It is also known that Christianity caused conflict in communities as followers of the Norse religion and new Christian religion battled between themselves. So, the reaction of Floki and other characters to the Christian influence of Athelstan also rings true. Edward's heir Athelstan (reigned 925-39) was also a distinguished and audacious soldier who pushed the boundaries of the kingdom to their furthest extent yet. In 927-8, Athelstan took York from the Danes; he forced the submission of king Constantine of Scotland and of the northern kings; all five Welsh kings agreed to pay a huge annual tribute (reportedly including 25,000 oxen), and Athelstan eliminated opposition in Cornwall. As the first king of all the Anglo-Saxon peoples, Æthelstan needed effective means to govern his extended realm. Building on the foundations of his predecessors, he created the most centralised government that England had yet seen. [73] Previously, some charters had been produced by royal priests and others by members of religious houses, but between 928 The most important connection was with the Liudolfing dynasty in East Francia. Otto, who later became Holy Roman Emperor, married Athelstan’s half-sister Eadgyth. Athelstan had sent two sisters, Eadgyth and Edgiva, to Germany. Otto chose the former as his wife.

Anlaf, the pagan king of the Irish and many other islands, incited by his father-in-law Constantine, king of the Scots, entered the mouth of the River Humber with a strong fleet. [35]Awley [i.e. Anlaf], with all the Danes of Dublin and north part of Ireland, departed and went over seas. The Danes that departed from Dublin arrived in England, & by the help of the Danes of that kingdom, they gave battle to the Saxons on the plaines of othlyn, where there was a great slaughter of Normans and Danes. [2] Stenton, Frank M. (2001). Anglo-Saxon England (3rded.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-280139-5.

Constantine retaliated in 937 with the help of the kingdoms of Strathclyde and Dublin, but were defeated at Brunanburgh, the location of which is uncertain and could have been anywhere between southern Scotland and Devon. Many moden historians favour Bromborough on the Wirral as the most likely location. Accompanied by his younger half-brother Edmund, Athelstan routed Constantine, though losses on both sides were heavy.

Athelstan lives with the Vikings and is introduced to their way of life. He can see the value in their ways and beliefs, and so becomes torn between his commitment to his Christian faith and his desire to fully become part of his new community. The location of the battlefield is unknown [18] and has been the subject of lively debate among historians since at least the 17th century. [49] Over forty locations have been proposed, from the southwest of England to Scotland, [50] [51] although most historians agree that a location in northern England is the most plausible. [52] [13] a b Robert Mannyng of Brune. ”Chronicle". In The Battle of Brunanburh. A Casebook. Ed. Michael Livingston. University of Exeter Press. 2011. pp. 126–133 The stone still exists, standing outside the Guildhall at Kingston-upon-Thames, with a silver penny from the reign of each Saxon king set into its plinth.

History of the Parish of Rochdale" (PDF). The Rochdale Press. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 September 2021 . Retrieved 22 September 2019. King Athelstan was the eldest son of Edward the Elder and should have automatically become king at his death in 924 CE. However, due to his problems with the kingdom of Wessex, he was not officially crowned till the next year. His coronation ceremony took place on 4 September 1925 in Kingston upon Thames. He was crowned by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Contemporary chroniclers stated that Athelstan was 30 years old at the time of his coronation, from which we can infer his birth date. Wood, Michael (1999). "Tinsley Wood". In Search of England. London. pp. 203–221. ISBN 9780520225824. {{ cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher ( link) It corresponds closely to the description of the battle in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, but adds that:Breeze, Andrew (2018). Brunanburh Located: The Battlefield and the Poem in Aspects of Medieval English Language and Literature (ed. Michiko Ogura and Hans Sauer). Peter Lang: Berlin. pp.61–80 . Retrieved 27 April 2019. Parker, Joanne. ”The Victorian Imagination". In The Battle of Brunanburh. A Casebook. Ed. Michael Livingston. University of Exeter Press. 2011. pp. 400–401 William of Malmesbury. ”Gesta Regum Anglorum". In The Battle of Brunanburh. A Casebook. Ed. Michael Livingston. University of Exeter Press. 2011. pp. 56–61 Fearing a challenge, Aethelstan banished another brother, Edwin, by setting him adrift in a small boat with no provisions. Legend tells that Edwin drowned himself rather than face starvation. Regretting the whole affair, Aethelstan later turned to charitable efforts, using a portion of the income from each of his estates to support the poor, and reforming the law to make it more fair and lenient on young offenders. He was looked on later as a learned and wise king. Anonymous. ”Annales Cambriae". In The Battle of Brunanburh. A Casebook. Ed. Michael Livingston. University of Exeter Press. 2011. pp. 48–49

He was also a very good military leader. In 926 Athelstan conquered Northumbria, and in the same year he had his sister Edith marry Sihtric, king of Jorvik (York). Sihtric died the next year, allowing Athelstan to take the city of York. Edith was married again to the Holy Roman Emperor, and two other sisters sent to France and Brittany. According to William of Malmesbury it was Owen of Strathclyde who was present at Eamont but the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says Owain of Gwent; it may have been both. [5] The Athelstan that we see on Vikings, played by George Blagden, is an English monk at Lindisfarne in Northumbria. He is taken as a prison by the Vikings when they raided the monastery in 793. Beneath the ealdormen, reeves—royal officials who were noble local landowners—were in charge of a town or royal estate. The authority of church and state was not separated in early medieval societies, and the lay officials worked closely with their diocesan bishop and local abbots, who also attended the king's royal councils. [72] Livingston, Michael (2019). "Has the Battle of Brunanburh battlefield been discovered?". medievalists.net.Anonymous. ”Scottish Chronicle". In The Battle of Brunanburh. A Casebook. Ed. Michael Livingston. University of Exeter Press. 2011. pp. 132–133 Seven Kings Must Die introduced a very different Athelstan from the little boy in The Last Kingdom’s Fifth season despite retaining Harry Gilby to play the character. One of the most interesting things about the boy king was his sexuality. The self-loathing gay king made Athelstan a pitiful character at the beginning of the film, but it has also left many fans wondering whether the real-life Athelstan was gay. Edward married his second wife, Ælfflæd, at about the time of his father's death, probably because Ecgwynn had died, although she may have been put aside. The new marriage weakened Æthelstan's position, as his step-mother naturally favoured the interests of her own sons, Ælfweard and Edwin. [17] By 920 Edward had taken a third wife, Eadgifu, probably after putting Ælfflæd aside. [25] Eadgifu also had two sons, the future kings Edmund and Eadred. Edward had several daughters, perhaps as many as nine. [26]