The House of Wessex Family Tree shown below details all members of the House of Wessex from the early 9th century to the Norman Conquest in 1066. Direct descendants of the House of Wessex are capitalized with those that became king being coloured blue. Kings of England during this period that were not members of the House of Wessex, are coloured blue and in lower case. Spouses are shown in black and lower case.
What is the House of Wessex?
The House of Wessex is the term given to those early rulers of the Kingdom of Wessex and their descendants that ruled a united England until the Norman Conquest in 1066.
Wessex was one of the seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in England, known as the ‘Heptarchy’, that existed from the late 5th century to the early 10th century when England became united under one ruler. The seven kingdoms were Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia, Essex, Kent, Sussex and Wessex.
The first known ruler of Wessex was Cerdic who ruled from 519-534. The first King of Wessex to be termed ‘Bretwalda’ was King Egbert in the 9th century. The term ‘Bretwalda’ was used during the Anglo-Saxon period to signify the most important of the Seven Kings. King Egbert of Wessex was designated ‘Bretwalda, as was Alfred the Great and King Aethelstan.
Technically, the last king of the House of Wessex was Edgar Aetheling, the great-grandson of Aethelred the Unready, who was declared King of England by the Witan following the death of King Harold at the Battle of Hastings. However, he was not crowned and submitted to William of Normandy in December 1066.
Although Harold Godwinson was king from January to October 1066, he was not a descendant of the House of Wessex, but the brother-in-law of Edward the Confessor. Many historians cite Edward the Confessor as the last King of the House of Wessex. He was the son of Aethelred the Unready by his second wife, Emma of Normandy. He was crowned and ruled England from 1042 to 1066.
Alfred the Great is arguably the most well known of the Kings of the House of Wessex. His ideas on town planning, defence, education and the unification of England under one ruler were ahead of his time and instrumental in shaping medieval England.
Complete list of the Kings of the House of Wessex from 802 – 1066
Egbert 802 – 839
Aethelwulf 839 – 858
Aethelbald 858 – 860
Aethelberht 860 – 865
Aethelred 865 – 871
Alfred (the Great) 871 – 899
Edward (the Elder) 899 – 924
Aelfweard 924
Aethelstan 924 – 939
Edmund I 939 – 946
Eadred 946 – 955
Eadwig 955 – 959
Edgar (the Peaceful) 959 – 975
Edward (the Martyr) 975 – 978
Aethelred (the Unready) 978 – 1013, 1014 – 1016
Edmund (Ironside) 1016
Edward (the Confessor) 1042 – 1066
Harold Godwinson 1066
Edgar (Aetheling) 1066