Hrotheweard (836-882) was the West Saxon Ealdorman of Wessex during the reign of King Alfred the Great. Hrotheweard was a devious nobleman who sought to usurp power from King Alfred, as he felt that his control over the capital of Winchester entitled him to rule the rest of the kingdom. In 881, Hrotheweard's increasing disloyalty became a matter of concern for King Alfred, who publicly praised Hrotheweard for his service in order to recover a degree of loyalty. However, he then proceeded to remove Hrotheweard as Ealdorman of Wessex, quietly removing his rival from power and replacing him with Aethelhelm. In 882, Alfred hired an assassin to murder Hrotheweard, who heard tell of the plot and doubled his guard as a result. Alfred spent an extra 500 gold coins to help the assassin, and Hrotheweard was successfully murdered; Alfred was never suspected as the murderer, with an innocent man being accused of the assassination.
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