Aethelheard of Wessex

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For his ecclesiastical homonym, see Æthelhard archbishop of Canterbury

Aethelheard (died 740) (Means roughly 'Noble Stern'), also spelled Ethelheard or Æþelheard, was King of Wessex from 726 to 740. There is a questionable record of Aethelheard having been the brother-in-law of his predecessor, Ine, but his ancestry is unknown.

When Ine abdicated and went to Rome in 726, he left behind no obvious heir, and according to Bede simply left his kingdom "to younger men".^[1] In the wake of his departure, the West Saxon throne was disputed between Aethelheard and a rival claimant, Oswald. Oswald may have had the better claim, as the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle calls him a descendant of the early king Ceawlin,^[2] but it was Aethelheard who prevailed. It is possible that his success was due to the support of Ethelbald of Mercia, since he seems to have been subject to Ethelbald afterward. However, Aethelheard's lack of independence does not seem to have prevented Ethelbald from taking considerable territory from Wessex in 733, including the royal manor of Somerton.

[edit] References

1. ^ Frank Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England (1943, 1971, 1998 Oxford paperback), pages 72–73.
2. ^ ASC manuscript A, 728.

Preceded by: Ine

King of Wessex 726 - 740

Succeeded by: Cuthred