The Angles were a dominant Germanic tribe in the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, and gave their name to the English, England and to the region of East Anglia. Originally from Angeln, present-day Schleswig-Holstein, a legendary list of their kings has been preserved in the heroic poems Widsith and Beowulf, and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.
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The first recorded use of the term 'Angles' is from Tacitus' Germania, chapter 40, in which the Anglii are mentioned as one of a group of seven Germanic tribes that worshiped a goddess named Nerthus, whose sanctuary was situated on 'an island in the Ocean'. The other tribes were the Reudigni, Aviones, Varini, Eudoses, Suarini and Nuitones,[1] which are described as dwelling behind ramparts of rivers and woods.[2] As the Eudoses are the Jutes, these names probably refer to localities in Jutland or the Baltic coast; areas in which the inhabitants were known to geographers such as Strabo (Geographica) and Pliny (Naturalis Historia) as Cimbri and Teutons, who with the Chauci formed a grouping known as the Ingaevones – a term derived from the ancestral god Ing, and possibly related to the word 'Angle' itself.[3] Since the Cimbri are known to have inhabited the northern part of the Jutland peninsula, and are therefore equated with the Jutes, it follows that the Teutons inhabited the area of Schleswig-Holstein, and are therefore to be equated with the Angles. Between 120 and 114 BC the territory of the Cimbri and Teutons suffered extensive flooding, and much land was permanently submerged in what is known as the Cimbrian Flood, forcing the tribes to seek new living space.[4] The Teutons, under King Teutobod, in alliance with the Cimbri, under King Boiorix, and the Ambrones, migrated south towards the lands of the Romans, arriving at the River Danube in 113 BC. Over the next decade or so they clashed with the Romans a number of times during the so-called Cimbrian War until finally defeated at the Battle of Aquae Sextiae in 102 BC, at which Teutobod was captured to be ritually executed in Rome (Boiorix of the Cimbri was slain in battle the following year). A remnant of the Cimbri and Teutons survived in their homelands, to become the ancestors of the Jutes and Angles respectively.
According to Johannes Turmair (Bayerische Chronik & Deutsche Chronik) there was a succession of Teutonic kings stretching back to the Great Flood, ruling over vast swathes of Germany and surrounding regions until the 1st century BC, and involving themselves in numerous events from Biblical and Classical history. These rulers and their exploits are mostly fictitious, though some are derived from mythological, legendary or historical figures. Examples of the latter are Boiger, Kels II and Teutenbuecher, whose joint reign is given as 127–100 BC, and who are based on King Boiorix of the Cimbri, the unnamed king of the Ambrones, and King Teutobod of the Teutons.
Dynasty of Tuitsch
Dynasty of Mader
Dynasty of Brenner III
Unknown dynastic affiliation
| Ruler | Ruler | Ruler |
|---|---|---|
| Tuitsch 2214–2038 | Adalger 1377–1328 | Mader 644–589 |
| Mannus 1978–1906 | Larein 1328–1277 | Brenner II & Koenman 589–479 |
| Eingeb 1906–1870 | Ylsing 1277–1224 | Landein, Antör & Rögör 479–399 |
| Ausstaeb 1870–1820 | Brenner I 1224–1186 | Brenner III 399–361 |
| Herman 1820–1757 | Heccar 1186–1155 | Schirm & Brenner IV 361–263 |
| Mers 1757–1711 | Frank 1155–1114 | Thessel, Lauther & Euring 279–194 |
| Gampar 1711–1667 | Wolfheim Siclinger 1114–1056 | Dieth I & Diethmer 194–172 |
| Schwab 1667–1621 | Kels I, Gal & Hillyr 1056–1006 | Baermund & Synpol 172–127 |
| Wandler 1621–1580 | Alber (& six unnamed others) 1006–946 | Boiger, Kels II & Teutenbuecher 127–100 |
| Deuto 1580–1553 | Walther, Panno & Schard 946–884 | Scheirer 100–70 |
| Alman 1553–1489 | Main, Öngel & Treibl 884–814 | Ernst & Vocho 70–50 |
| Baier 1489–1429 | Myela, Laber & Penno 814–714 | Pernpeist 50–40 |
| Ingram 1429–1377 | Venno & Helto 714–644 | Cotz, Dieth II & Creitschir c.40–13 |
According to Anglo-Saxon legends recounted in Widsith and other sources such as Æthelweard (Chronicon), their earliest named ancestor was a culture-hero named Sceaf, who was washed ashore as a child in an empty boat, bearing a sheaf of corn. This is said to have occurred on an island named Scani or Scandza (Scania), and according to William of Malmesbury (Gesta regum Anglorum) he was later chosen as King of the Angles, reigning from Schleswig. His descendants became known as Scefings, or more usually Scyldings (after Sceldwea, see list below). Counting up the generations appears to place Sceaf around 100 BC, at the time that Schleswig-Holstein had recently become depopulated following the migrations of the Teutons, with the boat motif recalling the events of the Cimbrian Flood, although the legendary nature of the pedigree makes such chronological extrapolations dubious (some early writers apparently confused the Cimbrian Flood with the Great Flood, making Sceaf a son of Noah). An alternative scenario places the appearance of Sceaf, and the Cimbrian Flood itself, in 307–306 BC. Prior to this the Angles had inhabited both Schleswig-Holstein and the entire Jutland peninsula, whereas the Jutes had lived further to the east along the Baltic coast. In the disruption following the flood the Jutes migrated to Jutland, naming it after themselves and confining the Angles to Schleswig-Holstein alone. On this chronology King Teotobod is identified with Heremod, father of Sceldwea, who is said to have allied himself with the Jutes (Cimbri), and was later murdered.[5] The following list gives the supposed succession from father to son. Most of these rulers are also mentioned by Snorri Sturluson (Prose Edda) in their Norse forms, and he also gives seven names preceding Sceaf, beginning with the god Thor, that are not found in Anglo-Saxon genealogies.
Dynasty of Thor (according to the Prose Edda)
Scefings, or Scyldings (Sceaf and his male-line descendants)
| Ruler | (Norse) | Biographical notes |
|---|---|---|
| Thor | The god of that name, who took over the realm of Thrace and travelled the world. | |
| Lóridi | ||
| Einridi | ||
| Vingethor | ||
| Vingener | ||
| Móda | ||
| Magi | ||
| Sceaf | Seskef | Washed ashore as a child; his name means 'sheaf' (of corn). Later chosen as King of the Angles. |
| Bedwig | Bedvig | |
| Hwala | ||
| Hrathra | Annarr | |
| Itermon | Ítermann | |
| Heremod | Heremód | Banished by his subjects and fled to the Jutes; later betrayed and murdered. |
| Sceldwea | Skjöld | Appears in Beowulf as Scyld ('shield'), or Scyld Scefing, where his funeral is described. |
| Beaw | Bjárr | His name means 'barley', and he has been associated with the later figure of John Barleycorn. |
| Tætwa | ||
| Geat | Ját | Said by Asser (Vita Ælfredi regis Angul Saxonum) to have been a god. |
| Godwulf | Gudólfr | |
| Finn | Finn | |
| Frithuwulf | ||
| Frealaf | Fridleifr | |
| Freawine | ||
| Frithuwald | ||
| Woden | Odin | The chief god of the Anglo-Saxons and many other Germanic peoples. |
After Woden, a god among the Anglo-Saxons, the pedigree branches, his various sons being made ancestors of the different Anglo-Saxon kingly lines of the Heptarchy, of which the senior line was that of Mercia, descended from the rulers of the Angles. The descents incorporate various Germanic heroes of legend, such as Wihtlæg, who defeated and killed Amleth, King of the Jutes to the north of the Angles in Jutland; Amleth much later became an inspiration for Shakespeare's Hamlet. Under Wermund the Angles' fortress at Schleswig is said to have been captured by a branch of the Saxons known as the Myrgings, but was retaken by Offa about whom many tales were told (and who is usually referred to as Offa of Angel to distinguish him from his supposed descendent Offa of Mercia). The legends give Offa as bride a daughter of Freawine, governor of Schleswig, and upon becoming king he is said to have secured the Abri are known to hrder with the Saxons along the River Eider. Like Offa, Freawine is made a descendant of Woden, and father of Wig, whose names were intruded into the pedigree of the kings of Bernicia when it was transferred to that of the kings of Wessex (ancestors of the kings of England). Wihtlæg, Wermund and Offa also appear in a long list of legendary Danish kings given by Saxo Grammaticus (Gesta Danorum). All other sources name them as kings of the Angles,[6] though according to Matthew Paris (Vitae duorum Offarum) Offa and his line personally ruled over the West Angles, implying that other branches of the tribe had their own subordinate rulers (Offa is described in Beowulf as ruling an 'empire'). Whilst Offa's line went on to found the Kingdom of Mercia, these putative cadet lines may eventually have engendered the ruling dynasties of East Anglia, Deira and possibly Bernicia. As for the other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, the kings of Lindsey appear to have been an offshoot of the Mercian line; those of Wessex claimed descent from the aforementioned Freawine, though their subjects were Saxons; those of Essex and Sussex were Saxon; and those of Kent were Jutish.[7]
Descendants of Woden
| Ruler | Biographical notes |
|---|---|
| Wihtlæg | Son of Woden; married Nanna. Deposed Fiallar, King of Scania and defeated and killed Amleth, King of the Jutes. |
| Wermund | Son of Wihtlæg. After a long reign his kingdom was invaded by a Saxon named Eadgils (fl. c.370) who slew Freawine, governor of Schleswig (ancestor of the kings of Wessex). |
| Offa | Son of Wermund; married a daughter of Freawine. Regarded as a simpleton in youth, Offa fought the Saxons at Rendsburg on an island in the River Eider, thereby securing his southern border with them. |
| Angeltheow | Son of Offa. Possibly the same as Ongentheow in Beowulf. |
| Eomer | Son of Angeltheow. Described in Beowulf as 'grim in war'. Last King of the Angles in Angeln. |
In the mid 5th century, under pressure from Attila and the Huns, the Angles began migrating to Britain – a movement that later became so great, in fact, that Angeln was subsequently described by Bede (Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum) as empty of people. Around 527 (or perhaps 515) Icel, son of Eomer, left his ancestral homelands and founded what became the Kingdom of Mercia in England (for his successors there see List of monarchs of Mercia).