Western History 63: Who were some of the Anglo-Saxon monarchs of note?

The various English Kingdoms were ruled from the 5^th to the 11^th century by Monarchs of Anglo-Saxon origin. England was not a United land for much of this time and was comprised of the Kingdoms of East Anglia, Essex, Mercia, Northumbria, Kent, Wessex, Sussex (also known as the Heptarchy). Minor kingdoms such as Lindsey and Ynys Weith existed as well with many of these regions controlled by tribal chiefs and petty warlords.

Danish invaders made incursion into the Northern Kingdoms conquering territory that eventually became known as Danelaw with Danegeld often sought by the kings (in the form of a tax) to raise funds to protect against these Danish invaders. Some of the more important Saxon Kings are listed in Table 13 along some of the events that characterized their reign.

Table 13 Seven Saxon Kings

  

Monarch Name	Events of Note
Aethelbald (d. 757)	King of Mercia. During his realm Mercia would grow to dominate other Kingdoms.
Offa of Mercia (d. 796)	Consolidated control of the Midlands. Strengthened Christian tradition
Egbert of Wessex (d. 839)	Victor over the Mercians. Rise of Wessex superiority.
Alfred the Great (b. 849- d. 899)	Arguably the Greatest Saxon Monarch. King of Wessex from 871. Defeated the Vikings (Battle of Edington), improved the legal system, built up the navy and ruled during a prosperous time. He was also responsible for reforming Education.
Aethalstan (d. 939 )	King who united the Heptarchy into the Kingdom of England. Victor at the Battle of Brunabburh over Norse-Scottish Alliance.
Aethelred the Unready (d. 1016)	Was king during the defeat at the hands of the Vikings at Maldon in 991. Payment of the Danegeld to the Vikings would be required. Danish king Cnut would take power in England in 1016.
Edward the Confessor (d.1066)	Last King of the House of Wessex.  Ruled from 1042-1066. His death resulted in the succession crisis that eventually resulted in the end of Saxon rule and the rise of Norman Power.