Deira

For other uses, see Deira (disambiguation).

Kingdom of Deira
559–664
Capital		York
Languages		Old English
Government		Monarchy
Historical era		Early Medieval
•	Established	559
•	Shared crown with Bernicia	604
•	merged with Bernicia	664
Preceded by Succeeded by Sub-Roman Britain Northumbria

Location of Deira

Deira (Old English: Derenrice or Dere) was a kingdom (559-664 AD) in Northern England which probably emerged when Anglian warriors conquered the Derwent Valley in the third quarter of the fifth century. It extended from the Humber to the Tees, and from the sea to the western edge of the Vale of York. It was the southern of the two kingdoms of Deira and Bernicia which later merged to form the kingdom of Northumbria.

The name of the kingdom is of Brythonic origin, perhaps from Deifr, meaning "waters", or from Daru, meaning "oak", in which case it would mean "the people of the Derwent", a derivation also found in the Latin name for Malton, Derventio.

According to Simeon of Durham (writing early in the 12th century) it extended from the Humber to the Tyne, but the land was waste north of the Tees. After the Brythonic kingdom centred on Eboracum, which may have been called Ebrauc, was taken by King Edwin, the city of Eboracum became its capital and was called Eoforwic ("boar-place") by the Angles.

The first Anglian king of Deira of whom we have any record is Ælla, who flourished in the later 6th century after conquering the realm from the Britons in 581. After his death, Deira was subject to king Æthelfrith of Bernicia, who united the two kingdoms into Northumbria. Æthelfrith ruled until the accession of Ælla's son Edwin, in 616 or 617, who also ruled both kingdoms until 633.

Osric, the nephew of Edwin, ruled Deira after Edwin, but his son Oswine was put to death by Oswiu in 651. For a few years subsequently Deira was governed by Æthelwald son of Oswald of Bernicia.

Bede wrote of Deira in his Historia Ecclesiastica (completed in 731).

Kings of Deira

See also: List of monarchs of Northumbria

Reign	Incumbent		Notes
559/560 to 589	Aella (Aelli)	ÆLLA YFFING DEIRA CYNING ÆLLA REX DEIRA
589/599 to 604	Aethelric (Aedilric)	ÆÞELRIC IDING BERNICIA 7 DEIRA CYNING ÆÞELRIC REX BERNICIA ET DEIRA
Bernicia Dynasty
593/604? to 616	Aethelfrith	ÆÞELFERÞ ÆÞELRICING DEIRA CYNING ÆÞELFERÞ REX DEIRA	Killed in battle
Deira Dynasty
616 to 12/14 October 632	Edwin	EDVVIN ÆLLING BERNICIA 7 DEIRA CYNING EDVVIN REX BERNICIA ET DEIRA	Killed in battle by Cadwallon of Gwynedd and Penda of Mercia
late 633 to summer 634	Osric	OSRIC ÆLFRICING DEIRA CYNING OSRIC REX DEIRA
Bernicia Dynasty
633 to 5 August 642	Oswald	OSVVALD BERNICIA 7 DEIRA CYNING OSVVALD REX BERNICIA ET DEIRA	Killed by Penda, King of Mercia; Saint Oswald
642 to 644	Oswiu	OSVVIO ÆÞELFRIÞING BERNICIA 7 DEIRA CYNING OSVVIO REX BERNICIA ET DEIRA
Deira Dynasty
644 to 651	Oswine	OSVVINE OSRICING DEIRA CYNING OSVVINE REX DEIRA	Murdered
Bernicia Dynasty
summer 651 to late 654 or 655	Æthelwold	ÆÞELVVALD OSVVALDING DEIRA CYNING ÆÞELVVALD REX DEIRA
654 to 15 August 670	Oswiu	OSVVIO ÆÞELFERÞING NORÞANHYMBRA CYNING OSVVIO REX NORÞANHYMBRA	Restored
656 to 664	Alchfrith	ALCHFRIÞ DEIRA CYNING ALCHFRIÞ REX DEIRA
670 to 679	Aelfwine	ÆLFVVINE DEIRA CYNING ÆLFVVINE REX DEIRA

References

• Higham, N.J. (1993). The Kingdom of Northumbria AD 350-1100. Stroud: Sutton. ISBN 0-86299-730-5

Further reading

• Geake, Helen & Kenny, Jonathan (eds.) (2000). Early Deira: Archaeological studies of the East Riding in the fourth to ninth centuries AD. Oxford: Oxbow. ISBN 1-900188-90-2