Battle of Chester 615
Marker: recorded battle location (no official boundary).
Key facts
| Date (year) | 615 | Wikidata P585 point in time |
|---|---|---|
| Century | 7th century | derived |
| Period | Early medieval, Anglo-Saxon & Viking | derived |
| Country | England | derived |
| War / conflict | Anglo-Saxon settlement of England | Wikidata |
About the battle
The Battle of Chester (Old Welsh: Guaith Caer Legion; Welsh: Brwydr Caer) was a major victory for the Anglo-Saxons over the native Britons near the city of Chester, England in the early 7th century. Æthelfrith of Northumbria annihilated a combined force from the Welsh kingdoms of Powys and Rhôs (a cantref of the Kingdom of Gwynedd), and possibly from Mercia as well. It resulted in the deaths of Welsh leaders Selyf Sarffgadau of Powys, Cadwal Crysban of Rhôs, and numerous other high-ranking warriors such as Gwion ap Cyndrwyn of Pengwern. Circumstantial evidence suggests that King Iago of Gwynedd may have also been killed. Other sources state the battle may have been in 613 or even as early as 607 or 605 AD.
According to Bede, a large number of monks from the monastery at Bangor on Dee who had come to witness the fight were killed on the orders of Æthelfrith before the battle. He told his warriors to massacre the clerics because although they bore no arms, they were praying for a Northumbria defeat.
The strategic significance of the battle remains unclear as Æthelfrith died in battle soon after the victory.
Visiting the battlefield
Location
- Recorded location (Wikidata; may be approximate): 53.1675, -2.8856
Battlefields are often on private farmland: please keep to public rights of way and respect landowners.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Chester (revision 1370436999), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; condensed by selecting paragraphs and trimming at sentence boundaries; citations removed. No text added.
Battle location from Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby battlefields
- Battle of Rowton Heath 1645 · 5 km
- Battle of Ewloe 1157 · 13 km
- Battle of Nantwich 1644 · 25 km
- Battle of Winnington Bridge 1644 · 26 km
- Battle of Crogen 1165 · 29 km
- Second Battle of Middlewich 1643 · 29 km
Other battles of the Anglo-Saxon settlement of England
- Battle of Guoloph 437
- Battle of Aylesford 455
- Battle of Wippedesfleot 466
- Battle of Mercredesburne 485
- Battle of Badon 500
- Battle of Beran Byrig 556
- Battle of Deorham 577
- Battle of Woden's Burg 592
All battles of the Anglo-Saxon settlement of England →
Browse more: battles in England · Early medieval, Anglo-Saxon & Viking · 7th century battles