based on an account by St Bede of Jarrow 672-735

King Edwin and the Hand of Destiny

Forced from his throne and threatened with murder, Edwin makes a curious bargain for his deliverance.

604-616

Anglo-Saxon Britain 410-1066

Introduction

Deprived of his throne in about 604, King Edwin of Deira and Bernicia — later known as Northumbria — fled York and went south to Mercia, only to find his usurper, brother-in-law and mortal enemy, Æthelfrith, still pursuing him to the death. But a night-time visitor gave him a new hope, and a curious sign to remember it by.

based on an account by St Bede of Jarrow 672-735

EDWIN should have inherited the crown of Deira from his father Ælle. Instead, Edwin’s brother-in-law Æthelfrith, King of neighbouring Bernicia, emerged as King of a new and powerful joint kingdom called Northumbria, and Edwin was driven out.*

Edwin escaped to East Anglia and the protection of King Rædwald, but there he learnt that Æthelfrith had threatened invasion if Rædwald did not have his royal guest murdered.

As Edwin brooded anxiously in his bedchamber, he glanced up and was surprised to see a man standing before him. ‘What reward would you give’ the man asked ‘to the one who could deliver you from your troubles, make you the greatest of English kings, and give you the wisest counsel for this life and the next?’

Edwin assured him that he would give that man his complete trust and do whatever he asked. The man laid his hand gently on Edwin’s head. ‘Remember this sign’ he said, ‘and your promise.’ Then he vanished.

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Deira corresponds roughly to an area from the Humber estuary to the River Tees; Bernicia to the north then stretched from the Tees to the Firth of Forth in what is now Scotland. Edwin had been displaced by Æthelfrith by about 604.

Précis

After he was forced off the throne of Deira in the 7th century, Edwin was murderously pursued by his rival, Æthelfrith. An unexpected visitor, however, promised to help Edwin regain his crown, in exchange for a promise of absolute trust, to be redeemed later - the sign would be a hand laid upon his head.

Sevens

Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.

Why did Edwin seek sanctuary with Rædwald?

Jigsaws

Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.

Ælle was King of Deira. His son-in-law Æthelfrith succeeded him. His son Edwin did not.

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