But whatever pretensions Athelstane had to be considered as head of the Saxon confederacy, many of that nation were disposed to prefer to the title of the Lady Rowena, who drew her descent from Alfred, and whose father having been a chief renowned for wisdom, courage, and generosity, his memory was highly honoured by his oppressed countrymen.
És ami a legfontosabb: tudták róla, hogy bőkezű és vendégszerető, nem gonosz, inkább jóindulatú. De bármilyen sok érv szólt is amellett, hogy Athelstane-t tekintsék a szász szövetség fejének, voltak sokan, akik hallani sem akartak róla, hanem Rowena mellett kardoskodtak.