A historian has identified a parking lot in Winchester, Hampshire, as the likely final resting place of Alfred the Great, the 9th-century king credited with repelling Viking invasions and unifying England. Researcher Graham Phillips stated he is "100 percent confident" the remains are located approximately 60 feet from a marker indicating the king's original interment site.
Phillips' search for the remains has spanned 13 years. Alfred the Great, born in 849, is renowned for his defense of Wessex against Viking incursions. He notably defeated the Viking leader Guthrum at the Battle of Edington in 878, a victory that influenced the Danes to adopt Christianity. The king also established fortified settlements and a navy to protect England's coastline from raiders.
Following Alfred's death in 899, his remains underwent several relocations, complicating efforts to find them. Initially buried at Winchester Cathedral, his bones were moved in 1110 to Hyde Abbey, where they were interred alongside his wife and son. The abbey was later destroyed during the dissolution of the monasteries ordered by Henry VIII in 1539.
In 1866, an antiquarian unearthed what he believed to be Alfred's remains during the construction of a workhouse and reburied them at Bartholomew Church. However, subsequent carbon dating revealed the bones to be from 200 years after Alfred's death.
Phillips' breakthrough came from an 1800 archive article detailing the construction of a prison next to Hyde Abbey in 1788. According to the article, the original gravesites were converted into the prison warden's garden, and the bones were moved by prisoners. The article reportedly included a map of their relocation.
Phillips hopes that non-destructive ground-penetrating radar surveys can be conducted at the site before any excavation to ensure the preservation of the royal remains. The discovery, if confirmed, is seen by Phillips as a potential "good omen" for the English soccer team as they prepare to face Norway in an upcoming match.