[MR] BBC: Æthelstan, The Forgotten First English King

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble friends,

Today the BBC is offering up an interesting piece on Æthelstan, England's
first king to rule over all England (excluding Arthur, who probably didn't
really rule much if he even existed).

Æthelstan built on the work begun by Alfred the Great of Wessex, his
grandfather, who conquered Mercia. Edward the Elder, his father, added East
Anglia. It was Æthelstan who added Northumbria in 927, completing his rule
over a united England. His realm was noted for advances in government,
scholarship, and contact with continental Europe.

Well, it didn't last long. After Æthelstan died in 939, Northumbria broke
away for the next 15 years, until reconquered by Eadred (Æthelstan's
successor and half-brother).

So why was Æthelstan forgotten? Other than Alfred and Edward being names
easier to remember, Æthelstan had no known biographer to leave a record of
his reign and his deeds. That has now changed. Cambridge professor David
Woodman has completed a biography to fill that gap in English history, THE
FIRST KING OF ENGLAND, ÆTHELSTAN AND THE BIRTH OF A KINGDOM.

The whole BBC story is at
https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20250926-why-england-forgot-its-first-king
.

Information on the new bio is at (
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691249490/the-first-king-of-england?srsltid=AfmBOopOzpwC8MY1uBZkyeUr3Ux0rwT-BcXcsGWOah2eAXLRjD_a0QFd
).

If you will be satisfied with a shorter version, try this Wikipedia article
at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelstan .

Yours Aye,

Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge 🦆
Continuing a crusade to keep the original Merry Rose relevant and in
business.