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MerciasroleintheearlyhistoryofEnglandhasprovedto e gevena er e n a s e ea .
Bytheyear716a.D.anephewofPenda,Ethelbald,becameitsKin thusbe innin aneweraof oliticalex ansion.
OnemaindifferencebetweenPendaandhismephewwas
thereligion
each
professed.
Beda,referredtohimasTheKingofEnglandbelowNorthumbriawhichwas,nevertheless,sortofinaccurate,becausehewasnotabletocon uerWessex.Thissituationled
later
to
his
murder
by
the
hands
of
his
own
court
members.
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The
re
rise
of
Mercia EthelbaldwassucceededbyOffawhowasabletobend
Wessex,acquiringcontroloveritin777.
Theconquer
was
as
well
by
means
of
marriage,
forcing
Wessexskingtomarryoneofhisdaughters.Theother
controlovertheHeptarchy.
Hebecame
so
renowned
in
the
continent
that
Carolus
Magnus C ar emagne treate imas isequa ,evenacceptingsuggestionsfromOffatopressurethepope(Adrian)atthemomentofrelocatingthemainEnglishabbey
fromCanterbury
to
Lichfield.
The
Pope
ended
up
fulfilling
Offaswish.
beauty.
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TheVikingsandthefallofMercia
Merciashegemonylasted42yearsbutcametoanendduetoaScandinavianethnicgroupcomingfromSweden:theDens.
TheDenstogetherwiththeNorwegiansandthe.
Intheharshcircumstancesinwhichtheylived,they
wars.
Bythe8th Century,theDens,defeatedbytheothertwo
andused
to
navigate,
combat
and
conquer
had
anew
andbetteridea:Plunderingwhichbecamea.
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The
Vikin s
and
the
fall
of
Mercia OthercommunitiesbegantonamethemNordics,theycalled
themselvesVikings(whichintheScandinavianlanguagesmean arr ors .
Fightingand
dying
in
battle
was
for
them
ahonor.
Nearthe9th Century,VikingslandedinKentandterrorizedit.TheylaterwouldchargetributetotheBritishshorepeoplesinordernottoinvadethem.
Theysurrounded
England
and
were
able
to
conquer
and
annihilate
the
incipientIrishpeoples,bringingthedisappearingoftheCelticculturecloseto90%.
Theywereneverable,though,toconquerScotlandthankstotheunion
ofthe
Picts
and
Scotts
who
accepted
the
guidance
of
aunified
king:
KennethMcAlpinwhobecameKennethI.SomethingthatcouldnothappeninEngland,evenmoreafterOffasdeath.Thisbroughtthefall
o erc aw c cou n n ano erc ar sma csuccessor.