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Series · historical fiction
The Last Kingdom
The Last Kingdom series by Bernard Cornwell has 14 known books (14 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with The Last Kingdom (2004). The latest book with a fully recorded publication date is Uhtred's Feast: Inside the World of The Last Kingdom.
- Books
- 14 known books (13 novels + 1 companion)
- Published
- 14
- First published
- 2004
- Status
- completed
- Shelved under
- Historical Fiction
- Last checked
Start here: The Last Kingdom (2004) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The Last Kingdom
The Last Kingdom (2004, 474 pages) opens Bernard Cornwell's account of the making of England, narrated by Uhtred of Bebbanburg -- a Northumbrian nobleman's son captured and raised by Vikings as a boy. It's set in 866, as Danish armies begin overrunning England one kingdom at a time, and launches the fifty-year fight, centred on Alfred the Great, that the whole thirteen-book series follows.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Last Kingdom - Book 2:
The Pale Horseman
The Pale Horseman (2005, 400 pages) is the second novel in The Last Kingdom, following straight on from the opening book as Alfred the Great -- pious, sickly, the only English king with the will to hold the Danes back -- fights to keep his kingdom alive. Uhtred, torn between his Danish upbringing and his Saxon birthright, remains the series' oath-bound, reluctant narrator.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Pale Horseman - Book 3:
The Lords of the North
The Lords of the North (2006, 366 pages) is the third book in The Last Kingdom, sitting between The Pale Horseman and Sword Song. Cornwell keeps the series' visceral, ground-level battle scenes and Uhtred's divided loyalties -- Danish warrior instincts serving a devoutly Christian king he respects but never fully trusts -- at the centre of the story.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Lords of the North - Book 4:
Sword Song
The fourth book in The Last Kingdom, Sword Song (2007, 384 pages) sits between The Lords of the North and The Burning Land, continuing Uhtred's fight through Alfred the Great's fifty-year struggle to hold England's Saxon kingdoms against the Danes. The huge, unglamorous shield-wall violence that defines Cornwell's Sharpe novels carries straight through to this instalment.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Sword Song - Book 5:
The Burning Land
Following Sword Song, The Burning Land (2009, 336 pages) is the fifth novel in The Last Kingdom, continuing Uhtred of Bebbanburg's oath-bound service to a nation -- England -- that doesn't exist yet. It's part of the single, continuous thirteen-book arc Cornwell wrote start to finish, in publication order that matches the story's chronology.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Burning Land - Book 6:
Death of Kings
Death of Kings (2011, 357 pages) is the sixth novel in The Last Kingdom, arriving as Alfred the Great's reign moves toward its end. Uhtred -- the pagan-hearted Northumbrian warrior torn between the Danes who raised him and the Saxon birthright he means to reclaim at Bebbanburg -- remains the series' narrator throughout this stretch of the fifty-year fight for England.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Death of Kings - Book 7:
The Pagan Lord
The seventh book in The Last Kingdom, The Pagan Lord (2013, 320 pages) sits between Death of Kings and The Empty Throne, and marks the series moving past Alfred's own reign into the fight carried on by his children and grandchildren. Uhtred's pursuit of his ancestral fortress at Bebbanburg continues to drive the story.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Pagan Lord - Book 8:
The Empty Throne
The Empty Throne (2014, 400 pages) precedes Warriors of the Storm as the eighth novel in The Last Kingdom, set in the period after Alfred the Great's death as his heirs carry on the struggle to unite England. Uhtred's shield-wall battles and his divided Danish-Saxon loyalties remain the series' engine.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Empty Throne - Book 9:
Warriors of the Storm
Warriors of the Storm (2015, 344 pages) is the ninth book in The Last Kingdom, continuing the fight for England under Alfred the Great's successors. It keeps to Cornwell's ground-level, unsentimental battle writing and Uhtred's reluctant, oath-bound service to a cause he never chose.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Warriors of the Storm - Book 10:
The Flame Bearer
At 304 pages, The Flame Bearer (2016) is the tenth novel in The Last Kingdom, sitting between Warriors of the Storm and War of the Wolf. Uhtred's decades-long pursuit of his birthright, the fortress at Bebbanburg, moves closer to resolution as the series heads into its final stretch.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Flame Bearer - Book 11:
War of the Wolf
Following The Flame Bearer, War of the Wolf (2018, 352 pages) is the eleventh novel in The Last Kingdom, continuing the violent, unglamorous shield-wall warfare and Uhtred's divided Danish-Saxon loyalties as the thirteen-book arc nears its close.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of War of the Wolf - Book 12:
Sword of Kings
Sword of Kings (2019, 400 pages) precedes War Lord as the twelfth novel in The Last Kingdom, part of the single continuous arc Cornwell wrote from 2004 through to the series' 2020 conclusion. Uhtred of Bebbanburg's fight to unite England's Saxon kingdoms against Danish rule is nearly at its end.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Sword of Kings - Book 13:
War Lord
The thirteenth and final book in The Last Kingdom, War Lord (2020, 357 pages) follows Sword of Kings and closes out Uhtred's fifty-year story -- Cornwell has confirmed it as the ending. It brings the fight begun in 866 to its conclusion: a united England, finally and violently born.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of War Lord - Book 14:
Uhtred's Feast: Inside the World of The Last Kingdom
Uhtred's Feast: Inside the World of The Last Kingdom (2023, 288 pages) is a companion volume co-written with chef Suzanne Pollak, pairing Anglo-Saxon recipes with three original Uhtred short stories -- covering his first childhood victory, his time as Alfred the Great's advisor, and a later-life battle. It's a world-guide extra rather than a numbered entry in the main thirteen-book arc.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Uhtred's Feast: Inside the World of The Last Kingdom
About The Last Kingdom
The Last Kingdom (published in the UK as The Saxon Stories, then The Warrior Chronicles) is Bernard Cornwell's account of the making of England, narrated by Uhtred of Bebbanburg — a Northumbrian nobleman's son captured and raised by Vikings as a boy, who grows up caught between two loyalties: the Danes who taught him to fight and love, and the Saxon kingdoms of his birth. It opens in 866, as Danish armies are overrunning England one kingdom at a time, and follows the fifty-year fight to stop them, centred on Alfred the Great — pious, sickly, and the only English king with the will to hold the line.
Uhtred is the appeal: a pagan-hearted warrior forced to serve a devoutly Christian king he respects but never quite trusts, permanently torn between the Danish life he loves and the Saxon birthright — his ancestral fortress at Bebbanburg — he's determined to reclaim. Cornwell stages huge, visceral shield-wall battles (Cynuit, Ethandun, Brunanburh) with the same ground-level, unglamorous violence that defines his Sharpe novels, but the real engine of the series is Uhtred's oath-bound, reluctant service to a cause he didn't choose and a nation — 'England' — that doesn't exist yet.
Across thirteen novels the story runs from Alfred's darkest year through the reigns of his children and grandchildren, ending only when a united England is finally, violently, born. It's the natural next series for Sharpe readers who want the same battle-hardened, morally compromised hero and the same unsentimental history, transplanted three and a half centuries backward into the birth of a nation. The BBC/Netflix television adaptation (2015-2022) shares the title The Last Kingdom and follows the same overall arc, with the usual compressions and changes of a TV adaptation.
Frequently asked questions
How many books are in The Last Kingdom series?
Thirteen novels, from The Last Kingdom (2004) to War Lord (2020), which Bernard Cornwell has confirmed is the final book.
What order should I read The Last Kingdom in?
Publication order, which is also the story's chronological order: The Last Kingdom, The Pale Horseman, The Lords of the North, Sword Song, The Burning Land, Death of Kings, The Pagan Lord, The Empty Throne, Warriors of the Storm, The Flame Bearer, War of the Wolf, Sword of Kings, and War Lord.
Is the series finished?
Yes. War Lord (2020) is the thirteenth and final novel; Bernard Cornwell has described it as the conclusion of Uhtred's story.
Do I need to read the books if I've seen the Netflix show?
The TV series (2015-2022) follows the novels' overall arc but compresses, reorders, and eventually departs from events, and wraps up the story earlier than the books do. The novels aren't required to follow the show, but they cover more ground and end differently.
Is The Last Kingdom the same as The Saxon Stories or The Warrior Chronicles?
Yes — all three are names for the same thirteen-book series. It was originally published in the UK as The Saxon Stories, later rebranded The Warrior Chronicles, and is now marketed under The Last Kingdom title to match the television adaptation.
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