Bretwalda is an Anglo-Saxon term, the first record of which comes from the late ninth-century Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. It is applied in that chronicle to some of the rulers of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms from the fifth century onwards who had achieved overlordship over some or all the other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. It is unclear if it was actually used at that time or is a ninth century invention. Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ... The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals narrating the history of the English and their settlement in Britain. ... Kingdoms and tribes in Britain, ca. ...

Contemporary use

The word Bretwalda is perhaps derived from the Anglo-Saxon Bretanwealda, "Lord of Britain". The first record of it comes from a West Saxon Chronicle of the late 9th century applying the term to Ecgberht, who was King of Wessex from 802-839. The chronicler also wrote down the names of seven kings Bede had listed in his Ecclesiastical History of the English People in 731. Note: This page contains phonetic information presented in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) using Unicode. ... Map of the British Isles circa 802 Wessex was one of the seven major Anglo-Saxon kingdoms (the Heptarchy) that preceded the Kingdom of England. ... Egbert (also Ecgbehrt or Ecgbert) (c. ... Bede depicted in an early medieval manuscript Depiction of Bede from the Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493. ...

There is no evidence that the term Bretwalda was a title that had any practical use, or even any existence before the ninth-century chronicler. Bede wrote in Latin and never used the term, and his list of kings holding imperium should be treated with great caution, not least in that he overlooks kings such as Penda of Mercia who clearly held some kind of dominance in his time. Similarly, in his list of Bretwaldas, the West Saxon chronicler ignores Mercian kings such as Offa. It is unlikely that there was a succession and defined duties, and it is doubtful whether the term Bretwalda is anything more than a later simplification of a complex structure of kingship. Problems arise when historians take the term and infer from it something that was not there. Bede depicted in an early medieval manuscript Depiction of Bede from the Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493. ... Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... Penda (died November 15, 6551) was a 7th century King of Mercia. ... The general location of Mercia, along with the other peoples of Britain around the year 600. ... Offa (died July 26/29, 796) was the King of Mercia from 757 until his death. ...

Bretwalda is, therefore, a highly problematic term, and one which, if anything, was merely the attempt by a West Saxon chronicler to make some claim of West Saxon kings to the whole of Great Britain. This shows that the concept of the unity of Britain was at least recognised in the period, whatever was meant by the term. Quite possibly it was only a survival of a Roman concept of "Britain"; it is significant that, while the hyperbolic inscriptions on coins and titles in charters often include the title rex Britanniae, when England was actually unified the title used was rex Angulsaxonum, king of the Anglo-Saxons. Look up monarch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Alternate use, see charter airline or bare-boat charter. ...

Historical use

For some time the existence of the word Bretwalda in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, which was based in part on the list given by Bede in his Ecclesiastical History, led historians to think that there was perhaps a "title" held by overlords on Great Britain. This was particularly attractive as it would lay the foundations for the establishment of an "English" monarchy. The twentieth-century historian Frank Stenton says of the Anglo-Saxon chronicler that 'his inaccuracy is more than compensated by his preservation of the English title applied to these outstanding kings.'^[1]. He goes on to argue that the term Bretwalda 'falls into line with the other evidence which points to the Germanic origin of the earliest English institutions'. Bede depicted in an early medieval manuscript Depiction of Bede from the Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493. ... Sir Frank Merry Stenton (1880–September 15, 1967) was a noted 20th century historian of Anglo-Saxon England. ...

Over the later twentieth century this assumption was increasingly challenged. By 1995 Simon Keynes was writing 'if Bede's concept of the Southumbrian overlord, and the chronicler's concept of the 'Bretwalda', are to be regarded as artificial constructs, which have no validity outside the context of the literary works in which they appear, we are released from the assumptions about political development which they seem to involve...we might ask whether kings in the eighth and ninth centuries were quite so obsessed with the establishment of a pan-Southumbrian state.'^[2] Simon Douglas Keynes MA, PhD, Litt. ...

Thus, more recent interpretations tend not to view the term Bretwalda in simplistic terms. It is now recognised as an important indicator of how a ninth-century chronicler interpreted history, and tried to insert the West Saxon kings, who were rapidly expanding their power at the time, in to that history. Map of the British Isles circa 802 Wessex was one of the seven major Anglo-Saxon kingdoms (the Heptarchy) that preceded the Kingdom of England. ...

Overlordship

What did exist was a complex array of dominance and subservience. Examples such as a king granting land with charters in another kingdom, are a sure sign of such a relationship. When a king held sway over a larger kingdom, such as a Mercian ruler over East Anglia, the relationship would have been more equal than in the case of a larger kingdom exercising overlordship over a smaller one, as in the case of Mercia and Hwicce. Mercia was arguably the most powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom for much of the late seventh and eighth centuries, though Mercian kings are missed out of the two main "lists". For Bede, Mercia was a traditional enemy of his native Northumbria, and he saw powerful Mercian kings such as Penda (a pagan) as standing in the way of the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons, and so does not include them in his list, even though it is evident that Penda held a considerable degree of power. Similarly, powerful Mercia kings such as Offa are missed out of the West Saxon Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, which sought to demonstrate the legitimacy of the West Saxon kings to rule over other Anglo-Saxon peoples. Anglo-Saxon Charters are documents from the early medieval period in Britain which typically make a grant of land or record a privilege. ... In politics, a country (or in some cases, a group of countries) over which a king or queen reigns, is a kingdom, see: monarchy. ... Norfolk and Suffolk, the core area of East Anglia. ... The general location of Mercia, along with the other peoples of Britain around the year 600. ... The Hwicce were one of the peoples of Anglo-Saxon Britain. ... Penda (died November 15, 6551) was a 7th century King of Mercia. ... Offa (died July 26/29, 796) was the King of Mercia from 757 until his death. ...

• Kings of East Anglia
• Kings of Essex
• Kings of Kent
• Kings of Sussex
• Kings of Wessex
• Kings of Mercia
• Kings of Northumbria

The Kingdom of the East Angles (one of the seven traditional kingdoms of the so-called Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy) was founded in the 6th century. ... The Kingdom of the East Seaxe (one of the seven traditional kingdoms of the so-called Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy) was founded around AD500, occupying territory to the north and east of London. ... Kings of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Kent Most of the dates of reigns below have multiple alternate values, the sources being in disagreement. ... List of Kings of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Sussex Many of the dates of this time are unreliable and the list contains substantial gaps. ... This is a list of monarchs of Wessex until 924. ... A list of the Kings etc. ... Northumbria, an kingdom of Angles in northern England, was initially divided into two kingdoms, Bernicia and Deira. ...

Listed by Bede

• Aelle of Sussex (488–circa 514)
• Ceawlin of Wessex (560–591) (died 593)
• Ethelbert of Kent (591–616)
• Raedwald of East Anglia (616–627)
• Edwin of Deira (627–632)
• Oswald of Bernicia (633–641)
• Oswy of Northumbria (641–658) (died 670)

Ælle was king of the South Saxons from 477 to perhaps as late as 514, and was named Bretwalda by Bede, who adds that he was overlord of the English south of the Humber river. ... Events Theodoric the Great becomes king of the Ostrogoths. ... Events Pope Symmachus (498-514) succeeded by Pope Hormisdas Rebellion in the Byzantine Empire, led by Vitalius Births Deaths Aelle of Sussex, king of Sussex, Bretwalda (approximate date) Categories: 514 ... Ceawlin of Wessex (also spelled Ceaulin or Caelin) is recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as being king of the West Saxons, or Wessex from 560 to 591, and named by Bede in his Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum as the second king to hold imperium over other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. ... Events Ceawlin of Wessex becomes King of Wessex (traditional date). ... Events Ethelbert of Kent elected Bretwalda after Ceawlin of Wessex, the former Bretwalda, is deposed. ... Events Empress Suiko ascends to the throne of Japan. ... Statue of Ethelbert. ... Events Ethelbert of Kent elected Bretwalda after Ceawlin of Wessex, the former Bretwalda, is deposed. ... Events Eadbald succeeds Ethelbert as king of Kent. ... Rædwald (d. ... Events Eadbald succeeds Ethelbert as king of Kent. ... Events April 11 - Paulinus, a Roman missionary, baptizes King Edwin of Deira December 12 - Battle of Nineveh: Byzantine Emperor Heraclius defeats the Persians Births Deaths November 10 - Justus, Archbishop of Canterbury Categories: 627 ... Saint Edwin (alternately Eadwine or Æduini) ( 586–October 12, 632/633) was the King of Deira and Bernicia - which would later become known as Northumbria - from about 616 until his death. ... Events April 11 - Paulinus, a Roman missionary, baptizes King Edwin of Deira December 12 - Battle of Nineveh: Byzantine Emperor Heraclius defeats the Persians Births Deaths November 10 - Justus, Archbishop of Canterbury Categories: 627 ... Events Abu Bakr becomes first caliph or Successor of the Prophet, leader of Islam Abu Bakr defeats Mosailima in the Battle of Akraba. ... Oswald (c. ... Events Oswald of Bernicia becomes Bretwalda. ... Events Founding of the city of Fostat, later Cairo, in Egypt. ... Oswiu (612–February 15, 670), also written as Oswio, Oswy, and Osuiu was an Anglo-Saxon Bretwalda. ... Events Founding of the city of Fostat, later Cairo, in Egypt. ... Events The union of Slavic tribes falls apart after Samos death Births Deaths King Samo of the Slavs Categories: 658 ... Events On the death of his brother Clotaire, Childeric II becomes king of all of the Frankish kingdoms -- Austrasia, Neustria and Burgundy. ...

Listed by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

• Aelle of Sussex (488–circa 514)
• Ceawlin of Wessex (560–591) (died 593)
• Ethelbert of Kent (591–616)
• Raedwald of East Anglia (616–627)
• Edwin of Deira (627–632)
• Oswald of Bernicia (633–641)
• Oswy of Northumbria (641–658) (died 670)
• Egbert of Wessex (829–839)

Ælle was king of the South Saxons from 477 to perhaps as late as 514, and was named Bretwalda by Bede, who adds that he was overlord of the English south of the Humber river. ... Events Theodoric the Great becomes king of the Ostrogoths. ... Events Pope Symmachus (498-514) succeeded by Pope Hormisdas Rebellion in the Byzantine Empire, led by Vitalius Births Deaths Aelle of Sussex, king of Sussex, Bretwalda (approximate date) Categories: 514 ... Ceawlin of Wessex (also spelled Ceaulin or Caelin) is recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as being king of the West Saxons, or Wessex from 560 to 591, and named by Bede in his Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum as the second king to hold imperium over other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. ... Events Ceawlin of Wessex becomes King of Wessex (traditional date). ... Events Ethelbert of Kent elected Bretwalda after Ceawlin of Wessex, the former Bretwalda, is deposed. ... Events Empress Suiko ascends to the throne of Japan. ... Statue of Ethelbert. ... Events Ethelbert of Kent elected Bretwalda after Ceawlin of Wessex, the former Bretwalda, is deposed. ... Events Eadbald succeeds Ethelbert as king of Kent. ... Rædwald (d. ... Events Eadbald succeeds Ethelbert as king of Kent. ... Events April 11 - Paulinus, a Roman missionary, baptizes King Edwin of Deira December 12 - Battle of Nineveh: Byzantine Emperor Heraclius defeats the Persians Births Deaths November 10 - Justus, Archbishop of Canterbury Categories: 627 ... Saint Edwin (alternately Eadwine or Æduini) ( 586–October 12, 632/633) was the King of Deira and Bernicia - which would later become known as Northumbria - from about 616 until his death. ... Events April 11 - Paulinus, a Roman missionary, baptizes King Edwin of Deira December 12 - Battle of Nineveh: Byzantine Emperor Heraclius defeats the Persians Births Deaths November 10 - Justus, Archbishop of Canterbury Categories: 627 ... Events Abu Bakr becomes first caliph or Successor of the Prophet, leader of Islam Abu Bakr defeats Mosailima in the Battle of Akraba. ... Oswald (c. ... Events Oswald of Bernicia becomes Bretwalda. ... Events Founding of the city of Fostat, later Cairo, in Egypt. ... Oswiu (612–February 15, 670), also written as Oswio, Oswy, and Osuiu was an Anglo-Saxon Bretwalda. ... Events Founding of the city of Fostat, later Cairo, in Egypt. ... Events The union of Slavic tribes falls apart after Samos death Births Deaths King Samo of the Slavs Categories: 658 ... Events On the death of his brother Clotaire, Childeric II becomes king of all of the Frankish kingdoms -- Austrasia, Neustria and Burgundy. ... Egbert (also Ecgbehrt or Ecgbert) (c. ... Events Egbert of Wessex conquers Mercia and is recognized as Bretwalda. ... Events Louis the Pious attempts to divide his empire among his sons. ...

Sources and references

• Simon Keynes, 'Bretwalda', in The Blackwell Encyclopaedia of Anglo-Saxon England, ed. Michael Lapidge et al, (Oxford, 1999)
• D.P. Kirby, The Making of Early England, (London, 1967)
• P. Wormald, 'Bede, the Bretwaldas and the Origins of the Gens Anglorum', Ideal and Reality in Frankish and Anglo-Saxon Society, ed. P. Wormald et al, (Oxford, 1983)
• Simon Keynes, 'England, 700-900' in The New Cambridge Medieval History, II, c.700-c.900. ed. R. McKitterick, (Cambridge: University Press, 1995)
• F.M. Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England, 3rd edition, (Oxford: University Press, 1971)

See also

• Mythical pre-Saxon Kings of Britain
• Historical Kings of the Britons (contemporaries with Anglo-Saxon kings)
• List of monarchs of England
• List of monarchs in the British Isles