Beorhtwulf (died 852) was King of the Mercians from 839 or 840 to 852. His ancestry is unknown, though he may have been connected to Beornwulf, who ruled Mercia in the 820s. Beorhtwulf restarted a Mercian coinage early in his reign, initially with strong similarities to the coins of Æthelwulf of Wessex, and later with independent designs. The Vikings attacked soon after Beorhtwulf's accession: the province of Lindsey was raided in 841, and London, a key centre of Mercian commerce, was attacked the following year. Another Viking assault on London in 851 "put Beorhtwulf to flight", according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle; the Vikings were subsequently defeated by Æthelwulf. Berkshire appears to have passed from Mercian to West Saxon control during Beorhtwulf's reign. The Welsh are recorded to have rebelled against Beorhtwulf's successor, Burgred, shortly after Beorhtwulf's death, suggesting that Beorhtwulf had been their overlord. Charters from his reign show a strained relationship with the church, as he seized land and subsequently returned it. Beorhtwulf and his wife, Sæthryth, may have had two sons, Beorhtfrith and Beorhtric. Beorhtwulf's death is not recorded.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beorhtwulf_of_Mercia
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1689:
Provincial militia and citizens gathered in Boston, and arrested officials of the Dominion of New England. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1689_Boston_revolt
1847:
Mexican–American War: Winfield Scott's United States troops out-flanked and drove Santa Anna's larger Mexican army from a strong defensive position in the Battle of Cerro Gordo. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cerro_Gordo
1906:
A major earthquake and resulting fires devastated San Francisco (damage pictured), killing at least 3,000 people and leaving more than half of the city's population homeless. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1906_San_Francisco_earthquake
1958:
Controversial American poet Ezra Pound was released from St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington, D.C., where he had been incarcerated for twelve years. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezra_Pound
1996:
Israeli forces shelled Qana, Lebanon, during Operation Grapes of Wrath, killing over 100 civilians and injuring over 110 others at a UN compound. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_shelling_of_Qana
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
oubliette: A dungeon only accessible by a trapdoor at the top. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/oubliette
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
No deeply-rooted tendency was ever extirpated by adverse argument. Not having originally been founded on argument, it cannot be destroyed by logic. --George Henry Lewes https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Henry_Lewes