The foundation of the church at Hadleigh has been strongly associated with Danish leader Guthrum who made peace with King Alfred the Great in 878.
However, there is a document not specifically linked to Wedmore that is a Treaty of Alfred and Guthrum.
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The Peace of Wedmore is a term used by historians for an event referred to by the monk Asser in his Life of Alfred, outlining how in 878 the Viking leader Guthrum was baptised and accepted Alfred as his adoptive father.
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Guthrum, the Viking leader, retreated with the remnants of his army to their "stronghold", where Alfred besieged him.
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However, some misinterpretation appears to have arisen, probably from confusing what happened at Wedmore with the later Treaty of Alfred and Guthrum.
Guthrum |
In his translation of Johann Martin Lappenberg's History of England under the Anglo-Saxon Kings, Benjamin Thorpe refers to King Guthrum II as having led the East Anglians in 906 when peace was made with Edward the Elder.
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He referred to the medieval historian John of Wallingford as supporting this identification, stating that Wallingford referred to a second Guthrum being active in Edward's reign.
The tower stands near the location of 'Egbert's stone' where it is believed that Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, rallied the Saxons in May 878 before the important Battle of Ethandun, where the Danish army, led by Guthrum the Old was defeated.