Ethelred the Unready Totally Explained

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Ethelred II (c. 968 – April 23, 1016), also known as Æthelred II, Aethelred II, Ethelred the Unready, Æthelred the Unready and Aethelred the Unready (from Old English Æþelræd), was King of England (978–1013, and 1014–1016). He was a son of Edgar, King of all England (959–975) and Ælfthryth. The majority of his reign (991–1016) was marked by a developing, defensive war against Danish invaders.

Æþelræd Unræd

Different spellings of this king’s name which are most commonly to be found in modern texts are 'Ethelred', and 'Aethelred', the latter being closer to the original Old English form Æþelræd. However ‘Ethelred’ is perhaps most familiar to the modern eye, and so is used here. His nickname ‘the Unready’ derives from Old English unræd, meaning 'without counsel', 'ill-advised' or 'indecisive'. This can be seen as a pun on his name, Æþelræd, which may be understood to mean 'noble counsel', thus giving rise to a likely understanding of 'Noble counsel, No counsel'. However, this nickname is first recorded in the 1180s, and it's strongly to be doubted that it has any implications for how the king was seen by his contemporaries or near contemporaries.

Early life

According to William of Malmesbury, Ethelred defecated in the baptismal font as a child, which led St. Dunstan to prophesy that the English monarchy would be overthrown during his reign. This story is, however, almost certainly a complete fabrication (a similar story is told of Byzantine Emperor Constantine Copronymus, another medieval monarch who was unpopular among certain of his subjects).
Following the death of his father King Edgar and subsequent murder of his half-brother Edward the Martyr by servants of Ethelred's mother, Ethelred succeeded to the throne at about age ten.

Conflict with the Danes

England had experienced a period of peace after the reconquest of the Danelaw in the mid-10th century. However, a new wave of raids began in 980 and a sizable Danish force began a sustained campaign in 991. During the next quarter of a century England was devastated by a succession of large Danish armies, either under the leadership of King Sweyn I of Denmark or of other commanders such as Olaf Tryggvason and Thorkell the Tall, which Ethelred's government failed to combat effectively. He was only able to halt the depredations of these armies by the payment of large sums of money known as Danegeld. Each payment led to the withdrawal of the Danes, but on each occasion a fresh onslaught began after a year or two, and each Danegeld payment was much larger than the last. Ethelred's most desperate response was the massacre of the Danes living in England on St Brice's Day (November 13) 1002. Finally in 1013 English resistance collapsed and Sweyn conquered the country, forcing Ethelred into exile, but after his victory Sweyn lived for only another five weeks. In 1014, Canute the Great was proclaimed King of England by the Danish army in England, but was forced out of England that year. Canute launched a new invasion in 1015. Subsequently, Ethelred's control of England was already collapsing once again when he died at London on 23 April 1016. Ethelred was buried in St Paul's and was succeeded by his son, Edmund Ironside.

Marriages and issue

Ethelred married first Ælfgifu, daughter of Thored, the ealdorman of York, by whom he'd six sons: Æthelstan Ætheling (died 1011), Edmund Ironside, Ecgberht Ætheling, Eadred Ætheling, Eadwig Ætheling (killed 1017) and Eadgar Ætheling the Elder. They also had as many as four daughters: Edith, who married Eadric Streona, ealdorman of Mercia, and Ælfgifu, who married Uchtred the Bold, ealdorman of Bamburgh. Less certainly there may also have been a daughter named Wulfhild married to Ulfcytel Snillingr, and perhaps a fourth daughter, whose name isn't recorded, who was abbess of Wherwell.
His second marriage, in 1002, was to Emma of Normandy, whose grandnephew, William I of England, would later use this relationship as the basis of his claim on the throne. They had two sons, Eadweard (later King of England and known now as Edward the Confessor) and Ælfred Ætheling. By this marriage, he also had Goda of England, who married Drogo of Mantes, Count of Vexin.

Legacy

Despite the total failure of his government in the face of the Danish threat, Ethelred's reign wasn't without some achievements. The quality of the coinage, a good indicator of the prevailing economic conditions, significantly improved during his reign due to his numerous coinage reform laws.
His formation of an investigative body charged with the duty of accusing no innocent person and sheltering no guilty one is credited as being the historical root of the grand jury.

Cultural references

Ethelred was the subject of a stageplay by Ronald Ribman titled The Ceremony of Innocence. It was first performed in 1968, and depicted interactions between Ethelred and his court, family and advisors, and also with the Danish king.

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