thermore Gytro, king of the Danes, having with invincible bravery traversed the entire territories of England, wasting all the sàcred places, and bestowing on his soldiers all the gold and silver he could seize, at length, on hearing of the fame of king Alfred, that he excelled all the kings in the English realm in wisdom, prudence, and wealth, profanely turned his arms against that people, giving towns and villages to the flames, putting to the sword whatever came in his way, and, that he might strike a greater terror into the people, sparing neither the female sex nor the tender age of children. The storm of this persecution was heightened by the detestable wickedness of Hinguar and Halden, who with twenty-three vessels came from South Wales, where they had wintered, and where, with the ferocity of wolves, they had committed immense slaughter and burned the monasteries, and sailed to Devon, where the same Hinguar, with Hubba, and Halden, and twelve hundred men, were slain by king Alfred's army before the castle of Kinwith ; and there the blood of the blessed king and martyr Edmund, which had been shed by the aforesaid ministers of wickedness, was avenged by the soldiers of the Christian king Alfred. But, nevertheless, the greatest part of them made their escape to Gytro the pagan king, and with united forces they ravaged the entire country of the West-Saxons from sea to sea, covering the ground like locusts, and in the absence of any to defend it, they subdued the whole region to themselves. In this storm of persecution the faithful bishops of Christ fled beyond the sea with the relics of the saints and the treasures of the churches, together with numbers of their people, and a part followed king Alfred and hid themselves in the woods and desert places during that season of peril. Touched with grief of heart, king Alfred knew not what to do or whither to turn, for the wicked king Gytro had possessed himself of every place of defence ; so that having hope of nothing better, king Alfred yielded to present circumstances, resolving to await the issue of events. Exile of the great king Alfred at Ethelingeie. There is a place in the western parts of England, called Ethelingeie, i.e. the isle of Nobles, surrounded on all sides by marshes, so that it can be approached only by boats. There