The Heptarchy was the division of Anglo-Saxon England between the sixth and eighth centuries into petty kingdoms, conventionally the seven kingdoms of East Anglia,

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

Mercia Mercia (, was one of the principal kingdoms founded at the end of Sub-Roman Britain; the area was settled by Anglo-Saxons in an era called the Heptarchy. It was centred on the River Trent and its tributaries, in a region now known as the Midlan ...

Northumbria Northumbria () was an early medieval Heptarchy, kingdom in what is now Northern England and Scottish Lowlands, South Scotland. The name derives from the Old English meaning "the people or province north of the Humber", as opposed to the Sout ...

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

, and Wessex. The term originated with the twelfth-century historian Henry of Huntingdon and has been widely used ever since, but it has been questioned by historians as the number of kingdoms fluctuated, and there was never a time when the territory of the Anglo-Saxons was divided into seven kingdoms each ruled by one king. The period of petty kingdoms came to an end in the eighth century, when England was divided into the four dominant kingdoms of East Anglia,

, and Wessex.

History

Although ''heptarchy'' suggests the existence of seven kingdoms, the term is just used as a label of convenience and does not imply the existence of a clear-cut or stable group of seven kingdoms. The number of kingdoms and sub-kingdoms fluctuated rapidly during this period as competing kings contended for supremacy.Norman F. Cantor, ''The Civilization of the Middle Ages''1993:163f. In the late 6th century, the king of Kent was a prominent lord in the south. In the 7th century, the rulers of

and Wessex were powerful. In the 8th century,

achieved hegemony over the other surviving kingdoms, particularly during the reign of Offa the Great. Alongside the seven kingdoms, a number of other political divisions also existed, such as the kingdoms (or sub-kingdoms) of: Bernicia and Deira within Northumbria; Lindsey in present-day

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

; the Hwicce in the southwest Midlands; the Magonsæte or Magonset, a sub-kingdom of Mercia in what is now

Herefordshire Herefordshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England, bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh ...

; the Wihtwara, a Jutish kingdom on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

, originally as important as the Cantwara of

; the Middle Angles, a group of tribes based around modern

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

, later conquered by the Mercians; the Hæstingas (around the town of

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

); and the Gewisse.

List of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms

The four main kingdoms in Anglo-Saxon

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

were: * East Anglia *

, including sub-kingdoms Bernicia and Deira * Wessex The other main kingdoms, which were conquered and absorbed by others entirely at some point in their history, before the unification of England, are: *

Other minor kingdoms and territories: * Bernicia * Deira * Dumnonia (only annexed to Wessex at a later date, and a Cornish kingdom) * Haestingas * The Hwicce * Kingdom of the Iclingas, a precursor state to Mercia * Lindsey * Magonsæte * The Meonwara, a Jutish tribe in Hampshire * Middle Angles * Middle Saxons (

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

, subsequently absorbed by the Kingdom of Essex) * Pecsæte *

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

* Tomsæte * Wreocensæte * Wihtwara

References

Bibliography

*'' Westermann Großer Atlas zur Weltgeschichte'' * Campbell, J. et al. ''The Anglo-Saxons'' (Penguin, 1991). * Sawyer, Peter Hayes. ''From Roman Britain to Norman England'' (Routledge, 2002). * Stenton, F. M. ''Anglo-Saxon England'' (3rd edition. Oxford U. P. 1971).

External links

Monarchs of Britain
''

Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

''
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The Burghal Hidage – Wessex's fortified burhs {{Early Germanic Kingdoms States and territories established in the 5th century States and territories disestablished in the 8th century Historiography of England Former subdivisions of England Barbarian kingdoms 7 (number)

History

List of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms

See also

References

Bibliography

External links