The Dragon And The Raven: Or The Days Of King Alfred(Fiscle Part-3) - G. A. Henty (best pdf ebook reader .txt) 📗
- Author: G. A. Henty
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East Anglia Into A Settled And Christian Country, And
Enabled King Alfred To Frame The Wise Laws And Statutes And
To Establish On A Firm Basis The Institutions Which Raised Saxon
England Vastly In The Scale Of Civilization, And Have In No
Small Degree Affected The Whole Course Of Life Of The English
People.
Part 3 Chapter 12 (Four Years Of Peace) Pg 115
Seven Weeks Afterwards Guthorn, Accompanied By Thirty
Of His Noblest Warriors, Entered Alfred's Camp, Which Was
Pitched At Aller, A Place Not Far From Athelney.
An Altar Was Erected And A Solemn Service Performed,
And Guthorn And His Companions Were All Baptized, Alfred
Himself Becoming Sponsor For Guthorn, Whose Name
Was Changed To Athelstan. The Danes Remained For Twelve
Days In The Saxon Camp. For The First Eight They Wore, In
Accordance With The Custom Of The Times, The Chrismal, A White
Linen Cloth Put On The Head When The Rite Of Baptism Was
Performed; On The Eighth Day The Solemn Ceremony Known
As The Chrism, The Loosing Or Removal Of The Cloths, Took Place
At Wedmore. This Was Performed By The Ealdorman
Ethelnoth.
During These Twelve Days Many Conferences Were Held
Between Alfred And Athelstan As To The Future Of The Two
Kingdoms. While The Danes Were Still In The Camp A
Witenagemot Or Saxon Parliament Was Held At Wedmore. At
This Athelstan And Many Of The Nobles And Inhabitants Of
East Anglia Were Present, And The Boundary Of The Two Kingdoms
Was Settled. It Was To Commence At The Mouth Of The
Thames, To Run Along The River Lea To Its Source, And At
Bedford Turn To The Right Along The Ouse As Far As Watling
Street. According To This Arrangement A Considerable Portion
Of The Kingdom Of Mercia Fell To Alfred's Share.
The Treaty Comprehended Various Rules For The Conduct
Of Commerce, And Courts Were Instituted For The Trial Of
Disputes And Crimes. The Danes Did Not At Once Leave Mercia,
Part 3 Chapter 12 (Four Years Of Peace) Pg 116But For A Considerable Time Lay In Camp At Cirencester; But All
Who Refused To Become Christians Were Ordered To Depart
Beyond The Seas, And The Danes Gradually Withdrew Within
Their Boundary.
Guthorn's Conversion, Although No Doubt Brought About
At The Moment By His Admiration Of The Clemency Of Alfred,
Had Probably Been For Some Time Projected By Him. Mingling
As His People Did In East Anglia With The Christian Saxons
There, He Must Have Had Opportunities For Learning The
Nature Of Their Tenets, And Of Contrasting Its Mild And
Beneficent Teaching With The Savage Worship Of The Pagan Gods.
By Far The Greater Proportion Of His People Followed Their King's
Example; But The Wilder Spirits Quitted The Country, And Under
Their Renowned Leader Hasting Sailed To Harry The Shores
Of France. The Departure Of The More Turbulent Portion Of
His Followers Rendered It More Easy For The Danish King To
Carry His Plans Into Effect.
After The Holding Of The Witan Edmund And Egbert At
Once Left The Army With Their Followers, And For Some Months
The Young Ealdorman Devoted Himself To The Work Of Restoring
The Shattered Homes Of His People, Aiding Them With Loans
From The Plunder He Had Gained On The Seas, Alfred Having
At Once Repaid Him The Sums Which He Had Lent At Athelney.
As So Many Of His Followers Had Also Brought Home Money
After Their Voyage, The Work Of Rebuilding And Restoration Went
On Rapidly, And In A Few Months The Marks Left Of The Ravages
By The Danes Had Been Well-Nigh Effaced.
Flocks And Herds Again Grazed In The Pastures, Herds Of
Swine Roamed In The Woods, The Fields Were Cultivated, And
The Houses Rebuilt. In No Part Of Wessex Was Prosperity So
Speedily Re-Established As In The District Round Sherborne
Governed By Edmund. The Dragon Was Thoroughly Overhauled
And Repaired, For None Could Say How Soon Fresh Fleets Of The
Northmen Might Make Their Appearance Upon The Southern
Shores Of England. It Was Not Long, Indeed, Before The
Northmen Reappeared, A Great Fleet Sailing Up The Thames
At The Beginning Of The Winter. It Ascended As High As Fulham,
Where A Great Camp Was Formed. Seeing That The Saxons And
East Anglians Would Unite Against Them Did They Advance
Further, The Danes Remained Quietly In Their Encampment
During The Winter, And In The Spring Again Took Ship And Sailed
For France.
For The Next Two Years England Enjoyed Comparative
Quiet, The Danes Turning Their Attention To France And Holland,
Sailing Up The Maas, Scheldt, Somme, And Seine. Spreading
From These Rivers They Carried Fire And Sword Over A Great
Extent Of Country. The Franks Resisted Bravely, And In Two
Pitched Battles Defeated Their Invaders With Great Loss. The
Struggle Going On Across The Channel Was Watched With Great
Interest By The Saxons, Who At First Hoped To See The Danes
Part 3 Chapter 12 (Four Years Of Peace) Pg 117Completely Crushed By The Franks.
The Ease, However, With Which The Northmen Moved
From Point To Point In Their Ships Gave Them Such Immense
Advantage That Their Defeats At Hasle And Saucourt In No Way
Checked Their Depredations. Appearing Suddenly Off The
Coast, Or Penetrating Into The Interior By A River, Their Hordes
Would Land, Ravage The Country, Slay All Who Opposed Them,
And Carry Off The Women And Children Captives, And Would
Then Take To Their Ships Again Before The Leaders Of The Franks
Could Assemble An Army.
Alfred Spent This Time Of Repose In Restoring As Far As
Possible The Loss And Damage Which His Kingdom Had
Suffered. Many Wise Laws Were Passed, Churches Were Rebuilt,
And Order Restored; Great Numbers Of The Monks And Wealthier
People Who Had Fled To France In The Days Of The Danish
Supremacy Now Returned To England, Which Was For The Time
Freer From Danger Than The Land In Which They Had Sought
Refuge; And Many Franks From The Districts Exposed To The
Danish Ravages Came Over And Settled In England.
Gradually The Greater Part Of England Acknowledged
The Rule Of Alfred. The Kingdom Of Kent Was Again United To
That Of Wessex; While Mercia, Which Extended Across The
Centre Of England From Anglia To Wales, Was Governed For Alfred
By Ethelred The Ealdorman, Who Was The Head Of The Powerful
Family Of The Hwiccas, And Had Received The Hand Of
Alfred's Daughter Ethelfleda. He Ruled Mercia According To
Its Own Laws And Customs, Which Differed Materially From Those
Of The West Saxons, And Which Prevented A More Perfect Union
Of The Two Kingdoms Until William The Conqueror Welded
The Whole Country Into A Single Whole. But Ethelred
Acknowledged The Supremacy Of Alfred, Consulted Him Upon All
Occasions Of Importance, And Issued All His Edicts And Orders
In The King's Name. He Was Ably Assisted By Werfrith, The Bishop
Of Worcester. The Energy And Activity Of These Leaders Enabled
Mercia To Keep Abreast Of Wessex In The Onward Progress
Which Alfred Laboured So Indefatigably To Promote.
Edmund, When Not Occupied With The Affairs Of His Earldom,
Spent Much Of His Time With The King, Who Saw In Him A
Spirit Of Intelligence And Activity Which Resembled His Own.
Edmund Was, However, Of A Less Studious Disposition Than His
Royal Master; And Though He So Far Improved His Education
As To Be Able To Read And Write Well, Alfred Could Not Persuade
Him To Undertake The Study Of Latin, Being, As He Said,
Well Content To Master Some Of The Learning Of That People By
Means Of The King's Translations.
At The End Of Another Two Years Of Peace Edmund Was
Again Called Upon To Take Up Arms. Although The Danes
Attempted No Fresh Invasion Some Of Their Ships Hung Around
The English Coast, Capturing Vessels, Interfering With Trade,
And Committing Other Acts Of Piracy.
Part 3 Chapter 12 (Four Years Of Peace) Pg 118Great Complaints Were Made By The Inhabitants Of The
Seaports To Alfred. The King At Once Begged Edmund To Fit
Out The Dragon, And Collecting A Few Other Smaller Ships He
Took His Place On Edmund's Ship And Sailed In Search Of The
Danes. After Some Search They Came Upon The Four Large
Ships Of The Northmen Which Had Been A Scourge To The Coast.
The Saxons At Once Engaged Them, And A Desperate Fight
Took Place. The Dragon Was Laid Alongside The Largest Of The
Danish Vessels; And The King, With Edmund And Egbert By His
Side, Leapt On To The Deck Of The Danish Vessel, Followed By
The Crew Of The Dragon. The Danish Ship Was Crowded With
Men Who Fought Desperately, But The Discipline Even More
Than The Courage Of Edmund's Crew Secured For Them The
Victory. For A Time Each Fought For Himself; And Although
Inspired By The Presence Of The King They Were Able To Gain
No Advantage, Being Much Out-Numbered By The Northmen.
Edmund, Seeing This, Sounded On His Horn The Signal
With Which In Battle He Ordered The Men To Form Their Wedge.
The Signal Was Instantly Obeyed. The Saxons Were All Fighting
With Boarding-Pikes Against The Northmen's Swords And
Axes, For They Had Become Used To These Weapons And
Preferred Them To Any Other.
The Instant Edmund's Horn Was Heard, Each Man Desisted
From Fighting And Rushed To Their Leader, Around Whom
They Instantly Formed In Their Accustomed Order. The Danes,
Astonished At The Sudden Cessation Of
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