Ludeca of Mercia

Ludeca of Mercia

Ludeca or Ludica (died 827) was the King of Mercia from 826 to 827. He became king after the death of Beornwulf in battle against the rebellious East Angles, but he too was killed in another failed attempt to subjugate them in the following year. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle simply states that Ludeca "was slain, and his five Ealdormen with him", but Florence of Worcester (who, incidentally, carries the same two-year error as the earlier 'Chronicles' - both place this event in 825 instead of 827) fleshes out the story: "Ludecan, king of the Mercians, mustered his forces and led an army into the province of the East Angles, for the purpose of taking vengeance for the death of king Beornulf, his predecessor. He was quickly met by the natives and their king, who in a severe battle slew him and five of his Ealdormen, and very many of his troops, and put to flight the remainder. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in 18 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 17 in 2024). Ludeca of Mercia is the 15,906th most popular politician (down from 14,010th in 2024). (down from 3,743rd in 2019)