A Family Genealogy of
the Gentle House of Stapleton
the Gentle House of Stapleton
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Æthelwold ætheling WESSEX #77067
____ - 13 DEC 902
Personal Information
- DEATH: 13 DEC 902, East Anglia
Notes
Æthelwold or Æthelwald (died 13 December 902) was the younger of two known sons of Æthelred I, King of Wessex from 865 to 871. Æthelwold and his brother Æthelhelm were still infants when their father the king died while fighting a Danish Viking invasion. The throne passed to the king's younger brother (Æthelwold's uncle) Alfred the Great, who carried on the war against the Vikings and won a crucial victory at the Battle of Edington in 878.
After Alfred's death in 899, Æthelwold disputed the throne with Alfred's son, Edward the Elder. As senior ætheling (prince of the royal dynasty eligible for kingship), Æthelwold had a strong claim to the throne. He attempted to raise an army to support his claim, but was unable to get sufficient support to meet Edward in battle and fled to Viking-controlled Northumbria, where he was accepted as king. In 901 or 902 he sailed with a fleet to Essex, where he was also accepted as king.
The following year Æthelwold persuaded the East Anglian Danes to attack Edward's territory in Wessex and Mercia. Edward retaliated with a raid on East Anglia, and when he withdrew the men of Kent lingered and met the East Anglian Danes at an unknown location in the Battle of the Holme on 13 December 902. The Danes were victorious but suffered heavy losses, including the death of Æthelwold, which ended the challenge to Edward's rule.
After Alfred's death in 899, Æthelwold disputed the throne with Alfred's son, Edward the Elder. As senior ætheling (prince of the royal dynasty eligible for kingship), Æthelwold had a strong claim to the throne. He attempted to raise an army to support his claim, but was unable to get sufficient support to meet Edward in battle and fled to Viking-controlled Northumbria, where he was accepted as king. In 901 or 902 he sailed with a fleet to Essex, where he was also accepted as king.
The following year Æthelwold persuaded the East Anglian Danes to attack Edward's territory in Wessex and Mercia. Edward retaliated with a raid on East Anglia, and when he withdrew the men of Kent lingered and met the East Anglian Danes at an unknown location in the Battle of the Holme on 13 December 902. The Danes were victorious but suffered heavy losses, including the death of Æthelwold, which ended the challenge to Edward's rule.
Parents
Father: Æthelred I WESSEX #50558
Mother: Wulfthryth of MERCIA #77065
_Egbert WESSEX _______+
| (0770 - 0839)
_Æthelwulf WESSEX ___|
| (.... - 0857) |
| |_Redburga of FRANCIA _
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_Æthelred I WESSEX ___|
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| | _Oslac UNKNOWN _______
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| |_Osburh OSLACSDOTTER _|
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|--Æthelwold ætheling WESSEX
| (.... - 0902)
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|_Wulfthryth of MERCIA _|
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