Ecgberht (died 873) was king of Northumbria in the middle of the 9th century. This period of Northumbrian history is poorly recorded, and very little is known of Ecgberht.
He first appears following the death of kings Ælla and Osberht in battle against the Vikings of the Great Heathen Army at York on 21 March 867. Symeon of Durham records, as extracts from William of Malmesbury:Nearly all the Northumbrians were routed and destroyed, the two kings being slain; the survivors made peace with the pagans. After these events, the pagans appointed Egbert king under their own dominion; Egbert reigned for six years, over the Northumbrians beyond the Tyne.Symeon of Durham, p. 489
Historians presume that Ecgberht ruled as the Great Army's tax collector and that he belonged to one of the several competing royal families in Northumbria.Kirby, pp. 212–213; Higham, p.179.
The next report of Ecgberht is in 872: "The Northumbrians expelled their king Egbert, and their Archbishop Wulfhere".Symeon of Durham, p. 492. Finally, Ecgberht's death is reported in 873, and it is said that Ricsige succeeded him.
Notes
References Kirby, D.P., The Earliest English Kings. London: Unwin, 1991. Higham, N.J., The Kingdom of Northumbria AD 350–1100. Stroud: Sutton, 1993.