Elmet was an independent
BrythonicThe Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
kingdom covering a broad area of what later became the
West Riding of YorkshireThe West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...
during the
Early Middle AgesThe Early Middle Ages was the period of European history lasting from the 5th century to approximately 1000. The Early Middle Ages followed the decline of the Western Roman Empire and preceded the High Middle Ages...
, between approximately the 5th century and early 7th century. Although its precise boundaries are unclear, it appears to have been bordered by the
River SheafThe River Sheaf is a river in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Its source is the union of the Totley Brook and the Old Hay Brook in Totley, now a suburb of Sheffield. It flows northwards, past Dore, through the valley called Abbeydale and north of Heeley...
in the south and the
River WharfeThe River Wharfe is a river in Yorkshire, England. For much of its length it is the county boundary between West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire. The name Wharfe is Celtic and means "twisting, winding".The valley of the River Wharfe is known as Wharfedale...
in the east. It adjoined Deira to the north and
MerciaMercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
to the south, and its western boundary appears to have been near
CravenCraven is a local government district in North Yorkshire, England that came into being in 1974, centred on the market town of Skipton. In the changes to British local government of that year this district was formed as the merger of Skipton urban district, Settle Rural District and most of Skipton...
, which was possibly a minor British kingdom. As such it was well to the east of other territories of the Britons in
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and the
West CountryThe West Country is an informal term for the area of south western England roughly corresponding to the modern South West England government region. It is often defined to encompass the historic counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset and the City of Bristol, while the counties of...
(i.e.
CornwallCornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
and
DumnoniaDumnonia is the Latinised name for the Brythonic kingdom in sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries, located in the farther parts of the south-west peninsula of Great Britain...
), and to the south of those in the
Hen OgleddYr Hen Ogledd is a Welsh term used by scholars to refer to those parts of what is now northern England and southern Scotland in the years between 500 and the Viking invasions of c. 800, with particular interest in the Brythonic-speaking peoples who lived there.The term is derived from heroic...
or Old North. As one of the southeasternmost Brythonic regions for which there is reasonably substantial evidence, it is notable for having survived relatively late in the period of
Anglo-Saxon conquestThe Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain was the invasion and migration of Germanic peoples from continental Europe to Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages, specifically the arrival of the Anglo-Saxons in Britain after the demise of Roman rule in the 5th century.The stimulus, progression and...
.
Elmet was invaded and conquered by
NorthumbriaNorthumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
in the autumn of 616 or 626. The kingdom is chiefly attested in
topographicalTopography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
and archaeological evidence, references in early Welsh poetry, and historical sources such as the
Historia Brittonum and
BedeBede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
. The name survives throughout the area in place names such as
Barwick-in-ElmetBarwick-in-Elmet is a village east of the centre of but still part of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is one of only three places in the area to be explicitly associated with the ancient Celtic kingdom of Elmet, the others being Scholes-in-Elmet and Sherburn-in-Elmet. It is part of...
and
Sherburn-in-ElmetSherburn-in-Elmet is a town and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England, situated close to Selby. It is one of only three places in the area to be explicitly associated with the ancient Celtic kingdom of Elmet via featuring the kingdom's title in its name, the others being...
. A local parliamentary constituency is also called
ElmetElmet was a county constituency in West Yorkshire represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
.
History
Elmet was one of a number of
Sub-RomanSub-Roman Britain is a term derived from an archaeological label for the material culture of Britain in Late Antiquity: the term "Sub-Roman" was invented to describe the potsherds in sites of the 5th century and the 6th century, initially with an implication of decay of locally-made wares from a...
BrythonThe Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
ic realms of northern
BritanniaBritannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
that existed during the Early Middle Ages (often referred to as the Dark Ages). As well as Elmet, these included
RhegedRheged is described in poetic sources as one of the kingdoms of the Hen Ogledd , the Brythonic-speaking region of what is now northern England and southern Scotland, during the Early Middle Ages...
,
StrathclydeStrathclyde , originally Brythonic Ystrad Clud, was one of the early medieval kingdoms of the celtic people called the Britons in the Hen Ogledd, the Brythonic-speaking parts of what is now southern Scotland and northern England. The kingdom developed during the post-Roman period...
, Ebrauc, Bryneich and
GododdinThe Gododdin were a Brittonic people of north-eastern Britain in the sub-Roman period, the area known as the Hen Ogledd or Old North...
. It is unclear how Elmet came to be established, though it has been suggested that it may have been created from a larger kingdom ruled by the semi-legendary Coel Hen. The historian
Alex WoolfAlex Woolf is a medieval historian based at the University of St Andrews. He specialises in the history of the British Isles and Scandinavia in the Early Middle Ages, especially in relation to the peoples of Wales and Scotland. He is author of volume two in the New Edinburgh History of Scotland,...
suggests that the region of Elmet had a distinct tribal identity in pre-Roman times and that this re-emerged after Roman rule collapsed.
The existence of Elmet is attested in the
Historia Brittonum, which says that King
Edwin of NorthumbriaEdwin , also known as Eadwine or Æduini, was the King of Deira and Bernicia – which later became known as Northumbria – from about 616 until his death. He converted to Christianity and was baptised in 627; after he fell at the Battle of Hatfield Chase, he was venerated as a saint.Edwin was the son...
"occupied Elmet and expelled
CerticCeretic of Elmet was the last king of Elmet, a Brythonic kingdom that existed in the West Yorkshire area of Northern Britain during sub-Roman times....
, king of that country".
BedeBede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
's
Historia ecclesiastica gentis AnglorumThe Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum is a work in Latin by Bede on the history of the Christian Churches in England, and of England generally; its main focus is on the conflict between Roman and Celtic Christianity.It is considered to be one of the most important original references on...
says that Hereric, the father of St
Hilda of WhitbyHilda of Whitby or Hild of Whitby was a Christian saint and the founding abbess of the monastery at Whitby, which was chosen as the venue for the Synod of Whitby...
, was killed at the court of King Ceretic. It is generally presumed that Ceretic/Certic were the same person, otherwise known as Ceredig ap Gwallog. However, Bede does not speak of Elmet as the name of a kingdom but rather as that of a forest of Elmet,
silva Elmete. He mentions that "subsequent kings made a house for themselves in the district, which is called Loidis" and the battle of Winwaed, also in the region of
Loidis - probably the area covered by the present day
City of LeedsThe City of Leeds is a local government district of West Yorkshire, England, governed by Leeds City Council, with the status of a city and metropolitan borough. The metropolitan district includes Leeds and the towns of Farsley, Garforth, Guiseley, Horsforth, Morley, Otley, Pudsey, Rothwell,...
.
Elmet appears to have had ties with
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
; an early
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
inscription found in
GwyneddGwynedd is a county in north-west Wales, named after the old Kingdom of Gwynedd. Although the second biggest in terms of geographical area, it is also one of the most sparsely populated...
reads "ALIOTVS ELMETIACOS HIC IACET", or "Aliotus the Elmetian lies here". A
cantref (administrative division) of
DyfedDyfed is a preserved county of Wales. It was created on 1 April 1974 under the terms of the Local Government Act 1972, and covered approximately the same geographic extent as the ancient Principality of Deheubarth, although excluding the Gower Peninsula and the area west of the River Tawe...
was also named
Elfed, the
WelshWelsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
equivalent of Elmet. A number of kings of Elmet are recorded in Welsh sources. One of
TaliesinTaliesin was an early British poet of the post-Roman period whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the Book of Taliesin...
's poems is for
Gwallog ap LlaennogGwallog ap Llaennog was a hero of the Hen Ogledd and probable 6th century king of the sub-Roman state of Elmet in the Leeds area of modern Yorkshire.He joined a group of Brythonic kings, including Urien Rheged, Rhydderch Hael and Morgant Bwlch of...
, who ruled the kingdom near the end of the 6th century.
Towards the end of the 6th century, Elmet came under increasing pressure from the expanding Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Deira and Mercia. Forces from Elmet joined the ill-fated alliance in 590 against the
AnglesThe Angles is a modern English term for a Germanic people who took their name from the ancestral cultural region of Angeln, a district located in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany...
of
BerniciaBernicia was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England....
who had been making massive inroads further to the north. During this war it is thought Elmet's king Gwallog was killed. The northern alliance collapsed after Urien of Rheged was murdered and a feud broke out between two of its key members. It appears that after this, and the subsequent unification of the Anglian kingdom of
NorthumbriaNorthumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
, Elmet was compelled to construct a series of defensive ditches to the north and west of
Barwick-in-ElmetBarwick-in-Elmet is a village east of the centre of but still part of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is one of only three places in the area to be explicitly associated with the ancient Celtic kingdom of Elmet, the others being Scholes-in-Elmet and Sherburn-in-Elmet. It is part of...
in an apparent attempt to provide an extra line of defence for their king's hill fort - the remains of which can still be seen in this village.
The Northumbrians invaded and overran Elmet in 616. It is not known definitely what prompted the invasion, but it has been suggested that the
casus belli is a Latin expression meaning the justification for acts of war. means "incident", "rupture" or indeed "case", while means bellic...
was the death by poisoning of the Northumbrian nobleman Hereric, who was an exiled member of the Northumbrian royal house residing in Elmet. It may have been that Hereric had been poisoned by his hosts and Edwin of Northumbria invaded in retaliation; or perhaps Edwin himself had Hereric poisoned and invaded Elmet to punish Ceredig ap Gwallog for harbouring him.
After the conquest of Elmet, the realm was incorporated into Northumbria - on Easter Day, 627 - and the people were known as the
Elmetsæte. They are recorded in the late 7th century
Tribal HidageImage:Tribal Hidage 2.svg|thumb|400px|alt=insert description of map here|The tribes of the Tribal Hidage. Where an appropriate article exists, it can be found by clicking on the name.rect 275 75 375 100 Elmetrect 375 100 450 150 Hatfield Chase...
as the inhabitants of a minor territory of 600
hidesThe hide was originally an amount of land sufficient to support a household, but later in Anglo-Saxon England became a unit used in assessing land for liability to "geld", or land tax. The geld would be collected at a stated rate per hide...
. They were the most northerly group recorded in the
Tribal Hidage. The Elmetsæte probably continued to reside in
West YorkshireWest Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
as a distinct group throughout the Saxon period and may have colluded with
Cadwallon ap CadfanCadwallon ap Cadfan was the King of Gwynedd from around 625 until his death in battle. The son and successor of Cadfan ap Iago, he is best remembered as the King of the Britons who invaded and conquered Northumbria, defeating and killing its king, Edwin, prior to his own death in battle against...
of Gwynedd when he invaded Northumbria and briefly held the area in 633. The Life of
Cathróe of MetzSaint Cathróe was a monk and abbot. His life is recorded in a hagiography written soon after his death by a monk at the monastery of Saint Felix at Metz, where Cathróe was abbot...
mentions
Loidam Civitatem as the boundary between the Norsemen of
JórvíkScandinavian York is a term, like the terms Kingdom of Jórvík or Kingdom of York, used by historians for the kingdom of Northumbria in the late 9th century and first half of the 10th century, when it was dominated by Norse warrior-kings; in particular, it is used to refer to the city controlled by...
and the Brythonic Cumbrians of
StrathclydeStrathclyde , originally Brythonic Ystrad Clud, was one of the early medieval kingdoms of the celtic people called the Britons in the Hen Ogledd, the Brythonic-speaking parts of what is now southern Scotland and northern England. The kingdom developed during the post-Roman period...
: if this refers to Leeds, it suggests that some or all of Elmet may have been returned to Brythonic rule for a brief period in the first half of the 10th century prior to Anglo-Saxon reconquest, but not as an independent state.
The survival of the local Brythonic community is probably responsible for the large number of Brythonic-derived placenames in the area, and of Anglo-Saxon placenames beginning
Eccles- (from Anglo-Saxon
ecles = "church", taken from Celtic) and
Wal- (from Anglo-Saxon
wealh = "Celtic native"). The inhabitants of Elmet are believed to have called themselves the
Loides, a name which is still reflected in placenames: notably
LedstonLedston is a village and civil parish north of Castleford and east of Leeds in the county of West Yorkshire, England. The village is in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough...
,
LedshamLedsham is a village and civil parish north of Castleford and east of Leeds in the county of West Yorkshire, England. The village is in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough and near to the River Aire and the A1 Great North Road. It has a population of 162.There is an 8th century Anglo-Saxon...
,
LeathleyLeathley is a village and civil parish in the Harrogate district of North Yorkshire, England. It is near the border with West Yorkshire and the River Wharfe, 1 mile north east of Otley.-External links:...
and the modern city of
LeedsLeeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
("Ledes" in 1086
Domesday BookDomesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
).
Kings of Elmet
- Masgwid Gloff (c.460 – c.495)
- Llaennog ap Masgwid (c.495 – c.540)
- Arthuis ap Masgwid (c.540 – c.560)
- Gwallog ap Llaennog
Gwallog ap Llaennog was a hero of the Hen Ogledd and probable 6th century king of the sub-Roman state of Elmet in the Leeds area of modern Yorkshire.He joined a group of Brythonic kings, including Urien Rheged, Rhydderch Hael and Morgant Bwlch of...
(c.560 – 590)
- Ceredig ap Gwallog (590 – 616) d. 618
Legacy
The area is the subject of an acclaimed 1979 book combining photography and poetry;
Remains of Elmet, by
Ted HughesEdward James Hughes OM , more commonly known as Ted Hughes, was an English poet and children's writer. Critics routinely rank him as one of the best poets of his generation. Hughes was British Poet Laureate from 1984 until his death.Hughes was married to American poet Sylvia Plath, from 1956 until...
and
Fay GodwinFay Godwin was a noted British photographer, most widely known for her black-and-white landscapes of the British countryside and coast.-Career:Through her husband, Godwin was introduced to the London literary scene...
. The book was re-published by
Faber and FaberFaber and Faber Limited, often abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in the UK, notable in particular for publishing a great deal of poetry and for its former editor T. S. Eliot. Faber has a rich tradition of publishing a wide range of fiction, non fiction, drama, film and music...
in 1994 simply titled
Elmet, and with a third of the book being new additional poems and photographs.
Further reading
- David Rollason, Northumbria, 500-1100, Cambridge University Press (2003)
- Christopher A Snyder, The Britons, Blackwell Publishing (2003)
- Alex Woolf, "Romancing the Celts: a segmentary approach to acculturation", in Cultural Identity in the Roman Empire, ed. Ray Laurence, Joanne Berry. Routledge (1998)
External links