Penda definition of Penda in the Free Online Encyclopedia.

Penda, d. 654, king of Mercia (c.632–654). A noble of the Mercian royal house, he fought (629) the king of Wessex for lands along the Severn River. He then allied himself with Cadwallon of Wales, defeated (632) Edwin Edwin or Eadwin (both: ĕd`wĭn)
..... Click the link for more information. of Northumbria, and made himself king of Mercia. A great fighting king, he was the central figure in the history of Anglo-Saxon England for nearly a generation thereafter. He defeated and killed (641) Oswald Oswald, Saint, d. 641, king of Northumbria (633–41), son of Æthelfrith . In exile during the reign of Edwin , Oswald and his brother Oswy became Christians.
..... Click the link for more information. of Northumbria and extended his power over Wessex and East Anglia. His Greater Mercia included all the Midlands. However, he still had an enemy in the new king of Northumbria, Oswy Oswy or Oswiu (both: ŏz`wē), d. 670, king of Northumbria.
..... Click the link for more information. ; Penda attacked him in 654 and was killed in the battle. Penda himself remained heathen, but at the time of his son Peada's marriage he consented to that son's Christian baptism. Eight of Penda's descendants ruled Mercia, beginning with his son Wulfhere.