9. Æthelred the Unready

Æthelred's (978-1013, 1014-16) story would be one of turbulence, political intrigue, and the relentless march of fate. The boy who would become king would soon be marked by the legacy of doubt and misfortune, a monarch whose reign would be defined by both his early promise and his later failures. According to William and Malmesbury, he was an accomplice to murder, a coward who fled from danger, a wastrel who died a miserable death.CharactersAethelred - King of England (978-1013, 1014-16)Edward the Martyr - King of England (975-78), half-brother of AethelredEdgar - King of England (959-75), father of Aethelred and EdwardAelfthryth - third wife of Edgar, mother of AethelredAelfgifu - first wife of AethelredEmma of Normandy - second wife of AethelredEdmund Ironside - son of AethelredAethelflaed - first wife of Edgar, mother of EdwardDunstan - Archbishop of Canterbury (959-88)Sigeric - Archbishop of Canterbury (990-94)Aelfheah - Archbishop of Canterbury (1006-12)Wulfstan - Archbishop of YorkAethelwold - Bishop of WinchesterOswald - Bishop of Worcester, Archbishop of YorkAethelwine - Ealderman of East-AngliaAelfhere - Ealdorman of MerciaByrhtnoth - military commanderWulfgeat - favourite of AethelredEadric - nicknamed ‘the grabber’, favourite of AethelredWulfnoth - favourite of AethelredBeorhtic - favourite of AethelredOlaf Tryggvason - King of Norway (995-1000)Sweyn Forkbeard - King of Denmark (986-1014), King of Norway (1000-1014), King of England (1014)Cnut - son of Sweyn ForkbeardRichard I - nicknamed ‘the fearless’, duke of Normandy (942-96)Richard II - nicknamed ‘the good’, duke of Normandy (996-1026)William of Malmesbury - chroniclerJohn of Worcester -chroniclerCreditsMusic: Prepare for War by Alexander Nakarada (https://www.creatorchords.com)Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 Licensehttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Freesounds.org194982__soundmary__wild-horses-running 458113__brunoboselli__countryside733333__haulaway__bag-of-coins-drop231537__vkproduktion__forest-birds-loop-02449652__magnesus__walking-through-forest241824__haldigital97__waves-1