Earl of Mercia
Earl of Mercia was a title in the late Anglo-Saxon , Anglo-Danish, and early Anglo- Norman periods of English history. During this period the county comprised the lands of the ancient Kingdom of Mercia in the English Midlands .
Mercia was ruled by Ealdormen of the Kings of Wessex in the 10th century , and by Earls in Anglo-Danish times . Under the rule of King Edward the Confessor , the county was ruled by Leofric and his family, who were political rivals of the Godwins .
After the Norman conquest of England in 1066, the incumbent Earl Edwin was confirmed as Earl of Mercia by William the Conqueror . Since he was involved in the uprising of 1071, he was expropriated. After Edwin's death, the county was dissolved, power and regional responsibilities passed to the newly formed Earldoms of Chester and later Shrewsbury .
Earldormen and Earls of Mercia
Ealdorms
- Olfhere (950s – 983)
- Ælfric Cild (983-985)
- Eadric Streona (1007-1017)
- Leofwine (perhaps after 1017 to around 1030)
Earls
literature
- Stephen Baxter: The Earls of Mercia: Lordship and Power in Late Anglo-Saxon England. 2007, ISBN 1-281-15034-7 .
- David Crouch: The Normans. 2002, ISBN 1-85285-387-5 .
- Emma Mason: The House of Godwine. 2004, ISBN 1-85285-389-1 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , 1017: "This year King Knute took to the whole government of England, and divided it into four parts: Wessex for himself, East-Anglia for Thurkyll, Mercia for Edric, Northumbria for Eric."
- ↑ Crouch, p. 100
- ^ Mason, p. 192
- ↑ Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , 1007: “In this year also was Edric appointed alderman over all the kingdom of the Mercians.”, 1017: “This year also was Alderman Edric slain at London.”