Everything about King Beorhtric totally explained
Beorhtric (died
802) (means 'Magnificent ruler') was the
King of
Wessex from
786 until his death.
In 786,
Cynewulf, king of Wessex, was killed by the exiled noble
Cyneheard, brother of the former King
Sigeberht. Beorhtric was supported by
Offa, king of the
Mercians against
Egbert. It isn't entirely clear why Offa intervened in Beorhtric's favour, though it seems likely that the opportunity to influence West Saxon politics, and thus preserve the Mercian Ascendancy were important factors. Additionally, it's suggested that Egbert was a descendant of the Kentish dynasty that, under
Eahlmund, had rebelled against Offa's rule and beaten him at the
battle of Otford.
To an extent, Beorhtric seems to have been subject to Offa's authority. In 787, he held the
Synod of Chelsea jointly with Offa, and in 789 he married one of Offa's daughters, Eadburh
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Land that had traditionally been on the borders of Mercian and Wessex were administered by the Mercian court, as is seen in
Charters of Offa, and his son Ecgfrith. West Saxons seem to have used Offa's currency: a recent survey of early medieval single coin finds reveals a trail of Offa
pennies running from the Upper Thames to Wareham, a site connected with Beorhtric. In 1854 a coin from his reign was found 2 miles ouside of
Andover. It weighed 22 grains and is extremely rare.
It was during Beorhtric's reign that the
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records the first
Viking raids on England occurred. In 789, they landed on the
Dorset coast, near the
Isle of Portland, where they killed a royal official, the shire
reeve.
After Offa's death in 796,
Mercian power over England was weakened, and Beorhtric may have exercised more independence during this period. The only two West Saxon coins to have survived from Beorhtric's reign were produced at this time, suggesting that he'd established a new mint. Within a few years Offa's successor,
Coenwulf, had restored Mercia's position, and after 799, Beorhtric's relationship with the Mercians seems to have been largely similar to the situation before Offa's death.
In later years
Asser, a scholar at
Alfred the Great's court, recorded the story that Beorhtric had died from being accidentally poisoned by his wife, Eadburh. She fled to a nunnery in
Francia, from which she was later ejected after being found with a man. The provenance of this story is dubious.
Further Information
Get more info on 'King Beorhtric'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://beorhtric_of_wessex.totallyexplained.com">Beorhtric of Wessex Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
