During the eighth century, of which kingdom was Offa the king?
Ealdred, king of the Hwicce Ealdred, king of the Hwicce Ealdred was styled as Dux (Duke) by Offa (the king of Mercia) of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Hwicce but considered himself as King, jointly ruling with his brothers Eanberht and Uhtred in the later half of the 8th century AD. In 757 Eanberht, Uhtred, and Ealdred, granted land to Bishop Milred, and in 759 to Abbot Headda. In 778 a charter of king Offa of Mercia Ealdred is styled as Dux of the Hwicce (Duke) in the charter Ealdred received a grant of land from Offa,It seems that soon after Ealdred's death Offa absorbed Hwicce
Offa of Mercia debate on this point, however, as several of the charters in which Offa is named "Rex Anglorum" are of doubtful authenticity. They may represent later forgeries of the 10th century, when this title was standard for kings of England. The best evidence for Offa's use of this title comes from coins, not charters: there are some pennies with "Of ℞ A" inscribed, but it is not regarded as definite that this stood for "Offa Rex Anglorum." In "Anglo-Saxon England", Stenton argued that Offa was perhaps the greatest king of the English kingdoms, commenting that "no other Anglo-Saxon king ever regarded