BattlefieldsÆthelred I of Mercia Kills Peada of the Middle Angles 656
Early Medieval

Æthelred I of Mercia Kills Peada of the Middle Angles 656

656
Staffordshire, England
Era
Early Medieval
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Staffordshire, England
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Forces
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Peada and his household
VS
Victor
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Mercian noble faction
Outcome
Peada killed; Middle Anglian sub-kingdom absorbed into Mercia proper
The Battle

History & Significance

Peada son of Penda was the sub-king of the Middle Angles who had converted to Christianity and married a Northumbrian princess. He was murdered at Easter 656, allegedly through the treachery of his own wife. The killing removed the one Mercian prince who had been close to Northumbria and ensured the Mercian recovery would be on purely Mercian terms.

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