BattlefieldsÆthelfrith Defeats the British at Catterick Region c.590
Early Medieval

Æthelfrith Defeats the British at Catterick Region c.590

590
England
Era
Early Medieval
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
England
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Forces
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Gododdin British war-band
VS
Victor
Not recorded in historical accounts
Forces
Northumbrian Bernicians
Outcome
British warriors wiped out; Northumbrian expansion into former Brigantian territory
The Battle

History & Significance

In the period before the Battle of Catraeth celebrated in the poem Y Gododdin, Æthelfrith conducted campaigns against the British kingdoms of the north. The poem records a catastrophic British defeat at Catraeth around 600 where a war-band from the Gododdin was annihilated. While the battle likely falls in Scotland, the campaigns in the Yorkshire Dales are England-based.

Questions & Answers

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