Prince Aethelred of Wessex (meaning Noble Counsel in Old English) is the son of Judith and Aethelwulf heir to the throne of Wessex and half-brother of Judith's bastard son (with Athelstan) Alfred.
Biography
Aethelred, son of King Aethelwulf of Wessex and Mercia and Queen Judith, daughter of the late King Aelle of Northumbria, is a member of the Wessex royal house (or House of Cerdic).
He is the elder of the two children of King Aethelwulf and Queen Judith, though the only full child, as Alfred is the illegitimate child of Judith and the late monk, Athelstan.
Season 3
Season 4
Aethelred greets Alfred that goes on a pilgrimage to Rome.
Trivia
- As an Anglo-Saxon prince, his full title would be Aethelred atheling. Atheling was a standard title for any son of a sovereign, and denoted lower royal status.
- Aethelred was a real life son of King Aethelwulf of Wessex, and grandson of King Ecbert of Wessex. He was King of Wessex during the Danish invasions of the mid 9th century, and died shortly after the Battle of Merton in 871, which was a defeat to the Norsemen. He was succeeded by his younger brother, King Alfred the Great.
- Aethelred in Old English means "noble counsel". This is akin to the later King Aethelred the Unready, who in his reign was King of the English (an early title for King of England) as opposed to King of Wessex. Aethelred of Wessex is often referred to as Aethelred I, whilst his distant descendant is referred as Athelred II.
Appearances
| Season three appearances | ||||
| Mercenary | The Wanderer | Warrior's Fate | Scarred | The Usurper |
| Born Again | Paris | To the Gates! | Breaking Point | The Dead |
| Season four appearances | ||||
| A Good Treason | Kill the Queen | Mercy | Yol | Promised |
| What Might Have Been | The Profit and the Loss | Portage | Death All 'Round | The Last Ship |
| The Outsider | The Vision | Two Journeys | In the Uncertain Hour Before the Morning | All His Angels |
| Crossings | The Great Army | Revenge | On the Eve | The Reckoning |