On the southern end of the courtyard of Warwick Castle stands Ethelfleda's Mound. Ethelfleda, daughter of King Alfred the Great, was known as the Lady of the Mercians. Her kingdom of Mercia covered the middle of England and was under constant attack from Vikings. This fortification, spearheaded by Ethelfleda in the year 914, was the first of significance at Warwick Castle, replacing ineffective wooden ones. But she did more than build defensive fortifications.
She led armies into battle against the Vikings and defeated them in Derby and Leicester, she invaded Wales, she took on the Vikings at Chester and in 918 forced the Vikings to surrender their stronghold in York – and everywhere she went, she built castles.
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