In 855 Alfred again went to Rome with his father Aethelwulf, returning towards the end of 856. About two years later his father died. During the short reigns of his two eldest brothers, Aethelbald and Aethelberht, nothing is heard of Alfred. But with the accession of the third brother Aethelred (866) the public life of Alfred begins, and he enters on his great work of delivering England from the Danes. It is in this reign that Asser applies to Alfred the unique title of secundarius, which seems to indicate a position analogous to that of the Celtic tanist, a recognized successor, closely associated with the reigning prince. It is probable that this arrangement was definitely sanctioned by the witenagemot, to guard against the danger of a disputed succession should Aethelred fall in battle.
In 868 Alfred married Ealhswith, daughter of Aethelred Mucill, who is called ealdorman of the Gaini, an unidentified district. The same year the two brothers made an unsuccessful attempt to relieve Mercia from the pressure of the Danes. For nearly two years Wessex had a respite. But at the end of 870 the storm burst; and the year which followed has been rightly called "Alfred's year of battles." Nine general engagements were fought with varying fortunes, though the place and date of two of them have not been recorded. A successful skirmish at Englefield, Berks (December 31, 870), was followed by a severe defeat at Reading (January 4, 871), and this, four days later, by the brilliant victory of Ashdown, near Compton Beauchamp in Shrivenham Hundred. On the 22nd of January the English were again defeated at Basing, and on the 22nd of March at Marton, Wilts, the two unidentified battles having perhaps occurred in the interval.
In April Aethelred died, and Alfred succeeded to the whole burden of the contest. While he was busied with his brother's exequies, the Danes defeated the English in his absence at an unnamed spot, and once more in his presence at Wilton in May. After this peace was made, and for the next five years the Danes were occupied in other parts of England, Alfred merely keeping a force of observation on the frontier. But in 876 part of the Danes managed to slip past him and occupied Wareham; whence, early in 877, under cover of treacherous negotiations, they made a dash westwards and seized Exeter. Here Alfred blockaded them, and a relieving fleet having been scattered by a storm, the Danes had to submit and withdrew to Mercia. But in January 878 they made a sudden swoop on Chippenham, a royal vill in which Alfred had been keeping his Christmas, "and most of the people they reduced, except the King Alfred, and he with a little band made his way . . . by wood and swamp, and after Easter he . . . made a fort at Athelney, and from that fort kept fighting against the foe" (Chron.).
The idea that Alfred, during his retreat at Athelney, was a helpless fugitive rests upon the foolish legend of the cakes. In reality he was organizing victory. By the middle of May his preparations were complete and he moved out of Athelney, being joined on the way by the levies of Somerset, Wilts and Hants. The Danes on their side moved out of Chippenham, and the two armies met at Edington in Wiltshire. The result was a decisive victory for Alfred. The Danes submitted. Guthrum, the Danish king, and twenty-nine of his chief men accepted baptism. By the next year (879) not only Wessex, but Mercia, west of Watling Street, was cleared of the invader. This is the arrangement known as the peace of Wedmore (878), though no document embodying its provisions is in existence. And though for the present the north-eastern half of England, including London, remained in the hands of the Danes, in reality the tide had turned, and western Europe was saved from the danger of becoming a heathen Scandinavian power.
Continued on page two.
This article is from the 1911 edition of an encyclopedia, which is out of copyright here in the U.S. See the encyclopedia main page for disclaimer and copyright information.
