180:, king of Wessex from 787 to 802, in 789. Offa was then the most powerful king in England, and Beorhtric gained his support as a result of the marriage. According to Asser, Eadburh became all powerful, and often demanded the executions or exile of her enemies. She was also alleged to have assassinated those men whom she couldn't compel Beorhtric to kill through poisoning their food or drink. In 802, according to Asser, Eadburh attempted to poison a young favourite of the king but instead killed both of them. The young man may have been called Worr, as the
264:, had taken refuge after being exiled by Beorhtric. There Asser relates that Charlemagne was smitten by the former queen. He brought in one of his sons and asked her which she preferred, him or his son, as a husband. She answered that, given the son's youth, she preferred the son. Charlemagne replied famously: "Had you chosen me, you would have had both of us. But, since you chose him, you shall have neither." He instead offered her a position as an abbess of a convent which she accepted.
204:
284:(queen), a title which was rarely used for king's wives in Wessex in the ninth century. According to Asser this was because of the shame Eadburh had brought on the position. However, Offa and Beorhtric had driven Egbert into exile in the 780s, and the blackening of her name may also have been partly due to a desire to discredit Beorhtric.
287:
Asser also writes that as a result of the aristocracy's resentment of
Eadburh the status and influence of the subsequent queens was diminished and they were titled not 'queen' but 'king's wife'; the queen was also prohibited from sitting beside the king on the throne. This changed again when
148:, but ruined the opportunity. Instead she was appointed as the abbess of a convent. Here she is said to have fornicated with an English exile. As a result, she was eventually expelled from the monastery and ended her days begging in the streets of
267:
Soon though she was caught in a sexual affair with another Saxon man and, after being duly convicted, was expelled on the direct orders of
Charlemagne, penniless, into the streets. In her last years she lived as a beggar on the streets of
446:
401:
387:
520:
515:
510:
495:
481:
415:
243:
225:
426:"Eadburh (Eadburga) (fl[oruit].] 789–802), queen of the West Saxons, consort of King Beorhtric"
535:
530:
383:
221:
474:
Gender, Family and the
Legitimation of Power: England from the Ninth to the early Twelfth Century.
214:
36:
358:
182:
102:
454:
168:. She was one of five children, four of them girls; they all witnessed a charter in 787.
8:
177:
126:
58:
488:
Carolingian
Connections: Anglo-Saxon England and Carolingian Francia, c. 750–870.
293:
342:
540:
491:
477:
472:, "Succession and inheritance: a gendered perspective on Alfred's family history" in
411:
397:
525:
469:
289:
261:
187:
136:
421:
140:
she killed her husband by poison while attempting to poison another. She fled to
161:
118:
80:
317:
504:
394:
Alfred the Great. Asser's Life of King Alfred and Other
Contemporary Sources.
425:
297:
257:
145:
228: in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
165:
122:
90:
256:
Eadburg subsequently fled to
Francia and took refuge at the court of
203:
70:
141:
114:
65:
20:
144:, where she is said to have been offered the chance of marrying
186:
records the death of both men shortly before the succession of
447:"Wicked Queens and Cousin Strategies in Beowulf and Elsewhere"
269:
149:
130:
190:, the grandfather of Alfred the Great, as king of Wessex.
392:
Keynes, Simon & Lapidge, Michael (eds & trans),
280:
Two possibly authentic charters of 801 show
Eadburh as
347:, Oxford Online Dictionary of National Biography, 2004
502:
351:
359:"Medieval Queenship | History Today"
244:Learn how and when to remove this message
19:For other people with the same name, see
117:787–802) was the daughter of King
444:
430:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
275:
503:
420:
338:
336:
388:Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England
226:adding citations to reliable sources
197:
13:
377:
333:
14:
552:
260:, where her husband's successor,
160:Eadburh was the daughter of King
16:Wife of Beorhtric, King of Wessex
202:
213:needs additional citations for
310:
1:
300:, be properly crowned queen.
445:Shippey, Tom (Summer 2001).
303:
7:
410:London: Unwin Hyman, 1991.
408:The Earliest English Kings.
292:insisted that his daughter
125:. She was the wife of King
10:
557:
521:Anglo-Saxon royal consorts
516:9th-century English people
511:8th-century English people
490:Aldershot: Ashgate, 2003.
476:Aldershot: Ashgate, 2006.
18:
432:. Oxford University Press
155:
86:
76:
64:
54:
50:
42:
35:
30:
451:The Heroic Age, Volume 5
193:
171:
396:London: Penguin, 1983.
106:
37:Queen consort of Wessex
183:Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
276:Aftermath and legacy
222:improve this article
457:on 23 November 2007
296:, who married King
129:, and according to
127:Beorhtric of Wessex
59:Beorhtric of Wessex
536:9th-century deaths
531:8th-century births
361:. historytoday.com
470:Stafford, Pauline
402:978-0-14-044409-4
343:Janet L. Nelson,
254:
253:
246:
96:
95:
548:
466:
464:
462:
453:. Archived from
441:
439:
437:
371:
370:
368:
366:
355:
349:
340:
331:
330:
329:
327:
322:, esawyer.org.uk
314:
290:Charles the Bald
262:Egbert of Wessex
249:
242:
238:
235:
229:
206:
198:
176:Eadburh married
137:Alfred the Great
109:), also spelled
28:
27:
556:
555:
551:
550:
549:
547:
546:
545:
501:
500:
486:Story, Joanna,
460:
458:
435:
433:
380:
378:Further reading
375:
374:
364:
362:
357:
356:
352:
341:
334:
325:
323:
316:
315:
311:
306:
278:
250:
239:
233:
230:
219:
207:
196:
174:
158:
24:
17:
12:
11:
5:
554:
544:
543:
538:
533:
528:
523:
518:
513:
499:
498:
484:
467:
442:
418:
404:
390:
379:
376:
373:
372:
350:
332:
308:
307:
305:
302:
277:
274:
252:
251:
210:
208:
201:
195:
192:
173:
170:
157:
154:
119:Offa of Mercia
94:
93:
88:
84:
83:
81:Offa of Mercia
78:
74:
73:
68:
62:
61:
56:
52:
51:
48:
47:
44:
40:
39:
33:
32:
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
553:
542:
539:
537:
534:
532:
529:
527:
524:
522:
519:
517:
514:
512:
509:
508:
506:
497:
496:0-7546-0124-2
493:
489:
485:
483:
482:0-86078-994-2
479:
475:
471:
468:
456:
452:
448:
443:
431:
427:
423:
422:Nelson, Janet
419:
417:
416:0-04-445691-3
413:
409:
406:Kirby, D.P.,
405:
403:
399:
395:
391:
389:
385:
382:
381:
360:
354:
348:
346:
339:
337:
321:
320:
313:
309:
301:
299:
295:
291:
285:
283:
273:
271:
265:
263:
259:
248:
245:
237:
234:November 2022
227:
223:
217:
216:
211:This section
209:
205:
200:
199:
191:
189:
185:
184:
179:
169:
167:
163:
153:
151:
147:
143:
139:
138:
132:
128:
124:
120:
116:
112:
108:
104:
100:
92:
89:
85:
82:
79:
75:
72:
69:
67:
63:
60:
57:
53:
49:
45:
41:
38:
34:
29:
26:
22:
487:
473:
459:. Retrieved
455:the original
450:
434:. Retrieved
429:
407:
393:
363:. Retrieved
353:
344:
324:, retrieved
318:
312:
286:
281:
279:
266:
255:
240:
231:
220:Please help
215:verification
212:
181:
175:
159:
134:
110:
98:
97:
25:
319:Sawyer 1267
258:Charlemagne
146:Charlemagne
103:Old English
505:Categories
461:21 October
166:Cynethryth
164:and Queen
123:Cynethryth
121:and Queen
91:Cynethryth
436:3 October
384:Eadburg 5
304:Citations
298:Æthelwulf
178:Beorhtric
541:Iclingas
424:(2004).
365:15 March
326:14 April
135:Life of
71:Iclingas
526:Beggars
345:Eadburh
142:Francia
111:Eadburg
107:Ēadburh
99:Eadburh
46:786–802
31:Eadburh
21:Edburga
494:
480:
414:
400:
294:Judith
282:regina
188:Egbert
156:Family
87:Mother
77:Father
55:Spouse
43:Tenure
270:Pavia
194:Exile
172:Queen
150:Pavia
131:Asser
66:House
492:ISBN
478:ISBN
463:2007
438:2007
412:ISBN
398:ISBN
367:2016
328:2015
162:Offa
386:at
224:by
133:'s
115:fl.
113:, (
507::
449:.
428:.
335:^
272:.
152:.
105::
465:.
440:.
369:.
247:)
241:(
236:)
232:(
218:.
101:(
23:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
