Cultural depictions of Æthelred the Unready

Cultural depictions of Æthelred the Unready have generally been less than flattering.

Cultural references

Æthelred was the subject of a stageplay by Ronald Ribman titled The Ceremony of Innocence which was made into a film by the same name. It was first performed in 1968, and depicted interactions between Æthelred and his court, family and advisors, and also with the Danish king, Sweyn Forkbeard. Æthelred was portrayed by Richard Kiley in both play and film.

Æthelred is also the subject of Richard Edward Wilson's Æthelred the Unready, a comical one-act opera composed in 1992.^[1]

He is also referenced in the 'Sid Meier's Civilization' franchise of computer games, occupying the second lowest rank that a player may earn upon the game's completion, just above Dan Quayle.

Æthelred is also featured in the historical novel A Hollow Crown: The Story of Emma, Queen of Saxon England (2004, also published as The Forever Queen) by Helen Hollick. The protagonist is his wife Emma of Normandy. The novel opens with the wedding of 13-year-old Emma to Æthelred, a 34-year-old man with a grown son of his own. The early years of their marriage are barren, and Æthelred considers ending said marriage. He is then depicted in a "drunken fury", first killing Emma's dog, then engaging in a night of domestic violence and marital rape. Edward the Confessor is depicted as the result of that night, unloved by his own mother.^[2]

He also appears in the 1999 play Silence by Moira Buffini, in which he initially marries off 'Ymma' (Emma of Normandy) to Silence, the Viking Lord of Cumbria. He then has a dream of Ymma as his lover and pursues her and Silence to Cumbria, laying waste to Silence's lands, attempting to kill Silence and eventually marrying Ymma. An epilogue to the play then tells of Ymma's marriage to Canute.

In Patricia Bracewell's historical novel Shadow On The Crown Æthelred appears as a major character. While the novel focuses on Emma of Normandy, Æthelred plays a pivotal role not only as the King of England, but as Emma's brooding and paranoid husband.

Æthelred is a supporting character in The Iron Hand's Good Wife, a historical novel by A.C. Masterson. The novel uses the death of Æthelred's father, and the coronation of his brother, Edward, as a backdrop. Æthelred is shown at a much younger age in this story, and appears to be a pawn used by his mother, Ælfthryth.

References

↑ Kozinn, Allan (26 January 2011). "'Aethelred the Unready' at Symphony Space- Review". The New York Times.
↑ Gilbride, A Hollow Crown.

Cultural depictions of English and British monarchs

Kingdom of the English 886–1066	Alfred the Great Edward the Elder Ælfweard Athelstan the Glorious¹ Edmund the Magnificent¹ Eadred¹ Eadwig the Fair¹ Edgar the Peaceable¹ Edward the Martyr Æthelred the Unready Sweyn Forkbeard Edmund Ironside Cnut¹ Harold Harefoot Harthacnut Edward the Confessor Harold Godwinson Edgar the Ætheling

Kingdom of England 1066–1649	William I William II Henry I Stephen Matilda Henry II² Henry the Young King Richard I John² Henry III² Edward I² Edward II² Edward III² Richard II² Henry IV² Henry V² Henry VI² Edward IV² Edward V² Richard III² Henry VII² Henry VIII² Edward VI² Jane² Mary I² with Philip² Elizabeth I ² James I³ Charles I³

Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland 1653–59	Oliver Cromwell⁴ Richard Cromwell⁴

Kingdom of England 1660–1707	Charles II³ James II³ William III and Mary II³ Anne³

Kingdom of Scotland 843–1707 (traditional)	Kenneth I MacAlpin Donald I Constantine I (II) Áed Giric Eochaid Donald II Constantine II (III) Malcolm I Indulf Dub Cuilén Amlaíb Kenneth II Constantine III (IV) Kenneth III Malcolm II Duncan I Macbeth Lulach Malcolm III Canmore Donald III Duncan II Donald III Edgar Alexander I David I Malcolm IV William I the Lion Alexander II Alexander III Margaret John Robert I David II Robert II Robert III James I James II James III James IV James V Mary I James VI ⁵ Charles I⁵ Charles II⁵ James VII⁵ Mary II⁵ William II⁵ Anne⁵

British monarchs after the Acts of Union 1707	Anne George I George II George III George IV William IV Victoria Edward VII George V Edward VIII George VI Elizabeth II

¹Overlord of Britain. ²Also ruler of Ireland. ³Also ruler of Scotland. ⁴Lord Protector. ⁵Also ruler of England. Debatable or disputed rulers are in italics.

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