Ine of Wessex Ine was King of Wessex from 688 to 726 . He was unable to retain the territorial gains of his predecessor , Cædwalla , who had brought much of southern England under his control and expanded West Saxon territory substantially . By the end of Ine ' s reign the kingdoms of Kent , Sussex and Essex were no longer under West Saxon domination ; however , Ine maintained control of what is now Hampshire , and consolidated and extended Wessex ' s territory in the western peninsula . Ine is noted for his code of laws ( " Ine ' s laws " or " laws of Ine " ) , which he issued in about 694 . These laws were the first issued by an Anglo - Saxon king outside Kent . They shed much light on the history of Anglo - Saxon society , and reveal Ine ' s Christian convictions . Trade increased significantly during Ine ' s reign , with the town of Hamwic ( now Southampton ) becoming prominent . It was probably during Ine ' s reign that the West Saxons began to mint coins , though none have been found that bear his name . Ine abdicated in 726 to go to Rome , leaving the kingdom to " younger men " , in the words of the contemporary chronicler Bede . He was succeeded by Æthelheard . Genealogy and accession . Early sources agree that Ine was the son of Cenred , and that Cenred was the son of Ceolwald ; further back there is less agreement . Ine ' s siblings included a brother , Ingild , and two sisters , Cuthburh and Cwenburg . Cuthburh was married to King Aldfrith of Northumbria , and Ine himself was married to Æthelburg . Bede tells that Ine was " of the blood royal " , by which he means the royal line of the Gewisse , the early West Saxon tribal name . The genealogy of Ine and of the kings of Wessex is known from two sources : the " Anglo - Saxon Chronicle " and the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List . The Chronicle was created in the late 9th century , probably at the court of Alfred the Great , and some of its annals incorporated short genealogies of kings of Wessex . These are often at variance with the more extensive information in the Regnal List . The inconsistencies appear to result from the efforts of later chroniclers to demonstrate that each king on the list was descended from Cerdic , the founder , according to the Chronicle , of the West Saxon line in England . Ine ' s predecessor on the throne of Wessex was Cædwalla , but there is some uncertainty about the transition from Cædwalla to Ine . Cædwalla abdicate d in 688 and departed for Rome to be baptised . According to the West Saxon Genealogical Regnal List , Ine reigned for 37 years , abdicating in 726 . These dates imply that he did not gain the throne until 689 , which could indicate an unsettled period between Cædwalla ' s abdication and Ine ' s accession . Ine may have ruled alongside his father , Cenred , for a period : there is weak evidence for joint kingships , and stronger evidence of subkings reigning under a dominant ruler in Wessex , not long before this time . Ine acknowledges his father ' s help in his code of laws , and there is also a surviving land - grant that indicates Cenred was still reigning in Wessex after Ine ' s accession . Reign . The extent of West Saxon territory at the start of Ine ' s reign is fairly well known . The upper Thames valley on both sides of the river had long been the territory of the Gewisse , though Cædwalla had lost territory north of the river to the kingdom of Mercia before Ine ' s accession . To the west , Ceawlin of Wessex is known to have reached the Bristol Channel one hundred years before . The West Saxons had since expanded further down the southwestern peninsula , pushing back the boundary with the British kingdom of Dumnonia , which was probably roughly equivalent to modern Devon and Cornwall . On the West Saxons ’ eastern border was the kingdom of the East Saxons , which included London and what is now Surrey . To the southeast were the South Saxons , on the coast east of the Isle of Wight . Beyond Sussex lay the kingdom of Kent . Ine ' s predecessor , Cædwalla , had made himself overlord of most of these southern kingdoms , though he had not been able to prevent Mercian inroads along the upper Thames . Ine retained control of the Isle of Wight , and made further advances in Dumnonia , but the territorial gains Cædwalla had made in Sussex , Surrey and Kent were all lost by the end of Ine ' s reign . Kent , Essex , Sussex , and Surrey . Ine made peace with Kent in 694 , when its king Wihtred gave Ine a substantial sum in compensation for the death of Cædwalla ' s brother Mul , who had been killed during a Kentish rebellion in 687 . The value of the amount offered to Ine by Wihtred is uncertain ; most manuscripts of the Anglo - Saxon Chronicle record " thirty thousand " , and some specify thirty thousand pounds . If the pounds are equal to sceat tas , then this amount is the equal of a king ' s weregild — that is , the legal valuation of a man ' s life , according to his rank . Ine kept the South Saxons , who had been conquered by Cædwalla in 686 , in subjugation for a period . King Nothhelm of Sussex is referred to in a charter of 692 as a kinsman of Ine ( perhaps by marriage ) . Sussex was still under West Saxon domination in 710 , when Nothhelm is recorded as having campaigned with Ine in the west against Dumnonia . Control of Surrey , which may never have been an independent kingdom , passed between Kent , Mercia , Essex , and Wessex in the years before Ine ' s reign . Essex also included London , and the diocese of London included Surrey ; this appears to have been a source of friction between Ine and the East Saxon and Mercian kings , until the province was transferred to the diocese of Winchester in 705 . Evidence for Ine ' s early control of Surrey comes from the introduction to his laws , in which he refers to Eorcenwald , bishop of London , as " my bishop " . Ine ' s subsequent relations with the East Saxons are illuminated by a letter written in 704 or 705 by Bishop Wealdhere of London to Brihtwold , the Archbishop of Canterbury . The letter refers to " disputes and discords " that had arisen " between the king of the West Saxons and the rulers of our country " . The rulers that Wealdhere refers to are Sigeheard and Swæfred of the East Saxons , and the cause of the discord was the East Saxons ' sheltering of exiles from the West Saxons . Ine had agreed to peace on the condition that the exiles were expelled . A council at Brentford was planned to resolve the disputes . By this point Surrey had clearly passed out of West Saxon control . Bede records that Ine held Sussex in subjection for " several years " , but in 722 an exile named Ealdbert fled to Surrey and Sussex , and Ine invaded Sussex as a result . Three years later Ine invaded again , this time killing Ealdberht . Sussex had evidently broken away from West Saxon domination some time before this . It has been suggested that Ealdberht was a son of Ine , or a son of Ine ' s brother Ingild . Dumnonia and Mercia . In 710 , Ine and Nothhelm fought against Geraint of Dumnonia , according to the Anglo - Saxon Chronicle ; John of Worcester states that Geraint was killed in this battle . Ine ' s advance brought him control of what is now Devon , the new border with Dumnonia being the river Tamar . The " Annales Cambriae " , a 10th - century chronicle , records that in 722 the British defeated their enemies at the Battle of Hehil . The " enemies " must be Ine or his people , but the location is unidentified ; historians have suggested locations in both Cornwall and Devon . Ine fought a battle at Woden ' s Barrow in 715 , either against the Mercians under Ceolred or together with them against an unnamed opponent ; the result is not recorded . Woden ' s Barrow is a tumulus , now called Adam ' s Grave , at Alton Prior , Wiltshire . Ine may not have recovered any of the lands north of the Thames that had belonged to the West Saxons under previous kings , but it is known that he controlled the southern bank : a charter dated 687 shows him giving land to the church at Streatley on the Thames and at nearby Basildon . Other conflicts . In 721 , the Chronicle records that Ine slew one Cynewulf , of whom nothing else is known , though his name suggests a connection to the Wessex royal line . A quarrel apparently arose in the royal family soon afterwards : in 722 , according to the Chronicle , Ine ' s queen Æthelburg destroyed Taunton , which her husband had built earlier in his reign . Internal affairs . The first mention of the office of ealdorman in Wessex , and the first references to the shires they led , occur during Ine ' s reign . It may have been Ine who divided Wessex into something approximating the modern counties of Hampshire , Wiltshire , Somerset , Devon , and Dorset , though earlier administrative boundaries might also have influenced these borders . It has also been suggested that these counties began as divisions of the kingdom among members of the royal family . By about 710 , in the middle of Ine ' s reign , the trading settlement of Hamwic had become established on the west bank of the river Itchen ; the site is now part of the modern city of Southampton . The goods traded at this port included glass vessels , and finds of animal bones suggest an active trade in hides . Further evidence of trade comes from finds of imported goods such as quernstones , whetstones , and pottery ; and finds of sceattas from the town include Frisian coins . Specialist trades carried on in the town included cloth - making , smithying , and metalworking . It is not known whether Ine took an interest in Hamwic , but some of the goods he favoured , including luxuries , were imported there , and the merchants would probably have needed royal protection . The total population of Hamwic has been estimated at 5 , 000 , and this high population itself implies Ine ' s involvement , since no - one but the king would have been able to arrange to feed and house such a large group of people . The growth of trade after about 700 was paralleled by an expansion of the area of circulation of the sceat , the common coin of the day , to include the upper Thames valley . It is thought that the first West Saxon coinage was minted during Ine ' s reign , though no coins bearing his name have been found — sceattas typically gave no hint of the reigning king . Laws . The earliest Anglo - Saxon law code to survive , which may date from 602 or 603 , is that of Æthelberht of Kent , whose reign ended in 616 . In the 670s or 680s , a code was issued in the names of Hlothhere and Eadric of Kent . The next kings to issue laws were Wihtred of Kent and Ine . The dates of Wihtred ’ s and Ine ' s laws are somewhat uncertain , but there is reason to believe that Wihtred ’ s laws were issued on 6 September 695 , while Ine ’ s laws were written in 694 or shortly before . Ine had recently agreed peaceful terms with Wihtred over compensation for the death of Mul , and there are indications that the two rulers collaborated to some degree in producing their laws . In addition to the coincidence of timing , there is one clause that appears in almost identical form in both codes . Another sign of collaboration is that Wihtred ’ s laws use " gesith " , a West Saxon term for noble , in place of the Kentish term " eorlcund " . It is possible that Ine and Wihtred issued the law codes as an act of prestige , to re - establish authority after periods of disruption in both kingdoms . Ine ’ s laws survive only because Alfred the Great appended them to his own code of laws . The oldest surviving manuscript , and only complete copy , is Corpus Christi College , Cambridge MS 173 , which contains both Alfred ’ s and Ine ’ s law codes and the oldest extant text of the Anglo - Saxon Chronicle . Two more partial texts survive . One was originally a complete copy of Ine ' s laws , part of British Library MS Cotton Otho B xi , but that manuscript was largely destroyed in 1731 by a fire at Ashburnham House in which only Chapters 66 to 76 . 2 of Ine ' s laws escaped destruction . A fragment of Ine ’ s laws can also be found in British Museum MS Burney 277 . It is possible that we do not have Ine ' s laws in their original 7th - century form . Alfred mentions in the prologue to his laws that he rejected earlier laws which he disliked . He did not specify what laws he omitted , but if they were the ones no longer relevant in his own time , it cannot be assumed that the surviving version of Ine ' s laws is complete . The prologue to Ine ' s laws lists his advisors . Three people are named : bishops Eorcenwald and Hædde , and Ine ' s father , King Cenred . Ine was a Christian king , whose intent to encourage Christianity is clear from the laws . The oath of a communicant , for example , is declared to carry more weight than that of a non - Christian ; and baptism and religious observance are also addressed . Significant attention is also paid to civil issues — more than in the contemporary Kentish laws . One of the laws states that common land might be enclosed by several ceorl s ( the contemporary name for Saxon freemen ) . Any ceorl who fails to fence his share , however , and allows his cattle to stray into someone else ' s field is to be held liable for any damage caused . This does not mean that the land was held in common : each ceorl had his own strip of land that supported him . It is notable that a king ' s law is required to settle a relatively minor issue ; the laws do not mention the role of local lords in obtaining compliance from the ceorls . It is clear from this and other laws that tenants held the land in tenure from a lord ; the king ' s close involvement indicates that the relationship between lord and tenant was under the king ' s control . The laws that deal with straying cattle provide the earliest documentary evidence for an open - field farming system . They show that open - field agriculture was practiced in Wessex in Ine ' s time , and it is probable that this was also the prevalent agricultural method throughout the English midlands , and as far north and east as Lindsey and Deira . Not all of Wessex used this system , however : it was not used in Devon , for example . The law which mentions a " yard " of land is the first documented mention of that unit . A yard was a unit of land equal to a quarter of a hide ; a hide was variable from place to place but could be as much as . The yard in this sense later became the standard holding of the medieval villein , and was known as the virgate . One historian has commented that " the beginnings of a manorial economy are clearly visible in Ine ' s laws . " The fine for neglecting fyrd , the obligation to do military service for the king , is set at 120 shillings for a nobleman , and half that for a ceorl , incidentally revealing that ceorls were required to serve in the army . Scholars have disagreed on the military value of the ceorl , but it is not surprising that all free men would fight , since defeat might have meant slavery . Another law specified that anyone accused of murder required at least one high - ranking person among his " oath - helpers " . An oath - helper would swear an oath on behalf of an accused man , to clear him from the suspicion of the crime . Ine ' s requirement implies that he did not trust an oath sworn only by peasants . It may represent a significant change from an earlier time when a man ' s kin were expected to support him with oaths . The laws made separate provision for Ine ' s English and British subjects and were neither oppressive to the British nor completely even - handed . The evidence they provide for the incomplete integration of the two populations is supported by research into placename history , the history of religious houses , and local archaeology , which indicates that the western part of Wessex was thinly settled by the Germanic newcomers at the time the laws were issued . It is notable that , although issued by the Saxon king of a Saxon kingdom , the term used in the laws to define Ine ' s Germanic subjects is " Englisc " . This reflects the existence , even at this early date , of a common English identity encompassing all the Germanic peoples of Britain . Christianity . Ine was a Christian king , who ruled as a patron and protector of the church . The introduction to his laws names his advisors , among whom are Eorcenwald , Bishop of London and Hædde , Bishop of Winchester ; Ine says that the laws were also made with the advice and instruction of " all my ealdormen , and chief councillors of my people , and also a great assembly of the servants of God " . The laws themselves demonstrate Ine ' s Christian convictions , though the need for a fine for failing to baptise a child or to tithe suggests that some Christian practices had yet to take firm root with the people . Ine supported the church by patronising religious houses , especially in the new diocese of Sherborne , which had been divided from the diocese of Winchester in 705 . Ine had opposed this division , ignoring threats of excommunication from Canterbury , but he agreed to it when Bishop Haedde died . The first West Saxon nunneries were founded in Ine ' s reign by Ine ' s kinswoman , Bugga , the daughter of King Centwine , and by Ine ' s sister Cuthburh , who founded the abbey of Wimborne at some point after she separated from her husband , King Aldfrith of Northumbria . At the bishop Aldhelm ' s suggestion in 705 , Ine built the church which later became Wells Cathedral , and the Anglo - Saxon Chronicle also records that Ine built a minster at Glastonbury . This must refer to additional building or re - building since there was already a British monastery at Glastonbury . Ine has been credited with supporting the establishment of an organized church in Wessex , though it is not clear that this was his initiative . He is also connected with the oldest known West Saxon synod s , presiding at one himself and apparently addressing the assembled clerics . Abdication and succession . In 726 , Ine abdicated , with no obvious heir and , according to Bede , left his kingdom to " younger men " in order to travel to Rome , where he died ; his predecessor , Cædwalla , had also abdicated to go to Rome . A trip to Rome was thought to aid one ' s chance of a welcome in heaven , and according to Bede , many people went to Rome for these reasons : " . . . both noble and simple , layfolk and clergy , men and women alike . " Either Ine or Offa of Mercia is traditionally supposed to have founded the Schola Saxonum there , in what is today the Roman rione , or district , of Borgo . The Schola Saxonum took its name from the militias of Saxons who served in Rome , but it eventually developed into a hostelry for English visitors to the city . Ine ' s successor was King Æthelheard ; it is not known whether Æthelheard was related to Ine , though some later sources state that Æthelheard was Ine ' s brother - in - law . Æthelheard ' s succession to the throne was disputed by an ætheling , Oswald , and it may be that Mercian support for Æthelheard in the unsettled aftermath of Ine ' s abdication both helped establish Æthelheard as king and also brought him into the sphere of influence of Æthelbald , the king of Mercia . His brother Ingild , who died 718 , is given as ancestor of king Egbert of Wessex and the subsequent kings of England .