Ealdred I of Bamburgh
Ealdred (died c. 933) was the son of Eadwulf. He was a ruler of at least part of the former kingdom of Bernicia in northern Northumbria in the early tenth century. Background. Ealdred's father, Eadwulf, called "king of the Saxons of the North" by the "Annals of Ulster", but only reeve of Bamburgh by the chronicler Æthelweard, died in 913. Eadwulf may have also been ruler of all of Northumbria following Eowils and Halfdan who were killed at Tettenhall 910. It is unknown whether the family had links to pre- or post-Viking kings of  Northumbria. Life. Upon his father's death in 913, Ealdred succeeded him. The "Historia de Sancto Cuthberto" states that Ealdred "was a friend of King Edward the Elder, as his father had been a favourite of King Alfred the Great". In about 914, Ealdred was driven from his lands by Ragnall ua Ímair, whether this was all of Northumbria or merely the southern part is unclear. This could have occurred before 914, or as late as 918. The "Historia" states that Ealdred sought refuge with Constantín mac Áeda, the king of Scotland, and that the two fought Ragnall at the  Battle of Corbridge, dated by the "Annals of Ulster" and the "Chronicle of the Kings of Alba" to 918. The battle appears to have been indecisive and Ragnall remained the master of southern Northumbria, former Deira. However, if Ealdred was indeed 'driven from his lands' then his regaining control of northern Northumbria was a decided benefit resulting from the battle. In 924 Ealdred submitted to Edward the Elder, and on 12 July 927 he was one of the northern rulers who submitted to Edward's son King Æthelstan at Eamont Bridge. Ealdred's submission added Northumbria to Æthelstan's kingdom  and is generally seen as the date of the foundation of the Kingdom of England. Death. Ealdred was a witness to several of Æthelstan's charters issued in southern England in 931 or 932, but he was not recorded thereafter. The Annals of Clonmacnoise record in 934 that "Adulf m'Etulfe king of the North Saxons died", and this may be the only notice of Ealdred's death, however, it is usually seen as a notice of his brother's death. Family. Ealdred was Eadwulf's oldest son and succeeded his father upon his death in 913. He is believed to  have had three younger siblings: Uhtred, Adulf mcEtulfe, and Oswulf. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography states that he was 'probably the father of Oswulf, who later ruled in Northumbria under King Eadred (d. 955).' Alternatively, a genealogy in the text "De Northumbria post Britannos", recording the ancestry of Waltheof of Northumbria Earl of Northampton (and, briefly, Northumbria), identifies Oswulf as the son of Eadwulf II of Northumbria. This would make Ealdred to be Oswulf's brother, instead of father.