Ealhhelm

Ealhhelm (floruit 940–955) was an Anglo-Saxon nobleman and ealdorman in Mercia of West Saxon origins.

It was in the reign of Edmund, circa 940, that Ealhhelm was appointed as an ealdorman. He shared authority in Mercia with others, including Æthelstan Rota, Æthelmund, and another Æthelstan. The division is presumed to have been on a geographical basis. Ealhhelm and his family appear to have been connected with south-western Mercia, the former kingdom of the Hwicce, which corresponded approximately with the boundaries of the diocese of Worcester. Ealhhelm may have held the lands formerly belonging to Evesham Abbey as these are said to have been seized by one Alchelmus in the time of King Edmund. A kinsman of Ealhhelm named Wulfric—probably the father of Ealhhelm's daughter-in-law—who later received part of the Evesham lands, may be identified with the brother of Saint Dunstan.

Ealhhelm ceases to sign charters around 951 in the reign of King Eadred. The date of his death is not recorded. Ælfhere and Ælfheah, the sons of Ealhhelm, were ealdormen and significant figures later in the 10th century. Ealdorman Ælfric Cild was his son-in-law.

References

• Henson, Donald, A Guide to Late Anglo-Saxon England: From Ælfred to Eadgar II. Hockwold-cum-Wilton: Anglo-Saxon Books, 1998. ISBN 1-898281-21-1
• Williams, Ann, "Princeps Merciorum Gentis: The Family, Career and Connections of Ælfhere, Ealdorman of Mercia" in Peter Clemoes (ed.), Anglo-Saxon England, 10 (1982), pp. 143–172. Cambridge University Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0-521-03836-2