Background
Aethelburg was born circa 673 in England.
Aethelburg was born circa 673 in England.
In 722, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a man named Ealdberht "the Exile" seems to have risen in revolt against Ine. Aethelburh's destruction of Taunton in the same year may have been an initial military response to the situation on Ine's behalf, perhaps because Ealdberht had managed to seize Taunton for himself. One scenario is that Ine may have been embroiled at that time in a war with the Britons on his southwestern border, leaving responsibility for defending the realm in Aethelburh's hands. Aethelburh perhaps ousted Ealdberht from Taunton but may have had insufficient troops with which to garrison such an outlying fort, deciding instead to raze it lest it fall again into the hands of an enemy. The Chronicle reports that Ealdberht fled to Sussex, where in 725 he was slain in battle with Ine.
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle states that in 722 Aethelburh razed the fortress of Taunton in Somerset (built by her husband on the northern frontier of his kingdom). Whether or not its significance was due in part to the active military role played by a woman is unknown, but it is worthwhile to note that Aethelburh's action appears exceptional, given that contemporary reports from Merovingian Gaul seem to imply that queens involved in siege warfare were usually fulfilling a defensive rather than an aggressive function.
Aethelburh was married to Ine, king of Wessex. Ine and Aethelburg had no known children.
