![Statue_d'Alfred_le_Grand_à_Winchester[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/2NjPCzL.jpg "Statue_d'Alfred_le_Grand_à_Winchester[1].jpg")
Was Alfred really that great of a king? Did he deserve his title?
He defeated the Vikings and started the unification of England, not too shabby.
Alfred’s lack of a saintly epithet, a disadvantage in the Middle Ages, was the salvation of his reputation in a post-Reformation world. As a pious king with an interest in promoting the use of English, Alfred was an ideal figurehead for the emerging English Protestant church. The works he had commissioned or translated were interpreted as evidence for the pure Anglo-Saxon church, before it had become tainted by the false Romanism introduced by the Normans.
>>804301
He saved the Anglos from being raped by Danes
>>804301
Aside from the genetic impact which I think is sometimes overstated.
What was the cultural effect of England being more influenced by Saxons than Danes/Norwegians?
For example, is southern England more 'conservative' due possibly to the Saxons or Normans, or is it simply a result of proximity to London, the capital.
>>804447
Any truth in Anglo Christianity being of a purer sort or is that just propaganda?
As I get it the old Church was much more involved in local traditions and legends, which I get Protestatns think is bad.
>>804301
He was pretty good, but I'd argue that if deserved to be called the Great, so did Æthelstan.
>>804662
>be Æthelstan
>your grandpa is Alfred the Great, saviour of the English
>your father is Edward the Elder, underrated king who pushed Wessex northwards
>your aunt is Æthelflead, Lady of the Mercians and kicker of Viking butts
Whew, what a family. No wonder he turned out so great.
>>804301
Why shouldnt the Lord Protector of the Commonwealth Oliver Cromwell be considered? He brought absolutism to an end and paved the way for the Bill of Rights and the necessary freedom for the advances of the Enlightenment and consequently the Industrial Revolution to prosper.
>>804301
All I know is that he was the result of a Viking monk cucking the previous English king
>>804869
Parliament created a national army to defeat Charles I, but in their haste they allowed too much power to concentrate at the top of the hierarchy. Cromwell is an example of what to avoid in terms of ending absolutism.
>>804869
Because poms love sucking royal cock
![maxresdefault[1].jpg](https://i.imgur.com/OdyFz4p.jpg "maxresdefault[1].jpg")
>>804887
The History channel's Vikings lied to you. Watch BBC's The Last Kingdom instead. Or read the book series, it's much better than HC shit production.
>>804887
Like Shit. Aethelwulf would slap any Monk's shit so far through his robes that it would end up buried in the fucking floor.
>>805648
>Fleur de lis
>>804869
>He brought absolutism to an end
lol
He also did a lot of engineering projects and the Borough (fortified towns) greatly improved the security of his realm.
Also he got back off the throne after being made a bitch on Christmas.
Plus that whole thing with the relics and the ring.
>Hey Guthrum, let's call a truce. You swear on this Ring of Odin, and I'll swear on this Cross of Christ to chill out for a while.
>OK. I'll just pretend because I'm a filthy pagan who lacks honour.
>*suddenly a shit load of ships coming across the channel*
>But God is an Englishman and so he destroyed all of Guthrum's ships
>>805746
A highly influential symbol used to invoke the already legendary Charlemagne
>>804447
>>804635
There is no such thing as "pure" Anglo-Saxon Christianity. The real division in the early English church was between the Celtic and Roman traditions. Celtic Christianity had a longer history on the island and Celts such as St. Aidan were instrumental in converting the Anglo-Saxons through a fascinating dynamic in which the spirituality of the conquered Celtic people supplanted the native beliefs of their Germanic conquerors. The Celts played an especially important role in establishing the Lindisfarne monastery which produced some of English Christianity's most impressive contributions to the faith.
However, Rome also made concerted missionary efforts most notably through St. Augustine of Canterbury and thus both Roman and Celtic influences existed side by side within the early English church. The Roman tradition ultimately became the dominant strain through the Synod of Whitby but the Celtic influence was never fully eradicated.
Of course the Anglos themselves added their own Germanic twist to both the Celtic and Roman traditions with monuments such as the Ruthwell Cross and poetry like the "Dream of the Rood" being notable examples of particularly Germanic Christianity.
>>805819
The Fleur de Lis is a distinctly Frankish symbol and has nothing to do with the Anglos (until William showed up of course).
>>805870
But its highly indicative of the Frankish power (Clovis, Charlemagne) which a king would want to evoke.
As a successful lutefisk remover, his smart diplomacy with neighboring kingdoms cemented West Saxon dominance over England, and paved the way toward a unified kingdom.
>>806074
The suggestion that Alfred wore the Fleur de Lis is ridiculous and has no basis in history but I suppose for a BBC movie it could be easy shorthand for "this guy is important."
It doesn't make it any less dumb however.
>>806141
It's loose basis, but Egbert, Grandfather of Alfred, was very buddy buddy with the Carolingians and relied on them for a lot of support.
>>806141
Well what would a Anglo-Saxon crown look like?
>>807516
It wouldn't have Frankish iconography on it I can tell you that much.
>>807530
>>807262
Suppose however, that the crown could be a gift of treasure from the Franks being worn on that own occasion, not as an official symbol of his sovereignty over the people of Wessex but rather just for the purpose of displaying wealth or connection to the nearby powerful regime on the other side of the channel.
>>807530
I guess we will never know then.
>>807544
It is likely. The first crown of the Polish Kings for example was a gift from the Holy Roman Emperor.
>>807530
Here's Edward the confessor wearing a fleur de lis crown
inb4 >bayeaux tapestry
>The tapestry can be seen as the final and surely the best known work of Anglo-Saxon art, and though made after the Conquest was both made in England and firmly in an Anglo-Saxon tradition, points now accepted by French art-historians
>>807572
Also Alfred's stepmother, Judith, was the daughter of Charles the Bald that one of his elder brothers married upon their father's death.
>>807572
>wearing a fleur de lis crown
Maybe if you squint really hard after a couple glasses of Cabernet but even then it's a stretch...
>>808258
No that's clearly a fleur de lis design on the crown or at least a half-assed 11th century interpretation of one. If not the fleur de lis I don't know what the fuck that's supposed to be.
Ah, the three pronged saxon crown as worn by Offa
>>808258
Half the posts in this thread are proving that there was a clear linkage between the Franks and the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms that was strong enough to justify Alfred possibly having a crown with some Frankish symbols.
