Preceded by Æthelbert |
King of the West Saxons 865–871 |
Succeeded by Alfred "the Great" |
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Æthelred was the son of Æthelfulf, king of Wessex, and Osburh, his first wife.[1] His birth date is not known. On the death of his older brother Æthelbald in 860 he surrendered his rights to another older brother, Æthelberht, on condition that he regained them when Æthelberht died. This may suggest he was still relatively young, and may point to a birth date of the early 840s. His name is first recorded on royal charters, as a king's son, in 854.[1] From 862, Æthelred promulgated charters as (probably sub-)king of Wessex. This may suggest that he came of full age that year, or it may have been during an absence of Æthelberht, whose authority over him he appears to have continued to recognise: he witnessed charters of Æthelberht in 864, and was again described in them as a king's son, not as a king.[1]
In 865 or 866 Æthelred succeeded Æthelberht as king of Wessex.[1][2][3] He was crowned at Kingston-upon-Thames.[4]
Very soon after his accession, a Vikings established themselves in England, gaining control of Northumbria and East Anglia, and attacking Mercia. Burghred, king of Mercia, brother-in-law of Æthelred, sought assistance from Wessex in 867. The combined forces of the two kingdoms besieged the vikings at Nottingham, and this led to a peace agreement and the Vikings returned to York.[1][5][3]
In 870 the Vikings attacked Wessex. After an initial defeat, forces led by Æthelred and his brother the future King Alfred the Great won a victory in the Battle of Ashdown, only to be defeated again at Meretun, whose location is not known.[1][5][3] A fresh Viking army invaded,[3] landing at Reading, Berkshire.[1]
Æthelred married someone called Wulfthryth, possibly around 868, when she subscribed charters as "Wulfthryth regina".[4] They had two known children:
Æthelred died shortly after Easter 871 and was buried at Wimborne Minster, Dorset.[1][4][5][3]
Æthelred has previously been shown on WikiTree as father of Ælfgifu. There is no evidence for this, and Ælfgifu's profile is unsourced. It is not clear who her profile is meant to represent.
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Categories: Scandinavian Invasion of England | House of Wessex