The Battle of
Tettenhall
Tettenhall is an historic village within the City of Wolverhampton, England. Tettenhall became part of Wolverhampton in 1966, along with Bilston, Wednesfield and parts of Willenhall, Coseley and Sedgley.
History
Tettenhall's name derives fro ...
(sometimes called the Battle of
Wednesfield
Wednesfield is a town and historic village in the City of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England, It is east-northeast of Wolverhampton city centre and about from Birmingham and is part of the West Midlands conurbation. It was historically wi ...
or Wōdnesfeld) took place, according to the ''
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...
'', near Tettenhall on 5 August 910. The allied forces of
Mercia
la, Merciorum regnum
, conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia
, common_name=Mercia
, status=Kingdom
, status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex ()
, life_span=527–918
, era=Heptarchy
, event_start=
, date_start=
, ye ...
and
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
met an army of
Northumbria
la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria
, common_name = Northumbria
, status = State
, status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...
n
Vikings
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
in Mercia.
Background
After successful raids by Danish
Vikings
Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden),
who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
, significant parts of northeastern England, formerly
Northumbria
la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria
, common_name = Northumbria
, status = State
, status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...
, were under their control. Danish attacks into central England had been resisted and effectively reduced by
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great (alt. Ælfred 848/849 – 26 October 899) was King of the West Saxons from 871 to 886, and King of the Anglo-Saxons from 886 until his death in 899. He was the youngest son of King Æthelwulf and his first wife Osburh, who bot ...
, to the point where his son,
King Edward of Wessex, could launch offensive attacks against the foreigners. Edward was allied with the Mercians under his sister
Æthelflæd
Æthelflæd, Lady of the Mercians ( 870 – 12 June 918) ruled Mercia in the English Midlands from 911 until her death. She was the eldest daughter of Alfred the Great, king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex, and his wife Ealhswith.
Æth ...
, and their combined forces were formidable. The allies launched a five-week campaign against
Lindsey Lindsey may refer to :
Places Canada
* Lindsey Lake, Nova Scotia
England
* Parts of Lindsey, one of the historic Parts of Lincolnshire and an administrative county from 1889 to 1974
** East Lindsey, an administrative district in Lincolnshire, a ...
in 909, and successfully captured the relics of
Saint
In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...
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 ...
.
The Battle
The Vikings quickly sought retaliation for the Northern excursion. In 910, the Danelaw kings assembled a fleet and transported a Danish army, via the
River Severn
, name_etymology =
, image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG
, image_size = 288
, image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle
, map = RiverSevernMap.jpg
, map_size = 288
, map_c ...
, directly into the heart of Mercia, embarking at a point believed to be south of
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079.
History
B ...
,
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...
.
[ Feature by Toby Neal.] There they ravaged the land and collected large amounts of valuable plunder, but quickly sought to return north rather than be trapped in hostile territory. However an army of West Saxons and Mercians caught them at
Wednesfield
Wednesfield is a town and historic village in the City of Wolverhampton, West Midlands, England, It is east-northeast of Wolverhampton city centre and about from Birmingham and is part of the West Midlands conurbation. It was historically wi ...
, near Tettenhall, and according to the ''
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...
'' defeated them and inflicted losses of many thousands including two or three kings.
While little is known of the exact manoeuvres employed at the battle, it is obvious the allies trapped their Viking opponents, preventing them from returning to their Severn moorings, and inflicted heavy casualties on them.
[ The '']Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...
'' states that "many thousands of men" were killed, referring to the Danes. Seemingly unable to retreat, the kings leading the Viking raid, Eowils and Halfdan
Eowils and Halfdan (Healfdan) were kings in Danish (Viking) ruled Northumbria in the early tenth century.
Following the death of Alfred the Great in 899 the throne was disputed between his son Edward the Elder and Æthelwold, a son of Alfred's e ...
and Ingwær
Ingwær (also referred to as Ingvar, Ivar or Ivarr; non, Ívarr) was a Norse King of Northumbria. According to Æthelweard's ''Chronicon'' he was a co-king of Northumbria along with his brothers Eowils and Halfdan, though the '' Anglo-Saxon Chr ...
, were killed by the allied troops.
Aftermath
With the Northern Danes subdued, the forces of Wessex and Mercia could be focused against the Vikings who had settled further south, and there was no further incursion from the north for a generation.
References
External links
Anglo-Saxon Monarchs - Edward the Elder
Anglo-Saxons Online
Sean Miller, "Edward the Elder", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Tettenhall
Tettenhall 910
Tettenhall 910
Military history of Staffordshire
910s conflicts
910
10th century in England