The Last Kingdom
OCLC 56647847 | | |
Followed by | The Pale Horseman |
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The Last Kingdom is the first
Plot summary
Osbert is the second son of
Uhtred befriends Ragnar's youngest son, Rorik, and has many clashes with one boy in particular, Sven, son of Kjartan, one of Ragnar's
Uhtred joins Ragnar and the Danes on raids across East Anglia, and participates in the conquests of Mercia and East Anglia, and the invasion of Wessex. He is kidnapped at the instigation of a priest, Beocca, an old family friend. He escapes from Wessex and rejoins Ragnar.
Uhtred enjoys life with Ragnar, but while he is out one night, Kjartan and his men set fire to Ragnar's hall and kill everyone trying to escape, except for Thyra. Ragnar remains inside rather than die on Kjartan's terms. Thyra is captured and given to Sven.
Uhtred then joins King Alfred in Wessex. There he reluctantly learns to read and write at Alfred's insistence, because the king's military commanders must be able to read his written orders. He is given command of Alfred's new small fleet of 12 ships. After a battle with the Danes, he meets with Ragnar the Younger, Earl Ragnar's eldest son, and tells him how his father died and that Thyra was kidnapped. They part friends, swearing that one day they will take revenge on Kjartan and rescue Thyra.
Alfred orders Uhtred to marry an orphaned Wessex girl Mildrith in order to try to bind him to Wessex. Uhtred is not told that, by marrying her, he will also assume her father's enormous debt to the Church.
Afterwards, he takes part in a siege against Guthrum, and is among a group of hostages exchanged when the Danes and West Saxons make peace. Staying with the Danes in the city over the winter, he again meets Ragnar, who saves him from death when Guthrum breaks the peace and murders the other Saxon hostages. Uhtred then escapes to find his wife. She was taken by Odda the Younger, another Wessex ealdorman, to the north.
He fights in the critical Battle of Cynwit, where he kills the renowned Danish leader Ubba in single combat. Uhtred then rides to Exanceaster to find his wife and newborn son, instead of going immediately to personally inform Alfred of his victory as strongly advised by his wiser friend.
Characters in The Last Kingdom
Fictional
- Uhtred - dispossessed Ealdorman of Bebbanburg originally named Osbert
- Earl Ragnar the Fearless - Danish warlord who raises Uhtred like his own son
- Ragnar Ragnarsson (Ragnar the Younger) - Ragnar's son, Uhtred's foster brother and close friend
- Rorik Ragnarsson - Ragnar's younger son and Uhtred's childhood friend
- Thyra Ragnarsdottir - Ragnar's daughter, kidnapped by Kjartan
- Brida - East Anglian Saxon girl, Uhtred's lover and friend
- Sigrid - Earl Ragnar's wife and mother to Ragnar the Younger, Rorik and Thyra
- Ravn - blind skald and Earl Ragnar's father
- Sven Kjartansson - Uhtred's sworn enemy and Kjartan's son
- Kjartan - Danish shipmaster who kills Earl Ragnar
- Father Beocca - Alfred's priest and Uhtred's family friend
- Mildrith - Uhtred's pious West Saxon wife
- Leofric - Uhtred's friend, warrior and shipmaster
- Odda the Younger - Ealdorman Odda's son and Uhtred's enemy
- Ælfric - Uhtred's uncle and usurper of Bebbanburg
- Lord Uhtred of Bebbanburg - Uhtred's father
- Gytha - Uhtred's stepmother
- Father Wilibald - West Saxon priest serving Alfred and close acquaintance of Uhtred
Historical
- Alfred the Great - King of Wessex
- Æthelflæd - Alfred's eldest daughter, Lady of the Mercians
- Erkenwald - bishop and Chaplin to Alfred
- Guthrum the Unlucky- Danish warlord
- Ubba Ragnarsson - Danish warlord feared by many, older brother to Ivar and Halfdan
- Ivar Ragnarsson (Ivar the Boneless) - Danish warlord feared by many, brother to Ubba and Halfdan
- Halfdan Ragnarsson - Danish warlord and younger brother of Ubba and Ivar
- Ælswith - Alfred's wife, who dislikes Uhtred
- Æthelwold- Alfred's nephew and acquaintance of Uhtred
- Ealdorman Odda- Ealdorman of Wessex
- King Edmund of East Anglia
- Northumbria
- Wulfhere - Ealdorman of Wiltshire
- Haesten - Danish warrior recruited and saved by Uhtred
Television adaptation
In July 2014, the BBC announced that production would begin in autumn 2014 on a television adaptation, to be titled The Last Kingdom. Stephen Butchard is the writer. A series of eight 60-minute episodes was produced, and the series began airing on 10 October 2015.[2] BBC Two, Carnival Films and BBC America were involved in the production. The series lasted for a total of five seasons, a total of 46 episodes, with the final season airing on 9 March 2022.
Publication details
- 2004, UK, HarperCollins ISBN 0-00-714990-5, Pub date 4 October 2004, hardback
- 2005, UK, HarperCollins ISBN 0-00-714991-3, Pub date 30 May 2005, paperback
- 2006, UK, HarperCollins ISBN 0-00-721801-X, Pub date 3 October 2005, paperback (mass-market)
- 2006, USA, HarperTorch ISBN 0-06-053280-7, Pub date 30 June 2006, paperback (mass-market)
See also
- Uhtred (Derbyshire ealdorman), real ealdorman during the book's set era
References
- ^ "The Last Kingdom (Extract) | Bernard Cornwell". www.bernardcornwell.net. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
- ^ Una Maguire (9 July 2014). "BBC Two announces new drama series, The Last Kingdom". Retrieved 24 July 2014.