Finally it occurred to me!  I’m up to date on the Last Kingdom Series, and just finished watching the newly released third season of The Last Kingdom on Netflix, and it took until now for me to release what Uhtred is in the series.  Initially I thought he was just a device to allow the history to be told as a captivating human story, which of course he is, and it is, as are most key non-historical characters in great historical fiction.  But I realized that the reason the character is so compelling and captivating, is that Uhtred the character is intended to be England itself.  He has a mixed background, because of course the England that emerges in the story is comprised and the results of contributions from the different peoples in the land.  He is part of all the great battles depicted, both historical, and battles intended to stand in for a series of historical battles, because that’s what England was forged through.  England is forged by the good fortune of having two strong kings back to back fighting for the same vision, so of course that is Uhtred’s path to serve those two kings.  He is both Christian and Pagan, as were the people of the land, and even the dominant Christianity that emerges subsumes key elements of the Paganism of the story.

Anyways that might be right or wrong, but it was a fun thought.

Thanks!  And thanks for the great story telling.

Adam Waese