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06 - Life of Alfred the Great by Bishop of Sherbourne Asser · Life of Alfred the Great

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Speaker 1: Part two, Section two of the Life of King Alfred.
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Speaker 1: This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
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Speaker 1: the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
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Speaker 1: visit LibriVox dot org. The Life of King Alfred by Asser,
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Speaker 1: Bishop of Sherborne, translated by J. A. Giles, Part two,
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Speaker 1: Section two. At that time and long before, all the
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Speaker 1: countries on the right hand side of Britain belonged to
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Speaker 1: King Alfred, and still belonged to him. For instance, King Hemeid,
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Speaker 1: with all the inhabitants of the region of Dmitia, compelled
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Speaker 1: by the violence of the six sons of Rotrie, had
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Speaker 1: submitted to the dominion of the King. Howell, also son
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Speaker 1: of Rhys, King of Glegeising, and Brachmaeil and Fernmaeil, sons
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Speaker 1: of Morich, kings of Gwent, compelled by the violence and
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Speaker 1: tyranny of Earl Ethered and of the Mercians of their
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Speaker 1: own accord, sought King Alfred that they might enjoy his
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Speaker 1: government and protection from him against their enemies. Hellas said,
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Speaker 1: also son of Tender, King of Brecon, compelled by the
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Speaker 1: force of the same sons of Rotrie, of his own accord,
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Speaker 1: sought the government of the aforesaid King, and Anaroud, son
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Speaker 1: of Rotrie, with his brother, at length, abandoning the friendship
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Speaker 1: of the Northumbrians, from which he received no good but harm,
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Speaker 1: came into King Alfred's presence and eagerly sought his friendship.
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Speaker 1: The King received him honorably, received him as his son
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Speaker 1: by confirmation from the bishop's hand, and presented him with
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Speaker 1: many gifts. Thus he became subject to the King with
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Speaker 1: all his people, on the same condition that he should
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Speaker 1: be obedient to the King's will in all respects, in
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Speaker 1: the same way as ethered with the Mercians. Nor was
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Speaker 1: it in vain that all these princes gained the friendship
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Speaker 1: of the king. For those who desired to augment their
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Speaker 1: worldly power obtained power. Those who desired money gained money,
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Speaker 1: And in like way those who desired his friendship, or
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Speaker 1: both money and friendship succeeded in getting what they wanted.
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Speaker 1: But all of them gained his love and guardianship and
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Speaker 1: defense from every quarter, even as the King with his
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Speaker 1: men could protect himself. When therefore I had come into
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Speaker 1: his presence at the royal ville called Leonaford, I was
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Speaker 1: honorably received by him, and remained that time with him
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Speaker 1: at his court, eight months, during which I read to
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Speaker 1: him whatever books he liked and such as he had
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Speaker 1: at hand, for this is his most usual custom, both
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Speaker 1: night and day, amid his many other occupations of mind
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Speaker 1: and body, either himself to read books or to listen
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Speaker 1: whilst others read them. And when I frequently asked his
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Speaker 1: leave to depart, and could in no way obtain it
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Speaker 1: at length, when I had made up my mind by
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Speaker 1: all means to demand it, he called me to him
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Speaker 1: at twilight on Christmas Eve and gave me two letters,
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Speaker 1: in which was a long list of all the things
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Speaker 1: which were in two monasteries called in Saxon, Ambersbury and Banwell.
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Speaker 1: And on that same day he delivered to me those
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Speaker 1: two monasteries, with all the things that were in them,
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Speaker 1: and a silken pall of great value, and a load
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Speaker 1: for a strong man of incense, adding these words that
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Speaker 1: he did not give me these trifling presents because he
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Speaker 1: was unwilling hereafter to give me greater, For in the
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Speaker 1: course of time he unexpectedly gave me Exeter with all
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Speaker 1: the diocese which belonged to him in Saxony and in Cornwall,
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Speaker 1: besides gifts every day without number, in every kind of
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Speaker 1: worldly wealth, which it would be too long to enumerate here,
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Speaker 1: lest they should make my reader tired. But let no
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Speaker 1: one suppose that I have mentioned these presents in this
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Speaker 1: place for the sake of glory or flattery, or to
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Speaker 1: obtain greater honor. I call God to witness that I
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Speaker 1: have not done so, but that I might certify to
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Speaker 1: those who are ignorant, how profuse he is in giving.
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Speaker 1: He then at once gave me permission to ride to
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Speaker 1: those two rich monasteries, and afterwards to return to my
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Speaker 1: own country. In the year of our Lord's incarnation eight
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Speaker 1: hundred eighty six, which was the thirty eighth since the
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Speaker 1: birth of Alfred, the army so often before mentioned again
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Speaker 1: fled the country and went into the country of the
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Speaker 1: western Francs, directing their ship to the river called the Seine,
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Speaker 1: and sailed up it as far as the city of Paris,
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Speaker 1: and there they wintered and measured out their camp. They
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Speaker 1: besieged that city a whole year, as far as the bridge,
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Speaker 1: that they might prevent the inhabitants from making use of it,
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Speaker 1: For the city is situated on a small island in
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Speaker 1: the middle of the river, but by the merciful favor
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Speaker 1: of God and the brave defense of citizens, the army
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Speaker 1: could not force their way inside the walls. In the
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Speaker 1: same year, Alfred, King of the Anglo Saxons, after the
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Speaker 1: burning of the cities and the slaying of the people,
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Speaker 1: honorably rebuilt the city of London and made it again habitable.
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Speaker 1: He gave it into the custody of his son in law,
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Speaker 1: ethered Earl of Mercia, to which king all the Angles
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Speaker 1: and Saxons, who before had been dispersed everywhere or were
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Speaker 1: in captivity with the Pagans, voluntarily turned and submitted themselves
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Speaker 1: to his dominion. Note. The whole of this paragraph concerning
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Speaker 1: Oxford is thought to be an interpolation, because it is
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Speaker 1: not known to have existed in more than one manuscript copy.
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Speaker 1: End of note. In the same year, there arose a
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Speaker 1: foul and deadly discord at Oxford between Grimbald with those
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Speaker 1: learned men whom he had brought with him, and the
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Speaker 1: old scholars whom he had found there, who, on his
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Speaker 1: arrival refused altogether to embrace the laws, modes, and forms
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Speaker 1: of prelection instituted by the same Grimbald. During three years
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Speaker 1: there had been no great dissension between them, but there
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Speaker 1: was a secret enmity which afterwards broke out with great atrocity,
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Speaker 1: clearer than the light itself. To appease this quarrel, that
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Speaker 1: Invincible King Alfred, having been informed of the strife by
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Speaker 1: a messenger from Grimbald, went to Oxford to put an
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Speaker 1: end to the controversy, and endured much trouble in hearing
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Speaker 1: the arguments and complaints which were brought forwards on both sides.
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Speaker 1: The substance of the dispute was this. The old scholars
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Speaker 1: contended that literature had flourished at Oxford before the coming
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Speaker 1: of Grimbald, although the number of scholars was smaller than
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Speaker 1: an ancient time because several had been driven away by
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Speaker 1: the cruelty and tyranny of the Pagans. They also proved
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Speaker 1: and showed, by the undoubted testimony of ancient annals, that
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Speaker 1: the orders and institutions of that place had been sanctioned
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Speaker 1: by certain pious and learned men, as for instance, by
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Speaker 1: Saint Gildas melchinusnineus Kentigern, and others, who had all grown
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Speaker 1: old there in literature and happily administered everything there in
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Speaker 1: peace and concord, so that Saint Germanus had come to
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Speaker 1: Oxford and stopped there half a year at the time
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Speaker 1: when he went through Britain to preach against the Pelagian heresy,
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Speaker 1: he wonderfully approved of the customs and institutions above mentioned.
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Speaker 1: The King, with unheard of humility, listened to both sides
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Speaker 1: carefully and exhorted them again and again with pious and
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Speaker 1: wholesome admonitions to cherish mutual love and concord. He therefore
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Speaker 1: left them with this decision that each party should follow
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Speaker 1: their own council and preserve their own institutions. Grimbald, displeased
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Speaker 1: at this, immediately departed to the monastery at Winchester, which
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Speaker 1: had been recently founded by King Alfred, and ordered a
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Speaker 1: tomb to be carried to Winchester, in which he proposed,
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Speaker 1: after this life that his bones should be laid in
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Speaker 1: the vault which had been made under the chancel of
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Speaker 1: Saint Peter's Church in Oxford, which church the same same
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Speaker 1: Grimbald had built from its foundations of stone, polished with
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Speaker 1: great care. Note Hyde Abbey, end of note. In the
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Speaker 1: year of our Lord's incarnation eight hundred eighty seven, which
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Speaker 1: was the thirty ninth of King Alfred's life. The above
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Speaker 1: mentioned army of the Pagans, leaving the city of Paris
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Speaker 1: uninjured because they could not succeed against it, sailed up
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Speaker 1: the River Sene under the bridge until they reached the
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Speaker 1: mouth of the river Materne Marne, where they left the
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Speaker 1: sin and following for a long time the course of
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Speaker 1: the Marne at length, but not without much labor, they
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Speaker 1: arrived at a place called Cheese, a royal ville, where
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Speaker 1: they wintered one year. In the following year they entered
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Speaker 1: the mouth of the river Iona Yun, not without doing
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Speaker 1: much damage to the country, and there remained one year
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Speaker 1: in the In the same year, Charles, King of the Franks,
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Speaker 1: went the way of all flesh. But Arnulf, his brother's son,
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Speaker 1: six weeks before he died, had expelled him from his kingdom.
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Speaker 1: After his death, five kings were appointed, and the kingdom
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Speaker 1: was split into five parts. But the principal rank in
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Speaker 1: the kingdom justly and deservedly devolved on Arnulf, save only
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Speaker 1: that he committed an unworthy offense against his uncle. The
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Speaker 1: other four kings promised fidelity in obedience to Arnulf, as
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Speaker 1: was proper, for none of these four kings was hereditary
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Speaker 1: on his father's side in his share of the kingdom,
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Speaker 1: as was Arnulf. Therefore, though the five kings were appointed
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Speaker 1: immediately on the death of Charles, yet the empire remained
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Speaker 1: in the hands of Arnulf. Such then was the division
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Speaker 1: of the kingdom. Arnulf received the countries on the east
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Speaker 1: of the river Rhine, Rodolf, the inner parts of the
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Speaker 1: king Kingdom Oda, the western part Bjargar and Guido, Lombardy,
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Speaker 1: and those countries which are in that part of the mountains.
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Speaker 1: But they did not keep these large dominions in peace,
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Speaker 1: for they twice fought a pitched battle, and often mutually
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Speaker 1: ravaged their kingdoms and drove each other out of their dominions.
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Speaker 1: In the same year in which that pagan army left
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Speaker 1: Paris and went to Cheesi, ethel Helm, Earl of Wiltshire,
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Speaker 1: carried to Rome the alms of King Alfred and of
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Speaker 1: the Saxons. In the same year, Alfred, king of the
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Speaker 1: Anglo Saxons, so often before mentioned by divine inspiration, began
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Speaker 1: on one and the same day to read and to interpret.
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Speaker 1: But that I may explain this more fully to those
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Speaker 1: who are ignorant. I will relate the cause of this
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Speaker 1: long delay in beginning on a certain day, we were
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Speaker 1: both of us sitting in the King's chamber, talking on
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Speaker 1: all kinds of subjects, as usual, and it happened that
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Speaker 1: I read to him a quotation out of a certain book.
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Speaker 1: He heard it attentively with both his ears, and addressed
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Speaker 1: me with a thoughtful mind, showing me at the same
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Speaker 1: moment a book which he carried in his bosom, wherein
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Speaker 1: the daily courses and psalms and prayers which he had
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Speaker 1: read in his youth were written, and he commanded me
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Speaker 1: to write the same quotation in that book. Hearing this,
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Speaker 1: and perceiving his ingenuous benevolence and devout desire of studying
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Speaker 1: the words of divine wisdom, I gave, though in secret,
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Speaker 1: boundless thanks to Almighty God who had implanted such a
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Speaker 1: love of wisdom in the King's heart. But I could
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Speaker 1: not find any empty space in that book wherein to
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Speaker 1: write the quotation, for it was already full of various matters.
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Speaker 1: Wherefore I made a little delay, principally that I might
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Speaker 1: stir up the bright intellect of the King to a
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Speaker 1: higher acquaintance with the divine testimonies. Upon his urging me
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Speaker 1: to make haste and write it quickly, I said to him,
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Speaker 1: are you willing that I should write that quotation on
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Speaker 1: some leaf apart? For it is not certain whether we
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Speaker 1: shall not find one or more other such extracts which
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Speaker 1: will please you, And if that should so happen, we
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Speaker 1: shall be glad that we have kept them apart. Your
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Speaker 1: plan is good, said he, and I gladly made haste
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Speaker 1: to get ready a sheet in the beginning of which
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Speaker 1: I wrote what he bade me. And on that same
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Speaker 1: day I wrote therein as I had anticipated, no less
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Speaker 1: than three other quotations which pleased him. And from that
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Speaker 1: time we daily talked together and found out other quotations
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Speaker 1: which pleased him, so that the sheet became full, and
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Speaker 1: deservedly so. According as it is written, the just man
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Speaker 1: builds upon a moderate foundation and by degrees passes to
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Speaker 1: greater things. Thus, like a most productive bee, he flew
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Speaker 1: here and there, asking questions as he went, until he
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Speaker 1: had eagerly and unceasingly collected many various flowers of divine scriptures,
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Speaker 1: with which he thickly stored the cells of his mind. Now,
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Speaker 1: when that first quotation was copied. He was eager at
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Speaker 1: once to read and to interpret in Saxon, and then
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Speaker 1: to teach others. Even as we read of that happy
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Speaker 1: robber who recognized his Lord I, the Lord of all men,
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Speaker 1: as he was hanging on the blessed cross, and saluting
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Speaker 1: him with his bodily eyes, only because elsewhere he was
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Speaker 1: all pierced with nails, cried, Lord, remember me when thou
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Speaker 1: comest into thy kingdom. For it was only at the
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Speaker 1: end of his life that he began to learn the
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Speaker 1: rudiments of the Christian faith. But the King, inspired by God,
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Speaker 1: began to study the rudiments of divine lis Scripture on
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Speaker 1: the sacred Solemnity of Saint Martin November eleventh, And he
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Speaker 1: continued to learn the flowers collected by certain masters, and
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Speaker 1: to reduce them into the form of one book, as
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Speaker 1: he was then able, although mixed one with another, until
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Speaker 1: it became almost as large as assalter. This book he
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Speaker 1: called his n Caridian or manual, because he carefully kept
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Speaker 1: it at hand day and night, and found, as he
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Speaker 1: told me, no small consolation therein. But as has already
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Speaker 1: been written by a certain wise man of watchful minds,
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Speaker 1: are they whose pious care it is to govern well,
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Speaker 1: So must I be watchful in that I just now
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Speaker 1: drew a kind of comparison or similarity, though in dissimilar manner,
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Speaker 1: between that happy robber and the King. For the cross
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Speaker 1: is hateful to every one wherever there is suffering. But
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Speaker 1: what can he do if he can not save himself
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Speaker 1: or escape? Thence, or by what art can he remain
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Speaker 1: there and improve his cause? He must, therefore, whether he
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Speaker 1: will or no, endure with pain and sorrow that which
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Speaker 1: he is suffering. Now. The King was pierced with many
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Speaker 1: nails of tribulation, though placed in the royal seat. For
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Speaker 1: from the twentieth year of his age to the present year,
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Speaker 1: which is his fortieth, he has been constantly afflicted with
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Speaker 1: the most severe attacks of an unknown complaint, so that
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Speaker 1: he has not a moment's ease, either from suffering the
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Speaker 1: pain which it causes, or from the gloom which is
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Speaker 1: thrown over him by the apprehension of its coming. Note
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Speaker 1: this must consequently have been written in a D. Eight
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Speaker 1: hundred eighty eight end of note. Moreover, the constant invasions
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Speaker 1: of foreign nations by which he was continually harassed by
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Speaker 1: land and sea, without any interval of quiet or a
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Speaker 1: just cause of disquiet. What shall I say of his
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Speaker 1: repeated expeditions against the Pagans, his wars, and incessant occupations
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Speaker 1: of government, of the daily embassies sent to him by
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Speaker 1: foreign nations from the Tirrhenian Sea to the farthest end
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Speaker 1: of Ireland. Note wise conjectures that we ought to read
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Speaker 1: Hiberiae Spain and not HIBERNIAI Ireland in this passage. End
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Speaker 1: of note, For we have seen and read letters accompanied
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Speaker 1: with presents, which were sent to him by Abel, the
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Speaker 1: Patriarch of Jerusalem. What shall I say of the cities
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Speaker 1: and towns which he restored, and of others which he
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Speaker 1: built where none had been before, Of the royal halls
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Speaker 1: and chambers wonderfully erected by his command with stone and wood,
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Speaker 1: of the royal villes constructed of stone, removed from their
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Speaker 1: old site, and handsomely rebuilt by the King's command in
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Speaker 1: more fitting places. Besides the disease above mentioned, he was
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Speaker 1: disturbed by the quarrels of his friends, who would voluntarily
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Speaker 1: endure little or no toil, though it was for the
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Speaker 1: common necessity of the kingdom. But he alone sustained by
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Speaker 1: the divine aid, like a skillful pilot, strove to steer
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Speaker 1: his ship, laden with much wealth, into the safe and
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Speaker 1: much desired harbor of his country, though almost all his
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Speaker 1: crew were tired, and suffered them not to faint or hesitate,
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Speaker 1: though sailing amid the manifold waves, and at ease of
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Speaker 1: this present life. For all his bishops, earls, nobles, favorite ministers,
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Speaker 1: and prefects, who, next to God and the King had
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Speaker 1: the whole government of the kingdom as his fitting, continually
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Speaker 1: received from him instruction, respect, exhortation, and command. Nay, at last,
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Speaker 1: when they were disobedient and his long patience was exhausted,
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Speaker 1: he would reprove them severely and censure at pleasure their
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Speaker 1: vulgar folly and obstinacy. And in this way he directed
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Speaker 1: their attention to the common interests of the kingdom. But
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Speaker 1: owing to the sluggishness of the people, these admonitions of
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Speaker 1: the King were either not fulfilled or were begun late
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Speaker 1: at the moment of necessity, and so ended less to
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Speaker 1: the advantage of those who put them in execution. For
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Speaker 1: I will say nothing of the castles which he ordered
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Speaker 1: to be built, but which being begun late, were never
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Speaker 1: finished because the hostile troops broke in upon them by
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Speaker 1: land and sea, And as often happened, the thwarters of
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Speaker 1: the Royal ordinances, repented when it was too late, and
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Speaker 1: blushed at their non performance of his commands. I speak
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Speaker 1: of repentance when it is too late, on the testimony
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Speaker 1: of scripture, whereby numberless persons have had cause for too
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Speaker 1: much sorrow, when many insidious evils have been wrought. But
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Speaker 1: though by these means sad to say, they may be
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Speaker 1: bitterly afflicted and roused to sorrow by the loss of fathers, wives, children, ministers,
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Speaker 1: servant men, servant maids, and furniture and household stuff. What
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Speaker 1: is the use of hateful repentance when their kinsmen are dead,
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Speaker 1: and they cannot aid them or redeem those who are
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Speaker 1: captive from captivity? For they are not able even to
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Speaker 1: assist those who have escaped, as they have not wherewith
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Speaker 1: to sustain even their own lives. They repented therefore when
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Speaker 1: it was too late, and grieved at their incautious neglect
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Speaker 1: of the King's commands. And they praised the royal wisdom
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Speaker 1: with one voice, and tried with all their power to
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Speaker 1: fulfill what they had before refused, namely concerning the erection
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Speaker 1: of castles and other things generally useful to the whole kingdom.
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Speaker 1: End of Part two, Section two