The Battle of Ashdown, Jan 8th, 871 article was written by Judy Barradell-Smith.

Judy Barradell-Smith lives in Aston Tirrold and is chairman of the Aston Local History group.

This battle, so precisely dated, is surrounded by conjecture, by tales handed down the generations and by Saxon records.
Where was the battle of Ashdown?
Its exact location remains a mystery but Aston Upthorpe and Blewburton Hill play a prominent role in its story. It is not always realised that the Vikings invaded and fought over this part of England. The heroes of this battle were the Saxon King Ethelred and his brother Alfred the Great. It was a bloody battle resulting in great loss of life; difficult to imagine now looking up at our green and tranquil downland. What happened to the bodies of the slain? This fascinating account grips the imagination.