Ælfwald I of Northumbria
Encyclopedia
Ælfwald was king of Northumbria
from 778 to 788. He is thought to have been a son of Oswulf
, and thus a grandson of Eadberht Eating
.
Ælfwald became king after Æthelred
son of Æthelwald Moll was deposed in 778 . He was murdered, probably at Chesters, by the patricius (ealdorman
) Sicga
.
He was succeeded by his first cousin Osred
, son of Alhred
and Osgifu daughter of Eadberht Eating. Ælfwald's sons Ælf and Ælfwine were killed in 791 on the orders of King Æthelred
.
Ælfwald was buried at Hexham Abbey
where he was considered a saint.
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...
from 778 to 788. He is thought to have been a son of Oswulf
Oswulf of Northumbria
Oswulf was king of Northumbria from 758 to 759. He succeeded his father Eadberht, who had abdicated and joined the monastery at York. Oswulf's uncle was Ecgbert, Archbishop of York....
, and thus a grandson of Eadberht Eating
Eadberht of Northumbria
Eadberht was king of Northumbria from 737 or 738 to 758. He was the brother of Ecgbert, Archbishop of York. His reign is seen as a return to the imperial ambitions of seventh-century Northumbria and may represent a period of economic prosperity. He faced internal opposition from rival dynasties...
.
Ælfwald became king after Æthelred
Æthelred I of Northumbria
Æthelred was king of Northumbria from 774 to 779 and again from 788 or 789 until his murder in 796. He became king after Alhred was deposed...
son of Æthelwald Moll was deposed in 778 . He was murdered, probably at Chesters, by the patricius (ealdorman
Ealdorman
An ealdorman is the term used for a high-ranking royal official and prior magistrate of an Anglo-Saxon shire or group of shires from about the ninth century to the time of King Cnut...
) Sicga
Sicga
Sicga was a nobleman in the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria.Sicga first appears in the historical record as senior lay witness to the proceedings of a council held by Papal Legate, George, Bishop of Ostia in 786, where he is called a patrician , a term which may correspond with the Old English...
.
He was succeeded by his first cousin Osred
Osred II of Northumbria
Osred was king of Northumbria from 789 to 790. He was the son of Alhred and Osgifu, daughter of Eadberht.He succeeded Ælfwald, son of his mother's brother Oswulf, who was murdered by the patricius Sicga....
, son of Alhred
Alhred of Northumbria
Alhred or Alchred was king of Northumbria from 765 to 774. He had married Osgifu, either the daughter of Oswulf, granddaughter of Eadberht Eating, or Eadberht's daughter, and was thus related by marriage to Ecgbert, Archbishop of York...
and Osgifu daughter of Eadberht Eating. Ælfwald's sons Ælf and Ælfwine were killed in 791 on the orders of King Æthelred
Æthelred I of Northumbria
Æthelred was king of Northumbria from 774 to 779 and again from 788 or 789 until his murder in 796. He became king after Alhred was deposed...
.
Ælfwald was buried at Hexham Abbey
Hexham Abbey
Hexham Abbey is a place of Christian worship dedicated to St Andrew and located in the town of Hexham, Northumberland, in northeast England. Since the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1537, the Abbey has been the parish church of Hexham.-History:...
where he was considered a saint.
Further reading
- Higham, N.J., The Kingdom of Northumbria AD 350-1100. Stroud: Sutton, 1993. ISBN 0-86299-730-5
See also
| Preceded by: Æthelred Æthelred I of Northumbria Æthelred was king of Northumbria from 774 to 779 and again from 788 or 789 until his murder in 796. He became king after Alhred was deposed... |
King of Northumbria | Succeeded by: Osred Osred II of Northumbria Osred was king of Northumbria from 789 to 790. He was the son of Alhred and Osgifu, daughter of Eadberht.He succeeded Ælfwald, son of his mother's brother Oswulf, who was murdered by the patricius Sicga.... |