Oshere (fl. 690s) was king of the
Hwicce
Hwicce () was a tribal kingdom in Anglo-Saxon England. According to the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', the kingdom was established in 577, after the Battle of Deorham. After 628, the kingdom became a client or sub-kingdom of Mercia as a result of the ...
, an
Anglo-Saxon tribe occupying land in what later became
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
and
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
. A member of the royal house 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 ...
, Oshere was a sub-king to
Æthelred, king 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 ...
(d. c 709).
Family
From meagre sources, historians have tried to piece together the relationships between Oshere and other Hwiccian contemporaries—Osric, king of Hwicce (d. 729), and Oswald, founder of
Pershore Abbey
Pershore Abbey, at Pershore in Worcestershire, was an Anglo-Saxon abbey and is now an Anglican parish church, the Church of the Holy Cross.
History
Foundation
The foundation of the minster at Pershore is alluded to in a spurious charter of King ...
(689).
There are various theories regarding the relationships among these figures. One is that Oshere was a brother of both Osric and Oswald; another, put forward by Bishop
William Stubbs
William Stubbs (21 June 182522 April 1901) was an English historian and Anglican bishop. He was Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford between 1866 and 1884. He was Bishop of Chester from 1884 to 1889 and Bishop of O ...
, was that Oshere was the son of Oswald, who was brother to Osric.
Royal Historical Society
The Royal Historical Society, founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history.
Origins
The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the Histori ...
president William Hunt favored the first theory and added that, if true, it would mean that Oshere was a nephew of Queen Osthryth, wife of King Æthelred of Mercia.
Historians have felt on firmer ground identifying two sisters of Oshere: Ecgburg, second abbess of Gloucester, and Wethburg, a nun. Details of the family appear in a letter Ecgburg wrote to
Bishop Wynfrith (Boniface) c. 716, lamenting the death of her brother and the long absence of her sister. Her sister, she had heard, was "''Romana carcer inclusit,''" which historian Diane Watt translates as "in a Roman cell as a recluse" nun. He subsequently communicated with Wethburg, who responded by pointing out the dangers of traveling to
Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
due to frequent
Saracen
upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens
Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...
attacks. In addition to Ecgburg and Wethburg, a third sister is also possible. To be specific, William Hunt identified Kyneburga, first
abbess
An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa''), also known as a mother superior, is the female superior of a community of Catholic nuns in an abbey.
Description
In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic ...
of
Gloucester, as the sister of Ecgburg and, therefore, of King Oshere.
The sons of Oshere have been identified as Æthelheard, Æthelward and Æthelric.
Education
Little is known of Oshere’s education, but since his sister was educated, it follows that he would have been as well. Ecgburg’s letter to Boniface reveals a cultivated intellect, leading Diane Watt to state that she was among the "highly educated women" who corresponded with the bishop. Historian Patrick Sims-Williams noted her familiarity with the works of
classical Greece and Rome and even went so far as to compare her "highly poetic style" to those of
Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, th ...
and
Paulinus of Nola
Paulinus of Nola (; la, Paulinus Nolanus; also Anglicized as Pauline of Nola; – 22 June 431) born Pontius Meropius Anicius Paulinus, was a Roman poet, writer, and senator who attained the ranks of suffect consul () and governor of Campania ...
.
Ecgburg indeed identifies Boniface as her teacher, and, in mentioning "the affection which assuredly bound you to my brother," she suggests that Oshere also studied under Boniface. Most instructive regarding Oshere’s education is Ecgburg’s statement that she was "inferior" to her brother "in knowledge and in merit."
Charters
Charters granted in Oshere’s name prior to 693 are said to be spurious. Among those is a charter of 680 granting 30
hides for a monastery at Ripple in Worcestershire, which did, however, refer to Oshere as king of the Hwicce acting under Æthelred’s authority.
In 693, Oshere, along with his son Æthelheard, granted land to Cuthswith, abbess of
Bath who may have been a member of the Mercian royal family or the Hwiccian dynasty. Specifically, the abbess was given 15 hides at Penintanham (believed to be
Inkberrow
Inkberrow is a village in Worcestershire, England, often thought to be the model for Ambridge, the setting of BBC Radio 4's long-running series ''The Archers''. In particular, The Bull, the fictional Ambridge pub, is supposed to be based on The ...
in Worcestershire) and at Dyllawidu (location unknown) for the foundation of a monastery, which must have prospered since she later added 5 hides at Ingin(n) (probably Ingon) twelve miles from Penintanham.
Between 674 and 704, Oshere also granted 21 hides at
Withington (now in Gloucestershire) to Abbess Dunna for the founding of a monastery.
Death
Ecgburg’s letter to Boniface, dated c. 716, laments the death of Oshere. Ecgburg referred to Oshere’s death as "cruel and bitter," leading one historian to speculate that he may have fallen in battle.
Notes
Further reading
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External links
*
{{Authority control
Hwiccan monarchs
7th-century English monarchs