at last, however, the latter were victorious, and the Saxons, who were not yet used to the fury of the Northern warriors, were compelled to retreat. Among those slain was the valiant Athelwulf ; his friends were even obliged to leave his body to fall into the hands of the Danes, who afterwards carried it with them to Derby.* The two royal brothers were driven back as far as Wistley, or Wichelet Green, near Twyfort, but they escaped across the Thames, near Windsor, by a ford which the Danes did not dis- cover.f But neither grief nor shame could induce the Saxons to abandon the defence of their country, and the heathens must soon have remarked that they had now to deal with much more resolute foes than the Angles had ever proved themselves. Once again, only four days had elapsed ^^■hen the two hosts, with every man they could muster, came into contact at a place called iEscesdune J (Ash- * Asser and ^thehveard particularly mention this. t Our only authority for tliis is Gaimar, v. 29C-1', ct scq. " Moii. Hist. Brit." p. 801. J It is not clear what place is intended by the name iEsces- dune ; there is an Ashdown in Sussex and in Devonshire. Up to this time, liowever, the scene of action lias been Berkshire, and we should, therelore, look lor the battle-Held either there or in Surrey or Hants. 134 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. down), Botli parties wished to make for once a fair trial of their strength. The Danes had divided themselves into two bodies, one of which was led on by the two kings, and the other by the earls. When the Christians observed this, they did the same thing, dividing themselves also into two parties. Ac- cording to the old German etiquette of war, King Athelred took up his position where he would be opposed by leaders of equal rank, so that the task of attacking the second division of the foe devolved upon Alfred. This day, however, he was fated to have still greater things required of him, and destined to prove, although still so young, that he was born to accomplish acts of the greatest heroism. When day broke, it promised but little that was cheering for the Saxons. The Danes had taken possession of an eminence whose side was overgrown with short thick brushwood ; and from behind this wall of verdure they were enabled to shoot their well- aimed darts at the Saxons while the latter toiled with difficulty up the ascent. As Asser heard from eyewitnesses worthy of all credit,'"' it was Alfred who, at an early hour of the morning, arrived with his division at the foot of the hill, while Athelred was still engaged in hearing mass in his tent, swearing solemnly that, before the priest had * " Sicut ab his qui viderunt veridicis referentibus audivi- mus." — Asser, p. 476. For this reason, his account is the fullest we possess. The woody battle-field Asser himself after- wards beheld with his own eyes : " Quam nos ipsi propriis uostris oculis vidimus." BATTLE OF JÜSCESDUNE. 135 finished, no eartlily matters should prevent him from fulfilling his duty towards God. Although the old historians may ascribe all the credit of the victory to this pious behaviour of the king, it is very evident that his delay very nearly ex- posed him to a similar misfortune to that which, in far more modern times, overtook another Saxon, who conscientiously stayed out the conclusion of the sermon, while, in spite of its being Sunday, the enemy had attacked and over-powered his allies. Fortunately for England, Alfred was at his place at the right moment. For a short time he waited with feelings of the most painful description for the coming of his brother, whose place it was to be at the head of the army and exercise the supreme command. As, however, the latter still tarried, and the enemy were pouring down upon Alfred with all their force, so that he could no longer maintain his position without either giving way or advancing, contrary to the orders he had re- ceived, he, at last, with a firm reliance in the protection of heaven, commanded the signal for the attack to be given, and rushed up the hill at the head of his followers, as boldly as a boar, * against both divisions of the enemy's forces. The heathens received him with volleys of missiles from behind the brushwood, but they could not make him turn back, and both parties were immediately engaged, hand to hand, in a sanguinary conflict. Meanwhile, Alfred's brother reached the scene of * " Virilitor apriiio more." 136 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. combat, and, placing himself instantly at the head of his division, bore down valiantly upon the forces, which, under the leadership of Bagsecg and Healf- dene, were opposed to him.* The strife now raged along the whole line in the midst of the most terrific noise, proofs of the greatest courage being given by both parties. But the Saxons felt that they were fighting for life and land, for their native country, and all that they held dear, until, at last, it was impossible for the heathens to with- stand their repeated and determined attacks any longer. The Danish ranks began to waver; and a most horrid butchery then took place, covering the large wide plain around ^scesdune, which was the scene of action, with many thousand bodies of the slain. Amon^ the dead were found Kinsr Bagsecg, who was slain by Athelred himself,t the elder Sidroc, the younger Sidroc, Osbearn, Frene, Harald, and all the youths of noble birth in the Danish ranks. Since the Saxons had landed in Britain, exclaims ^thelward, there had never been such a battle before. The remains of the Danish host fled in the wildest confusion from the field of battle. The Saxons pursued them all that night and the next day to the walls of the Castle of Reading. A great number of the fugitives were, however, cut down on the road.J For the first time since the battle of Aclea, and once more * " Chron. Sax." and Henric. Huathigd. say, decidedly, that Athelred followed the plan that had been before agreed on. t Sic " Henric. Huntingd." V. p. 738. I All the authorities agree about this issue of the battle. BATTLE or BASING. 137 at the hands of the West-Saxons, the Northmen had sustained a great defeat. Alfred bore away the glory of the victory, and the noble conscious- ness, which must have cheered him in his latest years, that, by remaining undismayed and by acting at the critical moment, he had saved his native land. But the victors did not yet, by any means, dare to give themselves up to indolent tranquillity : the foe was still firmly seated in Reading, and fresh hordes might every day come uj) the Thames, and join them, to supply their recent losses. Hardly a fortnight had elapsed, ere the two brothers again drew up their warriors in battle-array near Basing in HamjDshire.* But this time the fortune of war was less favourable to them. The Danes occupied the more favourable position as they had done at iEscesdune, and, after a stubborn contest, kept possession of the field of battle, but, as it has been remarked, ^ without any spoil to carry off as the fruit of their victory. Soon after this their forces were so increased by the arrival of a fresh horde of their countrymen J that the danger which menaced Wessex assumed, in spite of the recent victory, a more formidable aspect every day. A considerable portion of the West-Saxon tcn-itories "' ■"j:Et Basiiiguni." "Chron. Sax." " Basciin-as adununt," Asscr. "hi loco Basingon," yEthchveavd. " Apud Basino-iiin," Ilciiric. lluntiiigd. \ Especially by yEthelwcard, 1. c. \ Assor, p. ITT, " Do uUniinariiiis partihus alius paganoruiu oxcrcitus soclelati so adjunxil." 138 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. was always liable to be laid waste by the invaders ; for the place on which the battle was fought two months afterwards shows us the scene of action transferred to no trifling distance from where we have hitherto beheld it. It was at Merton * that Athelred and Alfred once more stood on the de- fensive against two northern hosts. On both wings were the Saxons victorious throughout the day ; but many of their brave warriors, and, among the number, Healmiund, Bishop of Sherburne, the wor- thy successor of the valiant Ealhstan, having been slain, they were, despite their success, obliged to leave the heathens in possession of the field at night.f In this gloomy condition were the future pro- spects of the only Teutonic state in England that had taken up, and, with persevering courage, carried on the contest with the barbarians, when, shortly after the defeat at Merton, King Athelred died, on the 23rd of April, 871. t It is not quite clear whether he sank from the wounds he had received * Meretune, "Chron. Sax." Merantune, J^thelweard, Mere- dune, Henric. Huntingd. V. p. 738. Florent. Wigorn. I. p. 85- Either the place of this name in Oxfordshire or Surrey is that meant, I believe it is the latter. Asser does not mention this fight at all. See Introduction. f Mentioned particularly in " Chron. Sax." and iEthelweard 1. c. I Asser, p. 477, "Regno quinque annis per multas tribulatione» strenue atque honorabiliter gubernato." According to him, JSthelweard and Henric. Huntingd., Athelred died "post Pascha;" "Chron. Sax.," "ofer eastron ;" Florent. Wigorn. I. p. 85, "ix. Kal. Maii," that is three weeks after Easter, as this fell in the year 871, on the 3 1st March. ALFRED BECOMES KING. 139 or whetber he died a natural death. His perse- vering and honourable conduct during a reign of five years has won for him the respect of after- ages. Alfred, the heir to the throne, who now assumed the government of Wessex at a most critical moment, caused his brother to be buried with royal honours at Wimburne-Miuster in Dor- setshire. We are not sure, but we have every reason for supposing that Sherburne, where the regular vault of the AVest-Saxon kings was situated, was, especially after the heroic death of its last bishop, either threatened by the Danes or actually in their possession.* It is, at present much to be regretted that, with the exception of Alfred's testament, we possess no detailed account concerning Athelred's last arrange- ments, and the accession of his so hopeful brother to the helm of affairs. Athelred left direct heirs in the persons of two sons not of age, the elder of whom Athelwald, in after years, when Alfred's worldly course was run, appeared as Pretender against his cousin Edward. The historian JEthel- weard the chronicler is also descended in a direct line from Athelred, as, after mentioning the king's death, he proves at length in an address to the princess Mahtild, who traced her descent as far back as Alfred.f But at a time of such great and * In opposition to all other authorities MS. Cott. Tib. 13, I. reads : " JlLt Scireburnanmcnster." \ J^thelwcard, IV. p. 514-, and the dedication to the princess at the beginning ot" his wurU. Compare Lappcnbcrg, Introduc- tion, p. Ivii. 140 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. universal clanger all ideas of encircling with the crown of Wessex the temples of a child were entirely out of the question; in a crisis like this, it was by no means irrevocably settled that the suc- cession was to descend from father to son ; besides wdiich, we know that Alfred had formerly been se- lected by his father, and, at a subsequent period, by his brother, as the sole heir to the throne. As far as regards their private affairs, the interest of Athel- red's children had occupied their father's attention during the very last days of his life. At a tim.e when everyone was constantly engaged in deadly strife with the heathens, and oppressed with sad misgivings for life and land, the two brothers, con- sidering the great danger which threatened them, settled, in a Witenagemot at Swinbeorh,* that each should give his children something from his inheritance, so that they might have enough to live, in case they became orphans ; the general inherit- ance, however, as well as the right of succeeding to the throne were again promised Alfred. We do not, therefore, find the slightest hint thrown out that Alfred usurped the throne to the exclusion of his nephews ; not only had he been destined to be king of the West-Saxons by the mystic anointing of Pope Leo IV., but he had long been recognised as the heir-apparent, and the people had no other and no better person on whom their choice could fall. They themselves had all been witnesses of the training to ■* " On gemote aet Swinbeorgum." — Alfred's Testament, Kem- ble, N. 314. ALFRED BECOMES KING. 141 M-liicli Alfred had subjected himself in his youth, and they felt that he was the only person who, by his heroic valour and noble enthusiasm, would be enabled, with the assistance of his faithful friend, to defend their beloved native land ; all their hopes were built on him, to whom, at the moment of his accession, they looked up to save Wessex and the Christian relio'ion from destruction. 142 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. SECTION IV. THE YEARS OF TRIAL, FROM 871 TO 88 L It is a weary task both for the author and his reader, to be obliged, for a great part of Alfred's life, commencing with the moment that he ascended the throne, to direct their whole attention to the uninterrupted struggle between the king and his northern foes. The picture of this portion of Anglo-Saxon history always remains the same, until its uniformity at last confuses and tires us; the years alone roll on and the places change, but two Teutonic races are seen continually contending for the superiority, both, in turn, at one moment con- quering, and at the next conquered. But it were as wrong to abstain, on this account, from a true historical relation of what took place, as to be con- tented with merely noting down the facts as they occurred, year by year. Our interest is excited only so long as we do not, even for a single instant, lose sight of the goal, to which the various events tend : and while we steadfastly bear in mind what was the prize to be gained, what advantage the Danes wished to obtain, and what was the treasure which the Saxons had to defend ; while, in a word, we endeavour to read simultaneously the mind and the ALFRED BECOMES KING. 143 heart of the hero, ^yho thought that his appointed task was to defend his people from the wild influ- ence of heathendom, and preserve their hard-won intellectual and material riches.'"" In most other cases, especially in earlier times, on the occasion of another sovereign mounting the throne, the grave and majestic step of history is stayed for a moment, and the historian has time to see homage paid to the young ruler, from Mhom the world hopes so much, and whom he has re- solved to accompany faithfully through pleasure and through pain, through victory and through defeat ; but it is in vain that we look for such a resting- place in Alfred's life. Not a word is said of his solemn inauguration as king; the ceremony was un- derstood; in the state in which England then was, there was no time for it to be actually performed. The young prince was instantly called upon to fulfil the most difficult duties of his position; he only left his brother's tomb in the monastery at Wimburn to arm his followers in all haste for the field. Soon after the battle of Morton, a large fleet, that had sailed from home on a summer voyage, put * That such a view of the case is far from being taken by William of Malmesbury, II. § 121, who rejects the tedious task from similar motives to those we have mentioned, is very evident to all who read his book ; in very high-flown words he disclaims all idea of his being bound down by the example of his predecessors and contemporaries. After the words: " Summalim igitur omnia exponam," the reader naturally expects a clever summary of Alfred's active life ; instead of which he finds an account of how St. Cuthbcrt appeared in (he wilderness of Athel- ney in a dream. 144 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. in near Reading;* and with so considerable a re- inforcement the enemy penetrated deep into the interior of the West-Saxon provinces. Deeply grieved at the sufferings of his subjects, Alfred tasted none of the joys of his new dignity ; he only felt that the whole burden of it now rested entirely on him. After his brother's death even his confidence in Heaven appears to have been shaken, and he began to doubt if he alone should be able to withstand the pagan hordes. He was a whole month before he would venture, at the head of a small band, to take the field again. The place from which he started was most probably Wimburu, as he had previously been obliged to retreat into the western districts of his kingdom. He met the foe in Wiltshire near Wiitun Castle, which is situated on an eminence on the left bank of the little river Willy. He and his followers fought with the greatest bravery against far superior numbers. De- spair lent them strength and the day seemed already their own, when the enemy suddenly took to flight, and once more were the exulting victors deceived by the cunning of the northern warriors. They were stopt in their eager pursuit of the foe by an unexpected body of the latter drawn up in battle array, against whom they were unable to retain pos- session of the field of battle after the victory was theirs, t * "Chron. Sax." a. 871, " Micel sumor-lida com to Read- iiigum." jEthehveard, IV. p. 514 : " Advenit sine numero aestivus exercitus in loco Readingon." \ Asser, p. 477. CONTINUED RAVAGES Or THE DANES. 145 This Mas a bitter lesson for the yonng prince; in spite of all his exertions, he had not succeeded in staying the wild ravages of the Danes, but, on the contrary, was obliged to retreat still further than before. Besides this, the country was exhausted, and no longer capable of raising any considerable levies, as, during the space of one year the people had fought, in the valiant endeavour to defend their own, no fewer than eight pitched battles,* not to mention the numberless skirmishes which had taken place almost uninterruptedly by day and night. It is true that, during this time, whole multitudes of Northmen, with one of their kings and nine dukes, had been slain, but the Saxons also had lost many a valiant warrior, and the dread of the continually increasing numbers of their foes de- stroyed the courage of the people, wdio were accus- tomed to a more peaceable occupation than that of wielding the sword. The consequence of this was that, before the year was expired, Alfred, having first obtained the consent of his nobles, saw him- self reduced to the degrading necessity of inducing the heathens by a sum of money to conclude a treaty, by which they engaged to leave the AVest- Saxon territories. As Alfred was now no longer in a condition to assist his brother-in-law. King Burhred, the Danes invaded his dominions, and, * Asscr, p. 477. iEtliclwnard, IV, p. 514, " Ccrtamina tria, cxccpto supra mcmoralisbollis " — nanioly, at En<>lefickl, Reading, Ashdowii, Morton, and Wilton ; of throe, therefore, we know nothing. " Chron. Sax." a. 871. Ilenric. Ihnitinnd. \'. p. 73<). Matth. Wostm. a. 871, speak of nine battles. L 146 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. crossing the Thames, took up their winter quarters in the vicinity of London. The helpless monarch could offer no resistance, and he and his subjects thought that they were saved, when, towards the end of the year 872, the enemy were induced, by the payment of tribute,* to conclude a treaty, and depart, as they had come, by water. But the Christian inhabitants of the island were still often doomed to learn how little they could rely upon the oaths and treaties of these pirates. It is true that the ships of the latter left the Thames, and sailed towards the north, along the eastern coast. Their crews then landed in the Northum- brian states to reinstate on the throne Egberht, who had begun to reign there under their protec- tion, but had been driven from his uncertain posi- tion by a rising of the people. As soon as they had effected their purpose, and the winter was passed, they again appeared in the Mercian ter- ritory, in the district of Lindsey, where they made themselves masters of the place called Torksey. Once more the Mercians readily offered them money, imagining that they would observe the treaty; but hardly had a year passed before the heathen forces set out from Torksey, and, without the slightest hesitation, or meeting with any resist- ance, penetrated into the very heart of the Mercian dominions. Hreopendune (now Repton in Derby- shire) fell, it appears, into their hands, without a * JEthelweard, IV. p. 514. " Myrcii confirmant cum eis fcederis pactum stipeudiaque statuunt." This is what is always meant by Asser's " pacem pangere." FALL OF MERCIA. 147 blow being struck in its defence, and the cele- brated monastery there, in which the former kings of Mercia were buried, was razed to the ground. The unfortunate King Burhred, who, six years before, had not had the courage to oppose them with his people alone, and who knew that his suze- rain and relation, the young King of Wessex, was at present not less humbled and weakened than himself, immediately took to flight. After the fall of his kingdom, over which he had reigned two and twenty years, he had not even sufficient resolution left, on seeing the mournful condition of his native island, to entertain the slightest hopes of being again restored to his position. One consolation — that of the pious Catholic — was left him ; he has- tened across the sea, and wandered as a pilgrim to far distant Rome. Like Ceadwealh, two centuries previously, he had hai'dly reached the goal of his only wish, after a long and wearisome journey, when, far from his home and from the throne he had lost, he was snatched away by death in the year 874. His countrymen tlien in Rome buried him as befitted his rank, in the church dedicated to the Virgin, and connected with the Saxon school.* His wife, Athelswith, who was a true companion to him through good and evil, liad not been able to overtake him in his rapid flight, and most likely subsequently found a safe retr(>at with * The "Chron. Sax.," ^thclwcard, Asser, and Ilciiric. Ilun- tingd. all agree with regard to the events of the years 872-874, the first two authorilios arc |)crhai»s a liUlc more ininulc than the others. L 2 148 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. her brother, until she set out, at a later period, for Italy, to visit her husbancFs grave. Such was the end of a kingdom which, for a long period, had disputed the supremacy with the West- Saxons. Its precipitate fall, as well as the death of its last ruler, must have produced a deep im- pression upon Alfred ; he saw the old plans and aspirations of his race vitally endangered, and his own sister doomed to a life of sorrow, after having been deprived of her husband and her crown. The lot of Mercia, as might have been expected, was a similar one to that of the neighbouring states to the east. The Northmen thought fit to set up a tributary king, for these restless conquerors them- selves manifested but little desire to settle down for any length of time ; they still continued to follow the course of the winds and waves, in the hope that these would prove favourable, and waft them to the possession of fresh treasures. The person Mdio allowed himself to be nominated to the dishonourable office of their dependant was a weak-minded Thane of the fugitive King,* Ceolwulf by name. Faithlessly did he swear the oaths re- quired of him, and provide the hostages demanded. He vowed that he would be ready, any day that his capricious masters might desire it, to lay down his uncertain power, promising meanwhile to exert himself, to the utmost of his means, only for the good of their army. As long as he fulfilled his * " Hie sealdon Ceohvulfe anum unwisum cinges pegne myrcna rice," " Chron. Sax." a. 874, ■which is here our most accurate authority. >iüRTILMEN SETTLE IN MEKCIA. 149 promise of iiianagiiig- matters for the advantage of the Danes, as long as be extorted from the country- man the produce of his field, and robbed those monasteries which had not been destroyed, of their treasures, he was enabled to maintain himself in his position, but when, in the course of a few years, his rulers imagined that they remarked a coolness in his zeal for their interests, they deposed him without the slightest compunction, despoiled him of all he possessed, and left him to perish in the most abject want.* A large portion of the country now passed entirely into their hands, and many of them settled down to a peaceable life, especially in the towns and larger villages. It is a well-known fact that some of these places laid aside, in the course of time, their old names, assuming Scan- dinavian ones instead, and, during the Middle Ages, for several centuries afterwards, many of the com- ponent elements of the people and their language betrayed, in those parts of the country at least, their northern origin.f In the year 875 a division of the princi})al army took place. As soon as spring had returned, the Danes panted once more for the restless life they led on their marauding expeditions, and, besides this, it was impossible for so large a body of men to find the means of subsistence much longer at Ilreopendune. One party, therefore, under Ilealf- dene, set o(l' towards the north, and pitched their camp at the mouth of the Tyne, while their bands ■^- lii^ul[.li, \>. .S7(». I ( 'oiinuirc I -apiiculicii;-, \k '-'y I I, 150 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. ravaged the neighbouring country in all directions with fire and sword. As, however, there was but very little more treasure left among the Angles, the attacks of the Danes were now principally directed against the Picts and the Celtish population of Strathclyde, a state that stretched from the Clyde along the western coast to the south, and also em- braced that tract which was afterwards Cumber- land. The poverty of the land was so great as to oblige Healfdene to parcel parts of it out among his warriors, whom he compelled to cultivate it, in order that they might gain the means of sup- porting life.* The second party, headed by Guthorm — who found neither repose nor contentment in his Anglian go- vernment — Oskytel and Amund, set off towards the south, and settled for the winter in Cambridge. During their stay there, these crafty leaders devised a plan by which they hoped to crush their most determined foe, the King of the West-Saxons, and make themselves masters of his extensive dominions. In the spring of the year 876, they suddenly left their camp, and, embarking secretly during the night on board their vessels, which were always ready to sail, landed unexpectedly on the coast of Dorset. By a sudden attack they gained possession of a place called Warham, which at that time scarcely deserved the name of a town, and consisted principally of the straggling buildings comjDosing a nunnery. But as the water was always the best bulwark of these * "Cliroa. Sax." A. 875. Simeon Dunelm. "De Gest. Reg% Angl." p. 68 L ALFRED BUYS OIF THE DANES. 151 pirates, its position was exactly what they wanted for tlieir rapacious ends, as it Avas enclosed by two small rivers, which flowed, at a short distance thence, into the sea. The place was open only towards the west, from which point they could repel the attacks of the Saxons, or ride out on their plundering excursions. This last they did without further de- lay, ravaging most fearfully a considerable tract of the surrounding country. The year before, Alfred had sailed, at the head of a small fleet, into the channel, and victoriously engaged seven of the enemy's vessels, one of M^hich he took and put the others to flight, but at present he was compelled by his exhausted resources, and the diminished courage of his people, to confine himself to smaller enter- prises, and was no longer a match for the over- powering forces of the enemy, led on by the three Sea-kings. He, therefore, determined once more on olfering them money to leave the country. As soon as the rapacious heathens beheld the gold they promised to fulfil every one of the conditions he proposed. According to the ancient custom of all Teutonic races, the king himself was allowed to choose as hostages from the invading army, those persons who appeared to him most worthy to answer with life and limb for the observance of the treaty.* He then personally received the oaths of all the Danish leaders, with the most solemn ceremonies. He first made them swear by the bones of his saints, and in attributing to these as, in his character of * " Chron. Sax.," yEthclwcHrd, Asscr, I'loiciit. Wi<;oni., a. 87(!, confirnied by a charter in Kcuible, N. lOGll. 152 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. a good Christian, Asser tells us he did, the greatest efficacy next to God in the matter of oaths, he was far from being an exception to the general rule. Had not this been the case, we could only have designated it as an act of pious folly on Alfred's part to imagine that by such a proceeding he could compel the heathens to act honestly towards him ; but it has been proved that all Indo-European races, and especially the Scandinavians, believe that men's mortal remains possess supernatural power,* and therefore no one has a right to laugh at Alfred's credulity in this matter. He also prevailed on the Northmen to perform a still more solemn ceremony, which up to that time they had refused to do for any other nation. This ceremony was as follows ; — Upon the altar lay a holy bracelet smeared with the blood of the various animals that had been offered up as sacrifices, and upon this they swore the most dreadful and binding form of oath known to the nations of the north.f In this manner, certain forms were observed which were originally characteristic of both parties, only that the Saxon when using them thought as a Christian, while the heathen merely followed the superstition of his ancestors. But Alfred ought, by this time, to have known how little all treaties with such foes were worth, * Compare J. Grimm, " Geschichte der Deutschen Sprache," p. 150. f See the instances of this form of oath among the Scan- dinavians, in Lappenberg, Translation, II. p. 49, from Arngrim Jonas "Rer. Island." I. p. 7, and from the Edda, in Thorpe, " Flo- rent. Wigorn." I. p. 93, and in J. Grimm's "Deutsche Rechtsalter- thiimer,"pp. 50, 89ß. THE DANES SEIZE ON EXETER. 153 and how often tlieir most sacred promises bad been broken. The very night M'hich followed the solemn scene we have described, large bodies of the Danes set out from Warham, and happening to fall in with a troop of Saxon horsemen, attacked and cut them to pieces.* As a great part of the Danish army- was mounted, they proceeded rapidly through the neighbouring country, penetrated into the district of the Defnsaetas, and made themselves masters of the town of Exeter. Built not far from the sea, and connected with it by a navigable stream, this place was, like Warham, which the Danes had by no means given up, most excellently situated for their expeditions. These were most intimately con- nected with the marauding excursions of their countrymen upon the Continent. The narrow strait was no obstacle to them ; they plundered at their ease the Prankish seaport towns; and Rollo, who was afterwards the conqueror of Normandy, ap- peared nearly about this time in England to repose there for a winter from the fatigues of his excur- sions.! On every coast the sea was covered with the vessels of these daring pirates, and as sure as anything was to be undertaken against a Christian state, fresh multitudes, lured by the hope of plunder, * " Ilenric. Huntlngd." V. p. 739, is tlie only one who says that their departure took place the next night. Asser only mentions the Saxon troopers, p. 478. \ This piece of information, Asser, p. 479, was ackletl by a later hand in the MS. Cotton, probably from the false annals which bear Asser's name ; it is printed in Gale, " Script. Rer. Angl." III. p. 105. Can it be derived from the "Cluon. Turon." in Du Chesne, "Script. Norman," p. 2<) ? 154 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. came to join the invaders. As in tlieir frail barks these indomitable hordes triumphed over the perils of the raging sea, so did they, by their fury, every- where vanquish in battle their opponents, who, although better disciplined, had, from their long practice of the arts of peace, become less resolute. Alfred, however, was not yet conquered ; as long as there was breath in his body — as long as he had a man and a ship left for the defence of his country, he could still hope — he could still act. For some time past, he too had turned his attention to the sea, and perceived that it was there that the real strength of the enemy lay. As soon as ever he could prove a match for them on that element, he would be enabled once more to raise his people's courage and adopt more efficacious measures of defence on land. After the oaths had been broken he did not delay one moment longer taking the field, although the numbers of the enemy were so inexhaustible, that if thousands of them were slaughtered one day, twice as many seemed to rise up, as if out of the earth, the next. At the end of the winter 876-7, he collected all the forces which he had left him : he himself, with one party, has- tened by land to Devonshire, and prepared to be- siege, and, if possible, cut off from all communication with their countrymen, the Danes who then held Exeter. Meanwhile, he had manned his ships with the most daring sailors he could collect from along the coast,* and ordered them to put out immedi- * Or does Asser, p. 479, by the expression, "piratis," really mean to say that Alfred manned his ships with pirates 1 In the hitro- ALFRED DEFEATS TUE DANES. 155 ately into the Channel and keep watch, so as to capture every supply of men or provisions Avhich might be intended for the Danes who were settled in his kingdom. He also commanded them to ven- ture confidently on a regular naval engagement as soon as they felt strong enough. Faithfully did the sailors obey the orders of their king. The remainder of the garrison at Warham had not embarked until the spring of the year just mentioned, when, trusting themselves to the waves in a hundred and twenty vessels, bristling with armed warriors, they had directed their course to- wards the West, in order to convey help and succour to their countrymen in Exeter who were now sore- pressed. But, on this occasion, the elements that were usually so favourable to them, proved adverse : a thick fog * lay upon the water, while violent storms, peculiar to the time of year, lashed the raging waves mountains high, so that for a whole month the fleet was tossed about without being able to put into port. It was in the midst of this untoward state of things that Alfred's mariners boldly attacked the enemy — their fleet, scattered by the storm, could offer no resistance. The crews of some of the ships were slaughtered by the Saxons, duction I have already remarked that I suspect the passage : "jussit longas naves fabricari per regnum ; " it seems to bo misplaced. " Chron. Sax.," and Florence, first mention the ships being built in 897. In his whole kingdom Alfred could not at that time have built a ship; he was obliged to have recoin-se to the most desperate exi)cdients. * In the "Chron. Sax.," A. 877, it is described very graplii- f.uUv ; " ^a motte hie micol myst on ssc." 156 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. but the majority of the vessels drifted on the rocks of Swanewic, where they were dashed to pieces, and, together with their contents, swallowed up by the waves.'" Meanwhile, the Danes in Exeter were reduced to the greatest extremities. When they saw that no help arrived, they sought Alfred's permission to depart under certain conditions, giving him as many hostages as he chose to demand, and once more swearing numerous oaths. It was not before the month of August, 877, that they took their departure from Exeter,t and set out towards the North. One party proceeded to Mercia, and an- other to Gloucester, the only portion of the country which was freed from their presence, being that to the south of the Thames. Up to this time * Asser is the only writer who says any thing about a sea- fight ; all the other authorities say the fleet went down in a storm. jEthelweard's peculiar expressions: "elevant vela | dant vento carinas j procella ingruit tristis | mergitur pars non minima | cen- tum numero carinse | supremae juxta rupem | quae Suuanauuic nuncupatur," sound as if they had been transferred, word for word, from some Anglo-Saxon ballad. f " Chron. Sax." a, 877: " on hserfeste." All our authorities for the years 876 and 877, with the exception of the simple story in " Henric. Huntingd.," are chronologically doubtful, springing without the least order from one thing to another. This confusion arose from the faulty way in which the short notices in '• Chron. Sax.," which the later chroniclers have copied, followed one another. The destruction of the hundred and twenty ships is even twice mentioned in Asser, the second account being intro- duced in the later manuscripts out of the so-called " Annales Asserii." This is another proof of the almost incredible manner in which the text has been altered. NORTHMEN'S EXPEDITION AGAINST WESSEX. 157 Ceohvulf had retained his contemptible office in Mercia; but the Danes now deprived him of a great portion of the kingdom in order to settle there themselves. Meanwhile, the Vikings, who had established their footing in Gloucester, united their forces vrith those of another body of their countrymen who had landed a short time previously in Demetia, a small state in South Wales. At the head of this fresh fleet was a brother of Ingvar and Healfdene ; his name is not mentioned, but we have reasons for supposing that he was Ubba. The new-comers had expected to find sufficient to satisfy their rapacity even among the poor Celts of the mountains, but they were soon undeceived, and they now probably excited the bands who had left Exeter a short time previously, to take part in a new and united expedition against Wessex. The voice of conscience was in all likelihood drowned by the hope of gain, for the faithless Northmen cared as little for the fate of their hostages, as they did for their oaths. In this manner, then, at the commencement of the winter, partly on the north-western confines of the kingdom, partly upon the West-Saxon territory itself, were collected the elements of a frightful storm, which, in the spring of the great year of 878, was destined to burst Mith terrific fury on the heads of Alfred, and all the in- habitants of his kingdom. As had been the ease with the expedition which started from Warham the year before, this fresh attack also was made by sea and land at the same time, and principally directed against the western 158 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. districts of the kingdom, which, till then, had suffered much less than the others. While the nameless sea-king we have mentioned, put to sea with three-and-twenty of his ships,* after having first slaughtered great numbers of the Christian Welsh, and stripped the poor wretches of what little property they possessed, the land forces,t which had probably received, during the winter months, a considerable addition of strength by reinforcements from Mercia, invaded the territory of the Wiltssetas, and obtained possession of the royal castle of Chip- penham, situated on the left bank of the Avon. From this point their hordes spread over all the neighbouring country, carrying desolation wherever they went. They covered the land as thick as locusts, and, like these, sucked out its very marrow.;]: There was now no longer any heroic Ealdorman to assemble under his banner the people once so brave, who were now a prey to fear and consternation. Whoever could flee, took with him the few move- ables he possessed, and hastened to the sea-coast, to seek a place of refuge in the opposite country of France. Bishops, priests, and monks, especially, used every means in their power to convey the relics and jewels of their various religious foundations into a place of safety. All who remained behind were doomed by their cruel oppressors to servitude and * xEthelweard says thirty : " cum triginta moneribus." ■j- According to more recent authorities, as early as Christmas, " Asserii Annales," p, 166, " post Theophaniam," and " Gaimar,'' V. 3125, " Puis, el Noel, li felon Daneis," &c. I Honric, Huntingd. v. 739 : " operientesque terram quasi locustre." VICTORY OF CYNWITII. 159 beggary.* Both public and private affairs were ra- pidly approaching a state of dissolution. JMeanAvbile, the ships bad disembarked their crews in Devonshire, where a number of the king's faith- ful adherents bad tbrown themselves into a fortress called Cynwith. Under the command of Earl Odda,t they fought valiantly with the Danes, retiring be- bind the walls of their castle, when their opponents became too powerful for them in the open field. Although the fortress was very little calculated for defence ; consisting, probably, as was customary at that period, of nothing but an earthen rampart, it was, as we are told by Asser, who bad seen the place with his own eyes, admirably fortified by Nature her- self on all sides except tbe east. The consequence of this was, that the Danes, after beginning the siege, saw themselves gradually undeceived in their idea that they should be able to compel the be- sieged to surrender from want of provisions, for although the latter suffered the most horrible pri- vations from the scarcity of water, there being no well in the castle, they still held out bravely ; they had resolved to conquer or to die like heroes. In the twilight of the morning, they suddenly rushed out from their intrencbment, and falling unawares on the heathens, who were not prepared for the attack, slew the greater portion of their army, together with the nameless sea-king. Only very few, who fled in the wildest confusion, reached their * Assor.p. 480; .Etliohvcartl, IV. p. 5 If) ; Roger «.IcWciulovcr, I. p. 329. \ Meutioiunl l)y yEtliclwt.'urd only. 160 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. ships, which were drawn up at no great distance, on the beach. About a thousand Danes lay slaugh- tered around Cynwith.* According to one tra- dition, which seems to partake strongly of fiction, among the trophies which fell into the conquerors' hands, was the celebrated standard of the heroes of the North, which E-egnar Lodbrog's three daughters wove one morning for their brothers Ingvar and Ubba. In the middle of this standard was the holy bird, which, when the result of the battle was favourable, used to flutter his wings, as if he were alive, but hung down motionless whenever the Danes were threatened with a defeat.f But this brilliant victory, achieved by a handful of undaunted men, was the last valiant attempt at defence. Their bravery was followed by no advan- tages, for the country had long been overrun, in its entire length and breadth, by the hordes of the invaders, carrying death and desolation wherever they went. The king, too, was no longer with them, and in no part of the country did those capable of bearing arms, assemble in defence of their hearths and homes, of their wives and children. The en- * Asser, p. 481, who gives the most detailed account, says 1200 ; the " Chronicle," and Henric. Huntingd. 850, and ^thel- weard, " 80 Decades." f This has been introduced into the faulty manuscripts of the Vita, from the " Annales," which have been spuriously inserted, and contain little that can be relied on ; but four MSS. of the " Chronicle," B, C, D, E, have the short notice : " And ftaer was se guÖ-fana genumen ]>e hie rsefn heton." Compare what is said concerning a similar banner, in "Encomium Enun39," ap. Maseres, p. 16, and Langebek, " Script. Rer. Danic." V. p. 95. DISSENSIONS AMONG THE PEOPLE. IGl feebled and terrified people everywhere bent their necks to the yoke of servitude, while those who still hoped, or had anything left to save, sought to escape to foreign countries, inhabited by Christian popula- tions, who willingly afforded the fugitives protection and help. But in addition to this universal state of despondency and general emigration, there was another evil which raged in the very heart of the unfortunate country, and aided the enemy in re- ducing it to the brink of ruin. Besides a know- ledge of the state of things at that time, and of the manner in which almost all the West-Saxon districts were taken by surprise, we possess the significant notice of an old historian,* to prove that, in the hour of such danger, the most violent dissensions existed among the people. In all pro- bability the consciousness of a difference of origin seized on this opportunity of once more bursting forth. The descendants of the Celts in the west recollected that their possessions had formerly been taken from them by the sword, and now, beholding their conquerors menaced with a similar lot to themselves, did not feel in the least inclined to unite with them in the common cause. On the contrary, they even took a kind of revengeful plca- * yEthelweard, IV. p. 517, writes under a more recent date, viz., the year 886 ; " J^Ifredo, quern ingenio, ([uem occursu non supe- raverat civilis discordia soeva, luinc ut redeniptorcm suscepere cuncti." [The meaning of yEthelwcard is itself obscure ; and as he is the only authority for these supposed dis.scnsions among Alfred's subjects, the circumstances related in the text admit of considerable doubt. — Ed.I 162 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. sure, as has already been remarked, in submitting to the Northmen, although they must in reality have hated them, and often suffered from their treachery. Besides this want of confidence in his British subjects which obscured Alfred's prospects of defence, he probably perceived a want of unanimity at work in his Teutonic provinces, aiding their fear in the task of ruin. By far the greater majority of those who had not the courage to quit their native soil, or to retire into the woods and pathless wastes, and see the property that they had received from their forefathers delivered up to the flames, preferred cultivating the land with the sweat of their brow, for the greedy plunderers. They saw how their Ang^lian neig'hbours were still settled on the old spots, and still spoke the old language, after long years of oppression, and they also saw how the insurrections and valiant appeals to arms of different individuals, had only brought down greater misfor- tunes on their heads. No commands, no prayers, no entreaties, from their once so beloved king, could induce them to sacrifice their little property, or hazard their life and own well-being, in order to ensure the existence of the whole state. In most parts of the country, too, there was no earl, noble, or bishop, who would resolutely put himself at the head of his march or diocese, and by his daring example, induce them to venture on one last and desperate struggle. But is it credible that this universal despondency and helplessness broke out so suddenly as first to bring matters to a crisis in the unfortunate year DEFENCELESS STATE OF THE COU.NTRY. 1G3 878 ? The people bad now been fighting almost uninterruptedly for the last ten years ; and while the numbers of the enemy were continually in- creasing, those of the islanders were falling off every year. It has already been noticed that since Alfred ascended the throne, he was no longer in a condition to undertake any important enterprise, and that he could no longer command the same resources which he possessed at the battle of jE,sces- dune. During the last few years especially, the strength of the country must, for the reasons just mentioned, have been sensibly diminished. The story of a more recent chronicler, wdiich has been joyfully adopted by a modern biographer,* is there- fore an absurdity. It is to the effect that, after the last attack of the Danes by land and sea, which all our authorities look upon as two sepa- rate attacks, but which, notwithstanding, must be considered as forming but one and the same, Alfred hastily assembled all his forces, and was defeated by the Danes in a pitched battle at Chippenham. No older historical work contains the slightest allusion to such an event, and Bromton's account, as is so often the case with him, is founded simply on a mistake in the dates, and the consequent confusion of facts. Besides this, Alfred's heroic reputation would not be increased by it. On the contrary, his greatness as a monarch consists iar * Dr. Giles, " Life of Alfred the Groat," VII. p. 18 !•, ct seq., prides himself very imiLh on his discovery in " Broniton," \\ 811. Rut does ho gain anything by it, e\en supposing he could ]trov(; its authenticity "? 164 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. more in bis having been tbe only person wbo, at a period when all around fell to tbe ground, after a long course of gradual decay, set bimself about tbe work of reconstruction without abandoning his hopes of ultimate success. That sucb was tbe view taken of tbe matter by our oldest authorities, will be shown in the following pages. After tbe Danes, setting out from Gloucester, bad extended their inroads further south, after tbe valiant defenders of Cynwitb, of wbose fate we unfortunately bear nothing more, bad captured tbe Northern Banner, and while tbe heathens, M^ho were mostly mounted, rode through all tbe West- Saxon districts, compelling tbe inhabitants to submit to their authority, there was still one man * wbo would not yield, and who withdrew from the sight of bis friends as be did from that of bis foes. This man was Alfred, tbe king without a crown, but still the guardian and protector of his king- dom. If, in the moment when everything deserted him, he bad given up that trust in God in which be bad daily and hourly exercised himself through a long series of trials ; if, in his despair, he had sought and found death ; or if he bad still counted upon tbe pity of the perjured heathens, and, under tbe most favourable circumstances, died, perhaps, like the last King of tbe Mercians, a pious pilgrim in Rome, then, with him, had perished also the * Four words of the "Chron. Sax." a. 878, sound immensely great from their dry simplicity : "And pees oöres (folces) |)one msestan dsel hie geridon, and him to gecirdon, buton Jjam cyninge TElfrede." COUNTRY SAVED BY ALFRED ALONE. I(j5 tliouo'lit that England must remain true to the Christian faith. The original British inhabitants would never have saved Christianity, nor would the monks, who, after the destruction of their mo- nasteries, wandered about separately as fugitives through the country, or settled as hermits in soli- tary wastes, have produced, by their preaching, any impression on the minds of the rude barbarians who, brought up in the midst of cold and storm, still remained attached to their grand and terrible gods of Asgard and Valhöl. On the sj^ots formerly dedicated by the Saxons to the now extinct worship of Woden, blood-stained sacrifices would once more have been offered up to Odin and to Thor. Now, too, that its leaders and teachers had disappeared or lost their power, the Christian population, re- duced to a state of submission, would have begun by abandoning themselves to many a remnant of their old superstition, to which their hearts still clung, and, gradually giving up the blessings of their conversion, turned once more to the altars of the false gods on which their conquerors sacrificed. But Alfred still lived, and with him the deep- rooted consciousness that he had been selected by a kind Providence to be the deferider of his people, the champion of tlie doctrines of the cross, and the saviour and u])holder of the Saxon race. Ani- mated by this conviction alone, he was enabled to repress every thought that arose in his heart concerning merely his own safety and that of those who were nearest and dearest to him by the ties of blood or of fidelity. At the moment of his 166 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. utmost need, when he saw his country laid waste, and his people deserting him, and bending beneath the yoke, his sure eye pointed out the spot in which he might conceal himself, and whence, with a few followers, he might issue forth to resume the interrupted strife. Accompanied by a very few followers, of whom Athelnoth,* the Ealdorman of those parts, is the only one mentioned, he sought a refuge in the pathless and unfruitful country of the Sumorsaetas, in the midst of marshes, standing water, rushes, and brambles, where, at that period, agriculture had scarcely begun to dispute the possession of the soil with the wilderness. He w^as followed by his wife and children, and perhaps by his mother-in- law, his sister, and the remaining members of the royal house of Wessex, who patiently suffered with him every privation and every hardship. There is one fact which recurs, at intervals, in the history of the world, namely, that the deliver- ance of a whole kingdom, and the expulsion of foreign conquerors, proceeds from some remote pro- vince, from some barbarous and impassable district. On the narrow mountain ridge of the Asturias did Pelayo, the last scion of the Goths and the wonder- encircled hero of Spain, pave the way, immediately after the fall of his people, for the liberation of the peninsula from the Moors, although that liberation * jEthelweard, IV. p. 515, has again preserved his name. He is the same person who, according to " Chron. Sax." and ^Ethel- weard, in the year 894, distinguished himself hi this same part of the couutrj'. Compare Lappenbcrg, p. 318, n. 3. PRIVATIONS SUFFERED BY ALFRED. 1G7 was not completely effected for seven centuries afterwards.* From the eastern limits of Prussia first resounded the cry to arms which was fol- lowed by the expulsion of Napoleon's hosts from Germany. It is a beautiful and cheering fact when, after the lapse of centuries, a grateful people remembers the district whence its preservation from a great danger proceeded, and which was the cradle of its liberty. f It is for this reason that, at the present day wdien Alfred is mentioned in conjunction with his sufferings and his acts, the Englishman still fondly directs the stranger's atten- tion to the remote county of Somerset. In this inhospitable district, then, were Alfred and those with him doomed to pass several of the winter months. It is impossible for us, at the pre- sent day, to form any distinct notion of the various privations to which they were there exposed, but we can easily believe that only very scanty means of subsistence were to be found in the midst of the marshes. Asserif informs us that the king and his little band, consisting of a few noblemen, warriors, * I find this noble idea of the " Anglo-Saxon Chronicle " re- peated by Mariana, " Ilistoria de Espana," Hb. vii. c. 1. "Solo el infante Don Pelayo, come el que venia de la alcuna y sangre de los Godos, sin embargo de los trabajos que avia padccido, resplandccia, y se senalava en valor y grandeza de animo." ] " Ostcnduntur ab accolis loca singula, in (juibus vel mala; fortunoe copiam vel bona; persensit inopiani." — Will. Malniesb. "Gest. Reg. Angl." II. § 121. I And Florence, in the same words ; that Alfred lough( with Christians also, "qui so Paganoruni subdidcrant doniinio," apixars to nie to refer to some former case of defection. 168 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. and vassals, were sometimes compelled to make a sortie on the Danes, or even those Christians in the neighbourhood who had submitted to Danish rule. On these occasions, they used to obtain, either by stealth or in open combat, a little food, a por- tion of which they set aside to sustain their own life, while they carried the rest to their wives and children, whom they had left behind in the bush. Alfred, who was, perhaps, thought by the Danes and the vanquished Saxons to have disappeared for ever, led a life of want and danger which, in sober truth, was little fitted for a king. The charm natural to this state of contrast opened a wide field for fiction, and it is, therefore, not at all surprising that, after his deliverance, an endless number of stories, all stamped with the impress of fable, have sprung from the accounts the people re- ceived of the dangers to which their king had been exposed. Man, especially when animated by grati- tude, is fond of ornamenting with additional inci- dents, both the oral and written accounts depicting the sufferings endured before any great act of deli- verance, and he loves to elevate the unadorned beauty of simple truth by the creations of natural poetry. If, centuries afterwards, the English people, in its love for physical courage and independence, could find such ample materials for ballads and stories in Hereward, the last of the Saxons, who, in the marshes of the island of Ely, so long defied William the Conqueror, or, if it could so delight in the bold yeoman, Robin Hood, who drew his bow in Sherwood Forest, protecting the poor and punish- LEGENDS CONCERNING ALFREÜ. 1G9 ing the arrogant, the reader ^yill easily believe that a similar kind of poetic glory must have surrounded the Saxon king when he suddenly reappeared as a conqueror from the wilds of Somerset, and especi- ally as soon as the dangers that had been incurred by him were known. Posterity treated him as it does every hero of ancient or recent times.* The Middle Ages certainly enjoyed the additional ad- vantages of having a mine of miracles at their command, with which they could equip a popular hero as well as they could a saint. With regard to the various stories, however, which Ave possess concerning Alfred's residence in the lowlands of Somerset, there is a very percepti- ble difference between those which sprang from the mouths of the people, and those in which the monks made their saints play a part. The origin of both dates in the order in which they are here mentioned. And it is an instructive lesson to con- template their development and completion, even though we are obliged, from the very beginning» to give up all hopes of finding the least truth in them, and desire to see all fiction excluded from accredited history. Among the legends of the first class we have mentioned may be reckoned the following, which is first met with in the "Life of St. Neot," that is at the end of the tenth century, and which next * We need only remind the reader of Frederick the Great. In his " Neun liüchcr Preussischer Geschichte," II. p, 21G, Ranke mentions one of his adventures, wliich has assumed the form of a legend. 170 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. finds its way into the "Annals," and thence into the more recent manuscripts of " Alfred's Life." * One day, the king happened to be in the hut of one of his cowherds, who faithfully treasured up in his heart the secret of his sovereign's retreat. During the time that the cowherd was gone to his work and his wife was engaged in baking bread, the stranger had taken up his seat by the fire, and busied himself in mending his bow, arrows, and other warlike weapons. The woman, who took the stranger, from his needy appearance, to be some serf or other who was a companion of her husband, charged him to mind the loaves on the hearth. On her return, after a short absence, finding her bread all burnt, she rushed angrily at him, and began scold- ing him as follows : — " Holloa ! thou varlet ! Dost thou not see that the loaves bum ? why then dost thou not turn them 1 Ready enough art thou always to eat them hot from the baking 1 " The hexameter, which has crept into the prose narration, is of itself sufficient to render the authen- ticity of the latter doubtful, but at the same time seems to prove that the whole w^as at some time a popular ballad. The pious reflections which the anonymous biographer of St. Neot tacks on to the story tend but little to render it more worthy of be- lief. According to this biographer, the king, in the insolence of youth, behaved, during the first years * Asser, p. 480. " Life of St. Ncot," in Saxon, by Gorham ; "History and Antiquities of Eyncsbury and St. Ncots," I. p. 250. LEGENDS COiNCERNLNG ALFRED. 171 of his reign, very arrogantly towards his subjects, neglecting their petitions and complaints with great harshness. At this, his relation, the holy Neot, who was then living, felt deeply grieved, and in a spirit of prophecy, foretold the days of misfortune that would subsequently overtake him. But Alfred paid no attention to him until the Divine Judge had punished his folly with the inflictions we already know, and humbled him to such a degree that, after being driven from his throne and deprived of every necessary, he was ill-treated in the very place where he had found a refuge. The story contains, of itself, nothing improbable, and it may very well have been one of those w^iich Alfred himself, in happier days, used to relate to his well-loved Asser and his other friends.* But the fact of Florence not knowing it, is a sufficient proof that it did not exist in the genuine " Vita." It is, however, a remarkable circumstance that this chronicler seems, in one instance, to allude to its true origin. On the occasion of his mentioning the elevation of Denewulf to the see of Winches- ter, we are told that this man, if report is to be trusted,! was unable to read until he had attained * " Solebat ipse postea, in tcmpora feliciora rodactus, casus suos jucimda hilarique comitate familiaribus exponcrc." — W. Malmesb. IL § 12L Compare Lappcnbeig, Translation, IL p. 53, n. 2. t Florent Wigorn. I. § 97, " Si fainac crcditur;" the "Res (ligna miraculo " appears still more puzzling if Doncwnlf was transformed in the lapse of a single year from a swineherd info !i bishop. The "vaccarius" in the "Vita Sti. Neoti," and in Asser, is also "subulcus" and drives iiis" porcos ad solita pascua," 172 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. an, advanced age, and that he had formerly been a swineherd. The account proceeds to state that when Alfred was an exile in the woods, he be- came acquainted with Denewulf as the latter was driving his hogs to fatten on the acorns. His na- tural talent attracted the attention of the king, who provided for his instruction, and afterwards raised him to so proud a position. We have here an instance of the manner in which fable plays with facts and persons, obtaining such full possession of both that all idea of our ever arriving at a know- ledge of the real state of the case is utterly out of the question. According to another story, after having assem- bled a band of his brave companions in exile, and commenced his fortification at Athelney, Alfred, accompanied by only a single devoted servant, pro- ceeded to the camp of one of the Danish kings. Here he delighted the Danes by his skill in the songs of his native country, and, during a stay of several days, even penetrated the secrets of the royal tent, where, with his own ears and eyes, he became acquainted with the plans of his foes. On his return from his reconnoitring expedition, he carefully assembled his followers, and, leading them silently on to the attack, obtained a brilliant victory over the heathens.""'' All this is very possi- ble, and, from Alfred's known partiality for song, in Roger de Wendover, I. p. 330, who, in other particulars, follows the story of the pseudo-Asser, * Ligulph. p. 869. Will. Malmesb. II. § r2L Guido apud Alberic. A. 880. LEGEND OF ST. CUTIIBERT. 173 perfectly explicable, but our old authorities, which are founded on Saxon tradition, do not mention the circumstance. It is merely in the Norman authors that we find something of this kind related of King Alfred, and a similar fact is afterwards recounted of the Dane, Anlaf, who, also, was said to have penetrated into the camp of King Athel- stan disguised as a harper."" In addition to this, the spirit which pervades this poetical story is rather a mixture of Scandinavian and Norman than Saxon. It is in another class of fables — namely, those invented by the church, that we must place the legend which emanated from the north of Eng- land, and rather tends to the glory of the mira- cle-working Cuthbert than to that of the proscribed king. According to William, Alfred himself used to relate how the holy bishop appeared to him and helped to effect his deliverance. In this instance again, the king was at Athelney in great want. His companions had gone to fish in the neighbouring stream, and he was sitting in his habitation with no one to keep him company but his wife. Bowed down by the weight of care, he was endeavouring to comfort his soul with the Psalms of David, when a poor man appeared at the' door and begged for a piece of bread. Full of the liveliest pity, the king received him as if he had been Christ himself, and shared with him his last loaf and the few drops of wine which were left in the flask. Suddenly the stranger disapi)eared, * Will. Malmcsb. II. § 131. 174 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. leaving the bread untouclied, and the flask filled to the brim with wine. A short time afterwards the king's companions returned from the river laden with a large quantity of fish which they had caught. The following night, St. Cuthbert appeared to him in a dream and informed him that his sufferings were now at an end, foretelling him the very place and hour of all that was going to happen. Early the next morning, the king arose and crossed the river in his skiff to the dry land. He then blew his horn three times, whereby he encouraged his friends and alarmed his foes. That same after- noon, a band of five hundred warriors had gathered around him. He related to them the commands of God and his saint, and thereupon they marched to victory. Such is the account contained in the legend of the holy Cuthbert. Its conclusion seems to warrant the supposition of its having been written during the time of King Edmund I., in the last half of the tenth century, soon after the monks of Lindis- farne and Durham, who had for a long period wandered about the country, carrying with them the miracle-working bones of their patron saint, had once more found a resting-place. But how- little historical knowledge on which any reliance can be placed had then penetrated into the north- ern parts of the kingdom concerning Alfred, may be gathered from the fact, that the king is repre- sented as having remained three whole years con- cealed in the marshes of Glastonbury.* * "Hist. St. Cuthbcrtl," Twysden, pp. 71, 72. It is from Ibis ORIGIN OF THE LEGEND. 175 In William of JMalmesbury,'"" the legend of the Northumbrian saint assumes a somewhat diiferent form. According to this author, the saint ap- pears without any previous notice to the sleeper and makes him a set speech, to the effect that he and the country have atoned for their sins, and that, in a short time, the exiled king shall once more be seated on his throne and the people again free. As a sign that God has not abandoned him, the saint informs the king that those who had gone out to fish shall return with their nets full, al- though the river is covered w^ith ice. On Alfred's awaking, he finds that his mother,f who has been sleeping not far off, has also dreamt the same dream. They are both lost in astonishment at this wonderful occurrence, when those who have gone to fish return with their heavy burden, which is sufficient to satisfy a whole army. In other accounts it is St. Neot who ajipears, by night, to the king in a dream, and urges him as soon as he shall have atoned for his sins and suffered the punishment imposed by Heaven, to rise source that Simeon " de Duiiehii. Ecc]es."If.pp. 10, M, derives liis information, though onlj' in the extract : " Quoniani alibi plene per ordinem scriptum, habetur." New traits are continually introduced by Aih'ed of Rievaux and J. Bromton, ap. Twysden. pp. 353-355, and p. 811. * "Do Gest. Reg. Angh" II. § 121. Simihirly, Ingulph. p. 8 GO. t Tliis cannot possibly be Osburh, as is staled in Lappenberg, p. 31!): the more ancient authority mentions Alfred's wife. It is, perhaps, his mother-in-law, Eadburh, whose name is han(h>d dowu by the legend to posterity. 176 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. quickly and take fitting vengeance on the foes of his Country and of his Faith. The historian may reasonably be allowed to abstain from all investigation of this variously fashioned legend ; its ecclesiastical origin is evi- dent. Availing itself of Alfred's distress, of his charity, and of his firm faith, it connects him with the saint whose fame then penetrated, perhaps, for the first time into the southern part of the island. Possibly, it owes its origin to the presents that Alfred may, perhaps, afterwards have made the church at Durham, or those which his descendants actually did make. But it is time for us, after this excursion into the dominion of fiction, to return to history. The Easter* of the year 878 had arrived. Nature was beginning to revive from the deadening sleep of winter, and the few valiant hearts that still firmly believed in the possibility of their yet free- ing their native country beat higher as she awoke. The king and his companions left the huts and lurking-places in which they had sought a refuge from the winter's cold and the pursuits of their foe, and, proceeding to a spot which was admirably fitted by its natural position for the purpose, united all their energies to throw up a fortifi- cation. Under the name of iEthelinga-eig (con- tracted into Athelney, that is : the Island of * The Easter of 878 fell upon the 23rd March. All our authorities draw their accounts of the following events from the " Saxon Chronicle," and agree with one another in the principal points, as well as in the chronological succession of events. ALFRED AT ATIIELNEY. 177 Princes) this spot has since become famous as the point from which Alfred set out to reconquer his dominions. The island was situated near the Somerton of the present day, to the east of the Parret, where the latter unites with the small river Thone,'"' and consisted of an eminence rising up from the marshy land around, which latter was frequently laid under water by the sea. The inaccessible nature of the place needed but very little additional strength from the hand of man, and even at the end of the seventeenth century, the conformation of this district rendered it decidedly unfavourable to any military operation-! That Alfred, however, chose this spot with the quick glance of an experienced general, and that he himself lived there for some time, is proved not only by the historical works on the subject but by the remarkable jewel bearing the King's name, Vy'hich was discovered there in aftertimes, as well as by the pious establishment which he founded out of gratitude on this tower of his hope. Both will be mentioned more fully in their proper place. It was, undoubtedly, in his stronghold of Athel- ney that Alfred again unfolded his banner with the golden dragon, which had formerly glistened in the battles against Mercia and the Britons, and which, in its contest with the northern raven, liad only retreated after a long resistance. As soon as the people of the neighbouring country per- ceived it, and heard that the King was still alive, * Lappenbcrg, Translation, II. p. 53. t Compare Macaulay, "History of England," I, p. GO t. N 178 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. they all hastened joyfully to him, and courage began to return to the faint-hearted. The chiefs of the Sumors9stas especially distinguished them- selves by being the first to join Alfred with their followers, and by the active part they took in the expeditions which were constantly undertaken against straggling parties of the Danes. The little band was kept constantly employed, and was soon destined to form the sturdy nucleus of a larger one. Besides this, the foe had to be taught that they were not yet in undisputed possession of the country, and the disheartened inhabitants of the other Saxon provinces had to be informed of their approaching deliverance, and invited to fly to arms themselves. After a short space of time had elapsed and his restless activity had been crowned with the success which he anticipated, Alfred thought that the moment had arrived for him to proceed to an open attack. In the seventh week after Easter, that is between the 5th and 12th of May, he marched out from his fortress, on an appointed day, to Egberhtes-stan (Brixton) situated in the eastern part of Selwood Forest,""" which, in those days, stretched like a solid boundary to the east of Devonshire and Somerset. Hither flocked from the adjoining counties the Sumors£etas, the Wilt- ssetas, and all the inhabitants of Hampshire that * histead of " sealwudu,'' the Willow Wood, Simeon Dunelm. " De Gest. Reg. Angl." p. 681, lias " mucelwudu," which appears to be a correction of the false translation in Asser and Florence : "silva magna," in Welsh, " Coitmaur." Or is, perhaps, "seal, sei," an adjective, meaning " great ?" ALFRED'S RECEPTION BY HIS PEOPLE. 170 had not fled beyond the seas, with their weapons in their hands." With cries of joy did they hail their beloved king, who, after a long series of suf- ferings, had risen, as if from the dead. Alfred, who once more saw an army assembled around him, allowed them to repose for the night. On the next day, however, he set off, with the first red streaks of morning, towards the north-east, with the intention of immediately attacking the Danes, whose fixed quarters were still in Chip- penham. The army rested, the following night, at a place called Ecglea, and then proceeded with- out further delay until, at mid-day, they came upon the foe near Ethandune.f The whole army of the heathens was there, having hastily assem- * Gaimar, v. 3168, actually gives the names of several noble- men : " Co est del best de Selewode. Ceolmer vint contre le e Chude, Od les barons de Sumersete, De Wilteschire e de Dorsete. De Hamteschire i vint Chilman, Ki les barons manda par ban." We find, however, no confirmation of this list anywhere else, and the name of Ceolmer, that immediately follows Selewode, looks very suspicious, and seems to have originated in a mistake with regard to the Coltish Coitmaur, found in Asscr. I I take the liberty of copying tlie description of the time from the Norman author of the " Rhyming Chronicle," v. 3189 : " E lendemain, a hure de none Done sunt venuz a Edenesdone." According to Simeon, Alfred does not reach Ethandunc until '' post tcrtium diem," and is engaged, from sunrise during a great part of the day. Ethandunc is probably found again in Edding- ton, near Wcstbury. N 2 180 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. bled on the first intelligence of the King's re- appearance, and being determined to defend their booty against the rightful possessors. A most desperate struggle now began. Alfred led on his troops in a very close line of battle,"^' and after having, thanks to this plan alone, courageously withstood, for a long space of time, the impetuous attacks of the Northmen without being compelled to give way, gained a complete victory over the foe. Multitudes of the latter were cut down as they fled from the field of battle, and when the con- quered army reached its castle, by which, in all probability, we must understand Chippenham itself, a great many were made prisoners, before the very gates. The victors captured also a number of horses and cattle. The prisoners were instantly put to the sword, and Alfred then began to be- siege the place. f This was, indeed, a glorious change of fortune, brought about with a degree of suddenness which is very rarely to be met with in this life. A ba- nished king, who had been looked upon as lost, was in a few days transformed into a victorious general, and the same man who a short time be- fore had been compelled to conceal himself in the wilds, now saw his subjects joyfully flocking to his banner, and, what was more gratifying than * Asser : " Cum densa testudine atrociter belligerans," ] Later writers, such as Bromton and Gaimar, make Ubba fall before Chippenham, but in the course of the preceding year. They found their statement on a tumulus which bore the name of Ubbelowe. GUTHORM BECOMES A CHRISTIAN. 181 anjtliing else, held the flower of the foe, with their most dreaded king at their head, closely shut up in their castle. The siege had lasted a fortnight when the hea- thens, reduced by hunger, cold, and fear, and brought by want to a state of the most abject despair, begged that Alfred would give them leave to depart. They proposed that he should select from their ranks as many hostages as he chose, while they, on the contrary, did not de- mand a single man of him. This was an extra- ordinary concession by which the Danes owned that they were conquered. They also promised to keep their word, which they had so often broken, more faithfully than they had done on previous occa- sions, and to leave the kingdom without delay. Alfred, who felt for the fate of these unhappy men,"" once more took their hostages, and once more put faith in their oaths. Had he not also received, however, another and a far surer gua- rantee, he would, perhaps, once more, bitterly have repented the evil consequences of his premature confidence in heathen vows. But Guthorm, who commanded the Danish army, and w^as by far the most powerful of all the Vikings then in England, sent to inform the King of the West-Saxons that he was inclined to embrace the Christian religion. We meet with nothing which can be construed into an indication of Alfred's having made this de- ternjination one of the conditions of peace. The first idea of such a thing, although it might not * Asser: " Sua ipsius miscriconlia motus." 182 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. have been sincere, but merely suggested by the straits to which he was reduced, appears to have arisen in the soul of the heathen. He himself ruled over Christian subjects, who showed more courage for their religion than they did in war, and already, too, were the first signs of that so frequently re- curring phenomenon apparent, namely, that the Christian religion generally triumphs, in the course of time, over the weapons of its oppressors. To no one could such a convert be more welcome than to Alfred, who was fighting not merely to regain his authority, but also to maintain the re- ligion of his people, and, therefore, he must have seized with joy the occasion of the first of the Danish kings declaring his intention of embracing this religion. He immediately consented to the treaty, and the Danes were allowed to depart to- wards the north. Seven weeks * afterwards, Gu- thorm, accompanied by thirty of the noblest of his army, appeared in Alfred's camp, that had once more been removed to the district of the Sumor- ssetas, and was then fixed at Aire, a place not far from Athelney. It must have been a proud and exciting hour for Alfred, when, with all the pomp of the church, he acted as Guthorm's godfather, and adopted him by the Saxon name of Athelstan ; his country was free, and his most powerful enemy had become a Christian. This was indeed the greatest triumph his resolute heart had ever enjoyed. Guthorm with * " Chrou. »Sax." a. 878, iii., " wucan " seems to be a slip of the pen. MEETING OF ALFRED AND GUTHORM. 183 his followers, who, like their prince, had also been baptized, remained twelve days in the Christian camp, the solemn loosening of the baptismal bands, which ceremony had been performed by the Ealdor- man Athelnoth, having taken place on the eighth day at Wedmor.* The meeting of the two princes, which took place in the first days of July, had also another object. Not only was the way paved by the baptism, in a spiritual manner, for the arrangement of all differ- ences, and for the friendly intercourse of these two German races, but their objects were settled accord- ing to the law of nations, by a worldly treaty. It is true that Wessex was freed from the Danes, but no one was stron«' enouf^h to drive them from all the other parts of England as well. It was, therefore, a wise thought of Alfred to leave the newly-bap- tized sea-king in those Anglian territories which he had called his for some years past; and this settle- ment of the Danes proved afterwards a real benefit to the island, by gradually uniting the two people by the same bonds of religion and constant inter- course. At Wedmor, where the first West-Saxon Witenagemotf was held after the days of oppression, the following conditions, which Ave possess at the * Asscr, " Octavo die " — " Chrism-lising," " Cliron. Sax." " Chrismatis solutio," Asser and Florent. Wigorn. is, without doubt, the same as ^thclweard's: "Dux paritev yEthehioth abluit post lavacrum cundem in loco Vucdmor," and Gaiinar's : " a Wed- mor furcnt dcsalccz." ] Kcmble, "The Saxons in England," II. p. 2.31, assumes this as a certainty. 184 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. present day, were agreed to.* Alfred and all Witan of the West-Saxons, on the one side, and Guthorm and the rulers and inhabitants of East- Anglia on the other side, agreed that the boundaries of the two countries should run from the mouth of the river Thames along the little river Lea, up to its source, and then turning to the right towards Bed- ford, run up the Ouse to Watling-street. By this arrangement, a considerable portion of Mercia fell to Alfred's lot, and was thus preserved from Scan- dinavian influence. The remaining conditions of peace, containing the outlines of the rules for the international intercourse, were taken from the laws of custom of the two nations, which were derived from the same sources in both instances. For ho- micide, especially, the same sum of blood-money was fixed, and precise rules laid down for the legal course to be adopted in other cases of dispute, which could not fail to recur frequently with an army settling down to colonise a country. During the reigns of the descendants of the two kings, other clauses were introduced in the treaty, con- cerning ecclesiastical matters. On the twelfth day after the ceremony of bap- tism, Guthorm and his followers took leave of Al- fred, who loaded them with presents.f The Danish * " ^Ifredes and Gu^rumes fri'S " in " Ancient Laws and Listitutes of England," ed. Thorpe, I. p. 151, et seq. ] Asser's " Malta et optima sedificia," is very properly altered into "Beneficia," by Lappenberg, p. 321. The "Sax. Chron." also says: "And he hine miclum and his geferan mid feo weor- tude." Henric, Huntingd. : " Multa munera." Simeon Dunelm. : "Multa dona." GUTHORM RETURNS TO CIRENCESTER. 185 King rejoined his people in Cirencester, where he remained with a great number of them qnietly en- camped during the year 879, but all those who would not become Christians put themselves, according to one account, under the command of the powerful Hasting, and crossed the seas.* According to the stipulations of the treaty that had just been con- cluded, the whole army was bound to have left Mercia immediately, but Alfred himself does not appear to have desired their instant departure, or, perhaps, indeed, he had not the power to enforce it. Besides, his whole thoughts and energies were fully occupied at home in again raising what had been thrown to the ground. It required more time and trouble to re-join old bonds and relations that had been snapt asunder, than it had done to conquer back the country. Guthorm, too, who had grown up in predatory expeditions, both by land and water, could not sufficiently control himself so as to lead a quiet life in his principality, as befitted a Christian sovereign. The insatiable thirst for trea- sure and adventures tempted him as strongly as it ever had done, and inspired him with the hope of being enabled to satisfy it somewhere else. The mighty flood, with which the sea-faring hordes of the north inundated at that time the whole wes- tern portion of Europe, was far from having sub- sided, and many a bold Viking, with his untamed hordes, was still destined to carry distress and fear into the Christian states of the Continent, and the * Will. Malmcsb. II. <§, 121, and, in the same words, Elinaiul. ill " Albcric's Chvon." a. 880, cd. Leibnitz. 186 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. breasts of their restless princes. It is true that the heathens now and then met with disastrous reverses, but experience soon proved that no defeat could drive them away altogether. Although Alfred had so recently chastised and expelled them from his kingdom, he was obliged very shortly afterwards to hold himself in readiness to meet fresh attacks. His recently achieved victory, however, appears to have inspired the foe with some degree of respect for him, for a large body of them, which had come up the Thames in the year 879, and settled at Fulham, sailed back again, at the end of the winter, to the Low Countries. Their leader, the dreaded Has- ting,* who for a great many years past had filled the Frankish coasts, together with the provinces of the interior, and even the shores of the Mediterra- nean, with his terrible name, thought it would be more prudent to seek for booty in the territories of the Carlovingians. With what attention the Saxons at that period followed the devastations committed by their foes, is very evident, during the next few years, from the short notice to be found in their annals. The land of the Franks, beginning at Ghent, was fear- fully ravaged, and the work of desolation was car- ried along the rivers Maas, Scheide, Somme, and Seine deep into the heart of the country. Conde and Amiens were laid waste, and decisive battles * The sources of information for a history of his expeditions are all collected in Lappenberg, p. 321, n. 3. It seems to me highly probable that he was at Ethandune and Chippenham, and that he came from Cirencester, by sea, to Fulham. FRESH RAVAGES OF THE NORTHMEN. 187 fought at Haslo and Sail court.* At this same time, the sea was everyw'here infested by pirates, and Alfred, always indefatigable in his exertions for the welfare and the defence of his native land, did not hesitate, with the few ships he possessed, to put to sea in person and defend his coasts from being plundered. An engagement took place at a distance from land, with four Danish vessels. The Saxons fought bravely, and captured two, the crews of which they put to the sword. The other two vessels held out longer, and only surrendered to the King after their crews could wield their weapons no more, on account of the number of blows and wounds which they had received. f How could the newly-baptized Athelstan be supposed to accustom himself to the arts of peace, which he had never known, when he heard the old war-cry everywhere resounding from the sea? His union with his countrymen, the flower of whose forces swarmed round the Frisian and Frankish coasts, was far from being dissolved by his conver- sion to Christianity. It is true that he had, in the beginning of the year 880, retired with his army into East-Anglia, and had, in accordance with the stipulations of the treaty of Wedmor, entered into possession of the authority to which he had now a lawful claim, and portioned out the territory among his followers. But a camp could not bo trans- * •' Chion. Sax." from a. 880 to a. 885, with wliich compare llie Frankish liistorics, Ilinumar, a. 880, and " Annal. Vcdast." a. 880, Portz, M. G. S.S. I. pp. 512, 518. t " Chron. Sax." a. 882. 188 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. formed into a state, far less the nature of the former pirate changed so suddenly. Before Guthorm had been obliged to yield to Alfred's victorious arms, and abjure Paganism, Isembart, a near relation of the French Carlovingians, who had been compelled to fly on account of a feud with his king, had experi- enced a hospitable reception at Guthorm's hands, and accompanied him on his expeditions through the West of England. After peace had been agreed on and concluded, the results of the war required his presence on the Continent, whither Athelstan did not hesitate to accompany him on his enterprise. The faithless vassal and the newly-converted heathen exercised as great atrocities with fire and sword, as the most unscrupulous among those who had been the last to leave the north. At length they met with a well-merited punishment from Louis TIL, at the battle of Saucourt.* On this, it is probable that Guthorm -Athelstan immediately returned to his kingdom ; but a number of the vanquished North- men having again appeared, a few years afterwards, on the coast of Kent, Alfred's suspicions that the ruler of East-Anglia was still mixed up with their proceedings was confirmed by fact. In the summer * "Guido ap. Alberic," a. 881, and " Chron. S. Richarii, ap. Bouquet," viii. 273. The fabulous Gormo of Saxo Grammat. lib. ix. and " Gorm bin Enske " (Gorm Engelaender), -who is baptized in England, in the " Chronic. Erici Regis ap. Langebek Scriptt. Rer. Danic." I. p. 158, Gurmund in Will. Malniesb. IL § 121, and Alberic, and Guaramund in the "Chron. Rich." is, without doubt, one and the same person. The Anglo-Saxon form of the name is Guthrum, but I ha-ve adopted, as Kenible has done, the pure northern form : Gu'Sorm, that is, battleworm. ATHELSTAN-ÜUTHOllM BREAKS TUE TREATY. 189 of 885 they had landed near Rochester, and began to besiege the castle, at the same time that they surrounded themselves by a ram])art. The old inhabitants of Kent suffered a great deal at their hands. The Danes were still working at their for- tifications when Alfred drew near with his levies, for the purpose of defending Kent, which after the victory of 878 had returned to its old allegiance, from this and all future attacks. The heathens did not venture to resist him, even from behind their fortifications ; but, hastily embarking on board their vessels, put off to sea. Their horses and prisoners fell into the hands of the Saxons.* Meanwhile, however, Athelstan and his people had openly broken the peace of Wedmor. Their perjury was first made apparent by their failing to fill up the gaps which had occurred from death or other rea- sons, among the hostages in Alfred's power, and by their uniting, at Beamfleot (Benfleet) in Essex, with a division of the fleet that had been driven away from Rochester, and recommencing with them their former lawless mode of life.f Alfred, who was still stopping in Kent, collected and manned his * " Cbron. Sax." iEthelweard, IV. 516. Asser, p. 483. t I.appenberg, p. 326, n. 1, was the first to endeavour to con- nect iEthelwcard, IV., 516, where almost every word is a riddle with "Chron. Sax.," a. 885 : " Se here on Eastenglum bra^c friS wiÖ yElf'red cyning." His judgment is far preferable to that of the editor of the " Mom. Hist. Brit." p. 516, n. d., who is of opinion that the period in question formerly belonged to the year 894. Certainly yEtbelwcard's Chronicle has reached us in a lamentable condition, but it is impossible that it can have boon composed in such barbarous and unmeaning Latin. 190 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. fleet, which was near at hand, in order to punish the faithless Athelstan, whose godfather and ally he had formerly become, for violating his oath. The fleet was ordered to show no pity, but to treat the East-Saxon and Anglian coast exactly as if it were an enemy's country,* and to do it as much harm as possible. In the mouth of the Stour they met six- teen of the Viking's ships. A desperate engage- ment took place, in which the heathens were defeated and totally destroyed. Their vessels, and the treasures which were found in them, were carried off by the victors. The latter were in the act of leaving the mouth of the river to return home when they were suddenly attacked by the East-Angles and other Vikings, with a superior number of ships, and had the mortification of seeing the victory, which they had scarcely achieved, wrested from their grasp. These differences might have been attended with serious consequences for Alfred and his people, especially as Guthorm ap- pears to have called in the aid of a powerful ally. This was no other than the celebrated Rollo, who, immediately after the siege of Paris, hastened over the Channel to assist his old brother-in-arms.f We * " Chron. Sax.," 885, Asser, p. 483., Florent. I. p. 100 ; the " praedandi causa " of the two latter does not alter my opinion. Alfred had every right to plunder the inhabitants of the country in question, the moment they appeared as enemies. f This fact is supported by Norman writers alone, Dudo, p. 78, Will. Gemet, II., p. 4 (both in Duchesne), Wace, Roman de Rou, v., 1364, et seq., ed. Pluquet. Lappenberg, p. 327, first cleared up the mistakes of the historians of the Middle Ages, who mention Rollo as concluding an alliance with Athelstan, Alfred's grand- CLOSE UNION OF MERCIA AND WESSEX. 191 are not told whether any further attempt was made to decide the matter by arms, but according to the records of those days, England seems, on the con- trary, to have enjoyed for several years the blessing which it had not enjoyed for so long, namely, a perfect freedom from the attacks of the Danes. Guthorm-Athelstan remained, until the end of his life, in possession of East-Anglia, while the Christian religion rapidly gained ground among his subjects. Alfred himself lived long enough to see his idea of establishing peace and civilization, through the settlement of the Danes in the country, crowned with success. But there was also another part of the country where the King had to adopt measures to make good the injury occasioned by the ravages of the northern barbarians, and to secure, as far as pos- sible, the intellectual and material welfare of the old Teutonic population. The large portion of Mercia which the Danes were compelled to evacuate after the peace of Wedmor, was much more closely united to Wessex than East-Anglia, over which Alfred enjoyed but a very uncertain supremacy wdien he ceded it to Guthorm. The boundary-line, which we have mentioned, does not determine where the northern independent Anglo-Christian population came in contact with the heathen Scandinavians. The great strength, however, of this clement, which was properly the pith of England, was to be found in the West, especially in that part of the country son, or even with the King himself; Alstcmus, Alstan, Athclstan is no other than the baptized convert, Guthorm. 192 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. which is now Worcestershire, and which, from the clays of the first immigration, was inhabited by the sturdy Anglian race of the Hwiccas. During the sovereignty of the Mercian kings, founded on the union of several petty landed chiefs, this dis- trict had frequently distinguished itself by the valour of its inhabitants, under the sway of a race of hereditary rulers. Its position obliged it to defend the borders of the kingdom against the Celtic Welsh, and it must, after the latter had recognised Egberht as their sovereign, have been of no small importance with regard to the interests of Wessex. Alfred fully acknowledged the truth of this as soon as he had recovered his authority. He succeeded in selecting such men as could, by their assistance, enable him to preserve this district for his house. Athelred, the Ealdorman and here- ditary chief of the Hwiccas, was entrusted with the vice-royalty of all Christian Mercia, and bound in the ties of relationship to Alfred by a mar- riage with his dau(>hter, Athelfled. A com- plete amalgamation, however, of the Anglian and Saxon provinces was as yet entirely out of the question ; and the task of destroying with a hand of iron the ancient differences between the West- Saxon and Mercian rights and usages, was reserved for William the Conqueror and his descendants. In pursuance of this arrangement, Athelred, who immediately after the departure of the Danes, in 880,'"" began to take an active share in his suserain's service, appears as a sovereign prince in those parts, * See the record in Kemble, N. 311, a. 880, Ind. V. ATHELRED OF WORCESTERSHIRE. 193 assembling the Diet and confirming its resolution, although always subject to the approval of the King of the West-Saxons. Faithfully and resolutely did he always fulfil his duty, restoring to the dis- tricts with which he was entrusted, the repose and peace with which they had long ceased to be acquainted. By his side stood Werfrith, the excel- lent Bishop of Worcester, who exerted himself in his holy office with similar activity, and was, in addition to this, united to his King by the bonds of their common love of labour. We must, without a doubt, ascribe to the unwearied exertions of these two men the fact of the Scandinavian influence not having subsequently penetrated into the middle of England ; their labours, however, as well as the scanty accounts we have received concerning their lives, belong to the following section, from which only the unconnected military operations that fol- lowed the expulsion of the Danes, had to be omitted, in order that we might gain an uninterrupted view of our Alfred in his public and private capacity during the few happy years of peace that he en- joyed. 194 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. SECTION V, Alfred's labours in church and state. " Amidst the deepest gloom of barbarism/' says a great historian,* " the virtue of Antoninus, the learn- ing and valour of Caesar, and the legislative genius of Lycurgus, shone forth united in this patriot king." And this is true. It is in vain that we search the history of ancient times, as well as that of the Middle Ages, or of more recent days, for a portrait like the one here presented, in which the same noble features appear in such perfect harmony ; our admiration in fact changes to astonishment if we reflect how a man could be adorned with such great qualities, when, for nearly the whole of his life, he had to contend against the most adverse circumstances ; and we find that a comparison with Frederic the Great, or Charlemagne, will not go far in enabling us to form a more lively idea of this eminent King of the little kingdom of Wessex. In the preceding pages, we have seen how Alfred struggled, ventured, and won : endowed with the courage of a Caesar, but also with true German * Gibbon, in his very remarkable youthful work : " Outlines of the History of the World," Miscellaneous Works, III. p. 3, ed. 1814. ENGLAND SAVED FROM DISMEMBERMENT. 195 powers of endurance in times of distress, and "with extraordinary valour at the critical moment. We have likewise beheld how, after his days of trial and suffering, he laid the foundation, with his sword, of more happy times in his island. At present, how- ever, he enters the lists against the foe armed far differently than before, for he purposes retaining by an advanced state of civilisation, what he has con- quered by the sword. There is a great deal of justice in the comparison with Lycurgus, which we have quoted, especially in relation to the political conformation of England at that time ; but the picture is too general and too distant, and we are therefore, compelled in the course of the following considerations, to cast an occasional glance at the contemporaneous and kindred races of the Conti- nent. As, in the extensive territories that were governed by the descendants of Charlemagne, a number of Teutonic races, resting on a foundation of conquered nations, were amalgamated into various large states, so also, in England, had the subordination of many Teutonic and Celtic tribes, under one supreme head, gradually been taking place for several centuries. Hardly, however, had the various petty states been united by the bond of union, before they suffered, at the hands of kindred barbarians, a severe blo\v, the lasting effects of which threatened them with destruction. The fate that was in store shortly afterwards for the Franks, and which was partially occasioned by Rollo's victories in Neustria, namely, the breaking up of their monarcliy into a number 196 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. of separate governments, ruled by mighty dukes and barons, was, unquestionably, nearly being the fate of England as well ; and whole centuries would then have elapsed ere the country would again have been united. We must ascribe it to Alfred's patri- otic spirit alone, to his courage and his penetrating glance into futurity, as well as to the brilliant suc- cesses achieved by his descendants, that the inva- sion of the Northmen was prevented from exercising any influence on the development of the Saxon element, until the heathen fierceness of these wild adventurers was cooled by the influence of Rome, and could be employed with the most gratifying results, to effect an amalgamation of the two elements. What were the leading ideas by which Alfred was guided in his exertions ? He had lived to see, with sorrow, the fall of the political edifice of the country, of which his grandfather had reason to be proud, but to whose maintenance his father had contributed very little. Was it not quite natural for him, on recovering power and reconstructing the government out of an old state of affairs that had proved worthless, to draw the reins tighter than before, and form a firm whole from the still un- certain union of the various petty states ? A step of this kind was taken by Alfred, as far, at least, as we can gather from the few indications that have survived the lapse of several centuries, and the hero's measures have exposed him, even lately, to the charge of having begun, as an autocrat, to injure the ancient liberty of his ])eople. The refutation Alfred's mode of government. 197 of this charge woukl here be out of place, for we must always believe in the existence of a paramount necessity, which, at that period, bent all the states of our great national family, from time to time, under its powerful arm, thereby drawing them closer to one another, and embuing them with fresh strength. What is understood by freedom now-a-days is vastly different from the indepen- dence of a number of communities scarcely civilized, and, during the course of history, has frequently been promoted by tyrants themselves. Did Alfred ever act more despotically than Charlemagne, Otto I., or Henry III., whose wise and severe energy we admire? No, it is with lively satisfaction that we are compelled to admire in all his actions the mild, though not on that account less effective, method adopted by him for remodeling previously existing institutions, and by the aid of which he assisted in placing royalty on a far different and far more real basis than that on which it had formerly rested. His innovations partake far less of a political than of an ethical nature, and it is astonishing to reflect how nearly he left the constitution as it was before, after all political ties had been dissolved, hastening, with a true knowledge of the dangers by which they were menaced, to save his people by elevating their moral condition ; a course which none of the great princes just mentioned had been able to fol- low with equal resolution and enthusiasm. But, before this assertion can be justified, it is necessary for us to cast a glance at the constitution of the country, and at the part Alfred took in its restora- 198 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tion. We have already given a short notice of the state of public affairs among the Anglo-Saxons at the time of Athelwulf. The kingdom of the dynasty of Cerdic had been brought, by the attacks of the Danes, to the very brink of destruction; very little change, however, took place in its com- ponent parts, after it had been saved by Alfred. It is true that he had lost the supreme authority over the states on the east coast, but this authority had always been, even under Egberht, of a very uncertain nature, and his loss was, in some measure, compensated by Guthorm's conversion and settle- ment in the country. In other respects, the three tracts of territory which composed the West-Saxon state continued as they were before. Mercia, that was the first to fall before the northern hordes, had ceased to be an independent kingdom. A great portion of it having again become subject to Alfred, at the peace of Wedmor, he established a form of government there which differed essentially from that of his other provinces. Kent, and the districts pertaining to it, also became the booty of the enemy on the first attack ; it possessed no natural means of defence. When, however, the conquerors were compelled to retire beyond the Thames, there was no possibility of an independent state in this pro- vince either ; the old traditions of the Jutish princes were exploded, and the peculiar rights and customs remained unchanged for only so long a period as a distinct blood ran in the veins of the inhabitants. Alfred could never entertain an idea of attacking this nationality, for his own mother had belonged ALFRED'S MODE OF GOVERNMENT. 109 to it, and no pretensions had ever been raised against Lis title as sovereign of the country. The custom of sending the heir-apparent to the people of Kent, as their king, had fallen into disuse under his brother's reign, and the union with Wessex was already much more palpable in those parts than it was in Mercia. The old provinces had been the last to succumb, and finally, it was from the western district, that had hardly ceased to be Celtic, and where the Saxon plough had as yet traced but few furrows, that the deliverance of the whole country had proceeded. Wessex once more formed the heart of the kingdom, for even the Britons, on whom no reliance could be placed, returned to their former allegiance, and never, as long as the Saxon hero lived, did they hazard a revolt, or threaten to become dangerous to their conqueror by an alliance with the Scandinavians. But very few details have reached us of the manner in which Alfred governed these various provinces, among which, although they were of such trifling extent and separated by only unim- portant obstacles in the nature of the soil, there existed so many dissimilarities in origin, language, manners, and customs. Our authorities mention many dukes, such as Athelnoth, Ealdorman of the Sumorssetas, Athelhelm, the Wiltsa^ta, and Athel- bald of Kent, but their influence is far from being as great as it was in former times, even as late as Athelwulf's reign. They almost seem to have been notliing more than mere officers of the royal house- hold, and the once hereditary supremacy that each 200 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. formerly exercised over his own district begins to disappear. There is no longer an Ealhstan to be found among the prelates, and however distinguished may have been some of the men whom Alfred appointed to the various bishopricks, he does not appear ever to have allowed them a greater share in public affairs than that which properly belonged to them. These are sufficiently clear indications of the kind of deve- lopment his kingdom was now undergoing ; it was he alone who had freed his native land, and he, therefore, was the person to reap the largest share of the fruits of his good fortune. There are no traces of any violent means having been employed ; in fact it was but natural that the general safety rendered a closer union necessary, and no hand was more capable of forming this union than the one that had proved it could so valiantly wield the sword. The people raised no complaints about any infringement of their liberties. On the contrary, in later days, when the yoke of the proudest of con- querors weighed heavily upon them, they still looked back with unquenchable love to their favourite, and gratefully, although wrongly, ascribed to him every advantage, every beneficial arrangement which they still enjoyed. To this feeling must be attributed the belief prevalent in the twelfth century, that Alfred was the first to divide the country into shires, and these into hundreds and tithings.* This mode of division, however, had existed as long as the Teutonic races had settled in the country, and * See the Normans, Ingulph, p. 870, and Will. Malmesb. II. § 122. Aisser mentions nothing of the kind. APPOINTMENT OF INDEPENDENT JUDGES. 201 formed tlic real germs of the state ; it merely un- derwent, at this period, an essential eliange in its character, and began to lose its politico-social signifi- cance for a local one, destined to replace the old distinctions of the Gaus and marks, which had lost their former importance. We are certainly justified in believing that, after the universal ravages of the enemy, and for the interest of the commonwealth as well as for that of private property, Alfred caused a fresh survey to be made of all the boundaries of the kingdom, although the assertion that he ordered a regular register to be drawn up, and all the land to be measured, seems to have emanated from the history of the Doomsday-book.* The way was now paved for another important change, namely the separation of the administration of justice from the government. Up to this period, the earl and the ealdorman had administered justice in their districts, as the king had done at the diet, and we now find, for the first time, regular judges independent of the oflScers of state and the heads of the different provinces. f The earl and ealdorman enjoyed precisely the same dignity that they did be- fore, but they were directed to confine their atten- * This point is excellently treated by Kemblc, " The Saxons in England," I., pp. 217, 248. t In a Record, of the year 884, in Smith's " Bedc," p. 771. The authenticity of this, however, is certainly doubtful. We shall have occasion to speak of the " judices" of Asser subsecjuontly. Tlicro is an important passage of Ingulph, p. 870 : "Prajfectos vero pro- vinciaruin (qui antea vicedomini) in duo officia divisit, id est in judices, quos nunc justiciaries vocamus, ct in vicecomiles, ([ui adhuc idem nomen retinent." 202 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tion more especially to the public affairs of their districts, and particularly to its defence, and all the necessary military measures.* At the Diet, or Witenagemot, the public affairs were discussed, according to the old custom, by those who had the privilege of so doing. The nobles and freemen in the various Gaus,f may also have continued to assemble for themselves, although the importance of all such local meetings must have been diminished at the same time that the power of the dukes was circumscribed. The Diet, both among the Saxons and Angles, was no longer confined to one particular season of the year, and we never find any mention of a March-field or a May-field. As often as circumstances required it, the nobles and freemen of the kingdom repaired to the king at his villa, or some other suitable place, and deliberated together on the public business. At present we know of only two West-Saxon Witenagemots held during Alfred's reign ; in the year 878, the treaty with Guthorm was concluded at Wedmor in the presence of the Witan, and between the years 880 and 885 there was a meeting of the nobles and freemen of the country at Lan- gandene, where King Athelwulf's dispositions con- cerning his property were approved of, and the * This is perhaps meant by the " custodes regni constituit," in Roger de Wendover, I., p, 363. t [Gau is an old German word, signifying the union of a number of marks or manors, together, for j udicial or other pur- poses; it is equivalent, or nearly so, to the Saxon scir (shire), which Mr. Kemble considers to liave been in England merely a modern substitute for it. — Ed.] RELATIVE POSITIONS OF MECRIA AND WESSEX. 203 Dieasiires adopted by Alfred with regard to liis estates ratified.'" These Witenagemots afford coii- viucing proof how different was then the power of the king-, from that subsequently enjoyed by the Normans and Plantagenets, and it w^as the recol- lection of the free and national elements which Alfred had always fostered, that alone caused men to rise up against the encroachments of these monarchs, and begin the conflict which ended vic- toriously in the establishment of parliaments. Alfred never did more than what the necessities of the country required from him, and measures of cen- tralization had already been taken in the south of England long before his time. He certainly did not think of restoring what had fallen through its own weakness, and could only gain strength again by union, but when he found that there was still life in the old state of things, he contented himself with infusing into it fresh activity. He even suffered the continuance of divisions in the separate por- tions of his kingdom. We are struck with wonder when we reflect by what an organic development, carried out into the minutest details, the empire of Great Britain has attained its present importance ! The spirit of the age required, then, that a marked degree of difference should still continue to exist between Wessex and Älercia. Both lan- guage and constitution still formed a sure boundary line between the Anglian and the Saxon popula- tion, and, besides this, a portion of Mercia was * Kemble, " Coil, Dipl.," N. 31 1, and ".Saxons in Eii-^laiid,'" IL, ]). 251. 204 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. attached to a race of native princes. These are the reasons for the separate administration of the countiy, and the high position occupied bj the Ealdorman Atheh^ed. We find him characterized as viceroy, governor, and administrator of the king- dom of the Mercians.* His wife, Alfred's eldest daughter, Athelfled, was in every way equal to him, both in rank and political importance. She was not only the prince's wife (cwen), but herself enjoyed the right of a sovereign (hlsefdige, lady) which the old Mercian custom allowed her to exercise. As Burhred's marriage had already made evident the nature of the bond which existed between the two states, so do Athelred and Athelfled prove the existence of a still more intimate union, for they are no longer distinguished by the royal title ; Alfred himself is King of Mercia. Nothing is done there without his consent ; every resolution, every donation, every grant of land, must have his approval. If, as far as we are aware, no mis- understanding or dispute ever occurred between Alfred and his duke, this is not to be attributed only to the near relationship in which they stood to one another, but is most satisfactorily accounted for by the honourable character of the son-in-law, who w^as devoted, heart and soul, to his lord and king, whose wise ideas and plans he understood, as well as Alfred himself, and never, for the sake of * " Subregulus," Florent, I., p. 113, and even "rex," ^Ethelw., TV., p. 518 : " Merciorum gentis ducatum gubernans, procurator in dominio regni Merciorum," "Cod. Dipl" N. 1066, 1068, but also "comes," Asser, p. 489, and Florent. I., p. 101. MERCIAN RECORD OF THE YEAR 89G. 205 his own importance, thwarted Alfred's measures for the union of his kingdom. By a great piece of good fortune we possess a far more extensive knowledge of the constitution of the Mercian territories at that period than we do of that of Wessex. We have far more records relative to Athelred's administration, and they af- ford us much more interesting explanations of many particulars, than in the case of those concerning Alfred himself. In many of them, which were agreed on, or approved of, by the Mercian Diet, we find various minute details referring to the latter itself. There was a Witenagemot under Athelred's presidentship in the year 883 at Risborough : an- other was held in the year 888 ; and in the year 896, a full assembly was held at Gloucester. There was also another, of which the precise date cannot be ascertained with the same degree of certainty, and, in a testamentary deed drawn up by Bishop Werfrith, mention is made of a Diet of the kingdom soon after Athelred's accession to the head of affairs (880?)* The manner in which the members proceeded, and who was entitled to take a part in the proceedings, is evident from a deed executed at Gloucester, and which, also, on account of the rest of its contents deserves to be translated from the Saxon original, as presenting us with a true picture of the mode of transacting business on such occa- sions. It is as follows : — " In the name of Christ, our Lord and Saviour ! * 8cc Kemblo, "The Saxons in England," IL, p. 251, and, "Cod. Dipl.," N. lOGß, 1068, 1073, 1075, 327. 206 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. After eight hundred and ninety-six years had elapsed since his birth, in the fourteenth Indiction, the Ealdorman Athelred summoned all Mercian Witan to Gloucester, Bishops, Nobles, and all his Manhood,* and he did this with the knowledge and consent of King Alfred. Here they took counsel how they should administer the Commonwealth in thejustest manner before God and the World, and many men, ecclesiastics as well as laymen, treated with one another about lands and many other things which concerned them. Then Bishop Wer- frith addressed the assembled Witan, and declared that all the forest land which belonged to Wudu- ceastre and the usufruct of which was formerly given for ever by King Athelbald at Worcester to Bishop Werfrith as drift and cutting, had been taken possession of; and said that it had been taken partly at Bislege, partly at Afeningas, partly at Scorranstane, and partly at Thornbyrig, as he be- lieved. Then all the Witan answered that right must be done the church, as well as every one else. On this, Athelwald (Ealdorman?) took the word and said that he had no wish to oppose what was right, that the Bishops Aldberht and Alhhun had formerly treated for the same thing, and that he was always willing to allow every church its share. And thus he charitably ceded it to the Bishop, and ordered his vassal Eglaf to ride thither with Wulf- hun, the priest of the place (Gloucester ?) : and he * " Bisceopas and aldermen and alle his düguöe ;" the last word is very expressive of the " virtus " of the Middle Ages, namely, " Manhood." ACTIVITY OF BISHOP WERFRITII. 207 made him draw out all the boundaries as he read them iu the old books, and as King Athelbald had formerly marked them when he made a present of the land. But Athelwald still wished the bishop and the diocese to allow him the use of the land as long as he lived, and his son Alhmund. They only wanted it in fee, and he hoped that no one would rob either of them of the right of hunting that was granted to him at Langanhrycge at the time when God gave him the land. And Athelwald spoke the word, that any one would always possess it contrary to the grace of God, whoever possessed it besides the lord of that church, with the exception of his son Alhmund; and that he would observe the same friendly agreement with the bishop as long as he lived. If it happened, however, that Alhmund would not acknowledge the convention ; or if he were declared unworthy to possess the land, or, thirdly, if death should overtake him sooner, then the lord of the church should enter into possession, as the Mercian Witan had decided at their meeting, and as the books proved to him. This was settled with the consent of the Ealdor- raan Athelred, and of Athelfled, of the Aldormen Athulf, Athelferth, and Alhhelm ; of the priests, Eadnoth, Alfred, Werfcrth, and Athelwald ; and of his own relations, Athelstan, and Athelhun, as well as of Alhmund, his own son. And so the priest of tlie place and Athclwald's vassal, rode through the land, first to Ginnethlajge and Roddunbcorg itself, then to Smececumb and Sengetlege, then to Ileardanlege, that is also called Dryganlcg, as 208 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. far as Little-Nsegleslege and Athelferth's land. Thus AthelwakFs man showed him the boundaries, as the old books fix and prove them." '"' Bishop Werfrith, who has been already men- tioned, is the highest ecclesiastical dignitary of the country ; he takes — in his own affairs, it is true — the most prominent part, as it were, at the Witen- agemot, and altogether occupies in the temporal government a higher position than even the Arch- bishop of Canterbury claimed at that period in Wessex. A long list of records, treating of dona- tions and property left, prove what an active part he played in the territorial divisions of the country, and how zealously he attended to the landed in- terests of the diocese of Worcester.f The resolu- tions passed at Gloucester, are also signed by Athel- fled, who probably sat on the throne by the side of her husband. There are also Aldormen, com- posing the highest class of the laymen, assembled to deliberate ; as in Wessex, they represent separate districts, but nothing has reached us concerning their lives and actions. :j: A distinction is always carefully drawn between them and the remaining members, who were all freemen, proprietors of land, and who had a full share in the administration of public affairs. The clergy always appear to have been very distinct from the laity. In addition to Werfrith there are generally two other bishops, probably those of Hereford and Litchfield. This * " Cod. Dipl.," N. 1073. t Compare "Cod. Dipl." N. 305, 315, 325, 327,1071. I " Cod. Dipl.," N. 1066, 1068, give their names. ALFRED REBUILDS LONDON. 209 Witenag'eniot öfters us a far truer i)ieture than any that is to be found up to this period in the whole course of Anglo-Saxon history. There is no doubt that the mutual relations between rulers, landed proprietors and serfs were, in the details, very similar in Wessex and JNlercia, and we shall obtain a nearer insight into them when we come to consider their laws. A circumstance of great importance to JNIercia was that London, the ancient emporium of the whole island, was situated in its territory, at the extreme south-eastern boundary of the country, as had been settled at the peace of Wedmor. In consequence of this, in the year 880, Alfred in- stalled there, too, the Duke of Mercia as ruler, after having first rendered the place habitable again by rebuilding the houses, as it had suffered frequently by being burnt and plundered. The last time this had happened to it was at the hands of the Danes, who had landed at Fulham.* It would appear that Alfred had again been obliged to lay siege to London. Perhaps a band of Northmen were still established among its ruins ; but when all the An- gles and Saxons, who in the preceding years had spread themselves abroad as fugitives, or groane\)\y it somewhat dill'er- ently. It was one of these quires that Asser is represented as ])repariug for King Alfred. — Ed.] 282 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. people. It is only tliiis that we can interpret the strange assertion of his biographer, that on the very- same day — which is expressly mentioned as being the 11th November,* St. Martin's day — on which the quotation, which was probably Latin, was com- mitted to writing, the King commenced at once to read and then commentate in Saxon on what he had read, with the purpose of instructing others. This brief notice affords us a striking picture of the origin, progress and aim of his studies. How rapidly the King learned Latin is certainly not recorded, but that he did learn it is shown by those works of his which are still extant. From a scholar, he in a short time became an author, and his labours in this department were first based upon the memorandum-book commenced by Asser. The King had devoted this to his own special use, for the purpose of learning the passages that might be collected in it, and making use of them as occasion required. The writings of the authoES which he read afforded rich materials for making notes, so that in a short time the book grew to the bulk of a Psalter ; and as he continually had it by him day and night, he called it his manual.f * Asser, p. 492 : " In venerabili Martini solemnitate." The occurrence is mentioned under the year 887, shortly after the last annalistic fragment of the work and at the commencement of the last and greatest episode. According to p. 488, Asser was already at Leonaford in the year 885, and began his instruction immediately. t Asser, p. 492. "Quem Enchiridion suum, id est manualem librum nominari voluit, eo quod ad manum ilium die noctuque solcrtissimc habebat." From the very consequent descj-iption in LOSS OF A PORTION OF ALFRED'S WORKS. 283 Unfortunately, all our endeavours to find a copy of this Avork among the manuscript treasures of Saxon England have hitherto been in vain, although it must have been generally known in the middle of the twelfth century. According to the fragments which have come down to us, especially those of William of Malmesbury, it must have contained, besides the collection of various passages from Latin authors, the King's own notes upon the earlier history of his people, and especially of his own house. But very few of these invaluable fragments have been preserved. What important remarks have, perhaps, been lost with this singular book !* To judge from the historical notices which were contained in it, it must have been Alfred's only original work, since the others that we have of him consist of transla- tions which, however, on account of the peculiar Asser, it follows that the manual was not identical with the prayer-book, Wright, " Biogr. Brit." lib, I, p. 395, nevertheless, unites the two into one, and says it contained " prayers, ])sahns, and his daily observations." Now nothing at all is said *of the last, but the author perhaps mistakes Asser's "orationes" for " observations." * W. Malmesb, II. § 123. " Liber proprius, quern patriil lingua Enchiridion, id est manualem librum appcllavit." The individual fragments are to be found in W. Malmesbury, " Vita Aldhelmi " (Wharton, Anglia Sacra), p. 2, on the relationship of Kenterus, the father of Aldhelm, to the West-Saxon royal iamily ; and, p. 4, on Aldhelm's song, and its effect upon the common peo])le. Further, in " Florent. Genealog." p. G93 (ed. 1-'J92), on the government of Kenfus, "Secundum dicta regis vElfredi." In the catalogue which has come down to us of the library of a Norman nionastery (MS. Bodl. 103, fol. 251), of the time of Henry the First, one book is named " iEllVedi regis liber Anglicus." 284 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. freedom that he has taken with his originals, con- tain a great deal that is new. Among these various productions, the translation of the famous Treatise on Consolation of Boethius has always been characterized as Alfred's most ex- cellent work. It is well-known in what high respect this work of the last poet and philosopher among the Romans was held by the whole Middle Ages. It was of a didactic character, in which the few relics of classicality which remained at the time of Gothic rule, are singularly united with much talent, and not without artistic beauty, to the increasing consciousness of a new epoch. Amidst the wants and privations of a terrible prison, into which the powerful arm of an angry German had thrown him, the Roman consoled himself by the doctrines and conversation of Wisdom, who is represented as speak- ing. In this work, according to the old Roman cus- tom, the noble doctrines of the Peripatetics and Stoics are illustrated by examples from antique tra- ditions and narratives, but the belief and trust in one God, the creator of heaven and earth, whose gospel has commenced its conquering course from the centre of the Old World, already penetrates with preponderating force. The faith of the Latin Church received, in the course of time, with the book of the last Roman, as it were, an inheritance from the old classic times, which it carefully cultivated, and flourished on the reanimated and ever young litera- ture of Greece and Rome, until its foundations were shaken by the more liberal and universal spirit of German Protestantism, when the latter had arrived INFLUENCE OF THE MONASTIC SCHOOLS. 285 at maturity. Since that time, Boethius, in the pre- sence of brighter stars, lost the lustre "which sur- rounded him in the jNIiddle Ages. Nevertheless in these centuries of transition from an old to a new epoch, his work was particularly adapted to be the school-book of all philosophical and grammatical learning, and had passed into the very existence of the erudite monastics. The great influence of the monastic schools is very evident, from the fact that as soon as a newly- formed language began to produce, we meet with a version of Boethius in it ; this is also the case with all the most ancient remains of the old High Germans, the Provencals and the Northern French ; even Chaucer formed himself upon it when he gave England its language. It was presented to the Anglo-Saxons by their best prose writer, their King himself. Instructed by ecclesiastics in the litera- ture of his time, Alfred appears to have studied this book, and to have applied himself to its trans- lation before turning his attention to any other. He was not, at that time, sufficiently master of the Latin to rely on himself alone, and it was therefore necessary for Asser to explain and simplify many passages of the original text.* This process is, perhaps, still perceptible in the condensed form of * "W. Malmsb." IL § 122. "Ilic" (Asserio, according to William's mode of writing) " sensum librorum Booetii ' Do C.'on- solationc' planiorihus verbis enodavit, quos rex ipse in Anglicam linguam vcrtit." Likewise in the '' Gcst. Pontif." IL p. 218, with the addition: "Ulis diobus laborc necessario, nostris ridiculo. Sed enim jussu regis f\ictum est, ut Icvius ab oodem in An;;licinn transferretur sermonem." 286 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. the translation in which even some sections of the original are entirely omitted, but the whole charac- ter of the work corresponds too closely with the other productions of Alfred for this to be of much consequence. It may here be remarked, in reference to the other translations, once for all, that the King treated the original matter with great freedom, and very seldom adhered to the letter of the work. If, therefore, on the one hand, it is a difficult task to prove that he was well acquainted with Latin, or rather though we must, from the obvious errors in his translations, infer his knowledge of it to have been defective, on the other hand, the method he adopted afforded a wider field for his labours, as it enabled him to appear as an original writer, un- fettered by the letter of the original work. In this manner, not only does the transformation of indi- vidual ideas * in a manner peculiar to his nationality appear in almost every line, but the Roman senti- ments and feelings are extended or completely displaced by those of the King himself. This may be proved by a few examples in Boethius. Well-known stories from the Roman * The most surprising is the name which he puts in the place of Fabricius. Boethius, II. 7, v. 15, asks: "Ubi nunc fidelis ossa Fabricii manent?" " Alfred Boeth." ed. Cardale, p. 106, translates : " Hwset sint nu psds foremaeran, and f ses wisan gold- smiöes ban welondes ■? " Grimm, " Mythologie," p. 351, conjec- tures that the old skilful god of the north had supplied the place of Fabricius, as Alfred may have mistaken " faber " (smith) for Fabricius. The belief in his existence had long died away, but Alfred shows that he was well acquainted with the national epopee. Compare Kemble, " Saxons," I. p. 421. ALFRED'S TRANSLATION OT BOETHIUS. 287 authors, such as those of Orpheus and Eurydice, or of Ulysses, extend in the amplification which Alfred gave them far beyond the limits of the originals. After giving the contents of the verses in which Boethius treats of Nero, he adds reflec- tions upon the tyrannical application of power, and refers the reader for an example to the tyrant in question. In every instance where, in the Latin, the author speaks of the nothingness of earthly splendour, Alfred's noble soul always finds words full of deep and genuine humanity, that excel even the forcible words of Boethius himself. Finally, when following the third book of Boethius, he comes to speak of the nature of God, and man's relation to him, he throws off all the restraint which had hitherto induced him to adhere more or less to the text, and writes freely from his heart his own feelings and thoughts with regard to God's goodness, wisdom and holiness. It is a very difficult task to make a proper selection from so rich a harvest, where Alfred's own original thoughts meet the reader at every turn; we will, therefore, con- tent ourselves with one example. In his second book, Boethius* says in a short sentence that he had not in any case been guided by ambition, but had only been desirous of meeting with a subject on which to write, in order that virtue might not grow out of fashion from long- silence. The King profits by this opportunity to * II. p. 7. "Turn ego, Scis, iiKjuani, ipsa inininuun nobis ambitionem inortaliuni rcvum fuisse doniiuatam : scd inahM-iam gerendis rebus optavimus, quo nc virtus tacita consenoscenl." 288 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. develope minutely his principles of government. Material and instruments are necessary for every kind of labour. The materials that a king requires in order to govern are a dense population, and a full representation of the three principal classes, those who pray, those who bear arms, and those who labour. In order to support them properly, he must have lands and presents, weapons, bread, beer and clothes to give them, according to the wants of each. Without these he cannot keep instruments necessary for his calling, and without the instru- ments he cannot fulfil the task allotted to him. He then goes on to state that it has been his constant endeavour to use them in a proper manner, but no kind of virtue or power is of any avail without knowledge. What, therefore, is foolishly done can never be of any use. " I can assert this, in all truth," he continues, " that, during the whole course of my existence, I have always striven to live in a becoming manner, and at my death to leave my de- scendants a worthy memorial of me in my works."* Such a confession on the part of the king and hero is so noble and great, that even to the latest ages, wijoever reads it will be filled with astonish- ment and admiration. The preface to the Anglo-Saxon Booth ius cannot possibly have been written by Alfred himself; it is for the most part taken from the preface to the * " Alfred's Boethius," ed. Cardale, p. 92 : " ])3et is nu hraÖost to secgamie. fset ic wihiode weor])fuUice to libbane J>a hwile fe ic lifede, and sefter minum life ]>am monnum to laefanne fe sefter me wseren min gemynd on godum weorcmn," TRANSLATION OF GREGORY'S PASTORAL. 289 translation of the Pastoral of Greg-ory the Groat, but it is to lis an old and valLia1)le testimony that he was the author of the translation, and at the same time speaks of the method which he adopted in his book. " King Alfred was the commentator of this work, wdiich he translated from Latin into English. Some- times he put word for word, sometimes sense for sense, according as he ^vas able to explain most clearly and intelligibly the various and manifold tem- poral matters contained in it. It would be a difficult task to enumerate the different things which in his days, happened to the countries which he governed. Nevertheless he studied this book, and translated it from the Latin into the Eno-lish lanii^uao'e, and after- wards he made it into verses, as it now is. But he prays every one who desires to read the book, in God's name, to pray for him, and not to blame him if he should understand it better than he M'as able to do. For every one should, according to the ability of his understanding, say what he says and do what he does^" The transition to the book itself consists of a brief historical introduction, which is unquestionably the production of Alfred's pen, since his capacity for historical knowledge, which is also recognizable on other occasions, is to be recognized in this work as well. This introduction treats of the times of Theoderic, but in a strain of thought that the author had derived from the unfavourable accounts disseminated by the Church ; the consciousness of his having to do with a prince so nearly related to himself by nationality and an equally elevatc;d posi- u 290 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tion, is hardly perceptible in what he says about Theoderic. Only a few of the ancient Gothic Sagas, contained in Jemandes, glimmer through the work. The Goths come from Scythia ; Reedgota and Eal- leric* reign ; they receive under their dominion all Italy, between the mountains and the island of Sicily; Theoderic is an Amaling.f Although a Christian, and, in the commencement mild and just towards the Romans, he becomes attached to the Arian heresies, and, in consequence, does a great deal of harm, causes the Pope to be executed, and treats the learned and wise Boethius in a cruel manner. This is sufficient to prove that Alfred's Theoderic is much more the diabolical tyrant of the orthodox party, than the mighty old hero of Bern, met with in the German Saga. Alfred's Boethius must, in its time, have been a very popular book, as it is not only mentioned by the more recent chroniclers, such as Malmesbury and others, but has even been preserved, in two old manuscripts, up to the present day.j * Compare the " Song of the Wandering Minstrel," in the " Cod. Exon." ed. Thorpe, p. 322, 3, 4 ; J. Grimm, " Geschichte der Deutschen Sprache," p. 446. I " He wses AniaHng." Kemble, " Saxons," I. p. 424, is of opinion that Alfred can have taken no Roman authority for this definition. I MS. Cotton. Otho A. VI. sec. X. almost destroyed by the fire; copy of the same by Junius, in Oxford; MS. Bodley, 180, sec. XII; init. Editions of Rawlinson, 1698, and Cardale, 1829. There was one manuscript in the library of Leofric, Bishop of Exeter, in the middle of the eleventh century. Compare Wanley " Catal. Lib. MS." p. 80. TRANSLATION OF HISTORY OF OROSIUS. 291 The conversion of the same materials into x^nglo- Saxon verse, which is mentioned in the Prose Pre- face,* appears, on many accounts and from manifold contradictions, not to be Alfred's work. The pei-son who undertook the later copy of the work, and who probably lived towards the end of the following century, seems, most unquestionably, to have had Alfred's translation before him, although he cer- tainly did not know how to use it faithfully.f The next work, which at the present day possesses far greater attractions for us than Boethius, is the version of the Universal History of Orosius. The motive for the King's undertaking this task must be souglit for in his wish to render all the information then current concerning the ancient world acces- sible to the lay portion of the community. He did not enjoy a rich collection from which to choose, when he selected the scanty and incorrect patch- work history of the Spanish priest ; all better au- thorities were buried in oblivion for him, as they were for his contemporaries. Chance had caused the unlearned Orosius to undertake the labours of the historian ; he became acquainted with the Father of the Church, St. Augustin, when the latter was employed, in the year 410, with the eleventh book of his work, " De Civitate Dei."i St. Augustin spoke * " And geworlite hi cfl to IcoÖc." MS. Bodl. ] See the particulars in Wright, "Biogr. Brit. Lit." I. pp. 5»), 57, 400, et seq. The MS. is ahnost entirely destroyed. Fox's edition, 1835. I ''Augustinus de Originc Animse Hominis, ad Bcatuni Ilic- ronymum," ed, Benedict. II. p. 759. V 2 292 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. to his friend of his conviction that the accusation which the heathen writers advanced against Chris- tianity, of its having reduced the Roman world to total destruction, was a lie, and persuaded him to come to the support of this opinion by an historical work written in a corresponding spirit. Orosius accordingly began with the first man, and continued his history of the sufferings of all the nations of the earth, down to Alaric and Athaulf, who were both the terror of Rome. The object of the work recom- mended it to the orthodox clergy, who turned with repugnance from all better works for their instruc- tion. Writers like Trogus Pompeius, Justin,* Livy, and Polybius, whom Orosius had used in a super- ficial manner, were now completely forgotten. Alfred again treats the original text in the man- ner already described ; he adheres to the principle of only taking what appears to him suitable under the circumstances. On this account, he entirely omits the dedication to St. Augustin, as well as several other entire portions of the work, and com- presses seven books into six.-f- In almost every chapter, however, besides the omissions, we find * hi Alfred's "Orosius," eel Barrington, p. 37, these two authors are mentioned, after Oros. I, 8, in the following terms : " Pompeius se hseöena scop and his cnight Justinus wseron Öus singende." f The only manuscript we possess, at present^ bears the title " Hormesta Orosii," which has not yet been explained. There are also Latin manuscripts of Orosius, bearing the title of " Hor- mesta," or "Hormesia Mundi." Compare "Orosius," ed. Haver- kamp, Leyden, 1738. ALFRED'S TRANSLATION OF OROSIUS. 293 several alterations, paraphrases or small additions, of which we will here mention the most remark- able. When Orosius, in the geographical summary of the Ancient World, with which he prefaces the chronicle, treats of Hibernia, the King remarks of the neighbouring island, that, on account of its being situated nearer the setting sun, the weather is warmer there than in Britain."" Orosius mentions the refusal of M. Fabius, after his dearly-bought victory over the inhabitants of Veii, to accept the triumph offered him by the Senate. Alfred appends to this a description of a Roman triumph, but his autho- rities are unfortunately not known. He paints the entry of victorious consuls in cars magnificently adorned and drawn by white horses, and also gives a description of the procession of the Senate. There is, also, a remark on the office of the two first authorities of old Rome.f Attains leaves his land to the Romans, " to boclande," exactly after the fashion of a king of the West-Saxons. ^ The three expeditions of Julius Caesar into Britain, are reduced to one ; but he knows that the spot at which Ca:sar crossed the Thames, previous to his last victory over the Britons, was somewhere in the neighbour- hood of Wallingford. § We are told that, under Commodus, the Capitol was struck with lightning, when, besides other buildings, the library there Mas destroyed. Alfred here inserts, from a preceding * JE\(r. p. 30. Oro.'^. I. p. 2. f -l^l^r- P- «G. Gros. II. p. 5. I ^EUV. p. 181. Oios. V. p. 10. § .Elfr. p. 196. Oros. VI. p. 9. 294: LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. section of the original woriv, the passage : " and all their old books were burnt there. There was as much harm done as in the town of Alexandria, in the library of which place, four hundred thousand books were burnt ; " — namely, during Caesar's stay there, when the fleet was devoured by the flames. * The respect that Alfred, who was a great collector of books, felt for so large a number of them, would not allow him to omit this passage. From these examples it is very evident how much new matter of his own Alfred inserted in his ver- sion of the original work ; but there is one consi- derable and celebrated interpolation in the begin- ning of the book, that, unquestionably, is one of the most important monuments of Alfred's labours that have reached us. It consists of a sketch of the large tracts of country, designated by Alfred as Germania, and of original accounts given by two northern mariners.f Alfred was acquainted with Ptolemy's geographical principles, and, find- ing that they were followed by Orosius in his second chapter, adopted them unconditionally in reference to the three quarters of the globe. We have already spoken, in the proper place, of his relations to Rome, Palestine, and India. In the North alone he knows more than his author ; he * ^Elfr. p. 221. Oros. VII. p. 16, VI. 15, with which compare also Parthey, " Das Alexandrinische Museum," p. 32. I I found the following assertions entirely on Dahlmann's excellent arguments in his "Forschungen," I. p, 401, et seq., which, in all the details against Scandinavian pretensions remain unrefuted. ALFRED'S DESCRIPTION OF GERMANY. 295 quietly corrects erroneous assertions, and, in addi- tion, gives a description of all the countries where, during the ninth century, the German language was spoken. The boundaries of his Germania run along the Rhine and Danube, and extend from tlie Mediterranean to the Gulf of Bothnia ; they are more extensive and defined with greater certainty than those formerly given by Tacitus. The Ger- man territories, properly so called, are divided by him into two great districts, the more southern, which he endeavours to fix as beginning from the East-Franks, and the more northern one from the Old-Saxons.* He then draws the eastern boundary, looking towards the Slaves; and, lastly, treats of the countries of the North and South Danes, as well as of the Swedes, who are reckoned as belong- ing to the Germans. After this, we have the account given by Ohthere to his lord, King Alfred, f and which occupies a prominent place in the history of discoveries. The narrator was a very wealthy mariner and whaler from the district of Halgoland, on the northern coast of Norway. In the course of his travels, un- dertaken probably for the purpose of disposing of the whales he had caught, he must have visited England and become known to the King, who Avas always anxious to acquire information. He re- mained in the King's service for some time. The idea of increasing our knowledge of this Ohthere, * Dahlmann, p. 418. I " Olithcrc saüdt; his hlaforclc .'Elfrcde kyningc," etc. vElfr. p. 21. 296 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. by proving his historical identity, and endeavouring to show that he is the same person as a similarly- named leader of the hordes that came to seek spoil in England, is an idle piece of folly on the part of Scandinavian scholars.* Ohthere informed the King that he had sailed to the north as far as the land extends in that direction, and then, fol- lowing the land when it turns to the east, had finally reached a great stream (the White Sea), the coasts of which, as he found, were only inhabited by Finnlanders. Among the latter the Beormas, who spoke almost the same language, were the only persons who tilled the ground. Ohthere paid a visit to their king, and compares their mode of living with his own. The second portion of his narration contains an account of the long distance that Scandinavia extends towards the south, and of Ohthere's voyage from his native place, Halgo- land, past Sciringesheal (in Christiania Bay), pro- bably through the Great Belt to Schleswig (set H£e=5um).f The other sailor, from whose mouth Alfred wrote the second account, was a certain Wulfstan, whose native-place is not known, and who sailed from Schleswig to a spot called Truso ; which was, pro- bably, situated on the Fresh-Haff, in what is now Prussia. He was the first to give a description of the Esthonians who inhabited that coast.:]: Neither of these accounts, however, dispelled the erroneous idea which obtained in the preceding * Dahlmann, p. 410, f ^^'^'^U PP- 427, 443. I Alfred, p. 25, ct seq. bede's history. 297 centuries, that Scandinavia was a large island and that the Gulf of Bothnia, or Quaen-Sea, flowed into the North Sea. In spite of this, however, Alfred will always be entitled to the gratitude of all future ages for his meritorious efforts to extend our know- ledge of the globe by recording these statements, and for his own truly great German notion of an eth- nography of Germania. These efforts elevate the King, who was so fond of historical and topogra- phical researches, to the rank of a geographer, in- disputably the greatest one of his age. But how few are there at present who know anything of his merit in this particular, or can estimate it according to its worth ! * As Orosius treated of the kingdoms of the hea- thens, and, in some measure, of the universal his- tory of the ancient world, so did the royal author's own great countryman, Bede, furnish him, in his invaluable work, with materials for a Christian his- tory, as well as for one of his own people. There can be no doubt that Alfred gave up the considera- * At present there is only one manuscript known of the Saxon Orosius, MS. Cotton. Tiber. B. I. plainly written and almost con- temporaneous; MS. Lauderdale, which should have been in tlie pos- session of Lady Dysart, was not to be found. There is a copy by Junius, in Oxford. Sir John Spelman first gave a Latin trans- lation of the geographical portions in his " Vita ^Ifredi." In 1773, Daines Barrington published the whole book, together with a geographical dissertation by Reinhold Forster. Since that period, although the want of a good edition has been much felt, none has been published. Only some detached portions, among which are the Germania, and the narratives of the travels, arc printed, with critical observations, by Thorpe, " Analecta Anglo- Saxonica," p. 81, et seq. ed. ii. 298 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tion of the whole subject to devote himself to a particular branch, when he resolved to translate, for the sake of the laity, Bede's national work, which, up to that period, was accessible to the clergy alone. Bede composed his history of the church at the beginning of the eighth century, in order to preserve among the Angles and Saxons the memory of their conversion, and the extension of the Chris- tian faith among them. Many considerable por- tions of his work, however, are of a temporal na- ture, and treat of the development of the various petty principalities which the German settlers established in the conquered island. As Bede lived in the north of England, and never left that part of the country during the whole course of a long life, his information is most minute and most certain when he is describing his own immediate neighbourhood. He derived most of his knowledge respecting the southern part of the island from hearsay alone ; but he succeeded in weaving into his narrative, many peculiar national elements which existed in the form of sagas, and which we meet at a later period in the Saxon Annals. On this . account, especially, he ranks third in the list of the first historians of the Teutonic peoples ; although by the superior arrangement of his materials, by his strict adherence to a higher standard of excellence, and, above all, by his immense store of knowledge, he rises far above Jornandes the Goth, Gregory of Tours, and Paul the Deacon. His reputation penetrated, even during his life-time, as far as Rome, and soon extended over Western Europe. TRANSLATION OF BEDE'S HISTORY. 299 It was not until a hundred and fifty years after Bede's death that liis book was translated — that this was done by Alfred is certainly not evident from any passage in the translation, in which the King's name does not occur, and which has no in- troduction from his pen. But there is no scarcity of early witnesses to prove that he alone could be the author.* It is, in fact, probable that when the editors of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, who must have commenced their labours soon after the year 890, consulted Bede's work, already possessed Al- fred's translation, since they introduce into the Chronicle an error committed by him.f In conformity with the object he had in view, Alfred composed an abridgment of the larger his- tory of his people, and evidently endeavoured to adapt it to the southern portion of the island. For this reason all the detailed accounts of the rela- tions existing between the church at York and * W. Malmesb. II. § 123, gives a list of the works : " Orosius," " Pastoralis Gregorii/' and " Gesta Anglorum Bedae." The most ancient witness is Archbishop Alfric, about the year 1000, in his " Homily on Day IIII. Id. INIartis. Sti Gregorii papte urbis Romanse inclyti, Ilistoria Anglorum, Öa öe yEH'red cyning of Ledene on Englisc awende ;" Thorpe, " The Homilies of the Anglo-Saxon Church," II. p. IIG. Layamon, in his " Brut," (ed. Sir F. Madden, I. p. 2), about 1205, used the translation: " He nam fa Englisca hoc, pa makede scint Beda." I Bede, I. p. 9. " Maximus impcrator crcatus est," is trans- lated by Alfred : " So caserc was aceuncd " (born). And thus, also, " Chron. Sax." a. 3bl, " wacs i;eboren." Compare H. Schmid, "Geschichte des Angelsächs Rechts." p. lvii. N. 1. 300 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. the neighbouring Scots, who were of a different religion, are omitted ; while, on the other hand, the history of the first Christian kings of Wessex is translated word for word. The same is the case with the account of the first conversion of the peo25le to Christianity. Most of the documents introduced by Bede into his works, as well as the letters of the bishops and popes, are omitted. There are a few exceptions ; such, for instance, is the first missive of Gregory the Great, which, however, is only given in an abridged form and in the third person. The hymns, too, composed by Bede upon saints and bishops, do not appear in the transla- tion; but then again, the national story of the poet, Csedmon, is faithfully retained, and the spe- cimen of his poetical skill translated into Saxon verse, which, in accordance with the other conclu- sions at which we have arrived, must be Alfred's own, for Csedmon himself wrote in the iVnglian dialect.* Alfred did not think himself justified in depriving his people of the miracles related by Bede. There is one peculiarity in the work, and that is, that he precedes the introduction with a general list of all the various chapters, including those which he has omitted.f These few remarks * [The inference here is not at all necessary : — if Alfred in- troduced a fragment of an Anglian poem into his book, he would of course write it in the West-Saxon dialect. The same poetry would be repeated by the minstrel in Northumberland in the Anglian dialect, in Kent in the Kentish, and in Wessex in West- Saxon. This was always the case in the minstrelsy of the Mid- dle Ages. — Ed.] t Whelcc, Bede, p. 8, Smith, Bede, pp. 479, 480. WRITINGS OF GREGORY THE GREAT. 301 will suffice, perhaps, to give an idea of the cha- racter of the work on which the writer has be- stowed far less pains than he did on all his other productions, and in which we find no additions to make up for the frequent omissions. It is a matter of astonishment, however, that Alfred did not seize this opportunity of supplying, from his own know- ledge, of which we have spoken in another place, any deficiencies in the early history of Wessex, of which Bede had learnt but little. These defects, however, are no reason why the translation of Bede should, in the present day, be almost entirely ne- glected. '''' All Alfred's other works were of a theological nature ; he must have taken an especial pleasure in the writings of Gregory the Great ; for, after he had become acquainted with them himself, he took measures to diffuse them, in the language of the country, for the welfare and advantage of his clergy and of the people committed to their charge. Gre- gory, who was the first of all the Popes to take a prominent position in the history of the world, had, by his deeds, closely and eternally interwoven his own history with that of the British Island. It Avas owing to his strenuous exertions that the Teutonic conquerors of the island were won over to Chris- * There is one manuscript of this work in the University Ijhrary at Cambridge ; another, MS. Corp. Christi Coll. Cambr. 41 ; MS. Cotton. Olho B. XI. was burnt. There are the edi- tions ofWheloc, 1613, and Smith, 1722, as supplements to the original. It is much to be regretted that Stevenson did not publish the work with his excellent text of the " IlistoriaEcclesi- astica" (English Historical Society," a. 1838). 302 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tia.iiity, and Alfred, in the name of the people? wished to render him thanks for such a boon, by making the latter acquainted with the literary works of this prince of the church. From the great number of the Gregorian writings, which, far and wide, had become the public property of the Catholic Church, Alfred first selected that on the Care of the Soul : " that book, so full of a deep knowledge of human nature and pious feeling — that book which teaches us, so simply and so completely, the great art of wisely and gently governing our souls." '" Gregory had written the " Regula Pastoralis " at the beginning of his pontificate, when he was reproached with having wished to escape by flight from the election which nominated him to the Papal See. f " He had col- lected in it many things that are scattered in dif- ferent places through his works : he endeavoured to show in it by what means and by what dispo- sition of mind the spiritual pastor ought to obtain his office, how he ought to conduct himself in his office, how he ought to vary his manner of address- ing his hearers so as to suit their several condi- tions, and how, in the case of his exertions being crowned with success, he ought to guard against arrogance. This book exercised, during the follow- ing centuries, a considerable influence in exciting a better feeling among the clergy, and an endeavour to improve the condition of the church. The re- formatory synods under Charlemagne adopted it as * Stolberg, "Leben des grossen Alfred," p. 271. t Lau, "Gregor L der Grosse," p. 315. TRANSLATION OF GREGORY'S WRITINGS. 303 the law of their proceedings for the improvement of the ecclesiastical profession." * From the Franks, Gregory's reputation, and the conviction of his ex- cellence, penetrated to the Saxons, and their King's translation of his work was chiefly instrumental in bringing about this result. The original work it- self, however, was one of the books which Gregory had formerly given to St. Augustin, and which, as late as the fifteenth century, were in the library of the monastery at Canterbury.f Alfred cannot have undertaken the translation until after the year 890, that is, after he had occu- pied himself for several years with similar works. In the preface, which we have mentioned several times in the preceding section, besides Asser, Grimbald and John, he also thanks his Archbishop Plegmund for the assistance he has received. In this instance, too, he sometimes translated word for word, and sometimes merely gave the sense, accord- ing as these men deemed it feasible or not so to do. In spite of the comparatively larger number of manuscripts, however, his translation has not yet been printed. The few Anglo-Saxon scholars capable of the task have been prevented from un- dertaking it by their ignorance of the subject which, * Neander, " Allgemeine Geschichte der Christlichen Ileligion und Kirche," III. Fourth Section, p. 1. I Alfred himself, in the poetical introduction, "MS. Iladoii," 20, says : — " J)is Eerond gewrit. Agostinus. Ofer sealtne sjc. suÖan brohtiB." Compare Wanley, " Catal. Libr. MSS." p. 172. 304 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. in our times, has lost its former importance. It would, however, have been very easy for any one to convince himself, by a comparison of several chap- ters of the manuscripts now at Oxford with the Latin text, that the King followed the latter far more faithfully than he had done when translating Boethius and Orosius, where he had much more frequent opportunities of allowing his own thoughts and knowledge full play. He appears, also, to have omitted nothing essential, for the great feature of his plan was to present Gregory's work to all his subjects in the entire state in which it was known to the few who understood Latin. But he has left us the most noble memorial of his spirit and his pen in the excellent preface, in which he not only states the object he had in view when publishing this particular book, but the far higher one, never attained by any other temporal ruler, which induced him to devote himself to study. He wanted, by his own example, to restore learning that had entirely disappeared, and it w^as for this reason that he alluded in such forcible words to the more happy state of things in former days, but which, however, might be again attained by educating and instructing the young. He also greatly desired that some means should be taken to remedy the general scarcity of books, and he, therefore, took care that a copy of the " Pastoral," with a golden tablet worth fifty mancusses,* was sent to every bishop in * " Ond to selcum biscep-stole on minum rice wille ane onsendan. ond on selcre bio an sestel. se bio on fiftegum mances- san." MS. Hatton, 20. MIRACLES OF ITALIAN SAINTS. 305 his kingdom. Three of these copies, with a dedica- tion to Pleg-miind Archbishop of Canterbury, Wer- frith Bishop of A'S'orcester, and Wulfsige Bishop of Sherburne, have been preserved up to the present day, and agree wonderfully with each other in the form of the handwriting. To the preface is added a poetical introduction, and, at the end of the book, there is an appen- dix, also in verse, and generally containing the same thoughts as the preface, but couched in the peculiar form of expression of Anglo-Saxon poetry which leant towards Nature, and her example. These verses have, as yet, attracted too little atten- tion; as, however, they form part of the original manuscripts, it appears unquestionable that they were from the pen of Alfred himself. But at pre- sent there is no chance of their being published, anymore than the entire translation.* There was another work of Gregory the Great which was translated ; not by Alfred himself, how- ever, but by his friend Werfrith, Bishop of Wor- cester. The great Pope had formerly composed the book in question at the urgent request of his friends, who begged him to give an account of the lives and miracles of the Italian saints. In doing * Manuscripts : MS. Ilatton, 20, in Bibl. Bodl. ; MS. Bibl. Publ. Univ. Camb. ; MS. Cotton. Tiber. B. XL, injured by tlie fire. MS. Cotton. Otho B. II. which was burnt, liad been sent to Hchstan, Bishop of London. In addition to these, there arc two more recent copies in Trinity ColU^gc and Corpus ('hristi College, Cambridge. The preface was printed in Parker's Asser, 1574, in Wise's Asser, 1722, and in Wriglil, " P)ingr. Bril. Lit," I. p. 397. X 306 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. this, lie materially increased the superstition of his own times, and that of succeeding centuries, by the publication of a number of the most incredible and frequently most absurd legends, and he likewise, in this patchwork production, appears to have made the Roman Catholic Church in particular a present of the theory of purgatory. As he presented these stories without any connection with each other, and in the form of conversations with his intimate friend the Deacon Peter, he gave them the suitable name of "Dialogues." These dialogues soon became a popular book in every country, and were even trans- lated into Arabic and Greek.* Bishop Werfrith did not undertake the transla- tion of his own accord. The King commissioned him to do it, and this work must have been closely connected with those of a similar nature executed by Alfred. It is, however, strange to find it already mentioned by Asser,f who does not yet give a sepa- rate list of Alfred's works, because, as we may sup- pose, he wrote his biography precisely at the time that he assisted Alfred in his literary labours. Among the many miraculous stories in the book were also many that referred to circumstances that had really happened. Thus, for instance, the Life and Deeds of the Holy Benedict were connected with * Lau, "Gregor I. der Grosse," p. 315. t Asser, p. 486, " Werfrithum — qui imperio regis libros Dialogorum Gregorii papsD et Petri sui discipuli de Latinitate primus in Saxonicam linguam, aliquando sensum ex sensu ponens, elucubratim et elegantissime interpretatus est." Compare " W. Malmesb." II. § 122, " jussu regis." INTRODUCTION TO THE DIALOGUES. 307 the history of the later kings of the East-Goths; and here, again, we may conclude that Alfred felt interested in the fate of a race so nearly related to his own. No one has yet been willing to undertake the publication of the Saxon translation. Yet it is sufficiently evident from one of the manuscripts, and also from Asser's testimony, that Werfrith imitated his King's example by not following strictly the letter of the original work. Further, it is probable that he had only met with a selection of the legends, and hardly translated half of the four books con- tained in the Latin text.* The few words which serve as introduction to the *' Dialogues " were, perhaps, written by Alfred himself: at any rate, they were written in his name, and in conformity with his suggestions. We are informed therein, that, from the perusal of religious works, he had arrived at the conviction that it was incumbent on him, whom God had endowed with such temporal honours, to turn his attention now and then from the affairs of this world to divine and holy subjects. He had, therefore, begged his faithful friend f to translate some such books, which treated of the doctrines and miracles of the saints, in order that he might comfort and strengthen his courage by them, when he was oppressed by the * I have only looked at MS. Ilatton, 7G, in Bibl. Bodl. sec. XI. It certainly is very fragmentary. The only other copy that has been preserved is MS. Cor]). Christ. Coll. Canib. N. 322, sec. XI. f " And ic forpam sohtc and wilnodc to niiuuni getrywum freonduni," etc. MS. Hatton. 70. X 2 308 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. troubles of this earth. The translation was, there- fore, designed principally for himself. He was a true child of his own times and found pleasure in the superstitions that then prevailed. There is, also, another translation from the wri- tings of the most ancient Fathers of the Church which possesses some claims to be considered one of Alfred's performances. This is the "Anglo-Saxon Anthology" from a work of St. Augustin. The Bishop of Hippo Regius composed the two short books of Soliloquies, about the year 887, before he ■had taken a part in the great dogmatical disputes. He treated therein of the salvation of the soul as only to be attained by faith, love, and hope, and of the difference between truth and error, towards the former of which the soul yearned, since the soul itself is the seat of truth, and, therefore, immortal. These ideas are worked out in a similar fashion to that afterwards adopted by Boethius : they are cast in the form of a conversation between the author and Reason, and it was from this fact that St. Au- gustin chose this title for his little work."^'' In the only manuscript of the Saxon Selection which we possess, and which is full of gaps and errors, the last fragmentary words, which are evidently in- tended to wind up the book, run thus : — " Here end the sayings which King Alfred took from the book which we call . . . . ."f This, * " S. Avigustini Opera," ed. Bened. I. p, 426. t "Sser endiaö pa, cwiöas ]>e iElfred kining alses of j^sere bee ]>e we liatao on " MS. Cotton. Vitellius A, 15, sec. XII. Junius's copy in Oxford. THE ANGLO-SAXON ANTHOLOGY, 309 however, is the only testimony we have that Al- fred composed the Selection, for none of our autho- rities mention it with his other Avorks. We may perhaps, look upon the preface, as another proof It is written in a strain of thought that is not Avith- out merit, and possesses certain peculiar features that characterized the prefatory remarks which Al- fred was in the habit of writing ; but unfortunately, like the rest of the book, it has reached us in a very mutilated form. The author draws a comparison between the collecting of the wood necessary for the erection of an earthly house and the materials requisite for building the heavenly home promised us through St. Augustin, St. Gregory, St. Jerome and many other holy Fathers. He afterwards goes on to say that every man desires to enjoy the house that he holds in fee from his Lord, and wbich he has erected under the protection of the latter, and then alludes to our longing for the heavenly dwelling. The style is remarkable, and the ex- ecution poetical, assuming at times, through not unfrequent alliterations, a regular metrical form. Nothing is said of any particular object which the translator had in view when he undertook his task, although w^e may conclude, from the prefaces al- ready mentioned, that Alfred rarely omitted some allusion of this kind. In addition to tliis, the whole work is written in impure Saxon, a fact that is not, perhaps, to bo altogether ascril)ed to the more re- cent date of the manuscri])t, and the faults com- mitted by the coj)yist. For these reasons it may be asserted, with quite as great a degree of j)robability, 310 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. that the collector and translator of the maxims, in the twelfth century, endeavoured to supply his own want of celebrity by giving out at the end of the book that it was written by the beloved monarch, whose works, at that period, were well-known and read by the people. The Soliloquies, also, have never been printed. They will not become known before the plan of an edition of all the works ascribed to King Alfred is not only drawn up by more competent scholars than those who have hitherto treated the subject, but carried out, also, in accordance with sound critical principles. Not only have the deeds of the King of the West-Saxons been poetically amplified, and their number augmented during the latter portion of the Middle Ages, but, as his authorship was then a well-known fact, many other works with which we are, at present, unacquainted, or in which we posi- tively deny his having had any share, are attributed to him. As early as the end of the following cen- tury,"^' we find it asserted that the number of works translated by him is unknown. Malmesburyf has a remarkable notice, that Alfred commenced trans- lating the Psalms, but had hardly finished the first part before death snatched him from his task. This Norman monk, whose knowledge of the na- tional language was certainly not very great, must have had some grounds for attributing to King Alfred the Anglo-Saxon Psalter then in use. We * iEthehveard, IV. p. 519 : "Volumina numero ignoto." t "l^esta Reg." II. § 123. ALFRED'S PROVERBS. 311 have several copies of this work, which is even said to be the work of Aldhelm. He must have had some earlier authority for stating that the King had died while engaged in the work. In a word, this was the belief of the twelfth century : some persons asserting that only parts of the Holy Scriptures, and others that the whole Bible was translated by him.'^^ About the same time that such assumptions found credit, proverbs of Alfred, in a jioetic form, were already familiar in the mouths of the people.f A work of this description has been preserved in various manuscripts, and even in various dialects of the thirteenth century. Alfred is, however, not the author, but the hero of the work. It com- mences with a description of an assembly of many bishops and learned men, of earls and knights, which was held at Seaford, and at which King Alfred, the shepherd and the darling of England, presided. But the whole is a pure piece of fic- tion, and can hardly be reconciled with historic truth. Then commences a whole series of detached sections, each with the words, "Thus spoke Alfred." This formula is followed by a variety of exhorta- tions to fear God, to practise obedience, M'isdom, self-control, and various other virtues. In the * " Boston of Bury," and " Ilistoria Elicnsis." Compare Ilearne, "Spelman's Life of King Alfred," p. 213. f Ailred of Kievaux, in yEwysdcn, X. Scriptt. p. 355, " Extant pavabol« ejus, plurimum habentes tedificationis, sed et vcnustatis et jucunditatis." Compare " Annal. Wintoii," ap. Wharton, " Anglia Sacra," I. p. 289. 312 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. thirteenth section,* Alfred addresses the discourse to his son, whose name, however, is not mentioned, and gives him similar good advice. The substance of these proverbs recurs in the most varied forms, and at all periods, during the Middle Ages, not only in England, but in every other Teutonic country. The poem under con- sideration appears to have first assumed its present form in tlie twelfth century, and to have been written in the same language of transition to the earliest English in which we possess the long epic poem of the priest Layamon. Like another Solomon, Alfred utters the sentiments ascribed to him at a Witenagemot ; and the fact that, during the rule of the Normans, the English people as- cribed to their greatest king, whom they gratefully remembered, the treasures of their own primitive national wisdom, and even encircled him with ro- mance, proves how great was the feeling of nation- ality which they still retained. How deeply rooted was their attachment, which was founded more upon legendary fiction than history, is especially demonstrated by the touching surname of "The darling of England," given to the King, as well as by their conviction that Alfred was the wisest and most pious man in England, and the tradition that it was he who had restored to his people their old laws, which were so dear to them, and the loss of which they so deeply regretted. There must have been a great number of such * Kenible's edition of " Solomon and Saturn," p. 244 (Alfric Societv). ALFRED'S FABLES. 313 proverbial verses g-enerally kno^vn, for, in a sonie- Avhat later poem, allusion is made to several which are not at present to be found in the so-called " Proverbs of King Alfred."* Besides his versions of " Parables and Proverbs," the King is said to have prepared also, for the use of the Anglo-Saxons, a version of the " Fables of iEsop," that is, of the stories of animals, so popular with all Teutonic nations. We meet with this piece of information at the conclusion of the Nor- man-Frencli Fables written by the poetess, Mary of France, in the thirteenth century, but it is probable that merely the name of the Saxon king- had been adopted in copies of these Fables published in England. f Besides this, it has been clearly * "The Owl and the Nightingale," Kemble, "Solomon and Saturn," p. 249. t Mary of France, iEsop, in MS. Harlei. 978, fol. 87, h. :— " Por amur le cunte Willame Le plus vaillant de nul realme Meintenur de cest livre feire E del Engleis en romans treire ^sope apelum cest livre Qu'il translata c fist escrire Del Griu en Lathi le turna Li reis Alurez qui mut Tama Lc translata puis en Engleis E ieo I'ai rimee en Franceis." Roquefort, in his edition of the works of this poetess, IL pp. 31-^ et seq., follows another MS. and substitutes the name of "Henri" for " Alurez," In a manuscript Latin yEsop (MS. Mus. Brit, Reg. 15, A. VII.) we find the following passage: " Deindc Rex Angliae Affrus in Anglicam linguam cum transferri praccepit.'' 314 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. proved that the epic series of Reynard the Fox, con- taining tales of animals, was indigenous only to the Franks and Saxons of the continent, and not to the Anglo-Saxons. Lastly, we learn from a very recent authority, that is deserving of little credit, that Alfred, like the great descendant of the Hohenstauffens, Frede- ric II., wrote a book on Falconry. We know that, like all German princes and nobles, he w^as passionately fond of hunting, but the notion of his having treated the matter scientifically appears to be altogether founded on the misinterpretation of a passage in Asser, in which that author tells us that the King provided for the maintenance and instruc- tion of all kinds of huntsmen and falconers.* These spurious works deserved to be cursorily men- tioned, because they prove that the fact of the King of the West-Saxons having distinguished himself as a versatile writer, was still fresh in men's minds, when they were no longer able to read his genuine productions. Of these there was a large number and their existence was patent at all times, although it was not until a far more recent period, on the manifestation of a more general interest in the inves- tigation of Teutonic languages and history, that an acquaintance with them was revived. The peculiar A Low-German copy, cited by Lappenberg in the " Götting Gelehrt. Anzeigen," April 1, 1844, speaks of a " Koning Affrus van Englant." * " Liber Alured Regis de custodiendis Accipitribus," in Catal. Libr. MSS. a^d. Christi, a. 1315, apud Wanley, "Catal. Prtef." Compare Asser, p. 486, " et falconarios et accipitrarios, canicu- larios quoque docere." PAUCITY OF WRITERS IN ALFRED'S TIME. 315 characteristics of Alfred's literary labours then first became gradually known and carefully studied. It was soon acknowledged that his prose-style was most pithy, and written in the purest idiom of his mother-tongue. The acquaintance, too, which we now possess of Anglo-Saxon literature proves most indubitably that, previously to Alfred's time, poetry was predominant, and that to him princi- pally belongs the merit of having founded a school of prose composition, which, in the years imme- diately following his death, was most fully de- veloped, especially in works of devotion. Alfric, the best prose writer of the tenth century, in- forms us that, up to his time, there existed no other religious works in Saxon, than those of King Alfred.* It does not appear that the noble example set by the King, to such of his subjects as nourished a love of learning, found many imitators during his life- time. Among his teachers, ecclesiastical friends, and bishops, only Asser and Werfrith can, with any certainty, be designated as authors. Some con- nection may have existed between Alfred and the scholastic philosoi:)her, John the Irishman, although it cannot be clearly proved ; the latter's knowledge and learned productions, however, were most cer- tainly not the growth of English soil. But there is one great work bearing no author's name, which must undoubtedly bo referred to the * Alfric's preface to his " Homilies," ed. Thorpe, I. p. 2 : ** buton ])ain bocuin Öo yEUred cyning- siioterlicc aweiule of" Ledene ou Englibc." 316 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. person and influence of the King, and j^robably owes its existence to Ms endeavours to revive learning and literature ; this work is the " Anglo-Saxon Chronicle," the principal source of information for Alfred's life.* The oldest manuscript f copy of these annals, which were the very first ever written in Teutonic prose, reaches in its most ancient form down to the year 891, the character in which it is written being exactly similar to that of those manu- scripts of Alfred's time, that have been preserved up to the present day. As the account of Pleg- mund's election to the archbishopric of Canterbury is contained in that portion of the manuscript where the original character changes for one of a more re- cent date, the merit of introducing a fuller and more detailed style of composition into these annals has, with an utter want of anything like scholarship, been attributed to this great teacher and dignitary of the King. But an historical work of this description has never any one particular author. The monks of some cloister, situated probably in the south-eastern part of England, as the information relating to the north is all derived from Bede, and the dialect bears a slight tinge of the Anglian idiom, possessed undoubtedly some short historical notices concern- ing earlier ages in their calendars. Some portions * [It is but right to observe that all historical antiquaries do not agree in Dr. Pauli's notions regarding the age of the Anglo- Saxon Chronicle ; and there is certainly no reason for believing that King Alfred had anything to do with it. Perhaps it is safest to look upon it as having been commenced in the course of the tenth century. — Ed.] * MS. Corp. Christi Coll. Cambr. CLXXIII. THE ANGLO-SAXON CHRONICLE. 317 of the matter were tlien inserted from Bede, while others were taken from Welsh and Saxon tradi- tions, which still, in some places, bear the evident stamp of the national ballads. This circumstance and the King's determination to raise his mother- tongue to the position formerly occupied by the Latin language, which had been forgotten, gave rise to a history written in Saxon. In addition to this, the events of the age, and the deeds of its great hero, completely changed the form of the Chronicle, which becomes more and more diffuse, a circum- stance that is particularly discernible from the year 851, and this is another reason for our hardly enter- taining a doubt that the Chronicle for the following forty years is contemporaneous with the events it describes. We are here again greatly tempted to suppose that we can recognise Alfred's enthusiasm for history, to which, if we are correct, we should then have to attribute the circumstance of now possessing an authentic account of at least a portion of his own life, and the history of his time. It is very certain that the first part of the Chronicle existed at the period when he was compelled, for the second time, to resume the conflict with the Danes ; the composition of the succeeding part belongs to the first half of the next century, and, from that time up to the middle of the twelfth, the details of this highly remarkable literary monument continue to increase in size, joining on to one an- other after the manner of crystals.* * Can Galmar refer to tlie Chronicle when he speaks of Alfred's works in the foUowinf^ manner? V. 3451, et seq. : — 318 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. A large field for the display of activity both in learning and teaching was thus opened for reflective minds among the Anglo-Saxons ; the King himself had been the first to lay the foundations of a na- tional literature. But his unceasing exertions for the advantage of his country were extended to other things, where, indeed, the results were visible ones, but where the mind was not the less actively employed. Alfred took an interest in several of the arts, and was himself very often the inventor and suggestor of the various plans adopted. Of all the works of art, however, which originated with him, we have hardly anything left, and our desire to become acquainted with the taste of Alfred and his con- temporaries must still remain, as it has hitherto done, unsatisfied. With regard to architecture, it is difficult for us to say whether the sight of Rome exercised an early influence on his imagination. The whole style of the ecclesiastical architecture of the Anglo-Saxons had, since the seventh cen- tury, been closely connected with that which then extended from Rome to other countries, but whether the deep impression made on him, when a boy, by the capital of the Ancient World was the cause of his afterwards aspiring to a greater degree of perfection, in accordance with Italian models, is a question that must remain unanswered, as " II fist escrivere uu livre Engleis Des aventures, e des leis, E de batailles de la terre, E des reis ki fircut la guere." ALFRED'S ARCHITECTURAL LABOURS. 319 there is, in all England, no building exhibiting traces of this description, and which we can with certainty assert to have been erected during Alfred's life. Here .again we must content ourselves with collecting the scanty information transmitted by historians on this subject, and forming our own conclusions. With regard to the buildings which were under- taken by Alfred himself, we are distinctly informed that, in erecting them, he did not pay the slightest attention to the customs of his forefathers in such cases, but that he trusted to new ideas of his own for producing something far more venerable and magnificent.'" By these buildings it is plain that we must understand churches and monasteries, and as so many sacred edifices, which were reduced to ashes, had to be rebuilt, it was very likely that a new method and a new style were introduced during their erection. Whenever it is necessary to restore anything that has been fundamentally destroyed, the mind becomes fertile in expedients from the necessity of the case, and adopts those innovations which are alone proper under the cir- cumstances. This must have been evident in the two monasteries at Athelney and Sbaftsbury, although Alfred had procured assistance from abroad for the execution of his artistic notions, in the same manner as he had done for his literary un- dertakings. We know that artists and artificers from the most different nations of the earth, and * Assor, J). 486: " vencrahiliora ct pvctiosiora nova siui niachinatione." 320 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. skilled in all kinds of work, were employed by him."^^' In the little island of Athelney, surrounded as it was by water and underwood, there was a great want of space. Besides this, Alfred was resolved that the place having once been a fortress should remain so still ; surrounded by water it was only accessible from the east by means of a bridge, at the extremities of which, especially at the western one, were strong re- doubts.f Ke caused the monastery to be built on the island itself, and had good reasons for defending it against the wildness and insecurity of the neigh- bourhood. We learn, from an account written in the twelfth century, at which time the whole build- ing was in good repair, that the church was very small, but built in quite a new style of architec- ture. Four pillars were sunk in the ground, on account, no doubt, of the extremely moist nature of the soil, and supported the whole edifice, which rested on four circular arches that were erected upon them.:}: At Shaftsbury, Alfred is said to have built the town itself, as well as the monastery ; and that, if our authority is to be believed, as early as the year 880. § We have already spoken of the rebuilding of London. The new cathedral at Win- chester, dedicated by Alfred to the Virgin, must * Asser, p. 495: "Ex multis gentibus coUectos et in omni tevreno sedificio edoctos." t Asser, p. 493 : " In cujus poiitis occidental! limite avx munitissima pulcherrima Operations consita est." I W. Malmesb. " Gesta Pontif;' II. p. 255. § W. Mahuesb. "Gesta Pontif." II. p. 251. Compare Asser, p. 495. MAGNIFICENCE OF ALFRED'S PALACES. 321 have been fit for the performance of service during his life-time, as Grimbald filled the ofl^ce of abbot there : it was not completed, however, till the year 908, when Archbishop Plegmund consecrated the tower.* There were, also, in various parts of the king- dom, towns and fortified places that had to be repaired or erected afresh ; and on the occasion of the war, with which the country was still menaced, breaking out again, people must soon have begun to turn their attention to walls and ramparts as a means of defence. We cannot name the towns which Alfred thus restored ; and it appears that, on the whole, he did not make much progress in his designs, as the innate sluggishness of his sub- jects offered insurmountable obstacles to his so doing.f At the places where he was accustomed to reside with his court, Alfred made a display of royal mag- nificence ; the various buildings were ornamented, as usual, according to his plans, | with gold and silver, while the halls and royal apartments were very artistically built with stone and wood ; he even had stone villas moved from the spots they at first occupied, to places more befitting a royal re- sidence. In every instance it was he who furnished tlie idea which he generally succeeded in carrying out. * iEthelwcard, IV. p. 519. I Asser, p. 493 : " Propter pigriiuini populi iiupcrata non implcntur," etc. I Asser, p. 492 : " Illo cdoccntc." 322 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. We shall speak of the perfection to which he brought naval architecture when we have occasion to mention, in the next Section, the circumstances that induced him to turn his attention to it. Among the smaller productions of the art of that period, we are at present most particularly struck by the horometer which Alfred himself invented ; his biographer has given us a description of this invention. It can only have been by the constant observance of a system of the strictest punctuality that this great prince was enabled to do so much, and in so many different ways. But the blue sky, with its constellations, did not always tell the time ; in his kingdom there were many dark clouds and frequent showers that prevented him measuring the hours by the sun and moon. Alfred's inventive mind, however, soon extricated him from this difß- culty : he caused his chaplains, Athelstan and Wer- wulf, with whose names we are acquainted, to bring him a sufficient quantity of wax, of which he weighed a portion equal in weight to seventy-two pence."' Out of this mass he had six tapers made, all of exactly equal weight, and each twelve inches long, with indentations in them at every inch. These six tapers used to burn day and night, for four-and-twenty hours, before the relics of the saints that he took with him on all his journeys ; but here again, the influence of the w^eather seemed to threaten his plans with failure. The violent winds, that often blew without ceasing for days together, * Asser, p. 496 : " Tanta cera quee septuaginta duos denarios pensaret." "ALFRED'S JEWEL." 323 used to find their way through the thin doors and windows of the churches, as well as the cracks in the walls and flooring, and the slight covering of the tents. The light either went out, leaving the King in darkness, or else it burnt down more quickly than it should have done in order to reach again the same astronomical point at which the commencement of each day was fixed. Alfred obviated this in the following manner : he had a lantern very skilfully constructed out of wood and thin sheets of horn, the latter being white and pared down so finely that they were not less transparent than a vessel of glass. The door of the lantern, also, was made of horn, and shut so closely that no draught could possibly come through. In this place of safety, then, he placed his tapers : when they were burnt out their place was immediately supplied by others ; and thus without a water-clock, or another instru- ment of a more artistic description, which was not yet invented, he succeeded in marking exactly the time which was so valuable to him. As he was in the habit of having all kinds of ornaments made, of course he could not do without the assistance of goldsmiths ; * and a very remark- able specimen of their workmanship has been pre- served up to the present day ; we allude to the so-called " Alfred's Jewel," which is fashioned with great delicacy and art, and of which various draw- ings have, at different times, been made. It was found, in the year 1G93, at Newton Park, in the lowlands of Somerset, on the banks of the little * Asser, p. 486, expressly names "aiirificcs." Y 2 324 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. river Parret, somewhat to the north of the spot where the island and fort of Athehiey were once situated.* There, no doubt, the King had lost this mark of his dignity, during the most unhappy days of his life, and it had remained buried in the swamp until, after the lapse of so many centuries, it acci- dentally came to light. It is now preserved as a valuable monument of olden times in the Ashmo- lean Museum, at Oxford. This work of art consists of a thick and polished crystal, of an oval form, rather more than two inches in length, and half an inch thick ; it is inlaid with a mosaic enamel, green and yellow, representing the outline of a human figure, which appears to be seated, and holds in each hand a kind of lilystalk with flowers. This figure has been variously supposed to be intended for St. Cuthbert, St. Neot, and even Christ him- self; — in our opinion, however, this rude outline is nothing more than the representation of a king in his robes of state. The back of the crystal is pro- tected by a thin plate of fine gold, on which there is also a flower very tastefully and ingeniously let in. The oval-shaped side of the crystal is sur- rounded by a setting of gold filigree-work, of most excellent and durable workmanship, and has en- graved on it the following remarkable words, which preclude all doubt as to the former possessor of the jewel : AELFRED MEC HEHT GEWYRCAN. Alfred caused me to be made. The letters of this inscription are all capitals, and * Ackerman, " Archeeological Index," p. 143. Plate XIX. L " ALFRED'S JEWEL." 325 are exactly similar in their somewhat stiffish form to the initial-letters which head the various chap- ters in the authentic manuscripts of Alfred's time. But the genuine ancient form, in wiiich the two middle words are written, may be regarded as a still more convincing guarantee than even the letters, for the antiquity claimed by the inscription. At the bottom of the jewel, ^vhere the crystal and its setting run together, the gold ends in a beautifully fashioned dolphin's head of the same metal, whose empty eye-sockets once, no doubt, contained pre- cious stones, and through whose open mouth there is a little gold peg. This probably served to fasten a stick or handsome wand, at the end of which the jewel was no doubt carried. By a strange freak of chance it is highly probable, that in this curious production of art we possess a portion of Alfred's sceptre. The art employed in its manufacture im- presses us with an extremely favourable idea of the skill and workmanship of those times. We may fairly presume that many ornaments of this description were made, and Alfred himself, in his preface to the " Pastoral," mentions an article of gold workmanship which had been executed in obedience to his orders. With each copy of the book he gave a gold tablet '"' of the worth of fifty mancusses. It is not impossible that William of Malmesbury saw one of them.f At present that they are all lost it is impossible for us to deter- * " iEstel," an index or tablet with cohunns, " pugillares," f "Gesta Kco-." II. § 123; "Cum pugiUari aureo in (juo est 326 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. mine how much they were worth, in weight and workmanship. We possess money of Alfred's coinage in toler- able abundance, but its execution is far inferior to that of the money of other Anglo-Saxon princes. The King's portrait is invariably so roughly stamped, that all idea of forming from it any notion of his appearance is altogether out of the question. There is not the least doubt that OfFa had employed Italian minters, otherwise it would have been im- possible for his coinage to have attained the per- fection which every one must allow it to possess. It was not until the reign of Alfred's grandson, Athelstan, that any degree of art was again em- ployed in the coinage of money ; it was during this period, too, that the coinage was made the subject of especial laws. It is also plain from the low stan- dard * of Alfred's money, that the necessities of the times prevented him from adopting any mea- sures for its improvement, and that he was, prob- ably, obliged to have recourse to the same expedient which Frederic the Great was also compelled to adopt. His laws contain nothing referring to the subject of the coinage, although we often find in them the designations of pounds, shillings, and pence. There were coins of the value of a shilling and a penny, and even of the third partf of the manca auri." The relation of " manca," " mancusa," and " marca," to one another, has not yet been satisfactorily explained. Com- pare Du Gange, p. 5. * Ruding, "Annals of the Coinage," ed. III. vol. L p. 125. f " Legg. yElfr." p. 71 : "J^riddan dael paenninges." MANUSCRIPTS OF ALFRED'S TIME. 327 latter. On the money we now possess the King is called simply iElfred, jElfred rex, or Elfred M — X ; Dorovernia, Oxnaforda, and Londinia are mentioned as places where there were mints. JNJanuscripts formed a separate department of Middle-Age art. The reader will remember the book whose variegated letter so pleased the studious boy. The few manuscripts of Alfred's time that we now possess are all, however, very simple ; the handwriting is flowing, and, especially in the old copies of the Pastoral, exceedingly expressive. The initial letters of the chapters are generally orna- mented, though not gorgeously. Dragons and bird-like monsters, as well as distorted human faces are drawn in black round the stem of the letter, and the red colour is afterwards thrown in as shade. These remains and fragments are all we now possess, and by their aid we are enabled to form but an unsatisfactory idea of the state of the arts and sciences in England during the latter half of the ninth century. It is, however, easy to per- ceive, in spite of the poverty of our sources of information, that, as long as it was possible, Alfred was untiring in his endeavours to advance them, both by his own exertions, and all the means at his disposal. It was reserved for posterity to reap the benefit of his labours, which in this instance, too, reconquered the ground that had been lost, and which furnished the people with the most powerful resources against future calamities. 328 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. SECTION VIT. RENEWED STRUGGLE AND CONFIRMATION OF EXISTING INSTITU- TIONS. THE KINGDOM IS TRANSMITTED, MORE POWERFUL THAN EVER, TO EDWARD I. The years of peace, which Alfred could not have employed better and more advantageously than in regulating all the various branches of legis- lation and political economy, and in elevating arts and literature, for the material and spiritual bene- fit of his subjects, were now fast drawing to a close. Much remained, however, to be done ; some portion of this may have been carried out during the quieter years that followed, but the remainder must have been left, with little chance of success- ful realisation, for later governments to execute. The external relations of the West-Saxon king- dom began, once more, to predominate imperiously over its internal affairs, which, thanks to the un- paralleled exertions of the King had begun to blossom into prosperity. Once again was Alfred compelled to repel the attacks of that seafaring foe, who was the terror of every regularly consti- tuted state. During the whole of the period that had elapsed since Alfred had been fortunate enough to secure the tranquillity of the island by force of arms, INCREASE OF ALFRED'S POWER. 329 there had, doubtlessly, been no want of harbingers to foretell the coming storm. Accounts of the deeds of the heathens, multitudes of whom still infested all the coasts of the opposite continent, continued to find their way to the Saxons, and to engross the King's attention. But the severe les- son, which, after the greatest exertions, he had succeeded in giving these rapacious hordes, appears to have been still fresh in their memory, and to have restrained them, for some time, at least, from again attempting to invade his dominions. Since the year 885, all regular hostilities with them had completely ceased; the kindred races, which only hated one another as long as they were separated by differences of faith, and by various degrees of civilization, had, by the conversion of a great num- ber of Northmen in East-Anglia, and even in Northumbria, learnt to understand their common interest. It appeared as if the admission of the Danes into the system of the more civilised Anglo- Saxon states was destined to prove a firm bul- wark against all future attacks of heathendom. There was no occasion for fresh campaigns or battles, and the deep wounds inflicted by a long war upon the Saxon people, were gradually being healed. The importance of the kingdom had been greatly increased by its heroic King, who availed himself of this very circumstance to extend the limits of his dominions by peaceful means, and cause his supremacy to be acknowledged by those neighbouring states that had hitherto not been reduced to submission. At this period Alfred 380 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. succeeded in doing what no other king had ever been able to effect; he established a friendly in- tercourse with the British inhabitants of Wales, and made them feel their dependence on their more powerful western neighbour. During the long struggle with the Danes, the old national hatred of the Britons broke out as strong as ever, and it is very sure that their hostile feelings had contributed not a little to the misfortunes of the year 878. But they, also, learned to their cost, that the Danes, with whom they thought to make common cause, did not spare them either, but profited by their weakness when their affairs were in the most desperate state. In addition to this, there were always feuds and dissensions among the petty princes of their country, and it was natural that the weaker party should be the first to turn for assistance to foreign rulers, who had, in reality, long obtained the mastery over them. It was about the time that Alfred became ac- quainted with Asser, that quarrels of this kind broke out in the country of the latter, whom alone we have to thank for all our information concern- ing them.* Asser applied to the King of the Anglo-Saxons for protection for himself and his monastery at St. David's against the continual annoyances and acts of injustice on the part of Hemeid, Prince of Demetia, and he formally made Alfred's fulfilment of his request one of the con- ditions of his entering into the arrangement which the latter desired. But the opportunity turned * Asser, p. 488. Alfred's protection of welsii princes. 331 out advantageously for Alfred in his endeavours to place his authority on a firm basis among the Welsh. Hemeid being hard pressed by the six sons of Rotri Mawr (Roderic the Great), the princes of Venedotia or North Wales, was the first to submit with his petty principality of De- metia to Saxon supremacy. Helised, the son of Teudyr, and King of Brecknock, was unable to cope with these same opponents, and placed him- self under Alfred's protection. Howel, the son of Ris, and Prince of Gleguising, in what is now the counties of Monmouthshire and Glamorgan- shire ; Brechmail and Fermail, the sons of Mau- ric, and princes of Guent on the Severn, could not, with all their united efforts, withstand any longer Athelred, the strict ealdorman of the Mer- cians, who was determined to have peace upon the border, and made them feel his authority. They proceeded, therefore, of their own accord to the King and besought him to take them also under his protection. Finally, Anaraut, the son of Rotric, and his brothers, declared that they, too, were prepared to submit without being compelled to do so by force of arms. Before Anaraut came to this decision, however, he relinquished the alli- ance that he had long kept up with the Anglo- Danes in Northumbria, and which had been pro- ductive of naught but evil to him. He came -in person to Alfred, who received him with every mark of respect befitting his rank, and adopting him from the hands of some bislioj), probably Were- fritli, as his s])iritual son, made him rich presents, 332 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. and allowed liim, with all his vassals and prero- gatives, to enjoy the same feudal position towards Wessex which Athelred occupied in Mercia. We may with justice assert that, after the two parties had agreed to this arrangement, all the south- western provinces of Britain acknowledged King Alfred's authority,'^' nor did they ever again rise up against it, or afford any assistance to his Northern foes as long as he swayed the sceptre of Wessex. The motives for the fresh attack which the Danes shortly afterwards directed against Eng- land, must be sought, first, in the unquiet nature of this people, and the serious reverses they had frequently experienced on the Frankish coast, and, secondly, in the events which had occurred in those districts of England that were inhabited by a mixed population. The year 890 was marked by the death of Guthorm-Athelstan,f King of East-Anglia, who, during the last years of his reign had been compelled, either by age or the force of circumstances, to lead a quieter life, and appears to have observed more faithfully than he had hitherto done the conditions of the treaty. He was buried at Thetford.:}: Our authorities are not clear concerning the succession to his throne. * Asser, p. 488 : " Omnes regiones dexteralis Britannia partis ad iElfred regem pertinebant et adhuc pertinent." " Dexteralis," signifies southern, which, according to the ideas of that period, was really the position of the districts inhabited by the Britons. t " Chron. Sax." A. 890. " Florent. Wigorn." I. p. 108. I Gairnar, V. 3383, " Le cors de lui gist a Thuetfort ;" but, according to the Annals of the Pseudo-Asser, it is in Headlaga. DEATn OF THE DANE, GUTIIRED. 833 This may be regarded as a sign that disturbances had taken place in his dominions, which obstructed their quiet development. After him a Northman of the name of Eohric is said to have assumed the reins of government, and it is not until under Edward I. that we find Guthorm's son or nephew, Guthorm IL Probably the heathen element had, after his death, once more burst forth in Suffolk and Norfolk. During the few last years subse- quent to Healfden's death, Egbert, whom we have already mentioned, ruled over one part of Nortli- umbria, and the Dane Guthred, over the other. The origin of the latter is obscure, but he is said to have been the son of the Danish King, Hardi- kanut.* He was a Christian, however, and a great benefactor of the church at Durham. He had concluded a solemn peace with Alfred. This prince died on the 24th August, 894, and was buried in the Cathedral at York.f Under him, Alfred's influence in the country appears to have obtained the upper hand, and, after his death, it was in vain that the Danish element, which was repre- sented by his three sons, endeavoured to oppose Alfred's authority. These and similar occurrences were, perhaps, in some way connected with the attacks which, during this time, were being planned from without. The Northmen had not yet succeeded in establisli- ing themselves on the coasts of the German and * Simeon Duuclm." " Gcsla Reg. vVugl." a. cS,s;3, up. Twysden. \ iEthclwcard, IV. p. 518, "In natalitia Saudi Bavthuloiiuxji." Compare Simeon Dunelm. " Gesta Angl." p. 68 ">. 334 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. Frankish Carlovingians, and founding settlements there. In spite of their want of resources, and the serious defeats they experienced, the inhabitants of those parts steadily continued the struggle and would never allow their wandering foes to enjoy a moment's repose. Whenever the latter endea- voured to settle anywhere, they were either scared away by some unexpected attack, or urged forward by their own restlessness, until they met with other opponents who defended their possessions with the same resolution. At last, the German King, Ar- nulf himself, who was yet destined to do honour to the race from which he was sprung, had, with a considerable army, composed of Franks, Saxons, and Bavarians, marched against the foe in the north- ern part of his dominions.* He first suffered a defeat, which was followed by the brilliant victory on the Dyle, near Löwen, on the first day of Sep- tember, in the year 891. Arnulf fell upon the Danes unexpectedly and defeated them completely before they could reach their ships. The battle was so decisive that the Danes never afterwards at- tempted to settle on German soil for any length of time.f But another large army, which was com- mitting the most horrible ravages in the North- French dominions was not, for the moment, united with the Danes who had been conquered in Flan- ders, and, therefore, w^as not immediately affected by this battle. Hasting, who by this time must have been very old, was the dreaded leader of * "Chroii. Sax." A. 891. t " Aiinal. Fuld." a. 891, ap. Pertz. M. G. SS. I. p. 4.08. FRESH INVASION OF THE DANES. 335 this division. For a year previous, lie had levied tribute in the neighbourhood of the Somme. He had now fixed his quarters at Amiens, and by sud- den and unexpected attacks from that place en- deavoured to plunder the rich religious houses of St. Vaast and St. Omer. He several times inflicted severe losses upon King Odo, who had marched to oppose him. In consequence of the incessant ra- vages that had been committed, a general famine now broke out, in the year 892, throughout the country ; large bands of Danes who could find no- thing more to plunder, and who were joined from the north by the remains of the army that had been defeated on the Dyle, met at Boulogne, and, taking their horses witli them, embarked for England in a fleet of two hundred and fifty vessels.'" They landed, according to the Chronicle, at the mouth of the little river Limene (Lymne) in the eastern part of Kent, near the eastern extremity of the Andred- Wald, which was one hundred and fifty miles long, and thirty miles broad. They here availed themselves of an old Roman fortification which has very lately been dug up again,f and, tugging their vessels against * "Annal. Vedast." a. 892, ap. Tcrtz ; "Monum."I. p. 028; " Chron. Sax." a. 893 ; but the Cambridge Manuscript had, originally, a. 892, which year is also meant by yEthchvcard, IV. p. 518. Lappenberg, p. 342, n. 2, suspects, with Guido ap. Alberic, a. 895, that Björn Ironribs commanded this fleet. t [Dr. Pauli has here fallen into an error ; the Roman fortifi- cation recently excavated at Lymne (the Portus Lcraanis of the Ancients), is altogether a different place from the river Lymne (the llothcr) where the Danes landed, as described in the text, which is some miles farther west. — Ed.] 336 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. the stream for a distance of four miles from the mouth of the river until they reached the boundary of the wood, found a fortress which had been erected by some Kentish peasants. This had not been com- pleted, and, consequently, the efforts of the peasants to defend it were unavailing, and the Danish army fixed its quarters a little further on, near Appledore. Not long afterwards, in the year 893, another fleet of eighty vessels arrived in the mouth of the Thames, conducted by Hasting himself, who, no doubt, was the instigator of the whole enterprise, and who had left the French coast which was com- pletely exhausted, in hopes of finding in England more plunder, and perhaps a kingdom, like others of his countryman. He proceeded up the Swale, and, like those who had preceded him, landed in Kent, near Milton, where he erected fortifications.* The two armies remained quietly in these po- sitions until about the end of the following winter. About Easter, 894 (31st March), the Danes pro- ceeded from. Appledore, and, protected by the woods and marshes, penetrated into the neighbouring dis- tricts, and ravaged the country as far as Hampshire and Berkshire.f The fickle-minded population of East-Anglia and Northumbria, a portion of whom were still heathens themselves, and who had only a short time previously renewed their oath of alle- giance to King Alfred, the Northumbrians having actually given him six hostages for its due main- tenanoe, acted in perfect concert with the large * " Chron. Sax." a. 893 ; iEthelw. IV. p. 518. t ^thehv. IV. p. 518. ALFRED'S DEFENSIVE MEASURES. 387 hordes of the new-comers, for, as often as tlie latter left Api)]edore or Milton on a plundering expedition, the East-Anglians and Northumbrians made incur- sions into the neighbouring territories of Wessex or JNIercia. The moment was now arrived for Alfred once more to grasp the sword, after having long con- signed it to repose, in order to Mdeld the weapons of the mind, during the days of peace and leisure. Bitter experience had rendered him well acquainted with the cunning and versatility of his foes. How often had he found that the Danes could offer no opposition to fair and honourable valour, but, es- caping by stratagem from the heat of the fight, would yet carry off the victory, thanks to some measure of well-conceived treachery ! He deter- mined, therefore, to profit by the knowledge for which he had paid so dearly, and to use the greatest caution as well as similar stratagems in carrying out his plans. As long as the Danes remained within their fortified camps, he did not attack them, for the localities they had selected were rendered inac- cessible by forest and morass, but every thing Avas prepared to give them a bloody reception upon more favourable ground. During the time of peace, too, Alfred had adopted measures for the military de- fence of the country, having divided the whole po- pulation capable of bearing arms into tMo halves, one of which remained at home, engaged in agri- culture and trade, while the other was in the field ready to o])pose the enemy. After the lapse of a stated period, the division in the field was relieved z 338 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. and the other immediately took its place. There was a separate body especially entrusted with the task of garrisoning- the fortified places throughout the country, and this body was always under arms,* though there is no doubt that Alfred had also caused every one to be constantly trained in the use of his weapon. Some of his army had already seen ser- vice. Immediately after the arrival of the North- men, he appears to have stationed, on the south- eastern boundaries of his kingdom, a small body of observation, under the command of his youthful son, Edward, the heir-apparent, who obtained in- telligence of every movement of the enemy.f The Ealdorman Athelred had also called out all his forces, and, likewise, garrisoned the newly-fortified town of London, which was imder his authority. On Edward's announcing that the heathens had passed him, without his having been in a condition to prevent their doing so, Alfred set himself in motion with the whole mass of his army, and took up his position between the two hostile divisions, and as near to them as the woods and morasses on both sides would allow. His object in this was to be enabled to come up with either division, the mo- ment it ventured into the open field. He could not have chosen a more advantageous position, as his great object was not only to keep the two Danish * " Hsefde se cyning his fierd on tu tonumen. Swa ]>set hie weeron simle healfe at ham. Healfe ute. Butan fsem monnum J>e ])a burga healdan scolden." " Chron. Sax." a. 894. I It is thus that we must understand J3thehveard, IV. p. 518, " prsenotata sunt haec clitoni tum Eaduuerdi Elfredi filii regis," etc. easting's sons as hostages. 339 armies apart from one another, but to cut off all communication between them and the eastern coast which was favourable to their interests. It appears that these measures induced Hasting to promise that he would speedily quit the country, and that he sent his own sons as hostages to the Saxon King. The latter, however, sent them back again to their father, after having first caused them to be baptized, he and his son-in-law, Athelred, acting as god- fathers.* With a view of plundering, the Danes endea- voured to get off in small bodies along the skirts of the wood, but the King despatched similar small bands, partly from his own troops, partly from those which composed the garrisons of the fortified towns, to oppose them, so that there were almost continual conflicts and skirmishes by day and night. On two occasions only did the Danes venture to take the field with all their forces ; the first was immediately after their landing, before the Saxons had marched out to oppose them, and the second, most probably, when the division which had penetrated into the distant districts of Hampshire and Berkshire was returning laden with plunder. They now manifested the intention of crossing the Thames, in order to reach Essex, whither their ships had already sailed. * This, according to Lappcnbcrg, p. 343, is the meaning of "Chron. Sax." p. 801-: " IlaeRIon hi hiora cnfangen ecr Iltcsten to Beamflcotc come," and of yEthchveard, IV. p. 518 : "Obsccrant pads barbari jamque focdcrisque statum : obsidcs dantur; adfir- mant jure exire regno prajfati regis : actus et .sermo sinml una complentur." z 2 340 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. Hereupon, Alfred immediately put his army in motion, and cut off their passage. Near Farnham, in Surrey, he compelled them to accept the combat, and, after entirely defeating them, captured all their booty. In this battle the Atheling Edward dis- tinguished himself very highly, through his coura- geous bearing, while, on the other side, the heathen king (Björn ?) fled wounded from the field. His army precipitated itself in the wildest disorder towards the north, and, without even waiting to find a ford, crossed the Thames, probably between Hampton and Kingston. It then directed its course towards Essex, but the fugitives did not join their ranks again before they had reached the island of Thorney, which is situated at the mouth of the Colne, and whither their ships had already preceded them. Alfred ordered a part of his army to follow them immediately. For some time the Saxons kept the Danish ships locked in, but their provisions were soon exhausted, the period of service of the di- vision in the field had expired, and they possessed, most probably, no ships to enable them to come near the Danes by sea. The troops who had commenced the investment of the vessels abandoned it, and re- turned to their homes, and Alfred, with the detach- ment destined to relieve them, was just coming up to hold the conquered foe in check previous to destroying them altogether, when he received in- formation of a sudden attack made by the faithless Northumbrians and East-Anglians on the w^estern coast of his kingdom. As their allies, the Danes, THE SAXON ARMY BEFORE BENFLEET. 341 had not, in so short a space, recovered from the serious defeat they had siiifered at Farnham, and were, besides, unable to drag their king- about with them, as he was desperately wounded, the invaders had collected some hundred ships, the greater por- tion of which sailed along the south coast and threatened to take possession of Exeter, while another fleet of forty vessels proceeded up towards the Bristol Channel, and commenced the siege of a fortified town on the northern coast of Devonshire. The attack was cunningly devised, as those parts of the kingdom were, for the moment, stript of all their forces. When this intelligence was brought to Alfred, he determined on retracing his steps with the greater portion of the troops he had with him, in order to take measures for the defence of his western provinces, and prevent the enemy from any- where establishing themselves.'" But while Alfred himself conducted the execu- tion of these measures the contest was continued by others in the east. For this purpose, he had left behind him a strong detachment which marched towards London, and was reinforced by the garrison f of that place, as well as by the other bodies of troops which had hurried up from the west. It was unquestionably under the command of the Ealdor- man Athelred, whose duty it was to defend the eastern boundaries of the kingdom, that this de- * " Chron. Sax." a. 894. •j- [It is not perhaps quite correct to use the word garrison — the soldiers in the towns were not such as in modern times con- stitute a garrison, but the armed burghers and citizens.— Ed.] 342 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. tachment penetrated to before Beiifleet, in Essex. It was thither tliat Hasting had marched with his followers shortly after the battle of Farnham, and again occupied the fortifications which he had thrown up there in the year 885. He had been joined, also, by the large body of troops, which had first taken up their quarters at Appledore, and subse- quently been driven back as far as the mouth of the Colne. This body garrisoned the place, during the absence of Hasting, who was engaged in a preda- tory excursion, when the Saxons appeared with all their forces before the walls. The opposition offered by the Danes was easily overcome. The Saxons stormed the fortress and obtained possession of the property that was there, together with all the wo- men and children : they then returned, laden with spoil, to London. Some of the ships which they found on the beach before Benfleet were broken up or burnt, while the remainder were taken to Lon- don or Rochester. Among the prisoners were Hasting's wife and two sons, who were sent to King Alfred. Instead of revenging himself on them, however, he again gave proof of his generosity and Christian virtue by sending them back, laden with rich presents, to their faithless father, as he had done once before. Hasting, however, who had broken his oath towards the godfathers of his children, was not yet reformed or converted. Even after his fortress had been wrested from him, and he had experienced the kindest treatment from Alfred and Athelred, he still continued to ravage the possessions of his be- ATHELRED AT BUTTINGTON. 343 nefactors, in the most frightful manner.* He knew that his brave opponent was busied far away in the west, and, profiting by this, effected in a short space of time a fresh junction of the various hordes dis- persed about Essex, and of the reinforcements that had joined them from the Anglian and North- umbrian coast. He then entrenched himself in a fortified camp at Shoebury, a place somewhat to the east of Benfleet. Soon afterwards, feeling himself strong enough to march with his whole army against ]\Iercia, he forced his way up the left bank of the Thames, and proceeded right across the country, until he reached the Severn, with the intention of following its course towards the south. But Athelred did not remain a quiet spectator of his proceedings. He immediately assembled all his available forces, while Athelhelm, the Ealdorman of the Wiltssetas, Ealdorman Athelnoth and the royal thanes, who had hitherto garrisoned the various fortified towns, joined him with their respective followers. Every place east of the Parret, and east and west of the Willow Wood, contributed a cer- tain number of men, as did also the districts to the north of the Thames, and to the west of the Severn. Even the inhabitants of North Wales were obliged to furnish their contingents. With these numerous levies, Athelred marched against the enemy, whom he found at Buttiiigton, on the Ijanks of the * " And eft o'Sre siSc he wacs on hcrgaö gelend on ])xl ilce rice. ])a pa man his gewcorc abraec." " Chron, Sax." a. 894, where the two occasions of his sons' captivity are abridged into one. 344 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. Severn, entrenched behind their fortifications. He immediately surrounded them completely on both sides of the river, and, for several weeks, defeated every attempt on their part to force a passage.* In consequence of all their supplies of provisions being cut off, a frightful famine broke out among the besieged. They had already eaten a great number of their horses, and many of them had died of star- vation, when Hasting saw himself compelled to venture on making a sally towards the east. A desperate conflict ensued ; several royal thanes, and among them one of the name of Ordheh, were slain, but the Christians proved victorious, and obliged the Northmen to fly in the wildest disorder.f If we can believe the exceedingly obscure ac- count given by Athelweard, it would appear that Hasting concluded a treaty by which he engaged to evacuate Mercia. It is clear, however, that he was under the necessity of doing so without delay» and the victors seem to have offered no opposition. He now regained his stronghold in Essex, where, before the winter set in,| he hastily formed a large army out of the scattered survivors among his own countrymen, and fresh bands of East-Anglians and Northumbrians. Confiding their wives and ships, together with all their property, to the care of the * " Öa hie f>a fela 'wucena steton on twa healfe j^aere e." " Chron. Sax." a. 894. f " Gesta heec quippe in Buttingtune prcedicantur a priscis," says iEthehveard, in words to be understood as applying to songs ■which were doubtlessly sung in his time in celebration of the battle. J " Onforan winter." THE DANES IN WALES. 345 East-Anglians, they once more proceeded by forced marches, night and day, towards the north-west. It seems as if the sea-king was particularly anxious to effect a passage to the west coast ; he was de- sirous, possibly, of coming to the assistance of the large fleet, which was hard pressed by Alfred on the coast of Devonshire. Athelred, according to the custom of the time, had dismissed the Mercian levies to their homes immediately after the victory at But- tington, and Hasting having consequently met with no opposition on his march, arrived before Chester, which was situated at the extremity of the penin- sula of Wirral.* He did not succeed in surprising the garrison, however, who had retired within the walls, and the Danes contented themselves ^vith besieging the place two days, putting to death the few persons they found outside, and driving off all the cattle from their pasturage. The corn which fell into their hands, was either burnt, or consumed by themselves and their horses. f Hasting passed the winter in Wirral, and in the spring of the year 895, made preparations for marching to North Wales, as all the corn and cattle had either been eaten up by his followers, or taken away from him again. J In Wales they penetrated as far as the south, ravaging, in particular, Gwent, Brecknock, and some other of the neighbouring * " On anrc westrc ccastrc on Wirlicaluin. Soo is Lcg-accastcr gehatcn." " Chron. Sax." a. 894. I " On aelcerc efenehöe," each time in the evening, if the expression is correct. I " Chron. Sax." a. 895. 846 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. districts.* They then turned back with the plunder they had obtained, and directed their course to- wards the north, proceeding inland through North- umbria and East-Anglia, in order that the Mercian levies which had been called out might not over- take them. It is probable that they took York in their way, and then continued their march in a southerly direction, through the Mercian territory, and also that an engagement must have taken place near Stamford on the Weiland, in Northamptonshire, between Hasting and the Ealdorman Athelnoth, who had marched up from the west.f The main body of the heathens, however, reached Essex again, and established themselves upon the island of Mersey. At the same time that Hasting marched tow^ards Wales, a Viking, of the name of Sigeferth, had set sail with his fleet from Northumbria, and had laid waste and plundered portions of the coast, and returned laden with booty.J * "Annales Cambrise," a. 895, " Nordmanni venerunt et vastaverunt Loyer et Brecheniauc et Guent et Guinliguiauc ;" also Morganwg and Buallt, " Brut y Tywysogion," a. 894, in " Mon. Hist. Brit." f So I infer from the suspected passage in ^thelweard, out of which Lappenberg was not quite correct in deriving his infor- mation for the following year, as only two years had elapsed since the landing of the Danes. This passage, which defies all efforts at correction, runs thus : " Ab occidentali profectus est parte tunc Anglorum athelnoth dux ; adit in hoste Evoraca urbe, qui non parva territoria pandunt in Myrciorum regno loci in parte occi- dentali Stan forda, hoc est inter fluenta amnis Uueolod et condense sylvse quae vulgo Ceoftefne (1. Ceostefne) nuncupatur." I iEthelweard, p. 518. We do not learn whither the expe- dition was directed. According to the " Annals of Ulster," p. 65, Ingvar's son, Sigeferth, had killed his brother, Guthferth. DEATH OF FOUR ROYAL THANES. 347 INIeanwliile, Alfred had kept the field with his forces a whole year, though nothing decisive appears to have taken place in this part of the kingdom. At any rate, he effected one great object, which was, to prevent the Danes from ravaging the old West-Saxon districts that formed the heart of his kingdom ; he also finally compelled the large fleet, whose crews had in vain besieged Exeter, to put to sea again, and sail home. On their w^ay thither, the Danes and East-Angles made a sudden descent upon the coast of Sussex, not far from Chichester, but the inhabitants of this place attacked and put them to flight, after killing several hundred of them and capturing some of their ships. The survivors escaped to their comrades on the island of Mersey.* Before the conclusion of the winter, the Danish camp at this place was again in motion ; the ships were launched, and towed as far as the Thames, which river they entered, and then proceeded up the Lea. The winter was passed in erecting a fortress, about four German miles to the north of London, and consequently somewhere in the neigh- bourhood of Hertford or Ware. When the summer of the year 896 had arrived, a large body of troops from the garrison of London, being joined by a number of other persons, marched against the for- tress, but they were driven back by the Danes, after losing four royal thanes. About harvest-time, Alfred encamped with his troops in the neighbour- hood of London, in order that the people might house the harvest without })eing molested by the * " Chron. Sax." A. 895. 348 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. Danes. One day, the King rode along the banks of the little river Lea, and discovered a spot where the bed of the river might very easily be filled up and the water drawn off, so that the enemy would no longer be able to float their ships. He com- menced the execution of his design by throwing up two earthen ramparts on each side of the Lea.'''^ His followers had encamped on the spot, and were busily employed at the works, when the Danes remarked that the water was sinking, and that there would be no possibility of their extricating their vessels. They therefore abandoned them, and having first confided their wives to the guardianship of the East- Angles, they hastily directed their course towards the north, marching again through the heart of the country to the Severn, where they entrenched themselves near Bridgenorth,t in Shrop- shire. While Alfred despatched part of his army to follow them at some little distance behind, the men of London took possession of the deserted fleet. All the ships that were not worth anything were destroyed, but the good onesl were taken to London. In the summer of the following year, the. large army of the Northmen left the Severn, and divided * " Chron. Sax." a. 896; Barrington, " ^Ifr. Oros." Transla- tions, p. 60, entertains the not improbable opinion that Alfred may have hit upon the idea of draining the Lea, by remembering how Cyrus had done the same thing in the case of the Euphrates, a fact of which Alfred had read in Orosius. t " Mt Cwatbricge be Ssefern." I " ])e f ser stselwyroe wseron," worthy of being stolen, taken away. DELIVERANCE OF WESSEX. 349 itself into three parties, one of which returned to East-Anglia, while another directed its course to- wards Northumbria. The third party, which was entirely in want of the most necessary articles, suc- ceeded in obtaining vessels, and, crossing the sea in a southerly direction, under the guidance of Hasting, arrived at the mouth of the Seine.'" Here tlie old pirate found means to compel the king, Charles the Simple, to cede him a tract of land in the province of Chartres where, as is reported, he was quietly settled, when Rollo obtained possession of Nor- mandy, fifteen years later.f Thus, after three years of manful resistance, was the kingdom of the West-Saxons once more freed from the pernicious foe who, after having attempted to force their way into the country on all sides, both by sea and land, had at last been compelled to abandon their designs and to depart as poor as they had come. " Thanks be to God," writes the old Saxon Chronicler, " the heathens had not this time, reduced the English people to quite such a state of degradation," J and from our knowledge of Alfred's disposition, we are certainly justified in concluding that both he and his whole people cele- brated the happy event with solemn thanksgivings in the temples of their God which they had de- fended and restored to the best of their power. * " tlhroii. Sax." a. cS97, and " Assorii Animlos," ad a. 805. t W. GiMiiet. ap. Du Cliesuc, " Scriptt. Kcr. Norm." pp. 221, 228. I " Npofde sc here. Codes J^onces. Aiigel-cyn eallcs for swiöe gcbrocod." " Cliron. Sax." a. 896. 350 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. But there was another calamity by which the Saxons sustained even more heavy losses than they had done in the field. This was the malady which raged both among men and beasts in consequence of the ravages and other calamities of war. Even the highest classes of the population were not spared, and among others of the most important dignitaries and officers of state who died at this period were the Bishops Swithulf of Rochester and Ealheard of Dorchester ; the Ealdormen Ceolmund of Kent, Beorhtulf of Essex, and Wulfred of Hampshire ; the Thane Eadulf ; Beornwulf, Port-reeve of Winchester, and Ecgulf, the King's Master of the Horse, who may all be reckoned among the principal supporters of the prosperity and security of the country. But, in spite of their being compelled, once again and for the last time in Alfred's lifetime, to take up arms in their defence, neither the people nor their king allowed their courage to sink. The hostile hordes, which had proceeded from Bridge- north to North umbria and East-Anglia, and which were composed of the faithless inhabitants of those districts, together with a number of homeless Danes, ventured once more to make an attack upon the West-Saxon territory, and, relying principally on their light vessels, which they had constructed a long time previous with a view to enterprises of this description,'" endeavoured to effect a descent upon the southern coast, which, up to that time, they had plundered but little. Alfred, however, * " Ealra swiöost mid ])aem sescum pe hie fela geara ser timbredon." "Chron. Sax." a, 897. CONSTRUCTION OF VESSELS. 351 had learnt the expediency of always meeting the enemy with their own weapons, a jilan which he had already carried out with the greatest success, and he, therefore, now resolved to attack them by sea with all the forces he could command. Hitherto he had had so many other things to occupy his attention that it must have been impossible for him to fit out a fleet, although a great number of vessels had, on several different occasions, been captured by his followers, during the course of the preceding years, and now lay in the ports of London and Rochester. He might certainly have availed himself of these to execute his project, but the Danish ships were small and frail, and the Saxons, too, were not yet accounted such fearless and daring seamen as the Danes. Alfred's imaginative and persevering mind en- deavoured to remedy this evil by building ships nearly twice as long as those of the Scandinavians,^^ and generally impelled by sixty or even more rowers. By doing this, he rendered his vessels stronger, higher, and, at the same time, swifter. Such was the object which he had in view, and which was not suggested by anything he had seen among the Frisians or Danes. What he produced bore the stamp of nationality and furnished his country with a defensive force which, in later ages, has become the pride of England and the ruler of the world. Thus, even in the British Navy, * These vessels, wliicli -were called " snekkar " (snakes), crcuc- rally had only twenty rowers. Sir Harris Nicholas, " History of the Royal Navy," I. p. 10. 352 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. Alfred appears to have introduced improvements. In order to man this new fleet, besides employing his own seamen who were used to the English coasts, he had recourse to the assistance of Frisian sailors, who not only lived, at that period, in the most friendly commercial relations with the opposite island, but were engaged in continual struggles with the same foe, and must have acquired great experience in nautical warfare. The Frisians and Saxons, both Low Germans and Christians, agreed admirably, and endeavoured by their unanimity to repel the aggressions of heathendom. As the Danes had now begun infesting the coast, after their usual manner, Alfred resolved to chas- tise them with his new fleet. Six of the enemy's vessels had taken up their station in the Isle of Wight, whence they kept the opposite coast as far as Devonshire, in a constant state of alarm through their sudden descents.* They had, one day, just run into one of the bays of those parts, when nine of Alfred's ships appeared at its mouth, and cut them off from the sea. The Danes rowed to attack the new comers with three of their vessels, leaving the others somewhat farther up the stream on dry ground, as the tide had begun to run down, and the rapacious crews had gone on shore. Six of the Saxon ships immediately attacked them, taking possession of two out of the three and killing their crews. The third escaped, after having lost all its men with the exception of five. But in the heat of the combat, tlie Saxons had paid no atten- * " Cliron. Sax." a. 897. SEA-FIGHT WITH THE DANES. 358 tion to the shallowness of the channel, and the consequence was that three of their vessels, which, before the engagement commenced, had directed their course against the Danish ships that were stranded, also ran-aground on the same side of the entrance, while the rest got on shore on the ojDposite bank. In this manner the Danish ship was enabled to get clear off, as we have already mentioned, but the Saxons were divided into two parties, each of which was completely cut off from all communication with the other. JMeanwhile, the Danes who were on shore had received intelligence of what was going on, and, as the sea had receded so far that all the ships on their side of the water were left at a considerable distance from it, high and dry,* they rushed forward with the fury of despair and attacked the Saxons. There now took place upon the shore a desperate combat, in which a hundred and twenty of the Danes were slain, while the Saxons lost Alfred's Earl, Lucumon, his friend Athelferth, the Frisian mariners, Wulf heard. Abbe, and Athelhere, with sixty-two other brave men. The Saxons whose ships had run aground on the ojDposite side of the water, and who could not hasten to the assistance of their comrades, were almost reduced to despair on being compelled to be the passive witnesses of such a misfortune. f * " ])eet WEetcr wses ahebbob fela furlanga from ])sem scipum." t Ilenric. Huntingd. V. p. 741, derives his information from the Chronicle, but infuses into his description a greater amount of poetical force : " Vidcres autem gentem sex navium bellum aspicientem, et auxilium fcrre nequientem, pugnis csedere pectus, et unguibus vurapere crines." 354 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. Already did the balance of \'ictoiy seem to incline to the side of the Danes, when the latter perceived that their ships had floated sooner than those of their opponents ; hastily making their way on board, they seized their oars and put out to sea. By the time that the nine large Saxon vessels were got off, and able to follow them, the Danes had obtained such a start that all ideas of coming up with them were quite out of the question. The pirates' ships, however, M^ere so shattered that they were not able to get round the dangerous coast of Sussex; two of them were cast ashore and their crews taken prisoners by the inhabitants and con- veyed to Winchester. Alfred, who happened to be there, had them all hanged. One single vessel suc- ceeded in reaching East-Anglia in a very wretched condition. During this same summer, twenty other Danish ships ran aground on the south coast, and went down with every soul on board.* These were the last acts of hostility which our authorities mention during Alfred's reign. His attempt to beat the foe by sea as well as by land, was by no means a very successful one ; the combat had been attended with great loss to his followers, and his large ships had got into a place for which they were certainly not intended. The Saxons were far from being equal to their opponents in daring and skill, as far as nautical matters were con- cerned. But they were not, at any rate, afraid of measuring their strength with them, and, with their new fleet, succeeded for some years afterwards, in * "Mid monnum mid ealle." " Chron. Sax." a. 897. DEATHS OF EMINENT PERSONS. 355 defending the coast from all hostile attacks. In the British portion of the island, too, the Danes were utterly exhausted, and held in check by Alfred's vigilance. Of the last four years of the King^s life posterity knows scarcely anything. After peace has been concluded, our old authority has nothing more im- portant to chronicle than the deaths of certain eminent persons, such as Marshall Wulfric, the valiant Ealdorman Athelhelm, and Heahstan, Bishop of London.-^' But to judge from all that has been handed down to us concerning Alfred's varied sphere of action, and which we have circumstan- tially detailed, we are justified in filling up this gap with the supposition that the King still con- tinued to devote himself to his own improvement and that of those committed to his charge, when- ever the cares of state and his weakly bodily health would allow. The prosperity of his dominions was further protected by a just administration of his laws, the instruction of the whole rising genera- tion flourished under his own eye, and his leisure hours, which he snatched from his manifold occupa- tions, were devoted, as they always had been, to study and literary labours. These he had doubt- lessly resumed, in conjunction with his learned com- panions, as soon as the danger had passed, and, perhaps, much that had formerly been discussed was now carried into execution. But the infirmities of a body bowed down during the best years of life by a malignant disease, to- * "Chron. Sax." a. 897, 808. 356 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. getlier with the privations which it had suffered, and the effects of the inclemency of the weather to which it had been exposed had, probably, caused the King to become old before his time. His constitution, which had enabled him to achieve such great things, was broken up, and he died on the 28th October, 901, at the early age of fifty-three, after having reigned thirty years and six months.* No one has left us a particular account of the manner of his death. He died, however, as he had lived, blessed in the con- sciousness of having performed his duty to the utmost of his power. His body was buried at Win- chester, where he had probably breathed his last, and which, in the last few years, had sprung up to be the capital of the kingdom. He was laid in the monastery which he had founded, where his father and most of his forefathers also reposed. According to a later account, as the new Monastery of the Virgin was not yet completed, Alfred was * "Chron. Sax." a. 901: " Syx iiihtum sev ealra haligra maessan," that is, the 26th October ; but, instead of " syx," we must, there is no doubt, read " feower," which, in figures, could easily be miswritten : for, in the " Anglo-Saxon Calendar," the 28th is mentioned as the day of the " Depositio jElfredi Regis," and Florent. Wigorn. I. p. 116, names particularly: "Quarta feria, V. Kal. Novembris." The Chronicle, too, wrongly makes the duration of his reign only twenty-eight years and a half, when we know that he began to reign on the 23rd April, 871. Compare p. 138. Florence says, more correctly: "XXIX. annis sexque mensibus regni sui peractis," Simeon Dunelm, " Gesta Reg. Angl." on the contrary, 899, makes him die after a reign of twenty-eight years, but, in his other work, mentions the correct " Indictio IV " EDWARD ASCENDS THE THRONE. 357 provisionally buried in the bishop's cathedral, where the graves to which we alluded were situated ; but the canons, excited by the credulity of their nation, and urged on by inimical feelings towards the mo- nastic community, having asserted that they had seen the spirit of the great King wandering about durinof the night, his son commanded that the coffin should be laid in the neighbouring monas- tery that was nearly finished.'" Under Henry I. Alfred's remains were transported to Hyde Abbey, situated before the northern gate at Winchester, where they remained until the Reformation, and the breaking up of the establishment.f The country was in the happy enjoyment of peace when it was struck with grief at the death of its deliverer. He had succeeded in retaining the whole English nation under his sceptre, with the exception of the eastern coast, where the Danes had firmly established themselves before his acces- sion, but even they were dependent on him, and Wales obeyed without opposition. His eldest son Edward, in conformity with his father's directions and the custom that had now attained the force of laM^, immediately entered on the possession of his inheritance, under more happy auspices than Alfred, who had mounted the throne when the enemy had established themselves in the country, from which they were not driven out before tlie * W. Malmcsb. II. § 121'. Conipiuc " Floiont. Wigorn." I. p. 116 : "in novo monaslorio." f Towushciid, " Wiiicliestcr," p. 17, in Tumor, "History ofllic Auglo-Saxons," IV. p. 11. 'S58 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. expiration of many years of war. Edward had reached man's estate, his father had had him edu- cated with a view to his kingly office, and he had ah'eady shown that he was worthy of it. We know that he took a share in the government as early as the year 898/" During his reign he always justified the confidence his father placed in him, and soon gained that of his people as well. In the very first years of his sway, he had an opportunity of showing of what he was capable. His cousin Athelwald, the second son of King Athelred, who was still a child on Alfred's acces- sion, and who w^as excluded from the throne by his father's express command, f endeavoured to make good his pretensions. He was conscious that the Crown ought, in the direct line of succession, to have descended to him, a fact, however, which had not then been recognised as constituting a just claim in any empire of the Christian world. Without the consent of him who was acknowledged by the whole nation as Alfred's lawful successor, and without the approbation of the Witan, he obtained forcible possession of two royal domains. With the assist- ance of a band of daring adventurers, he endeavoured to make good his claims, but he found no adherents among the Saxon people. Besides this, he was, in the eyes of his contemporaries, guilty of a great crime, having, without the King's or the bishop's permission, married a young maiden who had taken the vows as * Kemble, " Cod. Diplom." N. 324, " Gift of Donation of the year 898." t Compare p. 140. DEFEAT AND DEATH OF ATHELWALD. 359 a nun. Edward marched against liim with his levies, and encamped in the neighbourhood of ^^'im- burne. On hearing this, the Atheling, who had retired within the castle, swore that he Avould live or die there, but he stole out secretly during the night, and escaped to the Danes in Northumbria. With their help alone, united to that of the foes of his native country, did he now think to maintain his i:)retensions. The Danes acknowledged him as their leader, and yielded obedience to his commands." After the true piratical fashion, he ravaged Ed- ward's dominions on several occasions, but it was not before the year 905, that, with a large army under the command of Eohric, King of East-Anglia, he ven- tured upon invading the ]\Iercian provinces. He reached the Thames, near Cricklade, and having crossed it, intended to take an eastward course, and carry home his booty through his cousin's dominions. But the latter at last attacked him on the banks of the Ouse. Unfortunately, the King, in spite of all his commands, had not been able to prevail on the Kentish levies to turn back, as they held their time of service to be expired, and had set out to return home. But they paid for their separation by a defeat which they suffered from the Danes. The latter, however, were immediately afterwards totally over- come by Edward, and, among many others of their leaders. King Eohric and the Atheling Athclwald were slain. f Tliis victory was far from being an unimportant one. The Pretender himself, who had thrown him- * "Cliron. Stix." a. 9Ul. f "Clivoii. Sax."' a. !)U5. 360 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. self into the arms of the Heathens after having been rejected by the entire Christian population, was slain, and his allies were severely chastised. Soon after this, Edward compelled the Danes of East-Anglia and Northumbria to conclude the peace of Yttinga- ford,* on which occasion he made those stipulations with the new prince, Guthorm II., which we have already adduced as confirming Alfred's treaty of Wedmor. But even this peace was insufficient to protect the country from fresh attacks. In connection with events in France, especially the conquest of Nor- mandy, by Rollo, the Danes, also, of the eastern coast, who had been converted to Christianity, again engaged in hostilities, particularly during the years 911 and 918, and repeatedly attacked the country, both by sea and by land ; but they were always re- pulsed with great loss, by Athelred of Mercia, and King Edward. The latter, energetic and coura- geous like his father, was always successful, while his people grew in strength under his government, and marched resolutely against the foe, as soon as the latter showed themselves. The spirit of Alfred was actively at work in the hearts both of the King and of his subjects, and now, at last, completed the work for which he had formerly laid the foundations, amidst danger and distress. Not only did Edward put the country in a more perfect state of defence, by the erection or restoration of a larger number of fortified strongholds, but he also founded various places that were destined to increase very greatly * " Chron. Sax." a. CO 6. EXTENSION OF TUE KINGDOM OF WESSEX. 3G1 the national prosperity. As proofs of his activity in both cases, we find in our authorities such names as Chester, Hertford, Stafford, Tamworth, Warwick, and many others. Towns like Towcester were then, for the first time, surrounded by stone walls ; and, it is enacted, in Edward's laws, that all commerce and trade shall be carried on in fortified places alone.* Like a cautious prince, he directed his endeavours towards placing his subjects and their property beyond the reach of the destructive attacks of their treacherous foes. Besides protecting, he also extended his domi- nions, for, on the death of his brother-in-law, Athel- red, in 912, London and Oxford fell under the immediate authority of Wessex, and Edward joyfully entered on the permanent and absolute possession of the two places just mentioned. The rest of Mercia remained under the sway of his sister, Athelfled, who governed it like a true daughter of Alfred. In conjunction with her brother, she founded fortified towns, took the field in person, and, among other things, totally defeated the Welsh prince, Owen, who had risen in insurrec- tion, and concluded an alliance with the Danes. Assisted by this courageous woman, the King suc- ceeded in defining the eastern limits of his kingdom * Lcgg. Eadweardi, " Laws and bistitutes," I. p. 158. [Wc must always take, with great allowance, the statements of the medieval chroniclers and historians with respect to building and fortifying towns, which, generally, in these times amounted only to repairing or adding defences to older fortifications. Towcester was a llonian station, and we know that Chester was fortified with massive Roman walls. — E».] 362 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. much more distinctly, and in extending them against the Danes. This was particularly the case in Derby, Leicester, Huntingdon, and also in Essex, where the castle of Witham was built by the inhabitants of Maldon. On the other side of the border, the Danes of Northumbria and East-Anglia again ac- knowledged the supremacy of the West-Saxons. The authority of Wessex extended as far as Strathclyde, the Celtic kingdom in the south of Scotland. On the death of that remarkable and active woman, Athelfled, which happened on the 12th of June, 919,''^ Edward took possession of the king- dom of Mercia, that had hitherto been governed by her, and paid no attention to the claims of Alfwyn, his sister's only daughter, whom he sent to Wessex. This was wisely done, for it was impossible to allow the outer province of the kingdom to be inherited by a female, who might, by marriage, contract an alliance with the foe. King Edward died at Farndon, in the year 924, at the height of his glory, which, as far as kingly power was concerned, surpassed that of his father, but with regard to nobleness of soul, and delicate cul- ture of the mind, had not endeavoured to imitate it, f Athelstan inherited the power as well as the glory of both of them. After burying his father in the new monastery at Winchester, he was acknowledged king by all the states of his kingdom, and solemnly crowned in the royal castle at Kingston. * "Floreiit, Wigorn." I. p. 128. t " W. Malinesb." II. § 125 : " Literarum scientia multum pati'e inferior, seel regni potestate incomparabiliter gloriosior." PROSPEROUS STATE OF THE EMPIRE. 36^ In the contest with the old foes of his country, he won for himself the name of a victorious hero. York fell before his arms, and, in the battle of Brunanburh, so extolled and celebrated both by his- torians and poets, the grandson of Alfred obtained a most triumphant victory over the united forces of the Northmen and of Celtic Scotland, and his deeds, like those of his grandfather, lived in verse long after he himself was dead. Feared and respected abroad, he even entered into friendly relations with the rulers of Norway, and in his communications with many other states of the Continent, created a system of foreign policy, whose two most firm sup- ports were the rapidly increasing commerce and the unexampled degree of prosperity which England enjoyed. At the time of his death, Avhich took place on the 27th October, 940, the Anglo-Saxon empire had reached the summit of its glory, from which it was, for two centuries following, pulled clown only by the powerful rulers of the North, the weakness of the enervated descendants of the race of Cerdic, and the pretensions of a proud clergy, no longer restrained within due bounds. 364 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. SECTION VIII. ALFRED IN HIS FAMILY AND AS A MAN. That the next descendants of the great King did honour to his name, is proved by the history of Edward and Athelstan ; they were descended from a race of heroes, and like kings and heroes did they follow in the footsteps of their fathers. But, besides his successor on the throne, Alfred beheld a numerous progeny, of whom, fortunately, all the accounts have not been lost, grow up around him. With reference to this point, it does not appear an unprofitable task to consider the consci- entious care manifested by Alfred as the father of his children, and the sovereign of his people ; nor, finally, to cast one more glance upon his moral greatness in all its various relations. It is certainly true that the authorities in which the historian has to seek his information are, from their incompleteness, very far from satisfying the demands he makes upon them ; but he must, how- ever, gratefully acknowledge that at least in one document, known as Alfred's Will, a vast amount of valuable information has been preserved concerning the state of the King's family. This document is based upon King Athelwulf's will, which is unfor- tunately lost, and on the arrangements made by QUEEN EALnSWITIL 365 Alfred when heir-apparent with his brother, Athel- red, at Swinbeorh,* by which arrangements the succession was vested in him, to the exclusion of the elder branch ; but, at the same time, the pri- vate property equitably divided. Towards the year 885, f a Witenagemot was held at Laiigandene; Alfred laid his father's will before it, and the as- sembly acknowledged that since the kingdom and the principal portion of the royal property had de- scended to the King, he had a perfect right to make such dispositions concerning them as he should think fit for the benefit of those belonging to him. The testamentary arrangements which he hereupon submitted to them, and which descended into the minutest details, were then declared valid by the Witan, in the state that we possess them at the present day.J They afford us a convincing proof of the consideration and care manifested by Alfred for his wife and children, as well as for many others. True conjugal fidelity bound Alfred to his wife, Ealhswith, during the whole course of his life ; her patient endurance when sharing witli him the heavy days of banishment and strife, had for ever put the seal upon his domestic happiness. Ealhs- with never aspired to a sphere of action from which * Compare p. 140. t Kenible, "Cod. Diplom." N. Sil, lias found pood reasons, in the document itself; for attributing it to some period between the years 880 and 885. I "And hi calle me öacs hyra wedd sealdon and liyra hand- setonc." 366 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. the feelings of the Saxons excluded her, but lived at home, devoting herself exclusively to her hus- band and the elementary instruction of her children. Nowhere do we find the slightest sign of this beau- tiful harmony having ever been disturbed. Alfred set apart for her maintenance several estates, among which there are two not without importance, as furnishing us with a noble proof of Alfred's de- licacy of feeling : we allude to Wantage and Athan- dune,'"" the former being the place where he was born, and the latter, the battle-field where his sword secured the freedom of his native country. Wantage remained royal property until the time of the Plantagenets. Our authorities, which con- fine themselves to material facts, tell us no more of Ealhswith. With a reputation for devotion, like that enjoyed by her mother, she survived the death of her husband, and, as mother of the young monarch, lived not far from tlie court, until death snatched her away in the year 905.f Ealhswith bore her husband a number of chil- dren, some of whom died at an early age ; among the survivors, the eldest was Athelfled, the Queen of the Mercians, a woman of strong mind and mas- culine deportment : she energetically supported her husband, Athelred, and at his death assumed the * " Done ham ast Lamoburnan and aet Waneting and jet Etandune." t Kemble, '*' Cod. Diplom." N. 333, — a document concerning an exchange of some lands with the monastery at INIalmesbury — is signed, immediately after King Edward, " EalhsweÖ, mater regis, iElfredi conimix." " Chron. Sax." a. 905. EDWARD AND EGWYN. 367 reins of government herself. There are many docu- ments proving the active part she took in public affairs.* She died on the 12th June, 919 : her only daughter seems to have had no family. Athelfled, like all her brothers and sisters, is liberally re- membered in Alfred's will. Edward, the heir to the throne, who had been brought up under his father's eye for the position he occupied, showed, even when a boy, that he would, in later years, prefer the qualities of the body to those of the mind ; and this disposition is confirmed by his own reign. His son, Athelstan, fully justified his descent from so vigorous a race; history has even represented him as more person- ally heroic than his father himself, and poetry has enshrined his birth as it has his victories. Ed- ward, when Atheling (so runs the account), had ridden out into the country one day, when he en- tered a shepherd's hut : here he beheld the shep- herd's daughter, Egwyn, who captivated him by her beauty ; a vision having, in a dream, previously announced to her the brilliant nature of her future prospects.f By this maiden, whose parents were perhaps something more than mere peasants, but certainly not noble, Edward had a son, Athel- stan, and also a daughter. The boy was brought up at the court of his grandfather; and the latter, enchanted with his beauty and the refinement of * Kcmblo, N. 311, 330, 339, 340, 1068, 1073, 1075. ] W. Malmcsb. II. § 139 ; but § 126, he names her " ilUisf ris foemina," and then, again, ^ 131, he has, " ut fcrunt concubina." In Florent. Wigom. I. p. 117, she is called " mulier nobilissiina.' 368 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. his behaviour, prophesied that his reign would be a happy one, and equipped him when he was still a child as a warrior, by giving him a purple mantle, a girdle ornamented with precious stones, and a Saxon sword in a gold scabbard. * The little grandson, who was, as it were, knighted by this proceeding, afterwards fulfilled most brilliantly his grandfather's prophecy. By two other wives, who enjoyed the rank of queens, Edward is known to have had twelve other children. The position occu- pied by many of them, and the accounts we have received of their lives, have prevented them from being forgotten ; they were greatly instrumental in extending, by marriage, the power and the foreign relations of the country in an unusual degree. One daughter, Eadgifu, became the wife of Charles the Simple, King of France; another, Eadhild, was married to Hugo the Great, son of Robert, the powerful Duke of Neustria, Burgundy, and Francia. By these marriages, Athelstan kept up the most intimate relations with the two rival races in the empire of the West-Franks ; namely, with the Car- lovingians, and the Capetians, who were endeavour- ing to wrest the kingdom from them. The most powerful ally, however, that he made, was the great Emperor, Otto I., who married his sister, Eadgyth. The ancient unity of the Saxon islanders and of the Old Saxons, shone brilliantly forth once more, at a period when their common race, with their greatest prince at its head, held the fate of Europe in its hands. A fourth daughter of Edward, whose * W. Malmesb. II. § 133. ALFRED'S CHILDREN. 3G9 name is said to have been Adgive, had for her husband some prince in the neighbourhood of the Alps.* Ealgifu, the youngest and handsomest of all, became the wife of Louis, Duke of Aquitania. Athelstan, who had no children, was succeeded on the throne by his brother Edmund, Edward's third son. Such are the branches of this vigorous and far-spreading family tree. Alfred's third child was Athelgeofu, Abbess of Shaftsbury, Mdio, on account of her delicate state of health, chose a religious life, to which, with the property left her by her father, she remained true to the last. The year of her death is not given. The hand of Alfred's third daughter, Alfthryd, was given by her father to Count Baldwin of Flan- ders, the son of his step-mother, Judith. Besides other property named in Alfred's last will, Alfthryd inherited the village of Lewesham, in Kent, which she left, in the year Ö1G, to the monastery of St. Blandin, near Gent.f From her was descended the first Norman Queen of England, INIatilda, the wife of William the Conqueror : she died in the year 929.| Alfred's youngest son, Athelward, was, to his father's great delight, a most zealous scholar, and a perfect model for all studious youth when he was a mere child. The large share which he re- * iEthehveard, proam. L 498; Ing-ulph. p. 878; W. Malmcsb. IL § 127. Compare Ilrotsuithae " (/arincu de Gostis Oddouis," I. np. Pcrlz, M. G. SS. IV. 321. I See Lappenbcrg, p. 347, ii. L I "Auuales Blandinicnscs," ap. Pcrtz, M. G. SS. V. 24. B B 370 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. ceived of his father's private property, was situated in various parts of the country, and especially in the Celtic districts. Under his brother's reign he appears in the character of a royal prince, some few deeds being signed by him.* He died on the 16tli October, 922, and was buried in the royal vault at Winchester-! We possess informa- tion concerning three of his children, but, farther than that, all trace of his descendants is lost. In conformity with the arrangement of Swin- beorh, which we have mentioned, Alfred faithfully left his two nephews, Athelhelm and Athelwald, the portion which had been assigned to each by their father. In their case the names of the vari- ous places are expressly mentioned. The younger, however, was not content with his share, that was as sufficient to support him in the rank and posi- tion of a near relation of the royal house, as the share assigned to the King himself was to support the latter. Not only did he endeavour to pro- cure a greater amount of property, but even at- tempted to obtain possession of the crown ; it is true that this would have descended to him by the direct line of succession, but it had been ex- pressly taken from him in deeds whose authenti- city it was impossible to controvert. He was hereupon declared an enemy of his king, and a traitor to his country. We have already men- tioned his death in the year 905. Athelhelm was * " ^thehveard, filius regis," Kemble, " Cod. Diplom." N. 335, 337. t "Florent. Wigom." I. p. 130. ALFRED'S WILL. 371 more easily satisfied tlian his brother. He is, pro- bably, that son of King Athelred, from whom the historian, Athelweard, boasts of being descended.* Alfred mentions in his will another relation of the name of Osferth,t to whom he leaves several villages, but of whose relation to the royal family we know nothing more. To judge from his name, he may, possibly, be a descendant of the family of Osburh. Such are the direct and collateral branches of Alfred's house. To enable them to support their rank in a befitting manner, they all inherited both land and money. They were all provided for by Alfred with the greatest conscientiousness, which extends even to the minutest details, in order that he might truly fulfil the directions of his ancestors. But, in spite of this, he never lost sight of the im- portance of a direct line of succession. He desired that his heir should always surpass all his other relations, and all the nobles of the land in riches and landed property, and always be in the posses- sion of separate private property. The old con- servative principle that actuated him is most evi- dent from his own words. "And it is my will that those who hold land shall follow the regulation that is contained in my father's will, as far as they are able. And whenever I have ever withheld a feoff from any one, my relations shall at least let him have it in * yEthchveard, IV. p. 514. t Kemble, " Cod. Diplom." N. 311. " Opfoifie milium macgc." There is a minister of the name of Csfeiö in many of King Edward's documents. B n 2 372 LIFE OF ALFRED THE GREAT. feoff. It is my will that those to whom I have promised a grant of land shall never give it to be possessed by any one after their life to the injury of my race, but it shall then go to the person nearest to me, provided they have no children. But I should prefer it to remain in the hands of my male descendants as long as they are worthy of it. My great-grandfather left his land to those who wielded the spear, and not to those who used the distaff. If therefore I ever gave anything to a person on the female side, my relations must pay him for it if they desire to have it again during his lifetime ; if this is not the case, let it be disposed of according to the rule we have al- ready laid down. They shall pay for it, however, as they are my heirs, to whom, both in the female and the male line, I can give as I think proper." * The various sums named by Alfred afford us much interesting information concerning his rela- tion to the members of his own family, and his officers. To each of his sons, as his principal heirs, he leaves five hundred pounds in ready money, and to each of his three daughters, and his wife, Ealhswith, one hundred pounds. Each of his Eal- dormen, among whom Athelhelm, Athelwald, and Osferth are mentioned by name, is to receive one hundred mancuses ; to Athelred, the ruler of Mer- cia, a sword of the value of one hundred and twenty mancuses, is left as a peculiar mark of esteem. Among his serving-men, whom he was accustomed * Kemble, "Cod. Diplom." N. 314. Compare "Leg. iElfr." p. 4L ALFRED'S WILL. 373 to pay at Easter,* two hundred pounds are to be distributed, in a ratio })roportioned to the claims of each, and according to the rule that he himself followed with them. The faithfully devoted clergy has also its place assigned it in his will. One hundred mancuses each are set aside for the arch- bishop, the bishops Esne and Werfrith, and the Bishop of Sherburne, but whether by the last we are to understand Asser or Wulfsige, it is impos- sible to determine, t A sum of two hundred pounds is left, for the salvation of his own and his father's soul, to those to whom either he or his father ever promised a donation : of this, four equal portions are intended for the entire body of consecrated priests in his kingdom, for poor priests and for the church in which he himself desires to be buried. This was Winchester Cathedral, to the bishopric of which place all the landed property he possesses in Kent is left in an earlier passage of his will. After these directions he adds that he is not quite sure wdiether his treasure is suffi- cient to pay all these various legacies, though he thinks that it amounts to a larger sum. Should this be the case, he orders that the surplus shall be divided among the legatees, not omitting the Ealdormen and serving-men. With reference to any former dispositions, when his fortune was greater, and his relatives more numerous, he rc- * "öain mannum Sc mc folgia^, 8et rice |?am unrihtwisan cyninge aferran mihte. and on ryhtgeleafFulra and on rihtwisra anwealde gebriiigan. sende j?a digeilice ccrendgewritu to ]?am casere to Constantinopolim. ]?aer is Creca heahburg and heora cynestol. for ])am se casere waes heora ealdhlaford cynnes. beedon hine J^get he him to heora cristendome and to heora ealdrihtum gefultu- mede. pa }^aet ongeat se waelhreowa cyning Deodric. ])a het he hine gebringan on carcerne and jjaer inne belucan. ]?a hit J^a gelomp pset se arwyr^a wees on swa micelre nearanesse becoman. * pa waes he swa raicle swi^or on his mode gedrel'ed. swa his mod aer * MS. " becom." FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 893 swi^or to j)am woruld-sa^ljmm gewuuod wa's. and he ]m nanre frofre be innan }^am carccrne ne gemunde. ac he gefeoll niwol of dune on flur and hine astrehte swi^e unrot. and orniod hine selliie on*^an wepan and ]nis singende cwae^S. h. FROM OROSIUS* a. AlfrecTs Germania. Nu wille we yrab Europa land g-emasre reccan, swa mycel swa we hit fyrmest witon, fram |?a;re ea Danais west oS Rhin =Sa ea, seo wylS of j^aem beorg-e l^e man Alpis haet, and yrnS jwnne nor^Sryhte on l^a^s g-arsec^es earm, ];e ])aet land utau-ymb liö |?e man Bryttannia haet, and aeft su^ o]; Donua J^a ea, ];a3re aewylme is neah ];aere eä Rines, and is si^San east yrnende wiS Crecaland lit on fione Wendelsae, and norö o]? pone garsecg' })e man Cvven-sa3 hajt, binnan paera syndon manega Seoda ; ac hit man haet ealle Germania. Donne wy^ noi^an Donua cBwylme, and be castan Riue syndon East-francan ; and be suSan him syndon Swaefas, on o=Sre healfc ]?aere eä Donua, and be suöan him and be eastan syndon Baeg^ware, se dael ]>g man Regnesburh hast ; and rihte be aestan him syndon Berne, and east-nor^ syndon Dyringas, and be norSan him syndon Eald-Seaxan, and be norSan-westan him syndon Frysan. And be westan Eald-Scaxum is Aclfemu^a ]>ait land |;e man Angle haet, and Silleudc, * From Thorpe's " Analecta Anglosaxonicu," od. II. p. 81, ft t;cq. 394 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. and sum d^el Dena, and be noröan him is Apdrede, and east-norö Wylte, Ipe man Aefeldan hast, and be eastan him is Winedaland, |?e man hcet Sysyle, and east-sub, ofer sumne dael, Maroaro. And hi Maroaro habba'S be westan him Dyringas and Behemas and Bseg^ware healfe, and be suöan him, on oSre healfe Donua ]>dere ea, is ]?fet land Carendre suö o^ beorgas j^e man heet Alpis. To J^aem ikan beorgum licgaS Baeg^vvara land-gemaere and Sw^fa ; and j^onne be eastan Carendran lande, begeondan J'aem waestenne, is Pulgaraland, and be eastan ]?8em is Crecaland ; and be eastan Meroarolande is Wisleland, and be eastan ]?aem sind Datia, ]?a ]?e in w^ron Gottan ; be eastan- noröan Maroara syndon Dalamensan, and be eastan Dalamensam sindon Horithi, and be nor^an Dalo- mensam sindon Surpe, and be westan him sindon Sysele ; be norSan Horithi is Masg^alond, and be nor^an Maeg'Salande Sermende, o^ 'Sa beorgas Riffin ; and be westan Su^-Denum is ]?aes garsecges earm ]?e li^ ymbutan beet land Brittania ; and be norSan him is baes saes earm pe man haet Ost-s^, and be eastan him and be nor^an him syndon Nor]7-Dene, aegj^aer ge on J^aem maran landum ge on J?aem iglandum ; and be eastan him syndon Afdrede, and be su^an him is Aelfemu^a j^sere ea, and Eald-Seaxna sum dael. Norö-Dene habba^ him be nor'San ]?one ilcan sass earm pe man Ost-see haet, and be eastan him sindon Osti 8a leode, and Afdrede be su=San ; Osti habbaS be nor^ao him pone ilcan saes earm, and Winedas, and Burgendas ; and be suSan him syndon Haefeldan ; Burgendan habba^ ]?oue ylcan saes earm be westan him, and Sweon be nor^an ; and be eastan him sint FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 395 Sermende, and be suSan him Surt'e ; Sweon hubbub be silvan him j^one sa?s earra Osti, and be easten him Sermende, and be noröan ofer j^a westennu is Cwenland ; and be westan-nor^an him sindon Scride- Finnas, and be westan NorSraenn. ß. Ohthere's Description of Ms Voyage. Ohthere saede his hlaforde, Aelfrede kynincge, jjaet he ealra NorSmanna nor=Smest biide. He cwaeS j^ajt he bade on |?am lande norSvveardiim wi=S j^a West-sae ; he sasde |7eah j^aet j^aet land sy swjiSe lang- norS J^anon, ac hit is eall weste, buton on feawum stowum sticce- maelum wiciaS Finnas on huntaöe on wintra,and on su- mera on lisco'Se be |?a?re Sce. He saede j^aet he ast su- mum cyrre wolde fandian, hu lang-e j^aet land noi'S-rihte laege, o^S^e hwaj|7er aenig- man be noi^an j^agm westene bnde : ]?a tor he norS-rihte be |?a3m lande, let him ealne weg- j^aet weste land on |)aet steorbord, and |7a w]d-sa3 on baecbord, j^ry dagas : j^a waes he swa feor norö swa Sa hwael-huntan fyrrest fara^. pa for he j^a-g-yt nor^-ryhte swa he mihte on jjaim oSrum j^rim dagum gesegiian ; |7a beah j^aet land ^?ex easte-ryhtc, o^^e sio saj in on j^aet land, he iiyste hwaeJ7er, buton he wiste j^aet he j^aer bad westan windcs, o^Se hwön norSan, and seglede j^anon east be laude, swa swa he mihte on leower daj^um gesegiian ; ba sceoldc he bidan ryhte nor^an windes, fortan j^fct land Y^cv beah su8-rihte, o=5Se seo sae in on |7aet land, he uyste hwaefer. pa seg-Iede he J^anon suS-rihte be lande, swa swa he mihte on fit" dagum g'eseg:lian. Da la^g- l^aer an mycel ea up in )7a;t land ; |7a cyrdon hy np in on ba ca, ior^tcm hy ne dorston loiti be |7arc ca 396 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. seglian for unfViSe, forj^aem ]?aet land vvaes call gebun on o^re healfe ffaere eä. Ne mette he aer nan gebun land sy=S^an he fram his agnum hame for; ac him . waes ealne weg weste land on feet steorbord, butan fisceran and fugeleran and huntan ; and j^aet waeron ealle Finnas, and him waes ä wid-sa3 on j^at beecbord. Da Beormas haefdon swi^e well gebun hyra land, ac hi ne dorston ]?aer-on cuman ; ac Sara Terfinna land waes eall weste, butan ]?aer huntan gewicodon, o'SSe fisceras, o^^e fugeleras. Fela spella him sasdon ]>a, Beormas, asg^er ge of hyra agenum lande ge of f»8em landum jje ymb hy utan waeron ; ac he nyste hweet ]7ass so^es waes, for]?aem he hit sylf ne geseah. pa Finnas, him J^uhte, and ]?a Beormas spraecon neah an ge^eode. SwySost he for ^yder, to-eacan ]?aes landes scea- wunge, for |)aem hors-hwaelum, for]?aem hi habbaS swySe geSele ban on hyra to=Sum. pa teö hy brohton sume J^agm cynincge ; and hyra hyd biS swiSe god to scip-rapum. Se hwael bi'S micle laesse ]?onne oSre hwalas, ne biS he lengra jjonne syfan elna lang. Ac on his agnum lande is se betsta hwael-hunta=S ; ]?a beoö eahta and feowertiges elna lange, and pa, maestan fiftiges elna lange ; ]?ara he ssede paet he syxa sum ofsloge syxtig on twam dagum. He waes swiSe spedig man on ]?aem aehtum ]?e heora speda on beoS, }?8et is, on wildeorum : he haefde p3,-gyt, ]?a he J?one cyning' sohte, tamra deora unbebohtra syx hund. Da deor hi hata^ hranas, }jara waeron syx stael-hranas; ]7a beoS swyöe dyre mid Finnum, for]?aem hy fo^ |?a wildan hranas mid. He waes mid peem fyrstum man- num on ):>aem lande, n^efdc he J^eah ma J?onne tvventig FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 397 hrySera, and twcntig- sceapa, and twentig swyna ; and ]?ait lytle ])sct he erede he erede mid horsau ; ac hyra ar is nicest on ]>xm gafole Jje Sa Finnas him gyldaS, ^set g-afol biS on deora fellum, and on fug-ela feSerura, and hwaeles bane, and on Jpaem scip-rapuni }>e beoS of hwaeles by de gewoiht, and of seoles. Aeg*- hwilk g-ylt be his gebyrdum, se byrdesta sceal g-ildan fiftyne mearöes fell, and fif hranes, and an beran fell, and tyn ambra fe^ra, and berenne kyrtel, oöSe yter- enne, and tweg-en scip-rapas, aegj^er sy syxtig' elna lang, oj^er sy of hwaeles hyde gew orht, o^Ser of sioles. He saede ]?ast NorSmanna land waere swy^e lang- and swy^e smasl. Eall }>aet his man a];er o^^e ettan oSSe erian maeg, J^aet li^ wi^ ))a sae, and J?aet is J?eah on sumum stowum swySe cludig-, and licga^ wilde moras wi^ eastan, and wv6 uppon emnlange ]?aem bynum lande. On Jjaem morum eardia^ Finnas. And )u\jt byne land is easteweard bralost, and symle swa noröor swa smaelre : easteweard hit maeg bion syxtig- mila brad, oSSe hwene braedre, and middeweard ]?ritig' oSSe brädre ; and nor^eweard, he cwaiS, f'aer hit smalost waere, jpaet hit mihtebeon Jjreora mila brad to ]?asm more, and se mor sy^j^an on sumum stowum swabrad swa man macg" on twam wucum oferferan ; and on sumum stowum swa brad swa man maeg* on syx dag-um oferferan. Donne is to-emnes ]?;cm lande suöeweardum on o^re healfe }iaes mores Sweoland, o]> J)ect land norSwcard, and to-emncs j^asm lande noröcweardum, Cwenaland. Da Cwenas hergia^ hwilum on }>a Nor^Smen ofer |)one mor, hwilum |)a Nor-Smen on hy. And jrner sint swi^c micle meras fersce geond j>a moras ; and bcra^ J'a Cwenas hyra scypu ofer land on \>d meras, and j^anou 398 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. hergiaS on pa. Nor^men. Hy habbaS swy^e lytle scipa, and swiSe leohte. Ohthere seede p^t sio scir hatte Halgoland, ]?e he on bude. He cwee^ ]?£et nan man ne bude be noröan him. J}onne is an port on so^eweardum ]?aem lande, J>one man haet Sciringes-heal, ]?yder he cwseS psdt man ne mihte geseglian on an urn monSe, gyf man on niht wicode, and eelce da^ge hasfde ambyrne wind. And ealle ]?a hwile he sceal seglian be lande, and on Ipaet steorbord^ him bi^ serest Isaland, and |)onne |)a igland ]?e synd betwux Isalande and J?issum lande, ponne is |)is land o^ he cym^ to Sciringes-heale, and ealne weg- on ]?a3t bsecbord Noröwege. Bi wiS su^an |?one Sciringes-heal fyI8 swySe my eel see up in on ]?aet land, seo is bradre ]?onne ajnig- man oferseon meeg-e ; and is Gotland on oSre healfe ongean, and siS^a Sillende. Seo see li^ msenig- hund mila up in on ]?aet land. And of Sciringes-heale, he cwaed |?8et he seglode on fif dagum to ]?aem porte ]?e mon heet eet Hae^um, se stent betuh Winedum and Seaxum and Angle, and hyr=S in on Dene. Da he }>iderweard seglode from Sciringes-heale, pa waes him on J?eet baecbord Dena- mearc, and on ]?aet steorbord wid-sa? ]?ry dagas ; and ]?a t wegen dagas ajr he to Haßpum come, him waes on Jjaet steorbord Gotland and Sillende and iglanda fela. On J^aem lande eardodon Engle, aer hi hider on laud comon. And hym wass f>a twegen dagas on pset baecbord ]?a igland pe in Denemearce hyra^. y. Wulf Stan's Descrijption of Ms Voyage. Wulfstan saede ]?aet he gefore of Hae^um, j^ast he waere on Truso on syfan dagum and nihtum, j^aet j^ast FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 399 scyp waes ealne weg' yniende under segle. VVeonod- land him waes on steorboid, and on baecljord him wa3s Langaland, and Laeland, and Falster, and Sconeg-, and ]?as land eall hyraö to Denemearcan. And ]?onne Burgendaland waes us on baecbord ; and |^ä habba^ him-sylf cyning". Donne aefter Burgendalande wa^ron us ]^as land |?asynd hatene, arrest Blecingeg-, and Meore, and Eowland, and Gotland on baecbord, and ]7as land hyra'S to Sweon. And Weonodland waes us ealne weg- on steorbord o'S Wisle-mu^an. Seo Wisle is swi^e mycel eä, and heo toli^ Witland and Weonod- land ; and l^tet AVitland belimpeö to Estum, and seo Wisle lis ut of Weonodlande, and liö in Estmere ; and se Estmere is hum fiftene mila brad. ponne cymeS Ilfing- eastan in Estmere, of j^am mere j?e Truso standeis in sta^e, and cumaS ut samod in Estmere Ilfing- eastan of Eastlande, and Wisle suSan of Winodlande ; and j^onne benimö Wisle Ilfing- hire naraan, and ligeS of |7aem mere west and norö on sae : forSy hit man haet Wisle-muSan. Daet Eastland is swiSe mycel, and j^aer biS swySe manig- burh, and on aelcere byrig* bi5 cyningc, and j^acr bis swySe mycel hunig- and fiscaS ; and se cyning and pa. ricostan men drincaS myran meolc, and ba unspedigan and pa, |)e6wan drincaö medo. Daer bi8 svvyöe mycel gewinn betweonan him, and ne biS Sajr nacnig ealo gebrowen mid Estum, ac j^acr biS medo genoh. And j^aer is mid Estum Seaw, jjonne j^an- biS man dead, jjaet he liö inne unforbaerned, mid his magum and freondum, monaS, g-ehwilum twegen : and ba kyningas and j^a oSrc heahSungcne men swa mide lencg swa hi maran speda habbaS; hwilum liealC 400 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. gear psdt hi beo^ unforbasrned, and licga'S bufan eor- 'San on hyra husum. And ealle j^a hwile pe j^ast lie biS inne, j^asr sceal beon gedrync and plega, o^ ^one dceg" be hi hine forbcernaö. ponne by ylcan daeg hi hine to ^sem ade beran wiila^, j^onne todaela^ hi his feoh faet pser to lafe biS, eefter J?asm gedrynce and j^aem plegan, on fif o^^e syx, hwilum on ma, swa swa bees feos andefn bi^. Alecgaö hit j^onne forhwaega on anre mile ];oue mtestan deel fram |7aem tune, |?onne o^erne, fionne j^eene ]?riddan, oj^j^e hyt eall aled hr6 on ]?8ere anre mile ; and sceall beon se laesta dsel nyhst |7^m tune 8e se deada man on li^. Donne sceolon beon gesamnode ealle ^a men Se swyftoste hors habbaS on |?8em lande, forhweega on fif ni'lum, o'SSe on syx milum fram |)aem fee. Donne aernaS hy ealle toweard j?gem feo ; öonne cymeö se man se |?3et swifte hors hafaS to |7a?m aerestan d^ele and to p3eni maestan, and swa aelc aefter oörum, 08 hit bi=S eall genumen ; and se nimS |7one laestan dael se nyhst Saem tune Saet feoh geaerneS. And j^onne rideS aelc hys weges mid 8an feoh, and hyt motan habban eall ; and for'Sy }?aer beoS pa. swyftan hors ungefohge dyre. And J7onne his gestreon beoS J?us eall aspended, Jjonne byrS man hine ut, and forbaerneS mid his waepnum and hrsegle, and swiSost ealle his speda hy forspendaS mid ]?am langan legere |?9es deadan mannes inne, and ba;s pe hy be j^aem wegum alecga'S, pe 8a fremdan to aernaS and nimaS. And j^^t is mid Estura feaw, fiast j^aer sceal aelces geSeodes man beon forbaerned ; and gyf faer man an ban findeS unforbccrned, hi hit sceo- lan miclum gebetan. And j^aer is mid Eastum an raaegS j^aet hi magon cyle gevvyrcan, and j^y j^ser licgaS FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 401 pa deadan men swa lange and ne fiiliaö, pset hy wyi'caS J;one cyle hine on ; and beah man asette twa^gen faitels full eala^ o^Se wa3teres, hy gedo=5 pxt opev bis oferfroren, sam hit sy summor sam winter. c. PREFACE, INTRODUCTORY AND CON- CLUDING VERSES OF THE TRANS- LATION OF GREGORY THE GREAT'S PASTORAL.^- Deos Boc Sceal to Wiogora Ceastre. Aelfred kyning- hateS gretan WaeiferS biscep his wordum lufiice and freondlice. and 8e cySan hate Sa3t me com swiöe oft on gemynd hwelce wiotan in waeron g-iond Angel-cynn. aeg=Ser ge g-odcundra hada. ge woruldcimdra. and hu gesaßliglica tida Sa vvaeron giond Angel-cynn. and hu 'Sa kyningas 8e Sone 6n- wald hcefdon Saes folces. gode and his aerendwiecum hyrsumedon. and hie aegSer ge hiora sibbe ge hiora siedo. ge hiora onweald innan hordes gehioldon. and eac ut hiora eöcl gerymdon. and hu him Sa spcow. sßgöer ge mid wige. ge mid wisdome. and eac Sa god- cundan hadas. hu giorne hie waeron aegöer ge ymb lare ge ymb liornunga. ge ymb ealle Sa Siowotdomas. Se hie gode scoldon. and hu man utan hordes, wisdom and lare hieder on land sohte. and hu we hy nu sccol- don Ute bcgietan. gif we hie habban sceoldon. Swa claene hio waes oö-feallenn on Angel-cynnc. dtvt swiSo * According to MS. Hatten, 20, in the Bodleian Library, printed in nearly its original state, as a specimen of the West-Saxon dialect. D D 402 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. feawa weeron be-hionan Humbre ^e hiora Seninga Climen understondan on Englisc. o=S^e furtum an aerendgewrit of Lccdene on Englisc areccean. and ic wene "Saette nolit monige be-giondan Humbre naeren. swa feawa hiora weeron. "Sast ic furtum anne anlepne ne maeg- geSencean besu^an Temese. ^a Sa ic to rice feng. gode selmihtegum sie 'Sonc 'Saette we nu aenigne on stal habba^S lareowa. and forden ic ^e bebiode. Saet ^u do swa ic geliefe ^Saet 'Sa wille. 'Saet Su ^e 'Sissa woruldSinga to "SEera geaemetige swae 'Su oftost maege. ^aet 'Su ^one wisdom 'Se 'Se god sealde 'Saer Saer 'Su hiene befaestan m^ege befaeste. ge^enc hwelce witu us ^a becomon for ^isse worulde. ^a 'Sa we hit nohw^'Ser ne selfe ne lufodon. ne eac o^rum monnum ne lefdon. 'Sone naman aenne we lufodon 'Saette we cristne waeren and swi^e feawa "Sa ^eawas. ^a ic 'Sa 'Sis eall gemunde, ^a gemunde ic eac hu ic geseah aer ^aem Se hit eall forhergod weere and forbserned. hu Sa ciricean giond eall Angel-cynn stodon ma^ma and boca gefylde. Ond eac micel menigeo godes =Siowa. and ^a swi'Se lytle fiorme Sara boca wiston. for'Saem Se hie hiora nanwuht ongiotan ne raeahton. for'Saem 8e hy naeron on hiora agen geSiode awritene. Swelce hie cwaedon. ure yldran Sa Se Sas stowa ser hioldon. hie lufodon wisdom, and Surh Sone hie begeaton welan and us laefdon. Her mon maeg giet gesion hiora sw£eS. ac we him ne cunnon aefter spyrigean, and forSaem we habbaS nu aegSer forl^eten. ge Sone welan. ge Sone wisdom. forScem Se we noldon to 'Saem spore mid ure mode onlutan. Sa ic Sa 'Sis eall gemunde. 'Sa wundrade ic swiSe swi'Se, Sara godena wiotona Se giu wasron giond Angel-cynn. and Sa bee FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 403 ealle befiillaii geliornod hacfdon. Sa^t hie hiora Sa na;nne da^l noldon on hiora agen gc^iode wendan. ac ic ^a soiia eft me selfum andwyrde and cwa3^. hie ne wendon ^aette aefre menn sceolden swa reccelease weorSan. and sio lar swa o^feallan. for =S£ere wilnunga hy hit forleton. and woldon 'Sset her =Sy mara wisdom on lande wasre. ^y we ma geSeoda cu=Son. ^a ge- munde ic hu sio se wses aerest on Ebveisc geSiode fun- den, and eft Sa hie Greccas geliornodon. Sa wendon hie hie on hiora agene ge^iode ealle. and eac ealle o'Sre bee. and eft Laedenware sw£e same si^San hie hie geliornodon. hie hie wendon eall ^urh wise wealh-stodas on hiora agen ge^iode. Ond eac ealla o^re cristne Sioda. sumne dael hiora on hiora agen ge^iode wendon. for^y me SyncS betre gif iow swae 'SyncS. Saet we eac sume bee. Sa ^e niedbeSearfosta sien eallum monniim to wiotonne. Saet we Sa on 'Sast geSiode wenden, ^e we ealle gecnawan maggen. and gedon swae we swiSe ea^e magon. mid godcs fultume. gif we ^a stilnesse habba^. ^aette eall sio giogu=S ^e nu is on Angel-cynne friora monna. ^ara ^e Sa speda haebben. Saet hie ^aem befeolan maegen sien to lior- nunga o^fcesto. ^a hvvile Se hie to nanre o^erre note ne majgen. oSSonne first Se hie wel cunnen Englisc gewrit araedan. laere mon si^San furfur on Laeden ge^iode. 'Sa ^e mon furSor laeran willc. and to hieran hade don wille. ^a ic ^a gemunde hu sio lar Landen ge'Siodes acr ^issum afeallen wa'S giond Angel-cynn. and Seah monige cu^Son Englisc gewrit artedan. Sa ongan ic on gemang o^rum mislicum and manig- fcaldum bisgum öisses kynericcs ^a boc wendan on Englisc Se is genemned on Ltcden Pastoralis. and on D D 2 404 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. Englisc hierde-boc. hwilum word be worde. hwilum andgit of andgite. swsb swae ic hie geliornode aet Pleg-munde minum aercebiscepe and aet Assere minum biscepe and aet Grimbolde minum maesse-prioste and aet Johanne minum maesse-prioste. Si^^an ic hie =Sa geliornod haefde. swae swae ic hie forstod. and swae ic hie andg'itfullicost areccean meahte. ic hie on Englisc awende. Ond to aelcum biscep -stole on minum rice wille ane onsendan. and on aelcre bi^ an aestel. se bi^ on fiftegum mancessan. Ond ic bebiode on Godes naman 'Saet nan mon ^one aestel from 'Saere bee ne do. ne Sa boc from =Saem mynstre. Uncu^ hu longe ^aer swae gelaerede biscepas sien. swae swae nu Gode Sonc wel hwaer siendon. for^y ic wolde 'Saette hie ealneg- aet 'Saere stowe weeren. buton se biscep hie mit him hab- ban wille. o^^Se hio hwaer to laene sie. oSSe hwa o=Sre biwrite. Introductory Verses. pis gerendg-ewrit. Agostinus. ofer sealtne sae. su^an brohtae. iegbuendum. swa hit aerfore. adihtode. dryhtenes cempa. Rome papa, ryhtspell monig. Gregorius. gleawmod gindwod. 'Surh sefan snyttro. searo^onca hord. for=Saem he moncynnes. maest gestricnde. rodra wearde. Romwara betest. monna mod-welegost. maer'Sum gefraegost. Si'S^an min on Englisc. Aelfred kyning. awende worda gehwelc. and me his writerum. FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 405 sende su^ and norö. lieht him swelcra ma. brengan bi ^a^re bisene. ^£et he his biscepum. sendan meahte. foj'Sasm he his sume Sorlton. Sa ISe Laeden spraece. lasste cu^on. Concluding Verses. Dis is nu se waeterscipe. ^e us wereda God, to frofre gehet, foldbuendum. he cwae^ ^ast he wolde. 8aet on worulde forö. of Saem inno^um. a libbendu. waetru fleowen. Se wel on hine, gelifden under lyfte. is hit lytel treo. Sa3t Saes wseterscipes. welsprynge is. on hefonrice. Saet is halig- gaest. öonan hine hlodan. halge and g-ecorene. siSSan hine gierdon. Sa Se g-ode herdon. öurh halga bee. hider on eorSan, geond manna mod. misselice. sume hine weriaS. on gewit-locan, wisdomes stream, welerum gehaftaS. Saet he on unnyt. ut ne to-fiowe=S. Ac se wael wunaS, on weres breostuni. öurh dryhtnes giefe. diop and stille, Sume hine lastaö, ofer land -scare. riSum to-rinnan. nis 8aet raedlic Sing-, g'if swa hlutor wactcr. hlud and undiop. to-floweö aeftcr feldum. oS hit to lenne weiS. Ac hlada^S iow nu drincan. nu iow dryhten geaf. öcct iow Grcgorius. gegicred hafa=S. to durum iowrum. dryhtnes welle. 406 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. Fylle mi his faetels. se ^e fasstne hider. kylle brohte. cume eft hree^e. gif her ^egna hwelc. ^yrelne kylle. brohte to öys biiman. bete hine georiie. 8y Ices he forsceade. scirost waetra. o^^e him lifes drync. ferloren weorSe. d. PREFACE TO THE TRANSLATION OF GREGORY THE GREAT S DIALOGUES.^^ Ic Aelfred gyfendom Criste mid cynehades raeer- nesse geweor^a^ hsebbe cirölice ODgiten. and ^urh haligra boca raedunge of gehyred. ]?cet us an god swa micele healicnysse woruld geSingSa forgifen haefS, is seo ma3ste ]?earf J?a3t we hwilon ure mod geli^ian and gebigian to Sam godcundum and gastlicum rihte. betweoh ]?as eorSlican carfiilnysse. and ic for]?am sohte and wilnode to minum getrywum freondum J?aet hy me of godes bocum be haligra manna J^eawiim and wundrum awriton j^as eefterfyligendan lare. ]?aet ic |5urh ])a mynegunge and lufe getrymmed on minum mode hwilum gehicge ]?a heofenlican \m% betweoh ]?as eor^lican gedrefednyssa, Cuölice we magon nu set aerestan gehyran hu se eadiga and se apostolica wer Sanctus Gregorius sprcec to his diacone ]?am waes nama Petrus, be haligra manna ];eawum and life, to lare and to bysne eallum ]?am \q, godes willan wyr- cea^ and lufiaS. and he be him sylfum ]>isum wordum and ]?us cwae^. * According to MS. Hatton, 76, in the Bodleian Library, piinted in Wanley, CataL p. 71. FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 407 e. PREFACE TO THE ANTHOLOGY FROM ST. AUGUSTIN'S SOLILOQUIES." Gaderode me ]?onne rigelas and stu^an sceaftas and loh-sceaftas and hylfa to aslcum 'Sara tola pe ic mid wii-can cu8e and boh-timbru and bolt-timbru and to aelcum J)ara weorca ]?e ic wyrcan cuSe ]?a wlitegostan treowo be ^am dele \q ic aberan meihte. ne com ic na])er mid anre byrSene ham. \q me ne lyste ealne ]?one wude ham brengan. gif ic hyre ealne aberan meihte. on aslcum treowo ic geseah hwaet hwugu ]?aes ]?e ic aet ham be];orfte. for]?am ic laere ajlcne ^ara ]?e maga si and ma[nige] waen haebbe ]?9et he menige to J^ara ilcan wuda ]par ic 8as stu^an sceaftas cearf. fetige hym ]jar ma and gefe^rige hys waenas mid fe- grum gerdum. \dd\. he mage windan manigne smicerne wah and manig- aenlic hiis setan and fegerne tun tim- brian. and j^ara and ]?aer murge and softe mid maeg^e on eardian aeg^Ser ge wintras ge sumeras. swa swa ic nu ne g-yt dyde. Ac se ]?e me kerde. ];am se wudu licode. se maeg' gedon ]?aet ic softor eardian aeg^er ge on ^isum laenan stoc-life be ^is waege \-a. hwile pe ic on ^Sisse weorulde beo. ge eac onöamheanf hame J)e he us gehaten hefö ^urh Sanctus Augustinus, and Sanctus Gregorius. and Sanctus Jcronimus. and 'Surh manege o'S^re halie faidras. swa ic gelyfe eac baet he gedo for heora ealra earnunge aegöer ge öisne * MS. Cotton., Vitcllius A. 15, i'ol, 1, sec. XII.: tliis Mainiscrii.t is in many places niucli injured. f The Manuscript copy is altcied to " liecan." 408 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. weig- gelimpfulran gedo ^oniie he ar Öissum wses. ge huru mines modes eagan to ^am ongelihte j^jet ic mage rihtne weig aredian to Sam ecaii hame and to Sam ecan are and to j^are ecan reste pe us gehaten is 8urh öa halgan fedex^as. sie swa. Nis hit nan wunder j^eah man swylce on timber gewirce and eac on |7a[ere utjlade and eac on J^aere bytlinge. Ac aelcne man lyst. siSSan he senig cotlyf on his hlafordes laene myd his fultume getimbred hsefS. |73et he hine mote hwilum pa.v on gerestan. and hunti- gan. and fuglian. and fiscian. and his on gehwiice wisan to Jjsere laanan tilian segj^Eer ge on se ge on lande o5 oS ]?one fyrst pe he bocland and sece yrfe parh his hlafordes miltse geearnige. Swa gedo se wilega gid- fola se pe egSer wilt ge jjissa henena stoc-life ge para. ecena hama. Se pe eegSer gescop and gegSeres wilt, forgife me pset me to ^gSrum onhagige. ge her nyt- wyrde to beonne ge huru Sider to cumane. /. ALFRED'S WILL* Ic Aelfred cingc, mid godes gife and mid gej^eah- tunge Aeöeredes ercebisceopes and ealra Westseaxena witena gewitnesse, smeade ymbe minre sawle beartC;, and ymbe min yrfe Saet me god and mine yldran for- geafon, and ymbe Saet yrfe Saet ASulf cingc, min fa^der, us frim gebroSrum becwseS, ASelbolde and AeSerede and me, and swylc lire swylce lengest waere, Sajt se fenge to eailum. Ac hit gelamp öget AeSelbold gefor, and wyt AeSered, mid ealra Westseaxena witena ge- ■* Kemble, " Cod. Dipl. ^vi Sax.," N. 314. FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 409 witnesse, uncerne da?l o^-fcf stau Ae=Selbyihte cincge, imcrum maege ; on Sa geiaxlene 8e he hit eil g-edyde unc sua gewylde swa hit ^a wa^s, Sa, wit him oöfa^s- tan, and he ^a swa, dyde, ge 8a3t yrfe, ge Sset he mid uucre gemänan begeat, and oast he sylf gestryndc. Da hit swa gelamp oast Aeöered to feng, Sa bxd ic hine, beforan urum witum eallum, Saet wyt öaet yrfe geöa^ldon, and he me ägeafe minne dael. Da saede he me, Saet he naht eä=Se ne mihte todaelan, for- Son he haelde ful oft asr ongefangen : and he cwai'S 8a3s öe he on uncruni gemanan gebruce and gestrynde, aefter his daege he nanum menn sei ne uSe Öonne me : and ic Saes 8a waes wel g-ej^afa. Ac hit gelamp =Saet we ealle on haedenum folce gebiocude waeron ; ^ä spraece wyt ymbe uncre beam, 8aet hy sumre are be- ]7orftan, saelde unc on ^am brocum swa unc saelde : 8ä waeron we on g-emote aet Swinbeorgum ; 8ä gecwa^don wit on Westseaxena witena gewitnesse ; Saet swaSer uncer leng- waere, 'Sxt he geiiSe 68res bearnum Sara landa 8e wyt sylfe begeaton, and 8ara landa =Se unc AÖulf cingc forgeaf be Ae=5elbolde lifiendum, biitan 8am 8e he us j^rim gebrodrum gecwa^^S : and 'Sxs un- cor aig8er odrum his wedd sealde, swaSer uncer leng lifede, Saet se fenge acg8er ge to lande ge to madmum and to eallum his aehtum, butan 8am daele 8e uncer gehwcie8er his bearnum becwaj8. Ac hit gelamp 8cCt AeSered cingc gefor ; Sa ne cy88e me nan mann nän yrfe-gewrit, ne nane gewitnesse, 8aet hit aenig o8cr waire butan swa wit on gewitnesse acr gecwa;don. Da gehyrde we nil manegu yrfegcllitu ; nil tia huddc ic Adulfes cinges yrl'e-gewrit on lire gemot ivt Laii- gandenc and hit man ara;ddc beforan eallum West- 410 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. seaxena witum. Da hit araed wses, 'Sa bsed ic hy ealle, for minre lufan, and him rain wedd bead 'Saet ic hyra neefre naenne ne onctiSe forSon Se hy on riht sprsecon, and Saet hyra nan ne wandode ne for minan lufan ne for miniim ege, 8eet hy Saet folcriht arehton ; ^ylaes aenig man cwe^e, Sset ic mine maeg'cild, oSSe yldran oö^e gingran, mid wo fordernde, and hy '6a. ealle to rihte gerehton and cwaedon, ^set hy nan rihtre riht ge|?erican ne mihtaii, ne on 8am yrfe-gewrite ge- hyran : nii hit call ägän is ^aeron o8 ^me hand : "Sonne SÜ hit becweöe and sylle swa gesibre handa swa frem- dre, swaSer ^e leofre sy: and hi ealle me '6ses hyra wedd sealdon and hyra handsetene, 8aet be hyra life hit nsenig man naefre ne onwende on nane o^re wisan, butan swa swa ic hit sylf gecwe^e aet Sam nyhstan deege. Ic Aelfred Westseaxena cingc, mid godes gife and mid Sisse gewitnesse, gecwe'Se hü ic ymbe min yrfe wille aefter minum dsege. Aerost ic an Eadwearde miniim yldran suna, Saes landes aet Streetneat on Triconscire and Heortingtunes, and Sa bocland ealle 8e Leofheah hylt, and Saet land aet Carumtune, and aet Cylfantune, and aet Burnhamme and aet Wedmor ; and ic eom fyrmdig to 8am hiwum aet Ceodre 'Saet hy hine ceosan on 'Sa gerad Se we. aer gecweden haef- don, mid Sam lande £et Ciwtune, and Sam Se Saerto hyraS ; and ic him an Saes landes set Cantuctune, and aet Bedewindan, and aet Pefesigge, and Hysse- burnan, and aet Süttüne, and aet Leodredan, and aet Aweltune. And ealle Sa bocland Se ic on Cent haebbe, and aet Sam nySeran Hysseburnan, and aet Cyseldene, agyfe man into Wintanceastre, on Sa FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 411 gerad öe hit min faeder aer gccwae'S, and Sti^t min sundorfeoh ScCt ic Ecgulfe o'Sfa^ste on öani neo^eran Hysseburnan. And 8am gingran minan suna =Sa3t land set Ederingtune, and Saet aet Dene, and ^aet aet Meone, and Saet aet Ambresbyrig, and ?et Deone, and aet Stureminster, and aet Gifle, and aet Crucern, and a3t Hwitancyrican, and aet Axanmu^an, and a;t Bra- necescumbe, and aet Columtune, and aet Twyfyrde, and aet Mylenburnan, and aet Exanmynster, and aet Sü^eswyröe, and aet Liwtune, and ^a land ^e Saer to hyran, ^aet synt ealle 8e ic on Wealcynne haebbe butan Triconscii-e. And minre yldstan dehter Baenue ham set Welewe, and ^aere medemestan aet Clearan, and aet Cendefer ; and öaere gingestan =Sone ham ajt Welig, and aet Aesctune, and aet Cippenhamme. And AeSelme, mines broker suna, Bone ham ajt Ealding- buruan, and set Cumtune, and a3t Crundellan, and a^t Beadingum, and aet Beadingahamme, and a^t Burnham, and aet Dunresfelda, and aet Aescengum ; and Ae^elwolde, mines bioBor suna, Bone ham aet Godelmingum, and aet Gyldeforda, and aet Staenin- gum ; and OsferBe minum maege, Bone ham act Bec- canlea, and aet HryBeranfelda, and a;t Diccelingum, and aet SüStüne, and aet Lullingmynster, and xt An- gemaeringtun, and aet Felhhamme, and Ba land Be Baer to hyran. And EalhswiBe Bone ham aet Lamb- burnan, and ajt Wancting, and ait Eöandüne. And minum twam sunum an jjuscnd punda, a^görum I'if hund punda ; and nunre yldstan dehter, and BiDrc medemestan, and Öaere gingstran, and EalhswiBe, him feovvrum, fcowcr hund punda, alcuni an hund punda; and minra caldornumna ;dcum an iiund 412 FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. mangcusa, and AeSelme, and Ae^elwolde, and Osfer'Se, eac swa ; and Ae'Serede ealdormenn an sweord on hund teontig"um mancusum ; and 'Sam mannum 8e me folgia'S, =Se ic nli on eastertidum feoh sealde, twa hund punda agyfe man him, and daele man him be- tweoh, aelcum swa him to gebyrian wille, aefter 8a3re wtsan Se ic him nu daslde ; and =Sam ercebisceope. c. mancusa, and Esne bisceope, and Waerferöe bis- ceope, and ^am set Scireburnan. Eac swa gedaele for me and for miune feeder, and for ^a frynd Se he fore bingode and ic fore j^ingie, twa hund punda, fiftig- maessepreostum ofer call min rice, fiftig- earmum godes beowum, fiftig earmum bearfum, fiftig to Saere cyrican ^e ic set reste ; and ic nat naht gevvislice hweeSer ^aes feos swa micel is, ne ic nat Seah his mare sy; butan swa ic wene. Gif hit mare sy, beo hit him eallum gemaene Se ic feoh becwedon haebbe ; and ic wille öaet mine ealdormenn and mine benigmenn 'Seer ealle mid syndan, and ^is ^us ge- daelan. Bonne haefde ic aer on oSre wisan awriten ymbe min yrfe, '6b, ic haefde mare feoh and mä maga, and haefde monegum mannum Sa gewritu oSfaest, and on 'Sas ylcan gewitnesse hy waeron awritene ; Sonne haebbe ic nu forbaerned 'Sa ealdan ^e ic geäh- sian mihte. Gyf liyra hwylc funden biS, ne forstent Saet naht ; for=Sam ic wille 'Saet hit nu Sus sy mid godes fultume. And ic wille ^a menu ^e 8a land habba^, Sa word gelaestan 'Se on mines faeder yrfe- gewrite standa^S, swa swa hy fyrmest magon : and ic wille gif ic aenigum menu asnig- feoh unleanod haebbe, Saet mine magas 8aet huru geleanian. And ic wille 'Sä menu ^c ic mine bocland becweden haebbe. FRAGMENTS FROM ALFRED'S WRITINGS. 413 Saet liy hit iie asyllan of miiuim cynne ofer heora da3g- ; ac ic wille [ofer] liyra da^g- =Sa3t hit g^ange on =Sa nyhstan hand me butan hyra hvvylc beam haibbe ; Sonne is me leofast Saet hit gange on =Saet stryned on Sa waepned healfe, Sa hwile =Se aenig' Sais wyrSe sy. Min yldra faeder hasfde gecweden his land on Sa sperehealfe, naes on Sa spiulhealfe ; Sonne, gif ic gesealde a^nigre wifhanda Sast he gestrynde, Sonne forgyldan mine mag-as, and gif hy hit be San libben- dan habban wyllan ; gif hit elles sy, gange hit ofer hyra daeg- swa swa we aer gecweden haefdon : foröon ic cweSe, Sast hi hit gyldan, forSon hy foS to minum Se ic syllan mot swa wifhanda swa waepnedhanda swaSer ic wylJe. And ic bidde on godes naman and on his haligra Seet minra maga nan ne yrfewearda, ne g-eswence nan nainig cyrelif Sara Se ic foregeald, and me Westseaxena witan to rihte gerehton, oast ic hi mot laetan swa freo swa j^eowe, swaöer ic wille ; ac ic, for g-odes lufan and for mtnre sawle jjearfe, wylle Sset hy syn heora freolses wyrSe and hyra eyres. And ic on godes lifiendes naman beode öaet hy nan man ne brocie, ne mid feos manunge, ne mid nseni- gum Jjingum, Saet hy ne motan ceosan swylcne mann swylce hy wyllan. 7\.nd ic wylle öaat man agyfc Sam hiwum aet Domrahamme hyra landbec and hyra freols, swylce hand to ceosenne swylce him leofast sy, for me and for Aelflaede, and for Sa frynd Se heo fore Jjingode and ic fore j^ingie. And sec man eac on cwicnm ceape ymbe nunre sawle j^earfe, swa hit bcon ma'go, and swa hit eac gerysne sy, and swa g-e me forg-yfan wyllan. II. ALFRED'S OEWEL. III. A REGISTER HISTORY OF WESSEX, FROM THE YEAR 838 TO THE YEAR 901. Particular Place of Year. period. Residence. Facts. 838 Death of King Egberht. „ On the Stour. King Athclwulf. 839 Ham tun. King Athehvulf. 845 On Weg. King Athehvulf. 847 Canterbury. King Athehvulf. 849 Wantage. Birth of Alfred. 852 Battle of Aclea. 853 Easter. Chippenham. Burhrecl of Mercia marries (April 4.) Athelswith. " Alfred's first journey to Rome. 854 Wiltun. King Athehvulf. 855 Athehvulf and yVlfred's journey to Rome. 85G July. France. Athehvulf's betrothal wilh Judith. „ October 1. Verberie. Marriage with Judith. 858 January 13. King Athehvulf's death. 860 July (?) King Atholbald's death. 861 Judith returns to France. Alfred learns to read. 416 REGISTER OF THE HISTORY OF WESSEX. Year. Particular , Place of Facts. period. Residence, 862 July 2. Death of Swithun, Bishof of Winchester. 866 February (1) Death of King Athelberht. 867 November 1 . Arrival oflngvar and Ubba. Death of Ealhstan, Bishop of Sherburne. 868 March 21. Battle of York. Alfred marries Ealhswith. Battle before Nottingham. 869 September 21. Battle ofKesteven. 870 November 20. Death of Eadmund, King of East-Anglia. 871 January ("?) The Danes take Reading. J» 3 days after- wards. Fight of Englafeld. Battle before Reading. „ 4 days after- Battle of Ascesdune, wards. „ 14 days after- Battle of Basing. 9» wards. Meeting at Swinbeorh. „ 2 months Battle of Merton. afterwards. J, April 23. Death of King Athelred. „ May. Battle of Wiltun. 872 Autumn. The Danes conclude a Treaty with Burhred of Mercia. Werfrith, Bp. of Worcester. 873 Fall of the Kingdom of Mercia. 874 Rome. Death of King Burhred. 875 Division of the Danish Forces. Sea-fight in the Channel. 876 The Danes take Warham. REGISTER OF TUE HISTORY OF WESSEX. 417 Particular period. 877 878 879 882 883 884 885 88G 887 Auo'ust. Place of Residence. Facts Easter. (March 23.) May 5-12. 14 days after- wards, July. 12 days after- wards. Atlieln(>v. Summer. November 1 1 Dene. Leouafoid. The Danes proceed to Exeter. Sea-fight. The Danes leave Exeter. They take Chippenham. Defence of the fortress of Cynwith, in Devonshire. Alfred in Somerset. Fortifies himself. MarchestoEcgberhtes-stan. Battle of Athandune. Chippenham taken. Treaty of Wedmor. Guthorm-Athelstan leaves Wedmor. Departure of the Danes. Hasting at Fulham. Denewulf, Bishop of Win- chester. Sea-fight. Embassy to Rome and the East. Asser appears at Alfred's Court. Danes land near Rochester. Fight at the mouth of the Stour. Alfred begins his literary labours. London rebuilt and ron- fided to Athelred. Athelhelm p.i the head of un I Embassy to Rome. E E 418 REGISTER OF THE HISTORY OF WESSEX. Year. Particular period. Place of Residence. Facts. 888 Beocca at the head of an Embassy to Rome. „ Padua. Death of Queen Athelswith, 890 Beornhelm at the head of an Embassy to Rome. Death of King Guthorm- Athelstan. 891 September 1. Battle near Louvain-on-the- Dyle. 892 Danes land in Kent. 894 East'-(Mar.31). Danes proceed to Berkshire. Battle ofFarnham. " August 24. York. Death of Guthred of North- umbria. Danes in Devonshire. Storming of Benfleet. Hasting besieged in But- tington. » Passes the winter near Chester, and in Wales. 895 Wales laid waste. Return to Essex. 896 Fortifications on the Lea. " The Danes proceed to Bridgenorth. » Witenagemot at Gloucester. The Danes dispersed. 897 Sea-fight on the coast of Devonshire. „ Summer. Winchester. Alfred on the coast. 898 Wulfamere. Alfred's meeting with Athelred and his bishops. 899 Celchyth. Meeting with the same. 901 October 28. Death of King Alfred. f