Person:Osburga (2)
Osburh _____
 
d.Bet 852 and 855 (about)
Parents and Siblings
(edit)
m. 809
  1. Osburh _____ - Bet 852 & 855
Spouse and Children
(edit)
m. Est 832
  1. Æthelbald of WessexEst 835 - 860
  2. Æthelswith of WessexEst 840 - 888
  3. Æthelred I of WessexEst 845 - 871
  4. Ælfred "the Great" of Wessex, King of the West Saxons849 - 899
Add another spouse & children
Facts and Events
Name[1] Osburh _____
Alt Name[1] Osburga _____
Gender Female
Marriage Est 832 to Æthelwulf _____, King of Wessex
Death[5][1][8] Bet 852 and 855 (about)
Reference Number[1] Q2296250?


the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Osburh or Osburga (also Osburga Oslacsdotter) was the first wife of King Æthelwulf of Wessex and mother of King Alfred the Great. Alfred's biographer, Asser, described her as "a most religious woman, noble in character and noble by birth".

Osburh's existence is known only from Asser's Life of King Alfred. She is not named as witness to any charters, nor is her death reported in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. So far as is known, she was the mother of all Æthelwulf's children, his five sons Æthelstan, Æthelbald, Æthelberht, Æthelred and Alfred, and his daughter Æthelswith, wife of King Burgred of Mercia.

Osburh is best known from Asser's story about a book of Saxon songs which she showed to her sons, offering to give the book to whoever could first memorise it, a challenge which Alfred took up and won. This exhibits high-status ninth-century women's interest in books and their role in educating their children.

Osburh was the daughter of Oslac (who is also only known from Asser's Life), King Æthelwulf's pincerna (butler), an important figure in the royal court and household. Oslac is described as a descendant of King Cerdic's Jutish nephews, Stuf and Wihtgar, who conquered the Isle of Wight.

This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original content was at Osburga. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with WeRelate, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
References
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Osburga, in Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia.
  2.   Karel de Grote - de eerste geneaties.
  3.   Osburga (?), in Lundy, Darryl. The Peerage: A genealogical survey of the peerage of Britain as well as the royal families of Europe.
  4.   Osburh, in Baldwin, Stewart, and Todd Farmerie. The Henry Project (King Henry II ): Ancestors of King Henry II.
  5. ↑ ÆTHELWULF, in Cawley, Charles. Medieval Lands: A prosopography of medieval European noble and royal families.
  6.   Asser, and William Henry (ed.) Stevenson. Asser's Life of King Alfred. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1904)
    p. 4.

    Baldwin notes that the genealogy given here by Asser (the only original source for Osburh's life) is clearly mythical.

  7.   Osburg 2 (Female), in The Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England.
  8. ↑ Baldwin suggests that it is possible that Æthelwulf was a bigamist, and that Osburh survived past 856.
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