[25] It is believed that Asser's Life was originally written in 893; however, no contemporary manuscript survives. This post on the Battle of Ethandun is adapted from, and provides additional materials for, my book, King Alfred: A Man on the Move, available from Amazon and book shops. The first major battle of the Peninsular War. Of the nine battles mentioned by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle during that year, only one was a West Saxon victory. He made several attacks on Wessex, starting in 875, and in the last nearly captured Alfred in his winter fortress at Chippenham. An engraving of Guthrum's baptism by James William Edmund Doyle, 1864 ( Wikimedia Commons ) But this wasn . In the 19th century there was a resurgence in interest of medieval history and King Alfred was seen as a major hero. Tennessee had the highest population of Edington families in 1840. Statue of Alfred the Great at Winchester. The Oxford Companion to British History. Alfred then arrives and screams "no mercy!". [18][19][23] There, on an unknown date between 6 and 12 May,[24] they fought the Danes. The Battle of Edington was fought in May 878, when an army of West Saxons under King Alfred the Great defeated the Great Heathen Army under the Viking king Guthrum. The Viking siege under Rollo . Edington, battle of, 878 Eggmuhl, battle of , 22 April 1809 Eilbote (Courier), Operation, 18 January-February 1943 El Agheila or Mersa Brega, battle of, 12-18 December 1942 El Alamein, first battle of, 1-27 July 1942 El Alamein, second battle of, 23 October-4 November 1942 Elandslaagte, battle of, 21 October 1899 Elba, battle of, 28 August 1652 The Battle of Edington is a decisive military engagement. Refer to each styles convention regarding the best way to format page numbers and retrieval dates. [53], Also in 879, according to Asser, another Viking army sailed up the River Thames and wintered at Fulham in Middlesex. At the Battle of Edington, an army of the kingdom of Wessex under Alfred the Great defeated the Great Heathen Army led by the Dane Guthrum on a date between 6 and 12 May 878, resulting in the Treaty of Wedmore later the same year. . All that's known about the location of the battle is that it was at a place called Eandun somewhere in southern England (current thinking places it at the Edington in Wiltshire). Burkitt suggests that on philological grounds, Brixton Deverill may be a contender for the site. [58] It is not clear how seriously Guthrum took his conversion to Christianity, but he was the first of the Danish rulers of the English kingdoms to mint coins on the Alfredian model, under his baptismal name of Athelstan. ", After the sacking of Lindisfarne, Viking raids around the coasts were somewhat sporadic until the 830s, when the attacks became more sustained. Although the battle was indecisive the Vikings suffered huge [12], Guthrum and his men had adopted the usual Danish strategy of occupying a fortified town and waiting for a peace "treaty", involving money in return for a promise to leave the kingdom immediately; Alfred shadowed the army, trying to prevent more damage than had already occurred. Bratton '11. By the 10th century, the Anglo-Saxon model of kingship seems to have been universally adopted by the Anglo-Danish leadership. He overthrew the Pagans with great slaughter, and smiting the fugitives, he pursued them as far as the fortress.". This started in 875 when Guthrum's army "eluded the West Saxon levies and got into Wareham". Of course, at times, tension or violence would flare up between different polities, especially as the geopolitical map began to shift in the late ninth century and early 10th century. Most of the Norse forces then followed this ambush, which prompted Alfred to order his entire force to charge the Viking Army. In 1904 William Henry Stevenson analysed possible sites and said "So far, there is nothing to prove the identity of this Eandun [as named in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle] with Edington" but then goes on to say that "there can be little reason for questioning it". Place The victory at Edington forced Guthrum to abandon Wessex , and Alfred resumed control of the entire kingdom, ensuring that the last Anglo-Saxon kingdom survived the Viking onslaught. [15] This they did, spending the rest of 877 (by the Gregorian calendar) in Gloucester (in the kingdom of Mercia). Ivar had indeed chosen the place to fight, atop a hill, so that he could monitor every movement of the West Saxon Army. Let's throw a little light into the Dark Ages. Known as a royal center during Alfred's reign, the area was memorable for being captured by Viking warrior Guthrum during the 9th century. It is believed that Asser's Life was originally written in 893; however, no contemporary manuscript survives. Travelers, explorers and adventurers like Florence Nightingale, David Livingstone, Ernest Shackleton, Lewis and Clark and Sherlock Holmes relied on maps to plan travels to the world's most remote corners, Timeless Maps is mapping most locations on the globe, showing the achievement of . The main reason for the Anglo-Saxon victory was probably mainly due to the size of the Wessex army, and the lack of unity and organisation between the different forces making up the Danish army. This is my first map published in Stronghold Heaven, so there can be some mistakes. Meanwhile, Hvitserk, after cutting down several Saxon warriors despite receiving several injuries, gradually began to tire and struggled to fight on. Sursele primare localizeaz btlia la Ethandun sau Ethandune i, pn la un consens academic, locul btliei este identificat cu Edington, n Wiltshire.Btlia a fost cunoscut i sub numele de . By the 10th century, the Anglo-Saxon model of kingship seems to have been universally adopted by the Anglo-Danish leadership. There had previously been conflicting accounts of the location of the clash, which took place in AD 937, varying from South Yorkshire to Scotland. Kingdom of Wessex In Search of the Dark Ages. [Rom. Battle of Edington | Detailed Pedia Battle of Edington Coordinates: 511550N 020834W Norse invasions of England At the Battle of Edington, an army of the kingdom of Wessex under Alfred the Great defeated the Great Heathen Army led by the Dane Guthrum on a date between 6 and 12 May 878, resulting in the Treaty of Wedmore later the same year. Hvitserk himself showed remarkable skill, cutting down dozens of Saxons while Alfred took down some Norse fighters. However, the location has been much debated over the centuries. Consequently, in 879 the Viking army left Chippenham and made its way to Cirencester (in the kingdom of Mercia) and remained there for a year. Soon after his coronation, Ivar and Hvitserk, having deposed Prince Oleg in Kiev with the help of his brother Prince Dir, returned to Kattegat, but they were mocked and spat upon for their treachery. 865 to 1066. Alfred seems at this time to have ineffectually chased the Danes around Wessex, while the Danes were in a position to do as they pleased. Update now. A Black Dane Army nearly attacked Wessex a few months after Harald's defeat but Ubbe convinced them to settle in East Anglia instead. This page was last updated at 2022-12-24 07:00 UTC. As the Saxon forces gradually gained ground, King Harald gave a signal and Norse warriors atop a makeshift tower poured oil on Saxon soldiers and burned them. The Saxons then attack the Danes. In January 878, during the Christmas festival, Guthrum and his army of cavalry raiderssurprised Alfred at his royal estate at Chippenham, nearly ending Alfred there and then. A great famine soon followed these tokens; and a little after that, in the same year, on the 6th before the Ides of January, the ravaging of heathen men lamentably destroyed God's church at Lindisfarne through rapine and slaughter.". The year is 878 AD, the embattled English king Alfred the Great has mounted a heroic defence at the battle of Edington, and blunted the Viking invasion. Guthrum, with two other unnamed kings, "departed for Cambridge in East Anglia". [9] His army settled there, and he is not mentioned after 876, when "[the Danes] were engaged in ploughing and making a living for themselves". The chronicle was compiled during the reign of Alfred the Great and is thus a contemporary record. Where is Edington, the scene of Alfred the Great's great victory over the Danes? Hvitserk immediately rushed to his little brother to cradle him as he cried out in tears "I am afraid!" The year is 878 AD, the embattled English king Alfred the Great has mounted a heroic defence at the battle of Edington, and blunted the Viking invasion. And in many ways, four months can pass in the blink of an eye. After the disaster at Chippenham in January 878, Alfred was reduced for some months to guerrilla warfare from the marshes around Athelney. After the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of East Anglia, Mercia, and . Twelve-hundred years later, another battle of that name is raging over NHS Lothian's "temporary" closure of North Berwick's much-loved Edington Hospital, ostensibly for three months. A few years later, King Harald had launched an invasion of Wessex from the Norse stronghold of York with a smaller force, but was utterly defeated by King Alfred at the Battle of Marton with the help of his allies, Lagertha, Bjorn, Ubbe, and Torvi. [36], Alternatives to Edington, Wiltshire, have been suggested since early times. However, the location has been much debated by antiquarians over the centuries. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle attempts to convey the impression that Alfred held the initiative; it is "a bland chronicle which laconically charts the movements of the Danish victors while at the same time disingenuously striving to convey the impression that Alfred was in control",[14] although it fails. Viking defeat. The Battle of Edington resulted in a total victory for Alfred's forces despite taking many casualties. With his small warband, a fraction of his army at Chippenham, Alfred could not hope to retake the town from the Danes, who had in previous battles (for example at Reading in 871) proved themselves adept at defending fortified positions. Edington is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, about 4 miles (6 km) east-northeast of Westbury.The village lies under the north slope of Salisbury Plain and the parish extends south onto the Plain.. Tinhead is the former name of the eastern half of present-day Edington, towards Coulston along the B3098 Westbury - Market Lavington road. Wessex had always been the focal point for Viking raids and invasions. In the 700s AD, the lands we now know as England were divided. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle does not mention the reason for this invasion, perhaps because Viking raids were fairly common during that period of time. The first we read of Alfred after the disaster at Chippenham is around Easter, when he built a fortress at Athelney. The English cry, "no mercy!". [27], The location of the battle accepted by most present-day historians is at Edington, near Westbury in Wiltshire. Edington is accepted by most modern scholars as the site of the battle of Ethandun in which Alfred defeated the Danes under Guthram in 878. Primary sources locate the battle at "Eandun". Battle of Edington - Battle in Wiltshire at which Alfred the Great defeated a Danish army, forcing them to withdraw from Wessex into East Anglia Battle of Edington, 878 Home - Book Shop - Wars - Battles - Biographies - Timeline - Weapons - Blog - Full Index - Subjects - Concepts - Country - Documents - Pictures & Maps THIS STONE, PRESENTED BY F. SWANTON AND SONS, NORTH FARM, WEST OVERTON, IS A SARSEN STONE SIMILAR TO THOSE AT KINGSTON DEVERILL, THE AREA WHERE KING ALFRED RALLIED SAXON LEVIES FROM HAMPSHIRE, WILTSHIRE AND SOMERSET TO MARCH AGAINST GUTHRUM'S VIKING ARMY BASED AT CHIPPENHAM. The Battle of Edington was one of the most important battles in English history. Their leader: Alfred the Great. [31] He left a manor called Eandun to his wife in his will. In 968, another charter reported that King Edgar had granted land at Edyndon to Romsey Abbey. In this year, Alfred succeeded his brother Ethelred, who died after the Battle of Merton. By 878, Guthrum was no longer supported by other Danish leaders such as Ivar the . 885: Development of the Cyrillic Alphabet. A victory for Guthrum would have ended the last Anglo-Saxon kingdom. Viking Invasion of British Isles Worksheets. However, Alfred managed to contain this threat by reforming his military and setting up a system of fortified cities, known as burhs. At the Battle of Edington, an army of the kingdom of Wessex under Alfred the Great defeated the Great Heathen Army led by the Dane Guthrum on a date between 6 and 12 May 878, resulting in the Treaty of Wedmore later the same year. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. [5], The raiding continued and with each year became more intense. Before its destruction, this version had been transcribed and annotated; it is this transcription on which modern translations are based. But four months is around 120 days. Alfred gains his army. Until a scholarly consensus linked the battle site with the present-day village of Edington in Wiltshire, it was known as the Battle of Ethandun.
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