Mercia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kingdom of Mercia
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| 527–918 | |||||||||||||||
The Kingdom of Mercia (thick line) and the kingdom's extent
during the Mercian Supremacy (green shading) |
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| Status | Independent kingdom (527–879) Client state of Wessex (c. 879–918) |
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| Capital | Tamworth | ||||||||||||||
| Common languages | Old English, Latin | ||||||||||||||
| Religion | Paganism, Christianity | ||||||||||||||
| Government | Absolute monarchy | ||||||||||||||
| Monarch | |||||||||||||||
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• 527–?
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Icel (first) | ||||||||||||||
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• c. 626–655
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Penda | ||||||||||||||
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• 658-675
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Wulfhere | ||||||||||||||
| Legislature | Witenagemot | ||||||||||||||
| Historical era | Heptarchy | ||||||||||||||
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• Established
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527 | ||||||||||||||
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• Disestablished
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918 | ||||||||||||||
| Currency | Sceat | ||||||||||||||
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| Today part of |
• West Midlands
• East Midlands • East of England • Greater London • Yorkshire & the Humber (N. Lincs. and NE Lincs.) • Northern parts of South East England (incl. Berks., Beds., Herts., Oxon. Surrey, and Bucks.) • North West England • Wales (Flintshire and Wrexham) |
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Mercia was an important kingdom in old England, ruled by the Anglo-Saxons. Its name means "border people". For about 300 years, Mercia was very powerful. It slowly lost its power as another kingdom, Wessex, grew stronger. Eventually, Wessex united all the kingdoms into the Kingdom of England.
Mercia was located in the area now called the English Midlands. Its main area was around the River Trent. The kings did not have one fixed capital city. They moved their court around the kingdom.
For 300 years, from about 600 to 900 AD, Mercia was the strongest kingdom in England south of the River Humber. This time is known as the Mercian Supremacy. Mercia took over or gained control of five other kingdoms: East Anglia, Essex, Kent, Sussex, and Wessex.
King Offa's rule is often called the "Golden Age of Mercia". He is famous for building Offa's Dyke, a large earth wall. This wall marked the border between Mercia and the Welsh kingdoms.
Mercia started as a pagan kingdom. King Peada became a Christian around 656 AD. By the late 7th century, Christianity was well established in Mercia.
By the end of the 9th century, Vikings invaded England. Their Great Heathen Army took over much of Mercia. This area became part of the Danelaw, which was ruled by the Vikings. The Danelaw included London, all of East Anglia, and most of northern England.
The last king of Mercia, Ceolwulf II, died in 879 AD.
Today, the name Mercia is still used. Many groups, like military units and businesses, use it as a geographic name.
Contents
Important Kings of Mercia
King Penda
Penda (who ruled from about 626 to 655 AD) was a pagan king of Mercia. He brought together many smaller kingdoms to create Mercia. In the 630s, Mercia was not as strong as other large Anglo-Saxon kingdoms.
Northumbria was a powerful kingdom that wanted to expand into Mercia. So, King Penda made an unusual alliance. He teamed up with Gwynedd, a strong British kingdom to the west. This was strange because Penda was pagan and Gwynedd was Christian. But their alliance worked. Together, they defeated the Northumbrian king, Edwin. Edwin died in the Battle of Hatfield Chase.
King Æthelred I
Æthelred I (who ruled from 675 to 716 AD) was one of Penda's sons. He was the third of Penda's sons to become king of Mercia. He attacked Kent to stop them from breaking away from his rule. In 679, he fought a war against Northumbria.
Theodore, the Archbishop of Canterbury, helped make peace between the two kings. Æthelred married Ostryth, who was the daughter of the king of Bernicia.
Æthelred was a Christian king. He helped start several churches and monasteries. In 704, he decided to stop being king. He gave the crown to his nephew, Cenred. Æthelred then became the head of the Bardsey monastery. He likely died around 716 AD.
King Offa
Offa (who ruled from 757 to 796 AD) was a very powerful king. Some people say he was the first Anglo-Saxon king who could truly be called "king of the English." He was the son of Thingfrith, who was King Penda's brother.
Offa became king after a civil war in Mercia. He worked hard to gain control. He was strong and clever in bringing Kent, Sussex, and Essex under his power. Offa also had dealings with other rulers in Europe. He exchanged letters and gifts with Charlemagne, a famous emperor.
Offa was very involved in church matters. He even led church meetings himself. In 787, he convinced the Pope to create a new archbishop position in Mercia, in the city of Lichfield. He wanted an archbishop closer to him than the Archbishop of Canterbury.
He also improved the defenses of his kingdom. One of his most famous defenses was Offa's Dyke. This was a huge earth wall built between Mercia and the Welsh kingdoms to the west.
Offa died in 796 AD. His son, Ecgfrith, was king for only 141 days. Mercia was never as powerful again as it was during Offa's rule.
Viking Invasions
In 844, a new Mercian king named Raedwulf was killed by Viking raiders. In 855, Viking groups were seen in Mercia near Wrekin. But in 865, the Viking attacks changed a lot. A much larger army arrived. This was the w:Great Heathen Army, and it landed in East Anglia.
For a while, the Danes (Vikings) were more interested in Northumbria. They took control of York. Then they moved south into Mercia and stayed for the winter in Nottingham.
In the spring of 868, the armies of Mercia and Wessex joined together to fight the Vikings. But there was no battle. The Mercian king, Burghred, made a peace treaty with the Vikings. The Vikings then moved north to York.
In 873, the Vikings forced King Burghred out of Mercia. They then chose their own king, Ceowulf.
In 874, the heathen army split up. Halfdan, one of the Viking leaders, took his group north.
In 878, the Vikings in Mercia were attacked and defeated by King Alfred of Wessex. After their defeat, many Vikings became Christians. They then settled on land in East Anglia.
Mercia's Decline
The ninth century saw Mercia lose its power as a kingdom.
In 873-874, the heathen army conquered Mercia.
In the 880s, Wessex and Mercia formed an alliance through marriage. Alfred's daughter, Æthelflæd, married Æthelred, the Lord of the Mercians. When Æthelred died in 911, Edward the Elder (Alfred's son) appointed Æthelflæd as 'Lady of the Mercians.'
When Æthelflæd died in 918, the Mercian nobles thought they were free from Wessex rule. But Edward stepped in. He appointed Æthelflæd's daughter, Ælfwynn, to rule Mercia as his representative. However, in 919, Edward brought Ælfwynn back to Wessex.
After this, Mercia was no longer a separate kingdom. It became just another shire under Edward's rule. Later, under Canute in 1017, Mercia became one of the four main divisions of England.
Images for kids
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The Staffordshire Hoard, a huge collection of Anglo-Saxon treasures found in 2009.
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A mention of Mercia in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, an old history book.
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A map showing the different parts of Mercia.
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The coat of arms for St Albans City Council, showing a link to Mercia's past.
See also
In Spanish: Reino de Mercia para niños
