Athelstan - the first king to command all England
Athelstan, who reigned between 925 and 939 AD, was the first West Saxon king to have effective rule over the whole of England, consolidating the expulsion of the Vikings from the north by his two predecessors. He forged a reputation as a distinguished and courageous soldier, and he is regarded as one of the greatest Anglo-Saxon kings. His legal reforms built on those of his grandfather, Alfred the Great, and he was known for collecting relics and founding churches.
Athelstan was the son of Edward the Elder. He was illegitimate, as at the time of his birth his mother was the King’s mistress - although she later became his queen. When his father, King Edward died in 924 AD, Athelstan was not the first in line to succeed; he had an elder brother, Aelfweard. However, Aelfweard died within a fortnight of his father’s death, and so Athelstan was crowned king in July 925 at Kingston-upon-Thames. He proceeded to establish boundaries of his domain, and rule firmly.
Athelstan is recorded as never having lost a battle. He subdued rebellions in Cornwall, and Wales. In 937 AD, at the Battle of Brunanburh, Athelstan led a force drawn from across Britain, and defeated an invasion made by the king of Scotland, in alliance with the Welsh and Danes, from Dublin.
Under Athelstan, law codes strengthened royal control over his large kingdom; currency was regulated to control silver's weight and to penalise fraudsters; buying and selling was largely confined to the burhs - fortified settlements. Earlier in the 9th century, raids and invasions by Vikings prompted Alfred the Great to develop a network of burhs and roads to use against such attackers.
The burhs system encouraged town life; and areas of settlement in the Midlands and former Viking towns were consolidated into shires. Overseas, Athelstan built alliances by marrying off four of his half sisters to various rulers in western Europe. Athelstan also oversaw the translation of the bible into English.
The 12th-century chronicler William of Malmesbury wrote that 'no one more just or more learned ever governed the kingdom'. It is a verdict shared by modern historians, who generally regard Athelstan as the one Saxon king who can be reasonably compared to his grandfather Alfred the Great.
Athelstan is generally regarded as the first true King of England, and the father of the medieval period of English life. His achievements go beyond merely asserting a strong central rule; he laid the foundation for monastic reform, established a thorough and efficient system of government, justice, and administration, and helped make England one of the wealthiest nations in Europe.
King Athelstan died in October, 940, at Gloucester, aged forty-four, after a sixteen-year reign. He chose to be buried at Malmesbury Abbey in Wiltshire, a favourite of his. He was buried there close to the shrine of Saint Aldhelm, where he had buried his cousins who died at Brunanburh, in preference to his family mausoleum at Winchester. Although his tomb still survives, his body was lost during the Reformation.
Further reading
Links to external websites are not maintained by Bite Sized Britain. They are provided to give users access to additional information. Bite Sized Britain is not responsible for the content of these external websites.