Æthelfrith
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Æthelfrith (died ) was
King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
of
Bernicia 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 approximately equivalent to the modern English cou ...
from c. 593 until his death around 616 AD at the Battle of the River Idle. He became the first Bernician king to also rule the neighboring land of
Deira Deira ( ; Old Welsh/ or ; 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 , meaning 'oak' ( in modern Welsh), in which case ...
, giving him an important place in the development and the unification of the later kingdom of
Northumbria Northumbria () was an early medieval Heptarchy, kingdom in what is now Northern England and Scottish Lowlands, South Scotland. The name derives from the Old English meaning "the people or province north of the Humber", as opposed to the Sout ...
. Reigning from the late 6th century until his death, he was known for his military campaigns against the Britons and his victory over the
Gaels The Gaels ( ; ; ; ) are an Insular Celts, Insular Celtic ethnolinguistic group native to Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. They are associated with the Goidelic languages, Gaelic languages: a branch of the Celtic languages comprising ...
of
Dál Riata Dál Riata or Dál Riada (also Dalriada) () was a Gaels, Gaelic Monarchy, kingdom that encompassed the Inner Hebrides, western seaboard of Scotland and north-eastern Ireland, on each side of the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North ...
. His most famous victory came at the Battle of Chester, where he decisively defeated a coalition of British forces, significantly weakening the influence of the native Britons in northern England. Æthelfrith's rule marked a turning point in the consolidation of Northumbria as a dominant force in early medieval Britain. He was killed in battle against a coalition led by
Rædwald of East Anglia Rædwald (, ; 'power in counsel'), also written as Raedwald or Redwald (), (died c. AD 624) was a List of monarchs of East Anglia, king of East Anglia, an Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon kingdom which included the present-day English counties of Norfol ...
, who placed Edwin, the exiled heir of Deira, on the throne. His line was eventually restored to power in the 630s.


Background

Æthelfrith, son of Æthelric and grandson of Ida, apparently succeeded Hussa as king of the Bernicians around the year 592 or 593; Æthelfrith's accession may have involved dynastic rivalry and the exile of Hussa's relatives.Michelle Ziegler,
The Politics of Exile in Early Northumbria
", ''The Heroic Age'', Issue 2, Autumn/Winter 1999.
The genealogies attached to some manuscripts of the ''
Historia Brittonum ''The History of the Britons'' () is a purported history of early Britain written around 828 that survives in numerous recensions from after the 11th century. The ''Historia Brittonum'' is commonly attributed to Nennius, as some recensions ha ...
'' say that Æthelfrith ruled Bernicia for twelve years and ruled Deira for another twelve years, which can be taken to mean that he ruled in Bernicia alone from about 592 to 604, at which point he also came to the throne of Deira. His predecessors are obscure; Æthelfrith is the earliest Bernician ruler about whom any significant details are known. The 20th-century historian
Frank Stenton Sir Frank Merry Stenton FBA (17 May 1880 – 15 September 1967) was an English historian of Anglo-Saxon England, a professor of history at the University of Reading (1926–1946), president of the Royal Historical Society (1937–1945), Readi ...
wrote that "the continuous history of Northumbria, and indeed of England, begins with the reign of Æthelfrith", and that "he was the real founder of the historic Northumbrian kingdom, and he was remembered as the first great leader who had arisen among the northern Angles."


Conquests

Bede Bede (; ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, Bede of Jarrow, the Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable (), was an English monk, author and scholar. He was one of the most known writers during the Early Middle Ages, and his most f ...
tells of Æthelfrith's great successes over the Britons, while also noting his
paganism Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...
(the conversion of Northumbria did not begin until a decade after his death): he "ravaged the Britons more than all the great men of the English, insomuch that he might be compared to
Saul Saul (; , ; , ; ) was a monarch of ancient Israel and Judah and, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament, the first king of the United Monarchy, a polity of uncertain historicity. His reign, traditionally placed in the late eleventh c ...
, once king of the
Israelites Israelites were a Hebrew language, Hebrew-speaking ethnoreligious group, consisting of tribes that lived in Canaan during the Iron Age. Modern scholarship describes the Israelites as emerging from indigenous Canaanites, Canaanite populations ...
, excepting only this, that he was ignorant of the true religion. For he conquered more territories from the Britons, either making them tributary, or driving the inhabitants clean out, and planting English in their places, than any other king or tribune." It may have been Æthelfrith who destroyed the British army at the
Battle of Catraeth The Battle of Catraeth was fought around AD 600 between a force raised by the Gododdin, a Brythonic people of the ''Hen Ogledd'' or "Old North" of Britain, and the Angles of Bernicia and Deira. It was evidently an assault by the Gododdin ...
( Catterick, c. 600); the battle is described in the early poem
Y Gododdin ''Y Gododdin'' () is a medieval Welsh poem consisting of a series of elegies to the men of the Brittonic kingdom of Gododdin and its allies who, according to the conventional interpretation, died fighting the Angles of Deira and Bernicia ...
. The Britons called him ''Flesaur'', or "the
twister Twister most commonly refers to a tornado. Twister or Twisters may also refer to: Aviation * Pipistrel Twister, a Slovenian ultralight trike * Silence Twister, a German homebuilt aircraft design * Wings of Change Twister, an Austrian paragli ...
". It was under Æthelfrith that Bernicia's boundaries pushed significantly inland from the coast, and penetrated further into British territory.
Áedán mac Gabráin Áedán mac Gabráin (; ), 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 parts of County Antrim, Ireland. Genealogies record that Áe ...
, the king of Dál Riata (to the northwest of Bernicia), was alarmed by Æthelfrith's successes, and in 603 he led "an immense and mighty army" against him. Although Æthelfrith commanded an inferior force, according to Bede, he won a crushing victory at a place called Degsastan; most of Áedán's army was killed, and Áedán himself fled. Bede says that Æthelfrith's victory was so great that the Irish kings in Britain would not make war on the English again, right up to Bede's own time. The battle appears to have been costly for Æthelfrith as well, however; Bede says that Æthelfrith's brother Theodbald was killed, "with almost all the forces he commanded". The appearance of Hering, son of Hussa, Æthelfrith's predecessor, on the side of the invaders seems to indicate dynastic rivalry among the Bernicians. Æthelfrith may have come to terms with the rulers of Dál Riata after this, judging from the fact that his subsequent known military campaigns took place in other parts of Britain; that his sons were later able to take refuge in Dál Riata after Æthelfrith's own death in battle may be significant. Æthelfrith gained control of Deira around 604; the circumstances of this are unknown.D. P. Kirby, ''The Earliest English Kings'', pages 60–61. That he gained Deira through conquest is suggested by the exile of Edwin, son of the former king Ælla, and Hereric, Edwin's nephew, who were both notable members of the Deiran royal line; the short five-year reign of Æthelric of Deira, who ruled immediately prior to Æthelfrith's acquisition of Deira, may also indicate conquest. On the other hand, D. P. Kirby suggested that Æthelfrith's rule of both kingdoms may have represented "a formalization of an existing relationship" of cooperation between the two. Kirby also pointed out that Edwin did not necessarily go into exile immediately, and considered it likely that Æthelfrith's hostility towards him "manifested itself only by degrees". Edwin, apparently seeking safety from Æthelfrith, seems to have travelled between many different kingdoms during his period of exile. He may have spent time during his exile in 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. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
kingdom of Gwynedd The Kingdom of Gwynedd (Medieval Latin: ; Middle Welsh: ) was a Wales in the Early Middle Ages, Welsh kingdom and a Roman Empire Succession of states, successor state that emerged in sub-Roman Britain in the 5th century during the Anglo-Saxon ...
, and it seems clear that he spent time in
Mercia Mercia (, was one of the principal kingdoms founded at the end of Sub-Roman Britain; the area was settled by Anglo-Saxons in an era called the Heptarchy. It was centred on the River Trent and its tributaries, in a region now known as the Midlan ...
, because he married a daughter of king Cearl. Ultimately, he took refuge in
East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...
, where his presence precipitated the events that caused Æthelfrith's downfall. It was also around 604 that Æthelfrith's son Oswald was born. Oswald's mother was
Acha of Deira Acha of Deira was a princess of Deira, and the daughter of Ælla of Deira. Her brother was Edwin of Northumbria, and her grandfather was Yffe but apart from him, her earlier origin is unknown. Biography She married Æthelfrith, king of Berni ...
, daughter of Ælla, and thus Edwin's sister. Although Bede does not explicitly say Æthelfrith married Acha, it is thought that he did so; he may have married her prior to taking power in Deira, in which case the marriage may have facilitated it, or he may have done so afterwards in order to consolidate his position there. The ''Historia Brittonum'' says that Æthelfrith gave the town of '' Din Guaire'' to his wife Bebba, after whom it was named Bamburgh; Bede also says that Bamburgh was named after a former queen named Bebba, although he does not mention Æthelfrith. It has been suggested that she "was probably Æthelfrith's first and most important wife". Later in his reign, probably between 613 and 616, Æthelfrith attacked the
Kingdom of Powys The Kingdom of Powys (; ) was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. It very roughly covered the northern two-thirds of the modern county of Pow ...
and defeated its army in the Battle of Chester, in which the Powysian king Selyf Sarffgadau was killed, along with another king called Cetula, who was probably Cadwal Crysban of Rhôs. He also massacred the
monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...
s of Bangor-Is-Coed who were assembled to aid the Britons by their prayers. Bede says that he decided to attack them because, although they were not armed, they were opposing him through their prayers. The number of dead monks was said to be about 1200, with only fifty escaping. It has been suggested that Æthelfrith may have done this for tactical reasons, to catch the Britons by surprise and force them to change their plans in order to protect the monks. After first killing the monks, Æthelfrith prevailed over the enemy army, although Bede notes that Æthelfrith's own forces suffered considerable loss. Æthelfrith's victory at Chester has been seen as having great strategic importance, as it may have resulted in the separation of the Britons between those in
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
and those to the north; however, Stenton noted that Bede was mainly concerned with the massacre of the monks and does not indicate that he regarded the battle as a historical "turning-point". John T. Koch says that the older view that the battle cut the two British areas off from each other is now "generally understood" to be outdated, as Æthelfrith died soon after, and there is "almost no archaeological evidence for Anglo-Saxon settlement within the pagan period in
Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...
or
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
", and in any case the sea would have been the primary means of communication.


Rivals

The Deiran exile Hereric was poisoned while at the court of Ceretic, king of
Elmet Elmet (), sometimes Elmed or Elmete, was an independent Brittonic Celtic Cumbric-speaking kingdom between about the 4th century and mid-7th century. The people of Elmet survived as a distinctly recognised Brittonic Celtic group for centuri ...
; Æthelfrith may have been responsible for this killing. Edwin ended up in
East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...
, under the protection of its king, Rædwald. Æthelfrith sent messengers to bribe Rædwald with "a great sum of money" into killing Edwin; Bede reports that his first message had no effect, but Æthelfrith sent more messengers and threatened war if Rædwald did not comply (bribes and threats of this kind may have previously been used to accomplish Hereric's killing). Rædwald eventually agreed to kill Edwin or hand him over to Æthelfrith's messengers, but was reportedly dissuaded from this by his wife, who said that such a thing was unworthy of his honour. Instead, Rædwald raised an army and marched against Æthelfrith, and around 616 Æthelfrith was defeated and killed at the Battle of the River Idle (on the east side of the River Idle) by an army under Rædwald; Bede says that Æthelfrith had the inferior army, because Rædwald had not given him time to bring all his forces together. While presented by Bede as being fought simply over the issue of Edwin, this war may have actually involved questions of power and territory between the two rulers. Following Æthelfrith's death, Edwin became king not just of Deira but of Bernicia as well; Æthelfrith's sons Eanfrith, Oswald, and Oswiu fled to the north. Thus Æthelfrith's death in battle has been seen as causing "a near total revolution in the politics of what is now northern England". After Edwin was killed in 633 at the Battle of Hatfield Chase, Eanfrith temporarily regained power in Bernicia, and subsequently Oswald restored the Bernician line of Æthelfrith to power in both Bernicia and Deira. After this point, Æthelfrith's descendants continued to rule until the first part of the eighth century.Kirby, page 52.


Family

Æthelfrith, according to the 9th-century Anglo-Saxon genealogies (of doubtful historicity) was the son of Æthelric and grandson of Ida. Æthelfrith married
Acha of Deira Acha of Deira was a princess of Deira, and the daughter of Ælla of Deira. Her brother was Edwin of Northumbria, and her grandfather was Yffe but apart from him, her earlier origin is unknown. Biography She married Æthelfrith, king of Berni ...
, daughter of Ælla of Deira. They had eight children: * Eanfrith of Bernicia (590–634) *
Oswald of Northumbria Oswald (; c 604 – 5 August 641/642Bede gives the year of Oswald's death as 642. However there is some question of whether what Bede considered 642 is the same as what would now be considered 642. R. L. Poole (''Studies in Chronology and H ...
(c. 604 – 5 August 642) *
Oswiu of Northumbria Oswiu, also known as Oswy or Oswig (; c. 612 – 15 February 670), was King of Bernicia from 642 and of Northumbria from 654 until his death. He is notable for his role at the Synod of Whitby in 664, which ultimately brought the church in Northu ...
(c. 612 – 15 February 670) * Oswudu of Northumbria * Oslac of Northumbria * Oslaf of Northumbria * Offa of Northumbria * Æbba of Northumbria


Notes and references


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aethelfrith of Northumbria 6th-century births 610s deaths Bernician monarchs Anglo-Saxon warriors Deiran monarchs Anglo-Saxons killed in battle Monarchs killed in action 6th-century English people 7th-century English people 6th-century English monarchs 7th-century English monarchs Royal House of Northumbria Idings Year of birth unknown Date of death unknown