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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Alfred the Great
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(849–99) King of *Wessex from 871, and the first man to be thought of also as king of all the English. Son of king Aethelwulf of Wessex, he was 16 at the time of the first great Danish invasion, in 865, and the main practical task of his life was preventing the *Danes from overrunning England. It was his success in this – by many victories on land, including the all-important recapture of London in 886, and by building up a navy – which caused him to be accepted as leader by all the *Anglo-Saxons not yet under Danish rule.
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His fame today derives also from his patronage of learning. He had important Latin texts translated into English, and even translated some himself. He was thought of in English tradition as the ideal king; he is described in a 12C text as the 'darling of the English', and he remains the only English ruler to be known as 'the Great'.
The legend of the cakes is first recorded in the 11C. Alfred, after a brush with the Danes, is unrecognized by a cowherd's wife when he takes refuge in her hut. She sets him to watch the cakes, but the great king lets them burn and is roundly scolded.
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