Statue of Ethelbert. Interior of Rochester Cathedral.

Ethelbert (or Æthelbert, or Aethelberht) (c. 552 - February 24, 616¹) was King of Kent from around 580 or 590 until his death. Bede lists Ethelbert as being the third king to hold imperium over other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. In the late 9th-century Anglo-Saxon Chronicle Ethelbert is referred to as a Bretwalda. After his death, he was regarded as a saint. Image File history File links EthelbertofKent. ... Rochester Cathedral is a Norman church in Rochester, Kent. ... Events July - Battle of Taginae: The Byzantine general Narses defeats and kills Totila, king of the Ostrogoths. ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Events Eadbald succeeds Ethelbert as king of Kent. ... Kings of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Kent Most of the dates of reigns below have multiple alternate values, the sources being in disagreement. ... The Kingdom of Kent was a kingdom of Jutes in southeast England, one of the seven traditional kingdoms of the so-called Anglo-Saxon heptarchy. ... Events Around this time, the historian Jordanes writes several books. ... Events September 3 - St. ... Bede depicted in an early medieval manuscript Depiction of Bede from the Nuremberg Chronicle, 1493. ... The Anglo-Saxons refers collectively to the groups of Germanic tribes who achieved dominance in southern Britain from the mid-5th century, forming the basis for the modern English nation. ... The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals narrating the history of the English and their settlement in Britain. ... Bretwalda is an Anglo-Saxon term, the first record of which comes from the late 9th-century Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. ... A saint is a term to refer to someone who is a holy person. ...

He was the son of Eormenric, whom he succeeded as king, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Gregory of Tours, who was a close acquaintance of Queen Ingoberg (the mother of Ethelbert's wife Berthe), twice calls him simply "a man of Kent", indicating that he was not king at the time Gregory's History of the Franks was written, and that Ethelbert more likely became king closer to 590. Eormenric of Kent was King of Kent from circa 534/540 to 564/580. ... The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals narrating the history of the English and their settlement in Britain. ... St. ... Berthe, Princess of Paris, also Bertha, Queen of Kent, (539-c. ... Events September 3 - St. ...

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that he attempted at one stage to wrest the overlordship from Ceawlin of Wessex but was unsuccessful. His standing was advanced by his marriage with Berthe, daughter of Charibert, king of the Franks, thus building an alliance with the most powerful state in Europe at that time. 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. ... Charibert (c. ... For other uses, see Franks (disambiguation). ... World map showing Europe Political map Europe is one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europes borders. ...

The influence of Berthe, who had brought her chaplain Liuhard (or Letard) with her to Kent, may have led to the invitation to Pope Gregory I to send missionaries from Rome. Augustine landed on the Isle of Thanet in 597, and Ethelbert first met him under an oak tree, in accordance with his belief that he could thus dispel any magic the Christians might attempt. Tradition has it that Augustine baptized Ethelbert only a few days after landing in Kent, although a letter from Gregory to Berthe suggests that it cannot have happened before 601. In any case, churches were established and efforts began to convert the people to Christianity. A chaplain is typically a member of the clergy serving a group of people who are not organized as a mission or church; lay chaplains are also found in some settings such as universities. ... Pope Saint Gregory I or Gregory the Great (ca. ... A missionary is a propagator of religion, often an evangelist or other representative of a religious community who works among those outside of that community. ... This article is about the capital of Italy. ... Saint Augustine of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury (birth unknown, died May 26, 604) was the first Archbishop of Canterbury, sent to Ethelbert of Kent, Bretwalda of England by Pope Gregory the Great in 597. ... The Isle of Thanet is an area of northeast Kent, England. ... Events Saint Augustine is created Archbishop of Canterbury. ... Baptism in early Christian art. ... Events The future Archbishops of Canterbury, Mellitus, Justus, and Honorius, and the future Archbishop of York Paulinus, are sent to England by Pope Gregory I to aid Augustine in his missionary work. ... Religious conversion is the adoption of new religious beliefs that differ from the converts previous beliefs; in some cultures (e. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recounted in the Gospels. ...

Ethelbert also established a written code of laws for Kent, the earliest in any Anglo-Saxon kingdom, which provided for the protection of the Church and instituted a complex system of fines. The nature of the law code is evidence that Kent was a relatively organized and centralized kingdom under Ethelbert. A map showing the general locations of the Anglo-Saxon peoples around the year 600. ...

Ethelbert was later canonised for his role in restoring Christianity to Great Britain. Although he died on February 24, 616, his feast day was usually celebrated on February 25 so that it would not overlap with the feast of Saint Matthias on the previous day. This article discusses the process of declaring saints. ... February 24 is the 55th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Events Eadbald succeeds Ethelbert as king of Kent. ... The calendar of saints is a traditional Christian method of organising a liturgical year on the level of days by associating each day with a saint, and referring to the day as the saints day of that saint. ... February 25 is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... Saint Matthias is the Apostle chosen by the remaining eleven apostles to replace Judas Iscariot, following Judas betrayal of Jesus and suicide (Acts 1:21 - 26). ...

Notes

1. The year of Ethelbert's death may have been slightly later, perhaps 618.

Events End of the Sui Dynasty and beginning of the Tang Dynasty in China. ... Eormenric of Kent was King of Kent from circa 534/540 to 564/580. ... The Kingdom of Kent was a kingdom of Jutes in southeast England, one of the seven traditional kingdoms of the so-called Anglo-Saxon heptarchy. ... Eadbald (died January 20, 640) was the King of Kent from 616 until his death. ... 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. ... Bretwalda is an Anglo-Saxon term, the first record of which comes from the late 9th-century Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. ... Rædwald (d. ...

See also

• List of monarchs of Kent

Kings of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Kent Most of the dates of reigns below have multiple alternate values, the sources being in disagreement. ...

External links

• The Catholic Encyclopedia entry on Ethelbert: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05553b.htm

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Ethelbert of Kent