24th February

On this day in history, Aethelbert, King of Kent, died in 616. His feast day was originally 24th February, but it was subsequently moved to the 25th.

He had ruled from about 580/590 to his death. He is listed by the monk Bede, in hisEcclesiastical History of the English People, as the third king to hold imperium over other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms. The first was Aelle of Sussex (488 - c.514). Aside from Kent's rich and fertile lands, Aethelbert also had a powerful continental ally in the Franks - his wife, Bertha was the daughter of Charibert, King of the Franks. It is thought that due to Bertha's influence, papal missionaries were able to put down the roots of Christianity among the Anglo-Saxons. Aethelbert was later canonized for this role in British Christian history, and his code of laws for Kent is the earliest known written law in any Germanic language.