![]() After spending a year at Caerwent because of illness, Asser accepted. About 885 he was asked by Alfred the Great to leave St Davids and join the circle of learned men whom Alfred was recruiting for his court. The cover shows the late ninth-century Alfred Jewel, inscribed AELFRED MEC HEHT GEWYRCAN ('Alfred ordered me to be made'), reproduced by kind permission of the Trustees of the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford. 909) was a Welsh monk from St Davids, Dyfed, who became Bishop of Sherborne in the 890s. Taken with Asser’s 'Life', they create a vivid picture of kingship, warfare and learning in Anglo-Saxon England. The other contemporary sources include annals from the 'Anglo-Saxon Chronicle', King Alfred’s laws, his will, and extracts from his own writings. His 'Life of King Alfred', written in 893, is a remarkable account of the king’s activities in peace and war, and testifies to the admiration that Alfred inspired in those around him. He led the battle against the Viking invaders of England, and presided over the revival of religion and learning among his people: his reputation is a measure of his success.Īsser was a monk of St David’s, in Wales, who entered King Alfred’s service and eventually became Bishop of Sherborne. As king of Wessex from 871 to 899, he strove to emulate those kings of the past who, in his own words, had 'succeeded both in warfare and in wisdom'. ![]() ![]() “Translated with an Introduction and Notes by Simon Keynes and Michael Lapidge.Īlfred the Great is best known as the king who burnt the cakes, but he was also famous for other achievements. ![]()
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