The reign of AEthelred 'the Unready' (978 1016) is known to us mainly from a series of annals in the Anglo-Saxon Chrolicle, written at or after its close and accordingly conveying an impression of gathering doom as Viking armies ravaged the country and eventually, under the leadership of Swein Forkbeard and Cnut, brought about its conquest. Dr Keynes is here concerned to establish what light the royal diplomas issued in King AEthelred's name throw on this unhappy and notorious period. He first considers the general issues that bear directly on the value of royal diplomas as historical...