| Name |
Alfred (Ælfred) 'the Great' |
- Ælfred meaning Elf Counsel, the wisdom of elves
|
| Suffix |
King of Wessex and England |
| Born |
849 |
Wantage, Berkshire, England  |
| Gender |
Male |
| History |
8 Jan 871 |
Ashdown, Berkshire, England |
| The Battle of Ashdown, (possibly the part now in Oxfordshire), took place on 8 Jan 871. Alfred the Great, then a prince of only 21, led the army of his brother, King Æthelred of Wessex, in a victorious battle against the invading Danes. |
| History |
23 Apr 871 |
Winchester, Hampshire, England |
| Alfred becomes king of the southern Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex, and the first King of the West Saxons to style himself 'King of the English' and defends the English language and laws against Viking invasions. Alfred's reign signifies the final convergence over a progressive period of time of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy Kingdoms of Wessex, Anglia, Mercia (including Lindsey and Axholme), Nothumbria (including Bernicia and Deira), Kent, Sussex and Essex since 500 A.D. |
| Occupation |
23 Apr 871 |
5th and youngest son.
King of the English: 23 Apr 871 to 26 Oct 899 |
| History |
Jan 878 |
Chippenham, Wiltshire, England |
| King Alfred has to flee into a marsh to avoid Viking raids. Safely emerging from the marshes he planned to secure his kingdom from future invaders. |
| History |
May 878 |
Edington, Wiltshire, England |
At the Battle of Edington an army of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex under Alfred the Great defeated the Great Heathen Army led by Guthrum on a date between 6 and 12 May AD 878. Sources locate the battle at "Ethandun" or "Ethandune", and consensus identifies its location with the present-day Edington, Wiltshire. It was known as the Battle of Ethandun, a name which continues to be used.
The battle soon resulted in the Treaty of Wedmore later the same year. |
| History |
Abt 880 |
Wessex, England |
| In the late 9th century, King Alfred 'the Great' writes a preface to and translates Pope Gregory I's 'Regula Pastoralis' (Pastoral Care) into Old English as part of a project to improve education in Anglo-Saxon England. Written abt. 590 the original manuscripts (in Latin) were brought to England by St. Augustine in 597. Alfred intended every bishop in his kingdom to have a copy for the benefit of their less-educated clergy. In his Preface Alfred writes 'Angelcynn' (England), a name to unite his people. |
| History |
Abt 881 |
Wessex, England |
The Burghal Hidage is an Anglo-Saxon document providing a list of Wessex's fortified burhs. It offers an unusually detailed picture of the network of burhs (fortified towns or defended site) that Alfred the Great designed to defend his kingdom from the predations of Viking invaders. As well as being fortfied the towns were endowed with 'marke places' for the generation of taxes for Alfred's war chest.
Alfredian policy of town plans for Wallingford, Wareham and Winchester, shows 'that they were laid out in the same scheme' (Wormald), supporting the proposition that these newly established burhs were planned as centres of habitation and trade as well as a place of safety in moments of immediate danger. Thereafter, the English population and its wealth were drawn into such towns where it was not only safer from Viking soldiers, but also taxable by the King. |
| Died |
26 Oct 899 |
Winchester, Hampshire, England |
| Buried |
Old Minster, Winchester, Hampshire, England |
| Notes |
- Colonial and Revolutionary Lineages of America (973 D2ah) Vol. 2
King of the West Saxons (871-99), and one of the outstanding figures of Englis History. Born in Wantage in Southern England, Alfred was the youngest of five sons of King Ethelwulf. On the death of his brother Ethelred, Alfred became king, coming to the throne during a Danish invasion. Although he succeeded in making peace with the Danes, they resumed their marauding expeditions five year later, and by early 878 they were successful almost everywhere. About Easter o 878, however, Alfred established himself at Athelney and began assembling an army. In the middle of that year he defeated the Danes and captured their stronghold, probably at present-day Edington. For the next 14 years Alfred was able to devote himself to the internal affairs of his kingdom. By 886 he had captured the city of London, and soon afterward he was recognized as the king o all England.
In 893 the Danes invaded England again, and the following four years were marked by warfare; eventually, the Danes were forced to withdraw from Alfred's domain. The only ruler to resist Danish invasions successfully, Alfred made hi kingdom the rallying point for all Saxons, thus laying the foundation for the unification of England.
Alfred was a patron of learning and did much for the education of his people.
He established a court-school and invited British and foreign scholars, notabl the Welsh monk Asser (d. 909?) and the Irish-born philosopher and theologian John Scotus Erigena, to come there. Alfred translated such works as the Consolation of Philosophy by the Roman statesman and philosopher Boethius, The History of the World by the Spanish priest Paulus Orosius (fl. 5th Cent), and Passtoral Care by Pope Gregory I. Alfred's laws, the first promulgated in more than a century, were the first that made no distinction between the English and the Welsh peoples.
He was wore himself out in the service of his people, the oft-quoted words he added to one of his book translations: "MY WISH WAS TO LIVE WORTHILY AS LONG AS I LIVE, AND AFTER MY LIFE TO LEAVE THEM THAT SHOULD COME AFTER, MY MEMORY OF GOOD WORKS."; a fitting epitaph to this noble King.
Royal Ancestors of Some LDS Families by Michel L. Call.
Ancestry and Progentry of Captain James Blount - Immigrant, by Robert F. Pfafman, p E-35.
- King Alfred burned the cakes?
Prof McTurk, of the University's School of English, says the story was used to mark a watershed in the conflict. "Alfred had suffered a series of defeats by the Viking armies ? and was virtually in flight at the time," he said.
"The story says he took refuge in Athelney, Somerset, where a swineherd's wife left him to watch the loaves cooking beside the fire. But Alfred was distracted by thinking hard about his fate and about how to fight back ? and the loaves burned. The woman reproved him, not realising he was the King."
|
| Person ID |
I1748534416 |
Red1st |
| Last Modified |
22 Jan 2014 |
| Family |
Ealhswith (Elswitha) of the Gaini, Queen consort of England, b. Abt 852, Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England , d. 5 Dec 902 (Age ~ 51 years) |
| Married |
868 |
Sutton Courtenay, Berkshire, England |
| Children |
| + | 1. Edward 'the Elder', King of England, b. Abt 871, Wessex, England , d. 17 Jul 924, Farndon, Northamptonshire, England (Age ~ 53 years) |
| + | 2. Alfthrude (Elfridam, Elstrude, Ælfthryth), of Wessex, Countess of Flanders, b. Abt 877, Wessex, England , d. Abt 7 Jun 929 (Age ~ 52 years) |
| | 3. Æthelweard, b. Abt 880, d. 16 Oct 922 (Age ~ 42 years) |
| + | 4. Athelfraed, Lady of the Mercians, Princess of England, b. Abt 869, Wessex, England , d. 12 Jun 918, Tamworth, Staffordshire, England (Age ~ 49 years) |
| | 5. Æthelgifu, Abbess of Shaftesbury |
|
| Last Modified |
19 Jan 2013 14:57:01 |
| Family ID |
F672151866 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
849 - 899 (50 years)
: Address
: Location
: City/Town
: County/Shire
: State/Province
: Country
: Not Set
