King Alfred: Noah’s Fourth Son

King Alfred came from Anglo-Saxon stock. They were made up of many different tribes, all who hailed from Central and Eastern Europe. This group was more than just the Angles and Saxons. Jutes, Goths, Lombards, Franks and Frisia were all amongst the group which came to Britain during the early centuries after Christ.

In Asser’s manuscript on the Life of King Alfred, he details the king’s lineage. He mentions 44 names going back to Adam, the first man in the Bible. This showed how the king was linked to Biblical history.

Another is the inclusion of Woden. Whether this is the Norse god or not, isn’t commented on by Asser, but he does say that Geat was considered a god:

‘Geat, whom the pagans worshipped for a long time as a god’ (Life of King Alfred, Asser, Section 1)

Here, Asser is suggesting the pagans worshipped their ancestors. And this ‘god’ was part of King Alfred’s lineage. It seems most former pagan societies kept a record of their pre-Christian heritage. Maybe it helped them to recognise where they had come from and how they had changed under Christianity.

Another notable inclusion is Seth, the son of Noah. This is a strange addition to Alfred’s lineage as the Bible only mentions three sons, Japheth, Ham and Shem. So who was Seth?

Noah’s fourth son has been given various names in different traditions. Some use the Bible story itself and suggest his name was Canaan. The Quran says it was Yam. But in the Anglo-Saxon Christian mythic tradition, the fourth son was called Sceaf.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says that he was born on Noah’s Ark, during the Great Flood. I suspect Sceaf is the Seth mentioned in King Alfred’s lineage. This may seem a strange point to make, but mythical history plays an important part in the worldview of a culture.

Take for example, the World War II myth. This is the core myth of the Anglo-Western cultures. Simply put, they believe that in WWII, the Nazis invading the surrounding nation and persecuted the Jews. The Western Allies came together, freed Europe from their grasp and saved the Jews. This isn’t strictly true, but it is what we believe. It becomes more true than the actually facts of the War.

And this belief informs how we see ourselves, and the rest of the World. This is why ‘Nazi’ is the worse thing you can call someone amongst the Anglo-Western nations.

Similarly, if the Anglo-Saxons believed they were not from one of the three sons of Noah, but a fourth son who was born during the Deluge, I wonder how this affected the way they saw themselves.

I wonder if when King Alfred was in the marshes, hiding from the Great Heathen Army, he pondered upon Sceaf. The Anglo-Saxons had been overcome by a deluge of foreign fighters. They had lost almost all their land. All their influence was gone.

Could Alfred be the last king in the last kingdom of the Anglo-Saxons?

Yet, in this situation where all seemed lost, there was hope. According to the myth of Sceaf, he was born in a time of great upheaval. The World may have been falling apart for Noah and his family, but new life was birthed in the belly of the ship.

Just like King Alfred in the seclusion of the marshes, hiding from the Danish marauders. He was looking for hope. Waiting for a plan to come to him. Searching for a solution to restore his kingdom.

In WWII, the English prided themselves on the ‘blitz spirit’. As Nazi bombs fell upon London, they continued to fight on despite the odds. I wonder if this ‘blitz spirit’ is rooted in the story of King Alfred and ultimately, in the myth of Sceaf.

Finally, on a personal note, Sceaf is part of deep English mythology. Anyone who has their roots in the myths of England, can look to Sceaf and remember that even in the darkest times, there is hope.