King Alfred The Great Research Paper

In modern times, Great Britain is one of the few countries in the world that still has a monarch. Queen Elizabeth II, everyone’s favorite, came to power in the early 1950’s. Some people might remember names like Richard the Lionheart, a crusader, or George III, who ruled during the American Independence. The British monarchy goes back over a thousand years, to the Middle Ages, to a time when people feared the Vikings and the world was still in the dark after the fall of Rome. In England, which was then separated into multiple kingdoms, a man named Alfred came to power and changed the country, becoming the first king to dominate the entirety of England. Alfred became King of Wessex at the young age of twenty-one and was determined to resist the Viking command in England (“Alfred ‘The Great’”). As shown in his campaign against the Danes, he proved to be a natural and ingenious leader. By using the Danes’ military tactics against them, Alfred was able to defeat the Vikings at the Battle of Edington in May of 878 (“Alfred ‘The Great’”). Of course, Alfred was not just a belligerent warmonger, but he was also a peacemaker. Knowing that he could never defeat the Danes entirely, Alfred formed a treaty with the Danes and formed alliances with the kings of the other kingdoms

Because he had four older brothers, Alfred had a long wait to the throne; however, when he was young, he stated that he never wanted to be king (Whitelock). As such, Alfred was educated, but unable to acquire the learning he yearned for until he was much older. Nevertheless, Alfred was a champion for education, looking up to Charlemagne of the Holy Roman Empire, who sought after increased literacy and learning in his kingdom (Whitelock). In his pursuit of knowledge, Alfred expanded upon the education of the common man, and without his efforts, written information about Anglo-Saxon England may not exist