This fairly short book covers the life, achievements and influence of one of the most significant female figures in early English history. Famous as the daughter of King Alfred the Great and sister of King Edward the Elder of Wessex, she was absolutely a significant figure in her own right, effectively co-ruler of Mercia with her husband Ethelred, and sole ruler after his death for seven years, defending her adopted country against Viking incursions and acting as a bridgehead between Mercia and Wessex as the dominant state ruled by her brother. Her settled role was so strong that she even named her own daughter Alfwynn as her successor, though King Edward intervened to overthrow his niece after a short period of time, thus uniting Wessex and Mercia under one crown as the nucleus of the future state of England.

Alongside and indeed as integral to her remarkable political and military achievements, Aethelflaed effectively founded or developed many of the towns of the West of England, especially Gloucester, Tamworth, Stafford, Warwick and Chester, thus shaping large parts of the urban pattern of today's England. Yet for large parts of the 1,100 years since her death, her reputation has been overshadowed by those of her famous male relatives, especially of course that of her father. She should be better known. This is a highly readable book, making use of the limited sources about the subject's life to create a proper biography, albeit of course with very many details unknown and unknowable. ( )

Very thorough, which is presumably a feat because I gather the source information is scant at best. I spent the first part of the book with an undercurrent of irritation that when I went to school Æthelflæd was skipped over because we learned all about Alfred, and Æthelred but I didn’t even know she existed before 2016 when I visited Warrick Castle and saw a dramatised video presentation on her, which piqued my interest. I was glad to fill some gaps in my education, finally. ( )

Rating: 3.5 stars

NOTE: I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this book from NetGalley. This review is my honest opinion of the book.

This biography is about Alfred the Great's daughter, Aethelflaed; about ther life and achievements, as well as the world that made her. Aethelflaed was a remarkable women who led armies in battle against the vikings, negotiated treaties, founded shrines and churches, planned towns, and ruled a kingdom in her own right, which involved tax collection and law administration. She also attempted to pass the rule of Mercia to her daughter Aelfwynn. This book is a well-written and well researched book that covers the cultural and familial world that shaped Aethelflaed's personality and beliefs. It covers her early life, the years of her marriage, and the world she made after her husband's death. An interesting chapter deals with Aethelflaed's legacy and legand. The book also includes a section of notes that provides a guide of places around the Midlands that still bear traces of Aethelflaed's life and work or have memorial tributes to her, which may be of interest to anyone travelling to this part of England. While there are many maps and illustrations, this book lacks a locality map of where Mercia fits into Greater England and also lacking is a timeline. While I found this biography interesting and accessible ( narrative was distinctly story-like), there was too much speculation on the part of the author, though this appears to be due to the lack of reliable source material for this time period. All-in-all, this is an entertaining and informative, if somewhat superficial, biography of Aethelflaed, Queen of Mercia. ( )