Icel of Mercia facts for kids

Icel (born around 460 AD, died around 535 AD), sometimes spelled Icil, was a very important leader in early English history. He is thought to have been one of the first kings of a powerful kingdom called Mercia. Icel was supposedly the son of Eomer, who was the last king of the Angles people in a region called Angeln (modern-day Denmark/Germany).

Icel is believed to have led his people across the North Sea to Britain around the year 515 AD. This was during a time when many groups, known as the Anglo-Saxons, were settling in Britain. Icel was so important that his family line, the Iclingas, was named after him.

The Story of Icel

Early Life and Migration

This map shows where the Angles (Icel's people, in red) and Saxons (in blue) settled around 500 AD. This was during Icel's lifetime.

Icel was born before 489 AD, probably around 460 AD. When his father, Eomer, died in 489 AD, Icel became the king of Anglia. He was the last king to rule Anglia before his people moved.

Around 515 AD, Icel led his people from their homeland to what is now England. In that same year, he became a leader in the area that would later be known as Mercia.

Settling in Britain

By 527 AD, Icel and his people had traveled through East Anglia and into Mercia. A book from the 13th century, called the Flores Historiarum, tells us about this time. It says: "Pagans came from Germany and occupied East Anglia... and some of them invaded Mercia, and waged war against the British." This means that Icel's people, who were not Christian at the time, moved into these areas and fought with the local British people.

By the time Icel died around 535 AD, he was said to control large parts of both East Anglia and Mercia. Because of this, many historians consider him to be the first true king of Mercia. After Icel's death, his son, Cnebba, took over as leader.