The Vikings captured most of England wiping out almost all of the Anglo Saxon rulers. When King Aethelred of Wessex died, the throne fell to Alfred. At first, the Vikings made short work of Alfred forcing a peace settlement. The agreement broke down and the invaders forced the king’s flight. However, Alfred returned and developed a novel strategy which eventually defeated the Vikings.
The Viking invasions devastated England. They conquered kingdom after kingdom before turning on Wessex. In 871, the king’s brother, Alfred, defeated the invaders at Ashdown. Later that month, King Aethelred died in battle leaving the throne to Alfred. Aethelred sired two sons, but their youth precluded their ascension in the midst of the Norse crisis. Alfred assumed the kingship and buried his brother.
The crisis grew darker as the invaders defeated Alfred’s forces ensuring their presence in Wessex. The defeat at Wilton led to a Viking dictated peace agreement. Alfred paid the Vikings an extravagant sum and the Norsemen left Wessex for the winter. After five years, they returned and doggedly conquered Anglo Saxon territory. They massacred the garrison at Chippenham forcing Alfred and a small band of survivors into the Somerset marshes.
According to legend, Alfred was given shelter by a peasant woman. She remained ignorant of his identity and left him to watch some cakes she had on the fire. Lost in thought, Alfred allowed the cakes to burn. She returned and scolded the king for allowing the cakes to burn. After learning his identity, the peasant woman apologized profusely. However, Alfred magnanimously lived up to his error and apologized to the woman.
The cake episode stiffened the king’s backbone. From the marshes, he organized resistance against Viking king Guthrum and his forces. In 878, Alfred emerged from the shadows as part of a planned offensive. His reemergence solidified the support of the people and his nobles.
The newly invigorated Anglo Saxon army defeated the Vikings at the Battle of Ethandun. After the victory, Alfred laid siege to Chippenham and starved Guthrum’s forces into submission. The victors forced Guthrum to convert to Christianity and the two sides divided Mercia. As a result, Alfred controlled his own kingdom plus West Mercia and London. The treaty ended the hostilities and the Vikings and Anglo Saxons entered into brief period of peace.
The two sides avoided major conflicts for about a decade. The Vikings returned with full scale assaults in the 890s. The new wave brought women and children indicating this was an invasion force bent on colonization. Once again, the Vikings held the early advantage. Alfred scrambled to meet the threat. By 897, the Norsemen retreated to their English strongholds or back to Scandinavia.
Alfred’s success was based on his military reforms. He created a standing army to fight the invaders as opposed to relying on militia. Additionally, he fortified towns protecting them from the Viking blitzkrieg. The Vikings liked to use hit and run shock raids and struggled against a heavily fortified position. Alfred strung a series of forts along key rivers and roads further handicapping the invaders. Additionally, he created a navy to combat the Vikings at sea. Lastly, Alfred established a cavalry which provided excellent battlefield mobility as well as speedy communication links. These innovations nullified the Viking tactics of surprise, speed, and mobility.
Norse invasions brushed aside most Anglo Saxon kingdoms. Their use of speed, surprise, and terror overwhelmed the hapless English defenders. However, Alfred the Great proved a match for the Norsemen when he reorganized the military. His reforms nullified Viking advantages and led to an independent Anglo Saxon England.
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