145 – The Rise of King AEthelbald of Mercia

Ok, so we ended our last episode with the death of King Ceolred at a banquet. And he went out swinging… or at least gibbering and cursing the heavens. Let's face it, Ceolred was a colorful character and really brought his A game right until the end. I mean, you really have to work hard to completely destroy Penda's dynasty. But now that he was out of the way, the throne of Mercia was open. And Ceolred’s rival, the man he feared so much that he drove him into exile and tried to have him killed… ...