King Alfred of Wessex is one of the few to be known as “great”. He was a successful warrior, which eventually brought peace to his people. He placed emphasis on education and improved laws and the legal system. King Alfred improved the living standard of his people. Alfred’s Christian ideals guided him to be a generous monarch. He believed he was entrusted by God to have a genuine responsibility to his country. (Woodcock)
Alfred was born in 849 in the town of Wantage, in central southern England. He was the youngest of King Ethelwulf’s 4 sons. He also had a younger sister. Alfred was a sickly child. At the age of 4, he accompanied his Father to Rome. He spent time with the Pope Leo IV. The Pope awarded him with a spiritual
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Over the years since the 830s, the Vikings had started attacking England. They continued their persistent attempts to invade and had gained control of much of the north and east of the country. Alfred led his military in protecting the people and defending his kingdom . Some attacks were lost and some won. Alfred would sometime pay the Danish armies to leave.
In 878 the Vikings led by King Guthrum, invaded Wessex. King Alfred openly fought with his men and they eventually defeated Guthrum. One of the terms of the surrender was that Guthrum convert to Christianity. (Alfred the Great) Guthrum was baptized. The country was divided into two regions. Guthrum settled in the East. With this agreement, there was a time when there was peace.
King Alfred used this time to rebuild. He organized a system of burhs or forts spread across his kingdom. This system made it difficult for Viking attacks. Alfred also ordered the construction of a small fleet of long ships, twice the size of a Viking warship. (Alfred the Great) He felt having these ships was a better way to fight the Vikings. He would meet them head on in the water instead of allowing them to reach land. He is credited with being known as the founder of the Royal
What does Shakespeare's “Macbeth” show us about human nature and how a person's ambition can drive them to do very foolish, and dangerous things to get what they want. In this I will take a look at how ambition or desire can affect a person's judgement, as well as affect themselves and the people around them.
Then there is King Hrolf Kraki who shows us an example of what was a truly great king. King Hrolf has most of the honorable traits of that time that allowed him to obtain his leader ship along with his fame. Hrolf was for the most part successful in his battles due to being able to gather up many noble warriors who were called “King Hrolf’s Champions” He treated these mean with a certain brotherhood that isn’t really shown by the other kings in the Saga. This appears to be an important trait for him to have during this time and it works in his favor. As more men heard about how he honored his champions, they were attracted towards him which allowed him to build a decent sized “army” of warriors. An example of this happening is when Svipdag told his king that he was leaving because he wanted “to look for a king who will honour” (Pg. 30) him and his brothers more. Although King Hrolf Kraki had many honorable traits he too was flawed like most people. One mistake
It was a time of many small kingdoms and attacks. In the quote the Anglo Saxons explain about the raids of the “Northmen” or the vikings, it tells how
When one sees the word Viking, the mind firstly shifts to men who are uncivilized and unprincipled. Using evidence of achievements and victories will not only show how much they impacted Europe, but how sophisticated Vikings actually were. As Charlemagne’s empire ended, the people of Europe showed extraordinary resilience toward the new movements of the era. From 800 to 1200 CE, Vikings ruled medieval Europe. These Vikings, along with thick soil, are credited with shifting Europe from endemic violence toward cooperation and legal order. An attack on the Lindisfarne monastery off the coast of Northumberland in northeastern England marked the beginning of the Viking Age. Vikings began to appear in Europe due to Scandinavian raiders repeatedly visiting the Christian countries of Europe. At first they were content with just raiding lands, but soon they began to seize land and proclaim rule. They sought riches, not land. With this established rule, Vikings promised safety and began to reform the lands they had acquired. The people agreed due to starvation and possible attacks from eneimes. The new lands had a need for settled agriculture, defensive warfare and commerce. As the Vikings began to fulfill these needs they saw an expansion in cooperation and rule of law among the villagers.
In 865, the Great Heathen Army attacked East Anglia (England). After that invasion failed, they attacked England once again in 1066, but were defeated at the battle of Stamford Bridge. The Vikings attack England again during the Reign of Canute the Great Again in 1066, the Normans invaded and conquered England. The Vikings could not defeat Paris but the King was so impressed that he gave me land.
He was the first king of the Franks by uniting all the tribes under one rule, which marked the end of royal chieftains. However, he was converted to Catholicism and Clovis only converted because he won the battle against the Alamanni, Clovis states, “I beseech the glory of thy aid, and the vow that if thou wilt grant me victory over these enemies, […], I will believe in thee and be baptized in thy name (pp.137-138).” This did not bother Gregory of Tours or his subjects because he was seen as the chosen one by God to rule the Franks. In Charles case, he had always been a devout Christian. Clovis became a devout believer of Christianity and practiced with caution, Clovis states, “If you have decreed that this people of unbelievers, who have always been hostile to you, […], show me a propitious sign as these men enter St. Martin’s (pp.142).” They both defended Christianity and tried to convert non-believers through
Overall, Beowulf is a better ruler than Arthur because although Arthur had remarkable morals and intentions, he was not praised nor respected like Beowulf. If there is no respect for a leader, than how can one be a “good” leader? Beowulf’s men cherished him and believed in him. They had his back for every choice he made. After Arthur decided to not accuse his wife of treason, some of his men betrayed and left him. Also, Beowulf had no gluttony and did not desire any gold or riches. He was generous and gave all to his people. For example, Beowulf admirably states, “I sold my life/ For this treasure and I sold it well” (l. 809-810). His relief upon seeing the treasure demonstrates his desire to leave something to his citizens. Beowulf made the Danes a peaceful people once again, making him one of their greatest kings and heroes.
Charlemagne died at the age of 72 and designed his only surviving son Lewis as heir to his kingship. He was interred at his beloved cathedral in 814 A.D. In his will, he provided for the church, the cities in the kingdom, all of his children, grandchildren, palace workers, servants and the poor.
Of William I’s (1066-1087) sons, William the II (1087-1100) was a better king than his younger brother Henry I (1100-1135). William I’s was the first Norman king to rule England. He split his heritance between his three living sons. Robert received the rule of Normandy, William II received England and Henry I received five thousand pounds. In early medieval England a good king was a heroic soldier and a strong leader who was fair but enforced the law. It was also important that they were Christian and unsinful. William II “The Rufus”-because of his red face or temper, was true to himself and what he believed in while Henry I “Beauclerc”-because of his high level of education, was a brutal and selfish king, not only to his people, but also
Besides being written in a similar era and area, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, The Scarlet Letter, and The Crucible have a common thematic connection. All of these writings have theological ethics in common. Ethics based on a God or Gods create the design of theological ethics. In Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, theological ethics stated the common ideas of the time.
William was born in 1028 at Falaise Castle. He was the son of Robert the Duke of Normandy and Herleve, the daughter of a tanner in Falaise. Robert was said to have caught sight of Herleve while she was washing her linens in the castle moat.
Coming from Scandinavian countries, predominantly Denmark and Norway, the Vikings began raiding the British Isles in the late 700s (James). The Vikings primarily targeted monasteries, because that is where most of the wealth was concentrated (Loughrey). These raids were very violent, people were killed, and the survivors were sold into slavery (Loughrey). These violent raids earned the Vikings the reputation of barbarians, much like the Mongols a few centuries later in Asia. After some time, once the Vikings exhausted most of the wealth in the monasteries, they turned their interest into settling the British Isles (James). By the late 9th century the Vikings had conquered most of England (James). However, even though these Viking kingdoms did not last very long, the Scandinavians who resided there stayed. These Scandinavians would go on to change the British Isles in many ways. Despite the violent and negative impacts of Viking raids on the British Isles, once the Vikings settled down, they had a significant and positive peaceful impact on the British Isles culturally, politically, and economically.
The Vikings organized attacks very well, they set more and more extravagant goals, and soon met them. Their attacks on England were successful mostly because no one expected them. In May of 841, Danish Vikings led by a man named Asgeir sailed the River Seine, and they burnt the city Rouen to the ground. Next they moved into St. Denis, but decided that it was in their best interest not to provoke the passing Frankish army. But they went right back at it again in 842 they destroyed Quenstovic, the Frisian harbor town. In 845 they attacked the tri-divided Holy Roman Empire, all at the same time!
On the other hand, the weaknesses of the Anglo-Saxons needs to be considered in terms of its contribution towards the success of the Vikings with this particularly being centred around King AEthelred. This particular alternative factor is noteworthy as AEthelred's reign (978-1013) was characterised by the return of Viking raids in Britain. His mistakes are particularly significant due to the expectations of him to live up to the reputation of King Alfred the Great and his success against the Viking threat at the battle of the Edington (878) and through the Treaty of Alfred and Guthrum. Reference to AEthelred as being “the unready” already allows us to have some idea of his abilities as king. Firstly, one particularly unsuccessful strategy he took on involved Vikings being employed as mercenaries which started in 994 and also involved a pledge of loyalty in exchange for gifts (including both land
King Alfred the Great was born at Wantage, in 849, on a royal manor of his father's holding, a family estate which long afterward he himself would leave in legacy to his wife. Alfred was the youngest of five children, four sons and a daughter, born to Ethelwulf by his wife Osburh. When Alfred was four years old, his father, the king, who by now had long despaired of getting to Rome in the present state of things, decided to send Alfred there, to at least receive the blessing of the Holy Father. The pope at the time, Leo the IV, gave Alfred the blessing to become king. Alfred's time came in the year mid-April 871, when King Æthelred died. Only a king of full age could defend the land, and although Æthelred