Alfred of Beverley facts for kids
Alfred of Beverley was an important writer and church official in England during the 1100s. He was a sacrist, which means he was in charge of the church's valuable items and buildings, at the collegiate church of St John the Evangelist and St John of Beverley. Alfred wrote a long history book about Britain and England. It covered everything from the legendary founding of Britain by the Trojan hero Brutus, all the way up to the death of King Henry I in 1135.
Contents
Who Was Alfred of Beverley?
Alfred, also known as Aluredus, was a church official called a sacrist. He worked at the church of St John of Beverley. We know he was active between about 1135 and 1154. He signed official documents for churches and religious houses nearby.
Alfred's Family Life
One interesting document shows Alfred was connected to Rufford Abbey, which was over 60 miles from Beverley. This document also names Ernaldo filio Alueredi as a witness. This suggests that Ernald was Alfred's son. This tells us that Alfred, like many church clerks at the time, had a family.
When Did Alfred Live?
Alfred himself wrote that he lived when King Henry I moved people called Flemings from northern England to south Wales around 1110. Later writings describe him as "an old man, wise in the laws of the church." By about 1157, a different person named Robert was the sacrist of Beverley. This means Alfred likely died before that date. So, it seems Alfred was probably born in the late 1000s.
How Was Alfred Remembered?
In the late 1300s, a book from Beverley called a cartulary described Alfred as "a man of venerable life and an ardent student of the scriptures." This means he was seen as a respected person who loved to study the Bible. Also, parts of his history book were displayed on wooden panels at York Minster, showing his importance.
Alfred's Main History Book
Alfred's main work is called the History. It tells the story of Britain from its legendary start with the Trojan hero Brutus. It continues up to the death of King Henry I in 1135.
When Was the History Written?
Alfred wrote his History between about 1148 and 1151. He started writing it after Geoffrey of Monmouth published his famous book, Historia Regum Britanniae (History of the Kings of Britain), around 1136. Geoffrey's book caused a lot of discussion at the time.
Alfred's Goal for His History
Alfred first wanted to just pick out the parts of Geoffrey's book that seemed believable. But he ended up trying to fit Geoffrey's history into what people already knew about early British history. He used older, well-known sources like Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica (Ecclesiastical History of the English People).
To do this, Alfred divided Geoffrey's long, 2,000-year story into five different historical periods. These periods make up the first five chapters of his book.
Other Parts of the History Book
Chapters six to nine of Alfred's History talk about the founding of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in England. They also cover how the West Saxon kings became powerful and created the kingdom of England. He also wrote about the wars with the Danes and the arrival of the Normans.
Alfred used three main sources for these later chapters:
- From Lincoln, he used the Historia Anglorum (History of the English) by Henry of Huntingdon.
- From Worcester, he used the Genealogies and Accounts of the Saxon kingdoms from the Chronicle of John of Worcester.
- From Durham, he used the Historia Regum (History of the Kings), which is thought to be by Symeon of Durham.
Other Writings: The Liberties of Beverley
The Beverley Cartulary, a collection of documents, has a section called The Liberties of Beverley. This section says that Master Alfred, the sacrist, collected and translated old rights and privileges of the church of St John of Beverley. These rights were granted by King Æthelstan, who died in 939.
Why is this important?
This cartulary was a very important and expensive book. The church of Beverley created it to protect its rights during a conflict with Archbishop Alexander Neville. The fact that Alfred's name is attached to this important text shows that he was remembered as a scholar. He could translate old documents from English into Latin. He was also seen as a historian who collected and wrote down old stories and traditions.
Why Alfred's History is Important Today
For a long time, historians didn't pay much attention to Alfred's History. Some even called it "worthless" or its author "a dullard." This was because much of it was taken from other writers. About 90% of his book comes from other sources.
Alfred's Originality
However, Alfred's work was actually quite clever and important. He found a new way to present Geoffrey of Monmouth's legendary history. He divided it into periods, and this idea was later used by other important historians like Ranulf Higden in his famous book, Polychronicon. This idea then spread to other books and even into Tudor history writing.
Connecting Different Stories
In chapter six of his History, Alfred skillfully combined information from different sources. He used Geoffrey of Monmouth, Bede, Henry of Huntingdon, John of Worcester, and Symeon of Durham. He used these to tell the story of two big changes in Britain:
- How power shifted from the British kings to the Anglo-Saxon kings.
- How the many Anglo-Saxon kingdoms became one kingdom of England under the West Saxon kings.
Alfred's use of different sources shows how historians in England shared texts and ideas in the 1100s. It was like they had "historical workshops" where they worked together. Alfred used texts from Worcester, Durham, and Lincoln, showing this sharing continued around 1150.
How Geoffrey of Monmouth Was Received
Alfred's History also gives us clues about how people first reacted to Geoffrey of Monmouth's book. Alfred sometimes openly criticized Geoffrey's stories. He left out some parts of Geoffrey's work and compared Geoffrey's events to what other standard historians said. This shows that Alfred had doubts about how true all of Geoffrey's stories were.
Influence of Henry of Huntingdon
Alfred also used Henry of Huntingdon's Historia Anglorum a lot. Henry's book seems to have been a model for Alfred's own work. Alfred borrowed ideas, structure, and even language from Henry. For example, Alfred's description of Britain at the start of his book was mostly taken from Henry's work.
Importance of John of Worcester
Borrowings from the Chronicle of John of Worcester were also very important. The family trees and stories of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in John of Worcester's book helped Alfred understand the Anglo-Saxon past. Alfred's History presents the kingdom of England as starting with King Æthelstan. This idea comes directly from his Worcester source.
Using the Durham HR
About 30% of Alfred's History comes from the Durham HR. This is important because Alfred used an older version of the HR than the one that survived. This gives us rare information about how the HR text developed over time. Alfred's use of the HR also shows what a church writer like him was interested in. He left out many church-related parts but kept more worldly stories. This reminds us that the interests of the church officials in Beverley were different from the monks in Durham.
Works
- The History of Alfred of Beverley (published 2023)
- Aluredi Beverlacensis Annales, sive Historia de Gestis Regum Britanniae Libris IX (published 1716)
