Cyneheard the Atheling (died 786) was the brother of Sigeberht, briefly King of Wessex. Sigeberht was deposed in 757 with the agreement of the Witan.

Cynewulf of Wessex Cynewulf was the King of Wessex from 757 until his death in 786. He ruled for about 29 years. He was a direct male descendant of Cerdic. Cynewulf became king after his predecessor, Sigeberht, was deposed. He may have come to power under the inf ...

succeeded as King. In 786 Cynewulf "wished to drive out" Cyneheard. Cynewulf went, thinly attended, to a lady at 'Merantune'. Cyneheard with his men surrounded Cynewulf, who fought bravely and wounded Cyneheard before himself being slain. The following events, described in 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 ...

'' under the year AD 755, are a classic of warrior loyalty and it has been suggested that they may be a traditional story rather than a strictly accurate report.

The atheling immediately offered Cynewulf's men life and rewards; which none of them would accept, but continued fighting together against him, till they all lay dead, except one British hostage, and he was severely wounded. When the king's
thane Thane (; also known as Thana, the official name until 1996) is a metropolitan city in Maharashtra, India. It is situated in the north-eastern portion of the Salsette Island. Thane city is entirely within Thane taluka, one of the seven talukas ...
s that were behind heard in the morning that the king was slain, they rode to the spot, Osric his
ealdorman Ealdorman (, ) was a term in Anglo-Saxon England which originally applied to a man of high status, including some of royal birth, whose authority was independent of the king. It evolved in meaning and in the eighth century was sometimes applied ...
, and Wiverth his thane, and the men that he had left behind; and they met the atheling at the town, where the king lay slain. The gates, however, were locked against them, which they attempted to force; but he promised them their own choice of money and land, if they would grant him the kingdom; reminding them, that their relatives were already with him, who would never desert him. To which they answered, that no relative could be dearer to them than their lord, and that they would never follow his murderer. Then they besought their relatives to depart from him, safe and sound. They replied, that the same request was made to their comrades that were formerly with the king; "And we are as regardless of the result," they rejoined, "as our comrades who with the king were slain." Then they continued fighting at the gates, till they rushed in, and slew the atheling and all the men that were with him; except one, who was the godson of the aldorman, and whose life he spared, though he was often wounded.

The murder of Cynewulf is placed by modern historians, including the Rev G. H. Godwin, at

Marten A marten is a weasel-like mammal in the genus ''Martes'' within the subfamily Guloninae, in the family Mustelidae. They have bushy tails and large paws with partially retractile claws. The fur varies from yellowish to dark brown, depending on t ...

, a hamlet in the county of

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

. It has also been considered to have taken place at Merton in Surrey.Trevelyan, History of England, Longmans, 1947 p. 68 Cyneheard is buried at Axminster Monastery.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cyneheard The Atheling Year of birth unknown 786 deaths 8th-century English people Anglo-Saxon royalty