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Ceolwulf
Ceolwulf
Portrayed By: David Gant
Last king of independent Mercia. Ceolwulf is not happy with Alfred's lack of support for Mercia, and strives to make his country a military power once again
- Killed Mid-Sentence: Drops dead while yelling at Alfred.
- Large Ham: He shouts at Alfred for "SWORDS!" throughout his scene.
- Old Soldier: An old warrior king who is not at all cowed by Alfred.
- One-Scene Wonder: He dies in his first and only scene, but makes quite the impression while he's there.
Other Saxons
Asser
Brother Asser
Portrayed By: Nicholas Rowe
- Fantastic Racism: Surprise, surprise, another Christian prejudiced against Danes. He also is very vocal in disparaging Iseult, considering her a witch.
- Jerkass Has a Point: For all his misogyny and fanatical prejudice, his testimony against Uhtred for illegally raiding Cornwallum and helping Skorpa kill King Peredur is accurate.
- Oh, Crap!: His reaction when Alfred selects him to be a messenger to rally troops to fight at Ethandun. Also when Guthrum's army assaults Winchester and when Skorpa attacks the Saxon camp at Ethandun.
- The Neidermeyer: A non-military example: Uhtred is worried Asser will try to undo his work to convince Alfred he needs to fight back against the Danes.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: When Uhtred and Skorpa join forces to kill King Peredur, Asser flees at the first chance.
- Straw Misogynist: His distaste for Iseult seems as much on account of her being a woman as for her paganism.
- Young Future Famous People: Historically, Asser became King Alfred's biographer and is largely believed to be the reason any record of Alfred survives to the present day. His life's work, "The Life of King Alfred" is believed to be one of the best historical sources of information on Alfred's reign.
