Edmund the Martyr
Deceased Person
0841 – 0869
Who was Edmund the Martyr?
Edmund the Martyr was king of East Anglia from about 855 until his death.
Almost nothing is known of Edmund. He is thought to be of East Anglian origin and was first mentioned in an annal of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, written some years after his death. The kingdom of East Anglia was devastated by the Vikings, who destroyed any contemporary evidence of his reign. Later writers produced fictitious accounts of his life, asserting that he was born in 841, the son of Æthelweard, an obscure East Anglian king, whom it was said Edmund succeeded when he was fourteen. Later versions of Edmund's life relate that he was crowned on 25 December 855 at Burna, which at that time functioned as the royal capital, and that he became a model king.
In 869, the Great Heathen Army advanced on East Anglia and killed Edmund. He may have been slain by the Danes in battle, but by tradition he met his death at an unidentified place known as Haegelisdun, after he refused the Danes' demand that he renounce Christ: the Danes beat him, shot him with arrows and then beheaded him, on the orders of Ivar the Boneless and his brother Ubba.
We need you!
Help us build the largest biographies collection on the web!
- Born
- 0841
Nuremberg - Died
- Nov 20, 0869
Hoxne - Resting place
- Bury St Edmunds Abbey
Submitted
on July 23, 2013
Citation
Use the citation below to add to a bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"Edmund the Martyr." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 14 May 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/edmund_the_martyr>.
Discuss this Edmund the Martyr biography with the community:
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In