translated with an introduction and notes by Simon

Keynes and Michael Lapidge.

Extracts
pp. 91-93,101-103,109-110

translated with an introduction and notes by Simon Keynes and Michael Lapidge., (1983) Alfred the Great : Asser's Life of
King Alfred and other contemporary sources Penguin Books

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Course of Study: HIST21141 - From Catastrophe to Crusade: Europe in the Aftermath of the Vikings
Title: Alfred the Great : Asser's Life of King Alfred and other contemporary sources
Name of Author: translated with an introduction and notes by Simon Keynes and Michael Lapidge.
Name of Publisher: Penguin Books
Asser’s Life of King Alfred 9i

other pursuits o f this present life which arc appropriate to the nobility,
are these two allowed to live idly and indifferently, with no liberal
education, for they have attentively learned the Psalms, and books in
English, and especially English poems, and they very frequently make
use o f books.

76. M eanw hile the king, amidst the wars and the numerous inter­
ruptions o f this present life - not to mention the Viking attacks and
his continual bodily infirmities - did not refrain from directing the
governm ent o f the kingdom ;151 pursuing all manner o f hunting;
giving instruction to all his goldsmiths and craftsmen as well as to his
falconers, hawk-traincrs and dog-kccpcrs; making to his own
d e sig n 152 wonderful and precious new treasu res153 which far sur­
passed any tradition o f his predecessors; reading aloud from books in
English and above all learning English poems by heart; issuing orders
to his followers: all these things he did h im self with great application
to the best o f his abilities. H e was also in the invariable habit o f
listening daily to divine services and M ass, and o f participating in
certain psalms and prayers and in the day-tim e and night-tim e offices,
and, at night-tim e, as I have said, o f going (without his household
knowing) to various churches in order to p r a y .'54 H e sim ilarly applied
h im self attentively to charity and distribution o f alms to the native
population and to foreign visitors o f all races, showing immense and
incomparable kindness and generosity to all men, as well as to the
investigation o f things unknow n.155 W herefore many Franks, F ris­
ians, G a u ls,156 Vikings, W elshmen, Irishm en and Bretons subjected
themselves w illingly to his lordship, nobles and commoners a lik e ;157
and, as befitted his royal status, he ruled, loved, honoured and enriched
them all with wealth and authority, just as he did his own people. He
was also in the habit o f listening eagerly and attentively to H oly
Scripture being read out by his own countrym en, or even, i f the
situation should somehow arise, o f listening to these lessons in the
company o f foreigners. With wonderful affection he cherished his
bishops and the entire clergy, his caldormen and nobles, his offi­
cials158 as well as all his associates. N or, in the m idst o f other
affairs, did he cease from personally giving, by day and night, in­
struction in all virtuous behaviour and tutelage in literacy to their
sons, who were being brought up in the royal household and whom
he loved no less than his own children.
92 Asser’s Life o f King Alfred

B u t as i f he derived no consolation from all these things, and

suffered no greater distress o f any kind inw ardly and outwardly (and
he did, to the extent that he would cry out in anguish by day and
night to the L o rd and to all those who were known to him on terms o f
intim acy), he used to moan and sigh continually because Alm ighty
G od had created him lacking in divine learning and knowledge o f the
liberal arts. In this respect he resembled the holy, highly esteemed
and exceedingly wealthy Solom on, king o f the H ebrews, who, once
upon a time, having come to despise all renown and wealth o f this
world, sought wisdom from G o d, and thereby achieved both (namely,
wisdom and renown in this world), as it is written, ‘ Seek ye therefore
first the kingdom o f G o d , and his justice, and all these things shall be
given to you’ [M atthew vi, 3 3 ] .159 B u t G o d , who is ever the observer
o f our internal desires and the instigator o f all our thoughts and good
intentions, and also - so that these good intentions m ay be fulfilled -
a most generous overseer (for H e never initiates any good intention,
nor does H e bountifully bring it to fulfilm ent, unless the person
appropriately and rightly desires it to be so), stimulated K in g A lfred ’s
intelligence from within, not from without, as it is written, ‘ I will
hear what the L o rd G od speaks in m e’ [Psalm lxxxiv, 9], s o 1 60 that he
could acquire helpers in this good intention o f his, who would be able
to help him attain to the desired wisdom and enable him to fulfil his
wishes whenever possible. Accordingly, just like the clever b e e 161
which at first light in summ ertime departs from its beloved honey­
com b, finds its way with swift flight on its unpredictable journey
through the air, lights upon the many and various flowers o f grasses,
plants and shrubs, discovers what pleases it most and then carries it
back home, K in g A lfred directed the eyes o f his mind far afield and
sought without what he did not possess w ith in ,162 that is to say,
within his own kingdom.

77. At that point G od (being unable to tolerate so well-intentioned

and justifiable a complaint any longer) sent some comforts for this
royal intention - ccrtain luminaries, as it were: W erferth ,163 the
bishop o f W orcester, a man thoroughly learned in holy writings who
at the king’s command translated for the first time the Dialogues
between Pope G rego ry and his disciple Peter from L atin into the
E nglish language, sometimes rendering sense for sense, translating
intelligently and in a very polished s ty le ;164 then Plegm u nd,165 arch­
Asscr’s Life o f King Alfred 93

bishop o f Canterbury, a M ercian by birth and an estimable man

richly endowed with learning; and also ^Ethelstan and W erwulf, both
priests and chaplains, M ercians by birth and learned m en .166 K in g
A lfred summoned these four men to him from M crcia ,167 and
showered them with m any honours and entitlements in the kingdom
o f the W est Saxons (not counting those which Archbishop Plegmund
and Bishop W erferth already possessed in M ercia). T h e king’ s desire
for knowledge increased steadily and was satisfied by the learning
and wisdom o f all four men. B y day or night, whenever he had any
opportunity, he used to tell them to read aloud from books in his
presence — indeed he could never tolerate being without one or other
o f them - and accordingly, he acquired some acquaintance with almost
all books, even though he could not at this point understand anything
in the books by himself. F o r he had not yet begun to read anything.

78. H owever, since the royal ‘greed’ (which was entirely praise­
worthy!) in this respect was not yet satisfied, he sent messengers
across the sea to G au l to seek instructors. From there, he summoned
G rim b a ld ,168 a priest and monk and a very venerable man, an excel­
lent chanter, extrem ely learned in every kind o f ecclesiastical doctrine
and in the H oly Scriptures, as well as being distinguished by his
virtuous behaviour. Sim ilarly, he summoned Jo h n ,169 also a priest
and monk, a man o f m ost acute intelligence, immensely learned in all
fields o f literary endeavour, and extrem ely ingenious in m any other
skills. Th rough their teaching the king’s outlook was very considerably
broadened, and he enriched and honoured them with great authority.

79. A t about this time I too was summoned by the king from the
remote, westernmost parts o f Wales, and I came to the Saxon land.
When I had taken the decision to travel across great expanses o f land
to meet him, I arrived in the territory o f the right-hand [sou th ern]170
Saxons, which in English is called Sussex, accompanied by some
English guides. T h ere I saw him for the first tim e 171 at the royal
estate which is called D e a n .172 When I had been w arm ly welcomed
by him, and we were engaged in discussion, he asked me earnestly to
com m it m yself to his service and to become a m em ber o f his house­
h old ,173 and to relinquish for his sake all that I had on the left-hand
[northern] and western side o f the Severn. H e promised to pay me
greater compensation for it (which indeed he was to do). I replied
Asser’s Life o f King Alfred IOI

therefore to endure - w illy-nilly - in pain and sorrow what he is

suffering.

9 1. K in g A lfred has been transfixed by the nails o f m any tribula­

tions, even though he is invested with royal authority: from his twen­
tieth year until his forty-fifth (which is now in course)218 he has
been plagued continually with the savage attacks o f some unknown
disease, such that he does not have even a single hour o f peace in
which he docs not either suffer from the disease itself or else, gloom ily
dreading it, is not driven almost to despair. M oreover, he was per­
turbed —not without good reason —by the relentless attacks o f foreign
peoples, which he continually sustained from land and sea without
any interval o f peace. W hat shall I say o f his frequent expeditions
and battles against the Vikings and o f the unceasing responsibilities
o f government? W hat o f his daily involvem ent 219 with the nations
which lie from the M editerranean to the farthest limit o f Ireland? —
for I have even seen and read letters sent to him with gifts from
Jerusalem by the patriarch E lia s.220 And what o f the cities and towns
to be rebuilt and o f others to be constructed where previously there
were none? And what o f the treasures221 incom parably fashioned in
gold and silver at his instigation? And what o f the royal halls and
chambers m arvellously constructed o f stone and wood at his com ­
mand? And what o f the royal residences o f m asonry, moved from
their old position and splendidly reconstructed at more appropriate
places by his royal command? 222 And what 223 o f the m ighty disorder
and confusion o f his own people - to say nothing o f his own malady
- who would undertake o f their own accord little or no work for the
common needs o f the kingdom?
Y et once lie had taken over the helm o f his kingdom, he alone,
sustained by divine assistance, struggled like an excellent pilot to
guide his ship laden with much wealth to the desired and safe haven
o f his homeland, even though all his sailors were virtually exhausted;
sim ilarly, lie did not allow it to waver or wander from course, even
though the course lay through the m any seething whirlpools o f the
present life. F o r by gently instructing, cajoling, urging, commanding,
and (in the end, when his patience was exhausted) by sharply chastis­
ing those who were disobedient and by despising popular stupidity
and stubbornness in every way, he carefully and cleverly exploited
and converted his bishops and caldormen and nobles, and his thegns
102 Asser’ s Life o f King Alfred

most dear to him , and reeves as well (in all o f whom, after the L ord
and the king, the authority o f the entire kingdom is seen to be invested,
as is appropriate), to his own will and to the general advantage o f the
whole realm .224 B u t if, during the course o f these royal admonitions,
the com m ands were not fulfilled because o f the people’s laziness, or
else (having been begun too late in a time o f necessity) were not
finished in time to be o f use to those working on them (I am speaking
here o f fortifications commanded by the king which have not yet
been begun, or else, having been begun late in the day, have not been
brought to completion 225) and enem y forces burst in by land and sea
(or, as frequently happens, by both!), then those who had opposed
the royal commands were humiliated in m eaningless repentance by
being reduced to virtual extinction. I say ‘meaningless repentance’ on
the authority o f Scripture, where num berless persons who had per­
formed foul deeds were frequently struck down by a severe calamity
and thus had cause for sorrow. B u t even though (to follow up the
exam ple 226 o f the excellent authority) they are, alas, pitifully driven
to despair and, having lost their fathers, spouses, children, servants,
slaves, handm aidens, the fruits o f their labours and all their posses­
sions, are reduced to tears, what use is their accursed repentance,
when it cannot help their slaughtered kinsfolk, nor redeem those
captured from a hateful captivity, nor even occasionally be o f use to
themselves who have escaped, since they no longer have anything by
which to sustain their own life? T h ose who were severely afflicted,
therefore, are contrite in untim ely repentance, and are sorry that
they had negligently scorned the royal commands; now they loudly
applaud the king’ s foresight and promise to make every effort to do
what they had previously refused —that is, with respect to constructing
fortresses and to the other things o f general advantage to the whole
kingdom .227

92. A t this point I do not think that I can profitably bypass the
intention and resolve o f his most excellent enterprise, which he never
allowed h im self to overlook no matter whether things were going well
or badly. F o r when in his usual manner he had taken stock o f what
was most essential for his soul, amid his other good deeds performed
by day and night (on which he concentrated attentively and fully), he
ordered two monasteries to be constructed.
One o f these was for monks and was located at a place called
Asser’s Life of King Alfred 103

A thclncy, 228 which is surrounded by swam py, im passable and ex­

tensive marshland and groundwater on every side. It cannot be
reached in any way cxcept by punts or by a causeway which has been
built by protracted labour between two fortresses. (A form idable
fortress o f elegant workmanship was set up by the command o f the
king at the western end o f the causeway.) 229 In this monastery he
gathered monks o f various nationalities from every quarter, and
assembled them there.

93. T h e reason is that, at first, he had no noble or free-born man

o f his own race who would o f his own accord undertake the monastic
life, except for children, who could not as yet choose good or reject
evil because o f the tenderness o f their infant years - not surprisingly,
since for m any years past the desire for the monastic life had been
totally lacking in that entire race (and in a good m any other peoples as
well!), even though quite a num ber o f monasteries which had been
built in that area still remain but do not maintain the rule o f monastic
life in any consistent way. I am not sure why: either it is because o f
the depredations o f foreign enemies whose attacks by land and sea are
very frequent and savage, or else because o f the people’s enormous
abundance o f riches o f every kind, as a result o f which (I suspect)
this kind o f monastic life came all the m ore into disrespect.230 In any
case A lfred took pains to assemble monks o f various nationalities in
that monastery.

94. In the first place, he appointed Jo h n ,2 3' a priest and monk o f

Old Saxon origin, as abbot; and thereafter certain priests and deacons
from across the sea. Am ong these (since he had not yet achieved the
num ber he desired), he acquired a num ber o f people o f G allic
origin; 232 he ordered that certain o f their children be educated in
the monastery and at a later time be raised to the m onastic order. In
that m onastery too I saw someone o f Viking parentage who had been
brought up there, and who, as quite a young man, was living there in
the monastic habit — and he was assuredly not the last o f them to do
so.233

95. On one occasion a crim e was perpetrated in that monastery

which I would not com m it to the oblivion o f silence, m ute in its
taciturnity (even though the crim e itself is unworthy to be recorded),
Asscr’s Life o f King Alfred 109

the tw enty-four hours - neither more quickly nor more slowly. And
once these candles were consumed, more were lighted.252

105. When these arrangements had been properly carried out in

every respect, he was eager to observe the h alf o f his service, just as
he had promised to G o d, and even to increase it, in so far as his
means and abilities - and o f course his health - would allow. H e was a
painstaking judge in establishing the truth in judicial hearings,253 and
this most o f all in cases conccrning the care o f the poor, on whose
behalf he was wonderfully solicitous day and night, amid all the
other obligations o f this present life. T hroughout the entire kingdom
the poor had either very few supporters or else none at all, except for
the king himself: not surprisingly, since nearly all the magnates and
nobles o f that land had devoted their attention more to worldly than
to divine affairs; indeed, everyone was more concerned with his own
particular well-being in worldly matters than with the common
good.254

106. K in g A lfred used also to sit 255 at judicial hearings for the
benefit both o f his nobles and o f the common people, since they
frequently disagreed violently among themselves at assem blies o f
ealdormen or reeves, to the point where virtually none o f them could
agree that any judgem ent reachcd by the ealdormen or reeves in
question was ju st.256 U nder pressure o f this intransigent and obdurate
disagreement, the separate parties could undertake to subm it to the
king’s judgem ent, a procedure which both parties quickly hastened to
implement. H ow ever, i f anyone considered that some injustice (as he
saw it) might arise in the case, he would not w illingly subm it to the
decision o f such a judge, although by force and stipulation o f the
law 257 he would be constrained to be present, even against his will.
F o r he knew that none o f his malice could remain there unexposed
for long - not surprisingly, since the king was an extrem ely astute
investigator in judicial matters as in everything else. H e would care­
fully look into nearly all the judgem ents which were passed in his
absence anywhere in his realm, to see whether they were just or
unjust; and i f he could identify any corruption in those judgem ents,
he would ask the judges concerned politely, as is his wont, either in
person or through one o f his other trusted men, why they had passed
so unfair a sentence - whether through ignorance or because o f some
no Asser’s Life o f King Alfred

other m alpractice (that is to say, either for love or fear o f the one
party or for hatred o f the other, or even for the sake o f a bribe).258
Accordingly, i f the judges in question were to confess after all that
they had indeed passed judgem ent in such a way because they had not
known better in the circum stances, then the king, admonishing their
inexperience and foolishness with discretion and restraint, would
reply as follows: ‘ I am astonished at this arrogance o f yours, since
through G o d ’s authority and m y own you have enjoyed the office and
status o f wise men, yet you have neglected the study and application
o f wisdom. F o r that reason, I command you either to relinquish
im m ediately the offices o f worldly power that you possess, or else to
apply yourselves m uch more attentively to the pursuit o f w isdom .’
H aving heard these words, the ealdormen and reeves were terrified
and chastened as i f by the greatest o f punishments, and they strove
with every effort to apply themselves to learning what is just. A s a
result nearly all the ealdormen and reeves and thegns (who were
illiterate from childhood) applied themselves in an amazing way to
learning how to read, preferring rather to learn this unfam iliar dis­
cipline (no m atter how laboriously) than to relinquish their offices o f
pow er.259 B u t i f one o f them — cither because o f his age or because
o f the unresponsive nature o f his unpractised intelligence - was unable
to make progress in learning to read, the king commanded the m an’s
son (if he had one) or some relative o f his, or even (if he had no one
else) a man o f his own - whether freeman or slave - whom he had
caused to be taught to read long before, to read out books in English
to him by day and night, or whenever he had the opportunity. Sighing
greatly from the bottom o f their hearts, these men regretted that they
had not applied themselves to such pursuits in their youth, and con­
sidered the youth o f the present day to be fortunate, who had the
luck to be instructed in the liberal arts, but counted themselves
unfortunate because they had not learned such things in their youth
nor even in their old age, even though they ardently wished that they
had been able to do so. B u t I have explained this concern for learning
how to read among the young and old in order to give some idea o f
the character o f K in g A lfred .260