The Battle Of Ellendun

Dates: Summer 825

In 823, Beornwulf became King of Mercia after deposing Ceolwulf I.  Ceolwulf himself had only been king since 821, suceeding his brother  Cœnwulf who died at at Basingwerk near Holywell, Flintshire whilst  probably preparing for a campaign against the Welsh at Powys.
Mercia had been the powerhouse of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms since the age  of Penda more than 170 years earlier

In 822 the Mercians, probably under the leadership of Ceolwulf completed  what Cœnwulf was likely planning by attacking the Welsh at Deganwy,  destroying the fortress at the mouth of the Conway in an attack that  preceeded the exile of the last of the ancient Kings of Powys. It was  around this time, possibly shortly after this date that Ceolwulf was  deposed by Beornwulf.

There is little known about Beornwulf or his family, though his  authority was known to have been recognised in Middlesex, Essex and  Kent. His father was Ealdorman Beorhtweald, and a man named Beornwulf  witnessed charters of King Cœnwulf and King Ceolwulf in 812 and 823, but  the position of his name on the charter indicates that this Beornwulf,  if the later to be King, was not of a high rank.

During the preceeding fifty or so years, Wessex had suffered with a  series of weak kings. The Mercians had asserted dominance, with the  borders of Mercia stretching into southern kingdoms such as Kent. Wessex  was described by commentators at the time as nothing more than an  outlying province. The King of Wessex at the time of Beornwulf's  ascendancy was Ecgbehrt. Ecgbehrt himself had been exiled to Gaul in 789  when Beorhtric, his rival, married the daughter of Offa of Mercia.  Beorhtric's reign as King of Wessex was one of dependancy on Mercia, and  upon his death in 802, the returned Ecgbehrt came to the throne of  Wessex. This was opposed by the Mercians, the Hwicce in particular, who,  under the command of their Ealdorman, Æþelmund, fought the Wessex men  of Wiltshire under Ecgbehrt's brother-in-law Weohstan. The Hwicce were  defeated, but both Æþelmund of Mercia and Weohstan of Wessex were  killed.
There is nothing written about further clashes between Mercia and Wessex  (though there were likely small skirmishes) until 825. The Winchester  Chronicles tell us that a challenge had been agreed between Beornwulf of  Mercia and King Ecgberht of Wessex. Beornwulf set about raising an army  to attack Wessex, the most likely reason territorial gain and to assert  his dominance. Ecgberht had been attacking the West Welsh in Dumnonia  (modern day Cornwall) in both 815 and 825. He returned home when  learning of the Mercian threat to his north border, and had been  building his military force with the intention of reinforcing his rule  and expanding his Kingdoms borders.

It was in the hot summer of 825 that the Mercians and Wessex met at  Ellendun - the exact site of the battle is not known, but is believed to  be either Wroughton, south of Swindon, or Lydiard Tregoze, west of the  same place. The Mercians, who, it is reported, greatly outnumbered the  forces of Wessex, had their southern advance blocked. The two armies  lined up on opposite ridges to each other. Ecgberht, upon seeing the  larger Mercian force, held council with his thegns to decide whether to  cede land to Beornwulf, but his thegns made the decision to battle and  defend their border. A bloody battle ensued, the men of Wessex attacked  the Mercian line. It was a long and fierce battle, and eventually,  Beornwulf's morale broke and is reported to have fled, handing the  victory to Wessex.

From this date forwards, the power of Mercia waned and faded. Mercia was  never again to trouble Wessex on a mentionable scale. One by one during  the coming months and years, areas of Mercian control changed  alliegence to Wessex. The age of West Saxon power had begun. After  winning the battle, Ecgberht's son, Æþelwulf, the bishop of Sherbourne  & Ealdorman of Hampshire was sent to Kent with a large army to  expand Wessex borders there - Baldred, who was ruling under Mercia, fled  beyond the Thames, and soon Essex, Sussex and Surrey along with Kent  submitted to Ecgberht. Beornwulf was killed later in 825 by the East  Angles, probably during an attempt to strengthen control there. Just  four years later, after a large campaign by Ecgberht, Mercia was under  the control of Wessex.

Copyright: 2009 Penda of Teotta's Halh AKA N. Hodgkiss. Reference  wikipedia.org & Anglo-Saxon England by Frank Stenton