Earliest recorded instance of intercourse between England and India.
But Alfred’s messengers went further East than Palestine. I have already quoted the passage from the Chronicle which tells how in 883 Alfred sent alms to India to St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew, in fulfilment of the vow which he made ‘when they encamped against the Danes at London.’ On the route taken by these messengers I can unfortunately throw no light. But the entry is of transcendent interest. It is the first recorded instance of a connexion between England and Hindustan, a connexion which has meant so much to India and to England; for it is, I venture to think, to her government of India that England largely owes the position in the world which she holds to-day.
Intercourse with Rome, and the Frankish empire.
Of missions and alms sent to Rome by Alfred five instances[613] are recorded in the Chronicle, and probably there were many others not recorded, for the omission of a formal embassy seems to be noted as exceptional[614].
Of intercourse with the Frankish empire we shall have some illustrations when we come to speak of the foreign scholars imported by Alfred.
Alfred’s need of trained subordinates.
§ 87. But of all the objects which Alfred had in view the one probably to which he attached most importance was, in the words of our University bidding-prayer, ‘a succession of persons duly qualified for the service of God in Church and State.’ In a passage in the Consolation of Philosophy[615] Boethius says to his instructress: ‘Thou knowest that ambition never was my mistress, though I did desire materials for carrying out my task’; ‘which task,’ adds Alfred, in his own words[616], ‘was that I should virtuously and fittingly administer the authority committed to me. Now no man … can … administer government, unless he have fit tools and the raw material to work upon.… And a king’s raw material and instruments of rule are a well-peopled land, and he must have men of prayer, men of war, and men of work.… Without these tools he cannot perform any of the tasks entrusted to him.’
Court school.
It was with a view to providing these necessary ‘tools,’ that Alfred seems to have established, probably after the example of Charles the Great[617], a Court school, for the education specially of the sons of the upper classes, in which books of both languages, Latin and Saxon, were read, especially the Psalms and Saxon poems, and writing also was taught; and to these studies the pupils applied themselves, till they were old enough to learn ‘hunting and other arts, befitting well-born men.’
This account of Asser[618] agrees well with the wish expressed by Alfred in the Preface to the Pastoral Care, ‘That all the freeborn youth of England who have sufficient means to devote themselves thereto, be set to learning so long as they are not strong enough for any other occupation, until such time as they can well read English writing. Let those be taught Latin whom it is proposed to educate further, and promote to higher office.’ This passage is most interesting; but we must not, on the strength of it, bring Alfred into court as an advocate either for or against classical education. On the one hand Alfred clearly wished that all who had the time and means should be taught Latin; on the other hand Latin was then, as it is not now, the sole vehicle of Western culture and science.