Alfred the Great

Alfred the Great was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886 and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King AEthelwulf, and three of his brothers reigned in turn before him. After ascending the throne he fought years of Viking invasions, winning a decisive victory at the Battle of Edington in 878 and then dividing England between Anglo-Saxon territory and the Viking-ruled Danelaw. He oversaw the conversion of the Viking leader Guthrum to Christianity and became the dominant ruler in England, styling himself King of the Anglo-Saxons after reoccupying London in 886. He had a reputation as a learned and merciful ruler who encouraged education and improved the legal system, and he is the only native-born English monarch to carry the epithet the Great.