The East Saxon Kingdom

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HISTORYc.600 ² 700

Sæberht(´sea-bright´) d.616In the early C7th, Kentish influence was dominant in the province of the East Saxons. King Sæberht, so of Sledd, was converted to Christianity through the intervention of his uncle andoverlord King Æthelbert of Kent in 604. According to Bede, it was Æthelbert who foundedSt Paul·s in London. Originally, it was intended to become the seat of the archbishop of England, and Mellitus of Gaul was established as the first bishop of the East Saxons.Sæberht died in 616; his descendants ruled the East Saxon kingdom for the whole of theC7th, and all chose names which began with ¶S·.



Seaward (´sea-guardµ), Seaxred (´sword-wiseµ) and ?Seaxbald (´sword-bold´) 616 - 617Following the deaths of Æthelbert and Sæberhtin 616, there was a reaction against Sæberhtand Christianity, led by his pagan sons. According to Bede, it was because Mellitus refused tolet them taste the sacramental bread. The bishop and his clerics were expelled from London, andCanterbury became the archdiocesan seat.It is interesting to note that the brothers seem tohave acted in union and may have ruled as joint-kings.

Eadbald of Kent (616 ² 640) was unable to recover his father·s overlordship, allowing other foreign rulers the opportunity to extend their control into the East Saxon provinces. Atleast two of the brothers died in battle in c.617/618 against the Gewissæ, possibly for controlof Surrey. Again, it is apparent that they were acting in concert.

Sigeberht (´victory-bright´) 617²´Parvusµ (little)´Sanctusµ (holy)

The next datable event in East Saxon history is c.653 when overlord Oswiu of Northumbriapersuaded SigeberhtSanctusto adopt Christianity. Oswiu was mobilising opposition to Pendaof Mercia at the time and sent a group of missionaries led by St Cedd, who became bishop of the East Saxons (possibly at London). Several churches were founded, including Ithancester (Bradwell) and Tilaburg (Tilbury), all presumably dependent on Lindisfarne (Ceddwas consecrated as bishop by Finan).

Once again, however, there was a violent reaction, which may have been political as wellas religious. Sigeberht was murdered by two relatives because ´he was too ready to pardon hisenemiesµ (Bede), an interesting clash between Christian values and the Germanic tradition of revenge against wrongdoers.

Swiðhelm (´strong-helmµ) and ?Swiðfrið(´strong-peaceµ) d.664It may be that the murderers of Sigeberht were his successors, Swiðhelm and Swiðfrið, who mayhave been brothers and, it is claimed, were the sons of Seaxbald, the putative third son of Sæberht. They seem to have ruled as joint kings. Swiðhelmsubsequently converted toChristianity and was baptised in East Anglia at the court of King Æthelwald (665 ² 663), withCedd remaining as bishop of the East Saxons. Swiðhelmdied in 664, at the time of the ´greatplagueµ (Bede), and Swiðrið disappears from the record.



Sigehere (´victory-armyµ) 664 ² 688 and Sæbbi (´sea-?µ) 664 ² 693/4The next pair of kings, Sigehere and Sæbbi, were cousins and are described as ´co-heirsµ.They appear to have ruled different provinces (Bede) and followed different religious andforeign policies: Sigehereapostasised and is linked with Wessex in the 680s; Sæbbi remained

Christian and seems to have sided with Mercia. An obvious division would be between the EastSaxon homeland (Sæbbi?) and the province of the Middle Saxons (Sigehere?).

Wulfhere of Mercia (658 ² 675) moved quickly to make himself overlord of the EastSaxon provinces north of the Thames. A mission was sent under Bishop Jaruman of Mercia(d.669) to reconvert part of the East Saxons who had apostasised during the plague; Wulfheresubsequently provided a new bishop of London when he sold the see to Wine in c.666 (he hadbeen expelled from his seat at Dorchester by the king of the Gewissæ).

The province of Surrey appears to have been under the influence of Egbert of Kent

(664 ² 673) early in the reigns of the joint-kings, for he was able to found Chertsey abbey in666; by 672/4, however, it would appear that the Mercian king had gained the upper hand, whenFriðuwald described himself as subking of Wulfhere in a charter to Chertsey.

After Wulfhere·s death in 675, it would appear that Kent was able to reassert itsinfluence north of the Thames. The Laws of Hlothere and Eadric (673 ² 685) refer to Kentishcommercial and political interests in London, including a royal residence and a reeve. Cædwallaof Wessex, during his short but spectacular period of overlordship in southern England (685 ²688) oversaw the foundation of a series of minster churches in Surrey, and the presence of

West Saxon witnesses in East Saxon charters suggests overlordship of the main province aswell. One of the charters is witnessed by Sigehere and refers to h is conquest of Kent; perhapshe worked with Cædwalla·s brother Mul who became king of Kent (686-7) and was rewardedwith the position of subking of West Kent.

After Cædwalla·s departure for Rome (688), Æthelred of Mercia (675 ² 704) wasable to reassert overlordship and appointed a comesto oversee his interest in London, butSurrey seems to have remained under West Saxon control. The fact that Surrey was still in theLondon diocese seems to have caused various disputes between Ine of Wessex (688 ² 726) and

the kings of the East Saxons/Mercia until the end of the C7th

. Nevertheless, with Merciansupport, Sæbbi was able to achieve dominance in the East Saxon homeland. His sonSwæfheard took West Kent and ruled as co-king (688 ² 694) after the Kentishmen revoltedand killedMul; he may also have been a subking of his father.Both kings of Kent acknowledgedthe overlordship of Æthelred, who may have provided military support for their revolt. It is also



possible that Sæbbi·s other sons held subsidiary positions of authority while their father wasalive.

Sigeheard (´victory-hardµ) acc.693/4 and Swæfred (´dream-counselµ)

acc.693/4Sæbbi died in 693/4 as a monk in London; he was buried in St Paul·s, and was succeeded bytwo of his sons, who ruled as co-kings, while their brother continued as ruler of West Kent. Theyappear to have shared power with Offa son of Sigehere (d.688), but his position is confusing.On one hand, he is described as rexand was able to grant land in his own right; on the other hand, he is also described as subregulusand Bede says he was an expectant heir, rather than afull king. It would appear that he probably ruled a province(region) or district ( ge), perhapsinheriting some authority form his father. A similar position seems to have been held by

ðelred, who describes himself as a ´kinsmanµ of Sæbbi and was able to make grants of landto Barking abbey, but is never described as king. It has been suggested that he was the ruler of Surrey.

ConclusionThe East Saxon kingdom never produced one of the great overlords of the Anglo-Saxons,though they were for some time overlords of the Middle Saxons and even, for a brief period,rulers over West Kent. They were frequently subject to foreign overlords, but not necessarilyunduly repressed by them and there is evidence to suggest that East Saxon kings andecclesiastics were quite capable of manipulating a complex political situation to their advantage.West Saxon and Mercian overlords cannot be shown exercising the same authority over themain East Saxon province as they did among the Middle Saxons. What is perhaps moreremarkable is that the East Saxon province survived as an independent kingdom for so long.



CH A Ye Chur h

The de

elo¡

me¢

t of the Chur £

h i¢

Esse¤

was closely related to r oyal power ¥

The C7co ¢

ersio ¢ created two broad types of ecclesiastical i ¢ stitutio ¢

¦ mo ¢ asteries and minsters§

thou ̈ h the dictinctions between the two functions ma y not have been clear at the time¥

a) The earliest monastic foundations were on royal landsand concentr ated around the

periphery of the king dom ¥



b) Minster churches were staffed by a group of priests who ministered to the localpopulation in the equivalent of several later parishes. In the C7, they were established bythe crown on its etstes and were often coterminus with the territory of the royal vill. Oneof the earliest such minsters in Essex was probably at Waltham Abbey.

y Waltham: a minster church founded in the C7. Its proximity to a royal ecnslosuresuggests royal patronage. Its existence was confirmed at the Synod of Hertford in 673.

y Hertford: The Council of Hertford was a synod of the Christian Church in Englandheld in 673. It was convened at Hertford by Theodore of Tarsus, archbishop of Canterbury. It is considered to mark the point at which the province of Canterburybecame a unit of Church organization, for the English bishops. Besides Theodore,there were four other bishops present: Leuthere of Wessex, Putta of Rochester, Bifus

of East Anglia and Winfrith of Mercia. A fifth bishop, Wilfrid of Northumbria, sentproctors to represent him. Some organizational changes were agreed to, including thesubdivision of Mercia. The Council confirmed the adoption of the Roman practices,and ruled against divorce in most cases.

y Hatfield: The Council of Hatfield was a Roman Catholic Church convocation held in680 in Hatfield to examine the English branch of the church's orthodoxy onMonothelitism1. John of St. Peter's, a colleague of Benedict Biscop's at WearmouthAbbey, was Pope Agatho's delegate. Archbishop Theodore led the council, where

Monothelitism was rejected. The Council of Hatfield also upheld the doctrine of theDouble Procession of the Holy Spirit 2.y Barking Abbey: a double monastery or nunnery founded by Eorcenwald, Bishop of

London, for his sister Æthelburh, according to Bede, though the actual grant seems tohave come from King Swiðfrið in 666. Although no remains of the Saxon church havebeen discovered, other physical evidence points to a wealthy estate centre, scatteredover a substantial area beside the River Roding, with evidence for iron, bromze andtextile production. Imported pottery would fit an important secular trading port, but a fewspecialised items such as styli, window glass and gold braid confirm that this is indeed amonastic site.

1Monothelitism (a Greek loanword meaning "one will") is a particular teaching about how the divine and human relate inthe person of Jesus, that emerged in Armenia and Syria in 629 AD.Specifically, Monothelitism teaches that Jesus Christ had two natures butonly one will. This is contrary to the more common Christology that Jesus Christ has two wills (human and divine) corresponding tohis two natures.. It enjoyed considerable support in the 7th century before being rejected as heretical.2The doctrine of the Western Church that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. Against it Eastern theologianshave urged that there must be a single Fount of Divinity in the Godhead; they hold that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father ¶through the Son·.



y All Hallows (London): a church was founded from Barking within the old Roman walls of London in 675.

y Tilbury Abbey:y Nazeing Abbey: a double monastery or nunnery founded by King Swaefred

(acc.693/4) for ´ffymmeµ (her name has become corrupted). It is likely that she was aroyal kinswomen. Two charters show that the king granted 30 and 10 hides on a largeestate which may have been a territorial unit in Roman times. The first church waswooden, but substantial and sophistaicated in construction. The cemetary contains theremains of elderly, well-fed women who had never given birth, alongside the remains of men and ch ildren who show signs of ill-health, suggesting invalids in a hosipital. The tombof an ealry abbess (possibly ´ffymmeµ) has also been found.

y Chich: founded by St Osyth, reputedly the wife of the pagan King Sigehere.

ConversionMellitusExactly when Mellitus and his party arrived in England is unknown, but he was certainly in thecountry by 604, when Augustine consecrated him as bishop in the province of the EastSaxons, making Mellitus the first Bishop of London (London was the East Saxons' capital).The city was a logical choice for a new bishopric, as it was a hub for the southern road network.It was also a former Roman town; many of the Gregorian mission's efforts were centred in such

locations. Before his consecration, Mellitus baptised Sæberht, Æthelberht's nephew, whothen allowed the bishopric to be established. The episcopal church built in London wasprobably founded by Æthelberht, rather than Sæberht. Although Bede records that

Æthelberht gave lands to support the new episcopate, a charter that claims to be a grant of lands from Æthelberht to Mellitus is a later forgery.

Although Gregory had intended London to be the southern archbishopric for the island,Augustine never moved his episcopal see to London, and instead consecrated Mellitus as a

plain bishop there. After Augustine's death in 604, Canterbury continued to be the site of thesouthern archbishopric, and London remained a bishopric. It may have been that the Kentishking did not wish greater episcopal authority to be exercised outside his own kingdom.

Mellitus attended a council of bishops held in Italy in February 610, convened by PopeBoniface IV. The historian N. J. Higham speculates that one reason for his attendance may



have been to assert the English Church's independence from the Frankish Church. Bonifacehad Mellitus take two papal letters back to England, one to Æthelbert and his people, andanother to Laurence, the Archbishop of Canterbury. He also brought back the synod'sdecrees to England.[25] No authentic letters or documents from this synod remain, although

some were forged in the 1060s and 1070s at Canterbury. During his time as a bishop, Mellitus joined with Justus, the Bishop of Rochester, in signing a letter that Laurence wrote to the

Celtic bishops urging the Celtic Church to adopt the Roman method of calculating the date of Easter.

Both Æthelberht and Sæberht died around 616 or 618, causing a crisis for themission.Sæberht's three sons had not converted to Christianity, and drove Mellitus fromLondon. Bede says that Mellitus was exiled because he refused the brothers' request for a

taste of the sacramental bread. Whether this occurred immediately after Sæberht's death or later is impossible to determine from Bede's chronology, which has both events in the samechapter but gives neither an exact time frame nor the elapsed time between the two events. Thehistorian N. J. Higham connects the timing of this episode with a change in the "overkingship"from the Christian Kentish Æthelberht to the pagan East Anglian Raedwald, which Highamfeels happened after Æthelberht's death. In Higham's view, Sæberht's sons drove Mellitusfrom London because they had passed from Kentish overlordship to East Anglian, and thus nolonger needed to keep Mellitus, who was connected with the Kentish kingdom, in office.

Mellitus fled first to Canterbury, but Æthelberht's successor Eadbald was also a pagan, soMellitus, accompanied by Justus, took refuge in Gaul. Mellitus was recalled to Britain byLaurence, the second Archbishop of Canterbury, after his conversion of Eadbald. How long Mellitus' exile lasted is unclear. Bede claims it was a year, but it may have been longer. However,Mellitus did not return to London, because the East Saxons remained pagan. AlthoughMellitus fled, there does not seem to have been any serious persecution of Christians in theEast Saxon kingdom. The East Saxon see was not occupied again until Cedd wasconsecrated as bishop in about 654

LONDONTradeThe late C6th ² C 7th settlement of London was small enough to have been supported totallyby local agriculture. However, from at least the late C7th, there was a trading post to and from



which ships came. Alongside references to London as a civitasand similar terms relating to theecclesiastical and administrative activities of the settlement, there are a few documents whichspecifically refer to trade or traders, while the very name Lundenwic argues for the existence of trade.

Trade was probably on a small scale. The distribution of Ipswich ware in London, butnot in Thames valley rural sites suggests personal belongings rather than trade. London was animporter of pottery rather than an exporter. There is no evidence of manufacturing in the C7 th.Possible trade goods include slaves (Imma, a Northumbrian noble was sold to a Frisian trader bythe Mercians in 679 and Pope Gregory saw Angle slaves in Gaul in ), cloth, raw materials,minerals, metals and agricultural produce.

Only one class of artefact can be shown to have been produced in London. Coinagewas reintroduced to England c.630-40, and was initially a gold currency. London·s gold coinage

is known from the Crondall hoard (Hants), dated c.650. Some of the coins have a London mint -mark, and two have the name of King Eadbald of Kent (616 ² 640). The evidence suggeststhat the coins did not circulate much and that the initial output was relatively small.

In the third quarter of the C7th, England saw a range of coins in a variety of metals. Ithas been suggested that the vanimunduscoinage, copying a Merovingian tremissis, may havebeen London produced. These transition coins were quickly replaced by silver sceattas(´coinsµ)in the late C7th. It has been suggested that the Series B sceattasare from London. They arethe most common of the primary sceattasand have been found as far away as SW France and

Jutland. The coinage seems to tell us that London was one of the m ost prolific mints in Englandfrom the Mid-C7th, and that output was high until the end of the century.There is little reason to doubt that by the 630s London was already a trading

settlement which could be called a ´townµ. It is likely that the mint would be founded following ademand for coinage in the 630s. It follows that the settlement originally sprang up in the firstthird of the C7th, perhaps as far back as Bishop Mellitus· expulsion in 617. The inhabitants of London were able to obtain Frankish pottery of late-C6 th - C7thtype, possibly suggesting trade.

PoliticsIn the C7th, London was in the first instance an East Saxon town, even if it frequently attractedthe attention of foreign overlords. It must have one of the East Saxon kings· main assets andwas presumably developed as a commercial centre under their influence. Participation in and



control of forei gn tr ade were likely to have been an important f acet in the developing king ship of the East Saxons©

The Laws of Hlothere and Eadric of Kent (c.673 ² 687) reveal Kentish interests inLondon: there was a royal hall (c yngaessele), a reeve to represent Kentish royal interests

(c yning eswicg eref an), and men of Kent made consider able property tr ansactions. In 676, Æthelred of Mer cia invaded Kent, per haps to discour ag e Kentish influence in London.

AEthelred possessed land in Middlesex and appointed acomesto oversee his interests

in London and the surrounding area. However , he seems to have allowed East Saxon king s to

rule in Middlesex once Kentish influence had been ended.

Reli g ion

In 604, King Æthelbert of Kent built and endowed St Paul s in the old Roman city to become

the metropolitan see for Eng land. In 616, however , the missionaries were driven out, so Canter bury became the ar chbishop·s seat.

Prittlewell An Ang lo-Saxon cemetery reveals g oods

from c.500 ² 700, including ́ warriorµ g r aves.

B y the early C 7th, the wealthiest

individuals were buried in chamber g r aves

beneath a mound (e.g. Sutton Hoo,

Broomfield in Essex, Taplow in Bucks).

One such has also been found at Prittlewell,near Southend.

Goods included:

y a sword

y g old or naments y Mediterr anean potsy Kentish g lass y wooden bowls showing

Scandinavian artistic influence.

y two g old crosses.

A possible candidate for the burial is King Sæber ht (d.616). There was also a C7th chur ch at

Prittlewell.



BroomfieldAnother C7th burial containing weapons and other artefacts which suggest great wealth. It isregarded as a ´princelyµ burial.

Royal EstatesA unified East Saxon kingdom probably emerged in the late C6 out of a series of smaller territories such as the Rodings and Dengie. In the C7, the kingdom probably extended as far asMiddlesex and Surrey. Around 700, Middlesex, Surrey and London were lost to Mercia, butEssex itself remained an independent kingdom.

The kingdom would have been administered through a series of royal vills. The location

of various possible villae regales can be postulated through documentary, place-name andarchaeological evidence, though care must be taken to avoid regarding every ´high statusµsettlement as a royal vill.

Many royal vills later became hundred moots, burhs or market towns. It is likely that thisarose because they always functioned as ćentral placesµ with administrative, economic andecclesiastical functions nearby, if not in the same location. Many were in or near former Romansettlements, or near Early Saxon cemeteries. This use by the Saxon elite of pre-existing monuments (e.g. Springfield Lyons) is seen elsewhere in southern England.

y Colchester: the former classical grandeur of Colchester provides an obvious locationfor a royal vill, its reuse legitimatising East Saxon power. Tentative support for thiscomes from the late C7 ´Vanimundusµ sceattas probably minted in Essex. They arecopied from Merovingian coins, and a specimen from Colchester includes the lettersĆAµ (Cabilonnum). It is intriguing to think that this particular coin may have beenselected for copying because it contained the first two letters of Camulodunum.

Roman Colchester appears to have been virtually abandoned in the early C5,

and the scatter of early Saxon finds does not suggest any degree of continued urbanlife. Several extra-mural cemeteries saw continued burial in the C5-C7, but they mayhave served rural settlements rather than the town itself.

3km to the SE of the Roman town, on the River Colne, lies Old Heath (OEóld hitheµ) which may have been a small trading settlement (a C7 Merovingian pot hasbeen found). This may be a similar situation to London, with a royal vill inside the Romanwalls and a trading settlement outside.



y Maldon: the Roman town at Heybrid g edeclined in the C4, but Saxon building s and

pagan burials testify to C5 occupation. B y the C7, however , occupation appears to

have shifted across the river to Maldon, the h́ill mar ed b y a crossµ. The name ma y imply

a minster in a royal vill, thou gh there is little ph ysical evidence.

y Witham: a substantial Roman site (pagan temple and Christian chur ch at Iv y Chimneys)later gave wa y to a royal vill, probable minster chur ch and mar ket place, like the su gg ested

sequence at Maldon.

y WickenBonhunt:WickenBonhunt itself was a ditched enclosure with numerous timber -fr amed building s beside an open area. Imported pottery from Ipswich and the

continent,and substantial amounts of pi g bones su gg est avery hi gh status settlement.

Rickling just to the south appears to have been named after ´Ricolaµ, wife of the

late C6 king Sledda of the East Saxons. Near b y Q uendon·s name ma y mean

´Q ueen·s valleyµ, while Newport ma y have been chosen as the location of a bur h. These elements su gg est a substantial royal estate (40 hides) which was g r adually broken up

during the Late Saxon period.

y Waltham Abbey: the place-name ´Wealdhamµ su gg ests a royal estate in a forest area,

and recent excavations have revealed a wood en chur ch dating to the late C6.In the C8,

the wood en chur ch was rebuilt in stone and the site imported pottery from Ipswich and

the continent.

y Havering: an ancient royal manor in Domesda y, including Romford and Hor nchur ch,

amou

nti

ng to

40 hides

. Be

co

ntree

was

pro

bably

ori

g ina

llya pa

rt of

th

is est

ate. In c.666,

the 40 hide estate at Bar king was g r anted b y King Suidfred to Er kenwald in c.687, 35

hides were g r anted at Dag enham, Rainham and Ilford. Leyton, East and West Ham

were also royal land. The evidence points to a substantial and discrete block of territory

covering the south-west cor ner of Essex.

y Hor ndon: a late Saxon mint and lar g e enclosure, along with oblique hints in Domesda y

su gg est a possible royal estate.

ORSETT

The East Saxon Kingdom

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