Composed by a monk of st davids in wales who became bishop of sherborne in alfreds service and worked with him in his efforts to revive religion and learning in his kingdom, this life is among the earliest surviving royal biographies. Ina went to rome, and there ending this life honourably, entered the heavenly kingdom, to reign there for. The manuscript survived to modern times in only one copy, which was part of the cotton library. An illustration of a computer application window wayback machine an illustration of an open book. His name is hebrew, from the old testament figure of aser asher, the 8th son of jacob genesis 30.
It was used in victorian times to create a cult of alfred. The anglosaxon chronicle, commissioned at the time of alfred, was probably written to promote unification of england, whereas asser s the life of king alfred promoted alfred s achievements and personal qualities. Another objection has been based on the passage21 in which asser relates how, at the close of his first. Asser s life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest medieval kings. In 886, eager to learn latin, alfred summoned asser, who had acquired some reputation for learning, to his court in. Lehman records4 that king alfred himself boldly traced his own ancestry via the scythians, to. Ingild, and ina, the famous king of the westsaxons, were two brothers. This comprehensive collection includes assers life of alfred, extracts from the anglosaxon chronicle, and alfreds own writings, laws, and will. Jul 01, 2004 asser s life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest of medieval kings. Simon keynes and michael lapidge harmondsworth, middlesex, england. Assers life of king alfred and other contemporary sources, trans.
Publication date c1906 topics alfred, king of england, 849899 publisher. Alfred the great, assers life of king alfred and other. That copy was destroyed in a fire in 1731, but transcriptions that had been made earlier, together with material from assers work which was included by other early writers. Full view hathitrust digital library hathitrust digital library. The life of king alfred online englisch bei online medieval and. The anglosaxon chronicle, commissioned at the time of alfred, was probably written to promote unification of england, whereas assers the life of king alfred promoted alfreds achievements and personal qualities. In the first paragraph, asser notes that alfred was born in 849 at the royal estate named wantage within the berkshire district. Asser relates a story which suggests that some of alfreds love of learning stemmed from sibling rivalry, however. Illness, power and prayer in assers life of king alfred. Summary assers life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest of medieval kings. Assers life of king alfred, a biography of alfred the great composed by a welsh monk from st davids in 893, is a key source for understanding connections between ninthcentury britain and the continent. Browse your favourite books and read alfred the great. Assers life of king alfred together with the annals of saint neots erroneously ascribed to asser. Alfred is the only english king honoured with this name and is credited with various.
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. Asser s life is a onesided treatment of alfred, though since alfred was alive when it was composed, it is unlikely to contain gross errors of fact. It explains that there was a relationship between wessex and the carolingian culture king alfreds grandfather, egbert, was an exile in charlmagnes court and asser was also a follower of the frankish historian einhard the one who wrote the. In assers life, the picture that emerges of the king is of a man keen to promote religion and learning, and with an interest in justice. The medieval life of king alfred the great a translation and. He differed from all other kings in leaving writings of his own. This chapter explores assers historical work called the life of king alfred and looks at its link to the carolingan tradition of historiography.
Assers life of king alfred and other contemporary sources. One of the most important sources of information on alfred the great king of wessex from 871 to 899 is asser s the life of king alfred. Assers life of king alfred begins with assers dedication of the work to alfred ruler of all the christians of the island of britain, king of the angles and saxons. Asser was a welshman from st davids, who later became bishop of sherborne. Asser s life of king alfred and other contemporary sources. For more than seventy years, penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the englishspeaking world. Our library add to their collections from a catalog of over 2 million ebooks.
Saxons, at the royal village of wanating, 1 in berkshire, which country has its name from the wood of berroc, where the box. The life of king alfred by bishop asser is the earliest known source about an anglosaxon king, a king often known today as alfred the great r. Assers life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest of medieval kings. Summary asser s life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest of medieval kings. Alfred was the son of king ethelwulf, who was the son of egbert, who was the son of elmund, who was the son of eafa, who was the son of eoppa, who was the son of ingild. The legend was interpolated in an edition of assers life of alfred, based on parkers text, which camden published in 16023. He invited scholars to his court, and he was the sort of man to inspire one of them, the welshman asser, to write a biography of him. Asser s life differs also in its use of latin, not the vernacular that most sources from alfred s reign are written in. The medieval life of king alfred the great a translation. His work is both a translation of part of the anglosaxon chronicle for the years 851887, as well as eyewitness. Introduction, section ii, asser and his life of king alfred summary and analysis. The story of king alfreds rule comes from the records in the anglosaxon chronicle. Other articles where life of king alfred is discussed. The consequence of the educational and literary activity of alfreds reign was to transfer the centre of learning from northumbria to wessex.
Vita alcuini, asser and scholarly service at the court of. To the feiends of honest and capable government in america preface the issue of stevensons long and eagerly expected edition of asser s life of king alfred has provided an opportunity to supply the ever increasing number of the great kings admirers with a more satisfactory rendering into english of this, perhaps the most. In addition to being the primary source for alfred s life, asser s work is also a source for other historical periods, where he adds material to his translation of the anglosaxon chronicle. Giles 1808 1884 a life of king alfred of england originally composed in latin, possibly sometime around 888 a. Asser s life aking alfred and other contemporary sources new york. The life of king alfred asser, bishop of sherborne translated by dr. Asser, welsh monk, chiefly remembered as the friend, teacher, counsellor, and biographer of alfred the great.
Asser was a welsh monk who accepted a position in the court of king alfred around 886. Assers life of king alfred follows alfreds career from his birth to his accession in 871, and describes in detail his reign and his wars, stopping abruptly in 887, 12 years before alfreds death. For historical events, it draws largely on the anglosaxon chronicle. He traced his own genealogy all the way back to noah. Full text of assers life of king alfred internet archive. Asser s life of king alfred and other contemporary. The net result has been to convince me that, although there may be no very definite proof that the work was written by bishop asser in the lifetime of king alfred. Giles introduction the life of alfred the great from ad 849 to ad 887. Alfred the great by asser, 9780140444094, download free ebooks, download free pdf epub ebook.
Keynes, on the authenticity of assers life of king alfred, journal of. The life and times of king alfred the great alfreds father was king ethelwulf, who ruled over the south west of england. Composed by a monk of st davids in wales who became bishop of sherborne in alfred s service and worked with him in his efforts to revive religion and learning in his kingdom, this life is among the earliest surviving royal biographies. Arabic page numbers begin in the header of the first page of text, with your last name before it. This comprehensive collection includes asser s life of alfred, extracts from the anglosaxon chronicle, and alfred s own writings, laws, and will. Assers life of king alfred is the first biography of an anglosaxon king that historians know of, but we know little about asser. Michael lapidge assers life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest medieval kings. The medieval life of king alfred of wessex purports to be written by asser, a monk in the kings service. Assers work appears to have been mutilated and altered, or added to in many places, but the greater part. In 893 asser wrote a biography of alfred, called the life of king alfred. Assers life aking alfred and other contemporary sources new york. Assers life of king alfred and other contemporary sources by asser.
Assers account of alfreds mysterious illnesses is one of the most puzzling and most. Assers life differs also in its use of latin, not the vernacular that most sources from alfreds reign are written in. Assers biography draws on a variety of continental sources, the most famous and widely discussed being einhards vita karoli. The manuscript survived to modern times in only one copy, which was part of the cotton. Michael lapidge asser s life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest medieval kings. One of the most important sources of information on alfred the great king of wessex from 871 to 899 is assers the life of king alfred. Assers life of king alfred and other contemporary sources represents a specific, individual, material embodiment of a distinct intellectual or artistic creation found in evansville vanderburgh public library. Assers life of king alfred 1904 edition open library. After spending a year at caerwent because of illness, asser accepted in 893 asser wrote a biography of alfred, called the life of king alfred. It was possible that the document was designed this way so that it could be disseminated in wales, as alfred had recently acquired. The life of alfred the great bishop of sherbourne asser 908909, translated by j. Open library is an open, editable library catalog, building towards a web page for every book ever published. In the year of our lords incarnation 849, was born alfred, king of the anglo.
The genuine asser by dorothy whitelock it is no accident that we know more about king alfred than about any other anglosaxon king. In the year of our lords incarnation the eight hundred and seventyeighth, andthe thirtieth from king alfred s birth, the oftmentioned army left exeter andcame to chippenham, a royal vill located in the north of wiltshire. In the year of our lords incarnation the eight hundred and seventyeighth, andthe thirtieth from king alfreds birth, the oftmentioned army left exeter andcame to chippenham, a royal vill located in the north of wiltshire. Life of king alfred internet history sourcebooks project. The medieval life of king alfred of wessex purports to be written by asser. Assers life of king alfred and other contemporary sources by asser this is a great book to get hold of if you are interested in the anglosaxons or early medieval history. The project gutenberg ebook of the life and times of alfred the. This article attempts to place this account in its contemporary setting, analysing its devotional, intellectual and political contexts, in order to argue that, far from being an anomaly, it reflects the cultural interests of the alfredian court and the influence upon it of. Alfred, burhred king of the mercians, sent messengers, and prayed ethelwulf, king of the west saxons, to come and help him in reducing the. Although similar to the anglosaxon chronicle in its annalistic approach, asser personalized his life of king alfred so that the man, and not just the christian king who vanquished the paganistic heathen, was presented. Longman, 1998,324326 and simon keynes and michael lapidge, alfred thegreat.
Ingild and ina were the sons of coenred, who was the. Introduction translation of the life of king alfred. In 886, eager to learn latin, alfred summoned asser, who had acquired some reputation for learning, to his court in wessex, and on st. Asser s life of king alfred begins with asser s dedication of the work to alfred ruler of all the christians of the island of britain, king of the angles and saxons. Warrior, lawgiver, and scholar, alfred the great was an extraordinarily gifted and highly successful king, pushing back the vikings to preserve what is now thought of as the heart of england. His name is actually hebrew, following the eighth son of jacob. In the year of our lords incarna tion 868, which was the twentieth of king alfreds life, the aforesaid revered king alfred, then occupying only the rank of viceroy secundarii, betrothed and espoused a noble mercian lady, daughter of thelred, surnamed mucin, ealdorman of the gaini. That copy was destroyed in a fire in 1731, but transcriptions that had been made earlier, together with material from asser s work which was included by other early writers. This account of one of englands best loved and most famous kings has been accepted as offering evidence on most aspects of life in early medieval england and beyond. Assers life of king alfred, written in 893, is a revealing account of one of the greatest medieval kings.