King Æthelred II ruled England from 978 to 1016 – with a little gap in 1014. Known to history as 'the Unready', he faced many challenges in his reign, not least the attentions of several Viking invasion forces. It was Æthelred's failure to deal with such threats that landed him with his rather unfortunate nickname. However, as Levi Roach explains to David Musgrove, the story of his reign is a far more complicated one, with long-term consequences.

(Ad) Levi Roach is the author of Æthelred: The Unready (Yale University Press, 2016). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/AEthelred-Unready-Monarchs-Levi-Roach/dp/0300196296/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty.

If your enjoyed this medieval episode, be sure to listen to this episode where Joanna Story answers listener questions about the Anglo-Saxon kings and kingdoms: https://link.chtbl.com/dwG7ZNcl.

The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

March 2, 2026 Daily Devotion