BattlefieldsGreat Army Destroys Peterborough Monastery 870
Early Medieval

Great Army Destroys Peterborough Monastery 870

870
Cambridgeshire, England
Era
Early Medieval
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Cambridgeshire, England
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Peterborough monastery
Forces
Peterborough monastic community
VS
Victor
Great Heathen Army
Forces
Great Heathen Army
Outcome
Peterborough monastery destroyed; abbot and community killed; Fens opened to Danish advance
The Battle

History & Significance

The Great Heathen Army sacked and burned Medeshamstede (Peterborough) in 870 during its advance into East Anglia and the Fens. The monastery was one of the richest in England and its destruction was catastrophic for the Fenland monastic network. The abbot Hedda and all the monks were killed. The monastery lay abandoned for over a century.

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