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Home / People / Æthelstan

Historical person

Æthelstan

895–939

Æthelstan was king of the Anglo-Saxons and is often treated as the first king of a unified England. His victory at Brunanburh in 937 and his control over much of Britain made his reign a key point in the formation of English kingship after the Viking age.

In Tim Hodkinson’s Blood Eagle, Einar and the Wolf Coats have entered the court of Æthelstan after becoming disillusioned with events in Norway. In Tim Hodkinson’s Eye of the Raven, Einar commands a warband for Æthelstan but remains distrusted as a Norseman in an English king’s service. Other novels featuring Æthelstan include Bernard Cornwell’s Sword of Kings, M J Porter’s The Last Viking, Bernard Cornwell’s War Lord, M J Porter’s King of Kings, and Bernard Cornwell’s War of the Wolf.

In non-fiction, Æthelstan is discussed in M J Porter’s Clash of Kings and M J Porter’s Kings of War. M J Porter’s Clash of Kings approaches the subject through court politics and dynastic power and family, marriage and personal loyalty.

Historical context

Historical periods linked to Æthelstan

Viking Age 1066 CE

Series

Series featuring Æthelstan (4 series)

The Last Kingdom in Order

by Bernard Cornwell 13 books 4.4

The Last Kingdom series follows Uhtred of Bebbanburg, a Saxon nobleman raised by Danes, through the Viking wars and the creation of a united English kingdom. Beginning with the Great Heathen Army’s destruction of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, the novels trace Alfred the Great’s recovery of Wessex and the…

All books in this series

The Whale Road Chronicles in Order

by Tim Hodkinson 8 books 4.4

The Whale Road Chronicles follow the Icelandic warrior and poet Einar Unnsson through the North Atlantic world of the 930s. His journeys connect Iceland, Orkney, Norway, Ireland, Anglo-Saxon England, Francia, al-Andalus and Byzantium as Viking warbands, Christian kings and competing dynasties struggle for control of kingdoms and sea…

All books in this series

The Brunanburh Series in Order

by M J Porter 1 book 4.1

The Brunanburh series traces the struggle to create and preserve a united English kingdom under Æthelstan and his successor Edmund. Moving from Æthelstan's accession through the coalition of Scots, Britons and Dublin Norse defeated at Brunanburh, the novels continue into the renewed wars for York and Northumbria after…

All books in this series

The Kingdom of Mercia: the Ninth Century in Order

by M J Porter 10 books 4.3

The Kingdom of Mercia: the Ninth Century series reimagines the reign of Coelwulf II, Mercia's last independent king, during the Great Heathen Army's conquest of the English kingdoms. Coelwulf and his oath-sworn warriors fight Danish jarls, negotiate uneasily with Alfred of Wessex and attempt to hold together a…

All books in this series

Non Fiction

Non Fiction featuring Æthelstan (2 books)

Biographies, histories and other non-fiction are listed separately from the historical novels above.