THE APOSTASY OF OSRIC & EANFRITH

After the death of King Edwin, the Kingdom of Northumbria, which had been united under Edwin's rule (616–633), devolved into its two constituent kingdoms, Bernicia in the north and Deira in the south. Bernicia was ruled by Eanfrith (590–634), the son of Æthelfrith (whom Edwin and Rædwald had defeated in 616), and Deira was ruled by Osric, the son of Edwin's uncle Æthelric. Both Eanfrith and Osric had been Christians, butreverted to paganism upon taking the throne. Both were defeated by the invading British king Cadwallon ap Cadfan of Gwynedd in 634. Cadwallon was in turn defeated by Oswald, son of Æthelfrith (and brother of Eanfrith), in the battle of Heavenfield in 634. Oswald subsequently ruled over a reunited Kingdom of Northumbria.

(1) prō illō: “in his place”

Deirōrum: Deira and Bernicia were the two northern kingdoms which, when united, formed the Kingdom of Northumbria. Deira included most of what is now Yorkshire, from the Humber north to the River Tees; Berncia was to the north of Deira, up to the River Forth. See Map.

Aelfrīcī: Ælfric, paternal uncle (patruus) of Edwin

ad praedicātiōnem: ad = “in obedience to” or “in accordance with”

fideī … imbūtus: the order is imbūtus erat sacrāmentīs fideī; sacrāmentīs is ablative after imbūtus.

(2) Aedilfridī: Æthelfrith was the first known king of Bernicia, who reigned from 593–616; from ca. 604 until his death he ruled over a united Kingdom of Northumbria. He was killed in battle with Rædwald, who placed Edwin on the throne of Northumbria.

(3) Eduīnī: nominative

iuventūte: iuventus = “a youthful group”

ad doctrīnam: ad = “in accordance with”

baptismatis … recreātī: the order is recreātī sunt gratiā baptismatis; gratiā is ablative of means.

(4) Quī: connecting relative (AG 308.f)

patriam: accusative of motion toward, without ad

primus: “oldest”

quem: the antecedent is primus.

(5) Quī uterque rēx: “both of these kings”; literally, “which each king,” making the grammatical subject singular, even though both kings (Osric and Eanfrith) are being discussed. It is easier, in English, to take the subject as plural (“both kings”) and translate the verbs as plural.

ut: “when”

polluendum perdendumque: gerundives (agreeing with sē) expressing purpose: “to be polluted and destroyed” (AG 500.4)

634: THE YEAR OF THE BAD KINGS

(6) utrumque: “both” (i.e., Osric and Eanfrith)

Ceadvalla: Cadwallon ap Cadfan, ruler of the British kingdom of Gwynedd, who had defeated Edwin in the Battle of Hatfield Chase (633).

(7) primō proximā aetāte: Bede's ordering of his narrative is somewhat confusing. In the previous sentence, he says that Cadwallon killed both Osric and Eanfrith; he then goes back and relates the separate stories of how each king met his death. Primō introduces the story of Osric's death, "first of all." Proximā aestāte, "in the following summer," has to mean the summer after Edwin died and Osric and Eanfrith took power.

sē … obsēdisset: sē refers to Cadwallon, the subject of the main clause, although the subject of the verb obsēdisset in the subordinate clause in Osric (a form of “indirect reflexive”; see AG 300.2)

ērumpens … imparātum: ērumpens refers to Cadwallon, imparātum refers to Osric; understand eum [Osricum] inparātum as the object of dēlēvit.

cum … dīlacerāret: temporal cum clause; with the imperfect subjunctive, it is best to translate, “while he was….”

(8) annō integrō: ablative of duration of time (AG 424.b): “for a whole year”

prōvinciās: the object of both possidēret and disperderet; it is easiest in English to make “kingdoms” the object of the first verb, and substitute a pronoun “them” as the object of the second verb.

nōn ut rēx victor … disperderet: victor (i.e., Cadwallon) is the subject of both verbs; ut rēx, “as a king.” Bede is making a distinction between a legitimate king and a tyrant.

ad sē: sē refers to Cadwallon (the subject of the main verb, damnāvit).

postulandae pācis gratiā: the gerundive expresses purpose: “for the sake of asking for peace.”

similī sorte: literally, “by a similar lot”; has the adverbial meaning “likewise” (making this an ablative of manner).

(9) et: "even"; take with usque hodiē ("even to this day").

exōsus ... permanet: "remains hateful"

omnibus bonīs: dative of reference with exosus (AG 376).

tam … quam: “as much … as”

(10) cunctīs … rēgum tempora computantibus: “No doubt this is evidence for the keeping of early king-lists” (Wallace-Hadrill 84). The passage implies that the brief reigns of Osric and Eanfrith were not recorded on the king-lists for the year 634, and that the year was assigned instead the reign of Oswald.

dē mediō: “from the scene”

rēgum perfidōrum: with memoriā

sequentis rēgis: with rēgnō (as are the genitives in apposition, Osvaldī and virī … dīlēctī)

rēgnō: dative, after adsignārētur: “was assigned to the reign…”)

quō … superveniente ... mūnītō: an ablative absolute: “when he appeared on the scene … fortified....”

quibus: dative object of resistere

iactābat: > iactō = “boast”: “which he boasted that nothing could resist”

Denisesburna: Rowley Burn, near Hexham