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Oswiu, also known as Oswy or Oswig ( ang, Ōswīg; c. 612 – 15 February 670), was
King of Bernicia
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 642 and 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 ...
from 654 until his death. He is notable for his role at the
Synod of Whitby
In the Synod of Whitby in 664, King Oswiu of Northumbria ruled that his kingdom would calculate Easter and observe the monastic tonsure according to the customs of Rome rather than the customs practiced by Irish monks at Iona and its satellite ins ...
in 664, which ultimately brought the church in Northumbria into conformity with the wider
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.
One of the sons of
Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith (died c. 616) was King of Bernicia from c. 593 until his death. Around 604 he became the first Bernician king to also rule the neighboring land of Deira, giving him an important place in the development of the later kingdom of Nor ...
of Bernicia, Oswiu became king following the death of his brother
Oswald Oswald may refer to:
People
* Oswald (given name), including a list of people with the name
*Oswald (surname), including a list of people with the name
Fictional characters
*Oswald the Reeve, who tells a tale in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbu ...
in 642. Unlike Oswald, Oswiu struggled to exert authority over
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' ...
, the other constituent kingdom of medieval
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 ...
, for much of his reign.
Oswiu and his brothers were raised in exile in the Irish kingdom of
Dál Riata
Dál Riata or Dál Riada (also Dalriada) () was a Gaelic kingdom that encompassed the western seaboard of Scotland and north-eastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel. At its height in the 6th and 7th centuries, it covered what is now ...
in present-day Scotland after their father's death at the hands of
Edwin of Deira
Edwin ( ang, Ēadwine; c. 586 – 12 October 632/633), also known as Eadwine or Æduinus, was the King of Deira and Bernicia – which later became known as Northumbria – from about 616 until his death. He converted to Christia ...
, only returning after Edwin's death in 633. Oswiu rose to the kingship when his brother Oswald was killed in battle against
Penda of Mercia
Penda (died 15 November 655)Manuscript A of the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' gives the year as 655. Bede also gives the year as 655 and specifies a date, 15 November. R. L. Poole (''Studies in Chronology and History'', 1934) put forward the theor ...
. The early part of his reign was defined by struggles to assert control over Deira and his contentious relationship with Penda, his overlord. In 655, Oswiu's forces killed Penda in a decisive victory at the
Battle of the Winwaed
The Battle of the Winwaed (Welsh: ''Maes Gai''; lat-med, Strages Gai Campi) was fought on 15 November 655 between King Penda of Mercia and Oswiu of Bernicia, ending in the Mercians' defeat and Penda's death. According to Bede, the battl ...
, establishing Oswiu as one of the most powerful rulers in Britain. He secured control of Deira, with his son
Alhfrith
Alhfrith or Ealhfrith (c. 630 – c. 664) was King of Deira under his father Oswiu, King of Bernicia, from 655 until sometime after 664. Appointed by Oswiu as a subordinate ruler, Alhfrith apparently clashed with his father over religious policy, ...
serving as a sub-king, and for three years, Oswiu's power extended over Mercia, earning him recognition as ''
bretwalda
''Bretwalda'' (also ''brytenwalda'' and ''bretenanwealda'', sometimes capitalised) is an Old English word. The first record comes from the late 9th-century ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle''. It is given to some of the rulers of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms from ...
'' over much of Great Britain.
Oswiu was a devoted Christian, promoting the faith among his subjects and establishing a number of monasteries, including
Gilling Abbey Gilling Abbey was a medieval Anglo-Saxon monastery established in Yorkshire, England.
It was founded at Gilling in what is currently North YorkshireBlair ''Church in Anglo-Saxon Society'' p. 187 footnote 20 by Queen Eanflæd, the wife of King Oswiu ...
and
Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey was a 7th-century Christian monastery that later became a Benedictine abbey. The abbey church was situated overlooking the North Sea on the East Cliff above Whitby in North Yorkshire, England, a centre of the medieval Northumbrian ...
. He was raised in the
Celtic Christian tradition of much of the Irish world, rather than the
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
tradition practiced by the southern Anglo-Saxon kingdoms as well as some members of the Deiran nobility, including Oswiu's queen
Eanflæd
Eanflæd (19 April 626 – after 685, also known as Enfleda) was a Deiran princess, queen of Northumbria and later, the abbess of an influential Christian monastery in Whitby, England. She was the daughter of King Edwin of Northumbria and Æth ...
. In 664, Oswiu presided over the
Synod of Whitby
In the Synod of Whitby in 664, King Oswiu of Northumbria ruled that his kingdom would calculate Easter and observe the monastic tonsure according to the customs of Rome rather than the customs practiced by Irish monks at Iona and its satellite ins ...
, where clerics debated over the two traditions, and helped resolve tension between the parties by decreeing that Northumbria would follow the Roman style. Oswiu died in 670 and was succeeded by his son,
Ecgfrith Ecgfrith ( ang, Ecgfrið) was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings in England, including:
* Ecgfrith of Northumbria, died 685
* Ecgfrith of Mercia
Ecgfrith was king of Mercia from 29 July to December 796. He was the son of Offa, one of the m ...
. His feast is 15 February in the East and in the West.
Background and early life
Oswiu was born circa 612, as he was 58 at his death in 670, according to
Bede
Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...
. He was the third child of
Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith (died c. 616) was King of Bernicia from c. 593 until his death. Around 604 he became the first Bernician king to also rule the neighboring land of Deira, giving him an important place in the development of the later kingdom of Nor ...
, then King of Bernicia; his siblings included older brothers
Eanfrith and
Oswald Oswald may refer to:
People
* Oswald (given name), including a list of people with the name
*Oswald (surname), including a list of people with the name
Fictional characters
*Oswald the Reeve, who tells a tale in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbu ...
and sister
Æbbe.
[Bede, ''Ecclesiastical History'', Book IV, Chapter 5.] Oswiu's mother was likely Æthelfrith's only recorded wife,
Acha, a princess of Deira's royal line who is known to have been Oswald's mother. Regardless, his heritage did nothing to endear him to the Deiran nobility; while they accepted Oswald as king apparently on account of his mother, they resisted Oswiu throughout his reign.
At the time of Oswiu's birth, Æthelfrith was at the height of his power. In 604 he had taken control of Deira, evidently by conquest; he killed the previous king (apparently
Æthelric), married Acha, a member of the kingly line, and exiled Acha's brother
Edwin
The name Edwin means "rich friend". It comes from the Old English elements "ead" (rich, blessed) and "ƿine" (friend). The original Anglo-Saxon form is Eadƿine, which is also found for Anglo-Saxon figures.
People
* Edwin of Northumbria (die ...
. His authority ran from the lands of the
Picts
The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from ea ...
and the
Dál Riata
Dál Riata or Dál Riada (also Dalriada) () was a Gaelic kingdom that encompassed the western seaboard of Scotland and north-eastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel. At its height in the 6th and 7th centuries, it covered what is now ...
in modern
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
to
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
and the
Midlands
The Midlands (also referred to as Central England) are a part of England that broadly correspond to the Kingdom of Mercia of the Early Middle Ages, bordered by Wales, Northern England and Southern England. The Midlands were important in the Ind ...
in the south. Æthelfrith's power rested on his military success, and this success came to an end in 616, when the exiled Edwin of Deira, with the support of King
Rædwald, defeated and killed him in battle by the
River Idle
The River Idle is a river in Nottinghamshire, England whose source is the confluence of the River Maun and River Meden near Markham Moor. The Idle flows north from its source through Retford and Bawtry before entering the River Trent at West St ...
.
On Æthelfrith's death, his sons and their supporters fled
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 ...
, finding sanctuary among the
Gaels
The Gaels ( ; ga, Na Gaeil ; gd, Na Gàidheil ; gv, Ny Gaeil ) are an ethnolinguistic group native to Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man in the British Isles. They are associated with the Gaelic languages: a branch of the Celtic langu ...
and
Picts
The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from ea ...
of northern Britain and
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. Here they would remain until Edwin's death at the
Battle of Hatfield Chase
The Battle of Hatfield Chase ( ang, Hæðfeld; owl, Meigen) was fought on 12 October 633 at Hatfield Chase near Doncaster (today part of South Yorkshire, England). It pitted the Northumbrians against an alliance of Gwynedd and Mercia. The North ...
in 633.
[Bede, ''Ecclesiastical History'', Book III, Chapter 1.]
In exile, the sons of Æthelfrith were converted to Christianity, or raised as Christians.
In Oswiu's case, he became an exile at the age of four, and cannot have returned to Northumbria until aged twenty-one, spending childhood and adolescence in a Gaelic milieu. Bede writes that Oswiu was fluent in the
Old Irish language
Old Irish, also called Old Gaelic ( sga, Goídelc, Ogham, Ogham script: ᚌᚑᚔᚇᚓᚂᚉ; ga, Sean-Ghaeilge; gd, Seann-Ghàidhlig; gv, Shenn Yernish or ), is the oldest form of the Goidelic languages, Goidelic/Gaelic language for which ...
and Irish in his faith.
As well as learning the Irish language and being thoroughly Christianised, Oswiu may have fought for his Gaelic hosts, perhaps receiving his arms—a significant event—from a
King of Dál Riata, such as
Eochaid Buide
Eochaid Buide was king of Dál Riata from around 608 until 629. "Buide" refers to the colour yellow, as in the colour of his hair.
He was a younger son of Áedán mac Gabráin and became his father's chosen heir upon the death of his elder brothe ...
, son of that
Áedán mac Gabráin
Áedán mac Gabráin (pronounced in Old Irish; ga, Aodhán mac Gabhráin, lang), also written as Aedan, was a king of Dál Riata from 574 until c. 609 AD. The kingdom of Dál Riata was situated in modern Argyll and Bute, Scotland, and par ...
whom his father had defeated at the
Battle of Degsastan
The Battle of Degsastan was fought around 603 between king Æthelfrith of Bernicia and the Gaels under Áedán mac Gabráin, king of Dál Riada. Æthelfrith's smaller army won a decisive victory, although his brother Theodbald was killed. Very ...
. The
Irish annals
A number of Irish annals, of which the earliest was the Chronicle of Ireland, were compiled up to and shortly after the end of the 17th century. Annals were originally a means by which monks determined the yearly chronology of feast days. Over t ...
name one ''Oisiric mac Albruit, rigdomna Saxan''—
ætheling
Ætheling (; also spelt aetheling, atheling or etheling) was an Old English term (''æþeling'') used in Anglo-Saxon England to designate princes of the royal dynasty who were eligible for the kingship.
The term is an Old English and Old Saxon ...
Osric—among the dead, alongside
Connad Cerr
Connad Cerr (Connad the Left-handed) was a king of Dál Riata in the early 7th century. He was either a son of Conall mac Comgaill or of Eochaid Buide. Connad appears to have been joint king with Eochaid Buide in the 620s.
He is named as king of D ...
, King of Dál Riata, and others of the
Cenél nGabráin
The Cenél nGabráin was a kingroup, presumed to descend from Gabrán mac Domangairt, which dominated the kingship of Dál Riata until the late 7th century and continued to provide kings thereafter. Kings of Alba and of Scotland traced their desce ...
, at the
Battle of Fid Eóin. Whether Oswiu's marriage with the
Uí Néill
The Uí Néill (Irish pronunciation: ; meaning "descendants of Niall") are Irish dynasties who claim descent from Niall Noígíallach (Niall of the Nine Hostages), a historical King of Tara who died c. 405. They are generally divided into the ...
princess
Fín
Fín was an Irish Princess, who lived during the 7th century. She was a daughter or granddaughter of Colmán Rímid (died 604) of Cenél nEógain.
She formed some sort of marriage with Oswiu of Northumbria (c. 612 – 15 February 670), by who ...
of the
Cenél nEógain
Cenél is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*Cenél Conaill, the name of the "kindred" or descendants of Conall Gulban, son of Niall Noígiallach defined by oral and recorded history
*Cenél nEógain (in English, Cenel Eogan) is ...
, and the birth of
Aldfrith
Aldfrith (Early Modern Irish: ''Flann Fína mac Ossu''; Latin: ''Aldfrid'', ''Aldfridus''; died 14 December 704 or 705) was king of Northumbria from 685 until his death. He is described by early writers such as Bede, Alcuin and Stephen of Ripo ...
, should be placed in the context of his exile, or took place at a later date is uncertain.
Equally uncertain is the date of Oswiu's return to Northumbria. He may have returned with his brother
Eanfrith on Edwin's death in 633, as Bede appears to write.
Eanfrith
apostatised and was killed by
Cadwallon ap Cadfan
Cadwallon ap Cadfan (died 634A difference in the interpretation of Bede's dates has led to the question of whether Cadwallon was killed in 634 or the year earlier, 633. Cadwallon died in the year after the Battle of Hatfield Chase, which Bede rep ...
, who was defeated and killed in turn by another brother,
Oswald Oswald may refer to:
People
* Oswald (given name), including a list of people with the name
*Oswald (surname), including a list of people with the name
Fictional characters
*Oswald the Reeve, who tells a tale in Geoffrey Chaucer's ''The Canterbu ...
, who became king of Bernicia and probably succeeded to his father's old dominance of northern and central Britain.
Eanflæd and Oswine
Oswald died in battle against Penda of Mercia at the
Battle of Maserfield
The Battle of Maserfield () was fought on 5 August 641 or 642 (642 according to Ward) between the Anglo-Saxon kings Oswald of Northumbria and Penda of Mercia, ending in Oswald's defeat, death, and dismemberment. The location was also known as ...
, dated by Bede to 5 August 642. Oswald's son
Œthelwald may have been his preferred successor, but Œthelwald cannot have been an adult in 642. So, the kingship came to Oswiu. Unlike Eanfrith and Osric, Oswiu held to the Christian faith in spite of his brother's defeat by the pagan Penda. This may have been due to his more thoroughly Christian upbringing, but the influence of Bishop
Aidan of Lindisfarne
Aidan of Lindisfarne ( ga, Naomh Aodhán; died 31 August 651) was an Irish monk and missionary credited with converting the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity in Northumbria. He founded a monastic cathedral on the island of Lindisfarne, known as Lindis ...
, by then a major figure in Bernicia, could also have been significant.
Bede summarises Oswiu's reign in this way:
Oswald being translated to the heavenly kingdom, his brother Oswy, a young man of about thirty years of age, succeeded him on the throne of his earthly kingdom, and held it twenty-eight years with much trouble, being harassed by the pagan king, Penda, and by the pagan nation of the Mercians, that had slain his brother, as also by his son Alfred Ealhfrith.html"_;"title="Ealhfrith_of_Deira.html"_;"title=".e._Ealhfrith_of_Deira">Ealhfrith">Ealhfrith_of_Deira.html"_;"title=".e._Ealhfrith_of_Deira">Ealhfrith_and_by_his_wikt:cousin-german.html" "title="Ealhfrith_of_Deira">Ealhfrith.html" ;"title="Ealhfrith_of_Deira.html" ;"title=".e. Ealhfrith of Deira">Ealhfrith">Ealhfrith_of_Deira.html" ;"title=".e. Ealhfrith of Deira">Ealhfrith and by his wikt:cousin-german">cousin-german
Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...
Ethelwald [i.e. Œthelwald of Deira], the son of his brother who reigned before him.
[Bede, ''Ecclesiastical History'', Book III, Chapter 14.]
Oswiu's first recorded action as king of Bernicia was to strengthen his position, and perhaps his claims to Deira, by marrying Edwin's daughter
Eanflæd
Eanflæd (19 April 626 – after 685, also known as Enfleda) was a Deiran princess, queen of Northumbria and later, the abbess of an influential Christian monastery in Whitby, England. She was the daughter of King Edwin of Northumbria and Æth ...
, then in exile in the
Kingdom of Kent
la, Regnum Cantuariorum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the Kentish
, common_name = Kent
, era = Heptarchy
, status = vassal
, status_text =
, government_type = Monarchy ...
. This marriage took place between 642 and 644.
Oswiu is known to have been married three times. Eanflæd, his Queen, bore him two sons and two daughters. The sons were
Ecgfrith Ecgfrith ( ang, Ecgfrið) was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings in England, including:
* Ecgfrith of Northumbria, died 685
* Ecgfrith of Mercia
Ecgfrith was king of Mercia from 29 July to December 796. He was the son of Offa, one of the m ...
(644/645–685) and
Ælfwine
Ælfwine (also ''Aelfwine'', ''Elfwine'') is an Old English personal name. It is composed of the elements ''ælf'' "elf" and ''wine'' "friend", continuing a hypothetical Common Germanic given name ''*albi- winiz'' which is also continued in Old Hig ...
(c. 660–679), the daughters
Osthryth
Osthryth (died 697), queen of the Mercians, was the wife of King Æthelred and daughter of King Oswiu of Northumbria and his second wife Eanflæd. She probably married Æthelred before 679 and was murdered by the nobles of Mercia.
Osthryth was ...
(died 697) and
Ælfflæd (c. 654–714). The Irish princess
Fín
Fín was an Irish Princess, who lived during the 7th century. She was a daughter or granddaughter of Colmán Rímid (died 604) of Cenél nEógain.
She formed some sort of marriage with Oswiu of Northumbria (c. 612 – 15 February 670), by who ...
was the mother of
Aldfrith
Aldfrith (Early Modern Irish: ''Flann Fína mac Ossu''; Latin: ''Aldfrid'', ''Aldfridus''; died 14 December 704 or 705) was king of Northumbria from 685 until his death. He is described by early writers such as Bede, Alcuin and Stephen of Ripo ...
(died 705). Finally, the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
princess
Rieinmelth of
Rheged
Rheged () was one of the kingdoms of the ''Hen Ogledd'' ("Old North"), the Brittonic-speaking region of what is now Northern England and southern Scotland, during the post-Roman era and Early Middle Ages. It is recorded in several poetic and ba ...
is named as a wife of Oswiu in the ''
Historia Brittonum
''The History of the Britons'' ( la, Historia Brittonum) is a purported history of the indigenous British (Brittonic) people that was written around 828 and survives in numerous recensions that date from after the 11th century. The ''Historia Bri ...
''. It is thought that Ealhfrith was her son, and Eahlflæd may have been her daughter.
The first half of Oswiu's reign was spent in the shadow of Penda, who dominated much of Britain from 642 until 655, seemingly making and breaking kings as it suited him. The future kingdom of Northumbria was still composed of two distinct kingdoms in Oswiu's lifetime. The northerly 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 ...
, which extended from the
River Tees
The River Tees (), in Northern England, rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines and flows eastwards for to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar near Middlesbrough. The modern day history of the river has be ...
to the
Firth of Forth
The Firth of Forth () is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south.
Name
''Firth'' is a cognate of ''fjord'', a Norse word meani ...
, was ruled by Oswiu. The kingdom of
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' ...
, lying between the
North York Moors
The North York Moors is an upland area in north-eastern Yorkshire, England. It contains one of the largest expanses of Calluna, heather moorland in the United Kingdom. The area was designated as a national parks of England and Wales, National P ...
and the
Humber
The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between th ...
, was ruled by a series of Oswiu's kinsmen, initially as a separate kingdom, later as a form of
appanage
An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...
for Oswiu's sons.
For the first decade of Oswiu's reign, Deira was ruled by an independent king,
Oswine, son of the apostate
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 ...
, who belonged to the rival Deiran royal family. Oswine and Oswiu came into conflict circa 651. Bede blames Oswiu for the troubles and writes:
For when they had raised armies against one another, Oswin perceived that he could not maintain a war against one who had more auxiliaries than himself, and he thought it better at that time to lay aside all thoughts of engaging, and to preserve himself for better times. He therefore dismissed the army which he had assembled, and ordered all his men to return to their own homes, from the place that is called Wilfaresdun, that is, Wilfar's Hill, which is almost ten miles distant from the village called Cataract Catterick.html" ;"title="Catterick,_North_Yorkshire.html" ;"title=".e. Catterick, North Yorkshire">Catterick">Catterick,_North_Yorkshire.html" ;"title=".e. Catterick, North Yorkshire">Catterick towards the north-west. He himself, with only one trusty soldier, whose name was Tonhere, withdrew and lay concealed in the house of Earl [''comes''] Hunwald, whom he imagined to be his most assured friend. But, alas! it was otherwise; for the earl betrayed him, and Oswy, in a detestable manner, by the hands of his commander [''praefectus''], Ethilwin, slew him...
In order to expiate the killing of Oswine, who was later reckoned a
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 ...
, Oswiu established
Gilling Abbey Gilling Abbey was a medieval Anglo-Saxon monastery established in Yorkshire, England.
It was founded at Gilling in what is currently North YorkshireBlair ''Church in Anglo-Saxon Society'' p. 187 footnote 20 by Queen Eanflæd, the wife of King Oswiu ...
at
Gilling
Gillingr (Old Norse: ; also Gilling) is a jötunn in Norse mythology, and the father of Suttungr. Gillingr and, later, his wife are murdered by the dwarfs Fjalar and Galar. In revenge, his son Suttungr tortures the dwarfs into giving him the mea ...
, where prayers were said for Oswine and for Oswiu.
Oswine was followed as king of the Deirans by Oswald's son Œthelwald.
Penda
Oswiu's relations with
Penda
Penda (died 15 November 655)Manuscript A of the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' gives the year as 655. Bede also gives the year as 655 and specifies a date, 15 November. R. L. Poole (''Studies in Chronology and History'', 1934) put forward the theor ...
were not entirely peaceful between 642 and 655. Bede appears to place a major assault on Bernicia by Penda, which reached the gates 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 ...
, at some time before 651 and the death of Bishop
Aidan of Lindisfarne
Aidan of Lindisfarne ( ga, Naomh Aodhán; died 31 August 651) was an Irish monk and missionary credited with converting the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity in Northumbria. He founded a monastic cathedral on the island of Lindisfarne, known as Lindis ...
. An entry in the Irish annals recording "
e battle of Oswy against Penda" circa 650 may refer to this campaign.
D.P. Kirby suggests that the killing of Oswine may have led to an improvement in relations between Penda and Oswiu in the early 650s. Oswiu's son Ealhfrith married Penda's daughter
Cyneburh
Kyneburga, Kyneswide and Tibba were female members of the Mercian royal family in 7th century England who were venerated as saints.
Kyneburga and Kyneswide
Kyneburga (d. c. 680) (also called Cyneburh in Old English); the name being also rendere ...
, while his daughter Ealhflæd married Penda's son
Peada
Peada (died 656), a son of Penda, was briefly King of southern Mercia after his father's death in November 655The year could be pushed back to 654 if a revised interpretation of Bede's dates is used. and until his own death in the spring of the n ...
. Peada was
baptised
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...
at ''Ad Murum''—in the region of
Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall ( la, Vallum Aelium), also known as the Roman Wall, Picts' Wall, or ''Vallum Hadriani'' in Latin, is a former defensive fortification of the Roman province of Britannia, begun in AD 122 in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian. R ...
—by Aidan's successor
Finan. Peada and Ealhflæd took a missionary group, including
Cedd
Cedd ( la, Cedda, Ceddus; 620 – 26 October 664) was an Anglo-Saxon monk and bishop from the Kingdom of Northumbria. He was an evangelist of the Middle Angles and East Saxons in England and a significant participant in the Synod of Whitby, a ...
and
Diuma __NOTOC__
Diuma (or Dwyna or Duma) was the first Bishop of Mercia in the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Mercia, during the Early Middle Ages.
All that is known of Diuma's life is contained in a short account in Bede's ''Ecclesiastical History of the Eng ...
, to establish a church in their lands.
In 655 Bede reports that Penda invaded Bernicia at the head of a large army. Bede states that Oswiu offered "an incalculable quantity of regalia and presents as the price of peace", but that Penda refused. Oswiu vowed to give his daughter Ælfflæd to the church, and to found a dozen monasteries if he was granted the victory, and assisted by Ealhfrith he engaged Penda with a small army in the
Battle of the Winwæd
The Battle of the Winwaed (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Maes Gai''; lat-med, Strages Gai Campi) was fought on 15 November 655 between King Penda of Mercia and Oswiu of Northumbria, Oswiu of Bernicia, ending in the Mercians' defeat and Penda' ...
, which took place in the region of ''Loidis'', which is to say
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...
. He was successful, and Penda was killed, along with many of his allies, including King
Æthelhere of the East Angles. Œthelwald had assisted Penda, but stood aside from the fighting.
[Bede, ''Ecclesiastical History'', Book III, Chapter 24. The Winwæd is thought to be the ]River Went
The River Went is a river in Yorkshire, England. It rises close to Featherstone and flows eastward, joining the River Don at Reedholme Common.
A possible site of the Battle of Winwaed is believed to be located somewhere along the valley of th ...
; Keynes, "Penda".
The ''Historia Brittonum'' gives a somewhat different account. Here, Oswiu's offer of treasure is accepted, and is associated with the siege of a place named ''Iudeu''. It is assumed that
Ecgfrith Ecgfrith ( ang, Ecgfrið) was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings in England, including:
* Ecgfrith of Northumbria, died 685
* Ecgfrith of Mercia
Ecgfrith was king of Mercia from 29 July to December 796. He was the son of Offa, one of the m ...
was given over as a hostage, into the keeping of Penda's queen Cynewise, at this time. The ''Historia'' suggests that many of Penda's allies were British kings, and notes that
Cadafael ap Cynfeddw Cadafael ap Cynfeddw ( en, Cadafael son of Cynfeddw) was King of Gwynedd (reigned 634 – c. 655). He came to the throne when his predecessor, King Cadwallon ap Cadfan, was killed in battle, and his primary notability is in having gained the di ...
joined Œthelwald in avoiding the battle, so gaining the
epithet
An epithet (, ), also byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) known for accompanying or occurring in place of a name and having entered common usage. It has various shades of meaning when applied to seemingly real or fictitious people, di ...
''Cadomedd'' (the Battle-Shirker). The decisive battle is located at "Gaius's field".
Overlord of Britain
The surprising defeat of the hitherto dominant Penda, and the death of the East Anglian king Æthelhere left Oswiu as the dominant figure in Britain. Œthelwald's ambivalent stance during the campaign which led to the Winwæd appears to have led to his removal as he disappears from the record at this time. Oswiu installed his adult son Ealhfrith as king of Deirans in Œthelwald's place. Penda's son Peada was installed as king of southern Mercia, while Oswiu took the north of the kingdom. Other subject rulers seem to have been established elsewhere in Mercia.
Further south, Æthelhere's brother
Æthelwold Æthelwold was a common Anglo Saxon name. It may refer to: Royalty and nobility
*King Æthelwold of Deira, King of Deira, d. 655
*King Æthelwold of East Anglia, King of East Anglia, d. 664
*King Æthelwold Moll of Northumbria, King of Northumbria ...
may have been established with Oswiu's assistance, as well as that of his kinsman by marriage King
Eorcenberht of Kent
Eorcenberht of Kent (also Ærconberht, Earconberht, or Earconbert) (died 14 July 664) was king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Kent from 640 until his death, succeeding his father Eadbald.
The Kentish Royal Legend (also known as the Mildrith legen ...
.
Cenwalh of Wessex
Cenwalh, also Cenwealh or Coenwalh, was King of Wessex from c. 642 to c. 645 and from c. 648 until his death, according to the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', in c. 672.
Penda and Anna
Bede states that Cenwalh was the son of the King Cynegils baptis ...
, who had been driven out of his lands by Penda for putting aside his marriage to Penda's sister, may also have returned to power in this period, again with Oswiu's assistance. King
Sigeberht the Good
Sigeberht II, nicknamed the Good (''Bonus'') or the Blessed (''Sanctus''), was King of the East Saxons (r. ''c''. 653 to ? 660 x 661), in succession to his relative Sigeberht I the Little. Although a bishopric in Essex had been created under Mel ...
of the East Saxons was Oswiu's ally. Oswiu's nephew, Eanfrith's son
Talorcan, may have also been established as a leading king among the Picts at this time.
Oswiu's total domination lasted only a short time, around three years. The proximate cause was the death of Peada, supposedly poisoned by his wife, Oswiu's daughter Eahlflæd. This probably occurred at
Easter
Easter,Traditional names for the feast in English are "Easter Day", as in the '' Book of Common Prayer''; "Easter Sunday", used by James Ussher''The Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, Volume 4'') and Samuel Pepys''The Diary of Samuel ...
656, and Oswiu proceeded to install governors or subject kings in Mercia. Probably in late 659, but perhaps in 657, a revolt led by three Mercian noblemen—Immin, Eata, and Eadberht—installed Penda's son
Wulfhere
Wulfhere or Wulfar (died 675) was King of Mercia from 658 until 675 AD. He was the first Christian king of all of Mercia, though it is not known when or how he converted from Anglo-Saxon paganism. His accession marked the end of Oswiu of North ...
as ruler of the Mercians and drove out Oswiu's supporters. Oswiu remained a force to be reckoned with, and political settlement rather than open warfare appears to have resolved the crisis. Oswiu's kinsman
Trumhere __NOTOC__
Trumhere (or Thumhere; died ) was a medieval Bishop of Mercia.
Trumhere probably was consecrated about 658 and died about 662.Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 220 He was born in England but was educated in Ireland.St ...
was named to be Wulfhere's bishop. While Wulfhere extended Mercian influence and authority in southern Britain, he apparently continued to recognise Oswiu's primacy.
Welsh sources suggest that Oswiu campaigned in Wales in the late 650s, imposing tribute on the Welsh kings who had previously been Penda's allies such as
Cadafael, the battle-dodging
King of Gwynedd
Prior to the Conquest of Wales by Edward I, Conquest of Wales, completed in 1282, Wales consisted of a number of independent monarchy, kingdoms, the most important being Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd, Kingdom of Powys, Powys, Deheubarth (originally ...
. Elsewhere in the south, Oswiu's ally Sigeberht of the East Saxons was murdered and replaced by his brother
Swithhelm, who remained a Christian, but distanced himself from Oswiu and the Irish-Northumbrian church. Switthelm was probably subject to the East Angles.
Ealhfrith and the Synod of Whitby
In 664 at the
synod of Whitby
In the Synod of Whitby in 664, King Oswiu of Northumbria ruled that his kingdom would calculate Easter and observe the monastic tonsure according to the customs of Rome rather than the customs practiced by Irish monks at Iona and its satellite ins ...
, Oswiu accepted the usages of the Roman Church, which led to the departure of Bishop
Colmán of Lindisfarne
Colmán of Lindisfarne ( 605 – 18 February 675 AD) also known as Saint Colmán was Bishop of Lindisfarne from 661 until 664.
Life
Colman was a native of the west of Ireland and had received his education on Iona. He was probably a nobleman of ...
. Bede writes that the dispute was brought to a head by Oswiu's son Ealhfrith, who had adopted Roman usages at the urging of
Wilfrid
Wilfrid ( – 709 or 710) was an English bishop and saint. Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne, at Canterbury, in Francia, and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and ...
.
[Bede, ''Ecclesiastical History'', Book III, Chapter 25.] Ealhfrith had been brought up with Irish-Northumbrian usages, and his rejection of these, along with the expulsion of the future saints
Cuthbert of Lindisfarne
Cuthbert of Lindisfarne ( – 20 March 687) was an Anglo-Saxon saint of the early Northumbrian church in the Celtic tradition. He was a monk, bishop and hermit, associated with the monasteries of Melrose and Lindisfarne in the Kingdom of ...
and
Eata of Hexham
Eata (died 26 October 686), also known as Eata of Lindisfarne, was Bishop of Hexham from 678 until 681,Fryde, et al. ''Handbook of British Chronology'' p. 217 and of then Bishop of Lindisfarne from before 681 until 685.Fryde, et al. ''Handbook o ...
from
Ripon
Ripon () is a cathedral city in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the city ...
, is considered to have had a strong political component. Equally, 665 would be a year, as Bede writes, "that Easter was kept twice in one year, so that when the King had ended
Lent
Lent ( la, Quadragesima, 'Fortieth') is a solemn religious observance in the liturgical calendar commemorating the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the desert and enduring temptation by Satan, according to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke ...
and was keeping Easter, the Queen and her attendants were still fasting and keeping
Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday is a Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Palm Sunday marks the first day of Holy ...
".
Ecgfrith
In 660, Oswiu married his son Ecgfrith to
Æthelthryth
Æthelthryth (or Æðelþryð or Æþelðryþe; 23 June 679 AD) was an East Anglian princess, a Fenland and Northumbrian queen and Abbess of Ely. She is an Anglo-Saxon saint, and is also known as Etheldreda or Audrey, especially in religious ...
, daughter of the former East Anglian king
Anna
Anna may refer to:
People Surname and given name
* Anna (name)
Mononym
* Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke
* Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773)
* Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century)
* Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 12 ...
.
Death
Even in his final years, Oswiu remained a major figure in Britain. The newly appointed
Archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
,
Theodore of Tarsus
Theodore of Tarsus ( gr, Θεόδωρος Ταρσοῦ; 60219 September 690) was Archbishop of Canterbury from 668 to 690. Theodore grew up in Tarsus, but fled to Constantinople after the Persian Empire conquered Tarsus and other cities. After ...
, came north to meet him in 669. Bede writes that Oswiu had intended to undertake a
pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...
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 ...
in the company of Bishop Wilfrid. However, he fell ill and died, aged 58, on 15 February 670.
His elder son by Queen Eanflæd,
Ecgfrith Ecgfrith ( ang, Ecgfrið) was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings in England, including:
* Ecgfrith of Northumbria, died 685
* Ecgfrith of Mercia
Ecgfrith was king of Mercia from 29 July to December 796. He was the son of Offa, one of the m ...
, succeeded him as
King of Bernicia
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 ...
, while their younger son,
Ælfwine
Ælfwine (also ''Aelfwine'', ''Elfwine'') is an Old English personal name. It is composed of the elements ''ælf'' "elf" and ''wine'' "friend", continuing a hypothetical Common Germanic given name ''*albi- winiz'' which is also continued in Old Hig ...
, succeeded Ecgfrith as King of Deira. He was buried at
Whitby Abbey
Whitby Abbey was a 7th-century Christian monastery that later became a Benedictine abbey. The abbey church was situated overlooking the North Sea on the East Cliff above Whitby in North Yorkshire, England, a centre of the medieval Northumbrian ...
, alongside
Edwin of Deira
Edwin ( ang, Ēadwine; c. 586 – 12 October 632/633), also known as Eadwine or Æduinus, was the King of Deira and Bernicia – which later became known as Northumbria – from about 616 until his death. He converted to Christia ...
. His widow and their daughter Ælflæd were later Abbess of Whitby and were also buried there.
Alcuin, writing about a century after Oswiu's death, describes him as "very just, with equitable laws, unconquered in battle but trustworthy in peace, generous in gifts to the wretched, pious, equitable to all".
[Proposography of Anglo-Saxon England, quoting Alcuin's ''The Bishops, Kings and Saints of York''.]
Family
*Alhfrith of Deira, Alhfrith
*
Ecgfrith Ecgfrith ( ang, Ecgfrið) was the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings in England, including:
* Ecgfrith of Northumbria, died 685
* Ecgfrith of Mercia
Ecgfrith was king of Mercia from 29 July to December 796. He was the son of Offa, one of the m ...
*
Ælfwine
Ælfwine (also ''Aelfwine'', ''Elfwine'') is an Old English personal name. It is composed of the elements ''ælf'' "elf" and ''wine'' "friend", continuing a hypothetical Common Germanic given name ''*albi- winiz'' which is also continued in Old Hig ...
*
Osthryth
Osthryth (died 697), queen of the Mercians, was the wife of King Æthelred and daughter of King Oswiu of Northumbria and his second wife Eanflæd. She probably married Æthelred before 679 and was murdered by the nobles of Mercia.
Osthryth was ...
*
Ælfflæd
*
Aldfrith
Aldfrith (Early Modern Irish: ''Flann Fína mac Ossu''; Latin: ''Aldfrid'', ''Aldfridus''; died 14 December 704 or 705) was king of Northumbria from 685 until his death. He is described by early writers such as Bede, Alcuin and Stephen of Ripo ...
*Ealhflæd
Holy relics
Oswy and his wife
Eanflæd
Eanflæd (19 April 626 – after 685, also known as Enfleda) was a Deiran princess, queen of Northumbria and later, the abbess of an influential Christian monastery in Whitby, England. She was the daughter of King Edwin of Northumbria and Æth ...
were gifted relics of several saints from Pope Vitalian around 665: Saint Peter, Saint Paul, Saint Laurentius, John the Apostle, Saint Gregory, and Pancras of Rome, Saint Pancras.
Eanflæd
Eanflæd (19 April 626 – after 685, also known as Enfleda) was a Deiran princess, queen of Northumbria and later, the abbess of an influential Christian monastery in Whitby, England. She was the daughter of King Edwin of Northumbria and Æth ...
was also granted "a cross, with a gold key to it, made out of the most holy chains of the apostles, Peter and Paul". This gift is documented by
Bede
Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...
in ''Ecclesiastical History of the English People'' as part of a returning delegation from Rome, which had been led by Wighard.
[Bede, ''Ecclesiastical History'', Book III, Chapter 29.]
See also
* Kings of Mercia family tree
Notes
References
*
*
*
Bede
Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...
, ''Ecclesiastical History of the English People''. Translated by Leo Sherley-Price, revised R.E. Latham, ed. D.H. Farmer. London: Penguin, 1990.
* Blair, Peter Hunter, ''The World of Bede.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, reprinted 1990.
* Charles-Edwards, T.M., ''Early Christian Ireland.'' Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
* Stephen of Ripon, Eddius, "Life of Wilfrid" in D.H. Farmer (ed.) & J.H. Webb (trans.), ''The Age of Bede.'' London: Penguin, 1998.
* Fraser, James, ''The Pictish Conquest: The Battle of Dunnichen 685 & the birth of Scotland.'' Stroud: Tempus, 2006.
*
* Higham, N.J., ''The Convert Kings: Power and religious affiliation in early Anglo-Saxon England.'' Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1997.
* Higham, N.J., ''The Kingdom of Northumbria AD 350–1100.'' Stroud: Sutton, 1993.
* Holdsworth, Philip, "Oswiu" in M. Lapidge, et al., (eds), ''The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England''. Oxford: Blackwell, 1999.
* Keynes, Simon, "Penda" in M. Lapidge, et al., (eds), ''The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England''. Oxford: Blackwell, 1999.
* Kirby, D.P., ''The Earliest English Kings.'' London: Unwin Hyman, 1991.
* Frank Stenton, Stenton, Sir Frank, ''Anglo-Saxon England.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press, 3rd edition, 1971.
* Stevens, Wesley M., "Easter Controversy" in M. Lapidge, et al., (eds), ''The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England''. Oxford: Blackwell, 1999.
*
* Williams, Ann, ''Kingship and Government in Pre-Conquest England, c. 500–1066.'' Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1999.
* Barbara Yorke, Yorke, Barbara, ''Kings and Kingdoms in Early Anglo-Saxon England.'' London: Seaby, 1990.
* Yorke, Barbara, ''The Conversion of Britain: Religion, Politics and Society in Britain c. 600–800.'' London: Longman, 2006.
* Zaluckyj, Sarah, ''Mercia: The Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Central England.'' Logaston: Logaston Press, 2001. .
*
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oswiu of Northumbria
610s births
670 deaths
Year of birth uncertain
Anglo-Saxon warriors
Bernician monarchs
7th-century English monarchs
English expatriates in Ireland
Royal House of Northumbria
Idings