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inthegarden5 t1_iw0lmpa wrote

First Norman king of England. There were kings before William usurped the throne.

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StupidMastiff t1_iw0pwv3 wrote

No, Alfred was Saxon, and the first King of England, as before him, it was split into several kingdoms.

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inthegarden5 t1_iw0vwx7 wrote

I misread, thank you. Saw the William I reference and not the Alfred. I see many history of England things that start counting at William and that frustrates me.

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listyraesder t1_iw1w1ob wrote

Alfred wasn’t the first King of England. That goes to his grandson Æthelstan.

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Lego105 t1_iw1pa5h wrote

That’s true, but there were Roman “kings” of England before him, even if they weren’t technically kings by title. Depends on your perspective. It’s complicated to discuss ancient titles that didn’t really have set boundaries the same way modern titles do, even Aelfred wasn’t necessarily king of England in the sense we’d consider it now, and there’s a lot of minutia about whether he even technically ruled the lands he claimed by his title.

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DaiGorll t1_iwhmqtq wrote

Sorry if I've misconstrued your point, but "England" wasn't a thing when the Romans were here

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bobcat7781 t1_iw0zvt3 wrote

Yes, William could be called a usurper, but he won the throne by conquest.

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[deleted] t1_iw1y3i0 wrote

[deleted]

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theincrediblenick t1_iw2cx8k wrote

William made the law which OP posted about, but William the Bastard (later Conqueror) was NOT the first King of England. That was Athelstan.

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