ALFRED.

115

were cut off by the English u ; and these pirate?, chap.instead of increasing their spoil, found themselves n.cooped up in their fortifications, and obliged tosubsist by the plunder which they had broughtfrom France. Tired of this situation , which mustin the end prove ruinous to them , the Danes atApuldore rose suddenly from their encampment,with an intention of marching towards the I fla-mes, and pasting over into Essex: But theyescaped not the vigilance of Alfred , who encoun-tered them at I am ham , put them to, rout ”,seized all their horses and baggage, and chacedthe runaways on board their strips, which carriedthem up the Colne to IVlersey in Essex, were theyentrenched themselves. Hastings, at the sametime, and probably by concert, made a likemovement; and deserting Milton, took possessionof Bamflete, near the iste of Canvey in the samecounty S ‘; where he hastily threw up fortificationsfor his defence against the power of Alfred.

Unfortunately for the English, Guthrum,prince of the East-Anglian Danes, was now dead;as was also Guthred, whom the king had ap-pointed governor of the Northumbrians; andthose restless tribes, being no longer restrainedby the authority of their princes, and being en-couraged by the appearance os so great a bodvof their countrymen, broke into rebellion, shook

Chron. Sax. p. 92.

55 Ibid. p. 93. Flor. YXigorn. p. 595.

Chron. Sax. p. 93.

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