Guthorm's Invasion of Wessex:
Viking Trouble on Two Sides?

With Alfred and his small band of followers hiding in the wild countryside, Guthorm could look forward to delivering the crushing blow to Wessex, the very last of the Saxon kingdoms to fall to the Danes. The Viking king must have been expecting the arrival of one of the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok (possibly named Ubbe, but no one is sure) and his fleet of longships. They were to come from the west, probably from South Wales, to provide the pincher movement with Guthorm's land army. No one knows how this invasion from land and sea was planned. But even Alfred might have expected trouble. He had fled to a position between Guthorm's forces and the west. He could have turned either way to defend his land with whomever he could gather to his aid. What would happen, though, if both the land army and the warriors on the longships attacked at the same time? King Alfred could only hope that that would not happen.