Odda of Deerhurst
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Odda of Deerhurst (before 993 – 31 August 1056) was an Anglo-Saxon nobleman active in the period from 1013 onwards. He became a leading magnate in 1051, following the exile of
Godwin, Earl of Wessex Godwin of Wessex ( ang, Godwine; – 15 April 1053) was an English nobleman who became one of the most powerful earls in England under the Danish king Cnut the Great (King of England from 1016 to 1035) and his successors. Cnut made Godwin the ...
and his sons and the confiscation of their property and earldoms, when King Edward the Confessor appointed Odda as
earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form '' jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particula ...
over a portion of the vacated territory. Earl Godwin was later restored to royal favour, and his lands returned, while Odda received a new earldom in the west midlands in compensation. Odda became a monk late in life. He was buried at
Pershore Abbey Pershore Abbey, at Pershore in Worcestershire, was an Anglo-Saxon abbey and is now an Anglican parish church, the Church of the Holy Cross. History Foundation The foundation of the minster at Pershore is alluded to in a spurious charter of Ki ...
.


Background

Odda perhaps first appears in the record as a charter witness in 1013 or 1014, late in the reign of King
Æthelred the Unready Æthelred II ( ang, Æþelræd, ;Different spellings of this king’s name most commonly found in modern texts are "Ethelred" and "Æthelred" (or "Aethelred"), the latter being closer to the original Old English form . Compare the modern diale ...
, from which evidence it is presumed he was born no later than 993. His brother Ælfric, commemorated in the dedication of
Odda's Chapel Odda's Chapel is a former chantry chapel at Deerhurst, Gloucestershire. It is an 11th-century late Anglo-Saxon building, completed a decade before the Norman Conquest of England. In the 16th century the chapel ceased to be used for worship an ...
at
Deerhurst Deerhurst is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, about southwest of Tewkesbury. The village is on the east bank of the River Severn. The parish includes the village of Apperley and the hamlet of Deerhurst Walton. The 2011 ...
, died on 22 December 1053. Their sister, named Ealdgyth, appears in
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...
. She may have outlived her brothers and perhaps was still living after the
Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Con ...
.
William of Malmesbury William of Malmesbury ( la, Willelmus Malmesbiriensis; ) was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. He has been ranked among the most talented English historians since Bede. Modern historian C. Warren Hollister described him as " ...
describes Odda as a kinsman of King Edward the Confessor. The writings of 16th century antiquarian John Leland contain an annal, perhaps from Pershore Abbey, which gives Odda's father's name as "Elfer", that is Ælfhere. On chronological grounds, this is unlikely to be
Ælfhere, Ealdorman of Mercia Ælfhere (died in 983) was Ealdorman of Mercia. His family, along with those of Æthelstan Half-King and Æthelstan Rota, rose to greatness in the middle third of the 10th century. In the reign of Edward the Martyr, Ælfhere was a leader of the ant ...
, who died in 983, although the Pershore chronicler may have believed that they were the same person. Williams proposes that Odda was a descendant, perhaps a grandson, of one of the siblings of the chronicler Ealdorman Æthelweard and
Ælfgifu Ælfgifu (also ''Ælfgyfu''; ''Elfgifa, Elfgiva, Elgiva'') is an Anglo-Saxon feminine personal name, from ''ælf'' " elf" and ''gifu'' "gift". When Emma of Normandy, the later mother of Edward the Confessor, became queen of England in 1002, she ...
, wife of Edward's great-uncle King
Eadwig Eadwig (also Edwy or Eadwig All-Fair, 1 October 959) was King of England from 23 November 955 until his death in 959. He was the elder son of Edmund I and his first wife Ælfgifu, who died in 944. Eadwig and his brother Edgar were young ...
.


Life

While Odda appears to have witnessed charters during the reigns of Æthelred,
Cnut Cnut (; ang, Cnut cyning; non, Knútr inn ríki ; or , no, Knut den mektige, sv, Knut den Store. died 12 November 1035), also known as Cnut the Great and Canute, was King of England from 1016, King of Denmark from 1018, and King of Norwa ...
,
Harold Harefoot Harold I (died 17 March 1040), also known as Harold Harefoot, was King of the English from 1035 to 1040. Harold's nickname "Harefoot" is first recorded as "Harefoh" or "Harefah" in the twelfth century in the history of Ely Abbey, and according ...
and Harthacnut, it was not until the reign of Edward the Confessor that he became a leading figure in the land. The evidence of Domesday Book suggests that during Edward's reign Odda held at least 167 hides of land, which placed him among the magnates and great landowners of England. He held half, some 60 hides, of estate of Deerhurst, lying mainly in
Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...
, and smaller estates in
Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
,
Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthsh ...
,
Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...
and
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...
. Odda was one of the major beneficiaries of the dispute between King Edward and Earl Godwin which led to Godwin's exile in 1051. He was appointed earl of
Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...
,
Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...
,
Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...
and
Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
. Ralf of Mantes and Ælfgar were the others who gained greatly from the fall of Godwin and his sons. Earls Odda and Ralf commanded the forces raised in 1052 to patrol against any attempt by the exiles to return. The fleet and army led by Odda and Ralf drove off an invasion led by Godwin in Sussex, but the king was eventually forced to revoke the exile and restore lands and earldoms to Godwin and his sons. Odda was thus deprived of his earldom in the west within months of receiving it, but he remained an earl, and was compensated with lands in Worcestershire and perhaps Gloucestershire. Odda was responsible for the building of
Odda's Chapel Odda's Chapel is a former chantry chapel at Deerhurst, Gloucestershire. It is an 11th-century late Anglo-Saxon building, completed a decade before the Norman Conquest of England. In the 16th century the chapel ceased to be used for worship an ...
in Deerhurst as a
chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a Christian liturgy of prayers for the dead, which historically was an obiit, or # a chantry chapel, a building on private land, or an area i ...
where masses would be said for the soul of his brother Ælfric, who died in 1053 and was buried at Pershore Abbey. Odda himself died at Deerhurst on 31 August 1056, having been ordained a monk by Bishop Aldred of Worcester, perhaps having taken the monastic name Æthelwine. He too was buried at Pershore. The chronicler
John of Worcester John of Worcester (died c. 1140) was an English monk and chronicler who worked at Worcester Priory. He is usually held to be the author of the ''Chronicon ex chronicis''. ''Chronicon ex chronicis'' The ''Chronicon ex chronicis'' is a world wi ...
described Odda as "a lover of churches, restorer of the poor, defender of widows and orphans, helper of the oppressed, guardian of chastity".Williams, ''Land, power and politics'', p. 2; Swanton, ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', p. 187, note 14.


Notes


References

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External links

* {{PASE, 15304, Odda 7
Following on from an article about Odda's Chapel, 'More about Odda'
10th-century births 1056 deaths Anglo-Saxon earls