My thanks to Josh Layton who patiently listened while I rabbited on about my favourite subject and then turned my ramblings into such a wonderful article!
It's a shame The Last Kingdom paints Æthelred, Lord of the Mercians, in such a negative way. There really is no evidence for this. He fought many battles against the Vikings and was loyal to King Alfred throughout. He certainly did not manipulate Æthelflæd; she was her own woman from the very beginning, a strong woman, certainly her father's daughter.
Yes indeed Frank. Aethelred is a bit of a hero of mine, and as I said in the interview, he was named as being at several key battles. I think Josh summed it up nicely in the article when he said that while Aethelflaed might be quite pleased with her portrayal, Aethelred would be turning in his grave!
It's a shame The Last Kingdom paints Æthelred, Lord of the Mercians, in such a negative way. There really is no evidence for this. He fought many battles against the Vikings and was loyal to King Alfred throughout. He certainly did not manipulate Æthelflæd; she was her own woman from the very beginning, a strong woman, certainly her father's daughter.
ReplyDeleteYes indeed Frank. Aethelred is a bit of a hero of mine, and as I said in the interview, he was named as being at several key battles. I think Josh summed it up nicely in the article when he said that while Aethelflaed might be quite pleased with her portrayal, Aethelred would be turning in his grave!
DeleteThat's a good interview. I hope it gets lots of readers.
ReplyDeleteThanks April - glad you enjoyed it!
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