# Fame.am profile — machine-readable export
# Canonical URL: https://fame.am/person/thelred-i-king-of-wessex
# Generated: 2026-09-01T17:06:56.741Z

schema: https://schema.org/Person
url: "https://fame.am/person/thelred-i-king-of-wessex"
name: "Æthelred I, King of Wessex"
slug: "thelred-i-king-of-wessex"
description: "He held Wessex through the first wave of the Great Heathen Army's assault on England — won once at Ashdown, lost everywhere else, and died before his thirtieth year with the kingdom still standing by a thread."
tagline: "King of Wessex (r. 865–871)"
image: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Coin_of_%C3%86thelred_I%2C_King_of_Wessex_obverse.jpg"
gender: "male"
category:
  name: "Historical Figures"
  slug: "historical-figures"
profileType:
  name: "Historical Figure"
  slug: "historical-figure"
  entityType: "https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q2798645"
birthDate: "837"
deathDate: "871"
livingStatus: "DECEASED"
scores:
  popularity:           56.15
  momentum:             2.131811487481591
  historical:           23.09085466666667
  currentAttention:     7.613612455291396
  sourceConfidence:     60
  profileCompleteness:  60
  trendDirection:       "STABLE"
ranks:
  global:   null
  country:  null
  category: null
tags:
  - name: "Politicians"
    slug: "politicians"
  - name: "Politician"
    slug: "politician"
  - name: "Politics"
    slug: "politics"
  - name: "Medieval Era"
    slug: "medieval-era"
sources:
  - url: "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q272233"
    title: "Wikidata"
    type:  "WIKIDATA"
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelred_I,_King_of_Wessex"
    title: "Wikipedia"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://pantheon.world/profile/person/%C3%86thelred%20I%2C%20King%20of%20Wessex"
    title: "Pantheon 2.0"
    type:  "DATABASE"
  - url: "https://arz.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D8%AB%D9%84%D8%B1%D8%AF"
    title: "اثلرد"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://azb.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%84%D8%B1%D8%AF_%D9%88%D8%B3%DA%A9%D8%B3"
    title: "اتلرد وسکس"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://bn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A6%93%E0%A6%AF%E0%A6%BC%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%95%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B0_%E0%A6%AA%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%A5%E0%A6%AE_%E0%A6%8F%E0%A6%A5%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B2%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%A1"
    title: "ওয়েসেক্সের প্রথম এথেলরেড"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://br.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86%C3%B0elred_Ia%C3%B1_Wessex"
    title: "Æðelred Iañ Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelred_de_Wessex"
    title: "Ethelred de Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelred"
    title: "Ethelred"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelred_af_Wessex"
    title: "Æthelred af Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelred_(Wessex)"
    title: "Æthelred (Wessex)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%88%CE%B8%CE%B5%CE%BB%CF%81%CE%B5%CE%BD%CF%84_%CF%84%CE%BF%CF%85_%CE%9F%CF%85%CE%AD%CF%83%CF%83%CE%B5%CE%BE_%CE%BA%CE%B1%CE%B9_%CF%84%CE%BF%CF%85_%CE%9A%CE%B5%CE%BD%CF%84"
    title: "Έθελρεντ του Ουέσσεξ και του Κεντ"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelred_I_of_Wessex"
    title: "Æthelred I of Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelred_(Wessex)"
    title: "Ethelred (Wessex)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etelredo_I"
    title: "Etelredo I"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%84%D8%B1%D8%AF_%D9%88%D8%B3%DA%A9%D8%B3"
    title: "اتلرد وسکس"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelred"
    title: "Ethelred"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelred_(roi_du_Wessex)"
    title: "Æthelred (roi du Wessex)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aethelred_I_de_Wessex"
    title: "Aethelred I de Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://got.wikipedia.org/wiki/%F0%90%8C%B0%F0%90%8C%B8%F0%90%8C%B0%F0%90%8C%BB%F0%90%8D%82%F0%90%8C%B4%F0%90%8C%B8%F0%90%8D%83_%F0%90%8D%85%F0%90%8C%B9%F0%90%8D%83%F0%90%8D%84%F0%90%8D%82%F0%90%8C%B0%F0%90%8D%83%F0%90%8C%B0%F0%90%8C%B7%F0%90%8D%83%F0%90%8C%B0%F0%90%8C%BD%F0%90%8C%B4"
    title: "𐌰𐌸𐌰𐌻𐍂𐌴𐌸𐍃 𐍅𐌹𐍃𐍄𐍂𐌰𐍃𐌰𐌷𐍃𐌰𐌽𐌴"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%90%D7%AA%D7%9C%D7%A8%D7%93_%D7%94%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%9F%2C_%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%9A_%D7%95%D7%A1%D7%A7%D7%A1"
    title: "אתלרד הראשון, מלך וסקס"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelred_od_Wessexa"
    title: "Ethelred od Wessexa"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/I._%C3%86thelred_wessexi_kir%C3%A1ly"
    title: "I. Æthelred wessexi király"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelred_dari_Wessex"
    title: "Æthelred dari Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etelredo_del_Wessex"
    title: "Etelredo del Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%A8%E3%82%BC%E3%83%AB%E3%83%AC%E3%83%83%E3%83%89_(%E3%82%A6%E3%82%A7%E3%82%BB%E3%83%83%E3%82%AF%E3%82%B9%E7%8E%8B)"
    title: "エゼルレッド (ウェセックス王)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelred_van_Wessex"
    title: "Ethelred van Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A5%D8%AB%D9%84%D8%B1%D8%AF"
    title: "إثلرد"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"

# bio (long form, separated for readability)
bio: |
  Æthelred became king in 865, fourth of five brothers who would each take the throne, just as the Viking Great Heathen Army arrived in England. Over five years he watched Northumbria and East Anglia fall, then faced the full attack on Wessex at the end of 870. In early January 871 he lost at Reading, rallied four days later to win at Ashdown, then lost again at Basing and Meretun. He died shortly after Easter that year, leaving two infant sons who were passed over for his youngest brother Alfred — the one who would buy peace, then break the Vikings seven years later at Edington. His coinage mattered more than his battles: by adopting Mercia's Lunettes design he created the first unified currency for southern England, a quiet rehearsal for the union that would follow.