Oswald of Northumbria

Oswald (–642) was a King of Northumbria and the first Christian monarch of that kingdom. Oswald brought St. Aidan from Iona to start a monastery on the island of Lindisfarne. Oswald was also venerated as a saint.

 Early career 

Oswald was born , the son of King Athelfrith of Bernicia and his second wife Acha of Deira.Rudolf Abraham, St Oswald's Way and St Cuthbert's Way (Milnthorpe, Cumbria: Cicerone, 2013), p. 26 At age twelve his father was killed in battle by Edwin who became King of Northumbria.John Marsden, Northanhymbre Saga; the History of the Anglo-Saxon Kings of Northumbria (London: Kyle Cathie Limited, 1992), p. 108 Along with his brothers Eanfrith and Oswiu and their sister Aebbe, he found safety with the Scots in Dál Riata. The monks of Iona baptized the children and raised them in the Celtic Christian faith.Mike Ashley, The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens (New York: Carroll & Graf, 1999), p. 279 For all of Edwin's reign Oswald remained in Exile.Frank Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971), p. 118 Cadwallon ap Cadfan, the Christian king of Gwynedd, along with the pagan Penda of Mercia, attacked Northumbria in 632.Peter Hunter Blair, Roman Britain and Early England; 55 B.C.–A.D. 871 (New York; London: W. W. Norton & Company, 1966), p. 194 In 633 the two invading armies met Edwin at the Battle of Hatfield Chase.John Marsden, Northanhymbre Saga; the History of the Anglo-Saxon Kings of Northumbria (London: Kyle Cathie Limited, 1992), p. 101 Edwin was killed and his army was destroyed. For the next year Cadwallon destroyed everything he could in Northumbria.N. J. Higham, The Kingdom of Northumbria AD 350–1100 (Dover, NH: Alan Sutton Publishing, 1993), p. 125 At the same time Oswald was gathering a small army among the Scots and Picts.Mike Ashley, The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens (New York: Carroll & Graf, 1999), p. 280
He attacked Cadwallon's larger army at a place called Hefenfelth ("heavenly field"). Cadwallon was killed and his army defeated.Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People, trans. Leo Sherley Price, revsd. R. E. Latham (London; New York: Penguin, 1990), p. 144

 King of Northumbria 

Oswald claimed the crowns of both Bernicia and Deira. By doing this he reunited Northumbria to a single kingdom. Oswald was the first king of Northumbria to come to the throne already a Christian. As one of his first acts Oswald set up what would become the holy island of Lindisfarne. He asked for a bishop to come to Northumbria to convert his people to the Christian faith.Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People, trans. Leo Sherley Price, revsd. R. E. Latham (London; New York: Penguin, 1990), p. 146 They sent Bishop Aidan. Aidan built a monastery and created a Christian colony on the island of Lindisfarne off the coast of Bamburgh. Oswald, at least at first, had to translate for Aidan who did not speak English fluently. Oswald was considered a bretwalda by Bede, the fourth such overlord over the other Anglo-Saxon kings.Frank Stenton, Anglo-Saxon England (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971), p. 34 In 635, Oswald married Cyneburh, the daughter of King Cynegils of Wessex.Detlev Schwennicke, Europäische Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europäischen Staaten, Neue Folge, Band II (Marburg, Germany: J. A. Stargardt, 1984), Tafel 77 Oswald also became the godfather of Cynegils when he was baptized . Oswald created several similar alliances in an effort to contain Penda of Mercia. About 638 he won a battle against Owen Map Bili, the king of Strathclyde near Edinburgh. In 640 Oswald tried to recover Lindsey from Penda. The two armies met again in 642 at the Battle of Maserfield (probably in Shropshire).Peter Hume Brown, History of Scotland: to the present time, Volume 1 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011), p. 17 Oswald was killed in the battle.John Marsden, Northanhymbre Saga; the History of the Anglo-Saxon Kings of Northumbria (London: Kyle Cathie Limited, 1992), p. 130 For a year after the battle his head and hands were fastened to stakes. His brother Oswiu finally recovered Oswald's relics. Oswiu succeeded Oswald as king of Northumbria.Mike Ashley, The Mammoth Book of British Kings and Queens (New York: Carroll & Graf, 1999), p. 281

 Family 

Oswald married Cyneburh of Wessex. Their son, "the only son he possessed on earth", was:John Marsden, Northanhymbre Saga; the History of the Anglo-Saxon Kings of Northumbria (London: Kyle Cathie Limited, 1992), p. 126

 Athelwald

 Notes 

 References 

 Other websites 
 Kings of Northumbria

Category:600s births
Category:642 deaths
Category:Northumbrian royalty