Aldfrith (died December 14, 704) was a King of Northumbria (685 - 704). He was an illegitimate son of Oswiu of Northumbria by Fina, an Irish woman. Aldfrith was married to St Cuthberga. December 14 is the 348th day of the year (349th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Events Justinian II re-takes the throne of the Byzantine Empire Cenred succeeds to the throne of Mercia after his uncle Aethelred abdicates to become abbot of Bardney Births Deaths Adamnan, abbot of Iona (b. ... Northumbria, an kingdom of Angles in northern England, was initially divided into two kingdoms, Bernicia and Deira. ... Section from Shepherds map of the British Isles about 802 AD showing the kingdom of Northumbria Northumbria is primarily the name of an Anglian kingdom which was formed in Great Britain at the beginning of the 7th century, and of the much smaller earldom which succeeded the kingdom. ... Events Umayyad caliph Marwan I (684-685) succeeded by Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (685-705) Justinian II succeeds Constantine IV as emperor of the Byzantine Empire Sussex attacks Kent, supporting Eadrics claim to the throne held by Hlothhere Pope Benedict II succeeded by Pope John V Cuthbert consecrated... Events Justinian II re-takes the throne of the Byzantine Empire Cenred succeeds to the throne of Mercia after his uncle Aethelred abdicates to become abbot of Bardney Births Deaths Adamnan, abbot of Iona (b. ... Oswiu (c. ...

When Aldfrith's half-brother, Ecgfrith of Northumbria, died at the Battle of Nechtansmere on May 20, 685, he left behind no heirs. Bede tells a story of Ecgfrith's sister, Elfleda, asking Saint Cuthbert who could possibly take over the kingdom after her brother's death, only to be reminded of the existence of Aldfrith, a scholar who had previously lived a quiet life of study in Ireland and on the island of Iona. Aldfrith subsequently became king. Some say the Irish had a role in Aldfrith's rise to power because Ireland had sheltered him from Ecgfrith's men in past decade. Aldfrith's presence in Ireland was perceived as a threat to Ecgfrith's throne, and that is probably why Ecgfrith sent his men to ravage Meath in 684 AD. Ecgfrith (645–May 20, 685) was the King of Northumbria from 670 until his death. ... The Battle of Nechtansmere was fought between the Picts and Northumbrians on May 20, 685, near Forfar, Angus. ... May 20 is the 140th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (141st in leap years). ... Events Umayyad caliph Marwan I (684-685) succeeded by Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan (685-705) Justinian II succeeds Constantine IV as emperor of the Byzantine Empire Sussex attacks Kent, supporting Eadrics claim to the throne held by Hlothhere Pope Benedict II succeeded by Pope John V Cuthbert consecrated... Depiction of Bede from the Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493 Bede (Latin Beda), also known as Saint Bede or, more commonly, the Venerable Bede (c. ... Cuthbert of Lindisfarne (c. ... Iona seen from Fionnphort, the ferry point on the Isle of Mull Iona, population 175, is a small island (1 mile wide, 3. ...

Although the power of Northumbria had been seriously weakened by the destruction of its army by the Picts at Nechtansmere, Aldfrith is credited with mitigating the damage and stabilizing the kingdom. During his reign, Northumbria enjoyed a degree of peace it had rarely seen in the preceding generations, and under the scholarly Aldfrith (to whom St. Adamnan presented his tract De Locis Sanctis), it seems that literature flourished. His reign was not entirely without war, however; in 698, a Northumbrian ealdorman named Berhtred was killed fighting against the Picts. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Saint Adamnan or Adomnan (625-704), historian and abbot of the monastery at Iona from 679 to 704, was born in Donegal. ... Open Directory Project: Literature World Literature Electronic Text Archives Magazines and E-zines Online Writing Writers Resources Libraries, Digital Cataloguing, Metadata Distance Learning Dictionary of the History of Ideas: Classicism in Literature The Universal Library, by Carnegie Mellon University Project Gutenberg Online Library Abacci - Project Gutenberg texts matched with Amazon... Events Tiberius III deposes Leontius II and becomes Byzantine Emperor. ...

The issue of Aldfrith's reign that is best known is his dispute with the bishop Wilfrid. Shortly after becoming king, he invited Wilfrid to return from exile, but a few years later, Wilfrid again went into exile in Mercia. There remained tension between them over the role of the Roman church, of which Wilfrid was a stubborn advocate. The dispute lasted until Aldfrith's death, despite an unsuccessful attempt at reconciliation. He died at Driffield. Wilfrid (c. ... Mercia, sometimes spelled Mierce, was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon heptarchy, in what is now England, in the region of the Midlands, with its heart in the valley of the River Trent and its tributary streams. ... The Roman Catholic Church, also called the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian body in the world. ... Driffield, East Yorkshire, also known as Great Driffield, is a market town in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. ...