Who was England’s greatest king?

We all have our opinions on what we value in a good king or how to measure their greatest, for me Æthelstan, other than not ruling for decades, excels in all areas.

Æthelstan

Despite being his father’s oldest son, he was sent to live with his Aunt and Uncle, Æthelfled and Æthelred, Lady and Lord of Mercia. He would have learnt first hand about fighting against Danes from his time in Mercia.

When his father Edward, King of Anglo-Saxons, died in 924, Æthelstan was seen as too Mercian, he was also rumoured to be a bastard (it’s more likely that his mother was not from a significant or powerful family), while his younger half-brother, Æthelweard, was brought up in Wessex and was from a very powerful family on his mother’s side.

Æthelweard was declared King of Wessex, however he died within a few weeks.

Mercia declared Æthelstan King, there was still some opposition to him in Wessex, nobles may have considered his younger brother, Edwin. There was even a failed attempt to blind Æthelstan by a West Saxon Noble. Eventually they came to his side and he was declared King of the former Kingdoms of Wessex, Mercia and East Anglia, in the new Kingdom of Anglo-Saxons

3 Years into his reign, Æthelstan took Jorvik from the Norse, and received the submission of the Ealdorman of Bebbanburg, hence becoming the first King of England.

Æthelstan also received the submission of the Welsh Kingdoms, Strathclyde and Scotland, becoming the Emperor of Britain. He also helped place Kings that had been brought up in his court to the Thrones of France, Brittany and Norway and having considerable influence in these regions, as well as marrying his sisters to various Frankish and German Rulers and Nobles, England became the centre of European politics during his reign. Æthelstan has his ‘fingers in many pies’, began the tradition of intervening in Frankish affairs.

In 937, Æthelstan won one of the biggest battles in English history, the Battle of Brunanburh. This was a big test for the new Kingdom of England, as the Kingdoms and Scotland, Strathclyde betrayed Æthelstan, who was their Overlord, and teamed up with the Norse-Gaelic Kingdom of Dublin to try and break the power of King Æthelstan. Æthelstan defeated them all, reasserting his power over the majority of Britain.

His other achievements include centralising power in England, furthering his grandfather’s (Alfred) literacy and learning reforms, he was very pious which pleased the church, he never married, which was actually a good thing, as he had brothers ready to be King after him, a son could have led to civil war, another possible reason for not being married could be that he may have taken a vow of chastity. Overall his reign brought periods of peace that were rare in English history. He ruled over Britain and had allies upon the thrones of nearby states in Europe.

In a charter King Æthelstan called himself, ‘King of the English, elevated by the right hand of the almighty, to the Throne of the whole Kingdom of Britain’

My Top 5 Kings of England

Æthelstan

Henry II

Edward III

Henry V

Henry VII