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Ælfgar (died c.1062) was son of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, possibly by his well-known wife Godgifu (Lady Godiva), although more probably by an earlier marriage. He succeeded to his father's title and responsibilities on the latter's death in 1057.
Ælfgar gained from the exile of Earl Godwin of Wessex and his sons in 1051. He was given the Earldom of East Anglia, which had been that of Harold, son of Godwin. Earl Godwin and King Edward were reconciled the following year, so Harold was restored to his earldom - but not for long. At Easter 1053 Godwin died, so Harold became Earl of Wessex, and the earldom of East Anglia returned to Ælfgar. 1,2
Ælfgar seems to have learned from the tactics Godwin used to put pressure on King Edward. When he was himself exiled in 1055, he raised a fleet of 18 ships in Ireland and then turned to Wales, where King Gruffydd agreed to join forces with him against King Edward. Two miles from Hereford, on 24 October, they clashed with the army of the Earl of Herefordshire, Ralph the Timid. The Earl and his men eventually took flight, and Gruffydd and Ælfgar pursued them, killing and wounding as they went, and enacting savage reprisals on Hereford. They despoiled and burnt the town, killing many of its citizens. King Edward ordered an army mustered and put Earl Harold in charge of it. This was more formidable opposition, and Ælfgar and Gruffydd fled to South Wales. However the issue was resolved by diplomacy and Earl Ælfgar was reinstated.3
He married Aelfgifu, and was succeeded as Earl of Mercia by his eldest son by her, Edwin (also called Eadwine). His second son, Morcar (also called Morkere) was elected Earl of Northumbria when Tostig Godwinson was ejected by the Northumbrians. His daughter, Edith (Aldgyth) married firstly the Welsh prince Gruffyd (kd. 1063), by whom she had three children, and secondly 1064 Harold Godwinson (kd 1066 Hastings), by whom she had a posthumous son, Harold (died 1098).
Notes
- ^ Ann Williams, ‘Ælfgar, earl of Mercia (d. 1062?)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 18 April 2008
- ^ The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.
- ^ The Chronicle of John of Worcester ed. and trans. R.R. Darlington, P. McGurk and J. Bray (Clarendon Press: Oxford 1995), pp.576-79; The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.
| Preceded by Leofric |
Earl of Mercia 1057–1062 |
Succeeded by Edwin |
| Preceded by Harold Godwinson |
Earl of East Anglia 1053–1057 |
Succeeded by Gyrth Godwinson |
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