The rise of Mercia
I can explain how Mercia came to be the most powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom by 796 CE.
The rise of Mercia
I can explain how Mercia came to be the most powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom by 796 CE.
These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- By 750 CE the kingdoms of Mercia, Wessex, Northumberland and East Anglia were the most powerful.
- By the second half of the 8th century, Mercia was ruled by King Offa and his Frankish queen, Cynethryth.
- Sometimes the most powerful Anglo-Saxon kings would claim to be the 'bretwalda', the ruler of all of Britain.
- Having won many battles against other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, Offa called himself ‘bretwalda’.
- Offa was unable to defeat the Welsh; he built a barrier on his western borders to protect his kingdom against them.
Keywords
Northumbria - Northumbria was a former Anglo-Saxon kingdom in north-east England in modern-day Northumberland
Mercia - Mercia was a major Anglo-Saxon kingdom in the central part of England
Supremacy - having supremacy is having more power than anyone else
Barrier - a barrier is a fence or obstacle that prevents movement or access
Common misconception
King Offa was solely responsible for Mercian supremacy.
Although it was mostly King Offa, the supremacy of Mercia was already beginning before his reign and continued for a short while afterwards.
To help you plan your year 5 history lesson on: The rise of Mercia, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your year 5 history lesson on: The rise of Mercia, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
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Explore more key stage 2 history lessons from the Britain's settlement by Anglo-Saxons: what changed after the Romans left? unit, dive into the full secondary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.
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Starter quiz
6 Questions
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Exit quiz
6 Questions
a country or area ruled by a king or queen
a fence or obstacle that prevents movement or access
having more power than anyone else
an Anglo-Saxon word meaning the ruler of all of Britain