View source for Alberht of East Anglia

{{good article}}
{{Infobox monarch
| name               = Alberht
| succession         = [[King of the East Angles]]
| image              = 
| caption            = 
| reign              = 749&nbsp;–&nbsp;about 760, jointly with [[Beonna of East Anglia|Beonna]] and possibly Hun
| predecessor        = [[Ælfwald of East Anglia|Ælfwald]]
| successor          = [[Æthelred I of East Anglia|Æthelred I]]
}}
'''Alberht''' (also '''Ethælbert''' or '''Albert'''; ruled 749&nbsp;–&nbsp;about 760) was an eighth-century ruler of the [[kingdom of East Anglia]]. He shared the kingdom with [[Beonna of East Anglia|Beonna]] and possibly Hun, who may not have existed. He may still have been king in around 760. He is recorded by the [[Fitzwilliam Museum]] and the historian [[Simon Keynes]] as '''Æthelberht I'''.{{sfn|Keynes|2014|p=530}}

Historians have accepted that Alberht was a real historical figure who was possibly an heir of [[Ælfwald of East Anglia|Ælfwald]]. At Ælfwald's death in 749, the kingdom was divided between Alberht and Beonna, who was perhaps a [[Mercia|Mercian]] and who took the lead in issuing regnal coinage and maintaining a military alliance with [[Æthelbald of Mercia|Æthelbald]], king of Mercia. Alberht was ruling in East Anglia when Æthelbald was murdered in 757, after which [[Beornred of Mercia|Beornred]] ruled for a year in Mercia, before [[Offa of Mercia|Offa]] seized power from him. The evidence of Alberht's single discovered coin indicates that he had sufficient authority to issue his own coinage, a degree of independence that was soon eclipsed by the rapid growth of Offa's power in East Anglia.

==Background==
[[File:East Anglian tally (Textus Roffensis).png|thumb|The lineage of [[Ælfwald of East Anglia|Ælfwald]] from the ''[[Anglian collection]]'' |alt=a list of East Anglian kings from a medieval document]]
Alberht of East Anglia became [[kingdom of the East Angles|king of the East Angles]] after his predecessor [[Ælfwald of East Anglia|Ælfwald ]] died in 749, after ruling for thirty-six years.{{sfn|Yorke|2002|p=63}} During Ælfwald's rule, East Anglia enjoyed sustained growth and stability, albeit under the senior authority of the [[Mercia]]n king [[Æthelbald of Mercia|Æthelbald]],{{sfn|Archibald|1985|p=23}} who ruled his kingdom from 716 until he was murdered by his own men in 757.{{sfn|Yorke|2002|p=112}} Ælfwald was the last of the [[Wuffingas]] dynasty, who had ruled East Anglia since the sixth century.{{sfn|Fryde|Greenway|Porter|Roy|1986|p=8}} The East Anglian pedigree in the ''[[Anglian collection]]'', which was probably compiled in 725 or 726 during the reign of Ælfwald, lists the royal line of East Anglia, from Ælfwald to the Germanic god [[Woden]].{{sfn|Dumville|1976|loc=p. 40, note 2}}{{sfn|Dumville|1976|p=24}}

== Joint rule with Beonna ==
Alberht is so obscure that for many centuries he was known only from a single statement in a late compilation of material. A reference derived from tradition can be found in the [[annal]] for 749 in the ''[[Historia Regum]]'', a mediaeval work possibly produced in part by [[Byrhtferth]] of [[Ramsey, Cambridgeshire|Ramsey]].<!-- (of which the ''Flowers of History'' of [[Roger of Wendover]] is one form)<ref>See [https://archive.org/stream/flowershistorye02parigoog#page/n374/mode/2up the relevant section] in a translation of ''The Flowers of History''.</ref> --> In the annal, it is stated that "Hunbeanna and Alberht divided the kingdom of the East Angles between themselves".{{sfn|Plunkett|2005|p=155}} Until the 1980s, this record stood alone and unverifiable, with the exception of a single coin attributed to Beonna and two other brief mentions of him. Since then, well over a hundred coins attributed to Beonna have been found,{{sfn|Page|2006|p=274}} many in [[Archaeology|archaeologically secure contexts]],{{sfn|Archibald|1985|p=10}} so that it is now clear that a ruler named Beonna did rule in East Anglia at that time, as originally suggested in 1905 by the English historian [[H. M. Chadwick]].{{sfn|Archibald|1985|p=33}}{{sfn|Chadwick|1905|p=412}} The historian Steven Plunkett has suggested that the ''Hun-'' element in the annal was at some time joined with the ''-beanna'' element in error by a [[scribe]].{{sfn|Plunkett|2005|p=155}} [[Marion Archibald]], a [[numismatist]] at the [[British Museum]] for 33 years, and the historian  [[Dorothy Whitelock]] both asserted that the term ''Hunbeanna'' could be split into two separate names, ''Hun'' and ''Beonna''.{{sfn|Archibald|1985|p=39}}{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=9}}{{sfn|Whitelock|1979|p=264}} Archibald acknowledges that nothing at all is known of Hun, noting that the name may a [[hypocorism]] for a person with a name beginning in ''hun-'' or ending in ''-hun'',{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=12}} whilst Whitelock partitions the kingdom of the East Angles between Alberht, Hun and Beonna.{{sfn|Whitelock|1979|p=264}}

Scholars have since realized that these exceedingly sparse references were accurate, and that East Anglia was indeed ruled jointly after 749. As a result, Alberht has become a more substantial reality. The identity of these two rulers (or possibly three, if Hun is included) and the reason for this division of power remain unknown. The historian [[Barbara Yorke]] suggests the possibility that the kings each ruled a separate part of the kingdom at this time, but acknowledges that the political landscape of 749 is not well understood.{{sfn|Yorke|2002|p=69}} D. P. Kirby gives an alternative view of the events that may have occurred following the death of Ælfwald. He connects Alberht with [[Æthelberht II of East Anglia]] and states that Alberht was still ruling in 794, which would imply that he reigned for around forty-five years.{{sfn|Kirby|2000|p=115}}

Beonna is not a typical East Anglian Wuffingas name,{{sfn|Yorke|2002|p=67}} but might be connected with the Mercian ruling family, as several members had names starting with a B.{{sfn|Yorke|2002|p=119}} ''Alberht'' however alliterates suitably with several Wuffingas names:{{sfn|Yorke|2002|pp=3, 68}} according to Plunkett, it could be accepted as a form of the name ''Æthelberht'', implying that when Ælfwald died, Alberht continued the dynastic line,{{sfn|Plunkett|2005|p=155}}

Plunkett notes that the large number of coins bearing his name show that Beona was in primary control of the minting of East Anglia's coinage and was at times in a position to consolidate his authority as king.{{sfn|Plunkett|2005|pp=155, 158}} The East Anglians under Beonna co-operated with Æthelbald's Mercians in the [[Battle of Burford Bridge]] against [[Cuthred of Wessex]] in 752,{{sfn|Plunkett|2005|p=159}} and, according to Archibald, Beonna can be identified with  [[Beornred of Mercia|Beornred]], who for a few months ruled Mercia after Æthelbald's assassination in 757.{{sfn|Archibald|1985|pp=33–34}}

==Coinage==
[[File:Æthelberht I Eastanglian coin.jpg|thumb|The single coin that can be attributed to Alberht |alt= a coin of Alberht I.<ref name=fitz>{{cite web|url=https://emc.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/Emcfullrecord.php?link=1995.6002|title=Full Record of 1995.6002: coin of Alberht|publisher=The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge|access-date=22 February 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222204847/https://emc.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/Emcfullrecord.php?link=1995.6002|archive-date=22 February 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref> Both sides of the coin have text in [[runes]] laid out between the limbs of a ''[[saltire]] pommée'', decorated with pellets. Obverse: ''eþ æl be rt''; reverse: ''ti æl re d''.{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=8}}]]

According to the numismatists [[Philip Grierson]] and [[Mark Blackburn (numismatist)|Mark Blackburn]], the minting of coins in East Anglia probably began during the reign of Beonna. A mint probably operated from Suffolk: coins continued to be produced through a period of Mercian hegemony and East Anglian independence, until the invasion by the Vikings in the second half of the ninth century.{{sfn|Grierson|Blackburn|1986|p=588}}

The confirmation of Alberht as a historical figure emerges from the discovery by [[Excavation (archaeology)|controlled excavation]] of a single coin, considered to be unique, that can be attributed to him.{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=1}} 

The authenticity and date-horizon of the coin is not in doubt: it was discovered by Valerie Fenwick at Burrow Hill, at [[Butley, Suffolk]], in a [[Stratification (archeology)|stratified]] deposit which also contained several varieties of late [[sceattas]] of a [[runic]] type and coins that were minted by Beonna. It was found in a defensible [[estuary]] island site in a strategic position near [[Rendlesham]], a known seat of Wuffingas power.{{sfn|Plunkett|2005|pp=155–156}}  The site is located {{convert|10|km|mi}} due east of [[Sutton Hoo]].{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=7}}

The clear and carefully formed [[runes]] on the sceatta{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=9}} reveal the [[moneyer]]'s name—'Tiælred'—which is perhaps a version of ''Coeldred'': the obverse reads 'Ethælbert'.{{sfn|Page|1973|p=126}} Of about 42% [[silver]],{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=11}} the coin is closely connected to Beonna,{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=9}} being struck on a module comparable to the larger [[planchet]] which characterises the later strikes of Beonna's most prolific moneyer, Efe. The formula resembles the money made for Beonna by Wilred, but the confident lettering and beading more resembles the work of Efe.{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|pp=10–11}} Its resemblance to the coins made for Beonna "strongly suggests" to Archibald that it was made for a king who ruled in East Anglia at around the same time.{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=9}}

The coin formed part of a presentation to the British Museum in 1992, to mark the society's twenty-fifth anniversary of the [[The British Museum Friends|British Museum Society]].{{sfn|Archibald|Cowell|Fenwick|1996|p=1}}

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite journal
  |last=Archibald
  |first=Marion M.
  |title=The Coinage of Beonna in the light of the Middle Harling Hoard
  |journal=British Numismatic Journal
  |url=http://www.britnumsoc.org/publications/Digital%20BNJ/pdfs/1985_BNJ_55_4.pdf
  |year=1985
  |volume=55
  |pages=10–54}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Archibald |first1=Marion M. |last2=Cowell |first2=M.R. |last3=Fenwick |first3=V.H. |title=A sceat of Ethelbert I of East Anglia and recent finds of coins of Beonna |journal=British Numismatic Journal |date=1996 |volume=65 |pages=1–19 |url=http://www.britnumsoc.org/publications/Digital%20BNJ/pdfs/1995_BNJ_65_3.pdf}}
* {{cite book |last1=Chadwick |first1=Hector Munro |author-link1=Hector Munro Chadwick |title=Studies on Anglo-Saxon Institutions |date=1905 |publisher=University Press |location=Cambridge |oclc=60735181 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tWcIAQAAMAAJ&q=chadwick+hun+beanna}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Dumville |first1=David N. |author-link1=David Dumville |title=The Anglian collection of royal genealogies and regnal lists |journal=Anglo-Saxon England |date=1976 |volume=5 |pages=23–50 |publisher=Cambridge University Press|doi=10.1017/S0263675100000764 |jstor=44510666 |s2cid=162877617 }} {{registration required}}
*{{cite book
  |last1=Fryde |first1= E. B.
  |last2=Greenway |first2= D. E. 
  |last3=Porter |first3= S.
  |last4= Roy  |first4= I. 
  |title=Handbook of British Chronology
  |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zcgxEvGAK_kC&q=Handbook+of+British+Chronology
  |edition=3rd
  |publisher=Cambridge University Press
  |year=1986
  |isbn=0-521-56350-X
  }}
* {{cite book |last1=Grierson |first1=Philip |author-link1=Philip Grierson |last2=Blackburn |first2=Mark |author-link2=Mark Blackburn (numismatist) |title=Mediaeval European Coinage I: The Early Middle Ages |date=1986 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-03177-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WpQiZ8BX2q8C&q=Mediaeval+European+Coinage+IN:+The+Early+Middle+Ages}}
* {{cite encyclopedia|last=Keynes  |first=Simon  |title=Appendix I: Rulers of the English, c. 450–1066|pages=521–538|year=2014|editor1-first= Michael|editor1-last= Lapidge|editor2-first= John|editor2-last= Blair|editor3-first= Simon|editor3-last= Keynes |editor4-first= Donald|editor4-last= Scragg |encyclopedia=The Wiley Blackwell Encyclopedia of Anglo-Saxon England|edition=Second|location=Chichester, UK|publisher= Blackwell Publishing|isbn=978-0-470-65632-7}}
*{{Cite book
  | last = Kirby
  | first = D. P.
  | title = The Earliest English Kings
  | publisher = Routledge
  | location = London and New York
  | year = 2000
  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Fzhk_DvzqSkC&q=the+earliest+english+kings
  | isbn = 0-4152-4211-8
}}
* {{cite book
  |last=Page
  |first=Raymond Ian
  |title=An Introduction to English Runes
  |year=1973
  |publisher=Boydell Press
  |location=Woodbridge, UK
  |isbn=0-85115-946 X
  |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SgpriZdKin0C&q=A+sceat+of+Ethelbert+I+of+East+Anglia+and+Recent+Finds+of+Coins+of+Beonna&pg=PA126}}
*{{cite book
  |last=Page
  |first=R. I.
  |title=Runes and their Secrets: Studies in Runology
  |year=2006
  |publisher=Museum Tusculalum Press
  |location=Copenhagen
  |isbn=87-635-0428-6
  |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=USIpSluLe10C&q=beonna+pennies&pg=PA274
  |editor=Holmberg, B. |editor2=Nielsen, M. L. |editor3=Stoklund, M.
  |chapter=Anglo-Saxon Runes: some statistical problems}}
* {{cite book
  |last=Plunkett
  |first=Steven
  |title=Suffolk in Anglo-Saxon Times
  |year=2005
  |publisher=Tempus
  |location=Stroud, UK
  |isbn=0-7524-3139-0}}
* {{cite book |editor1-last=Whitelock |editor1-first=Dorothy |editor1-link=Dorothy Whitelock |title=English Historical Documents, 500-1042 |date=1979 |publisher=Routledge |location=London and New York |isbn=0-415-14366-7 |edition=2nd}}
*{{Cite book
  | last = Yorke
  | first = Barbara
  | author-link = Barbara Yorke
  | title = Kings and Kingdoms of Early Anglo-Saxon England
  | publisher = Routledge
  | location = London and New York
  | year = 2002
  |url=https://archive.org/details/KingsAndKingdomsOfEarlyAngloSaxonEngland/page/n1/mode/2up
  | isbn = 0-415-16639-X}}

===Further reading===
* J. Campbell (Ed.), ''The Anglo-Saxons'' (Oxford 1982). 
* {{cite journal
  |last=Fenwick
  |first=V.H.
  |title=Insula de Burgh: Excavations at Burrow Hill, Butley, Suffolk 1978-1981
  |journal=Anglo-Saxon Studies in Archaeology and History
  |year=1984
  |volume=3
  |pages=35–54| ref=none}}
* [[J. A. Giles]], ''Roger of Wendover's Flowers of History'' (Translation - 2 Vols.) (London 1849).

== External links ==
* {{PASE|20700|Alberht 3}}
* [https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/C_1992-1135-28 Record of the coin attributed to Alberht] at the [[British Museum]]

{{s-start}}
{{s-roy|en}}
{{succession box |
 before=[[Ælfwald of East Anglia|Ælfwald]] | 
 title=[[Kings of East Anglia|Joint king of East Anglia]] with [[Beonna of East Anglia|Beonna]]|
 years=  749 &ndash; around 760|
 after=[[Æthelred I of East Anglia|Æthelred I]]
}}
{{s-end}}
{{Kings of East Anglia}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alberht of East Anglia}}
[[Category:East Anglian monarchs]]
[[Category:8th-century English monarchs]]