2. | King of England Egbert was born in 775 (son of King of Kent Ealhmund and Queen of Kent UnNamed); died on 4 Feb 839 in Winchester, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom. Other Events and Attributes:
- Stories and Notes: Egbert (Ecgberht in Anglo Saxon) king of Wessex (802-39), and the first Saxon king recognized as sovereign of all England . He was the son of a Kentish noble but claimed descent from Cerdic (reigned 519-34), founder of Wessex, the kingdom of the West Saxons in southern England. During the late 8th century, when King Offa of Mercia (reigned 757-96) ruled most of England, Egbert lived in exile at the court of Charlemagne. Egbert regained his kingdom in 802. He conquered the neighboring kingdoms of Kent, Cornwall, and Mercia, and by 830 he was also acknowledged as sovereign of East Anglia, Sussex, Surrey, and Northumbria and was given the title of Bretwalda (Anglo-Saxon, "ruler of the British"). During following years Egbert led expeditions against the Welsh and the Vikings. The year before his death he defeated a combined force of Danes and Cornish at Hingston Down in Cornwall. He was succeeded by his son Aethelwulf, the father of Alfred.
- To Lady Kathleen: 31st great-grandfather
- Occupation: 802 to 839; King of Wessex in England
Notes:
Known as the first King of All England, he was forced into exile at the court of Charlemagne, by the powerful Offa, King of Mercia. Egbert returned to England in 802 and was recognized as king of Wessex. He defeated the rival Mercians at the bat tle of Ellendun in 825. In 829, the Northumbrians accepted his overlordship and he was proclaimed "Bretwalda" or sole ruler of Britain.
In his early liffe Egbert was forced to take refuge at the court of the powerful Offa, King of the tribal kingdom of Mercia. Beothric responded by proposing an alliance between himself and Offa, which was to be cemented by his marriage to Offa's daughter Eadburgha. He further requested that Offa deliver the rebel Egbert to him. Offa accepted Beorthric's offer for his daughter's hand in marriage, but instead of handing over Egbert to his enemy and certain death, he merely banished him from England.
Once Beothic died, Egbert returned to his native England to claim the vacant throne of Wessex in 800 and was accepted although the Mercians opposed his rule. After many battles Egbert became king of all of England.
The vikings attacked during Egbert's reign. Egbert defeated them but by the time of his death in 839 the Viking raids had become annual occurences and Mercia had regained its independence.
Occupation:
He was known as the First King of ALL England.
Egbert married Princess of Quentin Redburga. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]
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