Oshere (

fl. ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

690s) was king of the

Hwicce Hwicce () was a kingdom in Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon England. According to the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', the kingdom was established in 577, after the Battle of Deorham. After 628, the kingdom became a client or sub-kingdom of Mercia as a result ...

, an

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

tribe occupying land in what later became

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

and

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

. A member of the royal house of

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 ...

, Oshere was a sub-king to Æthelred, king of

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 ...

(d. c 709).

Family

From meagre sources, historians have tried to piece together the relationships between Oshere and other Hwiccian contemporaries—Osric, king of Hwicce (d. 729), and Oswald, founder of

Pershore Abbey Pershore Abbey, at Pershore in Worcestershire, was a Benedictine abbey with Anglo-Saxon origins and is now an Church of England, Anglican parish church, the Church of the Holy Cross. History Foundation The foundation of the minster at Pershore ...

(689). There are various theories regarding the relationships among these figures. One is that Oshere was a brother of both Osric and Oswald; another, put forward by Bishop

William Stubbs William Stubbs (21 June 182522 April 1901) was an English historian and Anglican bishop. He was Regius Professor of History (Oxford), Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford between 1866 and 1884. He was Bishop of Ches ...

, was that Oshere was the son of Oswald, who was brother to Osric.

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society (RHS), founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the H ...

president William Hunt favored the first theory and added that, if true, it would mean that Oshere was a nephew of Queen Osthryth, wife of King Æthelred of Mercia. Historians have felt on firmer ground identifying two sisters of Oshere: Ecgburg, second abbess of Gloucester, and Wethburg, a nun. Details of the family appear in a letter Ecgburg wrote to Bishop Wynfrith (Boniface) c. 716, lamenting the death of her brother and the long absence of her sister. Her sister, she had heard, was "''Romana carcer inclusit,''" which historian Diane Watt translates as "in a Roman cell as a recluse" nun. He subsequently communicated with Wethburg, who responded by pointing out the dangers of traveling to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

due to frequent

Saracen upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Rom ...

attacks. In addition to Ecgburg and Wethburg, a third sister is also possible. To be specific, William Hunt identified Kyneburga, first

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mod ...

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city, non-metropolitan district and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West England, South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean ...

, as the sister of Ecgburg and, therefore, of King Oshere. The sons of Oshere have been identified as Æthelheard, Æthelward and Æthelric.

Education

Little is known of Oshere's education, but since his sister was educated, it follows that he would have been as well. Ecgburg's letter to Boniface reveals a cultivated intellect, leading Diane Watt to state that she was among the "highly educated women" who corresponded with the bishop. The historian

Patrick Sims-Williams Patrick Sims-Williams is Emeritus Professor of Celtic Studies at Aberystwyth University and founding editor of the journal '' Cambrian Medieval Celtic Studies''. Education Sims-Williams was educated at Borden Grammar School in Sittingbourne, K ...

noted her familiarity with the works of classical Greece and Rome and even went so far as to compare her "highly poetic style" to those of

Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...

and

Paulinus of Nola Paulinus of Nola (; ; also Anglicisation, anglicized as Pauline of Nola; – 22 June 431) born Pontius Meropius Anicius Paulinus, was a Roman Empire, Roman Roman poetry, poet, writer, and Roman senate, senator who attained the ranks of suffect ...

. Ecgburg indeed identifies Boniface as her teacher, and, in mentioning "the affection which assuredly bound you to my brother," she suggests that Oshere also studied under Boniface. Most instructive regarding Oshere's education is Ecgburg's statement that she was "inferior" to her brother "in knowledge and in merit."

Charters

Charters granted in Oshere's name prior to 693 are said to be spurious. Among those is a charter of 680 granting 30 hides for a monastery at Ripple in Worcestershire, which did, however, refer to Oshere as king of the Hwicce acting under Æthelred's authority. In 693, Oshere, along with his son Æthelheard, granted land to Cuthswith, abbess of

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

who may have been a member of the Mercian royal family or the Hwiccian dynasty. Specifically, the abbess was given 15 hides at Penintanham (believed to be

Inkberrow Inkberrow is a village in Worcestershire, England, often thought to be the model for Ambridge, the fictional setting of BBC Radio 4's long-running series ''The Archers''. In particular, The Bull, the fictional Ambridge pub, is supposed to be ba ...

in Worcestershire) and at Dyllawidu (location unknown) for the foundation of a monastery, which must have prospered since she later added 5 hides at Ingin(n) (probably Ingon) twelve miles from Penintanham. Between 674 and 704, Oshere also granted 21 hides at

Withington Withington is a suburb of Manchester, England. Historically part of Lancashire, it lies from Manchester city centre, south of Fallowfield, north-east of Didsbury and east of Chorlton-cum-Hardy. Withington had a population at the 2011 ce ...

(now in Gloucestershire) to Abbess Dunna for the founding of a monastery.

Death

Ecgburg's letter to Boniface, dated c. 716, laments the death of Oshere. Ecgburg referred to Oshere's death as "cruel and bitter," leading one historian to speculate that he may have fallen in battle.

Notes

External links