The issue of Stevenson's long and eagerly expected edition of Asser's Life of King Alfred has provided an opportunity to supply the ever increasing number of the great king's admirers with a more satisfactory rendering into English of this, perhaps the most precious document, notwithstanding all its faults, for the comprehension of his life and character.

The authenticity of the Life was impugned by Thomas Wright in 1841, by Sir Henry Howorth in 1876–77, and by an unknown writer in 1898, and it had become somewhat the fashion to regard it as a production of a later period, and therefore entitled to but little credence. The doubts as to its authenticity have been satisfactorily dispelled by the two eminent scholars who have most recently discussed the difficulties, Plummer and Stevenson.

The former, in his Life and Times of Alfred the Great, Oxford, 1902, says (p. 52): 'The work which bears Asser's name cannot be later than 974, and the attempt to treat it as a forgery of the eleventh or twelfth century must be regarded as having broken down. I may add that I started with a strong prejudice against the authenticity of Asser, so that my conclusions have at any rate been impartially arrived at.' The latter, in his noble edition (Oxford, 1904), remarks (p. vii): 'In discussing the work I have attempted to approach it without any bias for or against it, and throughout my endeavor has been to subject every portion of it to as searching an examination asvi my knowledge and critical powers would permit. The net result has been to convince me that, although there may be no very definite proof that the work was written by Bishop Asser in the lifetime of King Alfred, there is no anachronism or other proof that it is a spurious compilation of later date. The serious charges brought against its authenticity break down altogether under examination, while there remain several features that point with varying strength to the conclusion that it is, despite its difficulties and corruptions, really a work of the time it purports to be. This result is confirmed by the important corroboration of some of its statements by contemporary Frankish chroniclers. Thus the profession of belief in its authenticity by such eminent historians as Kemble, Pauli, Stubbs, and Freeman agrees with my own conclusion.'

Notwithstanding their general rehabilitation of the work, however, neither critic is prepared to trust it implicitly. Plummer says (p. 52): 'On the whole, then, Asser is an authority to be used with criticism and caution; partly because we have always to be alive to the possibility of interpolation, partly because the writer's Celtic imagination is apt to run away with him.' And thus Stevenson (p. cxxx): 'The work still presents some difficulties. Carelessness of transcription may possibly explain those that are merely verbal, but there still remain certain passages that lay the author open to the charge of exaggeration, such as his mention of gold-covered and silver-covered buildings, if that be the literal meaning of the passage, and his statement that Alfred might, if he had chosen, have been king before his elder brother Æthelred, with whom, it is clear, he was on most intimate terms.'

The style of the book is not uniform. The passages translated from the Chronicle are simpler, while in the more original parts the author displays an unfortunate tendency to a turgid and at times bombastic manner ofvii writing. Indeed, it displays, in many passages, the traits of that Hesperic Latinity which, invented or made fashionable in the sixth century, probably by a British monk in the southwestern part of England, was more or less current in England from the time of Aldhelm until the Norman Conquest. This Hesperic, or Celtic, Latinity has been compared to the mock euphuism of Sir Piercie Shafton in Scott's Monastery (Professor H. A. Strong, in American Journal of Philology 26. 205), and may be illustrated by Professor Strong's translation into English of certain sentences from the Hisperica Famina, the production, as it is believed, of the monk referred to above: 'This precious shower of words glitters, by no awkward barriers confining the diction, and husbands its strength by an exquisite balance and by equable device, trilling sweet descant of Ausonian speech through the speaker's throat by this shower of words passing through Latin throats; just as countless swarms of bees go here and there in their hollow hives, and sip the honey-streams in their homes, and set in order, as they are wont, their combs with their beaks.'

With the passage just quoted may be compared an extract from chapter 88 of Asser, the translation of which is given below (pp. 49, 50): 'Ac deinde cotidie inter nos sermocinando, ad hæc investigando aliis inventis æque placabilibus testimoniis, quaternio ille refertus succrevit, nec immerito, sicut scriptum est, "super modicum fundamentum ædificat justus et paulatim ad majora defluit," velut apis fertilissima longe lateque gronnios interrogando discurrens, multimodos divinæ scripturæ flosculos inhianter et incessabiliter congregavit, quis præcordii sui cellulas densatim replevit.' Such Latin as this is difficult to translate into satisfactory English. If one renders it literally, the result is apt to look rather absurd; and beyond a certain point condensation is impracticable, or else misrepresents the original, faults and merits alike.

Hitherto there have been three translations of Asser into English - that by J. A. Giles in Bohn's Six Old English Chronicles, London, 1848; that by Joseph Stevenson in Church Historians of England, Vol. 2, London, 1854; and that by Edward Conybeare, Alfred in the Chroniclers, London, 1900. As the basis of my work I have taken the translation of Giles, sometimes following it rather closely, and at other times departing from it more or less widely.

The reader familiar with the traditional Asser will miss some matter with which he is familiar, such as the story of Alfred and the cakes, that of the raven-banner of the Danes, etc. These are derived from interpolations made in the manuscript by Archbishop Parker, which modern critical scholarship has at length excised. For all matters regarding the manuscript, the earlier editions, etc., as well as for copious illustrative notes on the text, the reader is referred to Stevenson's edition.

Insertions made in the text by Stevenson, on what he considers sufficient grounds, are indicated by [ ]. The chapter-divisions and -numbering are Stevenson's; the chapter-headings mine. Where modern forms of proper names exist, I have not hesitated to adopt them, and in general have tended rather to normalize them than scrupulously to follow the sometimes various spellings of the text. The notes have almost always been derived from Stevenson's edition, whether or not explicit acknowledgment has been made, but now and then, as in the case of the long note on chapter 56, are my own.

Yale University July 4, 1905

To my lord Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, the worshipful and pious ruler of all Christians in the island of Britain, Asser, least of all the servants of God, wisheth thousandfold prosperity for both lives, according to the desires of his heart.

This Geata was the son of Tætwa; he of Beaw; he of Sceldwea; he of Heremod; he of Itermod; he of Hathra; he of Hwala; he of Bedwig; he of Sceaf⁴; he of Noah; he of Lamech; he of Methuselah; he of Enoch; [he of Jared]; he of Mahalalel; he of Kenan⁵; he of Enosh; he of Seth; he of Adam.

Note 4. MS., Stev. Seth (but Stevenson suggests Sceaf in his variants, referring to the Chronicle under 855).

Note 5. MS. Cainan, but see Gen. 5. 12 in R. V.

2. Genealogy of Alfred's Mother.⁶ The mother of Alfred was named Osburh, an extremely devout woman, noble in mind, noble also by descent; she was daughter to Oslac, the famous cupbearer of King Æthelwulf. This Oslac was a Goth by nation, descended from the Goths and Jutes - of the seed, namely, of Stuf and Wihtgar, two brothers and ealdormen. They, having received possession of the Isle of Wight [Map] from their uncle, King Cerdic, and his son Cynric their cousin⁷, slew the few British inhabitants whom they could find in that island, at a place called Wihtgaraburg⁸; for the other inhabitants of the island had either been slain or had escaped into exile.

Note 6. Partly from the Chronicle, but the whole account of Alfred's father and mother is original.

Note 7. From the Chronicle under 530 and 534. [Note. Cynric was grandson of King Cerdic?]

Note 8. Unidentified. [Note. Possibly the Isle of Wight [Map]?]

851. 3. The Danes at Wicganbeorg and Sheppey.⁹ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 851, which was the third of King Alfred's life, Ceorl, Ealdorman of Devon, fought with the men of Devon against the heathen at a place called Wicganbeorg¹⁰, and the Christians gained the victory. In that same year the heathen first wintered in the island called Sheppey [Map], which means 'Sheep-island,' situated in the river Thames between Essex and Kent, though nearer to Kent than to Essex, and containing a fair monastery.¹¹

Note 9. From the Chronicle.

Note 10. Possibly Wigborough, in the parish of South Petherton in Somersetshire (Stevenson).

Note 11. Minster in Sheppey, founded by St. Sexburh in the seventh century; it disappeared during the Danish ravages (Stevenson).

851. 4. The Danes sack Canterbury.¹² The same year a great army of heathen came with three hundred and fifty ships to the mouth of the river Thames, and sacked Dorubernia, or Canterbury, Kent [Map]¹³, [and also London] (which lies on the north bank of the river Thames, on the confines of Essex and Middlesex, though in truth that city belongs to Essex); and they put to flight Beorhtwulf, King of Mercia, with all the army which he had led out to oppose them.

Note 12. From the Chronicle.

Note 13. MS. Cantwariorum civitatem; Chron. Cantwaraburg.

851. 6. Defeat of the Danes at Sandwich.¹⁷ In that same year Æthelstan and Ealdorman Ealhere slew a large army of the heathen in Kent, at a place called Sandwich [Map], and took nine ships of their fleet, the others escaping by flight.

Note 17. From the Chronicle.

853. 7. Æthelwulf assists Burgred.¹⁸ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 853, which was the fifth of King Alfred's life, Burgred, King of the Mercians, sent messengers to beseech Æthelwulf, King of the West Saxons, to come and help him in reducing to his sway the inhabitants of Mid-Wales, who dwell between Mercia and the western sea, and who were struggling against him beyond measure. So without delay King Æthelwulf, on receipt of the embassy, moved his army, and advanced with King Burgred against Wales¹⁹; and immediately upon his entrance he ravaged it, and reduced it under subjection to Burgred. This being done, he returned home.

Note 18. Mainly from the Chronicle.

Note 19. The 'North Welsh' of the Chronicle.

853. 8. Alfred at Rome.²⁰ In that same year King Æthelwulf sent his above-named son Alfred (age 4) to Rome, with an honorable escort both of nobles and commoners. Pope Leo at that time presided over the apostolic see, and he anointed as king²¹ the aforesaid child²² Alfred (age 4) in the town, and, adopting him as his son, confirmed him.²³

Note 20. Based upon the Chronicle.

Note 21. MS. in regem.

Note 22. MS. infantem.

Note 23. 'A letter from the pope to Alfred's father, regarding the ceremony at Rome, has been fortunately preserved for us in a twelfth-century collection of papal letters, now in the British Museum.... The letter is as follows: "Edeluulfo, regi Anglorum [marginal direction for rubricator]. ilium vestrum Erfred, quem hoc in tempore ad Sanctorum Apostolorum limina destinare curastis, benigne suscepimus, et, quasi spiritalem filium consulatus cingulo honore vestimentisque, ut mos est Romanis consulibus, decoravimus, eo quod in nostris se tradidit manibus"' (Stevenson). The Chronicle has: '... consecrated him as king, and took him as bishop-son.' See p. 29.

855. 10. The Heathen winter in Sheppey.²⁶ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 855, which was the seventh of the aforesaid king's life, a great army of the heathen spent the whole winter in the aforesaid island of Sheppey [Map].

Note 26. From the Chronicle.

855. 11. Æthelwulf journeys to Rome.²⁷ In that same year the aforesaid worshipful King Æthelwulf freed the tenth part of all his kingdom from every royal service and tribute, and offered it up as an everlasting grant to God the One and Three, on the cross of Christ, for the redemption of his own soul and those of his predecessors. In the same year he went to Rome with much honor; and taking with him his son, the aforesaid King Alfred, a second time on the same journey, because he loved him more than his other sons, he remained there a whole year. After this he returned to his own country, bringing with him Judith (age 11), daughter of Charles (age 31), King of the Franks.²⁸

Note 27. Based upon the Chronicle.

Note 28. Charles the Bald (age 31).

855. 12. Rebellion of Æthelbald.²⁹ In the meantime, however, whilst King Æthelwulf was residing this short time beyond sea, a base deed was done in the western part of Selwood³⁰, repugnant to the morals of all Christians. For King Æthelbald, Ealhstan, Bishop of the church of Sherborne, and Eanwulf, Ealdorman of Somerset, are said to have formed a conspiracy to the end that King Æthelwulf, on his return from Rome, should not again be received in his kingdom. This unfortunate occurrence, unheard-of in all previous ages, is ascribed by many to the bishop and ealdorman alone, since, say they, it resulted from their counsels. Many also ascribe it solely to the insolence of the king, because he was headstrong in this matter and in many other perversities, as I have heard related by certain persons, and as was proved by the result of that which followed. For on his return from Rome, Æthelwulf's son aforesaid, with all his counselors, or rather waylayers, attempted to perpetrate the crime of repulsing the king from his own kingdom; but neither did God suffer it, nor did the nobles of all Wessex consent thereto. For to prevent this irremediable danger to Wessex of a war between father and son, or rather of the whole nation waging civil war more fiercely and cruelly from day to day, as they espoused the cause of the one or the other, - by the extraordinary clemency of the father, seconded by the consent of all the nobles, the kingdom which had hitherto been undivided was parted between the two, the eastern districts being given to the father, and the western to the son. Thus where the father ought by just right to have reigned, there did his unjust and obstinate son bear rule; for the western part of Wessex is always superior to the eastern.

Note 29. Original.

Note 30. Comprising Somerset, Devon, and Cornwall.

856. 14. Offa and Eadburh.³⁴ There was in Mercia in recent times a certain valiant king, who was dreaded by all the neighboring kings and states. His name was Offa, and it was he who had the great dike made from sea to sea between Wales and Mercia.³⁵ His daughter, named Eadburh, was married to Beorhtric, King of the West Saxons. The moment she had possessed herself of the king's good will, and practically the whole power of the realm, she began to live tyrannically, after the manner of her father. Every man whom Beorhtric loved she would execrate, and would do all things hateful to God and man, accusing to the king all whom she could, thus depriving them insidiously either of life or of power. And if she could not obtain the king's consent, she used to take them off by poison, as is ascertained to have been the case with a certain young man beloved by the king, whom she poisoned, seeing that she could not accuse him to the king. It is said, moreover, that King Beorhtric unwittingly tasted of the poison, though the queen had intended to give it, not to him, but to the young man; the king, however, was beforehand with him, and so both perished.

Note 34. Original.

Note 35. Offa's Dike; it extended from the mouth of the Dee to that of the Severn.

858. 17. Æthelbald marries Judith.⁴⁴ But when King Æthelwulf was dead [and buried at Winchester [Map]]⁴⁵, his son Æthelbald, contrary to God's prohibition and the dignity of a Christian, contrary also to the custom of all the heathen⁴⁶, ascended his father's bed, and married Judith (age 14), daughter of Charles (age 34), King of the Franks, incurring much infamy from all who heard of it. During two years and a half of lawlessness he held after his father the government of the West Saxons.

Note 44. Original.

Note 45. From Florence of Worcester. The Annals of St. Neots have: 'and buried at Steyning' (Stemrugam).

Note 46. This last statement is incorrect.

860. 18. Æthelbert's Reign.⁴⁷ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 860, which was the twelfth of King Alfred's life, [King] Æthelbald [died, and] was buried at Sherborne [Map]. His brother Æthelbert, as was right, added Kent, Surrey, and Sussex to his realm. In his days a great army of heathen came from the sea, and attacked and laid waste the city of Winchester. As they were returning laden with booty to their ships, Osric, Ealdorman of Hampshire, with his men, and Ealdorman Æthelwulf, with the men of Berkshire, faced them bravely. Battle was then joined in the town, and the heathen were slain on every side; and finding themselves unable to resist, they took to flight like women, and the Christians held the battle-field.

Note 47. From the Chronicle under 860. As Æthelbert was already in possession of Kent, Surrey, and Sussex, it should rather be said that he added Wessex.

860. 19. Æthelbert's Death.⁴⁸ So Æthelbert governed his kingdom five years in peace and love and honor; and went the way of all flesh, to the great grief of his subjects. He rests interred in honorable wise at Sherborne [Map], by the side of his brother.

Note 48. From the Chronicle under 860.

864. 20. The Danes in Kent.⁴⁹ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 864 the heathen wintered in the isle of Thanet [Map], and made a firm treaty with the men of Kent, who promised them money for observing their agreement. In the meantime, however, the heathen, after the manner of foxes, burst forth with all secrecy from their camp by night, and setting at naught their engagements, and spurning the promised money - which they knew was less than they could get by plunder - they ravaged all the eastern coast of Kent.

Note 49. Chiefly from the Chronicle under 865 and 866.

866. 21. Æthelred's Accession.⁵⁰ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 866, which was the eighteenth of King Alfred's life, Æthelred (age 19), brother of King Æthelbert, undertook the government of the West Saxon realm. The same year a great fleet of heathen came to Britain from the Danube⁵¹, and wintered in the kingdom of the East Saxons, which is called in Saxon East Anglia; and there they became in the main an army of cavalry. But, to speak in nautical phrase, I will no longer commit my vessel to wave and sail, or steer my roundabout course at a distance from land through so many calamities of wars and series of years, but rather return to that which first prompted me to this task: that is to say, I think it right briefly to insert in this place the little that has come to my knowledge about the character of my revered lord Alfred, King of the Anglo-Saxons, during the years of infancy and boyhood.

Note 50. The earlier part from the Chronicle.

Note 51. Probably meaning the mouths of the Rhine (Stevenson).

866. 22. Alfred's Rearing.⁵² He was extraordinarily beloved by both his father and mother, and indeed by all the people, beyond all his brothers; in inseparable companionship with them he was reared at the royal court.⁵³ As he advanced through the years of infancy and youth, he appeared more comely in person than his brothers, as in countenance, speech, and manners he was more pleasing than they. His noble birth and noble nature implanted in him from his cradle a love of wisdom above all things, even amid all the occupations of this present life; but - with shame be it spoken! - by the unworthy neglect of his parents and governors he remained illiterate till he was twelve years old or more, though by day and night he was an attentive listener to the Saxon poems which he often heard recited, and, being apt at learning, kept them in his memory. He was a zealous practiser of hunting in all its branches, and followed the chase with great assiduity and success; for his skill and good fortune in this art, and in all the other gifts of God, were beyond those of every one else, as I have often witnessed.

Note 52. Original.

Note 53. Curto, a word showing Frankish influence.

866. 23. Alfred and the Book of Saxon Poems.⁵⁴ Now on a certain day his mother was showing him and his brothers a book of Saxon poetry, which she held in her hand, and finally said: 'Whichever of you can soonest learn this volume, to him will I give it.' Stimulated by these words, or rather by divine inspiration, and allured by the beautifully illuminated letter at the beginning of the volume, [Alfred]⁵⁵ spoke before all his brothers, who, though his seniors in age, were not so in grace, and answered his mother: 'Will you really give that book to that one of us who can first understand and repeat it to you?' At this his mother smiled with satisfaction, and confirmed what she had before said: 'Yes,' said she, 'that I will.' Upon this the boy took the book out of her hand, and went to his master and learned it by heart⁵⁶, whereupon he brought it back to his mother and recited it.

Note 54. Original. Stevenson would refer this event to a date earlier than 855.

Note 55. From Florence of Worcester.

Note 56. So Pauli and Stevenson interpret legit.

866. 24. Alfred's Handbook.⁵⁷ After this [he learned]⁵⁵ the daily course, that is, the celebration of the hours, and afterwards certain Psalms, and many prayers, contained in a book⁵⁸ which he kept day and night in his bosom, as I myself have seen, and always carried about with him, for the sake of prayer, through all the bustle and business of this present life. But, sad to relate, he could not gratify his ardent wish to acquire liberal art⁵⁹, because, as he was wont to say, there were at that time no good teachers in all the kingdom of the West Saxons.⁶⁰

Note 57. Original.

Note 55. From Florence of Worcester.

Note 58. Cf. chap. 88.

Note 59. The liberal arts were seven, consisting of the trivium - grammar, logic, and rhetoric - and the quadrivium - arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy. This course of study was introduced in the sixth century. Asser here employs the singular, artem, which might be translated by 'education.'

Note 60. See Alfred's own statement in Appendix I, p. 69.

866. 25. Alfred's Love of Learning.⁶¹ This he would confess, with many lamentations and with sighs from the bottom of his heart, to have been one of his greatest difficulties and impediments in this present life, that when he was young and had leisure and capacity for learning, he had no masters; but when he was more advanced in years, he was continually occupied, not to say harassed, day and night, by so many diseases unknown to all the physicians of this island, as well as by internal and external anxieties of sovereignty, and by invasions of the heathen by sea and land, that though he then had some store of teachers and writers⁶², it was quite impossible for him to study. But yet among the impediments of this present life, from childhood to the present day [and, as I believe, even until his death]⁶³, he has continued to feel the same insatiable desire.

Note 61. Original.

Note 62. Alfred says (Preface to the Pastoral Care): 'Thanks be to Almighty God that we have any teachers among us now.' In this same Preface he mentions, among those who aided him in the translation, Archbishop Plegmund, Bishop Asser, our author, and the two priests Grimbold and John. Cf. chaps. 77, 78, 79, 81, 88, and Appendix I, p. 71.

Note 63. Stevenson brackets this clause.

866. 26. The Danes occupy York.⁶⁴ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 867, which was the nineteenth of the aforesaid King Alfred's life, the army of heathen before mentioned removed from East Anglia to the city of York, which is situated on the north bank of the river Humber.

Note 64. Mostly from the Chronicle.

866. 27. Defeat of the Northumbrians.⁶⁴ At that time a violent discord arose, by the instigation of the devil, among the Northumbrians, as always is wont to happen to a people who have incurred the wrath of God. For the Northumbrians at that time, as I have said⁶⁵, had expelled their lawful king Osbert from his realm, and appointed a certain tyrant named Ælla, not of royal birth, over the affairs of the kingdom. But when the heathen approached, by divine providence, and the furtherance of the common weal by the nobles, that discord was a little appeased, and Osbert and Ælla uniting their resources, and assembling an army, marched to the town of York. The heathen fled at their approach, and attempted to defend themselves within the walls of the city. The Christians, perceiving their flight and the terror they were in, determined to follow them within the very ramparts of the town, and to demolish the wall; and this they succeeded in doing, since the city at that time was not surrounded by firm or strong walls. When the Christians had made a breach, as they had purposed, and many of them had entered into the city along with the heathen, the latter, impelled by grief and necessity, made a fierce sally upon them, slew them, routed them, and cut them down, both within and without the walls. In that battle fell almost all the Northumbrian troops, and both the kings were slain; the remainder, who escaped, made peace with the heathen.

Note 64. Mostly from the Chronicle.

Note 64. This clause must refer to the first line of the chapter, as there is no previous mention of the Northumbrians.

867. 28. Death of Ealhstan.⁶⁶ In the same year, Ealhstan, Bishop of the church of Sherborne, went the way of all flesh, after he had honorably ruled his see fifty years; and in peace he was buried at Sherborne.

Note 66. From the Chronicle.

868. 29. Alfred marries.⁶⁷ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 868, which was the twentieth of King Alfred's life, the aforesaid revered King Alfred, then occupying only the rank of viceroy (secundarii), betrothed⁶⁸ and espoused a noble Mercian lady⁶⁹, daughter of Æthelred, surnamed Mucill, Ealdorman of the Gaini.⁷⁰ The mother of this lady was named Eadburh, of the royal line of Mercia, whom I often saw with my own eyes a few years before her death. She was a venerable lady, and after the decease of her husband remained many years a chaste widow, even till her own death.

Note 67. Original.

Note 68. 'Subarravit, formed from sub and arrha, represents literally the English verb wed, which refers to the giving of security upon the engagement of marriage.... [It] is glossed by beweddian in Napier's Old English Glosses' (Stevenson).

Note 69. William of Malmesbury calls her Æthelswith.

Note 70. Of the Gaini nothing is known.

868. 30. The Danes at Nottingham.⁷¹ In that same year the above-named army of heathen, leaving Northumbria, invaded Mercia, and advanced to Nottingham [Map], which is called in Welsh Tigguocobauc⁷², but in Latin 'The House of Caves,' and wintered there that same year. Immediately on their approach, Burgred, King of the Mercians, and all the nobles of that nation, sent messengers to Æthelred (age 21)⁷³, King of the West Saxons, and his brother Alfred (age 19), entreating them to come and aid them in fighting against the aforesaid army. Their request was readily granted; for the brothers, as soon as promised, assembled an immense army from every part of their [realm], and, entering Mercia, came to Nottingham [Map], all eager for battle. When now the heathen, defended by the castle, refused to fight, and the Christians were unable to destroy the wall, peace was made between the Mercians and the heathen, and the two brothers, Æthelred (age 21) and Alfred, returned home with their troops.

Note 71. Largely from the Chronicle.

Note 72. 'A compound of tig (Modern Welsh tŷ, "house"), and guocobauc (Modern Welsh gogofawg), an adjective derived from gogof, "cave." ... The name ... is certainly applicable to Nottingham [Map], which has long been famous for the houses excavated out of the soft sandstone upon which it stands' (Stevenson). The word Nottingham itself, however, has not this meaning.

Note 73. Here and elsewhere in the text often spelled Æthered.

869. 31. The Danes at York.⁷⁴ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 869, which was the twenty-first of King Alfred's life, the aforesaid army of heathen, riding back to Northumbria, went to the city of York [Map], and there passed the whole winter.

Note 74. From the Chronicle.

870. 32. The Danes at Thetford.⁷⁴ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 870, which was the twenty-second of King Alfred's life, the above-mentioned army of heathen passed through Mercia into East Anglia, and wintered at Thetford [Map].⁷⁵

Note 74. From the Chronicle.

Note 75. In Norfolk.

870. 33. The Danes triumph.⁷⁴ That same year Edmund, King of the East Angles, fought most fiercely against that army; but, lamentable to say, the heathen triumphed, for he and most of his men were there slain, while the enemy held the battle-field, and reduced all that region to subjection.

Note 74. From the Chronicle.

870. 34. Ceolnoth dies.⁷⁶ That same year Ceolnoth, Archbishop of Canterbury, went the way of all flesh, and was buried in peace in that city [Map].

Note 76. Mostly from the Chronicle.

871. 36. Battle of Reading.⁷⁷ Four days afterwards, King Æthelred (age 24) and his brother Alfred (age 22), uniting their forces and assembling an army, marched to Reading, where, on their arrival at the castle gate, they cut to pieces and overthrew the heathen whom they found outside the fortifications. But the heathen fought no less valiantly and, rushing like wolves out of every gate, waged battle with all their might. Both sides fought long and fiercely, but at last, sad to say, the Christians turned their backs, the heathen obtained the victory and held the battle-field, the aforesaid Ealdorman Æthelwulf (age 46) being among the slain.

Note 77. Chiefly from the Chronicle.

871. 41. Æthelred's Death.⁹² That same year, after Easter, the aforesaid King Æthelred (age 24), having bravely, honorably, and with good repute governed his kingdom five years through many tribulations, went the way of all flesh, and was buried in Wimborne Minster [Map]⁹³, where he awaits the coming of the Lord and the first resurrection with the just.

Note 92. Mostly from the Chronicle.

Note 93. In Dorsetshire.

871. 43. Peace made.⁹⁷ In that same year the Saxons made peace with the heathen, on condition that they should take their departure; and this they did.

Note 97. Mostly from the Chronicle.

872. 44. The Heathen winter in London.⁹⁸ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 872, being the twenty-fourth of King Alfred's life, the aforesaid army of heathen went to London, and there wintered; and the Mercians made peace with them.

Note 98. From the Chronicle.

873. 45. The Heathen winter in Lindsey.⁹⁸ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 873, being the twenty-fifth of King Alfred's life, the oft-named army, leaving London, went into Northumbria, and there wintered in the shire of Lindsey [Map]; and the Mercians again made peace with them.

Note 98. From the Chronicle.

874. 46. The Danes in Mercia.⁹⁹ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 874, being the twenty-sixth of King Alfred's life, the above-named army left Lindsey and marched to Mercia, where they wintered at Repton [Map].¹⁰⁰ Also they compelled Burgred, King of Mercia, against his will to leave his kingdom and go beyond sea to Rome, in the twenty-second year of his reign. He did not live long after his arrival at Rome, but died there, and was honorably buried in the Colony of the Saxons¹⁰¹, in St. Mary's church¹⁰², where he awaits the Lord's coming and the first resurrection with the just. The heathen also, after his expulsion, subjected the whole kingdom of Mercia to their dominion; but, by a miserable arrangement, gave it into the custody of a certain foolish man, named Ceolwulf, one of the [king∮s] thanes, on condition that he should peaceably restore it to them on whatsoever day they should wish to have it again; and to bind this agreement he gave them hostages, and swore that he would not oppose their will in any way, but be obedient to them in every respect.

Note 99. Chiefly from the Chronicle.

Note 100. In Derbyshire.

Note 101. Among the Germans there were Colonies (Scholæ) of the Frisians, Franks, and Lombards, as well as of the Saxons.

Note 102. Now Santo Spirito in Sassia, near the Vatican.

875. 47. The Danes in Northumbria and Cambridge.¹⁰³ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 875, being the twenty-seventh of King Alfred's life, the above-mentioned army, leaving Repton [Map], separated into two bodies, one of which went with Halfdene into Northumbria, and having wintered there near the Tyne, and reduced all Northumbria to subjection, also ravaged the Picts and the people of Strathclyde.¹⁰⁴ The other division, with Guthrum¹⁰⁵, Oscytel, and Anwind, three kings of the heathen, went to Cambridge [Map], and there wintered.

Note 103. From the Chronicle.

Note 104. The valley of the Clyde.

Note 105. Here spelled Gothrum.

875. 48. Alfred's Battle at Sea.¹⁰⁶ In that same year King Alfred (age 26) fought a battle at sea against six ships of the heathen, and took one of them, the rest escaping by flight.

Note 106. From the Chronicle.

876. 50. Halfdene partitions Northumbria. In that same year Halfdene, king of that part of Northumbria, divided up the whole region between himself and his men, and settled there with his army.

Aug 876. 51. Division of Mercia.¹¹⁴ The same year, in the month of August, that army went into Mercia, and gave part of the district of the Mercians to one Ceolwulf¹¹⁵, a weak-minded thane of the king; the rest they divided among themselves.

Note 114. From the Chronicle.

Note 115. See chap. 46.

878. 52. The Danes at Chippenham.¹¹⁶ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 878, being the thirtieth of King Alfred's life, the oft-mentioned army left Exeter [Map], and went to Chippenham, Wiltshire [Map], a royal vill, situated in the north of Wiltshire, on the east bank of the river which is called Avon in Welsh, and there wintered. And they drove many of that people by their arms, by poverty, and by fear, to voyage beyond sea, and reduced almost all the inhabitants of that district to subjection.

Note 116. Largely from the Chronicle.

53. Alfred in Somersetshire. At that same time the above-mentioned King Alfred, with a few of his nobles, and certain soldiers and vassals, was leading in great tribulation an unquiet life among the woodlands and swamps of Somersetshire; for he had nothing that he needed except what by frequent sallies he could forage openly or stealthily from the heathen or from the Christians who had submitted to the rule of the heathen.¹¹⁷

Note 117. At this point Archbishop Parker interpolated, from the Annals of St. Neots, the story of Alfred and the cakes. This story, however, cannot be proved to antedate the Norman Conquest.

878. 54. The Danes defeated at Cynwit.¹¹⁸ In that same year the brother¹¹⁹ of Inwar¹²⁰ and Halfdene, with twenty-three ships, came, after many massacres of the Christians, from Dyfed¹²¹, where he had wintered, and sailed to Devon, where with twelve hundred others he met with a miserable death, being slain, while committing his misdeeds, by the king's thanes, before the fortress of Cynwit¹²², in which many of the king's thanes, with their followers, had shut themselves up for safety. The heathen, seeing that the fortress was unprepared and altogether unfortified, except that it merely had fortifications after our manner, determined not to assault it, because that place is rendered secure by its position on all sides except the eastern, as I myself have seen, but began to besiege it, thinking that those men would soon surrender from famine, thirst, and the blockade, since there is no water close to the fortress. But the result did not fall out as they expected; for the Christians, before they began at all to suffer from such want, being inspired by Heaven, and judging it much better to gain either victory or death, sallied out suddenly upon the heathen at daybreak, and from the first cut them down in great numbers, slaying also their king, so that few escaped to their ships.

Note 118. The first clause from the Chronicle; the rest original.

Note 119. Name unknown.

Note 120. Hingwar.

Note 121. Or South Wales. See chap. 80.

Note 122. Site unknown.

878. 55. Alfred at Athelney.¹²³ The same year, after Easter, King Alfred (age 29), with a few men, made a stronghold in a place called Athelney¹²⁴, and from thence sallied with his vassals of Somerset to make frequent and unwearied assaults upon the heathen. And again, the seventh week after Easter, he rode to Egbert's Stone¹²⁵, which is in the eastern part of Selwood Forest (in Latin 'Great Forest,' and in Welsh Coit Maur). Here he was met by all the neighboring folk of Somersetshire and Wiltshire, and such of Hampshire as had not sailed beyond sea for fear of the heathen; and when they saw the king restored alive, as it were, after such great tribulation, they were filled, as was meet, with immeasurable joy, and encamped there for one night. At daybreak of the following morning, the king struck his camp, and came to Æglea¹²⁶, where he encamped for one night.

Note 123. Mostly from the Chronicle.

Note 124. In Somersetshire.

Note 125. Unknown.

Note 126. Or perhaps better, Iglea; see Stevenson's note on the word, p. 270 of his edition. He says: 'It is probably an older name of Southleigh Wood, or of part of it.'

879. 57. The Danes go to Cirencester.¹³³ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 879, which was the thirty-first of King Alfred's life, the aforesaid army of heathen, leaving Chippenham, as they had promised, went to Cirencester [Map], which is called in Welsh Cairceri, and is situated in the southern part of the kingdom of the Hwicce¹³⁴, and there they remained one year.

Note 133. Chiefly from the Chronicle.

Note 134. Gloucester, Worcester, etc.

879. 58. Danes at Fulham.¹³⁵ In that same year a large army of heathen sailed from beyond sea into the river Thames, and joined the greater army. However, they wintered at Fulham [Map], near the river Thames.

Note 135. Mostly from the Chronicle.

879. 59. An Eclipse.¹³⁶ In that same year an eclipse¹³⁷ of the sun took place between nones and vespers, but nearer to nones.

Note 136. Mostly from the Chronicle.

Note 137. See Stevenson's interesting note.

880. 60. The Danes in East Anglia.¹³⁸ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 880, which was the thirty-second of King Alfred's life, the oft-mentioned army of heathen left Cirencester, and went to East Anglia, where they divided up the country and began to settle.

Note 138. From the Chronicle.

880. 61. The Smaller Army leaves England.¹³⁹ That same year the army of heathen, which had wintered at Fulham, left the island of Britain, and sailed over sea to East Frankland, where they remained for a year at a place called Ghent [Map].

Note 139. Ibid.

881. 62. The Danes fight with the Franks. In the year of our Lord's incarnation 881, which was the thirty-third of King Alfred's life, the army went further on into Frankland, and the Franks fought against them; and after the battle the heathen, obtaining horses, became an army of cavalry.

882. 63. The Danes on the Meuse.¹⁴⁰ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 882, which was the thirty-fourth of King Alfred's life, the aforesaid army sailed their ships up into Frankland by a river called the Meuse, and there wintered one year.

Note 140. Ibid.

882. 64. Alfred's Naval Battle with the Danes.¹⁴¹ In that same year Alfred (age 33), King of the Anglo-Saxons, fought a battle at sea against the heathen fleet, of which he captured two ships, and slew all who were on board. Two commanders of the other ships, with all their crews, worn out by the fight and their wounds, laid down their arms, and submitted to the king on bended knees with many entreaties.

Note 141. Ibid.

883. 65. The Danes at Condé.¹⁴² In the year of our Lord's incarnation 883, which was the thirty-fifth of King Alfred's life, the aforesaid army sailed their ships up the river called Scheldt to a convent of nuns called Condé, and there remained one year.

Note 142. Mostly from the Chronicle.

884. 66. Deliverance of Rochester.¹⁴³ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 884, which was the thirty-sixth of King Alfred's life, the aforesaid army divided into two parts: one body of them went into East Frankland, and the other, coming to Britain, entered Kent, where they besieged a city called in Saxon Rochester [Map], situated on the east bank of the river Medway. Before the gate of the town the heathen suddenly erected a strong fortress; but they were unable to take the city, because the citizens defended themselves bravely until King Alfred (age 35) came up to help them with a large army. Then the heathen abandoned their fortress and all the horses which they had brought with them out of Frankland, and, leaving behind them in the fortress the greater part of their prisoners on the sudden arrival of the king, fled in haste to their ships; the Saxons immediately seized upon the prisoners and horses left by the heathen; and so the latter, compelled by dire necessity, returned the same summer to Frankland.

Note 143. Largely from the Chronicle.

884. 67. Alfred's Naval Battle at the Mouth of the Stour.¹⁴⁴ In that same year Alfred (age 35), King of the Anglo-Saxons, shifted his fleet, full of fighting men, from Kent to East Anglia¹⁴⁵, for the sake of spoil. No sooner had they arrived at the mouth of the river Stour than thirteen ships of the heathen met them, prepared for battle; a fierce naval combat ensued, and the heathen were all slain; all the ships, with all their money, were taken. After this, while the victorious royal fleet was reposing¹⁴⁶, the heathen who occupied East Anglia assembled their ships from every quarter, met the same royal fleet at sea in the mouth of the same river, and, after a naval engagement, gained the victory.

Note 144. Mostly from the Chronicle.

Note 145. Cf. chap. 60.

Note 146. The MS. has dormiret, but perhaps for domum iret, since the Chronicle has hāmweard wendon (Stevenson); so perhaps we should read 'was on its way home.'

884. 68. Death of Carloman, of Louis II, and of Louis III.¹⁴⁷ In that same year also, Carloman (age 18), King of the West Franks, while engaged in a boar-hunt, was miserably slain by a boar, which inflicted a dreadful wound on him with its tusk. His brother Louis, who had also been King of the Franks, had died the year before. Both these were sons of Louis¹⁴⁸, King of the Franks, who also had died in the year above mentioned, in which the eclipse of the sun took place.¹⁴⁹ This Louis was the son of Charles¹⁵⁰, King of the Franks, whose daughter Judith¹⁵¹ Æthelwulf, King of the West Saxons, took to queen with her father's consent.

Note 147. Chiefly from the Chronicle.

Note 148. Louis the Stammerer.

Note 149. Cf. chap. 59.

Note 150. Charles the Bald.

Note 151. Cf. chaps. 11 and 13.

884. 69. The Danes in Old Saxony.¹⁵² In that same year a great army of the heathen came from Germany¹⁵³ into the country of the Old Saxons, which is called in Saxon Eald-Seaxum. To oppose them the same Saxons and Frisians joined their forces, and fought bravely twice in that same year.¹⁵⁴ In both these battles the Christians, by God's merciful aid, gained the victory.

Note 152. From the Chronicle.

Note 153. From Duisburg, about January, 884 (Stevenson).

Note 154. There was a battle in Frisia, about December, 884, and a later one in Saxony (Stevenson).

884. 70. Charles, King of the Alemanni.¹⁵⁵ In that same year also, Charles (age 44), King of the Alemanni, received with universal consent the kingdom of the West Franks, and all the kingdoms which lie between the Tyrrhene Sea and that gulf¹⁵⁶ situated between the Old Saxons and the Gauls, with the exception of the kingdom of Armorica.¹⁵⁷ This Charles (age 44) was the son of King Louis¹⁵⁸, who was brother of Charles, King of the Franks, father of Judith, the aforesaid queen; these two brothers were sons of Louis¹⁵⁹, Louis being the son of Charlemagne, son of Pepin.

Note 155. Mainly from the Chronicle.

Note 156. The North Sea.

Note 157. Brittany.

Note 158. Louis the German.

Note 159. Louis the Pious.

884. 71. Death of Pope Marinus.¹⁶⁰ In that same year Pope Marinus, of blessed memory, went the way of all flesh; it was he who, for the love of Alfred, King of the Anglo-Saxons, and at his request, generously freed the Saxon Colony in Rome from all tribute and tax. He also sent to the aforesaid king many gifts on that occasion, among which was no small portion of the most holy and venerable cross on which our Lord Jesus Christ hung for the salvation of all mankind.

Note 160. Mainly from the Chronicle.

884. 72. The Danes break their Treaty.¹⁶¹ In that same year also the army of heathen which dwelt in East Anglia disgracefully broke the peace which they had concluded with King Alfred (age 35).

Note 161. From the Chronicle.

73. Asser makes a New Beginning.¹⁶² And now, to return to that from which I digressed, lest I be compelled by my long navigation to abandon the haven of desired rest¹⁶³, I propose, as far as my knowledge will enable me, to speak somewhat concerning the life, character, and just conduct, and in no small degree concerning the deeds, of my lord Alfred, King of the Anglo-Saxons, after he married the said respected wife of noble Mercian race; and, with God's blessing, I will despatch it concisely and briefly, as I promised, that I may not, by prolixity in relating each new event, offend the minds of those who may be somewhat hard to please.

Note 162. Based upon the preface to Eginhard's Life of Charlemagne.

Note 163. See chap. 21.

78. Grimbald and John, the Old Saxon.¹⁹² But since the king's commendable avarice could not be gratified even in this, he sent messengers beyond sea to Gaul, to procure teachers, and invited from thence Grimbald¹⁹³, priest and monk, a venerable man and excellent singer, learned in every kind of ecclesiastical discipline and in holy Scripture, and adorned with all virtues. He also obtained from thence John¹⁹⁴, both priest and monk, a man of the keenest intellect, learned in all branches of literature, and skilled in many other arts. By the teaching of these men the king's mind was greatly enlarged, and he enriched and honored them with much power.

Note 192. Original.

Note 193. Probably from the monastery of St. Bertin, at St. Omer (Pas-de-Calais). See Appendix I, p. 71, and Appendix II, pp. 75 ff.

Note 194. Cf. chap. 94., and Appendix I, p. 71.

886. 82. The Siege of Paris.²¹⁰ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 886, which was the thirty-eighth of King Alfred's life, the army so often mentioned again fled the country, and went into that of the West Franks. Entering the river Seine with their vessels, they sailed up it as far as the city of Paris; there they wintered, pitching their camp on both sides of the river almost to the bridge, in order that they might prevent the citizens from crossing the bridge - since the city occupies a small island in the middle of the stream. They besieged the city for a whole year, but, by the merciful favor of God, and by reason of the brave defense of the citizens, they could not force their way inside the walls.

Note 210. Largely from the Chronicle.

886. 83. Alfred rebuilds London.²¹¹ In that same year Alfred (age 37), King of the Anglo-Saxons, after the burning of cities and massacres of the people, honorably rebuilt the city of London, made it habitable, and gave it into the custody of Æthelred, Ealdorman of Mercia. To this king²¹² all the Angles and Saxons who hitherto had been dispersed everywhere, or were in captivity with the heathen²¹³, voluntarily turned, and submitted themselves to his rule.²¹⁴

Note 211. Largely from the Chronicle

Note 212. Namely, Alfred (age 37).

Note 213. A mistranslation from the Chronicle; it should read, 'were not in captivity,' etc.

Note 214. Here follows Camden's famous (forged?) interpolation about Grimbald and Oxford.

887. 84. The Danes leave Paris.²¹⁵ In the year of our Lord's incarnation 887, which was the thirty-ninth of King Alfred's life, the above-mentioned army of the heathen, leaving the city of Paris uninjured, since otherwise they could get no advantage, passed under the bridge and rowed their fleet up the river Seine for a long distance, until they reached the mouth of the river Marne; here they left the Seine, entered the mouth of the Marne, and, sailing up it for a good distance and a good while, at length, not without labor, arrived at a place called Chézy, a royal vill, where they wintered a whole year. In the following year they entered the mouth of the river Yonne, not without doing much damage to the country, and there remained one year.

Note 215. Much expanded from the Chronicle

887. 85. Division of the Empire.²¹⁶ In that same year Charles²¹⁷, King of the Franks, went the way of all flesh; but Arnolf, his brother's son, six weeks before he died, had expelled him from the kingdom. Immediately after his death five kings were ordained, and the kingdom was split into five parts; but the principal seat of the kingdom justly and deservedly fell to Arnolf, were it not that he had shamefully sinned against his uncle. The other four kings promised fidelity and obedience to Arnolf, as was meet; for none of these four kings was heir to the kingdom on his father's side, as was Arnolf; therefore, though the five kings were ordained immediately upon the death of Charles, yet the Empire remained to Arnolf. Such, then, was the division of that realm; Arnolf received the countries to the east of the river Rhine; Rudolf (age 28) the inner part of the kingdom²¹⁸; Odo (age 30) the western part; Berengar and Wido, Lombardy, and those countries which are on that side of the mountain. But they did not keep such and so great dominions in peace among themselves, for they twice fought a pitched battle, and often mutually ravaged those kingdoms, and drove one another out of their dominions.

Note 216. From the Chronicle.

Note 217. Charles the Fat (age 47).

Note 218. Burgundy.

887. 86. Alfred sends Alms to Rome.²¹⁹ In the same year in which that army left Paris and went to Chézy²²⁰, Æthelhelm, Ealdorman of Wiltshire, carried to Rome the alms of King Alfred (age 38) and of the Saxons.

Note 219. Chiefly from the Chronicle.

Note 220. Cf. chap. 84.

887. 87. Alfred begins to translate from Latin.²²¹ In that same year also the oft-mentioned Alfred (age 38), King of the Anglo-Saxons, by divine inspiration first began, on one and the same day, to read and to translate; but that this may be clearer to those who are ignorant, I will relate the cause of this long delay in beginning.

Note 221. Original.

91. Alfred's Troubles.²³⁷ Now the king was pierced with many nails of tribulation, though established in the royal sway; for from the twentieth year of his age to the present year, which is his forty-fifth²³⁸, he has been constantly afflicted with most severe attacks of an unknown disease, so that there is not a single hour in which he is not either suffering from that malady, or nigh to despair by reason of the gloom which is occasioned by his fear of it. Moreover the constant invasions of foreign nations, by which he was continually harassed by land and sea, without any interval of quiet, constituted a sufficient cause of disturbance.

Note 237. Original.

Note 238. Cf. chap. 74.

888. 92. Alfred builds two Monasteries.²⁴⁶ Concerning his desire and intent of excellent meditation, which, in the midst both of prosperity and adversity, he never in any way neglected, I cannot in this place with advantage forbear to speak. For, when he was reflecting, according to his wont, upon the need of his soul²⁴⁷, he ordered, among the other good deeds to which his thoughts were by night and day²⁴⁸ especially turned, that two monasteries should be built, one of them being for monks at Athelney [Map].²⁴⁹ This is a place surrounded by impassable fens and waters on every hand, where no one can enter but by boats, or by a bridge laboriously constructed between two fortresses, at the western end of which bridge was erected a strong citadel, of beautiful work, by command of the aforesaid king. In this monastery he collected monks of all kinds from every quarter, and there settled them.

Note 246. Original.

Note 247. This corresponds to the OE. sāwle þearf.

Note 248. The Latin has: inter cetera diuturna et nocturna bona. Stevenson does not emend, but it seems as though we should read diurna. Compare, for example, in Stevenson's edition, 78. 14, 35, 39; 99. 10; 100. 11; 103. 9.

Note 249. Cf. chap. 55. The second monastery was for nuns, and at Shaftesbury [Map]; see chap. 98.

888. 93. Monasticism was decayed.²⁵⁰ At first he had no one of his own nation, noble and free by birth, who was willing to enter the monastic life, except children, who as yet could neither choose good nor reject evil by reason of their tender years. This was the case because for many years previous the love of a monastic life had utterly decayed in that as well as in many other nations; for, though many monasteries still remain in that country, yet no one kept the rule of that kind of life in an orderly way, whether because of the invasions of foreigners, which took place so frequently both by sea and land, or because that people abounded in riches of every kind, and so looked with contempt on the monastic life. On this account it was that King Alfred sought to gather monks of different kinds in the same monastery.

Note 250. Original.

888. 94. Monks brought from beyond Sea.²⁵¹ First he placed there [Map] John²⁵² the priest and monk, an Old Saxon by birth, making him abbot; and then certain priests and deacons from beyond sea. Finding that he had not so large a number of these as he wished, he procured as many as possible of the same Gallic race²⁵³; some of whom, being children, he ordered to be taught in the same monastery, and at a later period to be admitted to the monastic habit. I have myself seen there in monastic dress a young man of heathen birth who was educated in that monastery, and by no means the hindmost of them all.

Note 251. Original.

Note 252. Cf. chap. 78.

Note 253. Cf. chap. 78.

888. 95. A Crime committed at Athelney.²⁵⁴ There was a crime committed once in that monastery [Map], which I would [not]²⁵⁵, by my silence, utterly consign to oblivion, although it is an atrocious villainy, for throughout the whole of Scripture the base deeds of the wicked are interspersed among the reverend actions of the righteous, like tares and cockle among the wheat. Good deeds are recorded that they may be praised, imitated, and emulated, and that those who pursue them may be held worthy of all honor; and wicked deeds, that they may be censured, execrated, and avoided, and their imitators be reproved with all odium, contempt, and vengeance.

Note 254. Original.

Note 255. Supplied by Stevenson.

96. The Plot of a Priest and a Deacon.²⁵⁶ Once upon a time, a certain priest and a deacon, Gauls by birth, of the number of the aforesaid monks, by the instigation of the devil, and roused by jealousy, became so embittered in secret against their abbot, the above-mentioned John, that, after the manner of the Jews, they circumvented and betrayed their master. For they so wrought upon two hired servants of the same Gallic race that in the night, when all men were enjoying the sweet tranquillity of sleep, they should make their way into the church armed, and, shutting it behind them as usual, hide themselves there, and wait till the abbot should enter the church alone. At length, when, as was his wont, he should secretly enter the church by himself to pray, and, bending his knees, bow before the holy altar, the men should fall upon him, and slay him on the spot. They should then drag his lifeless body out of the church, and throw it down before the house of a certain harlot, as if he had been slain whilst on a visit to her. This was their device, adding crime to crime, as it is said, 'The last error shall be worse than the first.'²⁵⁷ But the divine mercy, which is always wont to aid the innocent, frustrated in great part the evil design of those evil men, so that it did not turn out in all respects as they had planned.

Note 256. Original.

Note 257. Matt. 27. 64.

888. 98. The Convent at Shaftesbury.²⁵⁹ Another²⁶⁰ monastery [Map] also was built by the aforesaid king as a residence for nuns, near the eastern gate of Shaftesbury [Map]; and over it he placed as abbess his own daughter Æthelgivu, a virgin dedicated to God. With her many other noble ladies, serving God in the monastic life, dwell in that convent. These two edifices were enriched by the king with much land, and with all sorts of wealth.

Note 259. Original.

Note 260. Cf. chap. 92.

99. Alfred divides his Time and his Revenues.²⁶¹ These things being thus disposed of, the king considered within himself, as was his practice, what more would conduce to religious meditation. What he had wisely begun and usefully conceived was adhered to with even more beneficial result; for he had long before heard out of the book of the law that the Lord²⁶² had promised to restore to him the tenth many times over; and he knew that the Lord had faithfully kept His promise, and had actually restored to him the tithe manyfold. Encouraged by this precedent, and wishing to surpass the practice of his predecessors, he vowed humbly and faithfully to devote to God half his services, by day and by night, and also half of all the wealth which lawfully and justly came every year into his possession; and this vow, as far as human discretion can perceive and keep, he skilfully and wisely endeavored to fulfil. But that he might, with his usual caution, avoid that which Scripture warns us against, 'If thou offerest aright, but dost not divide aright, thou sinnest,'²⁶³ he considered how he might divide aright that which he had joyfully vowed to God; and as Solomon had said, 'The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord'²⁶⁴ that is, his counsel - he ordered with a divinely inspired policy, which could come only from above, that his officers should first divide into two parts the revenues of every year.

Note 261. Original.

Note 262. This passage is somewhat corrupt.

Note 263. Gen. 4. 7, in the old Latin version, following the Septuagint.

Note 264. Prov. 21. 1.

100. The Threefold Division of Officers at Court.²⁶⁵ After this division had been made, he assigned the first part to worldly uses, and ordered that one third of it should be paid to his soldiers and to his officers, the nobles who dwelt by turns at court, where they discharged various duties, for thus it was that the king's household was arranged at all times in three shifts²⁶⁶, in the following manner. The king's attendants being wisely distributed into three companies, the first company was on duty at court for one month, night and day, at the end of which they were relieved by the second company, and returned to their homes for two months, where they attended to their own affairs. At the end of the second month, the third company relieved the second, who returned to their homes, where they spent two months. The third company then gave place to the first, and in their turn spent two months at home. And in this order the rotation of service at the king's court was at all times carried on.

Note 265. Original.

Note 266. Cf. the Chronicle under 894: 'The King had divided his forces into two, so that one half was constantly at home, the other half in the field.'

101. The Distribution for Secular Purposes.²⁶⁷ To these, therefore, was paid the first of the three portions aforesaid, to each according to his standing and peculiar service; the second to the workmen whom he had collected from many nations and had about him in large numbers, men skilled in every kind of building; the third portion was assigned to foreigners who came to him out of every nation far and near; whether they asked money of him or not, he cheerfully gave to each with wonderful munificence according to their respective worthiness²⁶⁸, exemplifying what is written, 'God loveth a cheerful giver.'²⁶⁹

Note 267. Original.

Note 268. Or, 'rank' (dignitatem), as in line 3 of the chapter.

Note 269. 2 Cor. 9. 7.

102. The Distribution for Religious Purposes.²⁷⁰ But the second part of all his revenues, which came yearly into his possession, and was included in the receipts of the exchequer, as I mentioned just above, he with full devotion dedicated to God, ordering his officers to divide it carefully into four equal parts with the provision that the first part should be discreetly bestowed on the poor of every nation who came to him; on this subject he said that, as far as human discretion could guarantee, the remark of Pope Gregory on the proper division of alms should be followed, 'Give not little to whom you should give much, nor much to whom little, nor nothing to whom something, nor something to whom nothing.'²⁷¹ The second share to the two monasteries which he had built, and to those who were serving God in them, as I have described more at length above. The third to the school²⁷² which he had studiously formed from many of the nobility of his own nation, but also from boys of mean condition. The fourth to the neighboring monasteries in all Wessex and Mercia, and also during some years, in turn, to the churches and servants of God dwelling in Wales, Cornwall²⁷³, Gaul²⁷⁴, Brittany, Northumbria, and sometimes, too, in Ireland; according to his means, he either distributed to them beforehand, or agreed to contribute afterwards, if life and prosperity did not fail him.

Note 270. Original.

Note 271. ncorrectly quoted from the Pastoral Care 3. 20: 'Ne quædam quibus nulla, ne nulla quibus quædam, ne multa quibus pauca, ne pauca præbeant quibus impendere multa debuerunt.'

Note 272. See chaps. 75. and 76.

Note 273. See chaps. 74 and 81.

Note 274. See chaps. 78 and 94.

103. Alfred's Dedication of Personal Service.²⁷⁵ When the king had arranged all these matters in due order, he remembered the text of holy Scripture which says, 'Whosoever will give alms, ought to begin from himself,'²⁷⁶ and prudently began to reflect what he could offer to God from the service of his body and mind; for he proposed to offer to God no less out of this than he had done of external riches.²⁷⁷ Accordingly, he promised, as far as his infirmity and his means would allow, to render to God the half of his services, bodily and mental, by night and by day²⁷⁸, voluntarily, and with all his might. Inasmuch, however, as he could not distinguish with accuracy the lengths of the night hours in any way, on account of the darkness, nor frequently those of the day, on account of the thick clouds and rains, he began to consider by what regular means, free from uncertainty, relying on the mercy of God, he might discharge the promised tenor of his vow undeviatingly until his death.

Note 275. Original.

Note 276. Not from the Bible, but from St. Augustine's Enchiridion de Fide, chap. 20: 'Qui enim vult ordinate dare eleemosynam, a se ipso debet incipere.'

Note 277. Reading divitiis for the divinis of the text

Note 278. Cf. chap. 99.

105. Alfred judges the Poor with Equity.²⁸⁵ When all these things were properly arranged, the king, eager to hold to the half of his daily service, as he had vowed to God, and more also, if his ability on the one hand, and his malady on the other, would allow him, showed himself a minute investigator of the truth in all his judgments, and this especially for the sake of the poor, to whose interest, day and night, among other duties of this life, he was ever wonderfully attentive. For in the whole kingdom the poor, besides him, had few or no helpers; for almost all the powerful and noble of that country had turned their thoughts rather to secular than to divine things: each was more bent on worldly business, to his own profit, than on the common weal.

Note 285. Original.

And since you wish this to be effected chiefly through our assistance, and since from our see, over which St. Remigius, the apostle of the Franks, presides, you ask for counsel and protection, we think that this is not done without divine impulse. And as formerly the nation of the Franks obtained by the same St. Remigius deliverance from manifold error, and the knowledge of the worship of the only true God, so doth the nation of the Angles request that it may obtain from his see and doctrine one by whom they may be taught to avoid superstition, to cut off superfluities, and to extirpate all such noxious things as bud forth from violated custom or rude habits, and may learn, while they walk through the field of the Lord, to pluck the flowers, and to be upon their guard against the adder.

For St. Augustine, the first bishop of your nation, sent to us by your apostle St. Gregory, could not in a short time set forth all the decrees of the holy apostles, nor did he think proper suddenly to burden a rude and barbarous nation with new and strange enactments; for he knew how to adapt himself to their infirmities, and to say with the Apostle, 'I have given milk to you to drink, who are babes in Christ, and not meat' (1 Cor. 3. 2). And as Peter and James, who were looked upon as pillars (Gal. 2. 9), with Barnabas and Paul, and the rest who were met together, did not wish to oppress the primitive Church, which was flowing in from the Gentiles to the faith of Christ, with a heavier burden than to command them to abstain from things offered to idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood (Acts 15. 29), so also do we know how matters were managed with you at the beginning. For they required only this for training up the people in the knowledge of God, and turning them from their former barbarous fierceness, namely, that faithful and prudent servants should be placed over the Lord's household, who should be competent to give out to each of their fellow-servants his dole of food in due season, that is, according to the capacity of each of the hearers. But in process of time, as the Christian religion gained strength, the holy Church felt it neither to be her inclination nor her duty to be satisfied with this, but to take example from the apostles themselves, their masters and founders, who, after the doctrines of the Gospel had been set forth and spread abroad by their heavenly Master Himself, did not deem it superfluous and needless, but convenient and salutary, to establish the perfect believers by frequent epistolary exhortations, and to build them more firmly upon the solid foundation, and to impart to them more abundantly the rule as well of manners as of faith.

Nevertheless, she too, whether excited by adverse circumstances, or nourished by prosperous ones, never ceased to aim at the good of her children, whom she is daily bringing forth to Christ, and, inflamed by the fire of the Holy Spirit, to promote their advancement, both privately and publicly. Hence the frequent calling of councils, not only from the neighboring cities and provinces, but also, in these days, from regions beyond seas; hence synodal decrees so often published; hence sacred canons, framed and consecrated by the Holy Spirit, by which both the Catholic faith is powerfully strengthened, and the unity of the Church's peace is inviolably guarded, and its order is decently regulated: which canons, as it is unlawful for any Christian to transgress, so it is altogether wicked, in clerk and priest especially, to be ignorant of them; the wholesome observance and the religious handing down of which are things ever to be embraced. Seeing that, for the reasons above stated, all these matters have either not been fully made known to your nation, or have now for the most part failed, it hath appeared fit and proper to your Majesty and to your royal wisdom, by a most excellent counsel—inspired, as we believe, from above—both to consult us, insignificant as we are, on this matter, and to repair to the see of St. Remigius, by whose virtues and doctrine the same see or church hath always flourished and excelled all the churches of Gaul since his time in all piety and doctrine.

And since you are unwilling to appear before us, when you present these your requests, without a gift and empty-handed, your Majesty hath deigned to honor us with a present that is both very necessary for the time and well suited to the matter in hand; concerning which we have both praised heavenly Providence with admiration, and have returned no slender thanks to your royal munificence. For you have sent unto us a present of dogs, which, of good and excellent breed, are yet only in the body and mortal; and this you do that they may drive away the fury of visible wolves, with which, among other scourges, wielded against us by the righteous judgment of God, our country abounds; and you ask us, in return, that we should send to you certain watch-dogs, not corporeal, that is to say, not such as those with whom the prophet finds fault, saying, 'Dumb dogs, not able to bark' (Isa. 56. 10), but such as the Psalmist speaks of, 'That the tongue of thy dogs may be red through the same' (Ps. 68. 23), who know how and are qualified to make loud barkings for their Lord, and constantly to guard His flock with most wakeful and most careful watchings, and to drive away to a distance those most cruel wolves of unclean spirits who lie in wait to devour souls.

Of which number you specially demand one from us, namely, Grimbald, priest and monk, to be sent for this office, and to preside over the government of the pastoral charge. To whom the whole Church, which hath nourished him, gives her testimony from his childhood, with true faith and holy religion, and which hath advanced him by regular steps, according to ecclesiastical custom, to the dignity of the priesthood. We affirm openly that he is most deserving of the honor of the episcopate, and that he is fit to teach others also. But indeed we wished that this might rather take place in our kingdom, and we intended some time ago, with Christ's permission, to accomplish it in due time, namely, that he whom we had as a faithful son we might have as an associate in our office, and a most trustworthy assistant in everything that pertained to the advantage of the Church. It is not without deep sorrow—forgive us for saying so—that we suffer him to be torn from us, and be removed from our eyes by so vast an extent of land and sea. But as love has no perception of loss, nor faith of injury, and no remoteness of regions can part those whom the tie of unfeigned affection joins together, we have most willingly assented to your request—for to you we have no power to refuse anything—nor do we grudge him to you, whose advantage we rejoice in as much as if it were our own, and whose profit we count as ours: for we know that in every place one only God is served, and that the Catholic and Apostolic Church is one, whether it be at Rome or in the parts beyond the sea.

It is our duty, then, to make him over to you canonically; and it is your duty to receive him reverentially, that is to say, in such way and mode as may best conduce to the glory of your kingdom, to the honor of the Church and our prelacy; and to send him to you along with his electors, and with certain nobles and great personages of your kingdom, as well bishops, presbyters, deacons, as religious laymen also, who with their own lips promise and declare to us in the presence of our whole church that they will treat him with fitting respect during the whole course of his life, and that they will inviolably keep with the strictest care the canonical decrees and the rules of the Church, handed down to the Church by the apostles and by apostolic men, such as they could then hear from us, and afterwards learn from him their pastor and teacher, according to the form delivered by us to him. Which when they shall have done, with the divine blessing and the authority of St. Remigius, by our ministry and the laying on of hands, according to the custom of the Church, receiving him properly ordained, and in all things fully instructed, let them conduct him with due honor to his own seat, glad and cheerful themselves that they are always to enjoy his protection, and constantly to be instructed by his teaching and example.

And as the members feel a concern for each other, and when even one rejoices they rejoice with it, or if even one suffer all the other members sympathize with it, we again earnestly and specially commend him to your Royal Highness and to your most provident goodness, that he may be always permitted, with unfettered authority, without any gainsaying, to teach and to carry into effect whatever he may discover to be fit and useful for the honor of the Church and the instruction of your people, according to the authority of the canons and the custom of our Church, lest, haply—which God forbid!—any one, under the instigation of the devil, being moved by the impulse of spite and malevolence, should excite controversy or raise sedition against him. But should this happen, it will be your duty then to make special provision against this, and by all means to discourage by your royal censure all such persons, if they should chance to show themselves, and check barbaric rudeness by the curb of your authority; and it will be his duty always to consult for the salvation of the people committed to his pastoral skill, and rather to draw all men after him by love than to drive them by fear.

May you, most illustrious, most religious, and most invincible king, ever rejoice and flourish in Christ the Lord of lords.