In 894, the fighting over the south of England was renewed. The Danes, who, under the conduct of their chief, the celebrated Hastings, had ravaged France and the Low Countries, where they acquired immense booty, decided on returning to England, not with the intention of settling there, but led by the thirst of plunder. Dividing their forces into equal parts, they set sail for the island. The first expedition reached the coast of Kent, where they landed, and committed dreadful depredations. The second, under the command of Hastings, entered the Thames, and landed at Middleton, making their way to the Severn, where they were defeated by Alfred's aldermen.
Alfred, who appears to have been in East Anglia at the time of this new invasion, no sooner received the intelligence than he drew together what troops he could; and, after receiving the oaths of the Anglian Danes, marched against the new comers, and defeated another body of the enemy who were laying siege to Exeter. We have no very distinct accounts of the wars which ensued. The Danes, under the command of Hastings, returned to France, perhaps on account of the plague which, about this time, was committing great ravages in the island. The terror which the name of this chief inspired had armed all the sea-coasts of France against him; on discovering which, he resolved to change his course, and steer for the Mediterranean, where he contrived, by an act of sacrilege and deceit, to become master of the town of Luna, on the coast of Tuscany. He pretended that he had merely visited the place in order to gratify his desire of becoming a Christian, and actually received baptism from the bishop. Some little time after he caused the simple prelate to be informed that he was dead, and had left a large sum of money, on condition of his being buried in the church of Luna. By this stratagem Hastings and a considerable number of his followers obtained entrance into the town, under pretence of conducting the funeral, and immediately began to massacre and pillage the inhabitants. The adventurer ultimately settled in the city of Chartres, which Charles the Simple, King of France, assigned to him as the price of peace.
The last battles between Alfred and the Danes occurred in 897, and took place chiefly by sea, but of their details we know very little. On one occasion the Danes having penetrated up the river Lea, Alfred diverted it, and so their ships were stranded. In this year he built a number of large ships, which were a great improvement on his old navy, both in size and swiftness, and they doubtless turned the scale in his favour, for the short remainder of his reign was spent in peace. He was only fifty-two when he died, in 901, but he had lived a life of almost perpetual strife, except during the two brief periods of repose after the peace of Wedmore, and just before his death.