part0017

For in prosperity a man is often puffed up with pride, whereas tribulations chasten and humble him through suffering and sorrow. In the midst of prosperity the mind is elated, and in prosperity a man forgets himself…

(King Alfred, The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle )

In former Britannia, Germanic migration had had a big effect on the cultural and linguistic makeup of the land. Celtic peoples, Latins, and Germanic tribes intermingled so completely in many parts of Britain that the largest cultural body was soon a mixture of all the existing lifestyles. Proto-English became tied into the Germanic languages, and the people of Britain came to identify themselves as Anglo-Saxons: that is, Germanic peoples living in England. Anglo-Saxon culture dominated Britain as early as the 5th century CE, [69] and it was these people who established a number of small kingdoms throughout England.

Each of these domains was headed by a dictatorial monarch who used the power of his army to sustain local law and defend against the attacks of his fellow kings. The monarchs faced the most political and military opposition from their neighbors, and though each attempted in his turn to make peace agreements and alliances, ultimately, the fate of the kingdoms fell to the warcraft of its soldiers.

After a few centuries of royal marriages between kingdoms and warfare between the regions, Wessex overtook its neighbors as the largest, most highly populated, and most influential kingdom of all Britain. The others consolidated themselves into Mercia, Northumbria, and East Anglia. In 925 CE, King Athelstan stood at the head of all but one of these: Northumbria. [70] A pious and deeply Catholic man, Athelstan believed it was his duty to unite the English kingdoms under one crown and see to their religious upbringing. The last holdout to his plan was York, a Northumbrian realm under Viking control.

The Viking presence in Britannia had been in place for centuries by that point, and Athelstan’s own royal ancestors had spent a great deal of their own reigns dealing with them in a multitude of ways. The Danish raids had by no means ceased, but some of their farmers had been given land to work in exchange for peace. Treaties had been repeatedly broken on both sides, and King Athelstan had no qualms about turning his army toward York to eradicate them completely from his burgeoning, united kingdom. First, however, he used the age-old tradition of marrying his sister to its Viking king.

When King Sihtric married Athelstan’s sister, he made an agreement with Athelstan that neither of them would wage war on the other or support one another’s enemies. The treaty was kept all of one year as Sihtric died in 927, and Athelstan quickly ushered in his troops in support of his sister, the acting queen. [71] His campaign was successful, resulting in total kingship over the kingdoms of England and the political clout to cow the kings of Wales to his will. The Kingdom of the Scots and the Kingdom of Strathclyde officially recognized Athelstan as the ruler of their close geographical neighbor, Northumbria, as well as the multiple kingdoms to the south. Athelstan established the Welsh lands as polities under his own leadership and became the first King of all England. [72]

There was much work to do for King Athelstan, and he set to it immediately. First, he appointed men he trusted to administer the counties and annexed kingdoms and see to it that any revolts were quickly curbed. Next, he saw to it that the weights of currency were regulated and that fraudsters were strictly penalized for creating coins of false silver or gold. He also reinvigorated the market sector of his country by encouraging all trade to take place within fortified spaces, thereby making buyers and sellers much safer from thieves or raiders. This move took many people from rural homes into the urban centers of England, where trade and craftsmanship increased simultaneously.

Urbanization and agriculture were both necessary elements of the Anglo-Saxons under King Athelstan’s power. Towns were essential for merchantry and religious ceremonies, while agriculture remained fundamental to the civilization. True to his word, Athelstan funded existing Catholic churches throughout his kingdom and founded many more. Wessex, already heavily marked by the stone henges, barrows, and man-made hills of the Celts, became dotted with majestic cathedrals. The Malmesbury Cathedral in modern Wiltshire was a favorite of King Athelstan, who frequented it for services and made regular donations there.

Wessex remained the seat of power in England for the duration of the Middle Ages, and the importance the king put on religious education and faith had a lasting impact there. London, having survived the withdrawal of the Romans who founded it, prospered at the apex of European trade through the English Channel. King Athelstan encouraged international commerce and positive relationships by having the female members of his family marry into important families of mainland Europe.

At home, a strict hierarchy of social classes was maintained, with the Royal House of Wessex at the top and a multitude of serfs at the bottom. [73] It was the same as in the rest of ancient Europe with indentured servants providing the virtually free labor necessary to support a growing economy and political realm. The work of Athelstan, his administrators, the nobility, the free people, and the serfs of the 10th century were immeasurable in its value to contemporary and future Britain—even despite the hardships it was about to face.