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Little-Known British Kings in History

King Athelstan, King Edmund, King Robert II, King William II

Fareeha Arshad
Lessons from History
4 min readJan 12, 2025

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(Public Domain, Source: Pixabay)

British history is filled with countless Kings and Queens — both good and bad. Many are remembered even today because of the revolutionary ideas that changed many lives.

However, a few royals were not given the attention they deserved, primarily because of their short time on the throne. Let’s look at some little-known monarchs from British history who did not get the credits they deserved.

1. King Athelstan

A depiction of Aethelstan, king of England and the Anglo Saxons. (Public Domain, Source: Wikimedia Commons)

In 924, after his father’s death, King Edward, Athelstan, became the new king of Mercia. Within a year, Wessex, too, came under his rule. Then, following his grandfather Alfred the Great’s footsteps, Athelstan conquered the Kingdom of York and became the first-ever king of England by 927.

Athelstan did not stop there: he conquered Scotland by 934. With the rapid expansion of his kingdom, new enemies arose, resulting in many battles. One of the biggest decisive battles Athelstan fought and won was the Battle of Brunanburh, after which he became the most powerful king of Britain.

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Lessons from History
Lessons from History

Published in Lessons from History

Lessons from History is a platform for writers who share ideas and inspirational stories from world history. The objective is to promote history on Medium and demonstrate the value of historical writing.

Fareeha Arshad
Fareeha Arshad

Written by Fareeha Arshad

Avid reader. Ardent dreamer. Amateur writer.

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