KING ALFRED was the fourth son of Ethelwulf and he ruled England from April 871 AD until his death in 899 AD
He was an educated and intelligent man and had first visited the Pope in Rome with his father when he was a young boy.
His early reign was much troubled by Danish invaders and it was whilst seeking refuge in a swineherd's home that he was berated by the wife of the house for burning the cakes she had set him to watch.
In 878 he gained a great victory over the invaders at the Battle of Edington and drove them back to the eastern-most corners of the country; an area that became known as the Danelaw.
During the more peaceful years that followed he consolidated his kingdom and established what was perhaps the first embryo parliament in England.
He died on 26th October 899 and was buried at Winchester.
His splendid statue in Winchester marks the start and finish of the South Downs Way National Trail.
