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Explore the White Tower

Explore all four floors of the White Tower at the Tower of London using the Unity 3d game engine.

A Medieval Mystery

There appear to be some strange connections between the fourteenth century Old Wardour Castle and ancient stone circle Stonehenge.

1: Location

Old Wardour Castle appears to be aligned to ancient sites in the Stonehenge landscape.

2: Alignment

Stonehenge is aligned to the Summer Solstice. Old Wardour has a very similar alignment.

3: Size

Could the builders of Old Wardour used mesaurements from Stonehenge to layout the geometrical keep?

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Virtual Buildings

Transport yourself back up to a thousand years and explore historical buildings as they may have appeared in the past.

851 .. 875
Please note that the TimeRef website is currently being redesigned.

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34 Historical events occurring between 851 and 875

Years: 851 852 853 854 855 856 857 858 859 860 861 862 863 864 865 866 867 868 869 870 871 872 873 874 875

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851

English Regnal years: -
...
Danish invasion defeated
The Danes landed at Wembury near Plymouth and were defeated by forces from Devon. A sea battle off the coast of Kent led by Athelstan (eldest son of Ethelwulf) defeated a Danish fleet of vessels and Ethelwulf defeated an army of Danes at the battle of Ockley who had arrived in the Thames and were attacking the south of the country. [1]
Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
See Also

852

English Regnal years: -
Winter
Vikings spend winter in England
Winter
The first Viking raiding party to stay in England for a period of time landed at the Isle of Thanet in Kent. They spent the winter in England.
Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
See Also

    853

    English Regnal years: -
    ...
    Alfred goes to Rome
    Alfred is sent to Rome by his father to see Pope Leo IV. [1]
    See Also

    855

    English Regnal years: -
     
    Births

    Aethelred (of Mercia) (b.855 - d.911)

    ...
    Ethelwulf and Alfred visit Rome
    Ethelwulf and Alfred visit Rome to see Pope Leo IV. [1]
    See Also

    858

    English Regnal years: -
     
    Deaths

    Aethelwulf (King of Wessex 839-858) (b.795 - d.858)

    MacAlpin, Kenneth (I, Ruler of the Scots 843 - 858) ( - d.858)

    ...
    Ethelbald becomes King of Wessex
    Unhappy with his father's marriage to Judith and absence from the country, Ethelbald, Ethelwulf's second son claimed the kingdom of Wessex for himself. When Ethelwulf later died, Ethelbald married Judith, his stepmother. [1]
    ...
    Death of Kenneth
    Kenneth, King of Scotland, died in 858. Kenneth was succeeded by his brother Donald. Donald only reigned for four years. [2]
    See Also

    859

    English Regnal years: -
    ...
    Vikings raid the Mediterranean
    A Viking fleet spent several years raiding the cities around the Mediterranean, including Valence on the River Rhone and Pisa on the Italian coast. They sailed through the straits of Gibraltar from their base in Brittany.
    Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
    See Also

      860

      English Regnal years: -
       
      Deaths

      Athelbald (King of Wessex 858-860) ( - d.860)

      ...
      Ethelbert becomes King of Wessex
      Upon the death of his elder brother, Ethelbert became the King of Wessex. [1]
      See Also

      865

      English Regnal years: -
      ...
      The 'Great Army' invade
      A large army of Danes landed in East Anglia led by King Ivar the 'Boneless' and King Halfdan. No attempts were made to get rid of the invaders. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      ...
      Ethelred becomes King of Wessex
      Following the death of his elder brother, Ethelred became the King of Wessex. Alfred (the Great) became his deputy. [1]
      See Also

      866

      English Regnal years: -
       
      Deaths

      Aethelbert (King of Wessex 860-866) (b.836 - d.866)

      ...
      The Danes invade Northumbria and York
      The Danes led by the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok, Ivar the boneless and Halfdan, attacked Northumbria and York. They wanted revenge for the death of their father who had been killed by Aella, the King of Northumbria. (Aella could have been an Irish Prince.) The Danes destroyed many churches and monasteries including Whitby Abbey. The monasteries remained ruined for two hundred years. (This may be a legend as Aella was supposedly killed at York)
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      ...
      Witenagemot held at Woodstock
      Ethelread held a Witenagemot (Witan) at the palace of Woodstock.  [3]
      ...
      The 'Great Army' arrive in East Anglia
      A large number of Vikings landed in East Anglia and gathered horses and supplies from the surrounding areas in preparation for their assault on Northumbria. Their leaders were Ivar the Boneless, son of Ragnar Lodbrok, and possibly Anlaf (Olaf) Cuaran, the King of Dublin. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      ...
      Vikings driven out of Ireland
      Vikings raiders were driven from the northern coasts of Ireland by Aed Finliath. [4]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      Nov
      Northumbria is invaded by the Danes
      Nov
      The 'Great Army' moved north from their original landing site in East Anglia and into Northumbria where it split into two. One section took boats up the coast and sailed into the Humber while the other section went overland. York was captured and renamed Jorvik. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

      867

      English Regnal years: -
       
      Deaths

      Aella, (King of Northumbria 866-7) ( - d.867)

      ...
      Danes impose a king on Northumbria
      The Danes place a puppet King on the throne in Northumbria called Egbert. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      Mar 21
      Battle of York
      Mar 21
      Armies from Northumbria led by the two kings Aella and Osberht attacked the Danes at York but were defeated. The two kings were killed after gaining access to the city. After the battle the Danes moved south attacking Nottingham and taking control of it. The king of Mercia asked Ethelred and Alfred for assistance and an army from Wessex was sent to help. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

      868

      English Regnal years: -
       
      Births

      Aethelwold (b.868 - d.902)

      ...
      Alfred marries Ealhswith
      Alfred marries the daughter of a Mercian nobleman.
      Autumn
      A peaceful settlement is reached
      Autumn
      Ethelred and Alfred married Mercian noble women whilst assisting the King of Mercia with the Danes on his land. A peaceful settlement was reached with the Danes and a Danegeld was paid for them to leave. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

      869

      English Regnal years: -
       
      Births

      Aethelflaed (Lady of the Mercians) (b.869 - d.918)

      ...
      Danes attack East Anglia
      Moving south again from York, The Danes entered East Anglia, attacking and destroying the many religious buildings in the area including the monastery at was what to become Peterborough. The King of East Anglia, Edmund raised an army to attack the Danes but was captured and killed. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

      870

      English Regnal years: -
       
      Births

      Fulk (I, the Red, Count of Anjou) (b.870 - d.942)

      ...
      Crowland Abbey destroyed
      The Danes attack Crowland Abbey and burn it down. [5]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      ...
      Siege of Dumbarton Rock
      The Vikings laid siege to Dumbarton Rock. The siege lasted for four months after which the defences fell and the Vikings took prisoners and treasures to Dublin.
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      Dec
      The Danes attack Wessex
      Dec
      The Danes moved south into the Wessex area and captured Reading. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

      3D Virtual Reconstructions

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      871

      English Regnal years: -
       
      Births

      EDWARD (the Elder, King of West Saxons, 899-924) (b.871 - d.924)

       
      Deaths

      Aethelred (King of Wessex 866-871) (b.840 - d.871)

      ...
      Alfred rebuilds his defences
      During the period between 871 and 875 while the Danes were occupied in the north, Alfred had time to rebuild his defences. [1]
      ...
      Iceland settled by Norwegians
      Around this time travellers from Norway were either being shipwrecked on or deliberately landing on Iceland. Possibly setting up a colony.
      Qtr 1
      Battle of Ashdown
      Qtr 1
      Aethelred and Alfred defeated the Danes at Ashdown.
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      Apr
      Alfred 'The Great' becomes king of Wessex
      Apr
      After fighting the Danes all winter Aethelred died. He was only in his late twenties or early thirties. He was buried at Wimborne and was succeeded by his younger brother Alfred 'the Great'. Aethelred had two sons but they were too young to rule. The younger son Aethelwold would later rebel against Alfred's son Edward the Elder for the English throne. [1]
      Qtr 2
      More Danes arrive in Britain
      Qtr 2
      Another army of Danes landed in London and were joined by those at Reading. The army defeated Alfred at Wilton and so the king decided to pay the Danes some money to keep the peace. [1]
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

      872

      English Regnal years: -
      ...
      Ivar the Boneless dies
      Ivar 'the Boneless', the king of Dublin died. He was succeeded by his brother Halfdan.
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      ...
      Revolt in Northumbria
      In 867 the Danes had installed a puppet ruler in Northumbria called Egbert. In 872 the Northumbrians rebelled and expelled Egbert. The Viking army moved north from Wessex and put down the revolt. They installed a new ruler called Ricsige.
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

      873

      English Regnal years: -
      ...
      Forty Years Rest
      In 873 the Vikings ceased their attacks on Ireland as they concentrated on England. The period of peace becoming known as the Forty Years Rest.
      Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
      See Also

        874

        English Regnal years: -
        ...
        Vikings colonise Iceland
        Vikings landed in Iceland with plans to create settlements and start farming the land.
        Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
        See Also

          875

          English Regnal years: -
          ...
          Danes move against the north.
          Led by Halfdan the Danes moved north to attack the Picts and the area of Strathclyde. The Danes divided Northumbria taking York for themselves and creating the area known as Danelaw. A second Danish King called Guthrum took his army back south to Cambridge where he prepared plans to attack Wessex. [1]
          Episode: Viking Invasions [highlight all]
          ...
          Alfred builds a small navy
          Alfred the Great organised a small number of ships to attack invading Danes.
          See Also

          Timeline Navigation

           

          Selection of references used:

          • 1: Ronald McNair Scott, Alfred the Great, ISBN:0-86332-832-6
          • 2: R. L. Mackie & J. Ross, Kings and Queens of Scotland, 2008, ISBN:ISBN-978-1-902407-66-1, Geddes and Gosset (2008)
          • 3: Timbs & Gunn, Abbeys, Castles & Ancient Halls of England & Wales, Warne, Own Copy
          • 4: G.A.Cambell, The Knights Templar. Their rise and fall
          • 5: Roy Midmer, English Medieaval Monasteries 1066-1540, 1979