Æthelred the Unready Æthelred the Unready Æthelred II (Old English: "Æþelræd", ; 966 – 23 April 1016), known as the Unready, was King of the English from 978 to 1013 and again from 1014 until his death. His epithet does not derive from the modern word "unready", but rather from the Old English "unræd" (meaning "poorly advised"); it is a pun on his name, which means "well advised". Æthelred was the son of King Edgar and Queen Ælfthryth. He came to the throne at about the age of 12, following the assassination of his older half-brother, Edward the Martyr. His brother's murder was
Church of St Edward King and Martyr, Goathurst Kemeys, showing the child lying on a pillow holding a broken flower, and monuments to the Kemeys-Tynte family of Halswell House. Church of St Edward King and Martyr, Goathurst The Church of St Edward King and Martyr in Goathurst, Somerset, England dates from the 14th century and has been designated as a Grade I listed building. The parish was originally part of the Royal Forest of North Petherton and its first squire owned St Edward's church. The dedication to Edward the Martyr is unusual, Edward was a young Saxon king who was murdered by his stepmother Elfrida in 978 at