Wiglaf of Mercia
Wiglaf of Mercia.
Wiglaf (died 839) ruled the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia from 827 to 829 and again from 830 until his death. His ancestry is uncertain: the 820s were a period of dynastic conflict within Mercia, and the genealogies of several of the kings of this time are unknown. He succeeded Ludeca, who was killed campaigning against East Anglia. Wiglaf's first reign coincided with the continued rise of the rival kingdom of Wessex under Ecgberht. Ecgberht drove Wiglaf from the throne in 829, and ruled Mercia directly for a year. Mercia never regained the south-eastern kingdoms, but Berkshire and perhaps Essex came back into Mercia's control. Although Wiglaf appears to have restored independence, the recovery was short-lived, and later in the century Mercia was divided between Wessex and the Vikings. Wiglaf died in about 839, and was eventually succeeded by Beorhtwulf, though one tradition records his son Wigmund as having reigned briefly. Wiglaf is buried at Repton, near Derby (engraving of the crypt pictured).
Wiglaf (died 839) ruled the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia from 827 to 829 and again from 830 until his death. His ancestry is uncertain: the 820s were a period of dynastic conflict within Mercia, and the genealogies of several of the kings of this time are unknown. He succeeded Ludeca, who was killed campaigning against East Anglia. Wiglaf's first reign coincided with the continued rise of the rival kingdom of Wessex under Ecgberht. Ecgberht drove Wiglaf from the throne in 829, and ruled Mercia directly for a year. Mercia never regained the south-eastern kingdoms, but Berkshire and perhaps Essex came back into Mercia's control. Although Wiglaf appears to have restored independence, the recovery was short-lived, and later in the century Mercia was divided between Wessex and the Vikings. Wiglaf died in about 839, and was eventually succeeded by Beorhtwulf, though one tradition records his son Wigmund as having reigned briefly. Wiglaf is buried at Repton, near Derby (engraving of the crypt pictured).
