The old St Paul’s Cathedral, destroyed in the Great Fire of London, stood on the site of the Anglo-Saxon church first raised by Mellitus
The history of the kingdom of the East Saxons is as obscure as that of the South Saxons. Its origins probably lie in the 6th century, when Saxons settled in the flat lands north of the Thames. However, even the king lists for the East Saxons are late, from the 9th century, with some disagreement about the dynasty’s founder. Kings Æscwine and Sledd are separately credited as the first king in different genealogies, although the one listing Æscwine first works Sledd in as his son and successor.