It is not entirely certain whether Hussa was the son of Ida, founder of the kingdom of Bernicia, or rather the leader of a rival Anglian faction.
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Nevertheless, there is some evidence from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle that following Hussa's death, there was a schism between his family and that of Æthelfrith, Hussa's successor, for it states that Hering son of Hussa, led Áedán mac Gabráin's forces against Æthelfrith at the Battle of Degsastan in 603.
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At some point during his reign, the coalition forces of Rheged and the Brythonic kingdoms of Strathclyde, Bernicia and Elmet laid siege to Hussa and was almost successful in driving the Anglian Bernician kings out of Britain.
Áedán's army included the Bernician exile Hering, son of the former Bernician king Hussa; his participation is mentioned by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (manuscript E, year 603), and may indicate dynastic rivalry among the Bernicians.