Acha of Deira was a princess of
Deira
Deira ( ; Old Welsh/Cumbric: ''Deywr'' or ''Deifr''; ang, Derenrice or ) was an area of Post-Roman Britain, and a later Anglian kingdom.
Etymology
The name of the kingdom is of Brythonic origin, and is derived from the Proto-Celtic *''daru' ...
, and the daughter of
Ælla of Deira
Ælla or Ælle is the first known king of the Anglian kingdom of Deira, which he ruled from around 560 until his death in 588.
Biography
The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' records that Ælla became king in 560.Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, s.a. 560 Anachro ...
.
She married
Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith (died c. 616) was King of Bernicia from c. 593 until his death. Around 604 he became the first Bernician king to also rule the neighboring land of Deira, giving him an important place in the development of the later kingdom of North ...
, king of
Bernicia
Bernicia ( ang, Bernice, Bryneich, Beornice; la, Bernicia) was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England.
The Anglian territory of Bernicia was ap ...
.
He may have married her prior to taking power in Deira, in which case the marriage may have facilitated it, or he may have done so afterwards in order to consolidate his position there. They had eight children:
*
Eanfrith of Bernicia
Eanfrith (590–634Bede's dates are usually taken as he gives them, but some historians have treated these dates as being one year earlier, based on the idea that Bede did not start his years at the same time as modern years are started, so by thi ...
(590–634 CE)
*
Oswald of Northumbria
Oswald (; c 604 – 5 August 641/642Bede gives the year of Oswald's death as 642, however there is some question as to whether what Bede considered 642 is the same as what would now be considered 642. R. L. Poole (''Studies in Chronology an ...
(c. 604 – 5 August 642 CE)
*
Oswiu of Northumbria
Oswiu, also known as Oswy or Oswig ( ang, Ōswīg; c. 612 – 15 February 670), was King of Bernicia from 642 and of Northumbria from 654 until his death. He is notable for his role at the Synod of Whitby in 664, which ultimately brought the chur ...
(c. 612 – 15 February 670 CE)
* Oswudu of Northumbria
* Oslac of Northumbria
* Oslaf of Northumbria
* Offa of Northumbria
*
Æbba of Northumbria
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Acha of Deira
6th-century births
7th-century deaths
English princesses
6th-century English people
7th-century English people
6th-century English women
7th-century English women