‘?thelfl?d’ is an accessible, authoritative, and enlightening introduction to the most influential woman that English history forgot. Today, few remember ?thelfl?d. The daughter, sister, and aunt of great kings, she was a ruler as remarkable as any of them. She planted cities, she sponsored learning, and she defeated the enemies of her people. It was on the foundations laid by ?thelfl?d that a new kingdom would come to be built – a kingdom that lasts to this day.