Alfred the Great his craving for what he desired the most, namely the liberal arts; for, as he used to say, there were no good scholars in the entire kingdom of the West Saxons at that time". In 868, Alfred married Ealhswith, daughter of a Mercian nobleman, Æthelred Mucel, Ealdorman of the Gaini. The Gaini were probably one of the tribal groups of the Mercians. Ealhswith's mother, Eadburh, was a member of the Mercian royal family. They had five or six children together including: Edward the Elder who succeeded his father as king; Æthelflæd who became Lady (ruler) of the Mercians in her
HMS King Alfred (1901) 5 inches thick. The protective deck armour ranged in thickness from and the conning tower was protected by of armour. "King Alfred", named after Alfred the Great, Anglo-Saxon King of Wessex, was laid down on 11 August 1899 by Vickers, Sons & Maxim at their shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness and launched on 28 October 1901, when she was named by the Countess of Lathom. She left Barrow for Portsmouth in early June 1902, and was completed on 22 December 1903. After commission, she ran aground off Shoeburyness on 5 May 1905. She became flagship of the China Station in 1906 and