Æthelwealh of Sussex

Æthelwealh
King of Sussex
Imaginary depiction of Æthelwealh from John Speed's 1611 "Saxon Heptarchy"
Reign	fl. c. 660 – c. 685
Predecessor	Cissa
Successor	Eadwulf
Died	685
Spouse	Eafe
Issue	Unknown

Æthelwealh (fl. c. 660 – c. 685) (also written Aedilualch, Aethelwalch, Aþelwold, Æðelwold, Æþelwald, or Ethelwalch) was the first historical king of Sussex. Æthelwealh became the first Christian king of Sussex and was king when Sussex was converted to Christianity in 681. In 661, Æthelwealh received the territories of the Meon Valley in modern-day Hampshire, and the Isle of Wight from his godfather, Wulfhere, king of Mercia. Æthelwealh was killed in around 685 by Cædwalla, at the time a prince of the Gewisse tribe of modern-day Oxfordshire, who had been operating as bandit in Sussex.

All known information about him comes from brief mentions in Eddius's The Life of Bishop Wilfrid, Bede's Ecclesiastical History of England, and The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Æthelwealh was the third recorded ruler of the South Saxons in Sussex.

A case can be made (Slaughter) that Æthelwealh was installed by Penda in 645, when Cenwalh was driven out of his kingdom by Penda for divorcing the latter's sister. Cenwalh had deprived Penda's sister of her queenly status, and a just recompense when Penda invaded Wessex would have been for him to have deprived Cenwalh of the kingdom in Sussex.

Æthelwealh became a Christian while in Mercia where the King of Mercia, King Wulfhere, sponsored his baptism. At this time the people of Sussex were pagans.

In 661, Wulfhere gave Æthelwealh the territories of Meonwara and the Isle of Wight.