911. Death of Æthelred, Lord of the Mercians
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle notes that in this year Ealdorman Æthelred of the Mercians died and Edward succeeded to London and Oxford and all the lands which had belonged to them. Although this is clearly a sign of Edward taking more direct control over the Mercian territories, it should be emphasized that he was king of the Anglo-Saxons (including the Mercians) from the beginning: coins were minted in his name, not those of Æthelred or Æthelflæd, and charters from as early as 903 (S 367) note explicitly that Æthelred and Æthelflæd hold the governance of the Mercians under the authority of Edward. (It may be worth noting though that the Mercian annals in the Chronicle mention Æthelred's death without mentioning Edward's succession to London and Oxford, and it is tempting -- especially in light of more pointed remarks in 918 -- to read Mercian dissatisfaction into this omission.)