Sandscript

There's nothing like a good book, sentiments shared by Alfred The Great. Shortly after we had visited Winchester and photographed his statue, BBC coincidentally screened programmes about him on consecutive nights. The second of these involved the puzzle of the whereabouts of his much moved bones; by the end all they had come up with was a piece of male pelvis from the ninth century. A disappointment for the scientists after the discovery of a whole Richard the Third in a car park. But bones are of no importance when we already know a great deal about the man himself and to see a historian turning the pages of a ninth century book is far more exciting than skeletons.
He lived from 849 to 899 and reigned from 871; Asser,a tenth century Welsh scholar and bishop, was commissioned by the king to write his biography. Alfred has come down through history as a learned and merciful man who knew the importance of education, improved the legal and military structure of his kingdom, negotiated peace with the Vikings and started England! The only English King to be called Great.
He caused to be translated from Latin into English the books he considered most necessary for all men to read. Books about him, books by him, a great legacy. Historical books can survive physically or by reprinting, either way the words are preserved for many centuries. Will our e-books survive this long, all the billions of word on the internet? Are you reading this on Wednesday 22nd January 2014 or in 3114? The internet will only last until someone switches the electricity off!
The statue of Alfred The Great that stands tall in Winchester was created in 1901, you can see a picture of it at www.ccsidewriter.co.uk