King Athelstan (894-939). Whose England?
Athelstan was King of the Anglo Saxons from 924 to 927 and King of England from 927 to 939. In the last 15 years several books about him have been published. Sources for his personal life appear limited but there is documentation of Government, laws etc, during the period he reigned.
He was responsible for uniting the North of England with Anglo Saxon England which involved fighting the Scots and getting the acquiescence of the Welsh.
With the focus on the Bayeux Tapestry and 1066 understanding what went before is important. Tory MP and historian Alex Burghart has claimed the left are not interested in Athelstan which suggests he has not read A L Morton’s A People’s History of England (I’ll post further on that). Meanwhile right-wing historian Tom Holland (the Rest is History) is leading a campaign for official activities in 2027 to mark the 1100th anniversary of Athelstan’s successful (if not final, the Viking later retook York)creation of an Anglo Saxon England.
The campaign has now attracted a Times Editorial and Dominic Sandbrook (Times 14th November) has suggested a national holiday in 2027 and that Athelstan should be on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square. More public holidays are needed. As for the plinth, Sandbrook admits we don’t know what Athelstan looked like, perhaps a bit like Nigel Farage?
The wider point is that the left have researched and written English history, respecting that Scottish and Welsh history is different (if related) so what appears to be a campaign promoted by the right, needs some sense of people’s history brought to it.
History is not primarily about Kings and Queens and the shape of England remained disputed after the death of Athelstan up to 1066 when the French arrived
Leave a Reply