Hereswith facts for kids

Hereswith was a special woman from Northumbria who lived a long time ago, in the 600s. She was known as a saint. Hereswith married into the royal family of East Anglia. Later, she decided to live a religious life and moved to Gaul (which is now France). Hereswith's sister was Saint Hilda, who founded a famous monastery at Whitby. We know about Hereswith from old writings like Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica.

Her Family and Early Life

Hereswith came from an important family in Northumbria. Her great-grandfather was King Ælle of Deira. Her father, Hereric, was the nephew of King Edwin of Northumbria.

Around the year 604, King Æthelfrith of Bernicia took control of Deira. This meant Edwin and Hereric had to leave their home and go into exile.

Hereric was married to Beorhtswith (also called Breguswith). They had two daughters: Hereswith and her younger sister, Hild, who was born around 613. While in exile, Hereric sought safety in a British kingdom called Elmet. Sadly, he died there from poisoning.

King Edwin, Hereswith's uncle, also moved around to different courts. Eventually, he found safety with King Rædwald of East Anglia. Æthelfrith tried to get Rædwald to harm Edwin, but Rædwald's queen convinced him not to. Instead, Rædwald fought Æthelfrith and won the Battle of the River Idle. After this victory, Rædwald helped Edwin become the new king of Northumbria.

Life in Northumbria

Once Edwin became king, Hereswith's family joined his royal household. King Edwin became friends with King Eadbald of Kent. Edwin decided to marry Eadbald's sister, Æthelburg. However, Eadbald agreed to the marriage only if Edwin became a Christian.

In 625, Edwin married Æthelburg. Two years later, in the spring of 627, Edwin and his household were baptized as Christians in York. This included Hereswith, her sister Hild, and their mother Breguswith. They were baptized by a bishop named Paulinus.

Moving to East Anglia

It was likely around this time that Hereswith married a man named Æthilric. He was the son of Eni, a powerful figure in East Anglia. This marriage was probably arranged by King Edwin.

Some historians believe that Æthilric might be the same person as Ecgric of East Anglia. Ecgric ruled East Anglia with Sigeberht of East Anglia in the early 630s. This was a time when Christianity was brought back to East Anglia. Because Hereswith married into this royal family, it suggests that Æthilric was expected to become a ruler, and he was either already Christian or became Christian because of the marriage.

King Edwin was killed in battle around 632. Later, Ecgric and Sigeberht also died fighting against a pagan ruler named Penda, probably in 636. After them, another Christian son of Eni, named Anna, became king.

Hereswith's Son

Hereswith and Æthilric had a son named Ealdwulf. He was probably born in the late 620s. Ealdwulf later became king of East Anglia himself, ruling from 664 to 713. He followed two other sons of Eni, Æthelhere and Æthelwold, who ruled after King Anna. Ealdwulf was seen as the rightful heir to the royal family of East Anglia.

Hereswith Becomes a Nun

In the 640s, Hereswith's sister, Hild, was learning about Christianity from Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne. Around 647, Hild traveled to East Anglia to visit Hereswith.

However, Hereswith had already left. She decided to live a religious life as a nun. At that time, there were no nunneries (monasteries for women) in East Anglia. So, Hereswith traveled to Gaul (modern-day France). According to Bede, she lived at Chelles Abbey, which was a royal monastery. Hereswith stayed in Gaul for the rest of her life, dedicating herself to God.

After staying in East Anglia for about a year, Hild returned to Northumbria. She went on to lead the monastery of Hartlepool and later founded the very important Whitby Abbey. King Edwin was buried there.