King Ethelbald of Wessex or Æþelbald (Means roughly 'Noble Bold') was the eldest son of King Ethelwulf of Wessex and was born in about 831 or 834. He became King of Wessex in 856 after forcing his father to abdicate. He was crowned at Kingston upon Thames and married his widowed stepmother, Judith. The marriage was annulled on the grounds of consanguinity. He died in 860 and was buried at Sherborne in Dorset. Events Year of the Fire Rat begins in January. ... December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events First attack on Constantinople by Swedish Vikings (the Rus, see Varangians). ... Events Malamir succeeds Omurtag as Khan of Bulgaria The Saracens capture Palermo. ... Wessex was one of the seven major Anglo-Saxon kingdoms (the Heptarchy) that preceded the kingdom of England. ... December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events First attack on Constantinople by Swedish Vikings (the Rus, see Varangians). ... Sherborne Abbey The Abbey Church of St. ... Judith (c. ... Ethelwulf or Æþelvvulf was the elder son of King Egbert of Wessex. ... Ethelwulf or Æþelvvulf was the elder son of King Egbert of Wessex. ... Events Malamir succeeds Omurtag as Khan of Bulgaria The Saracens capture Palermo. ... Events First Viking raid of Dorestad. ... 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. ... Events Year of the Fire Rat begins in January. ... Kingston upon Thames, part of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, is an ancient market town where Saxon kings were crowned, and is now a lively suburb of London. ... Judith (c. ... Consanguinity, literally meaning common blood, describes how close a person is related to another in the sense of a family. ... Events First attack on Constantinople by Swedish Vikings (the Rus, see Varangians). ... For other uses, see Dorset (disambiguation). ...