SVEND I HARALDSSON THE FIRST VIKING KING OF ENGLAND WITH THE CONQUEST OF ENGLAND 1013
In 1012, England had finally secured peace and security against foreign attackers, having endured a three-year Viking raid which had culminated in the brutal murder of the Archbishop of Canterbury. But any hopes of enjoying a long spell of peace and quiet were rudely shattered in early 1013 by the arrival of an invasion force led by the King of Denmark, Svend Forkbeard.
Svend’s army conquered England so quickly that by Christmas he was in control of the kingdom, but how did he achieve this feat of arms? Was it through defeating English armies on the battlefield and subjugating the survivors? Or was it through a mass change of allegiance on the part of the English nobility and clergy?
The apocalypse was not slow in arriving. In the spring of 1013, less than a year after Thorkell
the Tall stopped attacking them, a new and more deadly enemy returned to menace the
English. Svend Forkbeard was back. No one knows exactly why Svend chose to invade
England in 1013. He had taken part in raids on England in the 990s and in the previous
decade, but those were plundering raids, whereas what he now proposed to do was outright
conquest. One leading theory is that he feared that AEthelred would fund an attempt by
Thorkell the Tall to become King of Denmark, like he funded Óláfr Tryggvason’s campaign
to become King of Norway in 995, which had disrupted Svend’s hegemonic rule over
Scandinavia. Óláfr ruled Norway for four years before being killed at the battle of Svolder by
a naval coalition comprised of Svend’s navy, his Norwegian son-in-law Eiríkr Hákonarson’s
forces, and Svend’s Swedish allies.
Whatever his reasons for invading England were, Svend and his invasion fleet initially sailed
to Sandwich on the south coast, before going north to the mouth of the river Humber in
northern England and landing at Gainsborough. At this point it became clear that Svend had
been in contact with several English nobles before his arrival as he was welcomed by the
locals with open arms. To secure their loyalty, Svend had his son Cnut marry AElgifu of
Northampton, the daughter of Ealdorman AElfhelm. Her family wielded a huge amount of
influence in northern Mercia and southern Northumbria at that time due to their large estates
and extended family networks. They had suffered a major setback during the palace coup at
AEthelred’s court in 1006 when Ealdorman AElfhelm was murdered, and his sons were
blinded. As a result, they had an axe to grind against AEthelred and his supporters,
particularly Eadric Streona, who had risen to prominence at their expense. In short order,
most of northern and eastern England joined Svend, and provided him with all the supplies he
needed.
the Tall stopped attacking them, a new and more deadly enemy returned to menace the
English. Svend Forkbeard was back. No one knows exactly why Svend chose to invade
England in 1013. He had taken part in raids on England in the 990s and in the previous
decade, but those were plundering raids, whereas what he now proposed to do was outright
conquest. One leading theory is that he feared that AEthelred would fund an attempt by
Thorkell the Tall to become King of Denmark, like he funded Óláfr Tryggvason’s campaign
to become King of Norway in 995, which had disrupted Svend’s hegemonic rule over
Scandinavia. Óláfr ruled Norway for four years before being killed at the battle of Svolder by
a naval coalition comprised of Svend’s navy, his Norwegian son-in-law Eiríkr Hákonarson’s
forces, and Svend’s Swedish allies.
Whatever his reasons for invading England were, Svend and his invasion fleet initially sailed
to Sandwich on the south coast, before going north to the mouth of the river Humber in
northern England and landing at Gainsborough. At this point it became clear that Svend had
been in contact with several English nobles before his arrival as he was welcomed by the
locals with open arms. To secure their loyalty, Svend had his son Cnut marry AElgifu of
Northampton, the daughter of Ealdorman AElfhelm. Her family wielded a huge amount of
influence in northern Mercia and southern Northumbria at that time due to their large estates
and extended family networks. They had suffered a major setback during the palace coup at
AEthelred’s court in 1006 when Ealdorman AElfhelm was murdered, and his sons were
blinded. As a result, they had an axe to grind against AEthelred and his supporters,
particularly Eadric Streona, who had risen to prominence at their expense. In short order,
most of northern and eastern England joined Svend, and provided him with all the supplies he
needed.
The reasons why the English people switched their allegiances go deeper than cultural links
and blood feuds between rival noble families though. They had suffered huge amounts of
death and destruction at the hands of Viking raiders in the previous twenty years, whilst
AEthelred had utterly failed to fulfil his duty as King and defend them from attack. When
Svend arrived, he offered them a new deal which was that if they accepted him as their king,
then in return he would stop the Viking raids. They were more than happy to accept it since
AEthelred had failed to uphold his responsibilities to them, and they thought Svend would be
able to keep his word. In addition to this, there were also family and cultural links with
Scandinavia in the Danelaw of eastern England which helped to smooth over any issues in
that region.
Svend and his army now moved south and started pillaging once they left the lands held by
his new subjects. This was enough to frighten the populations of Oxford and Winchester to
surrender without a fight in return for a promise of protection, and the rest of England soon
followed suit and surrendered to Svend. The only place which stayed loyal to AEthelred was
London. Thorkell the Tall also remained loyal to him, but that was scant consolation for
AEthelred as the rest of the kingdom decided that they would prefer to have Svend as their
king instead of him. AEthelred, along with Emma and their children, sailed with Thorkell the
Tall to the Isle of Wight where they spent Christmas, before sailing for Normandy and exile.
AEthelred’s sons by his first marriage stayed behind in England and lay low, awaiting
developments. After AEthelred had departed, London submitted to Svend, who then
demanded hostages from the entire English nobility as a safeguard against treachery.
his new subjects. This was enough to frighten the populations of Oxford and Winchester to
surrender without a fight in return for a promise of protection, and the rest of England soon
followed suit and surrendered to Svend. The only place which stayed loyal to AEthelred was
London. Thorkell the Tall also remained loyal to him, but that was scant consolation for
AEthelred as the rest of the kingdom decided that they would prefer to have Svend as their
king instead of him. AEthelred, along with Emma and their children, sailed with Thorkell the
Tall to the Isle of Wight where they spent Christmas, before sailing for Normandy and exile.
AEthelred’s sons by his first marriage stayed behind in England and lay low, awaiting
developments. After AEthelred had departed, London submitted to Svend, who then
demanded hostages from the entire English nobility as a safeguard against treachery.
So, that was that. Svend had conquered England, a kingdom with far more people, money,
and land than his own, in a matter of months. The principal reason why he had been so
successful was because instead of fighting him, the English decided to change sides and join
him in his campaign against AEthelred. As the political and military momentum had shifted
in Svend’s favour due to his seemingly unending series of successes, he attracted more and
more defectors who were eager to join the winning side before it was too late. The result was
that as 1013 drew to a close, Svend enjoyed the support of most of the English nobility and
clergy, with no signs of resistance to his rule in sight.
As 1014 began, Svend was secure on the English throne. All he needed to do to make his new
title legitimate in the eyes of the rest of Christian Europe was to hold a coronation. AEthelred
was in exile in Normandy with his ducal in-laws, who were not particularly inclined to be
helpful in supporting a campaign to reconquer England. Even if AEthelred could gather an
army, cross the Channel, and get ashore without being intercepted, his chances of success
looked hopeless whilst Svend’s grip on England was so strong. But for all that things looked
set in stone, the wheel of fortune was still turning…
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