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EspañolEADBALD OF KENT
'Eadbald' (died January 20, 640) (Means roughly 'Kindly Bold') was the King of Kent from 616 until his death.
Settlement of Kent by continental peoples, primarily Jutes, was complete by the end of the sixth century. Eadbald's father, Æthelberht, probably came to the throne in about 589 or 590, though the chronology of his reign is very difficult to determine accurately. Æthelberht was recorded by the early chronicler, Bede, as a ''bretwalda'', since he apparently had overlordship of other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. This dominance led to wealth in the form of tribute, and Kent was a powerful kingdom at the time of Æthelberht's death in 616, with trade well-established with the continent.
Britain had become fully Christian by the time the Romans left, but the Anglo-Saxons were both illiterate and pagan. In 597 Augustine was sent by Pope Gregory the Great to England to convert them to Christianity. Augustine landed in eastern Kent, and soon managed to convert Æthelberht, who gave Augustine land in Canterbury. Two other rulers, Sæberht, king of Essex, and Rædwald, king of East Anglia, were converted through Æthelberht's influence.
An important source for this period in Kentish history is ''The Ecclesiastical History of the English People'', written in 731 by Bede, a Northumbrian monk. Bede was primarily interested in the Christianization of England, and provides substantial information about both Æthelberht and his son Eadbald. One of Bede’s correspondents was Albinus, who was abbot of the monastery of St. Peter and St. Paul (subsequently renamed St. Augustine's) in Canterbury. Also of importance is the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a collection of annals assembled in about 890 in the kingdom of Wessex. Other sources include papal letters, regnal lists of the kings of Kent, and early charters. Charters were documents drawn up to record grants of land by kings to their followers or to the church, and provide some of the earliest documentary sources in England. None survive in original form from Eadbald's reign, but some later copies exist.
The ancestry of Æthelberht, Eadbald's father, is given by Bede, who states that the line descended from Hengist. According to Bede, Æthelberht's father was "Irminric, son of Octa"; Irminric (now usually spelled Eormenric) appears also in Kentish genealogies, and it is fairly certain that he existed and was indeed king of Kent. Æthelberht's mother's name has not been preserved, but it is known that Æthelberht married twice; his second wife cannot have been Eadbald's mother since Eadbald is known to have married her after his father's death. Hence Eadbald's mother must have been Bertha, Æthelberht's first wife, the daughter of King Charibert I of Neustria.
Eadbald had a sister, Æthelburh, who was probably also the daughter of Bertha. Æthelburh married Edwin, King of Northumbria, one of the dominant Anglo-Saxon kings of the seventh century. It is possible that there was another brother, named Æthelwald: the evidence for this is a papal letter to Justus, archbishop of Canterbury from 619 to 625, in which a king named Aduluald is referred to, and who is apparently different from Audubald, which refers to Eadbald. There is no agreement among modern scholars on how to interpret this: "Aduluald" might be intended as a representation of "Æthelwald", and hence this may be an indication of another king, perhaps a subking of west Kent;Yorke, ''Kings and Kingdoms'', pp. 32–33. or it may be merely a scribal error which should be read as referring to Eadbald.Kirby, ''Earliest English Kings'', p. 39.
Eadbald's wife, according to Kentish tradition, was a woman named Ymme of Frankish royal blood, though recently it has been suggested that she may have instead been the daughter of Erchinoald, the mayor of the palace in Neustria, the western part of Francia.Yorke, ''Kings and Kingdoms'', p. 29.
The Kentish kings would have gained significant prestige from their connections with the Frankish royal house. The power of Kent declined somewhat after Æthelbert's accession, and the loss of the overlordship of southern England to other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, but advantageous connections continued to be made, with marriages into the royal families of Mercia and the Magonsæte.
The surviving regnal lists show only one king reigning at a time in Kent, but subkingdoms were common among the Anglo-Saxons and from the reign of Hlothhere, in the late seventh century, there is evidence that Kent was usually ruled by two kings, though often one is clearly the dominant king. It is less clear that this is the case before Hlothhere. Forged charters preserve a tradition of Eadbald ruling during his father's reign, presumably as a subking over west Kent. The papal letter that has been interpreted as indicating the existence of Æthelwald, a brother of Eadbald's, refers to Æthelwald as a king; he would presumably have been a junior king to Eadbald.
The two kingdoms within Kent were east and west Kent. Western Kent has fewer archaeological finds from the earliest periods than east Kent, and the eastern finds are somewhat distinct in character, showing Jutish and Frankish influence. The archaeological evidence, combined with the known political division into two kingdoms, makes it likely that the origin of the subkingdoms was the conquest of the western half by the eastern, which would have been the first area settled by the invaders.Yorke, ''Kings and Kingdoms'', p. 27.
The date of Æthelberht's death is usually given as February 24th, 616, though a date in 618 is also considered possible because of inconsistencies in the chronology given by Bede and other sources.Kirby (''Earliest English Kings'', pp. 31–3) provides an extended discussion of the difficult chronology of Æthelberht’s reign. Eadbald succeeded to his father's throne. He was a pagan, and Bede, whose history focused on the church, gives a detailed account of his early reign.Bede, Ecclesiastical History, pp. 112-114 However, the chronology provided by Bede is difficult to reconcile with other known facts, particularly letters written by Pope Boniface to Justus, Æthelburh, and Edwin, and alternative chronologies for the events of the early part of Eadbald's reign have been proposed.Kirby, Earliest English Kings, pp. 37-42
Bede states that Eadbald's accession was a "severe setback to the growth of the young church". Eadbald was not only a pagan, but compounded his offences in the eyes of the Christians by marrying his father's second wife, his step-mother. His court followed his rejection of Christianity, but according to Bede Eadbald was punished for his faithlessness with "frequent fits of insanity", and was "possessed by an evil spirit". An additional blow to the church at this time was the death of Sæberht of Essex, who had been converted under the influence of Æthelberht; Sæberht's sons expelled their bishop, Mellitus who came to Kent to confer with Laurence, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Justus. The three of them agreed to leave Kent, and Mellitus and Justus went to Gaul. However, Bede relates that the night before Laurentus was to leave, he had vision in which Saint Peter scourged him for abandoning his flock. In the morning Laurentus showed the marks of the lash to Eadbald, who was astonished; when Eadbald learned that the scourging was at the hands of Peter, he was alarmed and converted, giving up his marriage to his step-mother and becoming a supporter of the church. Justus and Mellitus were recalled, but although Justus returned to become bishop of Rochester, the sons of Sæberht continued in their opposition to Christianity, and Mellitus did not return to London.
The details of Bede's narrative have been questioned. Eadbald was the son of the most influential king in southern England, and his father had been Sæberht's overlord; hence it has been suggested that Eadbald and Sæberht were likely to have been acting in concert. The pagan reaction to the incursion of Christianity seems likely to have been a substantial change in attitude across the two kingdoms, though Bede only shows us the reactions of the bishops.
The story of Laurentius's scourging by St. Peter is also likely to be a hagiographical fabrication; Bede places the scourging in the chancel of St. Augustine's at Canterbury, so the source may be the monastery at that site. It is possible that the pope ordered Laurentius to stay in Kent; a letter from Alcuin in 797 to a later Archbishop, Æthelheard, mentions that Laurentius once wished to leave his see, but "being chastened by apostolic authority, repented of the plan he had begun."Whitelock, English Historical Documents, p. 789)
Bede later mentions that Eadbald's sister, Æthelburh, traveled to Northumbria in 625, she was accompanied by Paulinus, who had been consecrated bishop of York by Justus, who was at that time Archbishop of Canterbury. Justus did not directly succeed Laurentius as Archbishop; Mellitus is known to have been Archbishop for five years after Laurentius. Bede gives the date of Justus's accession as 624, and since, in Bede's narrative, it is Laurentius who converted Eadbald, the conversion must have taken place no later than 619. Thus Bede's version of events makes the pagan reaction against the Christian mission last no more than three years at most, and perhaps much less.
An alternative chronology, proposed by historian D.P. Kirby, has Eadbald converted by Justus, rather than by Laurentius. This places the conversion much later, probably not long before 624. Bede says that Mellitus had consecrated a church in Canterbury founded by Eadbald; this is consistent if it took place shortly before Mellitus's death. Under this interpretation, the pagan reaction lasted at least five and perhaps as long as eight years.
In the mid-seventh century, King Anna of East Anglia married his daughter, Seaxburh, to Eadbald's son Eorcenberht, establishing an important diplomatic alliance. The Frankish connections also continued, with Eorcenberht's daughter, Eorcengota, becoming a nun at Faremoûtier-en-Brie.
In about 635 Eadbald built the first nunnery in England - Folkestone Abbey - for his daughter Saint Eanswith and her nuns.
He also arranged a marriage between his sister Ethelburga and Edwin of Northumbria, later taking her and Paulinus back when Edwin died in 633.
Eadbald married the Frankish princess Emma, daughter of Theudebert II of Austrasia, possibly in 624, and they had a son called Eorcenberht, who succeeded Eadbald as king.
Gold coins are known from Eadbald's reign, minted at London and inscribed "AVDVARLD".
List of monarchs of Kent
;Primary sources
★ Ecclesiastical History of the English People, , , Bede, Penguin, 1991,
★ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, , Michael, Swanton, Routledge, 1996,
;Secondary sources
★ The Anglo-Saxons, , James, Campbell, Penguin Books, 1991,
★ The Earliest English Kings, , D.P., Kirby, Routledge, 1992,
★ The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England, , Michael, Lapidge, Blackwell Publishing, 1999,
★ Anglo-Saxon England, , Frank M., Stenton, Clarendon Press, 1971,
★ Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England, , Barbara, Yorke, Seaby, 1990,
★ Coins with image of Eabald
| Contents |
| Early Kent and early sources |
| Ancestry and immediate family |
| East and West Kent |
| Reign |
| Children |
| See also |
| Notes |
| Reference |
| External Links |
Early Kent and early sources
The state of Anglo-Saxon England at about the time of Eadbald's birth.
Britain had become fully Christian by the time the Romans left, but the Anglo-Saxons were both illiterate and pagan. In 597 Augustine was sent by Pope Gregory the Great to England to convert them to Christianity. Augustine landed in eastern Kent, and soon managed to convert Æthelberht, who gave Augustine land in Canterbury. Two other rulers, Sæberht, king of Essex, and Rædwald, king of East Anglia, were converted through Æthelberht's influence.
An important source for this period in Kentish history is ''The Ecclesiastical History of the English People'', written in 731 by Bede, a Northumbrian monk. Bede was primarily interested in the Christianization of England, and provides substantial information about both Æthelberht and his son Eadbald. One of Bede’s correspondents was Albinus, who was abbot of the monastery of St. Peter and St. Paul (subsequently renamed St. Augustine's) in Canterbury. Also of importance is the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a collection of annals assembled in about 890 in the kingdom of Wessex. Other sources include papal letters, regnal lists of the kings of Kent, and early charters. Charters were documents drawn up to record grants of land by kings to their followers or to the church, and provide some of the earliest documentary sources in England. None survive in original form from Eadbald's reign, but some later copies exist.
Ancestry and immediate family
Eadbald's ancestry and siblings
Eadbald had a sister, Æthelburh, who was probably also the daughter of Bertha. Æthelburh married Edwin, King of Northumbria, one of the dominant Anglo-Saxon kings of the seventh century. It is possible that there was another brother, named Æthelwald: the evidence for this is a papal letter to Justus, archbishop of Canterbury from 619 to 625, in which a king named Aduluald is referred to, and who is apparently different from Audubald, which refers to Eadbald. There is no agreement among modern scholars on how to interpret this: "Aduluald" might be intended as a representation of "Æthelwald", and hence this may be an indication of another king, perhaps a subking of west Kent;Yorke, ''Kings and Kingdoms'', pp. 32–33. or it may be merely a scribal error which should be read as referring to Eadbald.Kirby, ''Earliest English Kings'', p. 39.
Eadbald's wife, according to Kentish tradition, was a woman named Ymme of Frankish royal blood, though recently it has been suggested that she may have instead been the daughter of Erchinoald, the mayor of the palace in Neustria, the western part of Francia.Yorke, ''Kings and Kingdoms'', p. 29.
The Kentish kings would have gained significant prestige from their connections with the Frankish royal house. The power of Kent declined somewhat after Æthelbert's accession, and the loss of the overlordship of southern England to other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, but advantageous connections continued to be made, with marriages into the royal families of Mercia and the Magonsæte.
East and West Kent
The surviving regnal lists show only one king reigning at a time in Kent, but subkingdoms were common among the Anglo-Saxons and from the reign of Hlothhere, in the late seventh century, there is evidence that Kent was usually ruled by two kings, though often one is clearly the dominant king. It is less clear that this is the case before Hlothhere. Forged charters preserve a tradition of Eadbald ruling during his father's reign, presumably as a subking over west Kent. The papal letter that has been interpreted as indicating the existence of Æthelwald, a brother of Eadbald's, refers to Æthelwald as a king; he would presumably have been a junior king to Eadbald.
The two kingdoms within Kent were east and west Kent. Western Kent has fewer archaeological finds from the earliest periods than east Kent, and the eastern finds are somewhat distinct in character, showing Jutish and Frankish influence. The archaeological evidence, combined with the known political division into two kingdoms, makes it likely that the origin of the subkingdoms was the conquest of the western half by the eastern, which would have been the first area settled by the invaders.Yorke, ''Kings and Kingdoms'', p. 27.
Reign
The date of Æthelberht's death is usually given as February 24th, 616, though a date in 618 is also considered possible because of inconsistencies in the chronology given by Bede and other sources.Kirby (''Earliest English Kings'', pp. 31–3) provides an extended discussion of the difficult chronology of Æthelberht’s reign. Eadbald succeeded to his father's throne. He was a pagan, and Bede, whose history focused on the church, gives a detailed account of his early reign.Bede, Ecclesiastical History, pp. 112-114 However, the chronology provided by Bede is difficult to reconcile with other known facts, particularly letters written by Pope Boniface to Justus, Æthelburh, and Edwin, and alternative chronologies for the events of the early part of Eadbald's reign have been proposed.Kirby, Earliest English Kings, pp. 37-42
Bede states that Eadbald's accession was a "severe setback to the growth of the young church". Eadbald was not only a pagan, but compounded his offences in the eyes of the Christians by marrying his father's second wife, his step-mother. His court followed his rejection of Christianity, but according to Bede Eadbald was punished for his faithlessness with "frequent fits of insanity", and was "possessed by an evil spirit". An additional blow to the church at this time was the death of Sæberht of Essex, who had been converted under the influence of Æthelberht; Sæberht's sons expelled their bishop, Mellitus who came to Kent to confer with Laurence, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Justus. The three of them agreed to leave Kent, and Mellitus and Justus went to Gaul. However, Bede relates that the night before Laurentus was to leave, he had vision in which Saint Peter scourged him for abandoning his flock. In the morning Laurentus showed the marks of the lash to Eadbald, who was astonished; when Eadbald learned that the scourging was at the hands of Peter, he was alarmed and converted, giving up his marriage to his step-mother and becoming a supporter of the church. Justus and Mellitus were recalled, but although Justus returned to become bishop of Rochester, the sons of Sæberht continued in their opposition to Christianity, and Mellitus did not return to London.
The details of Bede's narrative have been questioned. Eadbald was the son of the most influential king in southern England, and his father had been Sæberht's overlord; hence it has been suggested that Eadbald and Sæberht were likely to have been acting in concert. The pagan reaction to the incursion of Christianity seems likely to have been a substantial change in attitude across the two kingdoms, though Bede only shows us the reactions of the bishops.
The story of Laurentius's scourging by St. Peter is also likely to be a hagiographical fabrication; Bede places the scourging in the chancel of St. Augustine's at Canterbury, so the source may be the monastery at that site. It is possible that the pope ordered Laurentius to stay in Kent; a letter from Alcuin in 797 to a later Archbishop, Æthelheard, mentions that Laurentius once wished to leave his see, but "being chastened by apostolic authority, repented of the plan he had begun."Whitelock, English Historical Documents, p. 789)
Bede later mentions that Eadbald's sister, Æthelburh, traveled to Northumbria in 625, she was accompanied by Paulinus, who had been consecrated bishop of York by Justus, who was at that time Archbishop of Canterbury. Justus did not directly succeed Laurentius as Archbishop; Mellitus is known to have been Archbishop for five years after Laurentius. Bede gives the date of Justus's accession as 624, and since, in Bede's narrative, it is Laurentius who converted Eadbald, the conversion must have taken place no later than 619. Thus Bede's version of events makes the pagan reaction against the Christian mission last no more than three years at most, and perhaps much less.
An alternative chronology, proposed by historian D.P. Kirby, has Eadbald converted by Justus, rather than by Laurentius. This places the conversion much later, probably not long before 624. Bede says that Mellitus had consecrated a church in Canterbury founded by Eadbald; this is consistent if it took place shortly before Mellitus's death. Under this interpretation, the pagan reaction lasted at least five and perhaps as long as eight years.
Children
In the mid-seventh century, King Anna of East Anglia married his daughter, Seaxburh, to Eadbald's son Eorcenberht, establishing an important diplomatic alliance. The Frankish connections also continued, with Eorcenberht's daughter, Eorcengota, becoming a nun at Faremoûtier-en-Brie.
In about 635 Eadbald built the first nunnery in England - Folkestone Abbey - for his daughter Saint Eanswith and her nuns.
He also arranged a marriage between his sister Ethelburga and Edwin of Northumbria, later taking her and Paulinus back when Edwin died in 633.
Eadbald married the Frankish princess Emma, daughter of Theudebert II of Austrasia, possibly in 624, and they had a son called Eorcenberht, who succeeded Eadbald as king.
Gold coins are known from Eadbald's reign, minted at London and inscribed "AVDVARLD".
See also
List of monarchs of Kent
Notes
Reference
;Primary sources
★ Ecclesiastical History of the English People, , , Bede, Penguin, 1991,
★ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, , Michael, Swanton, Routledge, 1996,
;Secondary sources
★ The Anglo-Saxons, , James, Campbell, Penguin Books, 1991,
★ The Earliest English Kings, , D.P., Kirby, Routledge, 1992,
★ The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England, , Michael, Lapidge, Blackwell Publishing, 1999,
★ Anglo-Saxon England, , Frank M., Stenton, Clarendon Press, 1971,
★ Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England, , Barbara, Yorke, Seaby, 1990,
External Links
★ Coins with image of Eabald
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