Coenred (sometimes given as Cenred or Kenred) was
king of Northumbria
Northumbria, a kingdom of Angles, in what is now northern England and south-east Scotland, was initially divided into two kingdoms: Bernicia and Deira. The two were first united by king Æthelfrith around the year 604, and except for occasional ...
from 716 to 718.
Life
He descended from
Ida of Bernicia
Ida () (died c. 559) is the first known king of the Anglian kingdom of Bernicia, which he ruled from around 547 until his death in 559. Little is known of his life or reign, but he was regarded as the founder of a line from which later Anglo-Saxo ...
, and was the first of his branch of the family to rule
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 ...
.
John of Fordun
John of Fordun (before 1360 – c. 1384) was a Scottish chronicler. It is generally stated that he was born at Fordoun, Mearns. It is certain that he was a secular priest, and that he composed his history in the latter part of the 14th ce ...
claims that he murdered his predecessor
Osred.
Bede merely mentions that Osred was slain; the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle places it somewhere "on the southern border".
''A History of Northumberland in Three Parts'', Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne, 1858, p. 98
/ref> William of Malmesbury
William of Malmesbury ( la, Willelmus Malmesbiriensis; ) was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. He has been ranked among the most talented English historians since Bede. Modern historian C. Warren Hollister described him as " ...
calls him "a draught from the same cup" as Osred, which is to say a young man, vigorous, dissolute, cruel and bold.
Ceolwulf claimed descent from Ida of Bernicia
Ida () (died c. 559) is the first known king of the Anglian kingdom of Bernicia, which he ruled from around 547 until his death in 559. Little is known of his life or reign, but he was regarded as the founder of a line from which later Anglo-Saxo ...
. "Ceolwulf was the son of Cutha, Cutha of Cuthwin, Cuthwin of Leoldwald, Leoldwald of Egwald, Egwald of Aldhelm, Aldhelm of Ocga, Ocga of Ida, Ida of Eoppa."[Hind, George. "Ceolwulf." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 3. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1908. 18 May 2013]
/ref>
The manner of his death is unknown. The Annals of Ulster record the death of the son of Cuidine (Cuthwine), king of the Saxons, in 718, and this almost certainly refers to Coenred. He was succeeded by Osric Osric is an Anglo-Saxon name and may refer to:
__NOTOC__ People Anglo-Saxon kings
* Osric of Deira, king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Deira in the 630s
* Osric of Northumbria, king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria in the 720s
* Osric of ...
, brother, or half-brother, of Osred. Coenred's brother Ceolwulf Ceolwulf, occasionally spelt Ceolwulph, may refer to:
* Ceolwulf I of Mercia, King of Mercia
*Ceolwulf II of Mercia, King of Mercia
*Ceolwulf of Northumbria (Saint Ceolwulf), King of Northumbria
*Ceolwulf of Wessex
Ceolwulf (died 611) was a Kin ...
became king after Osric.
References
Further reading
* Higham, N.J., ''The Kingdom of Northumbria AD 350-1100.'' Stroud: Sutton, 1993.
* Marsden, J., ''Northanhymbre Saga: The History of the Anglo-Saxon Kings of Northumbria.'' London: Cathie, 1992.
* Plummer, Charles, ''Venerabilis Baedae Opera Historica.'' Volume 2. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1896, page 340.
External links
*
{{Kings of Northumbria
718 deaths
Northumbrian monarchs
8th-century English monarchs
Year of birth unknown
Idings
de:Coenred