Mercians

“ The South Mercians are a folk of 5000 families, ‘so they say’:—that is all that Bede can tell us about them. It is not likely that they have underestimated their numbers. When there is a kingdom of England, when there is a crushing tax called ‘danegeld,’ then the day will have come when a county will, if it can, ‘conceal’ its hides. At an earlier time the various folks will brag of their strength and there will be none to mitigate their boasts. ”

“ This treaty, although it curtailed the supremacy of Wessex, made [9] the kingdom in fact stronger, and secured a temporary rest for the whole of England. Mercia, that part of it at least which remained English, was governed by its Alderman Æthelred, and by the King’s daughter Æthelflæd, known as the Lady of the Mercians. On the death of Gutred, the Danish King of Northumbria, Alfred re-established his power there, and the peace and prosperity of England were further increased by the fact that the energy of the Danes was for the present chiefly directed against France and Belgium. ”

“ PENDA (577?–655) , king of the Mercians, called Pantha by Nennius, son of Wibba, or Pybba, with a descent traced from Woden, came to the throne in 626, being then in his fiftieth year (A.-S. Chron. an. 626; Flor. Wig. an. 627) . Until the end of the sixth century the Mercian people had no existence separate from other Anglian tribes, and the beginning of their rise may perhaps be dated from the reign of Crida, probably the father and predecessor of Wibba, who is supposed to have been the first king, and whose death is placed in 593 (Henry of Huntingdon, ii. cc. 26, 27, 31) . ”

“ Anno 868.—This year the same army went into Mercia to Nottingham, and there took up their winter quarters. And Burhred, King of the Mercians, and his witan begged of Ethelred, King of the West Saxons, and of Alfred his brother, that they would help them, that they might fight against the army. And then they went with the West Saxon fyrd into Mercia as far as Nottingham, and there met with the army within the fortress; and besieged them therein: but 59there was no great battle; and the Mercians made peace with the army. ”

“ The Abingdon Chronicle is, of course, good for its proper uses, but where it says that “Seouescham civitas” had been a “sedes regia,” although the name has an English colouring, it is evidently speaking of British or ante-Saxon times. If a royal residence during the reign of Æthelbald, it must have been of the West Saxons, and not of the Mercians. It could not, therefore, have been the Cloveshoe where Æthelbald presided. ”

“ Is not everything in the relation between the races and kingdoms of Britain vague, ill-defined, anarchic? The Danes make a frith and break it; the West Saxons establish some kind of supremacy over the Mercians; Edward’s personal rule is advanced as far as the Humber; he becomes thereby undoubtedly the most powerful man in Britain; Scots, Northumbrians and Britons of Strathclyde take note of the fact and desire to become allies—we may safely say subject-allies—of so mighty a prince, whom they accordingly take “as father and as lord”. ”

“ Experience however had taught the Mercians the worthlessness of raids like these and Offa resolved to create a military border by planting a settlement of Englishmen between the Severn, which had till then served as the western boundary of the English race, and the huge "Offa's Dyke" which he drew from the mouth of Wye to that of Dee. ”

“ All that can be said is that in the early part of the seventh century we find the Mercians, an Anglian tribe, manifesting themselves in force in Staffordshire and Shropshire along the Welsh March from which they perhaps derived their name. As the century proceeds, they conquer or ally with themselves the Middle Anglians, who seem to have inhabited Leicestershire and some of the country adjacent thereto ”

“ They were royal councils, and these must be expected to have followed the presence of the king and his court, as was the case in much later times than those now under consideration. Most of the remaining records of these synods at Cloveshoe, and of the other national ones during the same period, show the king to have presided; and it is true that it is the Mercian King, who is so found, during both of the long reigns of Æthelbald and Offa; and throughout the time of the domination of the Mercians in Kent. ”

“ Then Erling and I were alone in the gateway, and the snarling Mercians leaped at us. The last Welshman had fallen, hurling his broken sword at a man who smote at me, and so staying the blow.
"A good fight for a man's last, master," said Erling to me through his teeth, standing steadily as a rock with his hacked shield linked in mine, and his notched sword swinging untiringly to the grim old viking war shout "Ahoy!" as it fell.
Kynan was twenty yards from us, and now I saw Gymbert among those whom he was steadily driving back. ”

“ It shore the spear shafts, and the brass-studded shields seemed to split before it touched them, and the tough leather jerkins of the forest men could not hold its edge back. The wild song of Kynan never ceased, and he seemed to sing of it. He was getting nearer, but the Mercians thronged between his men and us.
Now there seemed to be a grim joy in the faces of the men before me, and the Briton at my right fell. There was none left to take his place, and there were but three of us in the gate.
"Kynan! Kynan!" I cried, for in a moment he would find his retreat barred. ”

“ Although stricken down and faint from loss of blood, Oswald still lived, and witnessed with [112] anguish of mind the cowardly and ignominious flight of his army. The Mercians came over the field, killing those of the fallen who were merely wounded; but when they came to Oswald they spared him, whom they had recognised, and brought him, with staggering steps and downcast heart, into the presence of their chief.
"Thou art he, then," said Penda, addressing him, "who darest to invade my dominions—the dominions of a descendant of Woden—thou, a worshipper of false gods!" ”

“ Three years after the death of King Penda, the Mercian chiefs, Immin, and Eafa, and Eadbert, rebelled against King Oswy, setting up for their king, Wulfhere,449 son to the said Penda, a youth whom they had kept concealed; and [pg 192] expelling the ealdormen of the foreign king, they bravely recovered at once their liberty and their lands; and being thus free, together with their king, they rejoiced to serve Christ the true King, for the sake of an everlasting kingdom in heaven. This king governed the Mercians seventeen years, and had for his first bishop Trumhere,450 above spoken of ”

“ And so the cry spreading itself through every quarter of that vast Empire was caught 344up in wild delight—Long live Mercia, our Empress, being echoed from every part, by people of every caste and every creed. But when the intelligence reached this impressionable people that Mercia, the greatest Astronomer, and noblest woman the world had ever seen, was about to enter into a matrimonial alliance with Dayanand Swami, the actual lineal descendant of The Great Mogul Dynasty, which governed India from the early centuries downwards, that settled the question. ”

“ Had there been a goodly half-dozen of sons to fall back upon an English prince would never have had the chance of their crown.’
‘All’s well that ends well, Geometrus. Now is England invincible to the whole world: 91in her position as a united Empire her power is paramount everywhere.’
No sooner had Mercia made this observation than she heard the sound of some unusual noise going on outside, and stepping to the window she saw several gentlemen assembled near the Observatory, among whom she discerned no other personage than the Emperor Felicitas himself. ”

“ However, I am aware that Mercia is in love already. That fellow Geometrus desires her, and she loves him: at all events she told me as much. I suppose thy prophecy refers to him; for he is one also who troubles little about the affairs of women; for he slaves all day making astronomical instruments for Mercia to do her star-gazing with. He is her devoted servant, and she appreciates him accordingly,’ observed Felicitas cynically.
‘But will she marry him?’ remarked Swami musingly.
‘Exercise thy soul-reading powers and discover for thyself,’ answered the Emperor lightly. ”

“ Then Mercia awakening, evidently, from her love-dream, and realising her true position exclaimed with great dignity, ‘Felicitas, the Emperor, hath no crown to offer his subject, Mercia, for it sits already on the brow of his Royal Spouse. Neither has he love to offer his astronomer, for it is sworn to his Empress for ever. ”

“ Sadbag, smiling good-humouredly, ‘pray don’t applaud any more; I can’t get along with my talking-machine; and until I finish the Court is unable to arrive at a decision. ’Tis a pity to hinder the Emperor’s pretty speeches, just listen to this, and see how poetical he is: the tender passion makes even kings grow quite tragical.’
‘Mercia, Mercia, give me thy love! Take me, my beloved, spurn me no longer, for without thee I am as one dead. As a world without sun, without life, without warmth I shall go on my way darkened for ever. ”

“ This new emotion filled him with a subtle rapture, imparting to him a new fervour that lent a charm to every look and motion.
His dreamy eyes had turned intensely brilliant, their excitement spreading to every muscle of the face, imparted over all his countenance a delicious softness, that instantly set every nerve in Mercia’s frame a-throbbing. ”

“ Brave as a lion, and possessing talents that would have broken through the gloom of the most benighted period, the Mercian king marched onward from conquest to conquest, now achieving deeds that win our admiration, then sinking down to commit such crimes as must have made his subjects shudder. On each side of him Drida and his daughter are ever rising up, like two spirits that attract our attention, as they come out in the sunshine to smile, or rush shrieking from amid the darkness, into which they had plunged, to accomplish some new and horrible deed ”

“ Am I to be flouted for him?’
‘His love is honourable, and thine is not; therein lies the difference, my Sire,’ the voice of Mercia replied in a propitiating tone; as if to win the monarch over to give consent to her marriage with Geometrus.
‘But my love shall be made honourable, Mercia, I will get a divorce, and thou shalt fill the Empress’ place. Aye, and fill it far away better than she has ever done! I hate her—curse her!’ Then followed a grating noise as if the Emperor were grinding his teeth in fury at the thought of his marriage fetters. ”

“ To-morrow the whole world will ring of his doings. His hypocrisy, his deceit, and his cowardice will make him the object of detestation to all. The four quarters of the earth have got the story word for word, and we shall see what comes of it.’
‘Sadbag, what hast thou done?’ demanded Mercia with eyes of fire and cheek of flame. ”

“ Let thine heart melt to its influence, and all will go well with thee. Thy melancholies will disappear; thy solitude lightened; for thou wilt have a new theory to analyse—a new and a better one.’
110‘Yes, thou canst love, dear Mercia, I know it; for thine eyes were made for the conquest of man’s heart, rather than star-gazing. Cease to disregard the designs of Nature when she formed thee, and yield thyself to the pleasure of love.’
Mercia essayed to answer him, but her tongue refused her utterance, so great was her confusion. ”

“ In him the people of this great Empire will have a kind Father, a wise Teacher, a just Ruler, and a lover and promoter of learning.
‘By the union of Mercia and Dayanand we shall have restored to us the lost Royal Line: in beauteous Mercia, perfect in face, and form, in soul and mind, we have found the true representative of what a monarch ought to be.
‘Herein is crystallised the talent, wisdom, and virtue of all generations. In her person we shall have the embodiment of our country’s dignity and honour. She shall become the Great Mother of India. ”

“ As his gaze dwelt upon her sweet face, he looked into her eyes with rapturous emotion, and clasping his hands together, knelt before this lovely delineation of his secret adoration, uttering in tenderest accents a passionate apostrophe.
‘O, divine Mercia, I love thee! Thou hast brought into my life a new element—a new force, as mysterious, as it is powerful. A new joy has come into my heart hitherto unknown. A new hope is imparted to my lonely life, irradiating its darkness, and giving the sweetest comfort known to the human soul. ”

“ Mercia coloured violently upon hearing Geometrus’ name thus mentioned, then trying to regard it lightly, she observed—‘Who is it, show me his reflection?’
‘Not to-night. Come again, dear lady, and the portrait shall be in readiness for thee.’
‘Ah, Swami,’ returned Mercia sweetly; ‘I perceive that thou art only playing with me. Thou knowest full well, that neither love nor marriage is for me. If I win my case, I return to my post. My work is my bridegroom; I am bound to no other ”

“ These had been planned and invented in the first instance for Mercia alone, yet for Mercia’s sake they should be given to the world, so that he might become more worthy 106of her; a more honourable mate for the peerless Mercia.
Ah, Love, Love, how much thou hast to answer for! How many human hearts hast thou set wildly beating for fame that would otherwise have remained in quiet seclusion? ”

“ That country pretty well understands where the shoe pinches for she has gone through experiences.’
‘I have read in books,’ observed Mercia smiling, ‘how American women made wealthy by their parents’ success in trade, came hither to mate with titled men; for there was no nobility in their own country. I suppose possessing all the world could give save high rank they sought in the parent country for that which their own lacked.’
‘They lacked not long,’ returned Geometrus laughingly, ‘for over fifty years they have been in the enjoyment of a monarchy and all its concomitant honours. ”