Claim: Little is known about Ethelweard of East Anglia, because Viking attacks destroyed monasteries where books and charters were kept; however, it is known that the Kingdom of East Anglia was rich and powerful, and that Ethelweard was succeeded by his son Edmund who was crowned in December 854.
Evidence: Little is known of Æthelweard's reign and even his regnal dates are not known for certain. According to the historian Barbara Yorke, Viking attacks eventually destroyed all the East Anglian monasteries, where books and charters would have been kept. Between this time and the early Norman period, practically nothing is known of the history of East Anglia, except that the kingdom was rich and powerful enough to remain independent. He was succeeded by St Edmund, who was said to have been crowned on 25 December 854.