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From my blog...
Author Archives: Patricia
THE LIFE OF EDMUND IRONSIDE at The Road to Hastings Website
Novelist Paula Lofting very kindly asked me to write something recently for The Writers of Anglo-Saxon Literature series on her Road to Hastings Website, and I posted a brief bio there of Edmund Ironside. That’s Edmund up there on the … Read More
The Brief Reign of King Harold I of England
The first king of England to be named Harold (there would be a second Harold, whose reign was even more brief but who is far more famous) died on March 17, 1040 at the age of about 25. His by-name, … Read More
Emma of Normandy: A Life
Emma of Normandy, Dowager Queen of England, died on 6 March, 1052, in Winchester. She was only the second woman to be crowned queen of all England, and the only woman ever to be crowned queen of England twice. For … Read More
Queen Emma and St. Valentine
Despite the painting above of King Cnut wooing Emma of Normandy, this is not a love story. But it IS about Queen Emma and St. Valentine. Emma of Normandy, Queen of England, was long remembered as a generous patron by … Read More
The Death of Swein Forkbeard
Candlemas, February 2 On this day in 1014 Swein Forkbeard died; although it might actually have been in the early hours of Feb. 3. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, written a decade after Swein’s death reported, confusingly: Swein ended his days on … Read More
THE LAST KINGDOM 3, Episode 10
Woe to thee, O land, when they king is a youth…Ecclesiastes 10:16 In Episode 10 of THE LAST KINGDOM Æthelwold’s argument against the naming of the ætheling Edward as the successor to King Alfred is that Edward is too young … Read More
Posted in The Last Kingdom
Tagged Aethelflaed, Aethelwold, Anglo-Saxons, Athelstan, Battle, Beocca, Brida, Edward Rex, King Alfred, Thyra, Uhtred
15 Comments
THE LAST KINGDOM 3, Episode 9
“To Uhtred, the true lord of Bebbanburg; a man I have never understood but without whom I would not die a king.” King Alfred in THE LAST KINGDOM. THE LAST KINGDOM is a tv drama based on a series of … Read More
Posted in The Last Kingdom
Tagged Aelswith, Alexander Dreymon, David Dawson, Eliza Butterworth, King Alfred, Uhtred
2 Comments
THE LAST KINGDOM 3, Episode 8
BEWARE SPOILERS! “I cannot resist Skade,” Uhtred’s voice intones during the teaser at the opening of Episode 8. “She has invaded my heart and my mind.” Surely I am not the only one who, upon hearing this, sat up abruptly … Read More
Posted in The Last Kingdom
Tagged Aethelflaed, Aethelred, Aethelwold, Alexander Dreymon, Beocca, David Dawson, Eliza Butterworth, King Alfred, Skade, Thyra
3 Comments
THE LAST KINGDOM 3, Episode 7
It’s interesting to consider the women in this episode—Æthelflaed the Lady of Mercia; Brida the Danish war leader; Ælswith the wife of the Wessex king; and Skade the sorceress—because all of them act with agency. Not Edward’s betrothed, alas. She … Read More
Posted in The Last Kingdom
Tagged Aelswith, Aethelflaed, Alfred the Great, Bloodhair, Brida, Skade, Uhtred
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THE LAST KINGDOM 3, Episode 6
Even before the opening credits, the action of Episode 6 picks up right where it left off in Episode 5. What is at stake here for Uhtred? First, he has to survive the desperate, lopsided battle he’s fighting. Second, he … Read More
Posted in The Last Kingdom
Tagged Aethelwold, Brida, Cnut, Edward, Haesten, King Alfred, Skade, Uhtred
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