Thy Serpentine Glorious: Timeline Help & Questions

Link to the previous TL help thread that is now dead/dying.
https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=144249

This is my first timeline and will more thank likely come under fire for it as it may be considered ASB for the majority of readers on here. I have done a previous thread for this but have decided to redo it here and keep it more organised and with a clear and more understandable path to what I am to achieve.

The premise is simple, Alfred The Great of Mercia has no heirs for he is impotent yet knowing this he strives to enact the reforms he instigated as per OTL. But to the matter of his succession, in this TL any surviving blood relatives to the king have been either murdered or forcibly removed from succeeding him. That leaves one issue, his successor.

Enter the sons of Rhodri Mawr AKA Roderick The Great for those who do know. In OTL Rhodri dies fighting Alfred in battle, but this is our other POD, he survives and his son Anarawd takes on the mantle of 'King of The Britons' and as such earns the respectand adulation of Alfred and after Rhodri's death and with Alfred knowing his time on earth is closer to its finale offers the Mercian crown to Anarwd who accepts, if only he promises to protect his people as well as his own.

Also the King of Cornwall Doniert/Dungarth does not die drowing in battle and his alliance with the Norse continues. This gives Anarawd his first true chance to prove himself King of all of the Britons.


I have a series of events that I hope to have played out for this story and hopefully with the help of the people on here I will be able to hopefully achieve this :)
 
Here is the beginning of my TL. the complete draft will be edited and resubmitted into a new thread, for now these are the course of events that will lead to Anarawd becomig High King of the Britons. Please note that Alfred is impotent and as such has no heirs. Which means NO Edward to succeed him.

-876: Rhodri Mawr & his son Gwriad are wounded badly fighting the forces of Alfred the Great. Rhodri survives bust Gwriad does not. Alfred now laments the chance to have finished off one of his enemies but applauds the tenacity of an ageing Rhodri.

-877: 'God's vengeance for Rhodri' as quoted by his eldest child Anarawd marks the fight back against Anglo-Saxon forces and the reclaiming of land along the Mercian-Gwynedd border. Alfred realises that he will never have a blood child and so sets about creating a more stable Mercian kingdom that will remain after his death.

-878: Rhodri Mawr passes away, his sons Anarawd, Cadell & Merfyn are granted Powys, Deheubarth & Gwynedd amongst themselves. Merfyn & Cadell later this year die fighting the Norse from Dublin on Ynys Mon and control over the welsh kingdoms passes to Anarawd who now sees the Norse as his biggest threat and so offers Alfred a temporary truce.

-879: A year of relative calm albeit with renewed Norse attacks from the North and the West distracting Saxons & Welsh from fighting one another marks the start of a somewhat fragile allance between the ageing Saxon & the enigmatic King of the Britons. The learned Alfred begins exchanging much with the young king and vice versa, the cooling of relations between the long time foes comes about when Anarawd is invited to Mercia to the court of Alfred.

-880: Viking forces raid Mercia and slaughter and enslave many citizens whilst Welsh forces manage to fight them off , even chasing some to Dublin. The Saxons begin to notice how Alfred is channelling all his energy into creating a solid and stable state despite the two largest problems he faces a) no heir and with no heir a leaderless nation, b) the vikings and the cornish kingdom to to the south threatening to overrun Mercia.

-881: Anarawd invades Cornwall/West Wales to stop the Cornish attacks once and for all and force the Cornish King Dungarth to accept his rule. Mnay lives are lost but both Kings survive. Dungarth under pressure from a stonger and now resurgent Welsh force agrees to the terms of Anarawd and submits, thus ending the alliance with the Norse.


-882: Saxon nobles begin quarrelling amongst themselves for the right to succeed Alfred, many are killed by loyalist of Alfred who are incensed at the slanderous name 'Alfred the Impotent'. Mercian forces begin reclaiming territory taken by the Norse whilst in accord with the Welsh armies who attack the northwestern shores of the North. On Christmas Day Anarawd proclaims the Kingdom of the North, Rheged is reborn infuriating many Saxons.

-883: Alfred's health grows more weary by the day and his nobles insistence on him choosing a successor grows more and more and with no clear answer several factions are formed who claim Alfred has chosen them to succeed.

-884: Alfred regains his health and alongside Anarawd travels north to fight the Norse whose Kingdom begins to crumble quickly. A pact is made here between the two great kings although its secrets are not known.

-886: On Christmas day Alfred is proclaimed High King of Mercia & the Saxon realms and announces his successor. Anarawd ap Rhodri, King of Cymru, Mercia, Rheged, Yr Hen Ogledd and Prince of Cornwall. Civil strife breaks out with the forces of Anarawd succesfully pushing back the rebels into East Anglia.

-887: Alfred The Great dies, poisoned in his sleep by a chamber maid. The maid is shortly after executed personally by Anarawd who proclaims 'The man may have been my enemy and my fathers enemy for yerars, but he taught me much and to die like a dog is no way to go'

-888: The Saxon Wars begin with the Saxon remnant who fled the oncoming welsh forces and citizens intent on grabbing what they can in their 'new' lands. The Anglian Kingdom is forged from this remnant who see Anarawd as a murderer and a conqueror rather than the legitimate heir chosen by the last King.

-889: The son of Anarawd on his 16th birthday is named Prince of Mercia to add further fuel to the fire and takes a Mercian to be his bride and using the reforms Alfred had begun he adopts them and creates the 'Cymric Law'. The Saxon remnant tale London by force proclaiming it their new capital.



Any help on making his more believable would be a great help. It has taken me a long time to create a suitable sounding POD and events leading up to the establishment of a Welsh/Cymry state
 
Last edited:
Any thoughts on the previous post.

I am trying to create and give a reasonable and believable option for Alfred to cede the throne and pass it to Anarawd rather than a minor Saxon noble.
 
Last edited:
Having a look. Will comment later when I've finished adding the shipping modules to the online shop I'm doing

Best Regards
Grey Wolf
 
Any thoughts on this people.

I might have the Norse engage more with the Scots and the Irish and generally being super steroided versions of OTL'selves and basically being unstoppable until the death of Alfred and the rise of Anarawd who after reinstating the old Northern Welsh Kingdoms begins to weaken the Norse substantially Leaving a remnant in Ireland and the ones in Britain heading back to Scandinavia


Any thoughts on this?
 
-890: To further consolidate his power, Anarawd begins to form alliances quickly with the Scots in the north establishing a border at the ancient Antonine wall & establishes a kingdom in name between the Antonine & Hardian walls, this kingdoms is one only in name and on iots throne he places his son Idwal on the throne, now making him Prince of Mercia & King of Ystrad Clud (Strathclyde).

-891: Anglian attacks grow more violent by the passing months and many Cymry are left dead at the borders. Advisors to the king suggest attacking in numbers but the king opts against this instead in favour of diplomacy. Cymric Law begins stretching further and further across the British Isles.

-892: The Kingdom of York is besieged by Cymry forces who offer the Norse one option, to join with them or be annihilated. They choose the latter, and after several weeks of stalemate a truce is called between the two sides with the Norse allying with the Cymry who give them a chance to renew their war with the Anglo-Saxons should the Anglian Kingdoms attack again.

-894: An Anglian army amasses in the Anglian Kingdom and marches towards OTL Birmingham where they are met by a host of Cymry forces. The battle lasts for two days with neither side gaining momentum. On the third day Norse forces attack the Anglians in two places, a) from the north of the battle flanking them, b) Attacking the eastern shores of the Anglian Kingdom. The armies of King Dungarth arrive also to vbolster the Cymry line which results in a complete massacre at the hands of the triple alliance. The King Elect of the Anglians dies in battle leaving a leaderless nation.

-894: King Dungarth of Cornwall passes away in Brittany trying to expand his nation and unite the divided Britons. His relam now passes officially in to the hands of Anarawd. Passing more laws aiming to unite the Isles under a common law, a common language are met by fierce resistance but accepted due to the simple fact, he is King and he has the power to pass such acts.

-896: The city of London is besieged by Norse forces travelling up the Thames. Cymry forces begin striking at Anglian forces with renewed vigour led by Idwal. Anglian forces in Lodon submit to the combined armies. King Knútr of York ascends to the throne and sets about copying the High King of Briton and his policies in establishing York as something more than a raiding kingdom.

-898: Border skirmishes between the Cymry, Norse and their northern neighbours the Scots see permanent Norse/Cymry border settlements across the Antonine to protect from Pictish attacks. The daughter of Knútr of York marries Idwal and later that year gives birth to two sons, Aneiron & Ragnar. With each now being the successor to either kingdoms.

-900: A herald from the North arrives. He claims to be from the 'Kingdom of Alba". The Scots & Picts have united and formed a nation to the north of the Antonine. Their demands are simple, that the High Kingdom of Cymry cede Ystrad Clud to them. Anarawd refuses and on Christmas day crowns his son "High King of The Britons" in a move to show their superiority over the Kingdom of Alba.





This any good, this isnt the finished article but its ideas Im putting out there
 
I could dig up my dissertation and furnish you with the names of historical nobles of Alfred's reign, since that is what I wrote it on

The Os- family were very important, IIRC, and if you want someone to emerge as a real contender for power in the absence of West Saxon royalty they would fit the bill

\They aren't CALLED the Os- Family, as there were no surnames of course, it was just that their names all began with Os, male and female.

Best Regards
Grey Wolf
 
The actual timeline will be written up properly soon.
Just working out the details until 1000 AD.

Then I will post up the beginning ofthe TL when that is done.

Also Grey Wolf any and all help would be great.
 
Any thoughts on what has been out forward so far?
I would like criticisms and feedback to help me refine my approach and POD so far?

I'm currently looking at the Irish & Scottish kingdoms during the period of 850-900 A.D. and alos the Kingdom of Jorvik(York) also to help give extra detail to my posts and characters once the proper thread is complete.

Also help with European history and events would be great, trying to figure out what would directly chnage as a result of the Anglo-Saxons being forced to Anglia Mercia (OTL East Anglia).

And also as a result what will happen to European history and then to the rest of history as a result. I have been reading the posts of many AH members for inspiration and ideas.

That is all from me for a bit :)
 
Next few days will be dry for me writing wise as It is my birthday today and Im just going to enjoy myself and then come back to this.
 
Top