Ecgberht was king of Northumbria in the middle of the 9th century. This period of Northumbria

Northumbria

Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...

n history is poorly recorded, and very little is known of Ecgberht.

He first appears following the death of kings Ælla and Osberht

Osberht of Northumbria

Osberht was king of Northumbria in the middle of the 9th century. Sources on Northumbrian history in this period are limited. Osberht's descent is not known and the dating of his reign is problematic.-Chronicles:...

 in battle against the Vikings of the Great Heathen Army

Great Heathen Army

The Great Heathen Army, also known as the Great Army or the Great Danish Army, was a Viking army originating in Denmark which pillaged and conquered much of England in the late 9th century...

 at York

York

York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...

 on 21 March 867. Symeon of Durham

Symeon of Durham

Symeon of Durham was an English chronicler and a monk of Durham Priory. When William of Saint-Calais returned from his Norman exile in 1091, Symeon was probably in his company...

 records:

Nearly all the Northumbrians were routed and destroyed, the two kings being slain; the survivors made peace with the pagans. After these events, the pagans appointed Egbert king under their own dominion; Egbert reigned for six years, over the Northumbrians beyond the Tyne

River Tyne

The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...

.

Historians presume that Ecgberht ruled as the Great Army's tax collector and that he belonged to one of the several competing royal families in Northumbria.

The next report of Ecgberht is in 872: "The Northumbrians expelled their king Egbert, and their Archbishop

Archbishop of York

The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...

 Wulfhere

Wulfhere of York

-Life:Wulfhere was consecrated in 854.In 867 the Danes attacked York, and captured it. Wulfhere made peace with the invaders and stayed in York.In 872, the Northumbrians rebelled against the Danes and their collaborators, and Wulfhere fled York. Eventually he found refuge with King Burgred of...

". Finally, Ecgberht's death is reported in 873, and it is said that Ricsige

Ricsige of Northumbria

Ricsige was king of Northumbria from 872 or 873 to 876. He became king after Ecgberht I was overthrown and fled, with Wulfhere, Archbishop of York, to Mercia....

succeeded him.