(c.849-899)

Alfred was the youngest son of
King Ethelwulf
and Osburga. His mother died soon after his sister married Burhed, King of Mercia. Ethelwulf then resigned his kingdom to his eldest son Ethelbald
and went on pilgramage to Rome with the then 8 year old Alfred.

Whilst in Rome Alfred was confirmed by Pope Leo IV and on the return trip they stopped at the court of Charles the Bald, King of the Franks who gave his daughter Judith as Ethelwulf's second wife.

After Ethelwulf's death his other sons
Ethelbert and Ethelred I
ruled. Ethelred was fatally wounded at Merton in 871 whilst defending his kingdom against Danish invaders. His sons were too young so Alfred succeeded to the throne.

The King who burnt the cakes or the Father of Parliament and the navy?

Alfred was crowned at
Kingston ¹
and the early part of his reign he continued the fight against the Danes until in 877 he and his army retired to the Isle of Athelney. This is the period where the two great legends about Alfred are based. The first is that he travelled around disguised as a wandering harpist, gathering information from behind enemy lines. The second is that whilst hiding in a swineherder's hut he burnt some cakes of the swineherder's wife that he had been trusted to watch. Hence Alfred is still known as the King who burnt the cakes.

In May 878 Alfred led his army to Wiltshire. They faced the Danes at Ethandune (Edington) and victorious pushed them back to Chippenham. Soon after a treaty known as Danelaw was signed. This was a total withdrawal of the Danes from Wessex in return for East Anglia, Mercia and Northumbria.

Alfred also was responsible for building the first English navy
², encouraging learning and setting up the first parliament.

There are three great periods of fortification in England, Henry VIII was responsible for the most recent, the Normans for another but Alfred was the first to set up strongholds to defend his territory on a large scale and regimented manner.

Time

Alfred was also attributed with a fairly accurate way of measuring time. He divided a candle in equal portions of different colour and placed this in a lattern. The lattern was made of thin horn thus allowing the candle and the light to be seen but allowing the air to be regualted thus stopping gusts or the normal passage of wind in the unglazed churches and monasteries. Thus allowing the monks to be able to tell the time for morning matins or evening vespers.

He died in October 899 and is buried in Hyde Abbey, Winchester. His son
Edward the Elder suceeded him.