16-04-2021
Wulfhere
- Wulfhere, (died 675), king of the Mercians from 657, who made himself overlord of much of England south of the River Humber. He exercised control over Essex, London, Surrey, and the West Saxon lands.
- Wulfhere was consecrated in 854. In 866 the viking Great Heathen Army attacked and captured York, and the following year the 'Danes' (as the English called vikings in general at the time) defeated an attempt to recapture the city, by Anglo-Saxon forces, the following year. Wulfhere made peace with the invaders and stayed in York.
675), king of the Mercians, was the second of the five sons of Penda q. V. and his queen, Cyneswitha. After Penda had been slain by Oswy q. V. at the battle of Winwaedfield (15 Nov. The meaning of Wulfhere is 'name of a king'. Wulfhere is generally used as a boy's name. It consists of 8 letters and 2 syllables and is pronounced Wul-fhere. The Given Name Wulfhere. Watch my latest full length history documentary here:- This video is about Wulfhere, who reigned as the King of the Anglo-Saxon.
Introduction
Many people may not realize it, but what they commonly thinkof as a coat of arms had its origins in war. They think of arms as beingdecorative, something you put on your stationary or over the mantle of yourfireplace. We in the SCA know differently however. We know that heraldry hadits origins in warfare.
History of Heraldry
From ancient times onward combatants in war have usedemblems to signify who they were. Egyptian artwork shows pictures of standardswith various emblems upon them. They were apparently used to designate rulersor other important people. Ancient Mesopotamianart shows a similar usage of emblems. In the Book of Numbers it is described how the Twelve Tribes had standardsupon which were emblems designating their tribe. Later the Greeks and Romans would usestandards and ensigns to designate units and high ranking individuals. Anexample of such a use is the eagle of Augustus’ Xth Legion. With the Greeks webegin to see emblems appearing on shields. The Romans made use of emblems on theshields of individuals to designate which unit they belonged to.
Wulfhere The Last Kingdom
What we think of as heraldic devices were first seen duringthe reign of Charlemagne. Seals and banners with emblems denoting individualscame into use at that time. Medieval European heraldry evolved out of theseusages of symbols to identify combatants in battle. The Leges Hastiludiales of Henry the Fowler in 938 CE requiredcombatants in tournaments to show four generations of the use of ensigns toenter. The earliest evidence of a specific individual being awarded arms is in1128 when the arms of Geoffrey IV of Anjou were given to him by his father inlaw King Henry I of England. Seals depicting heraldic devices appeared lessthan a decade later in England.
In the decades that followed the use of heraldry spread. TheCrusades while not the cause of the spread of the usage of heraldry certainlycontributed to the need of it. King Richard the Lion Hearted was the firstEnglish king to use a heraldic device officially, and is thought to be a reasonfor others adopting heraldic devices. Sometime between 1240 and 1250 the Glover'sRoll, the first known Roll of Arms was compiled. A Roll of Arms is a pictorialdepiction of the heraldic devices of nobles and knights. Since the idea of armswas to identify a person, there became a need to ensure that each set coat ofarms was unique, and by the 15th century France and England had bothformed a College of Arms to ensure that no two people used the same heraldicdevice.
The Purpose of Heraldic Devices
The purpose of a heraldic device is much the same in the SCAas it was in the Middle Ages, to identify a combatant. And as such certainrules are used to ensure that a fighter can be identified from across thefield. This means that the symbols or charges on the shield should be big andbold. Size matters when it comes to charges placed on a shield. If they are toosmall they cannot be identified.
Contrast also determines whether a device can be identifiedacross the field. It is because of this within heraldry there is a rule calledthe Rule of Tincture. The Rule of Tincture is that no metal can go on a metal,and no color on a color. The colors are black, blue, green, purple, and red.The metals are yellow and white which represent gold and silver.
Complex designs are also not easily identified on the fieldof battle. For this reason, simple designs are preferred. Because of this ourCollege of Arms has a complexity count to prevent a device from becoming toocomplicated. The more simple a device isthe more readily it is identified.
Finally, just as what done in the late Middle Ages, theCollege of Arms registers devices to ensure that each one is unique. The reasonfor this is so that two people are not confused on the field of battle becausetheir arms resemble each other’s too much. While it is not required to registeryour device it is greatly encouraged. Should anyone ever enter a CrownTournament for example using the same device, the one whose device has beenregistered would get to use it during the tournament.
Badges and Banners
Badges in battle play a role similar to heraldic devicesexcept instead of identifying someone as an individual, they identify someoneas a member of a unit, be it a household, shire, barony, principality, kingdom,or similar group. Everyone knows when they see the gold striking falcon on apurple tabard on someone that that person is a member of Calontir, either partof our army or a herald or someone else giving service. Banners perform asimilar function. When someone sees a banner flying over an army they canreadily identify who they are by the badge used on it. Thus if you see the goldstriking falcon on a purple banner flying over an encampment you can restassured that they are Calontir folk.
Conclusion
Just as in the Middle Ages, heraldry plays an important rolein warfare in the SCA. It allows both combatants and spectators to identify whois on the field. It is allows us to follow our favorites even when they areconcealed by armor. It also allows us to identify units and armies during abattle.
Bibliography
Fox-Davies, Arthur Charles A Complete Guide to Heraldry: Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd. – 1950
Jones, Robert W. BloodiedBanners: Martial Display on the Medieval Battlefield: Boydell Press 2010
Reynolds, Ernest Introductionto Heraldry: Methuen and CompanyLimited – 1958
Wagner, Anthony Richard Heraldryin England: Penguin Books -1953
Woodcock, Thomas S. TheOxford Guide to Heraldry: Oxford University Press - 1988
Woodward, J. ATreatise on Heraldry: British and Foreign: with English and French Glossaries: NabuPress - 2010
| Archbishop of York | |
Copper styca of Wulfhere | |
| Appointed | 854 |
|---|---|
| Term ended | 892 or 900 |
| Predecessor | Wigmund |
| Successor | Æthelbald |
| Orders | |
| Consecration | 854 |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Wulfhere |
| Died | 892 or 900 |
Wulfhere (died c. 900) was Archbishop of York between 854 and 900.
Life[edit]
Wulfhere was consecrated in 854.[1]
In 866 the vikingGreat Heathen Army attacked and captured York, and the following year the 'Danes' (as the English called vikings in general at the time) defeated an attempt to recapture the city, by Anglo-Saxon forces, the following year. Wulfhere made peace with the invaders and stayed in York.[2]
When, in 872, Northumbrians rebelled against the Danes and their collaborators, and Wulfhere fled York.[3] Eventually he found refuge with King Burgred of Mercia.[4][5]
Wulfhere was recalled in 873, and continued in York until his death in 892 or 900.[1] After his death, the seat remained vacant for eight years.[6]
Coinage[edit]
Like previous archbishops of York, Wulfhere issued styca coins.[7] His moneyers included Wulfred and Eardwulf.[7]
Citations[edit]
- ^ abFryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 224
- ^Abels Alfred the Great pp. 116–117
- ^Abels Alfred the Great p. 142
- ^Stenton Anglo Saxon England p. 251
- ^Abels Alfred the Great p. 120
- ^Brooke 'York Minster' Churches and Churchmen p. 37
- ^ abPirie, Elizabeth J. E. (Elizabeth Jean Elphinstone), 1932-2005. (1996). Coins of the Kingdom of Northumbria c.700-867 in the Yorkshire collections : the Yorkshire Museum, York, the University of Leeds, the City Museum, Leeds. Llanfyllin, Powys: Galata. ISBN0-9516671-4-9. OCLC38338882.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
References[edit]
Wulfhere Of Wiltshire
- Abels, Richard Philip (1998). Alfred the Great: War, Kingship, and Culture in Anglo-Saxon England. New York: Longman. ISBN0-582-04047-7.
- Brooke, C. N. L. (1999). 'York Minster from the Ninth to the early Thirteenth Centuries'. Churches and Churchmen in Medieval Europe. London: Hambledon Press. pp. 37–68. ISBN1-85285-183-X.
- Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN0-521-56350-X.
- Stenton, F. M. (1971). Anglo-Saxon England (Third ed.). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. ISBN978-0-19-280139-5.
External links[edit]
- Wulfhere 8 at Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England
| Christian titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Wigmund | Archbishop of York 854–c. 900 | Succeeded by Æthelbald |
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