The Royal Women Who Made England: The Tenth Century in Saxon England

by M.J. Porter

Read all about the royal women who were powerful in their own right, as well as through their husbands, sons, and grandsons.

Throughout the tenth century, England, as it would be recognized today, formed. No longer many Saxon kingdoms, but rather, just England. Yet, this development masks much in the century in which the Viking raiders were seemingly driven from England’s shores by Alfred, his children and grandchildren, only to return during the reign of his great, great-grandson, the much-maligned Æthelred II.

Not one but two kings would be murdered, others would die at a young age, and a child would be named king on four occasions. Two kings would never marry, and a third would be forcefully divorced from his wife. Yet, the development towards ‘England’ did not stop. At no point did it truly fracture back into its constituent parts. Who then ensured this stability? To whom did the witan turn when kings died, and children were raised to the kingship?

The royal woman of the House of Wessex came into prominence during the century, perhaps the most well-known being Æthelflæd, daughter of King Alfred. Perhaps the most maligned being Ælfthryth (Elfrida), accused of murdering her stepson to clear the path to the kingdom for her son, Æthelred II, but there were many more women, rich and powerful in their own right, where their names and landholdings can be traced in the scant historical record.

Using contemporary source material, The Royal Women Who Made England can be plucked from the obscurity that has seen their names and deeds lost, even within a generation of their own lives.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Feminism, Biography, British Literature, Medieval, Historical

317 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 18, 2024

About the author

I'm an author of historical fiction (Early English (before 1066)/Viking) and now five 20th-century mysteries..

The Eagle of Mercia Chronicles (featuring a young Icel from The Last King series) is now available from Boldwood Books. As is the complete Brunanburh Series and the first two books in the Dark Age Chronicles, my foray to before Saxon England was Saxon England. Enjoy.

The Ninth Century Series (The Last King), are stories of ninth-century England, but not as it's been written before, (featuring an older Icel and some other familiar faces too).

The Erdington Mysteries now has a third book in the series—The Secret Sauce. (Did you know Erdington would have been in Mercia back in the Saxon period? I know, you can't get me away from the place.) The Barrage Body is coming soon.

The Royal Women Who Made England, my first non-fiction book about the royal women of the tenth century, is available now.

I like to write. You've been warned.

Find me at
www.mjporterauthor.com or at www.mjporterauthor.blog where I blog about books and films and sometimes, writing!
https://linktr.ee/MJPorterauthor
https://mjporterauthor.sumupstore.com

You can join my monthly subscriber newsletters and gain access to the restricted page on my blog at the same time.
https://BookHip.com/MGWHLDC (Saxon stories)
https://BookHip.com/THPKCKP (mysteries only)


(I have odd reading tastes - there's no need to notice though!!) I'm also exceedingly anti-social - that you may notice but must accept!

Reviews

[Elizabeth McFarland · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this is clearly well researched, and the author obviously cares deeply about the subject matter, it was a little hard to get through. There were just so many details and so much information that it was confusing at times. I loved the idea of this book, but it might have been too ambitious. Maybe if there had been fewer women focused on their stories, they might have been more distinct.

I did enjoy learning about the time period and many women that I'd not heard of before.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

[Christine Cazeneuve · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want to learn more about the people who formed England, this is the book for you. It sounds like it's about the women but it does address the men heavily where little is known about the women during that period. It's well constructed, interesting and educational. The author put alot into this and I will definitely be adding to my hardcopy library! Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion

[Janalyn, the blind reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love MJ porters historical fiction warrior books because unlike most other authors this author gives women the most pivotal role or as much as she can and in this book The Royal Women Who Made England The author does her best to tell as much of their life story as one can be privy to and although in most cases it is only in her relation to a man it is still an interesting read. Also I don’t think any of these names will become household vernacular because they all sound similar I still recognized a lot of them from her books and new the first half due to reading those but the rest was still a treat. I love history especially medieval and before and so I was super excited to read this book. although some parts can read like a textbook I still totally enjoyed it and highly recommend it. I want to thank Penn and Sword press and Net Galley for my free Ark copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

[Patti Fay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you for an ARC of this book for an honest review.

If you are looking for an in-depth breakdown of the Royal Women this is the book for you. It is NOT a light read but is very informational if you like minute details about the women, queens, sisters, daughters, and nuns of the Medieval times. It might be beneficial if you have read previous books of the author to familiarize yourself with the typical names of the times since they seem to blend and sound the same. Ex: Aethelred, Aethelflaed, Aelfwynn, Aethelstan.

The one thing I like about the author is that the information is factual rather than having "thoughts and feelings" listed that no one could know. The women are also tied to the men for whom they are associated and reference the specific manuscripts where the information was gleaned.

I can't say I need to read this book again simply because it covers such a large selection of information. This is more in line with a textbook style or historical edition not relaxed reading.

[Melisende]

MJ Porter brings to life some of the many royal women who inhabited 10th Century Anglo Saxon England. As the author of a number of historical fiction books set in this era, it should come as no surprise that this tome should be the germination of much of that self-same research.

"The Royal Women Who Made England" covers are number of areas such as royal brides, religious women, and women who have married into the royal family from areas both within and without England. There is a handy group of resources from family trees to wills and charters, and the women covered off stem from King Alfred unto Aethelred II.

Full review here @ Melisende's Library

[Georgi_Lvs_Books]

‘The (PASE), a database of every known name from the period, 33,981 male names are listed. There are only 1,460 female names for the 600-year period of Saxon England, so only 4 per cent of entries are women.’

This personally didn’t work for me, I just wasn’t engaged in the history or characters. Nothing against the author who has done a great amount of research and importance in sharing/talking about the lives of these women from the tenth century.

An ideal read if you are interested in women of history and the Saxon period.

[Jamie Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

I crave books that go over the history of women and people of color. It is as if recorded history has forgotten them. So I picked this up.
I was a little disappointed to find that this book covers the history of men and then the women in relation to them. I was still impressed with the research. We can't do more than write about women in the context of their relationships with men because history didn't' record them as more than that.
This book does go over these facts and complications. Only 4 percent of women's names are even recorded!
I absolutely love this.
We need more of this.

[April · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is more like an encyclopedia entry (a very long one), with long quotes from the sources that are useful for academics but boring for people with a more casual interest. I don’t know much about this period, and I know only a little more because this timeline was super hard to follow. There’s not much of a narrative here either so if you’re looking for an overview or rye history of this period, this is not the book for it

[Heidi Malagisi · Rating 4 out of 5]

When we think about England, we often think about a unified country with an illustrious history of wars and triumphs. However, England in the 10th century was drastically different. It was barely a country as it was newly formed through politics, but it faced the risk of elimination with a carousel of kings and Viking raiders. Some of the most notable kings of this era include Alfred, Edward the Elder, Athelstan, Edward the Martyr, and Aethelred II, but the most fascinating figures of this time were the women who were hidden in the shadows of the past. M.J. Porter uses the written record from the 10th and 11th centuries to tell the tales of these remarkable women in her book, “The Royal Women Who Made England: The Tenth Century in Saxon England.”

I would like to thank Pen and Sword Books and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. I have heard of M.J. Porter and her historical fiction novels ( I even hosted her for a guest post on my blog), but I had never read her books. I saw this particular title and I was curious as the history of 10th century England is a weak area in my historical research and I wanted to know more about the royal women who lived during this era.

Porter begins by explaining the concept of the long 10th century in England, which starts with the death of King Alfred in 899 to the death of Lady Elfrida in 1001/1002. In that span, ten kings reigned: Alfred, Edward the Elder, Aethelweard, Athelstan, Edmund, Eadred, Eadwig, Edgar, Edward the Martyr, and Aethelred II the Unready. Although this was a turbulent time, it was the women who kept England together. Women like Lady Aethelflaed Lady of the Mercians and Elfrida, the first crowned Queen of England, were not afraid to get their hands dirty whether that meant fighting off Viking invaders or potentially killing off her stepson so her son could be king. Some less famous women were daughters, sisters, mothers, saints, and abbesses/nuns who saw England transformed and whose stories survived through wills, charters, and chronicles.

While I did find the information in this book fascinating as I did take copious notes while reading, I have to be a bit critical of the actual structure of this book. The structure as it was published made it a bit difficult to follow along and I was struggling to keep track of who was who as some women shared the same name. I feel like Porter should have done an introduction to the events of the period in the beginning, then dived into what sources she will use in the book, and then gone into the more minutiae details of the lives of the royal women in chronological order.

Overall, it was a decent read that was extremely informative, but it could have been structured differently to make it even better and a more enjoyable read. Porter’s passion for this period of the past is evident on every page and I wonder how it translates to her historical fiction novels. If you want to learn more about the royal house of Wessex and the women who were close to the throne, I would recommend you read, “The Royal Women Who Made England: The Tenth Century in Saxon England” by M.J. Porter.

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

The Royal Women Who Made England is a well written, accessible, and nicely notated monograph on the 10th century Saxon England by MJ Porter. Due out 30th Jan 2024 from Pen & Sword on their History imprint, it's 216 pages and will be available in hardcover format. Unclear from publisher's info, but most Pen & Sword titles are also available in electronic format, so it will presumably also be available as an ebook.

The author is a prolific writer of historical fiction of the period, as well as other periods in English and European history. This is a nonfiction selection and although it's perfectly readable and "everyday language" accessible, it's also well annotated and factual. The chapter notes are worth the price of the book and will provide many hours of extra reading. The author has also included a number of appendices including family trees, charters, and a number of facsimiles and photos of relevant geographical points of interest, castles, statues, and illuminated manuscript pages. It added quite a lot of interest to see some of the places that they lived and the castles (and coins).

The fact that the focus of the book was on the women of the times was also an interesting and welcome choice on the part of the author. Almost all of the extant contemporary sources are centered around the male power players, so to get background info on the wives, daughters, queens, and princesses was excellent.

Four and a half stars. Accessible and very interesting.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

[Andrea Wenger · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the tenth century, England emerged as a unified entity amid Viking raids and political turmoil. This stability was due in part to the women of the House of Wessex whose contributions have often been overlooked. This book reveals their stories, drawing from contemporary sources to rescue their legacies from obscurity and highlight their pivotal roles during this tumultuous period.

This informative book is best considered a textbook rather than a story. It’s well-researched and contains a wealth of facts but no narrative.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

[Pam Shelton-Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much like this era of history and found this to be informative on these little-known women who were such a part of it. It is very well researched and discussed and did great work bringing these ladies to life. My only minor quibble is that there was a great discussion of the sources used; quite helpful for those new to this study of history. However, it might have been better placed in the beginning (or even the end) rather than in the later middle of the work. That way, for some readers, the discussion of text in a version of ASC vs Malmesbury etc would have been more sense. Still, I really enjoyed this excellent work.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to the publishers – Pen & Sword and Pen & Sword History – for giving me access to this book as an E-ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

It’s always nice to learn something new. The 10th century is so, so far away it is astounding that there’s even material enough to know anything about the people (even royalty) who lived then. For people who are interested in Anglo-Saxon England and its royalty this book will be a nice addition to a collection.

[Megan Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Throughout the tenth century, England, as it would be recognised today, formed. No longer many Saxon kingdoms, but rather, just England. Yet, this development masks much in the century in which the Viking raiders were seemingly driven from England’s shores by Alfred, his children and grandchildren, only to return during the reign of his great, great-grandson, the much-maligned Æthelred II. Not one but two kings would be murdered, others would die at a young age, and a child would be named king on four occasions. Two kings would never marry, and a third would be forcefully divorced from his wife. Yet, the development towards ‘England’ did not stop. At no point did it truly fracture back into its constituent parts. Who then ensured this stability? To whom did the witan turn when kings died, and children were raised to the kingship? The royal woman of the House of Wessex came into prominence during the century, perhaps the most well-known being Æthelflæd, daughter of King Alfred. Perhaps the most maligned being Ælfthryth (Elfrida), accused of murdering her stepson to clear the path to the kingdom for her son, Æthelred II, but there were many more women, rich and powerful in their own right, where their names and landholdings can be traced in the scant historical record. Using contemporary source material, The Royal Women Who Made England can be plucked from the obscurity that has seen their names and deeds lost, even within a generation of their own lives.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The history of England tells tales of brave heroes, wise kings and wise women. M.J. Porter's The Royal Women Who Made England stretches a century as Porter dives into the women who created a lasting nation. I thoroughly enjoyed Porter's book; it was entertaining as it was informative, with enough information to keep you hooked, but keeping it to a minimum so you don't lose track countless times. I recommend The Royal Women Who Made England to anyone who loves history, specifically English and/or women's history.

Thank you, NetGalley and Pen & Sword, for sending me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Denise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fascinating topic about which far too little is known. Unfortunately, this was about as engaging as a lengthy encyclopedia entry and, while containing a lot of information, inundates the reader with it in an (excessively dry) landslide, burying them in endless successions of names and dates that make it nearly impossible to keep track of or retain much of anything.

[Caroline Palmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The fascinating look at the real women who were the wives and daughters of the men who ruled Wessex, from Alfred on. Anyone who is a fan of Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon Stories will love to see the real characters behind the books and Netflix series.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book and the information that can be cleaned on the early Queens of England are fascinating.
M.J.Porter has tirelessly researches a very difficult subject like a good family historian. She tells us about her sources, her theories and explains how they came about.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Academic in tone, and a little dry as a casual read, but serves its purpose to document a neglected group of women from history.

[Beth Younge · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did like this book and how it was set out but generally found the tone to be a little dry and boring for me. I think there were some fascinating stories presented in this but the writing let it down a little bit. I think that with a little bit of tweaking this could have been fixed and it would have been a much more gripping read that i couldn't put down.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.

[emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

thank god that's over