Ricsige of Northumbria

Ricsige
King of Northumbria
Reign	873–876 AD
Predecessor	Ecgberht I
Successor	Ecgberht II
Died	c. 876 AD[1]
House	Northumbria

Ricsige (also rendered Ricsy, Ricsi or Ricsig) was King of Northumbria from 873[2][3][1] to 876.[2][1] He became king after Ecgberht I was overthrown and fled, with Wulfhere, Archbishop of York, to Mercia.

Career

In 872, Northumbria rebelled against the Great Heathen Army and their collaborators. The Northumbrians expelled Ecgberht I of Northumbria and Wulfhere of York.[4][5] After the death of Ecgberht in 873, Ricsige became King of Northumbria, and restored Wulfhere as Archbishop of York.[5]

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that the Great Heathen Army came north against the Northumbrians in 873.[6] Halfdan Ragnarsson departed Repton in 875, bringing Northumbria under his dominion and destroying all of the monasteries.[5] Halfdan would divide the land the following year amongst his followers,[7] with Ricsige reportedly dying that same year from a broken heart according to the Flores Historiarum.[8]

Popular culture

In 2020, Ricsige was featured in Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, installed as the King of Northumbria by Halfdan Ragnarsson after Ecgberht's deposition.[9]

References

1. Roger 1868, p. 41.
2. Morby, John (1989). Dynasties of the World: a Chronological and Genealogical Handbook. Oxford University Press. p. 65. ISBN 0198828993.
3. Ferguson, Robert (25 November 2009). "7: The Danelaw I". The Vikings: A History. Penguin Books. ISBN 978-1101151426.
4. Abels, Richard (1998). Alfred the Great: War, Kingship and Culture in Anglo-Saxon England. Routledge. p. 120. ISBN 1317900413.
5. Symeon 1855, p. 492.
6. Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 1996.
7. Symeon 1855, p. 493.
8. Roger 1841, p. 326.
9. Roxl, Rhett (2 June 2021). "13 Assassin's Creed Valhalla Characters Who Were Actually Real (& Why They're Famous)". GameRant. Retrieved 2 July 2021.

Bibliography

• Symeon of Durham (1855). Joseph Stevenson (ed.). The Historical Works of Symeon of Durham. Vol. 3. Church Historian's of England.
• Roger of Hoveden (1868). William Stubbs (ed.). Chronica Magistri Rogeri de Houedene. Vol. 1. London: Longmans, Green, Reader, and Dyer. OCLC 874707654.
• The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Translated by Giles, John; Ingram, James. Project Gutenberg. 1 September 1996.
• Roger of Wendover (1841). Henry Coxe (ed.). Flores Historiarum. Londini, Sumptibus societatis.

External links

• Ricsige at Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England
• King Ricsige of Northumbria at AH Gray

Regnal titles
Preceded by Ecgberht I	King of Northumbria 873–876	Succeeded by Ecgberht II In Bamburgh
		Succeeded by Halfdan Ragnarsson In Deira (or Jórvík)