ETHELRED I

d. 871, King of the W. Saxons. H ewas the son of Ethelwulf and elder brother of Ailfred. It was in his reign that the Danes first attempted to make settlements in England, their previous incursions being merely for under. He conquered them at Read and Ashdown, and was conquered by them at Merton, where he was wounded fatally. the Unready’ (lacking in ‘rede’ or counsel). He succeeeded his half-brother, Eadward the Martyr (978.) At first he tried to repulse the Norsemen by bribery, but finally he ma acred the Danes (1002) in time of peace in a brutal manner, which led Sveyn to gather a large force to avenge the slaughter, when E. was conquered and obliged to flee to Normandy, his father-in-law being the duke. He was recalled by his former subjects in 1014, which was the year of the death of Sveyn.