Petty kingdom
A
petty kingdom is an independent realm recognizing no
suzerain and controlling only a portion of the territory held by a particular ethnic group or nation. Petty kingdoms were prominent before the formation of many of today's
nation-states. Many of today's countries were typically ruled by multiple local kings in more or less stable kingdoms. The various small states of the
Holy Roman Empire are generally not considered to be petty kingdoms since they were at least nominally subject to the Holy Roman Emperor and not fully independent.
Before the
Kingdom of England was established as a united entity, there were various kingdoms in the area - of which the main seven were known as the heptarchy. These were
Wessex,
Mercia,
Northumbria,
East Anglia,
Sussex,
Kent, and
Essex.
The Christian petty kingdoms of the
Iberian Peninsula included:
*
Aragon*
Asturias*
Castile*
León*
Navarre*
Portugal (Briefly united with Spain by a
personal union from
1580 to
1640.)
See the article about the
taifa for the Islamic petty kingdoms that existed in Iberia after the collapse of the
Caliphate of Cordoba in
1031.
The earliest known kingdoms or
tribes in
Ireland are referred to in
Ptolemy's
Geography, written in the
2nd century. He names the Vennicni, Rhobogdi, Erdini, Magnatae, Autini, Gangani, Vellabori, Darini, Volunti, Eblani, Cauci,
Menapii, Coriondi and
Brigantes tribes and kingdoms.
Irish
medieval pseudohistory gives a seemingly idealized division of kingdoms. The island is divided into "fifths" (Old Irish
cóiceda, Modern Irish
cúige). There is
Ulaid (
Ulster) in the north,
Cóiced Ol nEchmacht (
Connacht) in the west,
Mumha or
Mhumhain (
Munster) in the south, and
Laighin (
Leinster) in the east. They all surround the central kingdom of Míde (whose name has survived in the modern counties
Meath and
Westmeath). Each of the outer four-fifths had their own king, with the
High King of Ireland ruling over them from
Tara in Míde.
In historical times Míde disappeared as a province. The four remaining fifths contained large numbers of
tuatha or sub-kingdoms, constantly shifting as old dynasties died and new ones formed.
In the early
Viking Age, there were several different petty kingdoms. Spurred by the unification of several of these kingdoms under
Halfdan the Black, his son
Harald Fairhair was able to unite them all in
872.
Some of the kingdoms:
*
Agder*
Grenland*
Hadeland*
Hardanger*
Hedmark*
Hålogaland*
Land*
Namdalen*
Nordmøre*
Oppland*
Orkdal*
Rogaland*
Romsdal*
Sogn*
Solør*
Sunnmøre*
Telemark*
Toten*
Trøndelag*
Vestfold*
Vingulmark*
VossThere were many petty kingdoms in Scotland before its unification.
*
Dál Riata*
Gododdin*
Pictavia*
Fortriu*
StrathclydeAccording to the
Norse sagas, and modern history, Sweden was divided into more or less independent units corresponding to the
folklands and the modern traditional provinces. However, according to the sagas, the folklands and provinces of eastern
Svealand were united under the Swedish king at
Gamla Uppsala. Moreover, the domains of this king could also include parts of Götaland and even southern Norway. This probably reflects the volatile politics of iron age scandanavia.
