The same yeere king Ethelbert maried the ladie Alfled the daughter of Offa king of Mercia, forsaking his former wife which he had, & hauing no iust cause of diuorce giuen on hir part, wherby his people tooke such displeasure against him, that finallie after he had reigned now this second time 4 yeeres, or (as other say) seuen yeeres, he could not auoid the destinie of his predecessors, but was miserablie killed by his owne subiects at Cobre, the 18 of Aprill.  After whome, one Oswald a noble man was ordeined king, and within 27 or 28 daies after [Sidenote:  Holie Iland.] was expelled, and constreined to flie first into the Ile of Lindesferne, and from thence vnto the king of the Picts.

[Sidenote:  Ardulfe.] Then Ardulfe that was a duke and sonne to one Arnulfe was reuoked out of exile, made king, & consecrated also at Yorke by the archbishop Cumhald, and three other bishops, the 25 of June, in the yeere [Sidenote:  796.] 796.  About two yeeres after, to wit, in the yeere 798 one duke Wade, and other conspirators which had beene also partakers in the [Sidenote:  Walalege.] murthering of king Ethelbert, raised warre against king Ardulfe, and fought a battell with him at Walleg, but king Ardulfe got the vpper hand, and chased Wade and other his enimies out of the [Sidenote:  799.] field.  In the yeere 799, duke Aldred that had murthered Ethelbert or Athelred king of Northumberland, was slaine by another duke called Chorthmond in reuenge of the death of his maister the said Ethelbert.  Shortlie after, about the same time that Brightrike king of Westsaxons departed this life, there was a sore battell foughten in Northumberland at Wellehare, in the which Alricke the sonne of Herbert, and manie other with him were slaine:  but to rehearse all the battels with their successes and issues, it should be too tedious and irkesome to the readers, for the English people being naturallie hard [Sidenote:  The English men afflicted each other with ciuill warre.] and high-minded, continuallie scourged each other with intestine warres.  About six or seuen yeeres after this battell, king Ardulfe was expelled out of the state.

¶ Thus ye may consider in what plight things stood in Northumberland, by the often seditions, tumults and changings of gouernors, so that there be which haue written, how after the death of king Ethelbert, otherwise called Edelred, diuers bishops and other of the chiefest nobles of the countrie disdaining such traitorous prince-killings, ciuill seditions, and iniurious dealings, as it were put in dailie practise amongst the Northumbers, departed out of their natiue borders into voluntarie exile, and that from thencefoorth there was not anie of the nobilitie that durst take vpon him the kinglie gouernement amongst them, fearing the fatall prerogatiue thereof, as if it had beene Scians horsse, whose rider came euer to some euill end.  But yet by that which is heeretofore shewed out of Simon Dunelm, it is euident, that there reigned kings ouer the Northumbers, but in what authoritie and power to command, it may be doubted.