Danny Bird reveals everything you need to know about the Anglo-Saxon ruler regarded as the first true ‘King of the English’ – from his battlefield achievements to his political reforms
IN A NUTSHELL YOUR BRIEF EXPLAINER TO HISTORY’S HOT TOPICS
WHO WAS ÆTHELSTAN?
Born around AD 894, Æthelstan was a member of the royal House of Wessex – a grandson of Alfred the Great and son of Edward the Elder. Though there is some debate among historians, it is believed that Alfred may have preferred Æthelstan to succeed him as king; indeed, writing two centuries later, the Anglo-Norman chronicler William of Malmesbury recorded that Alfred conferred upon his infant grandson a scarlet cloak, a bejewelled belt and a sword with a gilded scabbard during an elaborate ceremony, perhaps indicating his designs for the dynasty after his death.
However, when Æthelstan’s father ascended the throne in 899, his stepmother advanced the interests of her own sons, leading to a sudden shift in Æthelstan’s standing. At some point in his childhood he was fostered by his paternal aunt Æthelflæd, the queen consort and later ruler of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia.
WHAT KIND OF WORLD DID ÆTHELSTAN GROW UP IN?
In the centuries following the decline of Roman rule in Britain, a series of kingdoms had arisen across what is now England, including Mercia, Northumbria and Wessex. By the early ninth century, Wessex had become the most influential of these kingdoms to such an extent that the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle described King Ecgberht as bretwalda (‘wide ruler’) of the Anglo-Saxons.
However, Vikings from Scandinavia began raiding the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the late eighth century and soon settled in the north and east of the British mainland. In early 878, the Vikings won an important victory over Alfred the Great at the battle of Chippenham, but he regrouped and defeated them at nearby Edington, before converting them to Christianity. By the end of the ninth century, the House of Wessex had established a relatively unified realm, but the eastern half of southern Britain remained under Danish control at the time of Alfred’s death in 899.
WHEN DID ÆTHELSTAN BECOME KING?
Æthelstan’s upbringing in his aunt’s court proved instrumental to his later success. Following her husband’s death in 911, Æthelflæd had been accepted by the Mercians as their ruler. A shrewd political and military strategist, she worked alongside her
