Ceolwulf II of Mercia
Encyclopedia
Ceolwulf II was the last king of the Mercians. He succeeded Burgred of Mercia
who was deposed in 874.
. The C dynasty, beginning with Coenwulf
, may have had ties to the ruling family of Hwicce
in south-west Mercia.
Ceolwulf's immediate ancestry is unknown, but he is thought to be a descendant of Ceolwulf I
through his daughter Ælfflæd. Ælfflæd was first married to Wigmund
, son of King Wiglaf
, and then to Beorhtfrith, son of King Beorhtwulf
. Far from being "an unwise king's thane", it is clear that Ceolwulf was a descendant of previous kings. A number of thanes who witnessed charters under Burgred witnessed charters under Ceolwulf, and his charters were witnessed by Mercian bishops, testifying to his acceptance in Mercia.
offers the following account of Ceolwulf:
The Chronicle was compiled on the orders of Alfred the Great
, king of Wessex, brother-in-law of King Burgred. This account is considered to be biased, and politically motivated, written with a view of strengthening the claims of Alfred and Edward the Elder
to the overlordship of Mercia.
Ceolwulf's kingdom is presumed to have been reduced to the northern and western parts of Mercia.
. Rhodri the Great
and his son Gwriad were killed, fighting the English, in 878, and Ceolwulf is presumed to have been the leader of the Mercian army. Anarawd ap Rhodri
inflicted a heavy defeat on Mercians at Conway
in north Wales in 881. This is described as "God's vengeance for Rhodri". As Ceolwulf disappears from the record at about this time, it may be that he was killed in the defeat. He was certainly dead by 883.
Simon Keynes
and the numismatist Mark Blackburn initially suggested that in about 875, Alfred was the sole recognised ruler in London, while Ceolwulf's involvement would have come about only towards the end of his reign. However, in 1998, the same year that their discussion was published, another Cross-and-Lozenge penny struck in Ceolwulf's name came to light, which appears to be contemporary with Alfred's earliest coinage.
Burgred of Mercia
Burgred or Burhred or Burghred was the king of Mercia .-Rule:Burgred succeeded to the throne in 852, and in 852 or 853 called upon Ethelwulf of Wessex to aid him in subduing northern Wales. The request was granted and the campaign proved successful, the alliance being sealed by the marriage of...
who was deposed in 874.
Dynastic background
On anthroponymic grounds, Ceolwulf is thought to belong to the C dynasty of Mercian kings, a family which claimed descent from Pybba of MerciaPybba of Mercia
Pybba was an early King of Mercia. He was the son of Creoda and father of Penda and Eowa....
. The C dynasty, beginning with Coenwulf
Coenwulf of Mercia
Coenwulf was King of Mercia from December 796 to 821. He was a descendant of a brother of King Penda, who had ruled Mercia in the middle of the 7th century. He succeeded Ecgfrith, the son of Offa; Ecgfrith only reigned for five months, with Coenwulf coming to the throne in the same year that Offa...
, may have had ties to the ruling family of Hwicce
Hwicce
The Hwicce were one of the peoples of Anglo-Saxon England. The exact boundaries of their kingdom are uncertain, though it is likely that they coincided with those of the old Diocese of Worcester, founded in 679–80, the early bishops of which bore the title Episcopus Hwicciorum...
in south-west Mercia.
Ceolwulf's immediate ancestry is unknown, but he is thought to be a descendant of Ceolwulf I
Ceolwulf I of Mercia
Ceolwulf I was King of Mercia and Kent, from 821 to 823. He was the brother of Cœnwulf, his predecessor, and was deposed by Beornwulf.-External links:* http://www.anglo-saxons.net/hwaet/?do=seek&query=S+186...
through his daughter Ælfflæd. Ælfflæd was first married to Wigmund
Wigmund of Mercia
Wigmund may have briefly reigned in Mercia in about 840, in succession to his father, Wiglaf of Mercia. He may, on the other hand, have predeceased his father and never been anything more than a co-ruler with him. He was himself the father of Wigstan of Mercia....
, son of King Wiglaf
Wiglaf of Mercia
Wiglaf was King of Mercia from 827 to 829 and again from 830 until his death. His ancestry is uncertain: the 820s were a period of dynastic conflict within Mercia and the genealogy of several of the kings of this time is unknown...
, and then to Beorhtfrith, son of King Beorhtwulf
Beorhtwulf of Mercia
Beorhtwulf was King of the Mercians from 839 or 840 to 852. His ancestry is unknown, though he may have been connected to Beornwulf, who ruled Mercia in the 820s...
. Far from being "an unwise king's thane", it is clear that Ceolwulf was a descendant of previous kings. A number of thanes who witnessed charters under Burgred witnessed charters under Ceolwulf, and his charters were witnessed by Mercian bishops, testifying to his acceptance in Mercia.
Mercia, Wessex and the Vikings
The Anglo-Saxon ChronicleAnglo-Saxon Chronicle
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the Chronicle was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great...
offers the following account of Ceolwulf:
This year went the army [i.e. the Great Heathen ArmyGreat Heathen ArmyThe Great Heathen Army, also known as the Great Army or the Great Danish Army, was a Viking army originating in Denmark which pillaged and conquered much of England in the late 9th century...
] from LindseyLindseyLindsey was a unit of local government until 1974 in Lincolnshire, England, covering the northern part of the county. The Isle of Axholme, which is on the west side of the River Trent, has normally formed part of it...
to ReptonReptonRepton is a village and civil parish on the edge of the River Trent floodplain in South Derbyshire, about north of Swadlincote. Repton is close to the county boundary with neighbouring Staffordshire and about northeast of Burton upon Trent.-History:...
, and there took up their winter-quarters, drove the king [i.e. of Mercia], Burhred, over sea, when he had reigned about two and twenty winters, and subdued all that land. He then went to RomeRomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, and there remained to the end of his life. And his body lies in the church of Sancta Maria, in the school of the English nation. And the same year they gave Ceolwulf, an unwise king's thane, the Mercian kingdom to hold; and he swore oaths to them, and gave hostages, that it should be ready for them on whatever day they would have it; and he would be ready with himself, and with all those that would remain with him, at the service of the army.
The Chronicle was compiled on the orders of Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great was King of Wessex from 871 to 899.Alfred is noted for his defence of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of southern England against the Vikings, becoming the only English monarch still to be accorded the epithet "the Great". Alfred was the first King of the West Saxons to style himself...
, king of Wessex, brother-in-law of King Burgred. This account is considered to be biased, and politically motivated, written with a view of strengthening the claims of Alfred and Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder was an English king. He became king in 899 upon the death of his father, Alfred the Great. His court was at Winchester, previously the capital of Wessex...
to the overlordship of Mercia.
Ceolwulf's kingdom is presumed to have been reduced to the northern and western parts of Mercia.
Wales
Ceolwulf appears to have been active in WalesWales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. Rhodri the Great
Rhodri the Great
Rhodri the Great was King of Gwynedd from 844 until his death. He was the first Welsh ruler to be called 'Great', and the first to rule most of present-day Wales...
and his son Gwriad were killed, fighting the English, in 878, and Ceolwulf is presumed to have been the leader of the Mercian army. Anarawd ap Rhodri
Anarawd ap Rhodri
Anarawd ap Rhodri was a King of Gwynedd, also referred to as "King of the Britons" by the Annales Cambriae.Anarawd's father Rhodri the Great had eventually become ruler of most of Wales, but on his death in 878 his kingdom was shared out between his sons, with Anarawd inheriting the throne of...
inflicted a heavy defeat on Mercians at Conway
Conwy
Conwy is a walled market town and community in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales. The town, which faces Deganwy across the River Conwy, formerly lay in Gwynedd and prior to that in Caernarfonshire. Conwy has a population of 14,208...
in north Wales in 881. This is described as "God's vengeance for Rhodri". As Ceolwulf disappears from the record at about this time, it may be that he was killed in the defeat. He was certainly dead by 883.
Coinage and London
Three types of penny have been found which were issued in Ceolwulf's name. The bulk of them were minted at London and of the type designated as Cross-and-Lozenge, which was also in use by King Alfred of Wessex. Ceolwulf's coinage appears to be closely related to that of Alfred of Wessex, and it has been suggested on this basis that the two kings co-operated against the Vikings.Simon Keynes
Simon Keynes
Simon Douglas Keynes MA, PhD, Litt.D, FBA is the current Elrington and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse, and Celtic at Cambridge University.-Biography:...
and the numismatist Mark Blackburn initially suggested that in about 875, Alfred was the sole recognised ruler in London, while Ceolwulf's involvement would have come about only towards the end of his reign. However, in 1998, the same year that their discussion was published, another Cross-and-Lozenge penny struck in Ceolwulf's name came to light, which appears to be contemporary with Alfred's earliest coinage.
External links
- Charters of Ceolwulf II
- Coins of Ceolwulf II
- Anglo-Saxon charters: