Volu m e II - Purdue University Calumet

Helm, for He guideth and governeth all creatures, even as a good steersman does a ship” (Alfred 83). This
passage illustrates that God is a “steady ruler,” language that alludes to the social stability and Christian
worship that Alfred champions. The term “[He] governeth” is also referential to Alfred’s position as a
secular leader, or governor, of his people. While God rules “all creatures” in the world, Alfred is
responsible for “all creatures” of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom. Alfred wants to reassure his audience that
stability and unity can be attained through a sharing of responsibilities by God and secular leaders.
Alfred also personalizes his translation when he discusses the necessities and limitations of royal
power in Chapter XVII of his Consolation. In his translation, Alfred writes:
I desired instruments and materials to carry out the work I was set to do, which was
that I
should virtuously and fittingly administer the authority committed unto me.
Now no man, as thou
knowest, can get full play for his natural gifts, nor conduct and
administer government, unless he hath fit
tools, and the raw material to work upon. By material I mean that which is necessary to the exercise of
natural powers; thus a
king’s raw material and instruments of rule are a well-peopled land, and he must
have men of prayer, men of war, and men of work. As thou knowest, without these
tools no
king may display his special talent (Alfred 34).
This passage in Alfred’s translation marks a clear addition to the text of the original; here, Alfred
details the need for man to possess the tools and materials necessary to “conduct and administer
government,” which is an obvious concern for a king attempting to reform his kingdom. He unabashedly
makes reference to the “king’s raw material and instruments of rule,” and discusses the three classes of men
(prayer men, military men, and work men) that must exist, according to Alfred, in order for a kingdom to
run properly. These three classes of men fall into the category of what Alfred believed made up an
honorable, fit, and stable kingdom. With the statement that a king must have his land “well-peopled,”
Alfred addresses the significance of the presence of capable and learned subjects in order for a kingdom to
be successful. Alfred’s reference to the importance of “prayer men,” or ecclesiastical figures, and his
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