A Marker of Identity

The Medieval Discourse on King Æthelstan of England

Abstract

The English king Athelstan/Æthelstan (r. 924-939) is mentioned in several Old Norse-Icelandic texts. In Fagrskinna and Heimskringla he makes an appearance as the foster father of Hákon, the son of King Haraldur fairhair. Æthelstan also appears in Egils saga Skallagrímsonar in the narration of the Battle of Brunanburh between Æthelstan and the Scottish King. In this article accounts in Old Norse-Icelandic are placed in the context of an earlier tradition about this Anglo-Saxon king. Æthelstan is now considered the first medieval king of England. He also made claims to rule all of the British Isles. The Battle of Brunanburh secured Æthelstan’s reputation as a great warrior king. Echoes of it appear in Icelandic narratives composed 300 years after Æthelstan’s death. Æthelstan also had a reputation as a Christian king, and this image is reflected in Old Norse-Icelandic sources, which indicate that Hákon supported Christianity under the influence of his Christian foster father King Æthelstan. Stories of Æthelstan as a foster father of kings circulated on the continent for over two centuries before Æthelstan makes an appearance in sagas about Danish and Norwegian kings written in Latin. Some of what is said about him there is clearly learned fabrication, but other material is not found in earlier sources and is not possible to either prove or disprove. Æthelstan was a well-known marker, whom writers of the Kings’ sagas could use to evoke an image of tenth-century society that suited their purposes.