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| The name Egfroth | ||||
| I have occasionally been asked where the name Egfroth came from. To save repeating myself over and over, here is the definitive answer. | ||||
| How long do you have . . .? Well, make yourself a cup of whatever beverage appeals to you, sit down in your comfy chair, light up a pipe, get the faithful hound to bring your slippers, and I'll tell you the story of the Name. When I was but a nipper, and the world of re-enactment was no more than a glitter in my addled brane, I read a book by Sellars and Yeatman called "1066 and All That", which had the philosophy that history consists not of what actually happened, but what you REMEMBER - leading to the premise that Francis Drake singed the King of Spain's beard (or Spanish Mane, as it was known), and saved England from invasion by the Spanish Armadillo. And that Nelson and Napoleon shouldn't be confused despite their hats being the same - and that Nelson at the Battle of Copenhagen put the telephone under his blind arm, and disgustedly exclaimed "Kiss Me Hardy". Well, the book mentioned that there were various Waves in History - Waves of Saints, Waves of Pretenders, and a Wave of Anglo-Saxon Egg-Kings | ||||
| �England was now divided into seven kingdoms and so ready were the English to become C. of E. that on one memorable occasion a whole Kingdom was easily converted by a sparrow. Wave of Egg-Kings Soon after this event Egg-Kings were found on the thrones of all these kingdoms, such as Eggberd, Eggbreth, Eggfroth, etc. None of them, however, succeeded in becoming memorable � except in so far as it is difficult to forget such names as Eggbirth, Eggbred, Eggbeard, Eggfish, etc. Nor is it even remembered by what kind of Eggdeath they perished.� From 1066 And All That by Sellars & Yeatman, Penguin Books, page 15 |
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| (in truth, there WERE Kings called Egbert and Egfrith). Move on a few years - my brother's wife, the mother of my nephews, starts calling me Uncle Eggfroth on account of my interest in things mediaeval . . . So when I got into re-enactment - having first come into contact with the SCA, by the way, with names like Lord Chunderbuggerme of Rectitis - what more natural than to have a Silly Name(TM) of my own? Well, I had to work hard to get people to accept such a name, particularly with such additions as ". . .the Smooth, of Morang" (the name "Egfroth the Well Whipped" is reserved only for VERY close friends), but now I am the proud possessor of the wonderful name by which you all know and love me . . .. | ||||