Kingship in the poetry of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle contains among its prose entries several poems which appear between the years 936 and 1104. Almost all of these poems are united by the theme of kingship, which dominates the Chronicle as a whole but receives even closer attention in the poetry. The Chronicle-poems display various attitudes about the kingship: some highly favorable, others critical, and many mixed in their opinions. In this manner, they maintain thematic continuity with the rest of the Chronicle, but amplify its values through rhetorically heightened expression. The plan of this study is as follows. First, we shall briefly consider why the poems of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle have often been overlooked in literary studies. Second, we shall note the thematic continuity of the Chronicle, as well as its literary qualities. Then, we shall examine how the issue of kingship appears in the Chronicle as a whole, noting several dominant themes which prevail. Finally, we shall examine each of the Chronicle-poems (excepting "The Battle of Brunanburh") in detail to discover the attitudes of the poems toward the kingship. In general, these poems maintain a spirit of nationalism and a respect for the office of king, offering praise for kings who succeed in their roles, but unhesitatingly criticizing kings who do not fulfill their duties well.