Offa was the King of Mercia from 757 until his death in July 796. The son of Thingfrith and a descendant of Eowa, Offa came to the throne after a period of civil war. In the early years of Offa's reign it is likely that he consolidated his control of midland peoples such as the Hwicce and the Magonsæte. Taking advantage of instability in the kingdom of Kent to establish himself as overlord, Offa was also in control of Sussex by 771, though his authority did not remain unchallenged in either territory. He extended Mercian supremacy over most of southern England and regained complete control of the southeast. Offa was a Christian king but came into conflict with the Church, and had long-running disputes with both the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Worcester. Many historians regard Offa as the most powerful Anglo-Saxon king before Alfred the Great. His reign was once seen by historians as part of a process leading to a unified England, but this is no longer the majority view. Offa died in 796 and was succeeded by his son, Ecgfrith, who reigned for less than five months before Coenwulf of Mercia took the throne. (more...)
... that the role of the Rhodesian head of government gradually evolved, between 1890 and 1970, from that of a company-appointed administrator to the prime ministerial office of a republic?
The elegant sunburst lichen (Xanthoria elegans) is a lichen recognizable by its bright orange or red pigmentation. This species grows on rocks, often near bird or rodent perches. It has a circumpolar and alpine distribution. It was one of the first lichens to be used for the rock-face dating method known as lichenometry.
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