 Eadbald came to the throne on the death of his father on 24 February 616 , or possibly 618 . Although Æthelberht had been Christian since about 600 and his wife Bertha was also Christian , Eadbald was a pagan . Bertha died some time before Eadbald 's accession , and Æthelberht remarried . The name of Æthelberht 's second wife is not recorded , but it seems likely that she was a pagan , since on his death she married Eadbald , her stepson : a marriage between a stepmother and stepson was forbidden by the church . 
