WEBVTT - Dunstan and Eadwig's Notorious Twosome

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of iHeartRadio and Grimm

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<v Speaker 1>and Mild from Aaron Mankie Listener discretion advised. In the

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<v Speaker 1>year nine hundred and fifty five, there was a new

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<v Speaker 1>monarch on the throne of Wessex. Edwig, the fourteen year

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<v Speaker 1>old son of the previous king, was the new king.

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<v Speaker 1>After young Edwig went through his official anointing and installation

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<v Speaker 1>as King of the Anglo Saxons, the Wessex nobility celebrated

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<v Speaker 1>their new ruler with a feast, But as the guests

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<v Speaker 1>gathered around the table, they noticed an important person missing,

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<v Speaker 1>the teenage King Edwig himself, with the guest of honor

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<v Speaker 1>nowhere to be found, the archbishop sent two high up

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<v Speaker 1>clergy members, Abbot Dunstan and Bishop Quinnessier to the king's

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<v Speaker 1>royal apartments to see if he might be there. The

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<v Speaker 1>two men barged in to find a shocking sight. The

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<v Speaker 1>royal crown tossed to the side on the floor and

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<v Speaker 1>the young king himself in the middle of a threesome.

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<v Speaker 1>As one account put it, quote, he was disporting himself

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<v Speaker 1>between two women as though they were wallowing in some

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<v Speaker 1>revolting pigsty end quote horrified, Abbott Dunstan quote told off

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<v Speaker 1>the two women and tried to convince Edwig to come

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<v Speaker 1>to his feast, but the king refused. Dunstan had to

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<v Speaker 1>quote put out his hand and physically quote remove him

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<v Speaker 1>from the couch where he had been laying, quote parted

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<v Speaker 1>from his women only by force. One of the women

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<v Speaker 1>was the young king's fiance, Alphabou, but scandalously, the other

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<v Speaker 1>woman was Alphabou's mother. The discovery of the threesome would

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<v Speaker 1>be humiliating for Edwig. He had been caught and exposed

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<v Speaker 1>for abandoning his royal duties for an incestuous affair, but

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<v Speaker 1>did it actually happen. Given the outrageousness of the tale,

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<v Speaker 1>many historians suggest that it might have been an attempt

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<v Speaker 1>to slander Edwig's reputation. After all, accounts of Edwigs's threesome

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<v Speaker 1>only appear in narratives of the life of Abbot Dunstan,

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<v Speaker 1>the man who heroically stepped in to stop the debauchery

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<v Speaker 1>and returned the king to his officially sanctioned activities. These

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<v Speaker 1>biographies have a notably pro Dunstan slant and a tendency

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<v Speaker 1>to exaggerate. Alongside the story of Edwigs's alleged threesome is

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<v Speaker 1>a tale of Dunstan slaying the devil twice and reorienting

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<v Speaker 1>an entire church with only his shoulder, and Dunstan had

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<v Speaker 1>a good motive to lie about the new king. Edwig

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<v Speaker 1>and Dunstan were bitter enemies, and the threesome incident was

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<v Speaker 1>just one event in a decades long rivalry which spanned

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<v Speaker 1>multiple kings, sent Dunstan into exile and ultimately destroyed a marriage.

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<v Speaker 1>Turns out, salacious gossip about the sex lives of people

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<v Speaker 1>in power is not a modern invention. I'm Dana Schwartz

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<v Speaker 1>and this is Noble Blood Abbott. Dunstan's beef with Edwig

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<v Speaker 1>started long before young Edwig took the throne. Dunstan was

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<v Speaker 1>born in nine hundred and nine from humble origins. He

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<v Speaker 1>would eventually rise through the religious ranks to become the

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<v Speaker 1>advisor to seven kings and eventually the abbot of Glastonbury,

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<v Speaker 1>but it was a politically tumultuous time. Most kings spent

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<v Speaker 1>three or four years on the throne, with the threat

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<v Speaker 1>of assassination or replacement always lurking. Politically savvy operators like

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<v Speaker 1>Dunstan often had targets on their backs. Dunstan's drama with

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<v Speaker 1>the royal family started two kings before Edwig with Athelston

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<v Speaker 1>Edwiggs Dad's half brother, who I suppose as edwigs half uncle.

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<v Speaker 1>According to one of Dunstan's biographies, Athelston's courtiers were jealous

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<v Speaker 1>that Dunstan was the king's favorite, so they spread a

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<v Speaker 1>rumor about Dunstan that he was a heathen who took

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<v Speaker 1>part in magic rights. Believing the gossip, Ethelstan banished Dunstan

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<v Speaker 1>and his courtiers beat him up and left him for

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<v Speaker 1>dead in a duck pond, which is an adorable detail. Somehow,

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<v Speaker 1>Dunstan survived, and Ethelstan eventually welcomed him back into his

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<v Speaker 1>court and apologized for the misunderstanding. When Athelston died, he

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<v Speaker 1>was replaced with his half brother Edmund, Edwig's dad, who

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<v Speaker 1>sent Dunstan into exile yet again after his courtiers spread

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<v Speaker 1>yet another vicious rumor, but Edmund allegedly re admitted Dunstan.

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<v Speaker 1>After he was hunting near Cheddar Gorge. While chasing a stag,

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<v Speaker 1>Edmund came dangerously close to falling off the side of

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<v Speaker 1>the cliff before Dunstan saved him. If you couldn't tell

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<v Speaker 1>from Dunstan's heroic role in that story, it comes from

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<v Speaker 1>one of Dunstan's hagiographic biographies. But anyway, after Edmund's death,

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<v Speaker 1>he was succeeded by his brother Edred, and I genuinely

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<v Speaker 1>apologized for these names. Dunstan had a relatively drama free

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<v Speaker 1>stint in Edridge Court, with a plumb political position as

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<v Speaker 1>one of the king's most trusted advisers. Edred even put

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<v Speaker 1>Dunstan in charge of a good amount of his royal

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<v Speaker 1>treasure and authorized him to make royal charters, which was

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<v Speaker 1>a rare honor for a clergyman. But Dunstan's secure spot

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<v Speaker 1>in the royal court wouldn't last loan. Edred died in

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<v Speaker 1>nine hundred and fifty five at just thirty years old.

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<v Speaker 1>Now Edwig, Edmund's son and Edred's nephew, arrived on the

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<v Speaker 1>scene and immediately began to shake things up, much to

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<v Speaker 1>Dunstan's chagrin. At Edred's deathbed, Dunstan was the only royal

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<v Speaker 1>counselor that didn't render an account of the royal treasure

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<v Speaker 1>he was put in charge of, which raised young Edwigs's suspicions.

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig was incensed that his uncle's will left him nothing,

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<v Speaker 1>instead passing along most of the fortune to Edwig's mother.

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig and his followers suspected that Dunstan was laundering Edwigs's

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<v Speaker 1>rightful fortune through his mother to then give to Edwigs's

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<v Speaker 1>brother Edgar, so that Edgar could take over the throne instead.

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<v Speaker 1>It's a little bit complicated, but the point is Edwig

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<v Speaker 1>was convinced that Dunstan was screwing him over. Edwig rejected

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<v Speaker 1>the stipulations of the will and took most of the

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<v Speaker 1>money that was allocated to his mother for himself. Edwig

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<v Speaker 1>defied his late uncle's will yet again by burying him

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<v Speaker 1>in the Old Minister in Winchester instead of a reformed

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<v Speaker 1>Benedictine monastery such as Glastonbury, like his uncle had wanted.

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig was not as strict of a Benedictine as his

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<v Speaker 1>uncle Edward Rid had been, and it's likely Edwig didn't

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<v Speaker 1>want his late uncle's tomb to galvanize his Benedictine supporters,

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<v Speaker 1>a number which included Dunstan. To add insult to injury,

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig promoted his friends to high up positions in court

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<v Speaker 1>and completely neglected the Old Guard, the Old Guard which

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<v Speaker 1>included men like Dunstan. But the most flagrantly controversial aspect

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<v Speaker 1>of Edwig's rule, according to Dunstan, was Edwig's marriage. In

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<v Speaker 1>nine hundred and fifty six, Edwig married a woman named Alfievu,

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<v Speaker 1>who was a member of the highest Wessex nobility. Dunstan

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<v Speaker 1>had a long standing history himself with Alfhivu. Her family's

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<v Speaker 1>land was held in the same area of Wessex as

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<v Speaker 1>Dunstan's estate, and it's possible and likely that Dunstan had

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<v Speaker 1>an establish rivalry with Alfivu's family. More pertinently, that marriage

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<v Speaker 1>could have angered Dunstan because it put Edwig at a

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<v Speaker 1>political advantage. Teaming up with Alphievu's powerful family shored up

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig's rule against his mother, the archbishop, and Dunstan, who

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<v Speaker 1>were all still jocking to put Edwig's brother Edgar in power.

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<v Speaker 1>If Edwig and Alfivu had a son, that son could

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<v Speaker 1>prevent Edgar from ever ascending the throne. The warding Dunstan

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<v Speaker 1>and his Cohort's plans, Edwig had just one problem. He

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<v Speaker 1>might have been related to Alfivou, which flouted the laws

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<v Speaker 1>of consanguinity. In the tenth century, consanguinity happened if you

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<v Speaker 1>married someone within the fourth degree of kinship, meaning you

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<v Speaker 1>shared a common great great grandparent. It's unclear exactly how

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<v Speaker 1>the two might have been related, since Alfievu's ancestry has

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<v Speaker 1>not been perfectly recorded, or if it ever was, that

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<v Speaker 1>record is long since gone, but historians have located two

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<v Speaker 1>different great great grandfathers that they might have shared. Even

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<v Speaker 1>though Edwig and Alfaevu knew they might be related, the

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<v Speaker 1>political opportunity was too good to pass up. Besides, it

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<v Speaker 1>was fairly common for couples, particularly noble or royal couples

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<v Speaker 1>at this time, to break consanguinity laws, and the Church

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<v Speaker 1>had a precedent for happily looking the other way, and

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<v Speaker 1>lo and behold, the Church allowed the couple to wed

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<v Speaker 1>in nine hundred and fifty six, around the time Edwig

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<v Speaker 1>rose to power. At the start of his rule, Edwig

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<v Speaker 1>had it all. He had the girl, and he had

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<v Speaker 1>the throne, and he immediately set about exercising his new powers,

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<v Speaker 1>is having an unprecedented ninety charters in his first year

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<v Speaker 1>as king. But with enemies like Dunstan nearby, Edwig couldn't

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<v Speaker 1>rest on his laurels. It was only a matter of

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<v Speaker 1>time before Dunstan would want the power to shift. Before

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<v Speaker 1>Dunstan could take any political revenge against him, Edwig sent

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<v Speaker 1>him into exile, keeping Dunstan from meddling in his activities.

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<v Speaker 1>But that wasn't just a preventative measure for Edwig. It

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<v Speaker 1>also allowed him to reallocate Dunstan's confiscated lands to his

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<v Speaker 1>own allies. The move was so controversial and damaging to

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<v Speaker 1>Dunstan's position in court that historian Nicholas Brooks calls Dunstan's

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<v Speaker 1>exile a coup. Dunstan left England at once for Ghent

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<v Speaker 1>sometime around February nine hundred and fifty six. Dune spent

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<v Speaker 1>his exile hanging out at the monastery of Saint Peter

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<v Speaker 1>in Ghent, where he was offered the protection of the

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<v Speaker 1>Count of Flanders. He spent most of his time there placidly,

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<v Speaker 1>studying against monastic customs and admiring the recently remodeled monastery,

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<v Speaker 1>not altogether a bad vacation. While Dunstan was bidding his

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<v Speaker 1>time in Ghent, Edwig was struggling to maintain his hard

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<v Speaker 1>won political power, even when his main Archnemesies was far

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<v Speaker 1>away from court. By autumn nine hundred and fifty seven,

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<v Speaker 1>just a year after he rose to the throne, Edwig's

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<v Speaker 1>political power began to crumble. That summer, the kingdom was

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<v Speaker 1>divided up between Edwig in the south and his brother

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<v Speaker 1>Edgar in the north, with the River Thames forming the boundary.

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<v Speaker 1>It's unclear exactly why this happened. Some think was in

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<v Speaker 1>response to the vast number of charters Edwig was issuing

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<v Speaker 1>during the first year of his reign, most of which

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<v Speaker 1>reallocated land between lay people, but there's no clear reason

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<v Speaker 1>why that would have upset the court or the church.

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<v Speaker 1>Others think that the division was because Edwig ruled incompetently,

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<v Speaker 1>alienating his northern territory. Dunstan certainly thought so. According to

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<v Speaker 1>pro Dunstan sources, Edwig's ruling territory was cut in half

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<v Speaker 1>because quote King Edwig totally abandoned by the people north.

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<v Speaker 1>They despised him for his imprudent discharge of the power

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<v Speaker 1>entrusted to him. The wise and sensible he destroyed in

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<v Speaker 1>a spirit of idle hatred, replacing them with ignoramuses like himself,

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<v Speaker 1>to whom he took a liking end quote. In any case,

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<v Speaker 1>the split of the kingdom represented a substantial decrease in

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig's power, and the election of him his brother Edgar

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<v Speaker 1>to rule over a substantial portion of his former territory

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<v Speaker 1>was a boon to Dunstan's plan to install Edgar on

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<v Speaker 1>the entire throne. Even better, for Dunstan, his allies got

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<v Speaker 1>him readmitted to court, and he returned to England. The

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<v Speaker 1>next step to destroying Edwigs's political power would be to

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<v Speaker 1>break up his marriage, which was still a powerful political alliance.

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<v Speaker 1>In nine hundred and fifty eight, the archbishop annulled their

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<v Speaker 1>marriage on grounds of consanguinity. There was some spiritual motive

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<v Speaker 1>for that decision. The archbishop took care to explicitly condemn

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<v Speaker 1>incest in his constitutions, an adaptation and compilation of older

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<v Speaker 1>papal texts, and as one historian put it, the Archbishop's

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<v Speaker 1>quote consideration of appropriate marriages, written perhaps a decade before

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<v Speaker 1>ethel Veu and Edwig's marriage, would bear a considerable amount

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<v Speaker 1>of weight against the young king and his royal authority

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<v Speaker 1>end quote. But the archbishop's separation of the married couple

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<v Speaker 1>now also had a political motive. The archbishop was a

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<v Speaker 1>key ally of Dunstan's, and with Edgar ruling all of

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<v Speaker 1>England north of the Thames, Dunstan and his allies felt

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<v Speaker 1>strong enough to move for Edwig's divorce. We know almost

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<v Speaker 1>nothing about what Edwig was up to after the division

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<v Speaker 1>of his kingdom and the breakup of his marriage, but

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<v Speaker 1>given the comparative dearth of charters he issued during that time,

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<v Speaker 1>he was likely languishing on his smaller throne. On October one,

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<v Speaker 1>nine hundred and fifty nine, Edwig died, just nineteen years old.

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<v Speaker 1>He was buried at the New Minster Winchester, a church

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<v Speaker 1>founded by his grandfather. In nine hundred and one, Edgar

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<v Speaker 1>was made king and England was consolidated once again under

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<v Speaker 1>Edgar's rule. As a close ally of Edgar's, Dunstan was

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<v Speaker 1>brought even further into the fold. The archbishop consecrated him

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<v Speaker 1>a bishop, and eventually Dunstan was appointed to the Sea.

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<v Speaker 1>He even officiated the coronation of King Edgar in nine

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<v Speaker 1>hundred and seventy three, a huge honour, but even that

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<v Speaker 1>resounding victory was not enough for Dunstan and his allies.

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<v Speaker 1>Even though Edwig was dead, Dunstan's ally's final act of

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<v Speaker 1>retribution was to destroy what was left of the teenage

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<v Speaker 1>king his reputation. Over the rest of the tenth century,

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig's reign was seen as a four year blip of

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<v Speaker 1>chaos and misrule. In contrast to the longer, more harmonious

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<v Speaker 1>reigns of his brother Edgar and his half uncle who

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<v Speaker 1>came before him, Edwig's time as king was brief and tumultuous.

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<v Speaker 1>As a young king, unprepared for the demands of the throne,

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<v Speaker 1>Edwig jockeyed for power against Dunstan, resulting in Dunstan's exile,

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<v Speaker 1>the annulment of Edwigs's marriage, and the splitting up of

0:17:27.600 --> 0:17:33.320
<v Speaker 1>the entire kingdom. While Edwigs's reputation had tarnished after his death,

0:17:33.800 --> 0:17:39.520
<v Speaker 1>Dunstan's star continued to rise. Dunstan acted as a kind

0:17:39.560 --> 0:17:43.560
<v Speaker 1>of proto prime minister of the kingdom, remaining a key

0:17:43.640 --> 0:17:47.280
<v Speaker 1>member of the court and an archbishop until his death

0:17:47.359 --> 0:17:51.240
<v Speaker 1>in nine hundred eighty eight. He was even more celebrated

0:17:51.359 --> 0:17:55.800
<v Speaker 1>after his death. Immediately after he died, Dunstan's name was

0:17:55.960 --> 0:18:00.560
<v Speaker 1>entered into liturgical calendars and litanies of the saints. A

0:18:00.600 --> 0:18:04.800
<v Speaker 1>series of hymns, mass sets, and benedictions were composed in

0:18:04.880 --> 0:18:08.960
<v Speaker 1>his name, so he was publicly commemorated in churches across

0:18:08.960 --> 0:18:12.639
<v Speaker 1>the country. It wasn't until this period, in the late

0:18:12.800 --> 0:18:17.960
<v Speaker 1>tenth century, after both Edwig and Dunstan had died, that

0:18:18.080 --> 0:18:24.560
<v Speaker 1>the story of Edwigs's notorious coronation threesome first appears in writing.

0:18:25.440 --> 0:18:29.320
<v Speaker 1>The author of this first account of the threesome, under

0:18:29.359 --> 0:18:33.480
<v Speaker 1>the pseudonym B, had been hanging out with Dunstan during

0:18:33.560 --> 0:18:38.080
<v Speaker 1>his Ghent exile from edwigs court. It's possible that he

0:18:38.160 --> 0:18:42.080
<v Speaker 1>had heard the story back then as court gossip about

0:18:42.080 --> 0:18:45.240
<v Speaker 1>this controversial new king, and had kept it in his

0:18:45.400 --> 0:18:49.399
<v Speaker 1>back pocket for the rest of the tenth century. After

0:18:49.440 --> 0:18:53.400
<v Speaker 1>he wrote his version of the story, it spread, appearing

0:18:53.440 --> 0:18:57.640
<v Speaker 1>in other narratives of Dunstan's life throughout the eleventh century.

0:18:59.000 --> 0:19:04.800
<v Speaker 1>The story certainly helped these pro Dunstan sources prove Dunstan's

0:19:04.920 --> 0:19:11.080
<v Speaker 1>moral worth. Unlike the licentious, scandalous young King Edwig, Dunstan

0:19:11.280 --> 0:19:14.359
<v Speaker 1>was a monk, and so he was assumed to be chased,

0:19:14.840 --> 0:19:19.840
<v Speaker 1>and his biographers highlighted his commitment to abstaining from sex

0:19:19.920 --> 0:19:24.120
<v Speaker 1>throughout their texts. Medieval writers considered this to be one

0:19:24.160 --> 0:19:30.080
<v Speaker 1>of Dunstan's greatest sacrifices, which only strengthened his spiritual worthiness.

0:19:30.840 --> 0:19:36.160
<v Speaker 1>In the story of Edwigs's threesome, Dunstan's comparative chastity makes

0:19:36.240 --> 0:19:40.119
<v Speaker 1>him the moral authority of the situation, even above the

0:19:40.200 --> 0:19:44.119
<v Speaker 1>king himself. After all, Dunstan had to physically break up

0:19:44.160 --> 0:19:47.919
<v Speaker 1>the threesome, put the crown back on Edwig's head, and

0:19:48.080 --> 0:19:53.120
<v Speaker 1>admonish the women involved the threesome. Also let these pro

0:19:53.280 --> 0:19:57.800
<v Speaker 1>Dunstan writers absolve him for his exile during Edwigs's reign.

0:19:58.440 --> 0:20:02.800
<v Speaker 1>One writer explicitly makes that connection by having Edwig's mother

0:20:02.880 --> 0:20:07.119
<v Speaker 1>in law tell Dunstan in the middle of the discovered threesome, quote,

0:20:07.480 --> 0:20:09.920
<v Speaker 1>if you are so bold as to drag the king

0:20:10.040 --> 0:20:13.040
<v Speaker 1>willy nilly from the room, I shall make sure you

0:20:13.200 --> 0:20:18.280
<v Speaker 1>always remember this day and me. In this context, Dunstan's

0:20:18.320 --> 0:20:24.119
<v Speaker 1>exile seems like petty revenge rather than canny political maneuvering.

0:20:24.920 --> 0:20:28.520
<v Speaker 1>Having his mother in law threatened Dunstan instead of Edwig

0:20:28.960 --> 0:20:32.560
<v Speaker 1>also has the added benefit of making Edwig seem like

0:20:32.600 --> 0:20:35.960
<v Speaker 1>a weak puppet under the thumb of the women in

0:20:36.040 --> 0:20:41.600
<v Speaker 1>his life, even further discrediting his rule. But it's strange

0:20:41.760 --> 0:20:46.040
<v Speaker 1>that such a salacious bombshell of a story only came

0:20:46.080 --> 0:20:50.760
<v Speaker 1>out after Edwig was long dead and his political threat

0:20:50.760 --> 0:20:56.240
<v Speaker 1>to Dunstan had already well been neutralized. Dunstan had already

0:20:56.359 --> 0:21:00.959
<v Speaker 1>decisively won the feud. He died a Venora raed saint.

0:21:01.520 --> 0:21:04.879
<v Speaker 1>There was no need to introduce a fictional story about

0:21:05.000 --> 0:21:08.560
<v Speaker 1>Edwig lest we forget skipping his own coronation to have

0:21:08.680 --> 0:21:12.560
<v Speaker 1>a threesome with his fiance and her mom, even if

0:21:12.560 --> 0:21:17.040
<v Speaker 1>it was just as a victory lap. His historian Katharine

0:21:17.160 --> 0:21:21.600
<v Speaker 1>Weygert suggests that the story also served a moral and

0:21:21.840 --> 0:21:27.439
<v Speaker 1>political purpose, not just the purpose of petty revenge. She

0:21:27.760 --> 0:21:32.520
<v Speaker 1>argues that the story functioned as a cautionary tale. Edwig

0:21:32.560 --> 0:21:35.520
<v Speaker 1>had thought it would be a good political strategy to

0:21:35.720 --> 0:21:41.400
<v Speaker 1>marry Alfelviu, a distant relative with key territory in the region. Certainly,

0:21:41.440 --> 0:21:44.120
<v Speaker 1>if the marriage had flown under the radar, they could

0:21:44.200 --> 0:21:48.040
<v Speaker 1>have had sons who would have ruled over England after

0:21:48.200 --> 0:21:52.639
<v Speaker 1>Edwig died. Even though this marriage was long over, it

0:21:52.760 --> 0:21:57.960
<v Speaker 1>still represented the biggest threat to the current regime, since,

0:21:58.200 --> 0:22:03.080
<v Speaker 1>given that the Church often ignored consanguinity, other rulers could

0:22:03.119 --> 0:22:08.280
<v Speaker 1>easily follow suit b The anonymous chronicler who introduced the

0:22:08.320 --> 0:22:12.600
<v Speaker 1>threesome story did so during the reign of Afelred the Second,

0:22:13.000 --> 0:22:16.040
<v Speaker 1>the son of Edgar, who would never have been able

0:22:16.080 --> 0:22:19.840
<v Speaker 1>to come to power if Edwigs's marriage had stood unchallenged

0:22:19.840 --> 0:22:22.800
<v Speaker 1>and he had had sons of his own. Afelred the

0:22:22.840 --> 0:22:27.240
<v Speaker 1>Second's rule was already under threat from constant norse raiding

0:22:27.560 --> 0:22:32.720
<v Speaker 1>from competing political factions, and a political rival could easily

0:22:32.920 --> 0:22:37.840
<v Speaker 1>follow Edwigs's playbook to challenge him. Because of those potential

0:22:38.000 --> 0:22:42.520
<v Speaker 1>challenges to the status quo, Weygart says, marriages like Edwiggs

0:22:42.600 --> 0:22:48.679
<v Speaker 1>quote had to be undermined on every possible level. Wyckart

0:22:48.680 --> 0:22:53.160
<v Speaker 1>emphasizes that the most effective strategy to scare potential rulers

0:22:53.240 --> 0:22:56.560
<v Speaker 1>from that kind of marriage that would consolidate their power

0:22:57.160 --> 0:23:02.119
<v Speaker 1>was to use sexual humiliation. This is most clearly true

0:23:02.160 --> 0:23:06.880
<v Speaker 1>for Edwig. This story made his union with Alfelvoux seem

0:23:07.000 --> 0:23:11.360
<v Speaker 1>like a perverse abandonment of his role as king, quite literally,

0:23:11.440 --> 0:23:15.399
<v Speaker 1>since he was abandoning his coronation feast. Not only was

0:23:15.520 --> 0:23:19.359
<v Speaker 1>Edwig engaging in incest by sleeping with his distant relative

0:23:19.840 --> 0:23:24.679
<v Speaker 1>and her mom simultaneously, he was also abandoning his own coronation,

0:23:24.880 --> 0:23:30.520
<v Speaker 1>ignoring kingly duties. The story also slanders his wife, which

0:23:30.600 --> 0:23:36.200
<v Speaker 1>discourages other women from seeking out similar marriages. Wykert points

0:23:36.200 --> 0:23:40.600
<v Speaker 1>out that B refers to Affelvou not as Edwig's wife,

0:23:40.960 --> 0:23:44.040
<v Speaker 1>but just as a woman that the king is sleeping with,

0:23:44.720 --> 0:23:49.439
<v Speaker 1>stripping her of her status. This move dishonors both Edwig

0:23:49.600 --> 0:23:54.480
<v Speaker 1>and Alflavou because quote, without the shield of authority from

0:23:54.480 --> 0:23:58.520
<v Speaker 1>their place in court culture. In these texts, Affelvou can

0:23:58.560 --> 0:24:02.439
<v Speaker 1>become a Jezebel with whom the weak and effeminate Edwig

0:24:02.680 --> 0:24:08.800
<v Speaker 1>feels compelled to fornicate. End quote. The story suggests that

0:24:08.960 --> 0:24:13.600
<v Speaker 1>Edwig and Alflevou's marriage was a moral threat to the

0:24:13.640 --> 0:24:18.600
<v Speaker 1>status quo, and the story destroyed both of their reputations

0:24:18.600 --> 0:24:24.280
<v Speaker 1>in perpetuity. Other tenth century writers would later make up

0:24:24.320 --> 0:24:29.399
<v Speaker 1>additional details about Edwig's love life to further discredit him.

0:24:29.840 --> 0:24:33.720
<v Speaker 1>Burforth of Ramsay accused him of quote leading a wicked

0:24:33.800 --> 0:24:37.960
<v Speaker 1>life and immoderate youth is accustomed to do by loving

0:24:38.080 --> 0:24:41.199
<v Speaker 1>another woman as if she were his own wife and

0:24:41.320 --> 0:24:45.080
<v Speaker 1>eloping with her, ignoring the sacred decrees of Christian law.

0:24:45.600 --> 0:24:48.560
<v Speaker 1>According to him, it wasn't until the archbishop at the

0:24:48.600 --> 0:24:51.119
<v Speaker 1>time Quote seized the woman and took her out of

0:24:51.160 --> 0:24:54.280
<v Speaker 1>the kingdom and warned the king with gentle words and

0:24:54.359 --> 0:24:58.560
<v Speaker 1>actions that he should constrain himself from wicked deeds, that

0:24:58.680 --> 0:25:02.680
<v Speaker 1>the sinful union would broken up. We don't know much

0:25:02.840 --> 0:25:07.400
<v Speaker 1>or anything about this alleged second marriage, but it suggests

0:25:07.560 --> 0:25:13.840
<v Speaker 1>that attacking Edwig's sexuality was a winning and continuous strategy

0:25:13.960 --> 0:25:17.840
<v Speaker 1>when it came to slandering him. We'll never know whether

0:25:17.960 --> 0:25:21.879
<v Speaker 1>those stories were true, and in all likelihood they were not,

0:25:22.720 --> 0:25:28.120
<v Speaker 1>but they represent a medieval pr triumph for Dunstan. While

0:25:28.240 --> 0:25:33.639
<v Speaker 1>Dunstan's biographers presented him as a virtuous hero after his death,

0:25:34.040 --> 0:25:38.720
<v Speaker 1>he was probably a very controversial figure during his life.

0:25:38.760 --> 0:25:43.720
<v Speaker 1>Even these pro Dunstan writers admit that he quote inspired

0:25:43.800 --> 0:25:48.320
<v Speaker 1>hatred and envy on a grand scale, as contemporary historian

0:25:48.520 --> 0:25:53.760
<v Speaker 1>Michael Lappage put it. After all, Dunstan was exiled three

0:25:53.880 --> 0:25:57.680
<v Speaker 1>times and even beaten and thrown into a duck pond

0:25:57.960 --> 0:26:02.720
<v Speaker 1>during Ethelston's reign. Similarly, returning to the story of edwigs

0:26:02.800 --> 0:26:07.800
<v Speaker 1>threesome in a more nuanced light suggests a more complex

0:26:08.160 --> 0:26:13.600
<v Speaker 1>view of Edwigs's rule beyond his youthful indiscretion, short time

0:26:13.640 --> 0:26:17.600
<v Speaker 1>on the throne, and bad reputation after his death. During

0:26:17.640 --> 0:26:21.960
<v Speaker 1>the first year of his reign, he represented a credible

0:26:22.240 --> 0:26:27.280
<v Speaker 1>threat to Dunstan's authority, even if young Edwig didn't have

0:26:27.320 --> 0:26:31.600
<v Speaker 1>the political know how to know how to retain the

0:26:31.720 --> 0:26:36.800
<v Speaker 1>upper hand. The story of edwigs threesome shows that medieval

0:26:36.840 --> 0:26:42.159
<v Speaker 1>politicians and clergy were willing to play dirty, creating a

0:26:42.240 --> 0:26:52.600
<v Speaker 1>salacious story that has stuck around for centuries. That's the

0:26:52.720 --> 0:26:56.520
<v Speaker 1>end of our story about Edwigs alleged threesome, but stick

0:26:56.520 --> 0:26:59.919
<v Speaker 1>around to hear a little bit more about Dunstan's epic

0:27:00.200 --> 0:27:13.600
<v Speaker 1>battles with the Devil. According to Dunstan's biographers, Dunstan was

0:27:13.680 --> 0:27:17.600
<v Speaker 1>not only breaking up threesums and getting thrown in duck ponds,

0:27:17.960 --> 0:27:22.960
<v Speaker 1>but also literally fighting with the devil. According to legend,

0:27:23.359 --> 0:27:27.119
<v Speaker 1>during his exile at Glastonbury back during Ethelston's rule, he

0:27:27.240 --> 0:27:30.600
<v Speaker 1>was sitting in a cell and doing some metalwork when

0:27:30.680 --> 0:27:34.480
<v Speaker 1>suddenly an old man came to his window and asked

0:27:34.800 --> 0:27:40.360
<v Speaker 1>Dunstan to make him a chalice. Dunstan accepted the man's request,

0:27:40.800 --> 0:27:43.199
<v Speaker 1>but as he was working, the old man began to

0:27:43.400 --> 0:27:47.639
<v Speaker 1>morph into a young boy and then a sexy woman.

0:27:48.480 --> 0:27:51.919
<v Speaker 1>Dunstan knew at that moment that this figure was the devil,

0:27:52.320 --> 0:27:55.280
<v Speaker 1>but he bided his time and continued to work on

0:27:55.480 --> 0:27:59.080
<v Speaker 1>his chalice. He laid his tongs in the fire until

0:27:59.119 --> 0:28:03.280
<v Speaker 1>they got scaled hot, then grabbed them, turned around, and

0:28:03.359 --> 0:28:05.959
<v Speaker 1>used them to suddenly grab the devil by the nose.

0:28:06.359 --> 0:28:10.480
<v Speaker 1>The devil squirmed and shrieked and ran out of the cell, screaming,

0:28:10.760 --> 0:28:14.080
<v Speaker 1>woe is me? What hath that bald devil done to me?

0:28:14.440 --> 0:28:16.960
<v Speaker 1>Look at me, a poor wretch, Look how he has

0:28:17.040 --> 0:28:21.719
<v Speaker 1>tortured me. People on the street heard the devil's cries

0:28:22.200 --> 0:28:27.040
<v Speaker 1>and approached Dunstan the following day, asking what happened. He

0:28:27.080 --> 0:28:30.360
<v Speaker 1>told them, quote, these are the tricks of the devils,

0:28:30.640 --> 0:28:34.240
<v Speaker 1>who try to trap us with their snares whenever they can.

0:28:34.680 --> 0:28:37.879
<v Speaker 1>But if we remain firm in the service of Christ,

0:28:38.240 --> 0:28:40.840
<v Speaker 1>we can easily defeat them with his help, and they

0:28:40.880 --> 0:28:44.680
<v Speaker 1>will flee from us in confusion. To be honest, if

0:28:44.680 --> 0:28:47.840
<v Speaker 1>that version of the story actually happened, it kind of

0:28:47.960 --> 0:28:52.120
<v Speaker 1>sounds like Dunstan just grabbed an old man's nose with

0:28:52.240 --> 0:28:57.600
<v Speaker 1>flaming hot tongs. But who knows Dunstan also encountered the

0:28:57.640 --> 0:29:01.840
<v Speaker 1>devil yet again, one time when he was praying alone.

0:29:01.920 --> 0:29:06.000
<v Speaker 1>This time, the devil disguised himself as a wolf, snarling

0:29:06.040 --> 0:29:10.280
<v Speaker 1>and baring his teeth, but Dunstan refused to acknowledge him,

0:29:10.680 --> 0:29:15.880
<v Speaker 1>instead just concentrating on his prayers. The devil then transformed

0:29:15.920 --> 0:29:19.560
<v Speaker 1>into a cute little fox, dancing about to try to

0:29:19.560 --> 0:29:24.720
<v Speaker 1>get Dunstan's attention. Dunstan said in response, quote, you are

0:29:24.760 --> 0:29:29.040
<v Speaker 1>revealing how you usually behave by your tricks. You flatter

0:29:29.120 --> 0:29:32.680
<v Speaker 1>the unwary so that you can devour them. Now get

0:29:32.680 --> 0:29:36.040
<v Speaker 1>out of here, wretch, since Christ, who crushed the lion

0:29:36.080 --> 0:29:39.200
<v Speaker 1>and the dragon with his heel, will overcome you by

0:29:39.320 --> 0:29:43.080
<v Speaker 1>his grace through me, whether you're a wolf or a fox.

0:29:44.080 --> 0:29:51.120
<v Speaker 1>Those stories, true or ahem not, became popular legends, spreading

0:29:51.240 --> 0:29:56.680
<v Speaker 1>throughout the medieval world. Yet another pr victory for our

0:29:56.800 --> 0:30:06.520
<v Speaker 1>friend Dunstan. Noble Blood is a production of iHeartRadio and

0:30:06.720 --> 0:30:10.320
<v Speaker 1>Grim and Mild from Aaron Mankey. Noble Blood is hosted

0:30:10.400 --> 0:30:14.440
<v Speaker 1>by me Dana Schwartz, with additional writing and research by

0:30:14.440 --> 0:30:19.200
<v Speaker 1>Hannah Johnston, Hannahswick, Courtney Sender, Amy Hit and Julia Melaney.

0:30:19.840 --> 0:30:23.480
<v Speaker 1>The show is edited and produced by Jesse Funk, with

0:30:23.640 --> 0:30:29.120
<v Speaker 1>supervising producer rima Il Kaali and executive producers Aaron Manke,

0:30:29.480 --> 0:30:34.000
<v Speaker 1>Trevor Young, and Matt Frederick. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio,

0:30:34.240 --> 0:30:38.560
<v Speaker 1>visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen

0:30:38.600 --> 0:30:41.640
<v Speaker 1>to your favorite shows.