Everything about Beornwulf Of Mercia totally explained
Beornwulf (died
825) was
King of
Mercia (now the
Midlands of
England) from
823 to
825. His short reign saw the collapse of Mercia's dominant position among the
Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of the
Heptarchy.
Beornwulf's ancestry is practically unknown. His father was a Mercian nobleman, ealdorman Beorhtweald (died 796). A man named Beornwulf is mentioned as having witnessed a charter of King
Coenwulf in
812 and another of King
Ceolwulf in 823, but his position on each of these charters suggests he wasn't of an exceptionally high rank.
Ceolwulf I was overthrown in 823, and Beornwulf became king.
Powys was conquered by the Mercians at about this time, but it's unclear which of the two kings was ruling when it occurred. It has been argued that the known record suggests Beornwulf was more vigorous and likely to wage such a campaign than Ceolwulf, and that the conquest of Powys may have therefore been accomplished by Beornwulf at the beginning of his rule. Soon after he rebuilt the Abbey of St. Peter (later
Gloucester Cathedral). He presided over two synods at
Clofesho (an unknown location believed to be near London) with archbishop
Wulfred of
Canterbury, in 824 and 825.
In
825, Beornwulf attacked the
West Saxons but was badly defeated by the King of Wessex,
Ecgbert, in battle at
Ellandun, fought at Wroughton near Surrey. Ecgbert's son
Æðelwulf subsequently invaded
Kent and drove out its pro-Mercian king,
Baldred.
[
In the wake of these events, Mercia's dominance of southern England rapidly unravelled. Essex and Sussex switched their loyalty to Egbert. The East Angles, led by Athelstan and backed by the West Saxons, exploited the moment of weakness by rebelling against Mercian rule, and Beornwulf was killed attempting to crush the revolt. One extant charter of Beornwulf refers to his third regnal year, 825.]
A silver penny coinage of Beornwulf was struck during his reign. These coins are very rare indeed today, with only around twenty-five examples known to exist.
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