Portal:Biography/Selected article/May 3

Eardwulf (fl. 790 – c. 830) was king of Northumbria from 796 to 806, when he was deposed and went into exile. He may have had a second reign from 808 until perhaps 811 or 830. Northumbria in the last years of the eighth century was the scene of dynastic strife between several noble families, and, in 790, the then-king Æthelred I attempted to have Eardwulf assassinated. Eardwulf's survival may have been viewed as a sign of divine favour. A group of nobles conspired to assassinate Æthelred in April 796, and he was succeeded by Osbald; Osbald's reign lasted only twenty-seven days before he was deposed, and Eardwulf became king on 14 May 796. (Read more...)