Family
In 868, Alfred married Ealhswith, daughter of a Mercian nobleman, Æthelred Mucil, Ealdorman of the Gaini. The Gaini were probably one of the tribal groups of the Mercians. Ealhswith's mother, Eadburh, was a member of the Mercian royal family.
They had five or six children together, including Edward the Elder, who succeeded his father as king, Æthelflæd, who would become Queen of Mercia in her own right, and Ælfthryth who married Baldwin II the Count of Flanders. His mother was Osburga daughter of Oslac of the Isle of Wight, Chief Butler of England. Asser, in his Vita Ælfredi asserts that this shows his lineage from the Jutes of the Isle of Wight. This is unlikely as Bede tells us that they were all slaughtered by the Saxons under Cædwalla. In 2008 the skeleton of Queen Eadgyth, granddaughter of Alfred the Great was found in Magdeburg Cathedral in Germany. It was confirmed in 2010 that these remains belong to her — one of the earliest members of the English royal family.
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Æthelflæd | 918 | Married 889, Æthelred, Ealdorman of Mercia d 910; had issue | |
| Edward | 870 | 17 July 924 | Married (1) Ecgwynn, (2) Ælfflæd, (3) 919 Eadgifu |
| Æthelgifu | Abbess of Shaftesbury | ||
| Æthelweard | 16 October 922(?) | Married and had issue | |
| Ælfthryth | 929 | Married Baldwin II; (1) Arnulf I of Flanders, (2) Adalulf, (3) Ealswid, (4) Ermentrud |
Read more about this topic: Alfred The Great
Famous quotes containing the word family:
“If family violence teaches children that might makes right at home, how will we hope to cure the futile impulse to solve worldly conflicts with force?”
—Letty Cottin Pogrebin (20th century)
“In the family sandwich, the older people and the younger ones can recognize one another as the bread. Those in the middle are, for a time, the meat.”
—Anna Quindlen (b. 1952)
“The touchstone for family life is still the legendary “and so they were married and lived happily ever after.” It is no wonder that any family falls short of this ideal.”
—Salvador Minuchin (20th century)