Byrhtnoth, English soldier (b. 956)
Byrhtnoth (Old English: Byrhtnoð), Ealdorman of Essex (c. 931 - 11 August 991), died at the Battle of Maldon. His name is composed of the Old English beorht (bright) and noð (courage). He is the subject of The Battle of Maldon, an Old English poem, J.R.R. Tolkien's short play in verse, The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, Beorhthelm's Son, and a modern statue at Maldon.