EGBERT: BIOGRAPHY OF THE HISTORICAL CHARACTER AND HISTORY IN VIKINGS - ARTE - 2025

Egbert (771-839) or Ecgberht was a king of Wessex from 802 to 839 who came from a royal line. He was exiled in an action planned by Beorhtric and Offa of Mercia for claiming power, although he returned in 802. His exile took place in the Frankish Empire, at the court of Charlemagne, where he is supposed to have spent thirteen years, before he was crowned king. of Wessex. In this period of time he was able to meet who had been king of the Franks from 768, Charlemagne.

Egbert's exile was brought about by constant tensions between Wessex and Mercia, at a time when Beorhtric married Offa's daughter of Mercia. The union managed to unite two dynasties that had always been in conflict, they were fervent rivals and this led to Egbert going into exile, as he had no other option seeing his claims to the throne lost.

Egbert. Source:

A descendant of Ine of Wessex, Egbert in 815 invaded and ravaged Cornwalles, now a county in the south-west of England. There he conquered the Welsh who inhabited this peninsula.

Biography of the historical Egbert

Depower Mercia

History recognizes King Egbert as the person who was able to bring the kingdom of Wessex to the head of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy, a name formerly given to the set of kingdoms of the center, south and east of the island of Great Britain, thus giving him he took from Mercia the power it held among the seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of the time.

Although precise data of the first years of his reign are unknown, it was known that he maintained the kingdom with total independence from the powerful Mercians, the neighboring kingdom. Around 825, at the Battle of Ellandum, he managed to defeat Beornwulf of Mercia and thus managed to take the control that Mercia had previously exercised over the entire southeast of England.

He managed to rule Mercia directly defeating Wiglaf in 829. The defeat did not last long as Wiglaf regained the throne only a year later. However, he retained control of territories such as Sussex, Surrey, and Kent, which he later handed over to his son to rule over.

Family

There are several versions about the ancestry of Egbert. There is an old version of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle that talks about his son Ethelwulfo. Another version is collected in the Dictionary of National Biography, where Edwards affirms that it was of Kentian origin and that they wanted to give it greater legitimacy by attributing it to a West Saxon origin.

A chronicle of the 15th century assures that his wife was called Redburga, who was related to Charlemagne (perhaps she was a sister-in-law or a sister of the Frankish king). It is also said that she had a stepsister, Alburga, who was later recognized as a saint. The king had two sons and a daughter with Redburga, the first-born was Ethelwulf of Wessex.

The reign

It was in 802, when Offa of Mercia died, that Egbert reached the throne of Wessex, thanks to the support of the papacy and also of Charlemagne. The Hwicce, on the day of his coronation, attacked him; These were part of an independent kingdom that was in Mercia. Later the Hwicce were defeated and precise data of the reign in subsequent years is unknown.

Around 815 the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, one of the most reliable sources, claimed that Egbert ravaged much of the British territory, including Dumonnia, which according to the author was East Wales. Ten years later, in 825, the Chronicle claimed that Egbert was camping in that territory.

End of Mercia's rule

The Battle of Ellendum marks an important point in history because Mercian domination of southern England is ended, and it was in 825 that Egbert managed to defeat Beornwulf of Mercia.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle tells that Egbert sent Æthelwulf, his son, a bishop and a large troop to Kent. Then Egbert's son led the King of Kent north of the Thames and the vast majority of men in Kent, Essex, Surrey and Sussex surrendered to Æthelwulf.

Egbert expelled King Sigered from Essex in 829, although the date may not be exact; it is intuited because according to various historians it was that year in which Egbert made a campaign against the Mercians.

East Anglia

The aggressor in the Battle of Ellendum could have been Beornwulf, because the southern territory was under threat and the connections between Wessex and Kenty were a possible threat to usurp Mercia the hegemony of those territories.

The consequences were seen in that the Eastern Anglos were forced to ask Egberto for protection. In 826 Beornwulf invaded East Anglia but was later killed and his successor, Ludeca de Mercia, invaded again a year later.

Defeat of Wiglaf, King of Mercia

By invading Mercia in 829 he expelled the then King Wiglaf, after which he seized control of the London Mint and was able to issue coins as king. Later they called him bretwalda, "Great ruler", in a fragment of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. And in 829 the people of Dore surrendered to him. Earlier however Egbert had entered Northumbria and sacked it.

One of the culminating points of its influence in Welsh lands was in 830, when it directed an operation that was quite successful; what Egbert wanted was to extend the influence of Wessex over Wales, which had previously been in Mercian orbit.

The king falls

It is from 830 that Egbert begins to lose influence and it is particularly noticeable when Wiglaf returns to power. In Estanglia, for example, after the Egbert debacle, King Æthelstan began to mint coins.

The fact that the Wessex empire was so successful thanks to Egbert, but later lost so much power, was probably due to the fact that they had support from the Carolingians. They had supported King Eardwulf when he wanted to regain Northumbria in 808 and it is intuited that they also supported Egbert in 802.

Carolingian support

The Carolingian support served as military support to Egbert; although it is known that the commercial networks suffered great deterioration in the 820s. It is also mentioned that Luis the Pious, who supported Egberto, in 830 suffered a rebellion that triggered a variety of internal conflicts.

Egbert's military victories undoubtedly marked the political history of England. It was the end of the independence of Kent and Sussex. Although the viceroy was Æthelwulf, he had his own house and always accompanied Egbert everywhere. In 836 the Danes defeated Egbert, although two years later he defeated them and the Welsh at the Battle of Hingston Down.

Death

King Egbert died in 839 leaving a will in which according to his grandson, Alfred the Great, he left land only to the men of his family, thus avoiding that the assets could not be distributed through marital unions.

He gained the support of the church apparently because his throne left great wealth. It was also said that he had done something that no one had managed to do and that was that his son, successor to the crown, acceded to the throne in a calm way, since the royal family had previously always been in various power disputes.

It is notorious that Æthelwulf had already gained extensive experience running the kingdom of Kent for a time, so when he succeeded his father in Wessex things became much easier for him.

King Egbert was buried in Winchester, where his son, grandson Alfred the Great and great grandson Edward the Elder were also buried.

Egbert in the Vikings series

King Egbert in the Vikings series is shown as a worldly and ambitious man, who was trained in the court of the Emperor Charlemagne. Egberto is open-minded, with great strength and determination to use his qualities in decisive moments. He develops great respect for his friend and ally Ragnar Lodbrok.

Personality

King Egbert uses a mask of kindness and understanding to hide his less trustworthy face, that of an ambitious, unscrupulous and selfish being. The king does not care about anyone, he is even willing to sacrifice his own son in order to get what he wants.

Lathgertha is the first to discover her selfish self after spending time with him. King Aelle confronts her because she knows of her desire to access the throne of Mercia and because of her relationship with Judith. Kwenthrith does not know how Egberto can sleep at night with such evil in tow and decides to kill her, but her attempts are in vain.

Good deal to Athelstan

Egbert is kind enough to Athelstan, so much so that he saves him, gives him his trust, and gives him a place at court. The king and Ragnar ask him to stay in Wessex.

Egberto believes that Athelstan is a saint and says that the loss of his first wife has left him irreparable damage, which is largely the present man due to those wounds of the past.

Season 2

Having saved the monk Athelstan from his crucifixion, King Egbert regards him as a kindred spirit. He appoints him to guard his treasures of ancient Roman relics and documents, and then the monk will be the one who reveals some battle strategies read on those scrolls.

Egbert will use all of Caesar's military knowledge for his foray into Wessex with the forces of Ragnar, Lathgertha, and King Horik. Allied with King Aelle, Egbert launches his troops into combat with both cavalry and infantry. The other side is defeated and Aelle shows great admiration for Egbert's tactics.

Roll Release

Later they discuss how useful it can be to have Rollo arrested. Egbert negotiates with Ragnar his release in exchange for 5000 acres of fertile land, as well as gold and silver. Likewise, the king will be able to recruit a large Viking troop to reclaim the kingdom of Mercia for Princess Kwenthrith.

Season 3

Egbert meets with the Vikings to work out the terms of an agreement. He explains that they must fight to return Kwenthrith to the throne of Mercia. Athesltan and Lathgertha remain to work Egbert's lands while Ragnar and the others go out to fight for Mercia.

Athelstan has begun to take an interest in Judith, and Egbert hopes that this new relationship will make him stay in Wessex. For his part, the king shares a bed with Lathgertha and gives her gifts. He tries to convince her to stay, but she tells him that she cannot, as she knows that the king's only concern is himself.

Season 4

Egbert sends his son to protect Kwenthrith from a rebellion. However, she realizes that the king only wishes the kingdom of Mercia for himself, so he tries to kill one of his men, although he eventually dies.

When the king learns that Ragnar is captured he returns to his castle and is enraged with his son. They then strike up a conversation in the cell and Ragnar demands that she kill him. We see how they respect each other and the admiration they have for each other.

The strategy

The king realizes that Ragnar asks him to kill him as a strategy, as he wants his son to avenge him. Ragnar promises him that his sons will not attack Wessex, so Egbert accepts and forgives Ivar.

After King Aelle kills Ragnar, Egbert is devastated and, in despair, asks his son to destroy the Pagan Army. He also has a plan: to crown Aethelwulf as King of Mercia and Wessex.

He stays in town with Edmund and makes a deal with Björn. The intention is to stop the Vikings to have time to evacuate his entire family. Edmund is killed by Hvitserk and leaves the land to the sons of Ragnar. Later Egberto commits suicide in his bathroom.

References

1. Burton, E. (1909). Egbert. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Recovered from newadvent.org
2. Eledelis (2015). Vikings series characters (V): King Egbert of Wessex, Ethelwulf of Wessex and the Jarl Borg. Recovered from thevalkyriesvigil.com
3. FANDOM (sf). Egbert. Recovered from vikings.fandom.com
4. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica (nd). Egbert. King of Wessex Recovered from britannica.com
5. Wikipedia (2019). Ecgberht, King of Wessex. Recovered from en.wikipedia.org