Anglo-Saxon England and the Vikings, 757-1066
Historiansplaining: A historian tells you why everything you know is wrong
The Story of Alfred Burning the Ash Cake
The most common story that persisted in chronicles and in oral history through the middle ages is about alfred burning the ash cake. I mentioned it in my discussion of the historical king arthur too, as an example of a sort of odd piece of folklore about a ruler. It doesn't say that he then executed this woman for affronting the king - she maybe didn't even know he was the king. But it seems to capture something about the sort of king that you ought to want and you ought to maybe emulate in a mediaeval realm. He also, as i said, was cred ed as the creator of the english navy.
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