Battle of Peonnum
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The Battle of Peonnum was fought in 658 AD between the Saxon King Cenwalh of Wessex and the Romano-British Celts, probably at Penselwood near Wincanton, England.
The Saxons won the battle and advanced west through Somerset to the line of the River Parrett.
[edit] Saxon Conquest
The border between Saxons and Celts had been established at the Wansdyke along the ridge of the Mendip Hills following the Battle of Deorham and the occupation of Bath in 577 [1].
Then in 652, Cenwalh broke through at the Battle of Bradford-on-Avon[2]. He was exiled to East Anglia after a squabble with Penda of Mercia, but returned in 658 to renew the attack on the Welsh tribes at the Battle of Peonnum [3]. The Saxons won the battle and Cenwalh advanced west through the Polden Hills to the River Parrett.
The border stabilised there until 681-685, when Centwine of Wessex conquered the Welsh King Cadwaladr, and occupied the rest of Somerset west and north to the Bristol Channel [4]. Saxon rule was later consolidated under King Ina [5].
[edit] Location
The battle is stated to have happened æt peonnum, which means "at the penns". Penn may be the Celtic word for "head". From the circumstances of the Saxon campaign, the place is likely to be Penselwood (Pen Selwood), near Wincanton.
[edit] References
- ^ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 501-97 AD.
- ^ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 645-56 AD
- ^ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 658-75 AD
- ^ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 676-99 AD
- ^ The Victoria History of the County of Somerset, Vol 1 (1906)
