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Source: Ceawlin of Wessex From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Titre	Ceawlin of Wessex From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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CEAWLIN King of Wessex

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Ceawlin King of Wessex Bretwalda of southern Britain Reign 560–592 Predecessor Cynric Successor Ceol Died 593 Issue Cutha (possibly) Cuthwine House Wessex Father Cynric of Wessex or Creoda of Wessex Ceawlin (also spelled Ceaulin and Caelin, died ca. 593) was a King of Wessex. He may have been the son of Cynric of Wessex and the grandson of Cerdic of Wessex, whom the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle represents as the leader of the first group of Saxons to come to the land which later became Wessex. Ceawlin was active during the last years of the Anglo-Saxon expansion, with little of southern England remaining in the control of the native Britons by the time of his death. The chronology of Ceawlin's life is highly uncertain. The historical accuracy and dating of many of the events in the later Anglo-Saxon Chronicle have been called into question, and his reign is variously listed as lasting seven, seventeen, or thirty-two years.[1] The Chronicle records several battles of Ceawlin's between the years 556 and 592, including the first record of a battle between different groups of Anglo-Saxons, and indicates that under Ceawlin Wessex acquired significant territory, some of which was later to be lost to other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. Ceawlin is also named as one of the eight "bretwaldas", a title given in the Chronicle to eight rulers who had overlordship over southern Britain, although the extent of Ceawlin's control is not known. Ceawlin died in 593, having been deposed the year before, possibly by his successor, Ceol. He is recorded in various sources as having two sons, Cutha and Cuthwine, but the genealogies in which this information is found are known to be unreliable. Historical context The history of the sub-Roman period in Britain is poorly sourced and the subject of a number of important disagreements among historians. It appears, however, that in the fifth century, raids on Britain by continental peoples developed into migrations. The newcomers included Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Frisians. These peoples captured territory in the east and south of England, but at about the end of the fifth century, a British victory at the battle of Mons Badonicus halted the Anglo-Saxon advance for fifty years.[2][3] Near the year 550, however, the British began to lose ground once more, and within twenty-five years, it appears that control of almost all of southern England was in the hands of the invaders.[4] The peace following the battle of Mons Badonicus is attested partly by Gildas, a monk, who wrote De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae or On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain during the middle of the sixth century. This essay is a polemic against corruption and Gildas provides little in the way of names and dates. He appears, however, to state that peace had lasted from the year of his birth to the time he was writing.[5] The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is the other main source that bears on this period, in particular in an entry for the year 827 that records a list of the kings who bore the title "bretwalda", or "Britain-ruler". That list shows a gap in the early sixth century that matches Gildas's version of events.[6] Ceawlin's reign belongs to the period of Anglo-Saxon expansion at the end of the sixth century. Though there are many unanswered questions about the chronology and activities of the early West Saxon rulers, it is clear that Ceawlin was one of the key figures in the final Anglo-Saxon conquest of southern Britain.[7] Early West Saxon sources The two main written sources for early West Saxon history are the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List. The Chronicle is a set of annals which were compiled near the year 890, during the reign of King Alfred the Great of Wessex.[8] They record earlier material for the older entries, which were assembled from earlier annals that no longer survive, as well as from saga material that might have been transmitted orally.[9][10] The Chronicle dates the arrival of the future "West Saxons" in Britain to 495, when Cerdic and his son, Cynric, land at Cerdices ora, or Cerdic's shore. Almost twenty annals describing Cerdic's campaigns and those of his descendants appear interspersed through the next hundred years of entries in the Chronicle.[11][12] Although these annals provide most of what is known about Ceawlin, the historicity of many of the entries is uncertain.[13] The West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List is a list of rulers of Wessex, including the lengths of their reigns. It survives in several forms, including as a preface to the [B] manuscript of the Chronicle.[14] As with the Chronicle, the list was compiled during the reign of Alfred the Great, and both the list and the Chronicle are influenced by the desire of their writers to use a single line of descent to trace the lineage of the Kings of Wessex through Cerdic to Gewis, the legendary eponymous ancestor of the West Saxons, who is made to descend from Woden. The result served the political purposes of the scribe, but is riddled with contradictions for historians.[15] The contradictions may be seen clearly by calculating dates by different methods from the various sources. The first event in West Saxon history, the date of which can be regarded as reasonably certain, is the baptism of Cynegils, which occurred in the late 630s, perhaps as late as 640. The Chronicle dates Cerdic's arrival to 495, but adding up the lengths of the reigns as given in the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List leads to the conclusion that Cerdic's reign might have started in 532, a difference of 37 years. Neither 495 nor 532 may be treated as reliable; however, the latter date relies on the presumption that the Regnal List is correct in presenting the Kings of Wessex as having succeeded one another, with no omitted kings, and no joint kingships, and that the durations of the reigns are correct as given. None of these presumptions may be made safely.[11] The sources also are inconsistent on the length of Ceawlin's reign. The Chronicle gives it as thirty-two years, from 560 to 592, but the Regnal Lists disagree: different versions give it as seven or seventeen years. A recent detailed study of the Regnal List dates the arrival of the West Saxons in England to 538, and favours seven years as the most likely length of Ceawlin's reign, with dates of 581–588 proposed.[11][16] The sources do agree that Ceawlin is the son of Cynric and he usually is named as thefather of Cuthwine.[17] There is one discrepancy in this case: the entry for 685 in the [A] version of the Chronicle assigns Ceawlin a son, Cutha, but in the 855 entry in the same manuscript, Cutha is listed as the son of Cuthwine. Cutha also is named asCeawlin's brother in the [E] and [F] versions of the Chronicle, in the 571 and 568 entries, respectively.[18] Whether Ceawlin is a descendant of Cerdic is a matter of debate. Subgroupings of different West Saxon lineages give the impression of separate groups, of which Ceawlin's line is one. Some of the problems in the Wessex genealogies may have come about because of efforts to integrate Ceawlin's line with the other lineages: it became very important to the West Saxons to be able to trace the ancestors of their rulers back to Cerdic.[19] Another reason for doubting the literal nature of these early genealogies is that the etymology of the names of several early members of the dynasty do not appear to be Germanic, as would be expected in the names of leaders of an apparently Anglo-Saxon dynasty. The name Ceawlin is one of the names that do not have convincing Anglo-Saxon etymologies; it seems more likely to be of native British origin.[20] The earliest sources do not use the term "West Saxon". According to Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People, the term is interchangeable with the Gewisse. The term "West Saxon" appears only in the late seventh century, after the reign of Cædwalla. ~ Ceawlin lost the throne of Wessex in 592. The annal for that year reads, in part: "Here there was great slaughter at Woden's Barrow, and Ceawlin was driven out." Woden's Barrow is a tumulus, now called Adam's Grave, at Alton Priors, Wiltshire.[12] No details of his opponent are given. The medieval chronicler William of Malmesbury, writing in about 1120, says that it was "the Angles and the British conspiring together".[43] Alternatively, it may have been Ceol, who is supposed to have been the next king ofWessex, ruling for six years according to the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List.[42] According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Ceawlin died the following year. The relevant part of the annal reads: "Here Ceawlin and Cwichelm and Crida perished."[12] Nothing more is known of Cwichelm and Crida, although they may have been members of the Wessex royal house—their names fit the alliterative pattern common to royal houses of the time.[7][44] According to the Regnal List, Ceol was a son of Cutha, who was a son of Cynric; and Ceolwulf, his brother, reigned for seventeen years after him. It is possible that some fragmentation of control among the West Saxons occurred at Ceawlin's death: Ceol andCeolwulf may have been based in Wiltshire, as opposed to the upper Thames valley. This split also may have contributed to Æthelberht's ability to rise to dominance in southern England. The West Saxons remained influential in military terms, however: the Chronicle and Bede record continued military activity against Essex and Sussex within twenty or thirty years of Ceawlin's death.[37]

Ceawlin
King of Wessex
Bretwalda of southern Britain
Reign 560–592
Predecessor Cynric
Successor Ceol
Died 593
Issue Cutha (possibly)
Cuthwine
House Wessex
Father Cynric of Wessex or Creoda of Wessex

Ceawlin (also spelled Ceaulin and Caelin, died ca. 593) was a King of Wessex. He may have been the son of Cynric of Wessex and the grandson of Cerdic of Wessex, whom the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle represents as the leader of the first group of Saxons to come to the land which later became Wessex. Ceawlin was active during the last years of the Anglo-Saxon expansion, with little of southern England remaining in the control of the native Britons by the time of his death.

The chronology of Ceawlin's life is highly uncertain. The historical accuracy and dating of many of the events in the later Anglo-Saxon Chronicle have been called into question, and his reign is variously listed as lasting seven, seventeen, or thirty-two years.[1] The Chronicle records several battles of Ceawlin's between the years 556 and 592, including the first record of a battle between different groups of Anglo-Saxons, and indicates that under Ceawlin Wessex acquired significant territory, some of which was later to be lost to other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. Ceawlin is also named as one of the eight "bretwaldas", a title given in the Chronicle to eight rulers who had overlordship over southern Britain, although the extent of Ceawlin's control is not known.

Ceawlin died in 593, having been deposed the year before, possibly by his successor, Ceol. He is recorded in various sources as having two sons, Cutha and Cuthwine, but the genealogies in which this information is found are known to be unreliable.

Historical context
The history of the sub-Roman period in Britain is poorly sourced and the subject of a number of important disagreements among historians. It appears, however, that in the fifth century, raids on Britain by continental peoples developed into migrations. The newcomers included Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Frisians. These peoples captured territory in the east and south of England, but at about the end of the fifth century, a British victory at the battle of Mons Badonicus halted the Anglo-Saxon advance for fifty years.[2][3] Near the year 550, however, the British began to lose ground once more, and within twenty-five years, it appears that control of almost all of southern England was in the hands of the invaders.[4]

The peace following the battle of Mons Badonicus is attested partly by Gildas, a monk, who wrote De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae or On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain during the middle of the sixth century. This essay is a polemic against corruption and Gildas provides little in the way of names and dates. He appears, however, to state that peace had lasted from the year of his birth to the time he was writing.[5] The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is the other main source that bears on this period, in particular in an entry for the year 827 that records a list of the kings who bore the title "bretwalda", or "Britain-ruler". That list shows a gap in the early sixth century that matches Gildas's version of events.[6]

Ceawlin's reign belongs to the period of Anglo-Saxon expansion at the end of the sixth century. Though there are many unanswered questions about the chronology and activities of the early West Saxon rulers, it is clear that Ceawlin was one of the key figures in the final Anglo-Saxon conquest of southern Britain.[7]

Early West Saxon sources
The two main written sources for early West Saxon history are the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List. The Chronicle is a set of annals which were compiled near the year 890, during the reign of King Alfred the Great of Wessex.[8] They record earlier material for the older entries, which were assembled from earlier annals that no longer survive, as well as from saga material that might have been transmitted orally.[9][10] The Chronicle dates the arrival of the future "West Saxons" in Britain to 495, when Cerdic and his son, Cynric, land at Cerdices ora, or Cerdic's shore. Almost twenty annals describing Cerdic's campaigns and those of his descendants appear interspersed through the next hundred years of entries in the Chronicle.[11][12] Although these annals provide most of what is known about Ceawlin, the historicity of many of the entries is uncertain.[13]

The West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List is a list of rulers of Wessex, including the lengths of their reigns. It survives in several forms, including as a preface to the [B] manuscript of the Chronicle.[14] As with the Chronicle, the list was compiled during the reign of Alfred the Great, and both the list and the Chronicle are influenced by the desire of their writers to use a single line of descent to trace the lineage of the Kings of Wessex through Cerdic to Gewis, the legendary eponymous ancestor of the West Saxons, who is made to descend from Woden. The result served the political purposes of the scribe, but is riddled with contradictions for historians.[15]

The contradictions may be seen clearly by calculating dates by different methods from the various sources. The first event in West Saxon history, the date of which can be regarded as reasonably certain, is the baptism of Cynegils, which occurred in the late 630s, perhaps as late as 640. The Chronicle dates Cerdic's arrival to 495, but adding up the lengths of the reigns as given in the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List leads to the conclusion that Cerdic's reign might have started in 532, a difference of 37 years. Neither 495 nor 532 may be treated as reliable; however, the latter date relies on the presumption that the Regnal List is correct in presenting the Kings of Wessex as having succeeded one another, with no omitted kings, and no joint kingships, and that the durations of the reigns are correct as given. None of these presumptions may be made safely.[11]

The sources also are inconsistent on the length of Ceawlin's reign. The Chronicle gives it as thirty-two years, from 560 to 592, but the Regnal Lists disagree: different versions give it as seven or seventeen years. A recent detailed study of the Regnal List dates the arrival of the West Saxons in England to 538, and favours seven years as the most likely length of Ceawlin's reign, with dates of 581–588 proposed.[11][16] The sources do agree that Ceawlin is the son of Cynric and he usually is named as thefather of Cuthwine.[17] There is one discrepancy in this case: the entry for 685 in the [A] version of the Chronicle assigns Ceawlin a son, Cutha, but in the 855 entry in the same manuscript, Cutha is listed as the son of Cuthwine. Cutha also is named asCeawlin's brother in the [E] and [F] versions of the Chronicle, in the 571 and 568 entries, respectively.[18]

Whether Ceawlin is a descendant of Cerdic is a matter of debate. Subgroupings of different West Saxon lineages give the impression of separate groups, of which Ceawlin's line is one. Some of the problems in the Wessex genealogies may have come about because of efforts to integrate Ceawlin's line with the other lineages: it became very important to the West Saxons to be able to trace the ancestors of their rulers back to Cerdic.[19] Another reason for doubting the literal nature of these early genealogies is that the etymology of the names of several early members of the dynasty do not appear to be Germanic, as would be expected in the names of leaders of an apparently Anglo-Saxon dynasty. The name Ceawlin is one of the names that do not have convincing Anglo-Saxon etymologies; it seems more likely to be of native British origin.[20]

The earliest sources do not use the term "West Saxon". According to Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People, the term is interchangeable with the Gewisse. The term "West Saxon" appears only in the late seventh century, after the reign of Cædwalla.
~
Ceawlin lost the throne of Wessex in 592. The annal for that year reads, in part: "Here there was great slaughter at Woden's Barrow, and Ceawlin was driven out." Woden's Barrow is a tumulus, now called Adam's Grave, at Alton Priors, Wiltshire.[12] No details of his opponent are given. The medieval chronicler William of Malmesbury, writing in about 1120, says that it was "the Angles and the British conspiring together".[43] Alternatively, it may have been Ceol, who is supposed to have been the next king ofWessex, ruling for six years according to the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List.[42] According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Ceawlin died the following year. The relevant part of the annal reads: "Here Ceawlin and Cwichelm and Crida perished."[12] Nothing more is known of Cwichelm and Crida, although they may have been members of the Wessex royal house—their names fit the alliterative pattern common to royal houses of the time.[7][44]

According to the Regnal List, Ceol was a son of Cutha, who was a son of Cynric; and Ceolwulf, his brother, reigned for seventeen years after him. It is possible that some fragmentation of control among the West Saxons occurred at Ceawlin's death: Ceol andCeolwulf may have been based in Wiltshire, as opposed to the upper Thames valley. This split also may have contributed to Æthelberht's ability to rise to dominance in southern England. The West Saxons remained influential in military terms, however: the Chronicle and Bede record continued military activity against Essex and Sussex within twenty or thirty years of Ceawlin's death.[37]