1st Edition

Alfred the Great War, Kingship and Culture in Anglo-Saxon England

By Richard Abels Copyright 1998
392 Pages
by Routledge

392 Pages
by Routledge

This biography of Alfred the Great, king of the West Saxons (871-899), combines a sensitive reading of the primary sources with a careful evaluation of the most recent scholarly research on the history and archaeology of ninth-century England. Alfred emerges from the pages of this biography as a great warlord, an effective and inventive ruler, and a passionate scholar whose piety and intellectual... Read more
Introduction.
Sources.
1. Alfred's Wessex.
2. Memories of Childhood, 848-858.
3. Scourges of God, 858-868.
4. A Very Great Warrior, 869-879.
5. King of the Anglo-Saxons, 880-891.
6. Defence of the Realm.
7. The reign of Solomon.
8. The Practice of Kingship.
9. Triumph and Death, 892-899.
Conclusion: `My Memory in Good Works'.
Appendix on the Authenticity of Asser's Life of King Alfred.
Table: Alfred's Genealogy.
Maps.
Bibliography.

Biography

RICHARD ABELS is Professor of History at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis.