 The earliest East Anglian kings were pagans.They belonged to the Wuffingas dynasty, named after Wuffa, whose ancestors originated from northern Europe and whose descendants ruled the East Angles in an almost unbroken line until after the reign of Ælfwald in the middle of the 8th century.When East Anglia was first mentioned by Bede in his "Ecclesiastical History of the English People", it was a powerful kingdom ruled by Rædwald (died about 624).