A Prayer for Mercy
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Athelstan’s Mercy free porn video
I, Rhodri of Kernow, write this in remembrance of my patron, Bishop Asser. The good man loved the House of Wessex all his days and was friend and confidant to Ælfred, whom men now call the Great. Our King now is Athelstan, may The Good Lord and the Saints keep him, and Bishop Asser would have been full of joy to see it.
For surely there can have been few Kings his equal. Even Great Ælfred had faults that none could overlook. Athelstan is a man without peer. His appearance and demeanour are all regal and he has the love of all his people like none before him. Lest I be accused of courting favour, let it be known that I am a Briton of the West, not a Saxon. I have no great love for the people who stole our land these many years past. Nonetheless, I own Athelstan as my King.
I recall the King as a boy at his grandfather’s knee. I had him in my charge for lessons. He was a beautiful child with hair like gold and eyes the grey of the winter sea. I remember him being sent into Mercia for protection. Many thought his father, the late King, sought his death from jealousy but I know not. Now that Edward is dead he does not want for detractors.
Just this past year King Athelstan came here to Mældubesburg. Although many years have passed, he knew me still and cried aloud for joy at seeing his old teacher. He has grown into a handsome man with flaxen hair – still shot through with the gold of his childhood. Although not much above middling height, his presence fills any room. He is soft-spoken, for a Saxon.
This tale I now recount was told to me by old Hereward of Middletun. He is nearly four score years now but still has a silver tongue when he minds to use it. I have had this story, too, from other men. It is so true of the King that no man should doubt it. I say this, even if it be a sin, it is good to write of the matters of men once in a while. May God forgive me, but the Lives of saints can be tedious work for the son of a bard!
Rhodri op Kernow
In the Year of Grace Nine Hundred and Thirty One
Author’s Note
Athelstan is perhaps the most obscure of the old Saxon Kings. Even his origins are shrouded in mystery. He was the son of Edward the Elder, grandson of Ælfred the Great but his mother’s identity is not known. She is described simply as a ‘woman of Mercia’. The implication is clearly that she was not of any special significance and she died soon after Athelstan’s birth.
There is a tradition that Ælfred intended Athelstan as his heir but the boy was only six years old when Ælfred died. Edward married after Athelstan’s birth and produced a number of legitimate children. All of these were still minors at the time of Edward’s death in 924 AD. Athelstan was elected King with the help of considerable Mercian support. He had been raised in Mercia following an attempt to blind him as a child and his Mercian mother ensured his popularity in that country.
Athelstan never married and, as far as we know, remained deliberately celibate to ensure that there was no dispute over the succession after his death. We are told that he only agreed to become King on the understanding that he was seen as holding the Country upon trust for his half-brothers, Edward’s legitimate heirs. We cannot judge how true this is but it is clear that the succession was undisputed on his death and this was remarkable in Saxon times.
During his reign, he achieved total dominance over all of Britain. Both the Scots and Welsh Kings acknowledged him as overlord. There were still challenges to face in the shape of Scandinavian invaders but Athelstan went to great lengths to ensure that the Danelaw was fully integrated into the Kingdom and his Danish subjects fought at his side.
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Athelstan’s abhorrence of the death penalty is well recorded. One of the last of his laws passed before his death in 940 AD specifically forbade the execution of anyone under the age of sixteen. He also freely pardoned any criminals that repented and showed themselves willing to make amends. One very unusual aspect of his reign was his habit of moving the King’s Court around the Country. He held meetings as far apart as Exeter and York and does not seem to have held Court in the same town any two years running.
Finally, a word about place names: Mældubesburg is Malmesbury, where Athelstan is buried. Grantanbrycg is modern day Cambridge and Colneceaster is Colchester in Essex.
Athelstan is, of course, an historical character. All the rest, and this entire story, are my own imaginings
Louise
- 17.11.2020
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