Bretwalda

E456492

Bretwalda is an Old English term used in early medieval England to denote an overlord or high king who held supremacy over other Anglo-Saxon rulers.

All labels observed (2)

Label Occurrences
Bretwalda canonical 7
Bretwalda (overlord of Britain) 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (44)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Anglo-Saxon political concept
Old English term
historical title
appliedToRuler Aelle of Sussex
Aethelbert of Kent
linked to: Æthelberht of Kent

Ceawlin of Wessex
Edwin of Northumbria
Egbert of Wessex
Oswald of Northumbria
Oswiu of Northumbria
Raedwald of East Anglia
appliesTo Anglo-Saxon ruler
high king
overlord
associatedWith Anglo-Saxon hegemony
Anglo-Saxon kingdoms
linked to: Heptarchy
culturalContext Germanic kingship traditions
denotes supreme ruler over other Anglo-Saxon kings
domain Anglo-Saxon England
firstAttestedIn Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, late 9th century
frequencyOfUse rare in surviving sources
hasVariantSpelling Bretenanwealda
Brytenwalda
Brytenwealda
linked to: Brytenwalda
historicalStatus semi-legendary title
language Old English
meaningEtymology possibly "wide-ruler" or "Britain-ruler"
mentionedIn Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
notEquivalentTo formal legal office
regionOfAuthority multiple Anglo-Saxon kingdoms
southern Britain
relatedConcept hegemony
imperium
overkingship
role military leadership over multiple kingdoms
political supremacy among Anglo-Saxon kings
scholarlyDebate extent of actual power implied
whether title was contemporary or retrospective
sourceType chronicle terminology
timePeriod 7th century
8th century
9th century
early Middle Ages
usedIn early medieval England

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (8)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Edgar the Peaceful title Bretwalda (overlord of Britain)
linked to: Bretwalda
Egbert of Wessex title Bretwalda
King Edwin of Northumbria title Bretwalda
Æthelberht of Kent title Bretwalda
Edwin of Northumbria title Bretwalda
Eadwine title Bretwalda
Ceaulin describedAs Bretwalda