Alfred's battle with the Danes started in 868 when he was in active military with his brother Aethelred. When they went to battle the Danes refused and a peace treaty was then brought fourth, they had peace until the Danes attacked and broke the peace in 871. In the later parts of 871 the Danes attacked Wessex where Aethelred and Alfred fought them many times until Aelthelred sadly died and his brother Alfred replaced him as king. He decided to make peace with the Danes when the battle wasn’t going very well, this brought peace for five years. Danes attacked in 876 and quit a little later when they had accomplished very little. The Danes got a little smarter and decided to try a sneak attack in 878. It worked well and they were able to settle
...and defeated Grendel by himself, furthering his desire to become a major hero. After the death of Grendel, Beowulf and his crew left but soon returned when notice arrived saying that Grendel’s mother was now attacking. Beowulf returned to Denmark and there, vanquished Grendel’s mother adding more to his accomplishments. Beowulf fought for Denmark because he wanted to further increase his reputation and spread news of how great he was. During the story of Beowulf, we are informed that Beowulf thinks highly of himself, but takes no advantage of the people around him, “Thus Beowulf bore himself with valour; / he was formidable in battle yet behaved with honour / and took no advantage” (2177-2179). He believed if he helped, he would become a legend for Denmark. With this assumption, Beowulf is a good example of a man who fights by putting his own reasons before others.
King Alfred was born in Wantage, Berkshire in 848. Alfred was the son of the king of the West Saxons, Aethulwulf. When Alfred was a young child, his father made a mutual agreement with him and his four older brothers that if Aethulwulf were to die then the older brothers would take his place. This was because Aethulwulf did not want a young child to be the ruler of the West Saxons while Viking raids from Denmark threatened the country. Alfred grew up in a time when England was divided in to small individual states. Northumbria, Mercia, and East Anglia were states that were under the control of the Angles. The kingdom of the Jutes ruled Kent and the Saxons, Alfred's people, ruled Essex, Sussex, and Wessex ("Alfred, The Great", n.d.).
Every historian interprets the past differently and with distinctive perspectives, resulting in many sides to one story. Often the reader must decide which perspective is more logical, likely, or coherent. Recounting one war took a lot of time and effort because of the necessity to include all sides of the story. Becher, Barbero, Collins and Backman have approached the life of Charlemagne with different points of view; however, Barbero seems to have the strongest argument for the cause of the Saxon War. The other historians were less willing to see the Saxon war as a religious war. The life of Charlemagne was interesting to historians because it was filled with many vigorous wars that he fought including the infamous Saxon War. From the beginning of his life, Charlemagne was destined to rule a nation and lead his people into war, achieving both triumphant victories and devastating defeats. He died of sickness in old age, thus leaving the kingdom in the hands of his son. The Saxon war was the most persistent, yet hostile war he fought because of the determination and severity of the enemy. However, the questions remain: “What actually caused the Saxon war? What gave it life? What are all the different events that occurred during this war? What are some of the strategies used during this war?” The wars he fought resulted in his success as a ruler and as a historical figure to reflect on when considering the greatness of kings.
One of the main topics discussed in lesson one is the fact that heroes over time and overseas all heroes have something in common; which is true in the case of King Arthur and Beowulf. It is obvious that they are similar in the fact that they are both heroes, but what makes them an idol of their time and in their culture are poles apart. There are many things that are different about Beowulf and King Arthur, but the ones that stand out the most are what kind of hero they are and what actions they did to make them heroic. Both heroes possess qualities that others do not have, but it is what they do with those abilities that prompts someone to write a story about them and idolize them in time.
William then gathered an army to protect his estate. He launched a series of wars against rival barons, which lasted over a decade. He also joined King Henry I and defeated an alliance of Normans who had opposed his rule. “He was always ready ...
The Duke of Normandy, couldn’t have chosen a better time in which to invade England. King Edward the Confessor of England had died January of 1066 with no heir to take his place, and William’s distant family claims to the throne were an opportunity to declare himself king. With the support of the Church and an army of around 7,000, William landed his arm...
To re-establish peace on the frontier was no easy task, and defence was entrusted for the time being to Aldred, bishop of Worcester, a more diplomatic and more pugnacious churchman. in 1058 the personal conflict between earl Harold and Aelfgar, who by then had succeeded as earl of Mercia, was renewed, and the pattern of 1055 was repeated, but Aelfgar could not be removed from the scene. Slowly events moved to a crisis point.
The origin of the war goes back to the conquest of William for England. In 1066
Beowulf must be careful how he approaches Hrothgar about killing Grendel. He does not want Hrothgar to think that he is only willing to save Denmark so that he can steal the throne from right from under Hrothgar’s nose. Hrothgar is an established king and has been for many years. He will need to approach Hrothgar with humility.
The Hundred Years War took place between France and England between the years 1337 and 1453, which is ironically one hundred and sixteen years. The war was fought over a couple issues, which include, an English King wanting to claim the French throne and also because the French king Phillip VI wanted to own territories
In the late 1400’s the House of York fought the House of Lancaster for the English crown. Because Lancaster’s heraldic badge
The Angles were a Germanic tribe that occupied the region which is now Scleswig-Holstein, Germany. With their fellow ethnic groups, they formed the people who came to be known as the English. The Saxons were a Germanic people who first appeared in the beginning of the Christian era. The Saxons were said to have lived in the south Jutland Peninsula in the north of what is now Germany, but the fact has not been proven. They attacked and raided areas in the North Sea throughout the third and fourth centuries. By the end of the sixth century, the Saxons had taken all of the Roman territory within north-west Germany, as far as the Elbe River. The Angles joined the Saxons in the invasion of Britain in the fifth and sixth centuries. British resistance to the 'Anglo Saxon' invaders in the second half of the fifth century ended with the Anglo Saxon’s victory at the battle of Mount Badon. After the British were defeated, though, the Angles and the Saxons continued to fight over their religion for many years (Irvin, Vacca, Probst, Beers, p.46).
King Alfred was now in charge of stopping the Danes from occupying Wessex. Alfred was already an experienced military leader, as he had participated in several campaigns against the invading Danes (Bruce 3). The West Saxons had now made an alliance with Mercia. Yet in 868, the Danes met both Mercians and West Saxons; the two nations had formed an alliance, which had been strengthened that year by the marriage of Alfred and Ealhswith, daughter of a Mercian ealdorman (Bruce 4). Alfred and his elder brother King Æthelred personally led the Wessex contingent, yet not even the combined forces of the Mercians and the West Saxons could handle the strength of the Danes.
The Danes had established a camp at Reading and the previous battles of Englefield, the Battle of Reading and the Battle of Ashdown, had proved indecisive with victories to both sides.
The Chronicles mention three main groups during the period of the invasions: the Saxons, the Angles and the Jutes. In the sixth century, the Anglo-Saxon advance was halted and 50 years of peace followed.