Ælfflæd, wife of Edward the Elder
Encyclopedia
Ælfflæd was the second wife of Edward the Elder
, king of the English.
Ælfflæd was the daughter of an ealdorman
Æthelhelm. There were several contemporaries of this name, but some historians, including Pauline Stafford
and David H. Kelley
, have identified him as Æthelhelm
, a son of Edward's uncle, King Ethelred I. Barbara Yorke
rejected the idea, arguing that it does not appear to have been the practice for Æthelings (princes of the royal dynasty who were eligible to be king) to become ealdormen, that in a grant from King Alfred
to Ealdorman Æthelhelm there is no reference to kinship between them, and that the hostile reception to King Eadwig's marriage to Ælfgifu, his third cousin once removed, shows that a marriage between Edward and his first cousin once removed would have been forbidden as incestuous.
Ælfflæd married King Edward, c. 901 and became the mother of two sons, Ælfweard of Wessex
and Edwin
, and six daughters.
Edward the Elder
Edward the Elder was an English king. He became king in 899 upon the death of his father, Alfred the Great. His court was at Winchester, previously the capital of Wessex...
, king of the English.
Ælfflæd was the daughter of an ealdorman
Ealdorman
An ealdorman is the term used for a high-ranking royal official and prior magistrate of an Anglo-Saxon shire or group of shires from about the ninth century to the time of King Cnut...
Æthelhelm. There were several contemporaries of this name, but some historians, including Pauline Stafford
Pauline Stafford
Pauline Stafford is Professor Emerita of Early Medieval History at Liverpool University in England. Her work focuses on the history of women and gender in England from the eighth to the early twelfth centuries, and on the same topics in Frankish history during the eighth and ninth centuries...
and David H. Kelley
David H. Kelley
David Humiston Kelley was a Canadian American archaeologist and epigrapher, most noted for his work on the phonetic analysis and major contributions toward the decipherment of the writing system used by the Maya civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica, the Maya script.-Work and interests:From...
, have identified him as Æthelhelm
Æthelhelm
Æthelhelm or Æþelhelm was one of three known sons of King Æthelred I.Æthelred's sons were too young to become king when he died in 871, and the throne passed to their uncle, King Alfred the Great...
, a son of Edward's uncle, King Ethelred I. Barbara Yorke
Barbara Yorke
Barbara Yorke is a historian of Anglo-Saxon England.She studied history and archaeology at Exeter University, where she completed both her undergraduate degree and her Ph.D. She is currently Professor of Early Medieval History at the University of Winchester, and is a Fellow of the Royal...
rejected the idea, arguing that it does not appear to have been the practice for Æthelings (princes of the royal dynasty who were eligible to be king) to become ealdormen, that in a grant from King Alfred
Alfred the Great
Alfred the Great was King of Wessex from 871 to 899.Alfred is noted for his defence of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of southern England against the Vikings, becoming the only English monarch still to be accorded the epithet "the Great". Alfred was the first King of the West Saxons to style himself...
to Ealdorman Æthelhelm there is no reference to kinship between them, and that the hostile reception to King Eadwig's marriage to Ælfgifu, his third cousin once removed, shows that a marriage between Edward and his first cousin once removed would have been forbidden as incestuous.
Ælfflæd married King Edward, c. 901 and became the mother of two sons, Ælfweard of Wessex
Ælfweard of Wessex
Ælfweard was the second son of Edward the Elder, the eldest born to his second wife Ælfflæd.-Kingship and death:The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle simply states that Ælfweard died soon after his father's death on 17 July 924 and that they were buried together at Winchester Cathedral...
and Edwin
Edwin, son of Edward the Elder
Edwin was the younger son of King Edward the Elder and Ælfflæd, his second wife. He drowned at sea in circumstances which are unclear....
, and six daughters.
Sons
- ÆlfweardÆlfweard of WessexÆlfweard was the second son of Edward the Elder, the eldest born to his second wife Ælfflæd.-Kingship and death:The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle simply states that Ælfweard died soon after his father's death on 17 July 924 and that they were buried together at Winchester Cathedral...
(perhaps ruled one month in 924) - EdwinEdwin, son of Edward the ElderEdwin was the younger son of King Edward the Elder and Ælfflæd, his second wife. He drowned at sea in circumstances which are unclear....
(d. 933)
Daughters
- EadgifuEadgifu of EnglandEadgifu or Edgifu, also known as Edgiva or Ogive was a daughter of Edward the Elder, King of Wessex and England, and his second wife Ælfflæd. She was born in Wessex.- Marriage to the French King :...
, wife of Charles the SimpleCharles the SimpleCharles III , called the Simple or the Straightforward , was the undisputed King of France from 898 until 922 and the King of Lotharingia from 911 until 919/23... - Eadhild, wife of Duke Hugh the GreatHugh the GreatHugh the Great or Hugues le Grand was duke of the Franks and count of Paris, son of King Robert I of France and nephew of King Odo. He was born in Paris, Île-de-France, France. His eldest son was Hugh Capet who became King of France in 987...
- EadgythEadgythEdith of England , also spelt Eadgyth or Ædgyth, was the daughter of Edward the Elder, and the wife of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor.-Life:...
, wife of Otto IOtto I, Holy Roman EmperorOtto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan... - Ælfgifu (AdivaAdivaAdiva was wife of Boleslaus II of Bohemia. The similarity in name to certain Anglo-Saxon forms and the introduction of English-influenced coinage into Bohemia at the time has led to the hypothesis that she may be the daughter of Edward the Elder, King of England and his second wife Aelfflaed, who...
), wife of a continental nobleman - Eadflæd, nun
- Eadhild or Æthelhild, religious woman