Ælfthryth's Plans

Ælfthryth was the first wife of a king of England (Edgar the Peaceable) to be crowned queen herself. She was the third woman (that we know of) with whom Edgar had children. She had two with Edgar: Edmund, who died young, and Æthelred, born c.966.

Edgar had an older son, Edward, born c.962 by his first wife, Æthelflæd. Upon Edgar's death in July 975, the question of succession came down to Edward and Æthelred. Ælfthryth tried to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the marriage to Æthelflæd, trying to convince the nobles and populace that Æthelred was the only legitimate son and therefore should take the throne.

There is some additional evidence supporting Ælfthryth's claim. A charter of 966 lists Ælfthryth  as the "legitimate wife" and Edmund as the "legitimate son," whereas Edward is mentioned as "begotten by the same king."

Neither of the boys had reached his majority—and the evidence suggests that Edward may, indeed, have been born out of wedlock, but by the backing of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dunstan, and the powerful Ealdorman of East Anglia, Æthelwine, Edward was chosen over Æthelred. An account written many decades later claims that Dunstan, seeing the opposition to Edward, pushed forward with declaring Edward king in a drastically abbreviated ceremony. In compensation, Æthelred was given the lands traditionally granted to the king's eldest son. He and his mother retired to Corfe Castle.

After Edgar's support of monastic reform—replacing secular clergy in monasteries with monks following the Rule of St. Benedict—Edward's was a very different reign. One almost-contemporary priest, Byrhtferth, described it thus:

the commonwealth of the entire realm was shaken; bishops were perplexed, ealdormen were angry, monks were struck with fear, the people were terrified, and the secular clerics were made happy, because their time had come. Abbots are now expelled, together with their monks; clerics are brought in together with their wives; and 'the last error was worse than the first'

In light of this, Ælfthryth may have been the savior of the people. In March 978 the king decided to visit his brother at Corfe Castle. When he arrived, he was met at the gate by Ælfthryth and some retainers. Some sources say he was offered a cup by his step-mother to quench his thirst after the ride. He was then pulled from the horse and stabbed by her retainers. It is said his foot was caught in the stirrup, and that his horse bolted and he wa dragged for some distance.

He was 16 years old. The body was buried quickly somewhere nearby. We'll talk about the immediate aftermath tomorrow.