The Kingdom of Northumbria
Northumbria (/nɔːrˈθʌmbriə/; Old English: Norþanhymbra rīce[1]) was a medieval Anglian kingdom in what is now northern England
England and south-east Scotland. The name derives from the Old English
Old English Norþan-hymbre meaning "the people or province north of the Humber,"[2] which reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber
Humber Estuary. Northumbria
Northumbria started to consolidate into one kingdom in the early seventh century. At its height, the kingdom extended from just south of the Humber
Humber to the River Mersey
River Mersey and to the Firth of Forth, in Scotland. Northumbria ceased to be an independent kingdom in the mid-tenth century. Northumbria
Northumbria is also used in the names of some North East regional institutions, particularly the police force ( Northumbria
Northumbria Police, which covers Northumberland
Northumberland and Tyne and Wear), a university (Northumbria University) based in Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne and Northumbria
Northumbria Army Cadet Force, as well as the regionalist Northumbrian Association[3]. The local Environment Agency
Environment Agency office, located in Newcastle Business Park, also uses the term Northumbria
Northumbria to describe its patch. Otherwise, the term is not the official name for the UK and EU region of North East England.

Contents

1 Kingdom (654–954)

1.1 Communities and Divisions

1.1.1 Possible British Origins 1.1.2 The Unification of Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira 1.1.3 Northumbria
Northumbria and Norse Settlement

1.2 Notable Kings

1.2.1 Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith (r. 593–616) 1.2.2 Edwin
Edwin (r. 616–633) 1.2.3 Oswald (r. 634–642) 1.2.4 Oswiu
Oswiu (r. 642–654) 1.2.5 Halfdan Ragnarsson
Halfdan Ragnarsson (r. 876–877) 1.2.6 Æthelstan
Æthelstan of Wessex
Wessex (r. 927–939) 1.2.7 Eric of York
York (r. 947–948, 952–954) 1.2.8 Eadred
Eadred of Wessex
Wessex (r. 946–954)

1.3 Politics and War

2 Ealdormen and Earldoms of Northumbria 3 Religion

3.1 Roman and Post-Roman Britain 3.2 Conversion of the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons to Christianity 3.3 Monasteries and Figures of Note 3.4 Synod of Whitby 3.5 Effects of Scandinavian Attack, Settlement, & Culture on Religion

4 Culture

4.1 The Golden Age of Northumbria 4.2 Insular Art 4.3 Literature 4.4 Scandinavians and the Danelaw

5 Economy 6 Language 7 See also 8 Footnotes 9 Notes 10 References

10.1 Primary Sources 10.2 Secondary Sources

11 External links

Kingdom (654–954)[edit] Communities and Divisions[edit] Possible British Origins[edit] The Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria
Northumbria was originally two kingdoms divided approximately around the River Tees: Bernicia
Bernicia was to the north of the river and Deira
Deira to the south[4]. It is possible that both regions originated as native British Kingdoms which the Germanic settlers later conquered, although there is very little information about the infrastructure and culture of the British kingdoms themselves[5]. Much of the evidence for them comes from regional names that are British rather than Anglo-Saxon in origin. The names Deira and Bernicia
Bernicia likely originate from British words, for example, indicating that some British place names retained currency after the Anglo-Saxon migrations to Northumbria[a]. There is also some archeological evidence to support British origins for the polities of Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira. In what would have been southern Bernicia, in the Cheviot Hills, a hill fort at Yeavering
Yeavering called Yeavering
Yeavering Bell contains evidence that it was an important center for first the British and later the Anglo-Saxons. The fort is originally pre-Roman, dating back to the Iron Age
Iron Age at around the first century. In addition to signs of Roman occupation, the site contains evidence of timber buildings that pre-date Germanic settlement in the area that are probably signs of British settlement. Moreover, Brian Hope-Taylor has traced the origins of the name Yeavering, which looks deceptively English, back to the British gafr from Bede’s mention of a township called Gefrin in the same area.[9][10] Yeavering
Yeavering continued to be an important political center after the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons began settling in the north, as King Edwin
Edwin had a royal palace at Yeavering.[11] Overall, English place-names dominate the Northumbrian landscape, suggesting the prevalence of an Anglo-Saxon elite culture by the time that Bede—one of Anglo-Saxon England’s most prominent historians—was writing in the eighth century.[12][13] According to Bede, the Angles
Angles predominated the Germanic immigrants that settled north of the Humber
Humber and gained political prominence during this time period.[14] While the British natives may have partially assimilated into the Northumbrian political structure, relatively contemporary textual sources such as Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People depict relations between Northumbrians and the British as fraught.[15] The Unification of Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira[edit] The Anglo-Saxon countries of Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira
Deira were often in conflict before their eventual semi-permanent unification in 654. Political power in Deira
Deira was concentrated in the East Riding of Yorkshire, which included York, the North Yorkshire
Yorkshire Moors, and the Vale of York.[16] The political heartlands of Bernicia
Bernicia were the areas around Bamburgh and Lindisfarne, Monkwearmouth
Monkwearmouth and Jarrow, and in Cumbria, west of the Pennines
Pennines in the area around Carlisle.[17] The name that these two countries eventually united under, Northumbria, may have been coined by Bede
Bede and made popular through his Ecclesiastical History of the English People.[18] Information on the early royal genealogies for Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira comes from Bede’s Ecclesiastical History of the English People
Ecclesiastical History of the English People and Welsh chronicler Nennius’ Historia Brittonum. According to Nennius, the Bernician royal line begins with Ida, son of Eoppa.[19] Ida reigned for twelve years (beginning in 547) and was able to annex Bamburgh
Bamburgh to Bernicia.[20] In Nennius’ genealogy of Deira, a king named Soemil was the first to separate Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira, which could mean that he wrested the kingdom of Deira
Deira from the native British.[21] The date of this supposed separation is unknown. The first Deiran king to make an appearance in Bede’s Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum is Ælle, the father of the first Christian Northumbrian king Edwin.[22] A king of Bernicia, Ida’s grandson Æthelfrith, was the first ruler to unite the two polities under his rule. He exiled the Deiran Edwin to the court of King Rædwald of the East Angles
Angles in order to claim both kingdoms, but Edwin
Edwin returned in approximately 616 to conquer Northumbria
Northumbria with Rædwald’s aid.[23][24] Edwin, who ruled from approximately 616 to 633, was one of the last kings of the Deiran line to reign over all of Northumbria; it was Oswald of Bernicia
Bernicia (c. 634-42) who finally succeeded in making the merger more permanent.[25] Oswald’s brother Oswiu
Oswiu eventually succeeded him to the Northumbrian throne despite initial attempts on Deira’s part to pull away again.[24] Although the Bernician line ultimately became the royal line of Northumbria, a series of Derian sub-kings continued after Oswald, including Oswine (a relation of Edwin
Edwin murdered by Oswiu
Oswiu in 651), Œthelwald (killed in battle 655), and Aldfrith (son of Oswiu, who disappeared after 664).[24] Although both Œthelwald and Aldfrith were Oswiu’s relations who may have received their sub-king status from him, both used Deira
Deira separatist sentiments to try to snatch independent rule of Deira.[21] Ultimately, neither were successful and Oswiu’s son Ecgfrith succeeded him to maintain the integrated Northumbrian line.[24] While violent conflicts between Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira
Deira played a significant part in determining which line ultimately gained supremacy in Northumbria, marriage alliances also helped bind these two territories together. Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith married Edwin’s sister Acha, although this marriage did little to prevent future squabbles between the brothers-in-law and their descendants. The second intermarriage was more successful, with Oswiu
Oswiu marrying Edwin’s daughter and his own cousin Eanflæd to produce Ecgfrith, the beginning of the Northumbrian line. However, Oswiu
Oswiu had another relationship with an Irish woman named Fina which produced the problematic Aldfrith.[24] In his Life and Miracles of St. Cuthbert, Bede
Bede declares that Aldfrith, known as Fland among the Irish, was illegitimate and therefore unfit to rule.[26] Northumbria
Northumbria and Norse Settlement[edit] The Viking
Viking invasions of the ninth century and the establishment of the Danelaw
Danelaw once again divided Northumbria. Although primarily recorded in the southern provinces of England, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles (particularly the D and E recensions) provide some information on Northumbria’s conflicts with Vikings
Vikings in the late eighth and early ninth centuries. According to these chronicles, Viking
Viking raids began to affect Northumbria
Northumbria when a band attacked Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne in 793.[27] After this initial catastrophic blow, Viking
Viking raids in Northumbria
Northumbria were either sporadic for much of the early ninth century or evidence of them was lost.[28] However, in 865 the so-called Great Heathen Army landed in East Anglia
East Anglia and began a sustained campaign of conquest.[29][30] The Great Army fought in Northumbria
Northumbria in 866–867, striking York
York twice in less than one year. After the initial attack the Norse left to go north, leaving Kings Ælle and Osberht to recapture the city. The E recension of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle suggests that Northumbria
Northumbria was particularly vulnerable at this time because the Northumbrians were once again fighting among themselves, deposing Osberht in favor of Ælle.[31] In the second raid the Vikings killed the Northumbrian kings Ælle and Osberht while recapturing the city.[29] After King Alfred reestablished his control of southern England
England the Norse invaders settled into what came to be known as the Danelaw
Danelaw in the Midlands, East Anglia, and the southern part of Northumbria.[29] In Northumbria, the Norse established the Kingdom of York
York whose boundaries were roughly the River Tees
River Tees and the Humber, giving it approximately the same dimensions as Deira.[32] Although this kingdom fell to Hiberno-Norse colonizers in the 920s and was in constant conflict with the West-Saxon expansionists from the south, it survived until 954 when the last Scandinavian king Eric, who is usually identified as Eric Bloodaxe, was driven out and eventually killed.[33][34][35] In contrast, the Great Army was not as successful in conquering territory north of the River Tees. There were raids that extended into that area, but no sources mention lasting Norse occupation and there are very few Scandinavian place names to indicate significant Norse settlement in northern regions of Northumbria.[36] The political landscape of the area north of the Tees during the Viking
Viking conquest of Northumbria
Northumbria consisted of the Community of St. Cuthbert
Cuthbert and the remnants of the English Northumbrian elites.[37] While the religious Community of St. Cuthbert
Cuthbert "wandered" for a hundred years after Halfdan Ragnarsson attacked their original home Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne in 875, The History of St. Cuthbert
Cuthbert indicates that they settled temporarily at Chester-le-Street
Chester-le-Street between the years 875–883 on land granted to them by the Viking
Viking King of York, Guthred.[38][39] According to the twelfth-century account Historia Regum, Guthred granted them this land in exchange for their raising him up as king. The land extended from the Tees to the Tyne and anyone who fled there from either the north or the south would receive sanctuary for thirty-seven days, indicating that the Community of St. Cuthbert
Cuthbert had some juridical autonomy. Based on their positioning and this right of sanctuary, this community may have acted as a buffer between the Norse in southern Northumbria
Northumbria and the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons who continued to hold the north.[40][41] North of the Tyne, Northumbrians maintained partial political control in Bamburgh. The rule of kings continued in that area with Ecgberht I acting as regent around 867 and the kings Ricsige and Ecgberht II immediately following him.[42] According to twelfth-century historian Symeon of Durham, Ecgberht I was a client-king for the Norse. The Northumbrians revolted against him in 872, deposing him in favor of Ricsige.[43] Although the A and E recensions of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle report that Halfdan was able to take control of Deira
Deira and take a raiding party north of the River Tyne
River Tyne to impose his rule on Bernicia
Bernicia in 874, after Halfdan’s death (c. 877) the Norse had difficulty holding on to territory in northern Bernicia.[44][45] Ricsige and his successor Ecgberht were able to maintain an English presence in Northumbria. After the reign of Ecgberht II, Eadwulf "King of the North Saxons" (r. 890–912) succeeded him for control of Bamburgh, but after Eadwulf rulership of this area switched over to earls who may have also been related to the last of the royal Northumbrian house.[46] Notable Kings[edit] Main article: List of monarchs of Northumbria Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith (r. 593–616)[edit] Main article: Æthelfrith Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith was the first Anglo-Saxon leader to hold the thrones of both Deira
Deira and Bernicia,[47] and so he ruled over all the people north of the Humber. His rule was notable for his numerous victories over the Britons and the Gaels.[48] Edwin
Edwin (r. 616–633)[edit] Main article: Edwin
Edwin of Northumbria Edwin, like Æthelfrith, was king of both Deira
Deira and Bernicia
Bernicia and ruled them from 616 to 633. Under his reign the Isle of Man
Isle of Man and the lands of Gwynedd
Gwynedd in Northern Wales were incorporated into Northumbria. Edwin married Æthelburh, a Christian Princess from Kent
Kent in 625. He converted to Christianity
Christianity two years later after a period of heavy consideration and after consulting numerous advisors.[49] Edwin
Edwin fell in battle in 633 against the pagan kings Cadwallon of Gwynedd
Gwynedd and Penda of Mercia.[50] He was venerated as a saint and martyr after his death.[51] Oswald (r. 634–642)[edit] Main article: Oswald of Northumbria Oswald was a King of Bernicia, who would regain the kingdom of Deira after defeating Cadwallon in 634. Oswald would then rule Northumbria until his death in 642. A devout Christian, Oswald worked tirelessly to spread the religion in his traditionally pagan lands. It was during his reign that the monastery at Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne was created. Oswald fell in the Battle of Maserfield
Maserfield against Penda of Mercia
Penda of Mercia in 642 but his influence endured because, like Edwin, Oswald was venerated as a saint after his death.[52] Oswiu
Oswiu (r. 642–654)[edit] Main article: Oswiu Oswiu
Oswiu was the brother of Oswald and succeeded him after the latter’s defeat in Maserfield. Oswiu
Oswiu succeeded where Edwin
Edwin and Oswald failed as, in 655, he slew Penda during the Battle of the Winwaed, making him the first Northumbrian King to also control the kingdom of Mercia.[53] During his reign, he presided over the Synod of Whitby, an attempt to reconcile religious differences between Roman and Celtic Catholicism, in which he eventually backed the Roman beliefs.[54] Oswiu
Oswiu died from illness in 670 and divided Deira
Deira and Bernicia
Bernicia between two of his sons.[55] Halfdan Ragnarsson
Halfdan Ragnarsson (r. 876–877)[edit] Main article: Halfdan Ragnarsson Halfdan Ragnarsson
Halfdan Ragnarsson was a Viking
Viking leader of the Great Heathen Army
Great Heathen Army which invaded England
England in 865.[56] He allegedly wanted revenge against Northumbria
Northumbria for the death of his father, who was supposedly killed by Ælla of Northumbria.[57] While he himself only ruled Northumbria directly for about a year in 876, he placed Ecgberht on the throne as a client-king, who ruled from 867 to 872.[58] Halfdan was killed in Ireland
Ireland in 877 whilst trying to regain control over Dublin, a land he had ruled since 875. There were no further Viking
Viking kings in Northumbria until Guthfrith took over in 883.[59] Æthelstan
Æthelstan of Wessex
Wessex (r. 927–939)[edit] Main article: Æthelstan Æthelstan
Æthelstan ruled as King of the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons from 924 to 927 and King of the English from 927 to 939. The shift in his title reflects that in 927, Æthelstan
Æthelstan conquered the Viking
Viking Kingdom of York, previously part of the Northumbrian Kingdom.[60] His reign was quite prosperous and saw great strides in many fields such as law and economics, but was also characterized by frequent clashes with the Scots and the Vikings.[61] Æthelstan
Æthelstan died in 939, which led to the Vikings’ retaking of York. Æthelstan
Æthelstan is widely considered one of the greatest Anglo-Saxon kings for his efforts to consolidate the English kingdom and the prosperity his reign brought.[62] Eric of York
York (r. 947–948, 952–954)[edit] Main article: Eric Bloodaxe In the early twentieth century, historians identified Eric of York with the Norwegian king Eric Bloodaxe, but some more recent scholarship has challenged this association. He held two short terms as King of Northumbria, from 947 to 948 and 952 to 954.[b] Historical documentation on his reign is scarce, but it seems Eric pushed out the joint English- Viking
Viking rulers of Northumbria
Northumbria in 947 [63] who were then able to regain the land in 948/9. Eric took back the throne in 952, only to be deposed again in 954.[64] Eric of York
York was the last Danish King of Northumbria, as after his death in 954 Eadred
Eadred of Wessex stripped the kingdom’s independent status and made the land part of England. Eadred
Eadred of Wessex
Wessex (r. 946–954)[edit] Main article: Eadred Eadred
Eadred of Wessex
Wessex was the half-brother of Æthelstan
Æthelstan and Eadmund of Wessex, all of whom were fathered by Edward the Elder. He was nominally the ruler of Northumbria
Northumbria from 946, as he succeeded Eadmund, but had to deal with the threat of independent Viking
Viking kingdoms under Amlaíb Cuarán
Amlaíb Cuarán and Eric Bloodaxe. He permanently absorbed Northumbria into the English Kingdom in 954 after the death of Eric. [65] Politics and War[edit] Main article: List of monarchs of Northumbria Between the years of 737 AD and 806 AD Northumbria
Northumbria had 10 kings.[66] These kings were either murdered, deposed, exiled, or they became monks. However, kings throughout the entirety of Northumbria’s history were susceptible to these methods of overthrowing regents. Between Oswiu, the first King of Northumbria
King of Northumbria in 654, and Eric Bloodaxe, the last king of Northumbria
Northumbria in 954, there were 45 Kings, meaning that the average length of reign during the entire history of Northumbria
Northumbria is only six and a half years. Of the 25 Kings before the Danish rule of Northumbria, only four died of natural causes. Of those that did not abdicate for a holy life, the rest were either deposed, exiled, or murdered. Kings during the Danish rule of Northumbria
Northumbria (see Danelaw) were often either kings of a larger North Sea
North Sea or Danish empire, or were installed rulers.[67] Succession in Northumbria
Northumbria was hereditary [68], which left princes whose fathers died before they could come of age particularly susceptible to assassination and usurpation. A noteworthy example of this phenomenon is Osred, whose father Aldfrith died in 705, leaving the young boy to rule. He survived one assassination attempt early in his rule, but fell victim to another assassin at the age of nineteen. During his reign he was adopted by Wilfrid, a powerful bishop.[69] Ecclesiastical influence in the royal court was not an unusual phenomenon in Northumbria, and usually was most visible during the rule of a young or inexperienced king. Similarly, ealdorman, or royal advisors, had periods of increased or decreased power in Northumbria, depending on who was ruling at the time.[70] Warfare in Northumbria
Northumbria before the Danish period largely consisted of rivalries with the Picts
Picts to the north. The Northumbrians were successful against the Picts
Picts until the Battle of Dun Nechtain
Battle of Dun Nechtain in 685, which halted their expansion north and established a border between the two kingdoms. Warfare during the Danish period was dominated by warfare between the Northumbrians and other English Kingdoms. Ealdormen and Earldoms of Northumbria[edit] Main article: Earl of Northumbria See also: Ealdorman After the English absorbed the territory of the former kingdom, Scots invasions reduced Northumbria
Northumbria to an earldom stretching from the Humber to the Tweed. Northumbria
Northumbria was disputed between the emerging kingdoms of England
England and Scotland. Religion[edit] Roman and Post-Roman Britain[edit] Under Roman rule, some Britons north of the Humber
Humber practiced Christianity. In fact, York
York had a bishop as early as the fourth century.[71] After the Romans left Britain in the early fifth century, Christianity
Christianity did not disappear, [72] but it existed alongside Celtic paganism,[73] and possibly many other cults.[74] Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons brought their own Germanic pagan beliefs and practices when they settled there. At Yeavering, in Bernicia, excavations have uncovered evidence of a pagan shrine, animal sacrifice, and ritual burials.[75] Conversion of the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons to Christianity[edit] The first King of Northumbria
King of Northumbria to convert to Christianity
Christianity was King Edwin. He was baptized by Paulinus in 627.[76] Shortly thereafter, many of his people followed his conversion to the new religion, only to return to paganism when Edwin
Edwin was killed in 633. Paulinus was Bishop of York, but only for a year.[77] The lasting conversion of Northumbria
Northumbria took place under the guidance of the Irish cleric Aidan. He converted King Oswald of Northumbria
Oswald of Northumbria in 635, and then worked to convert the people of Northumbria.[78] King Oswald moved the bishopric from York
York to Lindisfarne.[79] Monasteries and Figures of Note[edit] The monastery at Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne was founded by Aidan in 635, and based on the practices of the Columban monastery in Iona, Scotland.[80] The location of the bishopric shifted to Lindisfarne, and it became the center for religion in Northumbria. The bishopric would not leave Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne and shift back to its original location at York
York until 664.[81] Throughout the eighth century, Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne was associated with important figures. Aidan, the founder, Wilfrid, a student, and Cuthbert, a member of the order and a hermit, all became bishops and later Saints. Aidan assisted Heiu to found her double monastery at Hartlepool.[82] She too came to be venerated as a saint.[83] The Christian culture of Northumbria
Northumbria was influenced by the continent as well as Ireland. In particular, Wilfrid
Wilfrid traveled to Rome
Rome and abandoned the traditions of the Celtic church
Celtic church in favor of Roman practices. When he returned to England, he became abbot of a new monastery at Ripon
Ripon in 660. Wilfrid
Wilfrid advocated for Roman Christianity
Christianity at the Synod of Whitby. The two halves of the double monastery Monkwearmouth- Jarrow
Jarrow were founded by the nobleman Benedict Biscop
Benedict Biscop in 673 and 681. Biscop became the first abbot of the monastery, and traveled to Rome
Rome six times to buy books for the library.[84] His successor, Abbot Ceolfrith, continued to add to the library until it. One estimate puts the library at Monkwearmouth- Jarrow
Jarrow at over two hundred volumes.[84] One who benefited from this library was Bede.[85] In the early seventh century in York, Paulinus founded a school and a minster, but not a monastery. The School at York
York Minster is one of the oldest in England.[86] By the late eighth century, the school had a noteworthy library, estimated at about one hundred volumes.[87] Alcuin was a student and teacher at York
York before he left for the court of Charlemagne
Charlemagne in 782.[88] Synod of Whitby[edit] Main article: Synod of Whitby In 664, King Oswiu
Oswiu called the Synod of Whitby
Synod of Whitby to determine whether to follow Roman or Irish customs. Since Northumbria
Northumbria was converted to Christianity
Christianity by the Celtic clergy, the Celtic tradition for determining the date of Easter
Easter and Irish tonsure were supported by many, particularly by the Abbey of Lindisfarne. Roman Christianity
Christianity was also represented in Northumbria, by Wilfrid, Abbot of Ripon. By the year 620, both sides were associating the other’s Easter
Easter observance with the Pelagian Heresy.[89] The King decided at Whitby that Roman practice would be adopted throughout Northumbria, thereby bringing Northumbria
Northumbria in line with Southern England
England and Western Europe.[90] Members of the clergy who refused to conform, including the Celtic Bishop Colman of Lindisfarne, returned to Iona.[91] The episcopal seat of Northumbria
Northumbria transferred from Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne to York, which later became an archbishopric in 735.[92] Effects of Scandinavian Attack, Settlement, & Culture on Religion[edit] The Viking
Viking attack on Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne in 793 was the first of many raids on monasteries of Northumbria. The Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne Gospels survived, but monastic culture in Northumbria
Northumbria went into a period of decline in the early ninth century. Repeated Viking
Viking assaults on religious centers were one reason for the decrease in production of manuscripts and communal monastic culture. [93] After 867, Northumbria
Northumbria came under control of the Scandinavian forces, and there was an influx of Scandinavian immigrants.[94] Their religion was pagan and had a rich mythology. Within the Kingdom of York, once the raids and war were over, there is no evidence that the presence of Scandinavian settlers interrupted Christian practice. It appears that they gradually adopted Christianity
Christianity and blended their Scandinavian culture with their new religion. This can be seen in carved stone monuments and ring-headed crosses, such as the Gosforth Cross.[95] During the ninth and tenth centuries, there was an increase in the number of parish churches, often including stone sculptures incorporating Scandinavian designs.[96] Culture[edit]

Page from the Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne Gospels, c 700, featuring zoomorphic knot-work.

The colophon to the Gospel of Matthew
Gospel of Matthew from the Durham Gospel Fragment, featuring non-zoomorphic interlace patterns.

The Book of Kells, (folio 292r), circa 800, showing the lavishly decorated text that opens the Gospel of John

The Golden Age of Northumbria[edit] Main article: Northumbria's Golden Age The Christian culture of Northumbria, fuelled by influences from the continent and Ireland, promoted a broad range of literary and artistic works. Insular Art[edit] The Irish monks who converted Northumbria
Northumbria to Christianity, and established monasteries such as Lindisfarne, brought a style of artistic and literary production.[97] Eadfrith of Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne produced the Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne Gospels in an Insular style.[98] The Irish monks brought with them an ancient Celtic decorative tradition of curvilinear forms of spirals, scrolls, and doubles curves. This style was integrated with the abstract ornamentation of the native pagan Anglo-Saxon metalwork tradition, characterized by its bright coloring and zoomorphic interlace patterns.[99] Insular art, rich in symbolism and meaning, is characterized by its concern for geometric design rather than naturalistic representation, love of flat areas of color, and use of complicated interlace patterns.[100] All of these elements appear in the Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne Gospels (early eighth century). The Insular style was eventually imported to the European continent, exercising great influence on the art of the Carolingian empire.[101]

Sword pommel from the Bedale Hoard, inlaid with gold foil.

Usage of the Insular style was not limited to manuscript production and metalwork. It can be seen in and sculpture, such as the Ruthwell Cross and Bewcastle Cross. The devastating Viking
Viking raid on Lindisfarne in 793 marked the beginning of a century of Viking
Viking invasions that severely limited the production and survival of Anglo-Saxon material culture.[102] It heralded the end of Northumbria's position as a center of influence, although in the years immediately following visually rich works like the Easby Cross
Easby Cross were still being produced. Literature[edit] The Venerable Bede
Bede (673–735) is the most famous author of the Anglo-Saxon Period, and a native of Northumbria. His Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (Ecclesiastical History of the English People, completed in 731) has become both a template for later historians and a crucial historical account in its own right[103], and much of it focuses on Northumbria.[104][105] He's also famous for his theological works, and verse and prose accounts of holy lives[106].After the Synod of Whitby, the role of the European continent gained importance in Northumbrian culture. During the end of the eighth century, the scriptorium at Monkwearmouth- Jarrow
Jarrow was producing manuscripts of his works for high demand on the Continent.[107] Northumbria
Northumbria was also home to several Anglo-Saxon Christian poets. Cædmon
Cædmon lived at the double monastery of Streonæshalch (Whitby Abbey) during the abbacy (657–680) of St. Hilda (614–680). According to Bede, he "was wont to make religious verses, so that whatever was interpreted to him out of scripture, he soon after put the same into poetical expressions of much sweetness and humility in English, which was his native language. By his verse the minds of many were often excited to despise the world, and to aspire to heaven."[108] His sole surviving work is Cædmon's Hymn. Cynewulf, prolific author of The Fates of the Apostles, Juliana, Elene, and Christ II, is believed to have been either Northumbrian or Mercian[109][110].

Gosforth Cross, view from the north west

Scandinavians and the Danelaw[edit] From around 800, there had been waves of Danish raids on the coastlines of the British Isles[111]. These raids terrorized the populace, but exposure to Danish society brought new opportunities for wealth and trade[112]. In 865, instead of raiding, the Danes landed a large army in East Anglia, and had conquered a territory known as the Danelaw, including Northumbria, by 867.[111][113] At first, the Scandinavian minority, while politically powerful, remained culturally distinct from the English populace. For example, only a few Scandinavian words, mostly military and technical, became part of Old English. By the early 900s, however, Scandinavian-style names for both people and places became increasingly popular, as did Scandinavian ornamentation on works of art, featuring aspects of Norse mythology, and figures of animals and warriors. Nevertheless, sporadic references to "danes" in charters, chronicles, and laws indicate that during the lifetime of the Kingdom of Northumbria, most inhabitants of northeast England
England did not consider themselves Danish, and were not perceived as such by other Anglo-Saxons.[114] The synthesis of Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian and Christian and Pagan visual motifs within the Danelaw
Danelaw can be illustrated by an examination of stone sculpture. However, the tradition of mixing pagan and Christian motifs is not unique to the Danelaw, and examples of such synthesis can be seen in previous examples, such as the Franks Casket. The Franks Casket, believed to have been produced in Northumbria, includes depictions of Germanic legends and stories of the founding Roman and the Roman Church and is dated to the early eighth century.[115] The Gosforth Cross, dated to the early tenth century, stands at 4.4 meters and is richly decorated with carvings of mythical beasts, Norse gods, and Christian symbolism.[116] Stone sculpture was not a practice of native Scandinavian culture, and the proliferation of stone monuments within the Danelaw
Danelaw shows the influence that the English had on Viking
Viking settlers. On one side of the Gosforth Cross is a depiction of the Crucifixion; whilst on the other are scenes from Ragnarok. The melding of these distinctive religious cultures can further be seen in the depiction of Mary Magdalene as a valkyrie, with a trailing dress and long pigtail.[117] Although one can read the iconography as the triumph of Christianity
Christianity over paganism, it is possible that in the process of the Christianization (as distinct from conversion) the Vikings
Vikings might have initially accepted the Christian god as an addition to the broad pantheon of Pagan gods.[118] The inclusion of pagan traditions in visual culture reflects the creation of a distinctive Anglo-Scandinavian culture. Consequently, this indicates that conversion not only required a change in belief, but also necessitated its assimilation, integration, and modification into existing cultural structures.[119] Economy[edit]

Silver coin of Aldfrith of Northumbria
Aldfrith of Northumbria (686–705). OBVERSE: +AldFRIdUS, pellet-in-annulet; REVERSE: Lion with forked tail standing left.

Northumbria's economy centered around agriculture, with livestock and land being popular units of value in local trade[120]. By the mid 800s, the Open field system
Open field system was likely the pre-eminent mode of farming. Like much of eastern England, Northumbria
Northumbria exported grain, silver, hides, and slaves[121]. Imports from Frankia included Oil, luxury goods, and clerical supplies in the 700s[122][123][124]. Especially after 793, raids, gifts, and trade with Scandinavians resulted in substantial economic ties across the North Sea. When coinage (as opposed to bartering) regained popularity in the late 600s, Northumbrian coins featured kings' names, indicating royal control of currency. Royal currency was unique in Britain for a long time. King Aldfrith (685–705) minted Northumbria's earliest silver coins, likely in York. Later royal coinage bears the name of King Eadberht (738–758), as well as his brother, archbishop Ecgbert of York[125]. Later kings and archbishops minted coins until the Danish conquest of York
York in 866/7. [126] These coins were primarily small silver sceattas, more suitable to small, everyday transactions than larger gold Frankish or Roman coins.[127] They were not a fiat currency, but rather valued by the mass of the silver itself. Larger bullion values can be seen in the silver ingots found in the Bedale Hoard, along with sword fittings and necklaces in gold and silver.[128] Language[edit] See also: Old English
Old English § Dialects In the time of Bede, there were four vernacular languages in Northumbria: those of the Britons, Scots, Picts, and Northumbrian, and Latin.[129] Northumbrian was one of four distinct dialects of Old English, along with Mercian, West Saxon, and Kentish.[130] Analysis of written texts, brooches, runes and other available sources shows that Northumbrian vowel pronunciation differed from West Saxon.[131] The text of the Northumbrian Gloss of the Lindisfarne
Lindisfarne Gospel shows signs of anticipating grammar changes which occur in Middle English.[132] One cause of change is language contact. In addition to the five languages present in Bede’s day, Old Norse
Old Norse was added during the period of Scandinavian rule in the ninth century. Vocabulary, syntax, and grammar of the Scandinavians in Northumbria
Northumbria had an influence on the dialect. Similarities in basic vocabulary between Old English
Old English and Old Norse
Old Norse may have led to dropping of their different inflectional endings.[133] The number of borrowed words is conservatively estimated to be on order of one thousand.[134] The language of the Celtic Britons was evident in place names in Northumbria. Deira
Deira and Bernicia in particular derive their names from Celtic tribal origins.[135] See also[edit]

Anglo-Saxon England
England portal

History of Northumberland Northumbria's golden age Northumbrian music Northumbrian smallpipes Northumbrian tartan English of Northumbria Geordie dialect words

Footnotes[edit]

^ In addition to Bernicia
Bernicia and Deira, some other British place names are recorded for important Northumbrian locations. Northumbrian scholar Bede
Bede (c. 731) and Welsh chronicler Nennius (ninth-century) both provide British place names for centers of power. Nennius, for example, refers to the royal city of Bamburgh
Bamburgh as Din Guaire. [6][7][8][5] ^ Although the Northumbrian king Eric was conflated with King Eric Bloodaxe of Norway in Icelandic sagas, Clare Downham and others have recently argued that the two were separate people. For a discussion of this shift in identification, see Downham, Clare 2004 "Eric Bloodaxe – Axed? The Mystery of the Last Scandinavian King of York", Medieval Scandinavia, vol. 14, pp. 51–77

Notes[edit]

^ Bede
Bede 1898 Book I, chapter 34 ^ Bosworth 1898, p. 725 ^ http://www.northumbrianassociation.com/ ^ Rollason 2003, p. 44 ^ a b Rollason 2003, p. 81 ^ Bede
Bede 1969 Book IV Chapter 19 ^ Nennius 2005 para 62 ^ Higham 1993, p. 81 ^ Hope-Taylor 1983, pp. 15–16 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 83–84 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book II, Chapter 14 ^ Bede
Bede 2008, p. 93 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 57–64 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book I, Chapter 15 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 100 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 45–48 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 48–52 ^ Yorke 1990, p. 74 ^ Nennius 2005 para 57, 59 ^ Nennius 2005 para 59 ^ a b Yorke 1990, p. 79 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book II, Chapter 1 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book II, Chapter 12 ^ a b c d e Rollason 2003, p. 7 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book III, Chapter 6 ^ Bede
Bede 1983 The Life and Miracles of St. Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne, cap. 24 ^ Swanton 1996 793 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 211 ^ a b c Rollason 2003, p. 212 ^ Swanton 1996 865 ^ Swanton 1996 866–867 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 212–213 ^ Fleming 2010, p. 270 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 213 ^ Downham 2004 reconsiders the Northumbrian Viking
Viking king known as Eric and his perhaps tenuous relationship to the Eric Bloodaxe
Eric Bloodaxe of the sagas. ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 213,244 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 244 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 246–257 ^ Fleming 2010, p. 319 ^ Arnold 1885 ^ Higham 1993, p. 183 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 249 ^ Arnold 1885 867, 872 ^ Swanton 1996 874 ^ Higham 1993, p. 181 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 249 For the epithet, see also the Annals of Ulster. ^ Kirby 1991, pp. 60–61 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book I chapter 34 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 II.9–14 ^ Higham 1993, p. 124 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 II.20, III.24 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 III.1–13 ^ Yorke 1990, p. 78-9 ^ Yorke 1990 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 IV.5 ^ Venning 2014, p. 132 ^ Munch & Olsen 1926, p. 245-251 ^ Stevenson 1885, p. 489 ^ Lapidge et al. 2013, p. 526 ^ Foot 2011, p. 40 ^ Foot 2011, p. 40 ^ Sturluson 1911, p. 42-43 ^ Swanton 1996 MS D 940 ^ Swanton 1996 MS D & E 954 ^ Arnold 1885 952 ^ Petts 2011, pp. 14–27 ^ Downham 2007, pp. 40 ^ Petts 2011, p. 27 ^ Higham 1993, pp. 81–90 ^ Fairless 1994, pp. 10–16 ^ Clutton-Brock 1899, p. 6 ^ Corning 2006, p. 65 ^ MacLean 1997, pp. 88–89 ^ Fleming 2010, pp. 132–133 ^ Fleming 2010, p. 102 ^ Bede
Bede 2008, p. 96 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 207 ^ Bede
Bede 2008III. 5 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 207 ^ Fleming 2010, p. 156 ^ Rollason 2003, p. 207 ^ Fleming 2010, p. 171 ^ Butler 1866Volume IX September 6 ^ a b Lapidge 2006, p. 35 ^ Bede
Bede 2008, pp. viii–ix ^ Leach 1915, pp. 41 ^ Lapidge 2006, p. 41 ^ Lapidge 2006, p. 40 ^ Corning 2006, p. 114 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book III chapter 25–26 ^ Bede
Bede 2008 Book III chapter 25–26 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 239 ^ Fleming 2010, p. 318 ^ Higham 1993, p. 178 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 237–239 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 239 ^ Neuman de Vegvar 1990 ^ Rollason 2003, pp. 140 ^ "Anglo-Saxon art". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 2016.  ^ "Hiberno-Saxon style". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 13 May 2016.  ^ Otto 1986, p. 72-73 ^ Owen-Crocker 1986, p. 28 ^ Wormald 1999, p. 29 ^ Goffart 2005, p. 238 ^ Bede
Bede 1969 ^ Goffart 1988, p. 245-246 ^ Lapidge 2006, p. 44 ^ Bede
Bede 1969 Book 4 Chapter 24 ^ Gradon 1958, p. 9-14 ^ Woolf 1955, p. 2-6 ^ a b Swanton 1996 865 ^ Fleming 2010, pp. 213–240 ^ Roger of Wendover 1842, pp. 298–299 ^ Hadley 2002 ^ Karkov 2011, pp. 149–152 ^ Berg 1958, pp. 27–30 ^ Richards 1991, pp. 121 ^ Richards 1991, pp. 123 ^ Carver 2005, pp. 36 ^ Sawyer 2013, p. 1-4 ^ Sawyer 2013, p. 33 ^ Sawyer 2013, p. 64-67 ^ Allot 1974 ^ Alcuinus 2006 ^ Wood 2008, p. 28 ^ Sawyer 2013, p. 76-77 ^ Sawyer 2013, p. 34 ^ Ager 2012 ^ Bede
Bede 1990, pp. 152 ^ Baugh 2002, pp. 71 ^ Cuesta, Ledesma & Silva 2008, pp. 140 ^ Baugh 2002, pp. 160 ^ Baugh 2002, pp. 103 ^ Baugh 2002, pp. 95 ^ Baugh 2002, pp. 75

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Eric Bloodaxe – Axed? The Mystery of the Last Scandinavian King of York". Medieval Scandinavia. 14: 51–77.  Downham, Clare (2007). Viking
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Viking and native: re–thinking identity in the Danelaw", Early Medieval Europe, 11 (1): 45–70, doi:10.1111/1468-0254.00100  "Hiberno-Saxon style". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 13 May 2016.  Hope-Taylor, Brian (1983). Yeavering: An Anglo-British Centre of Early Northumbria. Department of the Environmental Archaeological Reports. London: Leicester University Press.  Karkov, Catherine E. (2011). The Art of Anglo-Saxon England. Boydell Press. ISBN 978-1-84383-628-5.  Kirby, D. P. (January 1991). The Earliest English Kings. Unwin Hyman. ISBN 978-0-04-445692-6.  Lapidge, Michael (26 January 2006). The Anglo-Saxon Library. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-153301-3. CS1 maint: Date and year (link) Lapidge, Michael; Blair, John; Keynes, Simon; Scragg, Donald (2 October 2013). Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-118-31609-2.  Leach, Arthur Francis (1915). The Schools of Medieval England. Macmillan.  MacLean, Douglas (1997). "King Oswald's wooden Cross at Heavenfield in Context". In Catherine E. Karkov; Michael Ryan; Robert T. Farrell. The Insular Tradition: A Resource Manual. SUNY Press. pp. 79–98. ISBN 978-0-7914-3455-0.  Munch, Peter Andreas; Olsen, Magnus Bernhard (1926). Norse mythology: legends of gods and heroes. The American-Scandinavian Foundation.  Gradon, P.O.E., ed. (1958). Cynewulf's Elene. London: Methuen.  Neuman de Vegvar, Carol L. (1990). The Northumbrian Golden Age: The Parameters of a Renaisssance. University Microfilms.  Nordenfalk, Carl (1976). Celtic and Anglo-Saxon Painting: Book illumination in the British Isles 600–800. New York: George Braziller. ISBN 978-0-8076-0825-8.  Owen-Crocker, Gale R. (1986). Dress in Anglo-Saxon England. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press.  Pächt, Otto (1986). Book Illumination in the Middle Ages: An Introduction. H. Miller Pub. ISBN 978-0-19-921060-2.  Petts, David, Dr.; Turner, Sam, Dr. (2011). Early Medieval Northumbria: Kingdoms and Communities, AD 450-1100. Isd. ISBN 978-2-503-52822-9.  Rollason, David (25 September 2003). Northumbria, 500-1100: Creation and Destruction of a Kingdom. Cambridge, UK ; New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81335-8.  Richards, J. D. (1 January 1991). Book of Viking
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External links[edit]

Lowlands-L, An e-mail discussion list for those who share an interest in the languages & cultures of the Lowlands Lowlands-L in Nothumbrian Northumbrian Association Northumbrian Language Society Northumbrian Small Pipes Encyclopedia Northumbrian Traditional Music Visit Northumberland
Northumberland – The Official Visitor Site for Northumberland

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