Our understanding of the literary achievements of King Alfred depend very much upon what we believe about his early education. If we are content to accept the stories of Asser, the famous biographer of Alfred, that he reached his twelfth birthday before he learned to read (Keynes 75), then we must reckon his literary career as a phenomenon which can only be described, not explained. Or, if that is not satisfactory, we may
compare him in his adult life to his grandfather's (Egbert) contemporary Charles the Bald (grandson of Charlemange), who, being illiterate, knew the value of learning, and surrounded himself with educated men (Collins 297).
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