Welcome to the British History Podcast. My name is Jamie and this is episode 158,

offo with this head. This show is free and independent due to member support.

And as thanks for helping keep the community going, I offer members only content such as extra episodes and rough transcripts.

If you're interested in supporting the show and helping us out, you can do so over at the

BritishHistoryPodcast.com. And thank you very much to Philip, Robert and Patrick for contributing already.

Many of you, in fact, I would wager most of you, rush to email me about the recent discovery of a new cure for MRSA.

Now to start with, MRSA is not in fact a condition where you're obsessed with male nurses.

It's basically a really nasty staff infection that's immune to the antibiotics that we commonly use.

It's a nasty little bug and it can rip through hospitals and cause all manner of havoc.

Anyway, so in addition to breast milk in the eyes, worms on ligaments and horse dung and wounds,

unfurth was also onto something with the potions made from wine, garlic, leaks and bile that were kept in brass containers.

Because in addition to being gross, they killed MRSA, dead.

Again, I apologized to any 7th century Anglo-Saxons who might have been listening and felt unfairly maligned in the medicine episodes.

I was wrong, you guys were actually onto something.

Okay, so last week was dark, wasn't it?

Not only that, but it only covered the first half of 793.

The end of the 8th century was an eventful period, so let's pick up right where we left off and talk about what else was happening in the other half of 793.

And specifically with King Alpha and Charlemagne.

As you might remember, Alpha's foil, Archbishop J. Embertoff Canterbury, had finally died and Aethelherde, a Merceon, was selected to replace him.

A pallium was sent for, and on the 21st of July 793, Aethelherde was consecrated by Archbishop Higbert of Lichfield.

Understand that that is a massive swing in power.

Not only was the seat of Canterbury now in Merceon hands, whereas it used to be openly hostile to Mercea, but think about who was consecrating Aethelherde.

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