Alfred the Great figures in history as the founder, in some sense, of the British monarchy. He spent his life in laying broad and deep the foundations on which the enormous superstructure of the British Empire has since been reared. If the tales respecting his character and deeds which have come down to us are at all worthy of belief, he was an honest, conscientious, disinterested, and far-seeing statesman. - Chapter 1 : The Britons.