Episodes

The story of Æthelstan from his debated birth to his becoming the first King of England. Credits – Music: 'Wælheall' by Hrōðmund Wōdening https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQfdqIyqJ4g&list=LL&index=5&ab_channel=Hr%C5%8D%C3%B0mu...

Æthelflæd, one of the most important women in Anglo-Saxon history, ruled Mercia during the reign of Edward the Elder. Through her military endeavours, she was instrumental in securing the reconquest of the southern Danelaw an...

Edward the Elder (899-924) is often overlooked given the towering fame of his father and son. When we look at his career, though, we find a king whose actions earn him acclaim and criticism. Credits – Music: 'Wælheall' by Hrō...

In the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle we have not only an account of Anglo-Saxon history but also an attempt at identity creation which served part of the mission to forge a new united English identity from the disparate collection of...

We look back on the achievements of King Alfred and ask: how do we define someone as 'great'? Credits – Music: 'Wælheall' by Hrōðmund Wōdening https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQfdqIyqJ4g&list=LL&index=5&ab_channel=Hr%C5%8D%C3...

One day, when he was a boy, the future Alfred the Great, along with his brothers, was pulled aside by his mother, Osburh. She showed them a book filled with English poetry and promised that she would give it to whichever one ...

In addition to his military and political achievements, King Alfred also undertook an ambitious plan for intellectual revival meant to restore learning and piety to his new kingdom. In this episode, we meet the men who helped...

Although he had no way of knowing it, in 878 Alfred secured for Wessex over a decade of peace from Viking attack. In that time, Alfred would set about remaking his kingdom so that it could withstand any future invasions. This...

As discussed in the previous episode, the Viking invasion of England can be roughly divided into two phases, that which occurred prior to the arrival of the Great Summer Army in 871 and that which occurred after. In late 870,...

The Great Heathen Army that devastated England in the 860s and 870s was, tradition claims, spear-headed by three of the sons of Ragnar Lothbrok. As discussed last time, legend had it that they invaded to avenge their father’s...

Viking activity in England evolved over time. What began as small-scale raids on vulnerable monasteries gradually evolved into attacks on key trading settlements and, ultimately, into full-blown invasion. It is incorrect to s...

The Viking looms large over the early medieval period as a whole, despite only erupting onto the scene in the late eighth century, several centuries after the period is usually thought to have begun. They were such a disrupti...

After just under 70 episodes, we come to a point that I have always imagined as the dividing line in this series: the Norse invasions. What is coming is a huge undertaking, so I wanted to take the opportunity to look back on ...

Surrey, much like Hwicce and Lindsey, has a history that can only be told by looking askance at sources. What emerges, though, is a frontier kingdom that was often subject to the vicissitudes of fate. Credits – Music: 'Wælhea...

Everything, Everywhere Daily talks about the Dark Ages and whether they really were all that dark. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The great professor of Anglo-Saxon history, Simon Keynes, once called Lindsey a ‘kingdom without a history’. This is because there is no written evidence from the kingdom itself and only a tiny amount written about it from co...

This episode we will be looking at one of the most elusive of the small kingdoms which proliferated in early Anglo-Saxon England. The Hwicce were located mainly in what is today Worcestershire, Warwickshire, and Gloucestershi...

With the death of Sighere in 688, Essex’s tendency for pagan reaction came to an end. This did not mean that the kingdom was left in peace, however. Credits – Music: 'Wælheall' by Hrōðmund Wōdening https://www.youtube.com/wat...

The kingdom of the East Saxons was one of the mid-sized early Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and the last in our survey of the construct made by later historians called the ‘Heptarchy’. A kingdom repeatedly wracked by pagan reaction, E...

Following Cædwalla’s death in 688 Sussex seemingly did not regain its independence. As with the early history of Sussex, the kingdom’s history post-688 is again one of long stretches of obscurity occasionally broken by flashe...

Last time I discussed the origin myth of Sussex and how this compares to the archaeological record for early Saxon presence in the southeast of England. According to legend, the final notable date of early South Saxon history...

Let us turn south from East Anglia and head back towards the English Channel. Down here, to the southwest of Kent, lies the region of Sussex. Among the oldest Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, Sussex nevertheless has a storied history. T...

I wanted to wrap up my look at East Anglia with one of my favourite pieces of fiction that involves Anglo-Saxon East Anglia. It's another ghost story, but at the end I go into some of the actual history that informed the stor...

In 869, when the Norse killed Edmund, East Anglia was left prostrate before them. Later legend tells us that they had demanded Edmund yield half of his kingdom to them, a demand the king obviously refused, for which he paid w...