Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
🎥 Watch 300+ exclusive videos on ✔ Youtube ► youtube.com/channel/UCMmaBzfCCwZ2KqaBJjkj0fw/join or ✔ Patreon ► patreon.com/kingsandgenerals
Kings and Generals animated historical documentary series on medieval history and history of Britain continues with episode 3 of our coverage of the Viking invasion of Britain, as we cover the battle of Buttington and the reforms of Alfred the Great. In 878, Alfred of Wessex had been driven into the marshes by Guthrum’s Viking invasion. But after his victory at Edington, Alfred did more than survive — he rebuilt his kingdom into the strongest power in Britain. This episode explores the reforms that turned Wessex from a vulnerable Anglo-Saxon kingdom into a fortress state capable of resisting the greatest Viking threats of the age. Alfred punished traitors, built more than thirty fortified burhs, reorganized the army into rotating forces, created a coastal fleet, and launched an ambitious educational revival to restore literacy and improve royal government. His reforms reshaped warfare, administration, and kingship in early medieval England. We also follow Alfred’s rise beyond Wessex: his alliance with Mercia, the recovery of London, the Treaty of Alfred and Guthrum, and his adoption of the title “King of the Anglo-Saxons.” Finally, the system Alfred created is tested by Hastein’s massive invasion of 892–896, as Viking armies strike Kent, Devon, Mercia, and the Thames.
This is the story of how Alfred saved Wessex — and laid the foundations for a united England.
Vikings #1 - Ashdown: youtu.be/du_6kx_ceXQ
Vikings #2 - Edington 878: youtu.be/1YTgzwiMAhc
Charlemagne’s Bloody War Against the Saxons - Verden Massacre: youtu.be/Rea-6g1v_Jk
Why Was Germany so Fragmented in the Middle Ages: youtu.be/EiB8sMHxGqM
Eastern Roman Empire: Why So Many Civil Wars?: youtu.be/SK_yHooLu1s
What Did the Europeans Think About the Eastern Romans?: youtu.be/Qu6NnWj1EZ8
Were the Eastern Romans and Arabs Always at War?: youtu.be/nBMP6yRAOZg
Great Schism Between Greek and Latin Christianity: youtu.be/a6rWf0k8d78
Rise of the Cossacks: youtu.be/UQ_ocyTRRIE
Crusades From the Muslim Perspective: youtu.be/t8RZtYvW02g
Early Muslim Expansion - Yarmouk, Al-Qadisiyyah: youtu.be/r2cEIDZwG5M
Early Muslim Expansion - Egypt and Iran: youtu.be/baHT2nR5Wr4
Muslim Schism: youtu.be/-85dXjgMiSU
Third Crusade: youtu.be/jCyCSgsFXKQ
Fourth Crusade: youtube.com/watch?v=3Vp_IENiSnA&list=PLaBYW76inbX4ZjR4rodOOSc-zL1orP4hW
First Crusade: youtube.com/watch?v=JkyYjpYLORI&list=PLaBYW76inbX6RqjG027zLO_svn3Fdv7Qa
Sultanate of Women in the Ottoman Empire: youtu.be/OEzS8D4IidA
Christian Schism: youtu.be/a6rWf0k8d78
Mos Maiorum: What led to the fall of the Roman Republic?: youtu.be/BNWfDWk6ohM
How Rome Conquered Greece: youtu.be/v5q1rerf-qw
Caesar in Gaul: youtu.be/LRV185XaMIM
The video was made by Antoni Kamerans, while the script was researched and written by Michael McComb. This video was narrated by Officially Devin (youtube.com/channel/UCU0-VII-V376zFxiRGMeZGg & youtube.com/channel/UC79s7EdN9uXX77-Ly2HmEjQ). Machinima by Malay Archer.
âś” Merch store â–ş teespring.com/stores/kingsandgenerals
âś” Patreon â–ş patreon.com/KingsandGenerals
âś” Podcast â–ş kingsandgenerals.libsyn.com iTunes: apple.co/2QTuMNG
âś” PayPal â–ş paypal.me/kingsandgenerals
âś” Twitter â–ş twitter.com/KingsGenerals
âś” Facebook â–ş facebook.com/KingsGenerals
âś” Instagram â–şinstagram.com/Kings_Generals
Production Music courtesy of Epidemic Sound: epidemicsound.com
Sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1VlaRcNjo5yUNbHa0PunjLsSfOzJWJDxK6whO_GAQ450/edit?usp=sharing
00:00:00 - Alfred’s Humiliation and Revenge
00:01:44 - Building the Fortress Kingdom
00:04:20 - Reforming the Army and Fleet
00:05:46 - Alfred’s War on Ignorance
00:07:12 - Wessex, Mercia, and the Anglo-Saxons
00:09:19 - Hastein’s Great Viking Invasion
00:11:55 - Benfleet, Buttington, and the Burh System Tested
00:15:22 - Why Alfred Earned “The Great”
#Documentary #Vikings #Britain
🎥 Watch 300+ exclusive videos on ✔ Youtube ► youtube.com/channel/UCMmaBzfCCwZ2KqaBJjkj0fw/join or ✔ Patreon ► patreon.com/kingsandgenerals
Kings and Generals animated historical documentary series on medieval history and history of Britain continues with episode 3 of our coverage of the Viking invasion of Britain, as we cover the battle of Buttington and the reforms of Alfred the Great. In 878, Alfred of Wessex had been driven into the marshes by Guthrum’s Viking invasion. But after his victory at Edington, Alfred did more than survive — he rebuilt his kingdom into the strongest power in Britain. This episode explores the reforms that turned Wessex from a vulnerable Anglo-Saxon kingdom into a fortress state capable of resisting the greatest Viking threats of the age. Alfred punished traitors, built more than thirty fortified burhs, reorganized the army into rotating forces, created a coastal fleet, and launched an ambitious educational revival to restore literacy and improve royal government. His reforms reshaped warfare, administration, and kingship in early medieval England. We also follow Alfred’s rise beyond Wessex: his alliance with Mercia, the recovery of London, the Treaty of Alfred and Guthrum, and his adoption of the title “King of the Anglo-Saxons.” Finally, the system Alfred created is tested by Hastein’s massive invasion of 892–896, as Viking armies strike Kent, Devon, Mercia, and the Thames.
This is the story of how Alfred saved Wessex — and laid the foundations for a united England.
Vikings #1 - Ashdown: youtu.be/du_6kx_ceXQ
Vikings #2 - Edington 878: youtu.be/1YTgzwiMAhc
Charlemagne’s Bloody War Against the Saxons - Verden Massacre: youtu.be/Rea-6g1v_Jk
Why Was Germany so Fragmented in the Middle Ages: youtu.be/EiB8sMHxGqM
Eastern Roman Empire: Why So Many Civil Wars?: youtu.be/SK_yHooLu1s
What Did the Europeans Think About the Eastern Romans?: youtu.be/Qu6NnWj1EZ8
Were the Eastern Romans and Arabs Always at War?: youtu.be/nBMP6yRAOZg
Great Schism Between Greek and Latin Christianity: youtu.be/a6rWf0k8d78
Rise of the Cossacks: youtu.be/UQ_ocyTRRIE
Crusades From the Muslim Perspective: youtu.be/t8RZtYvW02g
Early Muslim Expansion - Yarmouk, Al-Qadisiyyah: youtu.be/r2cEIDZwG5M
Early Muslim Expansion - Egypt and Iran: youtu.be/baHT2nR5Wr4
Muslim Schism: youtu.be/-85dXjgMiSU
Third Crusade: youtu.be/jCyCSgsFXKQ
Fourth Crusade: youtube.com/watch?v=3Vp_IENiSnA&list=PLaBYW76inbX4ZjR4rodOOSc-zL1orP4hW
First Crusade: youtube.com/watch?v=JkyYjpYLORI&list=PLaBYW76inbX6RqjG027zLO_svn3Fdv7Qa
Sultanate of Women in the Ottoman Empire: youtu.be/OEzS8D4IidA
Christian Schism: youtu.be/a6rWf0k8d78
Mos Maiorum: What led to the fall of the Roman Republic?: youtu.be/BNWfDWk6ohM
How Rome Conquered Greece: youtu.be/v5q1rerf-qw
Caesar in Gaul: youtu.be/LRV185XaMIM
The video was made by Antoni Kamerans, while the script was researched and written by Michael McComb. This video was narrated by Officially Devin (youtube.com/channel/UCU0-VII-V376zFxiRGMeZGg & youtube.com/channel/UC79s7EdN9uXX77-Ly2HmEjQ). Machinima by Malay Archer.
âś” Merch store â–ş teespring.com/stores/kingsandgenerals
âś” Patreon â–ş patreon.com/KingsandGenerals
âś” Podcast â–ş kingsandgenerals.libsyn.com iTunes: apple.co/2QTuMNG
âś” PayPal â–ş paypal.me/kingsandgenerals
âś” Twitter â–ş twitter.com/KingsGenerals
âś” Facebook â–ş facebook.com/KingsGenerals
âś” Instagram â–şinstagram.com/Kings_Generals
Production Music courtesy of Epidemic Sound: epidemicsound.com
Sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1VlaRcNjo5yUNbHa0PunjLsSfOzJWJDxK6whO_GAQ450/edit?usp=sharing
00:00:00 - Alfred’s Humiliation and Revenge
00:01:44 - Building the Fortress Kingdom
00:04:20 - Reforming the Army and Fleet
00:05:46 - Alfred’s War on Ignorance
00:07:12 - Wessex, Mercia, and the Anglo-Saxons
00:09:19 - Hastein’s Great Viking Invasion
00:11:55 - Benfleet, Buttington, and the Burh System Tested
00:15:22 - Why Alfred Earned “The Great”
#Documentary #Vikings #Britain
