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Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms
Saxons & Jutes of Southern England
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Suth
Seaxe (South Saxons / Sussex)
Incorporating the Hæstingas
Three entries in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle associate the transition
from British to
Saxon
authority of the south coast of England with the exploits of a chieftain
named Ælle. The entries are evidently derived from a lost saga recalling
the more memorable events in a career of conquest that, however short-lived,
made Ælle the acknowledged first
Bretwalda of the
Anglo-Saxons.
In AD 477, a Saxon group under Ælle's leadership landed at Cymensora
or Cumenesora (a location probably represented by the Owers Banks,
off the low-lying Selsey peninsula and now submerged beneath the sea). This
landing seems to have been unexpected as far as the defenders of the
proposed British territory of
Rhegin are concerned.
They were beaten off after trying to push these barbarian raiders back
into their boats. The victorious Saxons then settled around the area of
Selsey Bill (between Kent and Portsmouth on the south coast), and were
isolated by The Weald from the British territories that still operated
to the north (although only for a short time, as the Saxons of the
Suther-ge were already making
inroads along the Thames).
Given
Ælle's status, it is reasonable to place the South Saxons as major players
in the defeat of Mons Badonicus (circa 496), with Ælle leading
the attacking forces as Bretwalda. Such is Ælle's authority from the moment
he arrived that it is possible he was a recognised person of authority from
the European homelands. However, the defeat may have lost him his kingdom,
either immediately or soon afterwards, as no further mention is made of it
and no Saxon burials are found there for another century. Whatever their
political situation, any South Saxons who may have remained in the area
(and even this seems unlikely unless they threw in their lot with the local
Britons and abandoned Saxon customs) were isolated until the kingdom's
re-emergence in the mid-seventh century.
A separate band, known as the Hæstingas, settled around what later
became Hastings (which of course bears their name). Little is known about
them, but they may have been
Jutes
from Kent, migrating down the
coast to find a good spot for settlement. They eventually become subject
to the authority of the South Saxons, but their identity remained a strong
one well into the eleventh century. Other South Saxon elements may also
have drifted west to join Jutish groups in forming the original kingdom
of the West Seaxe which was
subjugated by the Gewissae under Cerdic from 495.
(Information by Peter Kessler, with details of late sub-kings of Sussex by
David Slaughter, and with additional information from The Oxford History
of England: The English Settlements, J N L Meyers, from A History of
the English Church and People, The Venerable Bede (Leo Sherley-Price
translation - revised by R E Latham), 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 Place-names of Sudsexe, Domesday Book (1086),
from Charters of Selsey, S E Kelly (1998), from Kelly's Post Office
Directory (Sussex) (1867), from Kings and Queens, Lambert and Gray
(1991), from Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (1237), from Old
English Dictionary, Bosworth & Toller (1898/1921), 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 Bédoyère, and from External Link:
Vortigern
Studies.) |
477 - 514? |
Ælle
/ Aelle |
First
Bretwalda, and clearly an
important personage. Died 514? |
477 |
Newly arrived
Saxons
under Ælle and his sons, Cymen, Wlencing, and Cissa, land their three ships
at Cymens ora ('ora' meaning 'shore'). They 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.
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The coming of Ælle 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, while above is a map of the south coast territory
of Rhegin for about AD 477, showing the principle British
settlements
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485 |
The
Suth Seaxe defeat the
Britons at Mearcraedes burna (modern location unknown). The name of the
location has been plausibly interpreted to mean 'the stream of the agreed
frontier' (from the word 'mierce', meaning 'boundary'). It may therefore
relate to a boundary based on one of the river valleys which serve to divide
the Sussex coastal plain and its hinterland into naturally self-contained
sections. There is, however, no means of knowing which valley is known by
this name in the fifth century, but it does seem to suggest a temporary
frontier between Briton and
Saxon.
It is interesting to note that the Suth Seaxe turn eastwards, along the
line of the Weald, rather than westwards into the fertile open plains of
Hampshire. It suggests that this section of the Saxon Shore is comparably
easy to pick off (although it still takes Ælle fourteen years to achieve
this). Could Ambrosius Aurelianus be defending Hampshire from
Caer Gloui and
Amesbury with a much stronger force that is capable of annihilating Ælle's
still small force? |
491 |
The
British fort of
Anderita (Saxon Andredesceaster, modern Pevensey in East Sussex) is attacked
and conquered by Ælle and Cissa and its entire garrison is slaughtered by
the Suth Seaxe in what must be a desperate fight. An old local tradition
states that the Britons make their last stand on Mount Cayburn. Their defeat
seems to end any British opposition in the region. As theorised by David
Slaughter, sometime afterwards, a Saxon chieftain named Maella founds a
settlement nearby at what is now South Malling.
Noviomagus
(Regnum), the possible capital of the proposed British territory of
Rhegin (situated
on the western border of the newly founded Saxon territory), is left highly
vulnerable by this loss. It seems that it is partially destroyed during
the completion of Ælle's conquest of the area (and probably falls to
the Suth Seaxe, or at least becomes tributary to them). |
c.496 |
This
is the probable date of the battle 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 Ælle, as Bretwalda,
who leads the attack on the
Britons in the region of
Caer Baddan. This force is
defeated by the Britons, with heavy casualties. If present, the Suth Seaxe
warband must itself suffer badly from this defeat as the Suth Seaxe are so
weakened that they now drift into obscurity for around 150 years. British
Rhegin quite possibly
reasserts its independence, although an event at Portchester in 501 recorded
in the annals of the West Seaxe
probably signals its final end.
Ælle'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 break through in
577.
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The Roman walls of Portchester Castle (British Caer Peris)
would still have been standing when this former Saxon Shore
fort was captured by a Saxon chieftain in AD 501, possibly
ending the independence of the territory of Rhegin
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514? - 567? |
Cissa? |
Son. |
aft. 523? - 563 |
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Wine? / Wine
Cissing? |
Co-ruling ealdorman.
Wincheling, son of Cissa? |
c.514 - c.550 |
Following
the Roman
withdrawal, the former capital of
Rhegin, Noviomagus, has
declined but has remained occupied. Now the rebuilding of the town is begun by
Cissa, despite his actual existence being questioned by some scholars. In
fact Meyers points out that Noviomagus remains unoccupied between the fifth
century and the ninth. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, however, would have
it that the city's old name is forgotten in favour of that of its new ruler,
becoming Cisseceaster (Cissa's fort, using a hard 'c' which is pronounced like
a 'k' - modern Chichester). |
c.514 - c.600 |
Is
the kingdom lost to the
Britons? The Suth Seaxe clearly lose their prominence and are not mentioned
in any records until the middle of the seventh century. Following Badon, strong
Jutish influences from Kent enter
the land, suggesting an extension of Kentish rule over the eastern parts of the
territory, but the Suth Seaxe still remain very isolated.
The
later 'kings' do not claim descent from any of Ælle's sons. The
possibility is that his line had largely been destroyed and did not
survive Cissa (if he even existed). A century and a half later, other
families have risen to prominence and it is from these that the kings are
selected. Unfortunately, no authentic king list remains and there is no
clear definition of a strong kingdom led by a single individual. Instead
the kings themselves rule in groups of three or four at a time, with power
being shared equally and indivisibly between then. This smacks of a
confederation or council of sorts, and a union of several groups - a
power-sharing arrangement to make smaller groups stronger together, or an
enforced division of power by a governing overlord. |
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607 |
The
West Seaxe under Ceolwulf fight
a campaign against the Suth Seaxe. The result is unrecorded, suggesting either
defeat for the invaders or a stalemate unworthy of recording. The threat posed
by the West Seaxe could be the reason for the re-emergence of the Suth Seaxe,
but still no rulers are known by name. However, the evidence from charter
witness lists vouches for the existence of all of the noblemen who are
mentioned below. There are fifteen genuine South Saxon charters that have
survived from the period, and probably many more that have been lost. |
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fl c.661 - c.685 |
Æthelwalh |
Baptised after being
persuaded by Wulfhere of
Mercia. Killed. |
c.661 |
The first
reference to Æthelwalh is in the same year that Wulfhere of
Mercia gains hegemony over
the kingdom. It has been suggested that Æthelwalh himself is a younger son of
Cynegils of the West Seaxe,
although how he comes to be made king is unknown (Mercia's influence has been
put forward as a reasonable answer, the aim being to establish a group to oppose
the West Seaxe on their coastal border). He is obliged to marry Eafe, daughter
of the Christian King Eanfrith of the
Hwicce, and to accept baptism. |
675 |
The
Meonware and the Isle of
Wight are ceded to the Suth Seaxe
by Mercia, sealing the alliance
between the two kingdoms after Æthelwalh's baptism. This is part of
Wulfhere's policy of encircling and pressuring the
West Seaxe. This event also
marks the full re-emergence of the Suth Seaxe after nearly two centuries
of complete obscurity. |
c.675 - c.685 |
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Ecgwald |
Sub-king. Deposed
or replaced? |
679 |
With
Northumbrian
dominance now completely thrown off,
Mercia regains
dominance over Lindsey and
retains it until 874. A border is agreed by Æthelred with the Northumbrians
(their King Ecgfrith being Æthelred's brother-in-law), fixing the border at
the River Humber in perpetuity. Lindsey is settled as a Mercian province some
time afterwards. It must also be in this period in which the Tribal Hidage
is compiled (mentioning the Suth Seaxe).
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The Tribal Hidage is almost certainly Mercian, although some
still argue for a Northumbrian origin, but the British Library
version shown here, Harley 3271, is an eleventh century
miscellany which includes, amongst others, the Grammar of
Ælfric, abbot of Eynsham
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680/681 |
Following
Æthelwalh's conversion, the Suth Seaxe
people are converted to Christianity by Bishop Wilfred of
Northumbria,
rather later than much of the rest of Anglo-Saxon
England. |
685 |
Æthelwalh
is killed by Caedwalla of the
West Seaxe and the kingdom is
plundered before Berhthun and Andhun can drive him off. It is these two
ealdormen who no doubt lead the Suth Seaxe attack against
Kent later in the same year. |
c.685 - c.686 |
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Berhthun |
Ealdorman. Led
the kingdom as joint ruler. Killed. |
c.685 - c.686 |
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Andhun |
Ealdorman. Led
the kingdom as joint ruler. |
685 |
Eadric
of Kent, bitter that his
uncle holds what he sees as 'his' throne, betrays the king by making an
alliance with the Suth Seaxe. He encourages them to attack Kent, possibly
using as a carrot the somewhat disputed settlement of the
Jutish
Hæstingas (in the modern Hastings area, to which they have migrated from
the Isle of Oxney region in Kent). The Suth Seaxe also appear to be
sympathetic to
Mercia (or perhaps even allied to them), while Kent's sympathies lie
with the West Seaxe, so the
attack is also part of the larger sweep of political manoeuvring in
England. Hlothere is
killed in the ensuing battle but the Suth Seaxe appear not to gain from
the victory. |
c.686 |
The
Suth Seaxe pay the price for not gaining an advantage in 685 by being
subjugated by the West Seaxe.
Caedwalla kills Berhthun, gaining revenge for the ealdorman driving him out
of the territory in 685. There seemingly follows a break in the governance
of the Suth Seaxe by their own people until two more kings emerge as joint
rulers. Alternatively, the previous sub-king, Ecgwald has been put
forward as being Caedwalla's man of the Suth Seaxe, his sub-king until his
own abdication in 688. |
c.686 - 688? |
Ecgwald |
Restored by
Caedwalla? Succeeded by Nothelm in 688? |
fl 692 - 717 |
Nothelm
/ Nunna |
Son? Nunna is the
shortened form of Nothelm. |
fl c.692 - c.700 |
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Wattus / Watt |
Joint ruler until
at least 700 (charter signing). |
694 |
Wihtred succeeds in freeing Kent
of all foreign usurpers and vassals, and agrees with Ine of the
West Seaxe on the
borders of Kent, Suthrige
and the Suth Seaxe (which confirms the Kentish loss of Surrey, along with
the disputed
Jutish
Hæstingas territory in Sussex, with only the Isle of Oxney remaining in
Kent). Together, the West Seaxe and Kent hold the line against
Mercia in this period,
limiting its ability to interfere south of the Thames.
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The Isle of Oxney still lies within the borders of Kent, close
to Romney Marsh, but unlike today, the rivers around it were not
silted up and it was a true island - a perfectly defendable
location (click or tap on image to view full sized)
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fl c.700 |
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Bryni |
Ealdorman. Joint
ruler with Nothelm and Watt. |
fl c.710 |
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Osric? |
Joint ruler with
Nothelm. |
fl c.714 - 722 |
Æthelstan |
Joint ruler with Nothelm,
then prime ruler. m Æthelthryth. |
722 - 725 |
Ealdbert |
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fl 725 - 758 |
Æthelbert |
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c.758 - c.772 |
Osmund |
Deposed by
Mercia? |
c.765 - c.772 |
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Oslac |
Joint sub-king.
Reappointed by Mercia
in 776 (?). |
c.765 - 772 |
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Ealdwulf |
Joint sub-king.
Reappointed by Mercia
after 785. |
c.765 - 772 |
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Ælhwald / Ælfwald |
Joint sub-king.
All sub-kings are removed from power in 772. |
770 - 772 |
Sussex
is subjugated by Offa of Mercia
and is made a dependency. All of the royal sub-kings are removed and many
are apparently demoted in status. The Hæstingas are the last to be conquered,
in 771. Offa appoints sub-kings to govern in his name, little more than puppets
(although they may still be relatives of the previous kings, albeit demoted
ones). |
772 - ? |
Osa /
Oswald |
Sub-king
appointed by Offa of
Mercia. Bishop of Selsey. |
776? - after 785 |
Oslac |
Sub-king reappointed
by Offa of Mercia. |
780 |
The
charter of Oslac is dated to this year, and is the only original South Saxon
charter to have survived. No permission is sought from Offa for this land grant
to a certain St Paul's Church. The charter is drawn up during a period between
776-785, when Kent has temporarily
thrown out Mercian
domination, thereby giving Oslac a measure of kingly independence. At this
time Suthrige is held by the
West Saxons and,
without Kent in his possession, Offa has no direct overland access to Sussex.
Even so, Oslac's grant is later confirmed by Offa and his co-ruling son,
Ecgfrith. |
? - 791 |
Ealdwulf |
Sub-king reappointed
by Offa of Mercia. |
791 - 825 |
The
kingdom may be ruled directly from
Mercia, although this
is unclear. Offa is in his declining years by now but still rules with an
iron fist and is still capable of re-conquering any dependency which attempts
to revolt (such as
East Anglia in 793). |
825 |
Ecgberht of Wessex defeats
the mighty Mercians
at the Battle of Ellandon. The sub-kingdoms of
Essex, Sussex and
Suthrige submit to him, and
Sussex is ruled by his son, Æthulwulf, who is based in
Kent. Sussex soon becomes little
more than a province of Wessex, and then of a united
England. |
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