Ealdred (died c. 933) was a ruler of Bamburgh, at least part of the former kingdom 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 ...
in northern
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 ...
, in the early tenth century. He was the son of
Eadwulf Eadwulf (sometimes Eadulf) is an Anglo-Saxon male name. Notable people with the name include:
* Eadwulf of Elmham, a 10th-century Bishop of Elmham
* Eadwulf of Hereford (died 830s), Bishop of Hereford
* Eadwulf I of Northumbria, king of Northumb ...
.
Background
Ealdred's father,
Eadwulf Eadwulf (sometimes Eadulf) is an Anglo-Saxon male name. Notable people with the name include:
* Eadwulf of Elmham, a 10th-century Bishop of Elmham
* Eadwulf of Hereford (died 830s), Bishop of Hereford
* Eadwulf I of Northumbria, king of Northumb ...
, called "king of the Saxons of the North" by the ''
Annals of Ulster
The ''Annals of Ulster'' ( ga, Annála Uladh) are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, ...
'', but only ''actor'' (possibly representing 'reeve') of
Bamburgh
Bamburgh ( ) is a village and civil parish on the coast of Northumberland, England. It had a population of 454 in 2001, decreasing to 414 at the 2011 census.
The village is notable for the nearby Bamburgh Castle, a castle which was the seat of ...
by the chronicler
Æthelweard, died in 913. Eadwulf may have also been ruler of all of Northumbria following
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 ...
who were killed at
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 fr ...
circa
Circa is a word of Latin origin meaning 'approximately'.
Circa or CIRCA may also refer to:
* CIRCA (art platform), art platform based in London
* Circa (band), a progressive rock supergroup
* Circa (company), an American skateboard footwear com ...
910. The twelfth-century tract ''De Northumbria post Britannos'' describes Ealdred's father Eadwulf as the grandson of
Ælla of Northumbria
Ælla (or Ælle or Aelle, fl. 866; died 21 March 867) was King of Northumbria, a kingdom in medieval England, during the middle of the 9th century. Sources on Northumbrian history in this period are limited, and so Ælla's ancestry is not known and ...
(d. 867), via a daughter of the latter, Æthelthryth (it does not name Eadwulf's father).
Life
Upon his father's death in 913, Ealdred succeeded him. The ''
Historia de Sancto Cuthberto
The ''Historia de Sancto Cuthberto'' ("History of St Cuthbert") is a historical compilation finished some time after 1031. It is an account of the history of the bishopric of St Cuthbert—based successively at Lindisfarne, Norham, Chester-le ...
'' states that Ealdred "was a friend of King
Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder (17 July 924) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 until his death in 924. He was the elder son of Alfred the Great and his wife Ealhswith. When Edward succeeded to the throne, he had to defeat a challenge from his cousin Æt ...
, as his father had been a favourite of King
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 ...
". Seemingly in the 910s, according to the same source, Ealdred was driven from at least some of his lands by
Ragnall ua Ímair
Ragnall mac Bárid ua Ímair ( non, Rǫgnvaldr , died 921) or Rægnald was a Viking leader who ruled Northumbria and the Isle of Man in the early 10th century. He was a grandson of Ímar and a member of the Uí Ímair. Ragnall was most probably ...
.
The ''Historia'' states that Ealdred sought refuge with
Constantín mac Áeda
Causantín mac Áeda ( Modern Gaelic: , anglicised Constantine II; born no later than 879; died 952) was an early King of Scotland, known then by the Gaelic name ''Alba''. The Kingdom of Alba, a name which first appears in Constantine's lifeti ...
, the
king of Scotland
The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiw ...
, and that the two fought Ragnall at the
Battle of Corbridge
The Battle of Corbridge took place on the banks of the River Tyne near the village of Corbridge in Northumberland in the year 918.
The battle was referenced in the ''Annals of Ulster'' and the ''Chronicle of the Kings of Alba''. The battle was ...
, dated by the ''Annals of Ulster'' and the ''
Chronicle of the Kings of Alba
The ''Chronicle of the Kings of Alba'', or ''Scottish Chronicle'', is a short written chronicle of the Kings of Alba, covering the period from the time of Kenneth MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpín) (d. 858) until the reign of Kenneth II (Cináed mac ...
'' to 918. The battle appears to have been indecisive and Ragnall remained the master of southern Northumbria, former
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' ...
. However, if Ealdred was indeed "driven from his lands" then his regaining control of northern Northumbria was a decided benefit resulting from the battle.
In 924 Ealdred submitted to
Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder (17 July 924) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 899 until his death in 924. He was the elder son of Alfred the Great and his wife Ealhswith. When Edward succeeded to the throne, he had to defeat a challenge from his cousin Æt ...
, and on 12 July 927 he was one of the northern rulers who submitted to Edward's son King
Æthelstan
Æthelstan or Athelstan (; ang, Æðelstān ; on, Aðalsteinn; ; – 27 October 939) was King of the Anglo-Saxons from 924 to 927 and King of the English from 927 to his death in 939. He was the son of King Edward the Elder and his first ...
at
Eamont Bridge
Eamont Bridge is a small village immediately to the south of Penrith, Cumbria, England.
The village is named after the bridge over the River Eamont and straddles the boundary between the historic counties of Cumberland and Westmorland. One o ...
.
[ Ealdred's submission added Northumbria to Æthelstan's kingdom and is generally seen as the date of the foundation of the Kingdom of England.
]
Death
Ealdred was a witness to several of Æthelstan's charters issued in southern England in 931 or 932, but he was not recorded thereafter.[Hudson, Ealdred] The ''Annals of Clonmacnoise
The ''Annals of Clonmacnoise'' ( ga, Annála Chluain Mhic Nóis) are an early 17th-century Early Modern English translation of a lost Irish chronicle, which covered events in Ireland from prehistory to 1408. The work is sometimes known as ''Mag ...
'' record in 934 that "''Adulf m'Etulfe'' king of the North Saxons died", and this may be the only notice of Ealdred's death, however, it is usually seen as a notice of a brother's death.
Family
Ealdred may have been Eadwulf Eadwulf (sometimes Eadulf) is an Anglo-Saxon male name. Notable people with the name include:
* Eadwulf of Elmham, a 10th-century Bishop of Elmham
* Eadwulf of Hereford (died 830s), Bishop of Hereford
* Eadwulf I of Northumbria, king of Northumb ...
's oldest son and the one who succeeded his father upon his death in 913. Historian Benjamin Hudson, writing for the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
, speculated that Ealdred was "probably the father of Oswulf I of Bamburgh
Oswulf (fl. c. 946 to after 954) was ruler of Bamburgh and subsequently, according to later tradition, commander of all Northumbria under the lordship of King Eadred of England. He is sometimes called "earl" or "high reeve", though the precis ...
, who later ruled over southern Northumbria under King Eadred
Eadred (c. 923 – 23 November 955) was King of the English from 26 May 946 until his death. He was the younger son of Edward the Elder and his third wife Eadgifu, and a grandson of Alfred the Great. His elder brother, Edmund, was killed tryin ...
(d. 955)." However, according to a twelfth-century pedigree, a genealogy in the text ''De Northumbria post Britannos'' recording the ancestry of Waltheof Earl of Northampton (and, briefly, Northumbria), Oswulf's father was Eadwulf I Bamburgh. This would make Ealdred and Oswulf brothers, rather than father and son; the other siblings being Uhtred and '' Adulf mcEtulfe''.[McGuigan, ′Ælla and the descendants of Ivar′, pp. 24–25.]
References
Sources
*
*
* Stenton, Sir Frank M., ''Anglo-Saxon England Third Edition''. Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
, 1971.
* Swanton, Michael, ''The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.'' Dent, 1996.
*
External links
* ; also , ?
{{s-end
10th-century deaths
Anglo-Saxon warriors
Northumbrian monarchs
10th-century English monarchs
Year of birth unknown
Rulers of Bamburgh