Ælfwynn

Ælfwynn was ruler of the Anglo-Saxon Empire of Mercia from June to December 918 . She was the daughter of Æthelred , ruler of Mercias from approx. 883 to 911, and Æthelflæd , who ruled over Mercia from 911 to 918 after the death of her husband. The successor of Ælfwynn on Æthelflæd is the only example of the transition of rule from woman to woman in the British Isles in the early Middle Ages. Ælfwynn was the end 918 of her uncle Edward the Elder (Engl. Edward the Elder ), king of Wessex , disempowered. Edward then took over direct control of Mercia, which had previously retained a certain degree of independence from Wessex.

Life

Family and youth

Ælfwynn came from an Anglo-Saxon noble family with roots in both Mercia and Wessex. Her mother Æthelflæd was the daughter of King Alfred the Great of Wessex and Ealswith of Mercia. Æthelred, Ælfwynn's father, is referred to in many West Saxon sources as Ealdorman of Mercia and was probably under the rule of the kings of Wessex. However, there is sufficient evidence that he acted as the de facto independent ruler of Mercia, as did his wife Æthelflæd, who took control of Mercia during his last years and after his death.

Historians assume that Ælfwynn's parents married no earlier than 882 and no later than 887. Based on these data, Ælfwynn's date of birth is estimated to be around 888. After William of Malmsbury , who wrote about Æthelflæd's life in the 12th century, Ælfwynn remains the only child of Æthelred and Æthelflæd. William put forward the thesis that Ælfwynn's birth was difficult and this caused her mother to do without more children.

There are no direct reports on the circumstances of Ælfwynn's youth and education, but historians can make some guesses from well-documented events around them. We know from the historian William von Malmesbury, who wrote in the 12th century but probably evaluated older sources, that Alfred sent his grandson Æthelstan to Mercia to be educated at the court of Æthelflæd. William claims Æthelstan received top-notch training in Mercia, and it is believed that Ælfwynn received similar training. This is also supported by the fact that Ælfwynn's mother Æthelflæd, as the daughter of Alfred the Great, was familiar with his promotion of education and culture. Overall, it can be assumed that Ælfwynn grew up in an environment in which education was promoted and valued.

Ælfwynn's father Æthelred spent much of the decade following nachlfwynn's birth fighting the Danish Vikings who ruled parts of Britain, including parts of Mercia. Æthelred carried out many military campaigns together with his father-in-law, King Alfred of Wessex, and his brother-in-law Eduard, who later became King Edward the Elder of Wessex. 902 Æthelred's health was so bad that his wife Æthelflæd exercised political and military rule over Mercia during his illness and after his death. During their reign, Æthelflæd was often on military and diplomatic campaigns. The sources from this time are not sufficient to make any binding statements about the whereabouts of Ælfwynn at that time. One indication, however, is a charter from 915, in which a land donation by durchthelflæd is notarized. Ælfwynn appears in the charter as a witness, which suggests that she accompanied her mother on official business.

Rule over Mercia and disempowerment

Æthelflæd died in August 918. According to texts B and C of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , her successor Ælfwynn was stripped of all power over Mercia in December 918 and brought to Wessex. Historians conclude that Ælfwynn ruled Mercia for a few months before it was ousted by her uncle Eduard the Elder. After Ælfwynn's disempowerment, Mercia was administered directly by Wessex.

Various reasons have been suggested as to the reasons for Ælfwynn's dismissal. Since Ælfwynn acted as ruler over Mercia for a few months, it can be assumed that she was intended as successor by Æthelflæd and confirmed by Witan , the council of clerical and secular dignitaries in Mercia. Unlike her mother, however, Ælfwynn was not a seasoned political and military leader, which means she may not have been able to live up to expectations. Therefore, there may not have been any resistance in Mercia when Eduard took control of Mercia.

Caradoc von Llancarfan mentions a legend in his History of Wales that Ælfwynn was deposed for a secret marriage to a Danish king, but this is considered historically unlikely by historian Michael Livingston. Another theory is that in 1584 published History of Cambria put forward is claimed in that Ælfwynn was disinherited by Edward because the Danish Vikings Ragnall, the ruler of Northumbria had married.

There are no records of Ælfwynn after she left power. William of Malmesbury assumes that she entered a monastery, which even today's historians believe is likely. It is also possible that Ælfwynn is the religious woman of the same name who was a beneficiary of Charter S 535 of 948 during the reign of King Eadred . The historian Shashi Jayakumar, in turn, suggests that Ælfwynn is identical to the Ælfwynn, who became the wife of Æthelstan Half-King, Ealdorman of East Anglia , and foster mother of the future King Edgar .

With Ælfwynn, the Mercia period ended as an independent Anglo-Saxon empire. The rulers of Mercia hadn't called themselves kings since Æthelred and were under the rule of Wessex. With Eduard, Mercia was then ruled directly by kings from Wessex. There was, however, a brief period of independence from Mercia when Edward's son Æthelstan , Ælfwynn's cousin, took control of Mercia. When Æthelstan also inherited the throne of Wessex, he was the first king to rule over larger parts of what is now England.

See also

Creation of England

literature

• Bailey, Maggie: Ælfwynn, second lady of the Mercians . In: NJ Higham, DH Hill (Ed.): Edward the Elder 899-924 . Routledge, London / New York 2001, ISBN 0-415-21497-1 , pp. 112-127.
• Clarkson, Tim: Æthelflæd. The Lady of the Mercians . John Donald, Edinburgh 2018, ISBN 978-1-910900-16-1 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Clarkson, Tim: Æthelflæd. The Lady of the Mercians . John Donald, Edinburgh 2018, ISBN 978-1-910900-16-1 , p. 151.
2. ↑ Bailey, Maggie: Ælfwynn, second lady of the Mercians . In: NJ Higham, DH Hill (Ed.): Edward the Elder 899-924 . Routledge, London / New York 2001, ISBN 0-415-21497-1 , pp. 112-113.
3. ↑ Bailey, Maggie: Ælfwynn, second lady of the Mercians . In: NJ Higham, DH Hill (Ed.): Edward the Elder 899-924 . Routledge, London / New York 2001, ISBN 0-415-21497-1 , pp. 113-114.
4. ↑ Tim Clarkson: Æthelflæd. The Lady of the Mercians . John Donald, Edinburgh 2018, ISBN 978-1-910900-16-1 , pp. 152-153.
5. ^ Barbara Yorke: Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England . Routledge, London / New York 1990, ISBN 0-415-16639-X , p. 123.
6. ↑ Clarkson, Tim: Æthelflæd. The Lady of the Mercians . John Donald, Edinburgh 2018, ISBN 978-1-910900-16-1 , pp. 152-155.
7. ↑ Michael Livingston: The Roads to Brunanburh . In: Michael Livingston (Ed.): The Battle of Brunanburh: A Casebook . University of Exeter Press 2011, p. 6, footnote 11, citing Laura Hibbard Loomis: Medieval Romance in England , p. 110.
8. ↑ Tim Clarkson: Æthelflæd. The Lady of the Mercians . John Donald, Edinburgh 2018, ISBN 978-1-910900-16-1 , p. 155.
9. ↑ Tim Clarkson: Æthelflæd. The Lady of the Mercians . John Donald, Edinburgh 2018, ISBN 978-1-910900-16-1 , p. 156.
10. ↑ Bailey, Maggie: Ælfwynn, second lady of the Mercians . In: NJ Higham, DH Hill (Ed.): Edward the Elder 899-924 . Routledge, London / New York 2001, ISBN 0-415-21497-1 , pp. 122-125.
11. ↑ Anglo-Saxons.net: S 535 .
12. ↑ Shashi Jayakumar: Eadwig and Edgar: Politics, Propaganda, Faction . In: Donald Scragg (Ed.): Edgar, King of the English, 959-975 . The Boydell Press, Woodbridge, UK, 2008, ISBN 978-1-84383-928 6 , p. 94.

predecessor	Office	successor
Æthelflæd	Ruler of Mercien 918	Eduard