# Fame.am profile — machine-readable export
# Canonical URL: https://fame.am/person/thelwulf-king-of-wessex
# Generated: 2026-09-01T16:15:30.451Z

schema: https://schema.org/Person
url: "https://fame.am/person/thelwulf-king-of-wessex"
name: "Æthelwulf, King of Wessex"
slug: "thelwulf-king-of-wessex"
description: "The West Saxon king who beat the Vikings at Aclea, walked to Rome with a tenth of his fortune, then came home to find his son had taken his throne — and split the kingdom rather than fight for it."
tagline: "King of Wessex"
image: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/%C3%86thelwulf_-_MS_Royal_14_B_VI.jpg"
gender: "male"
country:
  name: "Germany"
  isoCode: "DE"
category:
  name: "Historical Figures"
  slug: "historical-figures"
profileType:
  name: "Historical Figure"
  slug: "historical-figure"
  entityType: "https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q2798645"
birthDate: "795"
deathDate: "0858-01-13"
livingStatus: "DECEASED"
scores:
  popularity:           55.92
  momentum:             0.02388059701492537
  historical:           23.43303466666667
  currentAttention:     0.08528784648187634
  sourceConfidence:     60
  profileCompleteness:  70
  trendDirection:       "STABLE"
ranks:
  global:   null
  country:  null
  category: null
tags:
  - name: "Politicians"
    slug: "politicians"
  - name: "Historical Figure"
    slug: "historical-figure"
  - name: "Royalty"
    slug: "royalty"
  - name: "Politics"
    slug: "politics"
  - name: "Medieval Era"
    slug: "medieval-era"
sources:
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    title: "Wikidata"
    type:  "WIKIDATA"
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf,_King_of_Wessex"
    title: "Wikipedia"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://pantheon.world/profile/person/%C3%86thelwulf%2C%20King%20of%20Wessex"
    title: "Pantheon 2.0"
    type:  "DATABASE"
  - url: "https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D9%8A%D8%AB%D9%84%D9%88%D9%88%D9%84%D9%81_(%D9%85%D9%84%D9%83_%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%83%D8%B3)"
    title: "ايثلوولف (ملك وسكس)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://arz.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D9%8A%D8%AB%D9%84%D9%88%D9%88%D9%84%D9%81_%D9%85%D9%84%D9%83_%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%83%D8%B3"
    title: "ايثلوولف ملك وسكس"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://azb.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%84%D9%88%D9%84%D9%81_%D9%88%D8%B3%DA%A9%D8%B3"
    title: "اتلولف وسکس"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://az.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etelvulf"
    title: "Etelvulf"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf"
    title: "Æthelwulf"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf"
    title: "Æthelwulf"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kong_%C3%86thelwulf_af_Wessex"
    title: "Kong Æthelwulf af Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf"
    title: "Æthelwulf"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%88%CE%B8%CE%B5%CE%BB%CE%B3%CE%BF%CF%85%CE%BB%CF%86_%CF%84%CE%BF%CF%85_%CE%9F%CF%85%CE%AD%CF%83%CF%83%CE%B5%CE%BE"
    title: "Έθελγουλφ του Ουέσσεξ"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf%2C_King_of_Wessex"
    title: "Æthelwulf, King of Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aethelwulf_(Wessex)"
    title: "Aethelwulf (Wessex)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelwulfo_de_Wessex"
    title: "Ethelwulfo de Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D8%AA%D9%84%D9%88%D9%84%D9%81_%D9%88%D8%B3%DA%A9%D8%B3"
    title: "اتلولف وسکس"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethelwulf"
    title: "Ethelwulf"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf_(roi_du_Wessex)"
    title: "Æthelwulf (roi du Wessex)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://gl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aethelwulf_de_Wessex"
    title: "Aethelwulf de Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%90%D7%AA%D7%9C%D7%95%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%A3%2C_%D7%9E%D7%9C%D7%9A_%D7%95%D7%A1%D7%A7%D7%A1"
    title: "אתלוולף, מלך וסקס"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf_wessexi_kir%C3%A1ly"
    title: "Æthelwulf wessexi király"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hy.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D4%B7%D5%B5%D5%A9%D5%A5%D5%AC%D5%BE%D5%B8%D6%82%D5%AC%D6%86"
    title: "Էյթելվուլֆ"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86thelwulf_dari_Wessex"
    title: "Æthelwulf dari Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etelvulfo_del_Wessex"
    title: "Etelvulfo del Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%A8%E3%82%BC%E3%83%AB%E3%82%A6%E3%83%AB%E3%83%95"
    title: "エゼルウルフ"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ka.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E1%83%94%E1%83%97%E1%83%94%E1%83%9A%E1%83%95%E1%83%A3%E1%83%9A%E1%83%A4%E1%83%98_(%E1%83%A3%E1%83%94%E1%83%A1%E1%83%94%E1%83%A5%E1%83%A1%E1%83%98)"
    title: "ეთელვულფი (უესექსი)"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aethelwulf_van_Wessex"
    title: "Aethelwulf van Wessex"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ang.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%86%C3%BEelwulf_West_Seaxna_Cyning"
    title: "Æþelwulf West Seaxna Cyning"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"

# bio (long form, separated for readability)
bio: |
  Æthelwulf was sent by his father Ecgberht to Kent in 825 with an army to drive out Mercia's sub-king, and stayed on as sub-king himself. He became King of Wessex in 839, the first son to succeed his father there in nearly two centuries. He lost to Vikings at Carhampton in 843 but crushed them at Aclea in 851, and in 853 joined Mercia's campaign into Wales while marrying his daughter Æthelswith to Mercia's king. In 855 he gave away a tenth of his property, divided the realm between his sons Æthelbald and Æthelberht, and set off for Rome. After a year there he married Judith, daughter of Charles the Bald, but when he returned Æthelbald refused to step aside. Æthelwulf agreed to rule the east, leaving his son the west, and died in 858. Twentieth-century historians called him weak and overly pious; twenty-first-century ones see the king who made Wessex strong enough for Alfred the Great to finish the job.