Eadric the Grasper: Sons of Mercia: 1

Product Information

Eadric does appear among the thegns in 1007 at St Albans Abbey, [5] in which year he was appointed Ealdorman of Mercia. In a BBC list of the worst Britons in the last 1,000 years Eadric Streona was the choice for the 11th Century.

Edmund assembled an army to resist them but his Mercian forces refused to fight the Danes and disbanded. He appears to have endeared himself to Ethelred II - to whom he was (on the whole) loyal - by arranging the assassinations of his internal opponents.Alfgifu of Northampton did not want to admit that she was nervous, but when she saw the Viking encampment looming ahead, her fear burned in her stomach until she could not ignore it. Meanwhile, despite overwhelming odds, Lale and Gita are able to meet privately from time to time and become lovers. He would not feel good again until he was back in his own stronghold with fresh food at his fingertips, a gleeman to serenade him, and a lovely wife to lead him to bed. In the debut of her Sons of Mercia series, Woods tells a ripped-from-the-chronicles story—most of the characters and major events are factual—with an entertaining blend of period realism and Zorro-ish dazzle. Around the New Year, Eadric accompanied Cnut into Warwickshire, where they plundered, burned and slew all they met.

Although loyal to Ethelred, he had a personal enmity towards Ethelred's son, Edmund Ironside, who favoured a confrontational policy towards the Danes, while Eadric was a major proponent of the payment of Danegeld and the opportunities for corruption it offered.

Edmund went on to assemble a further army and, with the assistance of Uhtred the Bold Earl of Northumbria, plundered Eadric's lands in Staffordshire, Shropshire, and Cheshire. It is simplistic, but good in that Woods explains roles and terms while telling her story without detracting from it. Eadric was a true historical figure of the 11th century and regarded as the greatest traitor of Anglo-Saxon history. Eadgyth was likely Eadric's second wife, for according to Henry of Huntingdon, the son of Eadric Streona was responsible for murdering King Edmund "Ironsides". The chronicler also left a blank space between Ælfric and Goda, as if allowing for the name of another brother.

The crafty and treacherous Eadric Streona, plotting to deceive the noble Ealdorman Ælfhelm, prepared a great feast for him at Shrewsbury at which, when he came as a guest, Eadric greeted him as if he were an intimate friend. Through female prisoners who catalog the belongings confiscated from fellow inmates, Lale gains access to jewels, which he trades to a pair of local villagers for chocolate, medicine, and other items. When all were busy with the hunt, one Godwine Porthund (which means the town dog) a Shrewsbury butcher, whom Eadric had dazzled long before with great gifts and many promises so that he might perpetrate the crime, suddenly leapt out from the ambush, and execrably slew the ealdorman Ælfhelm.cut off the head of a man named Osmear, whose face and hair were very like king Eadmund's, and, holding it up, cried out that it was useless for the English to fight, saying, "Oh! Although loyal to Ethelred, he had a personal enmity towards Ethelred's son Edmund Ironside, who favoured a confrontational policy towards the Danes, while Eadric Streona was a major proponent of the payment of Danegeld (presumably influenced by the opportunities for corruption it offered). A surprisingly easy and quick read considering the epic nature of the novel, "Eadric the Grasper" takes the reader through the twisted journey of an intelligent peasant (a swineherd) . Eadric followed Aethelred and his family back from Normandy and once again set himself up as the king’s enforcer. He was required to declare his loyalty to the noblemen, to bring in reforms regarding everything that they previously disliked, and to forgive all that had been said and done against him in his previous reign.