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Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms
Overlords of Engla-land
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Bretwaldas
of England
In much the same way as the
Celts
had their tradition of the
High Kings, so the
Angles
and Saxons,
in the first couple of centuries after their eastern kingdoms had been
formed, often recognised the overall authority and supremacy of one king
over all the rest. Usually this was at a time at which that ruler's kingdom
was at its strongest, and initial force of arms had demonstrated the
ability of that ruler to claim the title of bretwalda or 'brytenwealda'.
The second form of this word is probably the older. It originates in a
Germanic
concept of an over-king, literally meaning 'Britain ruler'. Another early
form of the title is 'bretenanwealde', with the last part, 'anwealda'
meaning 'sole ruler'. Bosworth and Toller show 'wealda' as meaning 'a
ruler', citing variations in Old Saxon, Old High German, and Icelandic
(a variation of Old Norse). They add that 'wealdan' means 'to have power
over'.
Only one bretwalda is mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, but
Bede, writing a century and-a-half earlier than the ASC's compilation,
supplies many of the missing names (although he leaves out the
Mercian kings). Some
others are not named bretwalda as such, but pretty much fulfilled the
functions of the title in all but name (and it is possible that records
were made after Bede's time and were later lost). These probable bretwaldas
are shown in green text.
Until Edwin of the
Northumbrians
took the title, the bretwaldas only counted the territory to the south of
the Humber as being within their influence. The
Deiran and
Bernician Angles thought
of themselves as being apart from the southerners, perhaps even more so
when Edwin smashed
North Rheged
and greatly enlarged Northumbria. Also, it is highly possible, given that
the Angle and Saxon kings would have known about the British tradition of
a high kingship, that the assumption of the bretwalda title was a
deliberate attempt not only at legitimising their own claims to land they
had conquered, but to demonstrate to the Britons that they were now in
charge and were the rightful successors to those Britons who had failed to
defend their island.
Linguistically, a great many place names in the newly-forming England
preserved or applied the Latin -vici ending (for some reason Briton/Gaulish
place names reverse the sequence from noun-modifier to modifier-noun). In
proto-Celtic we have *wīko-, *wīku-, meaning a village, while
Latin has 'vicus', also meaning village, Gaelic has 'fich', village again
and not too dissimilar from the Latin form given several centuries of drift,
Anglo-Saxon has 'wķc' as a 'dwelling-place, lodging, habitation, house,
mansion', or as a village or town, while the plural form means
'entrenchments, camp, castle, fortress; street, lane; bay, creek'. This
appears to have been extended to mean a market town or trading town. All
of these languages share a common
proto-Celtic/Celto-Ligurian
base, but proto-Germanic seems to contain no similar word. It appears
possible that 'wic' is another word that was borrowed from the Britons,
either in its Latin or Brythonic form (which probably were nearly
identical). Gothic does contain 'weihs', which seems to be cognate. But
Goths also took over Gaulish territory, so who would be uncontaminated
by cross-cultural influences? The various groups that made up the
Scandinavians, probably.
At first glance Old Norse seems to have no word like the Anglo-Saxon 'wic',
and the nearest cognate appears to be 'byg∂' (byg-voiced 'th'),
meaning a dwelling, and 'byggva', meaning 'to dwell'. But further
investigation uncovers the intriguing possibility that the word was borrowed
into Old Norse from its meaning of trading town, then modified with the -ing
suffix to form the word 'viking', a trading voyage or trader. Most people
think of a Viking as only a seaborne warrior but the truth is that these
Norse sailors both raided and traded. This goes against the theory that the
word is derive from 'vik', a 'creek or inlet'. A jump from a creek or inlet
to an expedition or voyage by water makes less sense than going from trading
town to a trading expedition to such a town. So the very existence of
Vikings by that name seemingly is based on the Anglo-Saxon conquest of
England.
(Information by Peter Kessler, with additional information by Edward Dawson
and details of late sub-kings of Sussex by David Slaughter, from The
Oxford History of England: Anglo-Saxon England, Sir Frank Stenton, from
A History of the English Church and People, The Venerable Bede (Leo
Sherley-Price translation - revised by R E Latham), from The Oxford
History of England: The English Settlements, J N L Meyers, from the
Historia Brittonum (The History of the Britons), Nennius (J A
Giles, Ed & Trans, 1841, published as part of Six Old English
Chronicles (Henry G Bohn, London, 1848)), from The Place Names of
England & Wales, J B Johnston (1915), from Arthur's Britain,
Lesley Alcock (1978), from Murray's Classical Atlas for Schools, G
B Grundy (Ed, Second Edition, 1963), from The Medieval Traveller,
Norbert Ohler (1995), from The Times Atlas of World History, Geoffrey
Barraclough (Ed, Fourth Edition edited by Geoffrey Parker, reprinted 1997),
from Roman Britain: A New History, Guy de la Bédoyčre, and from
External Links:
An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary, Bosworth and Toller (p 1172, 1898), and
Vortigern
Studies.) |
450 - 500 |
Tribes of
Angles,
Jutes
and
Saxons, along with mixtures of various other peoples, invade the eastern
coast of Britain,
pushing westwards along river valleys and quickly forging early kingdoms. A
popular modern term for this is 'engla-tocyme', literally the 'coming of the
English', although that term will not exist for several centuries after this
date. All the tribes are speakers of the
Anglo-Frisian
group of Low German languages, using the same language with slight
differences of dialect.
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The coming of Ęlle and his apparently pre-established status
as Bretwalda spelt eventual defeat and death for the Britons
of modern Sussex, and quite possibly led to the siege of Mons
Badonicus
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477 |
Newly arrived
Saxons under Ęlle and his sons, Cymen, Wlencing, and Cissa, land at Cymens
ora and beat off the
Britons who oppose their landing (part of the proposed British territory
of Rhegin), driving
them to take refuge in the great forest called Andredesleag (The Weald).
These Saxons quickly become known as the
Suth Seaxe. |
477 - 514? |
Ęlle |
King of the
Suth Seaxe. Leader at
Mons Badonicus c.496? |
486 |
Clovis of the
Franks defeats, captures and executes Syagrius, the last
Roman
commander of
Soissons.
The Franks are now completely dominant in northern
Gaul
and Roman control has been thrown off. The death of Syagrius also sends a
signal to the
Saxons and other
Germanic peoples that attempting to settle in Gaul is now hopeless.
This would seem to be the single defining event that forces the Saxons
to turn their attention to invading
Britain
instead. |
c.496 |
This
is a probable date for the siege of Mons Badonicus - at the very least
it would seem to be the correct decade based on available evidence. Not
mentioned in surviving Anglo-Saxon records, the most likely chain of
events is that it is Ęlle, as bretwalda, who leads the attack on the
Britons
in the region of
Caer Baddan.
Ęlle's route is probably northwards towards the
Thames Valley (the
Weald would still be passable along one of the Roman roads, possibly
the Sussex Greensand Way which may have been built to link several
villas to Stane Street - the main Noviomagus-London road). There he
builds up his forces from the large numbers of
Saxons there (along with a probable force from
Kent), and then heads
westwards along the upper Thames Valley until he emerges through the
Goring Gap.
It seems creditable to assume that the north-facing Wansdyke,
constructed in the fifth or sixth centuries, has been put up by British
forces in Wiltshire in the face of just such a threat of Saxons breaking
through from the Thames Valley. It may either have been constructed to
ward off this very attack (and perhaps channel the attackers towards
Badon), or in response to it, to ensure that no future attacks of this
nature could take place. In that it is very effective, until the
West Seaxe breakthrough
in 577.
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Sub-Roman Britannia underwent rapid change in the course
of fifty years between AD 550-600, with Angle and Saxon
kingdoms being established at the start of this period
on the east and south coasts (click or tap on map to
view full sized)
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There
is now a gap in bretwaldas between the start of the sixth century and
the rise of Ceawlin in the middle of the century. This is probably due
to the Mons Badonicus defeat and the long peace between the Britons and
the
Germanic coastal settlements. As there is no significant warfare,
there can be no significantly superior war leader to push forward the
Germanic advance. Quite the opposite, in fact, as there seems to be a
reverse migration of
Angles
and Saxons into the Continent during the first half of the sixth century.
Those that remain are firmly in control of the east (see feature link,
right). |
c.500 |
The Old English poem
Widsith
mentions several minor
Germanic peoples, not all of whom can be properly identified alongside
the more obvious peoples such as the
Angles,
Austrasian
Franks,
Burgundians,
Danes,
Finns,
Geats,
Jutes, and
Ostrogoths. |
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c.520 |
Another great Old English Poem is Beowulf, which records events
of this time in the Anglo-Saxon homelands in
Denmark and southern
Scandinavia. A prince of the
Geat
court, Beowulf visits Hrothgar Scylding at his hall of Heorot where he
rids Hrothgar of the monster, Grendal. |
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531 |
On the Continent, the
Franks of
Austrasia
conquer the
Thuringians. Portions of territory are lost to the
Saxons, probably to the Continental Saxons, but there also seems to
be a reverse migration of
Germanics from the east coast of
Britain, where
the British victory at Mons Badonicus has cut them off from the acquisition
of new lands. These returning
Angles
and Saxons appear to be given land in Thuringia by King Theuderich. However,
it is also at this time, in this century, that the migration of Britons from
the mainland to
Brittany is at
its heaviest, weakening the British defensive position for the future.
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Not directly involved in the chaotic transfer of the Roman empire
to Germanic control, the Thuringians migrated from the Cimbric
Peninsula into territory to the east of the Rhine, land that
had been left partially deserted by the Alemanni moving
southwards
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568 |
Ceawlin
and his brother Cutha of the
West Seaxe defeat Ęthelbert
of the Cantware at Wibbandun.
This is notable as being the first recorded conflict between two groups of
invaders, and a conflict between two rulers with ambitions greater than the
rule of their own kingdoms. Ceawlin especially is looking to re-establish
the title of bretwalda at this time, and perhaps this victory secures it
for him, although 571 is another likely date for this. |
571? - c.588 |
Ceawlin |
King of the West Seaxe. |
584 |
The Romano-British station at Viriconium in
Pengwern is sacked, but
Ceawlin's brother Cutha is killed in battle at nearby Fethanleag. Ceawlin
takes 'many townships and countless spoil and returns in anger to his own',
apparently giving up on the possibility of expanding the kingdom to the north.
It also seems likely that this defeat marks the realistic end of his claims
to the bretwaldaship, and possibly robs him of vital support within his own
kingdom (with the death of Cutha). The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is
curiously silent about just when he loses the title, and the events
surrounding it, but it seems that Ęthelbert of the
Cantware may be involved.
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The fifth or perhaps sixth century construction of the Wansdyke
was a massive undertaking which reached from west of Caer
Baddan's capital (Roman Aquae Sulis, modern Bath) to the
proposed north-western corner of Caer Celemion's border, all to
the north-east of Dumnonia's border (External Link:
Creative Commons Licence)
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591 - 592 |
The usurpation of Ceawlin of the
West Seaxe gifts the
bretwaldaship of southern England to Ęthelbert of the
Cantware, his only serious
rival for the title - if he does not already have it, as suggested by the
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and its reference to Ęthelbert being 'baptised'
early in his reign, ie. about 588. |
c.588 - 616 |
Ęthelbert / Ethelbert I (Saint) |
King of the Cantware. |
597 |
Augustine is sent by
Pope
Gregory to England to establish the Catholic church and Christianise the
Anglo-Saxons. He is cautiously received in
Kent, thanks to King Ęthelbert's
Christian wife (although there are signs that Ęthelbert himself may have
strongly suggested beforehand that the mission be sent), and establishes
the archbishopric at
Canterbury. |
603 |
The first meeting takes place between the
Roman
Church in the form of St Augustine of
Canterbury, and the
Celtic Church (the descendant of the former
British Church of the
Roman
period). It is arranged by Ęthelbert using the
Hwicce as intermediaries and
the meeting occurs at a place Bede names at St Augustine's Oak, on the
border between the Hwicce territory and that of the
West Seaxe. The meeting goes
favourably well for Augustine.
A second meeting is quickly arranged, although perhaps not in the same year.
This takes place at Abberley in Worcestershire, probably close to the border
between the Hwicce and
Pengwern, but ends in
disappointment for the Roman envoy, with no agreements of cooperation or
unity being reached between the two churches, especially in regard to the
important question of the calculations for Easter and evangelising the
pagan English. The failure is a blow for Ęthelbert's prestige as
bretwalda.
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The Roman city of Canterbury was, by the sixth century, in
ruins, with small Anglo-Saxon houses built in between. The
remains of the city wall can be seen in the distance while
the initial home of the Roman Church in Britain was a little
way to the south
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616 - 625/7 |
Rędwald / Raedwald |
King of the East Engle.
Buried at Sutton Hoo. |
616 |
After seeking asylum at Rędwald's
East Engle court since
being forced to flee Deira
by Ęthelfrith of Bernicia,
Edwin is able to regain his throne when Rędwald defeats Ęthelfrith at the
Battle of the River Idle. The battle confirms Rędwald as bretwalda,
seemingly after Ęthelfrith's defeat by
Britons at the
Battle of Bangor-is-Coed around 613 has weakened him. In turn, Edwin
succeeds him as the first bretwalda north of the Humber. He never
extends his bretwaldaship over Kent, treating it as a fellow kingdom and
its king, Eadbald, as his peer. |
627 - 632/3 |
Edwin |
King of the
Bernician &
Deiran Northumbrians. |
632/3 |
Edwin is killed at the Battle of Hatfield Chase by Penda
of Mercia (just outside
the western borders of
Lindsey) while the latter
is allied to Cadwallon, king of
Gwynedd and
High King of
the Britons. Cadwallon repays many years of defeats, deaths, rapes and
pillaging at Northumbrian hands by conducting a year-long campaign of
revenge in the kingdoms of
Bernicia and
Deira, also killing Edwin's
replacement, Eanfrid. It is likely that Lindsey, which had been a Deiran
vassal, becomes independent for a while following this destruction of its
masters. |
633 - 642 |
Oswald (Saint) |
King of the Bernician
Northumbrians. |
642 |
Oswald of Bernicia &
Deira is killed by Penda of
Mercia on 5 August at
the Battle of Maserfelth. The location of Maserfelth is still disputed but
opinion favours Oswestry ('Oswald's tree') in Shropshire. Supreme power in
England switches from the north to the Midlands.
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Expelled from Bernicia by Edwin of Deira in AD 616, Oswald and
his brother, Oswiu, sought refuge on Iona where they converted
to Christianity - Oswald brought it back with him when he became
king of Bernicia
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642 - 655 |
Penda |
King of the
Mercians. |
654/655 |
Penda of Mercia is
killed in battle by Oswiu of
Northumbria,
and with this victory supreme power in England swings back to the north.
Oswiu cements the increasingly accepted union of
Deira with
Bernicia to create a single
kingdom of the Angles north of the Humber, known as Northumbria. |
655? - 670 |
Oswiu |
King of the Bernician
Northumbrians. |
664 |
An English priest, Wighard, is selected to be archbishop of
Canterbury by the new king
of Kent, Egbert I, perhaps with
support from Oswiu of
Northumbria. He
is sent to Rome to receive consecration from
Pope
Vitalianus, but is killed by bubonic plague before the act can be carried
out. |
670 - 675 |
Wulfhere |
King of the Mercians. |
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678 - 690 |
The English Bishop Wilfred arrives in
Frisia and the Anglo-Saxon Christianisation of the
Germanic lands begins, although the first mission is quickly aborted as
the fiercely pagan Redbad gains the throne and enmity against the
Merovingian kings increases. A second attempt in 690 proves much more
successful and for the best part of a century churchmen and monks crisscross
the Channel or North Sea, intent on spreading the Christian faith amongst
their
Germanic cousins who border the Merovingian Frankish kingdom. There
is special interest in the conversion of the German
Saxons, whom the English consider their kinsfolk. |
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695 |
Pope
Sergius ordains Bishop Willibrord as the bishop of the
Frisians. The bishop is a
Northumbrian
missionary and a follower of Bishop Wilfred, one of a wave of English
Christians to enter
Germanic lands in this period in order to bring them into the faith.
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A Northumbrian missionary who spent his early years under the
influence of St Wilfred, bishop of York, Willibrord was
appointed bishop of the Frisians at Utrecht, during which he
became known as the 'Apostle to the Frisians'
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8th century |
Although all the
Anglo-Saxon
tribes which had originally invaded
Britain had all
been speakers of the
Anglo-Frisian
group of Low German languages, and had been speaking the same language with
slight differences of dialect, by this century those dialects have diverged
into four main groups:
Northumbrian
and
Mercian (the Anglian
group), and West Saxon and
Kentish (the Southern group of
Saxon and Jutish dialects). Thanks to the fact that the Angles have long
been the dominant tribe, both in their pre-migration homelands and here in
Britain, it is their name that comes to represent the Anglo-Saxon language
and emerging nation, as 'Anglish' and Angle-land' respectively. |
c.735 - 757 |
Ęthelbald / Ethelbald |
King of the Mercians. |
757 - 796 |
Offa |
King of the Mercians. |
793 |
In what is the first major attack by Vikings on English territory, Lindsfarne
Monastery is sacked by raiders and the monks are slaughtered. The age of
enlightenment and learning in Britain in which Lindisfarne had played a major
role now begins a steep decline. The situation is not helped by the continuing
dynastic discord in the kingdom of
Northumbria. |
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802 - 839 |
Ecgberht / Egbert |
King of Wessex. |
825 |
Ecgberht gains revenge for his father's death when he defeats the mighty
Mercians at the
Battle of Ellandon. The Mercian king, Beornwulf, is killed in battle.
Ecgberht swiftly intercedes in
Kent, sending his son,
Ęthulwulf, with a force to seize the key to the whole of the south-east.
Kent, the oldest of the English kingdoms, with the most prestige and with
great wealth, is also home to the primary see at
Canterbury. The
sub-kingdoms of Essex,
Sussex and
Suthrige submit to Ecgberht
and are also ruled by Ęthulwulf. From this point, Wessex remains the
strongest of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms.
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This silver penny was produced during the reign of Beornwulf of
Mercia, although its condition is far from ideal, with partly
garbled legends - it is from an East Anglian mint, the moneyer's
name being Eadgar, which is shown in the reverse
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827 |
Athelstan of East Anglia
kills Ludecan of Mercia
in battle after yet another attempt by the once great Midland kings to restore
that greatness. With this act, Athelstan secures the independence of the East
Angles and establishes himself as king. Although he still acknowledges Ecgberht
of Wessex as his overlord, his is
the only one of the smaller English kingdoms not to be absorbed directly
within Wessex. |
839 - 856 |
Ęthelwulf / Ethelwulf |
King of Wessex. |
856 - 860 |
Ęthelbald / Ethelbald |
King of Wessex. |
860 - 866 |
Ęthelberht / Ethelbert |
King of Wessex. |
865 - 871 |
Ivarr the Boneless, king of Dublin,
and his brothers, the sons of Ragnarr Lothbrok, lead the first Viking army
to invade mainland Britain in search of conquest rather than pillage. Landing
in East Anglia, they ravage the kingdom for a year before heading into
Northumbria
in 866. That kingdom falls in 867 and a puppet king is installed. The Great
Army moves south, campaigning during the spring and summer.
East Anglia falls in 869,
and the capital of
Alt Clut is sacked
in 870. Ynys Manau also falls to them
around 870, and between 870-871, Ivarr's brother, Bagsecg, is involved in the
attacks, leading the Great Summer Army into England and adding his forces to
those of Ivarr and Halfdan. |
866 - 871 |
Ęthelred / Ethelred |
King of Wessex. |
871 - 874 |
Bagsecg is killed at the Battle of Ashdown in
Wessex in 871, and the following
year the Great Army is back in
Northumbria. It
winters in late 872 and early 873 at Torksey on the River Trent in
Lindsey, before moving
west into Mercia, which
is defeated in 874 and a vassal king is installed on its throne. Later that
year the army divides, with one half going to Cambridge and the rest heading
towards the Tyne and eventually settling in
York.
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871 - 899 |
Ęlfred / Alfred the Great |
King of Wessex. |
874 - 878 |
The Danes have
overcome much of England, and
Wessex is virtually the only
independent survivor (along with the southwest of
Mercia), achieving total
dominance over all the
English within
less than a century. The West Saxon kings are titled 'Emperors of Britain'
in the tenth century, which is probably a natural extension of the role and
prestige of the bretwaldas. |
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