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Thorkell The Tall
Thorkell the Tall, also known as Thorkell the High in the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' (Old Norse: Þorke(ti)ll inn hávi; no, Torkjell Høge; Swedish: ''Torkel Höge''; da, Torkild den Høje), was a prominent member of the Jomsviking order and a notable lord. He was a son of the Scanian chieftain Strut-Harald, and a brother of Jarl Sigvaldi, Hemingr and Tófa. Thorkell was the chief commander of the Jomsvikings and the legendary stronghold Jomsborg, on the Island of Wollin. He is also credited as having received the young Cnut the Great into his care and taken Cnut on raids. The '' Encomium Emmae,'' a document aimed at the movers and shakers of the Anglo-Scandinavian court in the early 1040s, describes Thorkell as a great war leader and warrior. Thorkell notably partook in a campaign that saw him lead a great Viking army to Kent in 1009, where they proceeded to overrun most of Southern England. This soon culminated in the siege of Canterbury in 1011 and the kidnapping of archbis ...
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U 344, Orkesta
U or u, is the twenty-first and sixth-to-last Letter (alphabet), letter and fifth vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is English alphabet#Letter names, ''u'' (pronounced ), plural English alphabet#Letter names, ''ues''. History U derives from the Semitic Waw (letter), waw, as does F, and later, Y, W, and V. Its oldest ancestor goes to Egyptian hieroglyphs, Egyptian hieroglyphics, and is probably from a hieroglyph of a mace or fowl, representing the sound [Voiced labiodental fricative, v] or the sound [Voiced labial–velar approximant, w]. This was borrowed to Phoenician, where it represented the sound [w], and seldom the vowel [Close back rounded vowel, u]. In Greek language, Greek, two letters were adapted from the Phoenician waw. The letter was adapted, but split in two, with the Digamma, first one of the same name (Ϝ) being ada ...
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Ælfheah Of Canterbury
Ælfheah, "elf-tall" ( â€“ 19 April 1012), more commonly known today as Alphege, was an Anglo-Saxon Bishop of Winchester, later Archbishop of Canterbury. He became an anchorite before being elected abbot of Bath Abbey. His reputation for piety and sanctity led to his promotion to the episcopate and, eventually, to his becoming archbishop. Ælfheah furthered the cult of Dunstan and also encouraged learning. He was captured by Viking raiders in 1011 during the siege of Canterbury and killed by them the following year after refusing to allow himself to be ransomed. Ælfheah was canonised as a saint in 1078. Thomas Becket, a later Archbishop of Canterbury, prayed to him just before his own murder in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170. Life Ælfheah was born around 953,Rumble "From Winchester to Canterbury" ''Leaders of the Anglo-Saxon Church'' p. 165 supposedly in Weston on the outskirts of Bath, and became a monk early in life. He first entered the monastery of Deerhurst, but t ...
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Olaf II Of Norway
Olaf II Haraldsson ( – 29 July 1030), later known as Saint Olaf (and traditionally as St. Olave), was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. Son of Harald Grenske, a petty king in Vestfold, Norway, he was posthumously given the title ''Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae'' ( en, Eternal/Perpetual King of Norway) and canonised at Nidaros (Trondheim) by Bishop Grimkell, one year after his death in the Battle of Stiklestad on 29 July 1030. His remains were enshrined in Nidaros Cathedral, built over his burial site. His sainthood encouraged the widespread adoption of Christianity by Scandinavia's Vikings/Norsemen. Pope Alexander III confirmed Olaf's local canonisation in 1164, making him a recognised saint of the Catholic Church and started to be known as ''Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae'' – ''eternal king of Norway''. Following the Reformation he was a commemorated historical figure among some members of the Lutheran and Anglican Communions. The saga of Olav Haraldsson and the legend of Olaf the S ...
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Ulf The Earl
Ulf Thorgilsson, commonly known as Ulf Jarl, was a Danish jarl of Skåne and regent of Denmark. Ulf was the son of Thorgil Sprakling and the father of King Sweyn II of Denmark and thus the progenitor of the House of Estridsen, which would rule Denmark from 1047 to 1375, which was also sometimes, specially in Swedish sources, referred to as the Ulfinger dynasty to honor him. Biography Ulf Jarl was the son of Danish chieftain Thorgils Sprakalägg. In the 18th century, Danish historian Jacob Langebek proposed that Styrbjörn Starke and Tyra Haraldsdotter were the parents of Thorkel Sprakalegg.Searle, W. G. (1899 Anglo-Saxon Bishops, Kings, and Nobles: The Succession of the Bishops and the Pedigrees of the Kings and Nobles(London: Cambridge University Press. p. 355). Therefore, this would make Ulf Jarl a descendant of Olof (II) Björnsson of the House of Munsö and through Tyra a descendant of Harald Bluetooth of the House of Knýtlinga. His brother Eilaf was an earl of King Cnut t ...
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Harthacnut
Harthacnut ( da, Hardeknud; "Tough-knot";  â€“ 8 June 1042), traditionally Hardicanute, sometimes referred to as Canute III, was King of Denmark from 1035 to 1042 and King of the English from 1040 to 1042. Harthacnut was the son of King Cnut the Great (who ruled Denmark, Norway, and England) and Emma of Normandy. When Cnut died in 1035, Harthacnut struggled to retain his father's possessions. Magnus I took control of Norway, but Harthacnut succeeded as King of Denmark and became King of England in 1040 after the death of his half-brother Harold Harefoot, king of England. Harthacnut himself died suddenly in 1042 and was succeeded by Magnus in Denmark and Edward the Confessor in England. Harthacnut was the last Dane to rule England. Early life Harthacnut was born shortly after the marriage of his parents in July or August 1017. Cnut had put aside his first wife Ælfgifu of Northampton to marry Emma, and according to the '' Encomium Emmae Reginae'', a book she inspired many ...
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Edmund Ironside
Edmund Ironside (30 November 1016; , ; sometimes also known as Edmund II) was King of the English from 23 April to 30 November 1016. He was the son of King Æthelred the Unready and his first wife, Ælfgifu of York. Edmund's reign was marred by a war he had inherited from his father; his cognomen "Ironside" was given to him "because of his valour" in resisting the Danish invasion led by Cnut the Great. Edmund was not expected to be King of England; however, by June 1014 two elder brothers had died, making him heir apparent. At the end of the same year, England was conquered by Sweyn Forkbeard, who died shortly thereafter. Æthelred was able to reclaim the throne, despite opposition. Sweyn's son, Cnut, was defeated and returned to Denmark, where he assembled an invasion force to reconquer England. It would not arrive for another year. After regaining the throne, the royal family set about strengthening its hold on the country with the assistance of Eadric Streona (Edmund's broth ...
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Battle Of Assandun
The Battle of Assandun (or Essendune) was fought between Danish and English armies on 18 October 1016. There is disagreement whether Assandun may be Ashdon near Saffron Walden in north Essex, England, or, as long supposed and better evidenced, Ashingdon near Rochford in south-east Essex. It ended in victory for the Danes, led by King Cnut, who triumphed over the English army led by King Edmund Ironside. The battle was the conclusion to the Danish conquest of England. Prelude On April 23, 1016, King Æthelred the Unready died from an illness that he had been suffering from since the previous year. Two opposing assemblies gathered to name his successor; an assembly of London citizens declared Edmund king and the larger Witan at Southampton declared Cnut as king. During the autumn of 1016, King Edmund raised an army consisting of West-Saxon troops as well as men from Southern England to defeat a Danish force led by King Cnut that had sailed across the Thames into Essex. Battle On ...
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Sweyn Forkbeard
Sweyn Forkbeard ( non, Sveinn Haraldsson tjúguskegg ; da, Svend Tveskæg; 17 April 963 – 3 February 1014) was King of Denmark from 986 to 1014, also at times King of the English and King of Norway. He was the father of King Harald II of Denmark, King Cnut the Great, and Queen Estrid Svendsdatter. In the mid-980s, Sweyn revolted against his father, Harald Bluetooth, and seized the throne. Harald was driven into exile and died shortly afterwards in November 986 or 987. In 1000, with the allegiance of Eric, Earl of Lade, Sweyn ruled most of Norway. In 1013, shortly before his death, he became the first Danish king of the English after a long effort. Biography Historiographical sources on Sweyn's life include the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' (where his name is rendered as ''Swegen''), Adam of Bremen's 11th-century '' Deeds of the Bishops of Hamburg'', and Snorri Sturluson's 13th-century ''Heimskringla''. Conflicting accounts of Sweyn's later life also appear in the '' Encomi ...
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Æthelred The Unready
Æthelred II ( ang, Æþelræd, ;Different spellings of this king’s name most commonly found in modern texts are "Ethelred" and "Æthelred" (or "Aethelred"), the latter being closer to the original Old English form . Compare the modern dialect word ., non, Aðalráðr  966 â€“ 23 April 1016), known as Æthelred the Unready, was King of the English from 978 to 1013 and again from 1014 until his death in 1016. His epithet does not derive from the modern word " unready", but rather from the Old English meaning "poorly advised"; it is a pun on his name, which means "well advised". Æthelred was the son of King Edgar the Peaceful and Queen Ælfthryth. He came to the throne at about the age of 12, following the assassination of his older half-brother, King Edward the Martyr. The chief problem of Æthelred's reign was conflict with the Danes. After several decades of relative peace, Danish raids on English territory began again in earnest in the 980s, becoming marked ...
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Danegeld
Danegeld (; "Danish tax", literally "Dane yield" or tribute) was a tax raised to pay tribute or protection money to the Viking raiders to save a land from being ravaged. It was called the ''geld'' or ''gafol'' in eleventh-century sources. It was characteristic of royal policy in both England and Francia during the ninth through eleventh centuries, collected both as tributary, to buy off the attackers, and as stipendiary, to pay the defensive forces. The term ''danegeld'' did not appear until the late eleventh century. In Anglo-Saxon England tribute payments to the Danes was known as ''gafol'' and the levy raised to support the standing army, for the defense of the realm, was known as ''heregeld'' (army-tax). England In England, a hide was notionally an area of land sufficient to support one family; however their true size and economic value varied enormously. The hide's purpose was as a unit of assessment and was the basis for the land-tax that became known as Danegeld. In ...
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Sandwich, Kent
Sandwich is a town and civil parish in the Dover District of Kent, south-east England. It lies on the River Stour and has a population of 4,985. Sandwich was one of the Cinque Ports and still has many original medieval buildings, including several listed public houses and gates in the old town walls, churches, almshouses and the White Mill. While once a major port, it is now two miles from the sea due to the disappearance of the Wantsum Channel. Its historic centre has been preserved. Sandwich Bay is home to nature reserves and two world-class golf courses, Royal St George's and Prince's. The town is also home to many educational and cultural events. Sandwich also gave its name to the food by way of John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, and the word ''sandwich'' is now found in several languages. Etymology The place-name 'Sandwich' is first attested in the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'', where it appears as ' in 851 and ' in 993. In the ''Domesday Book'' of 1086 it appears as '. T ...
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Battle Of Swold
The Battle of Svolder (''Svold'' or ''Swold'') was a large naval battle during the Viking age, fought in September 999 or 1000 in the western Baltic Sea between King Olaf of Norway and an alliance of the Kings of Denmark and Sweden and Olaf's enemies in Norway. The backdrop of the battle was the unification of Norway into a single independent state after longstanding Danish efforts to control the country, combined with the spread of Christianity in Scandinavia. King Olaf Tryggvason was sailing to, or home from, an expedition in Wendland (Pomerania), when he was ambushed by an alliance of Svein Forkbeard, King of Denmark, Olof Skötkonung (also known as Olaf Eiríksson or Olaf the Swede), King of Sweden, and Eirik Hákonarson, Jarl of Lade. According to the Saga of King Olaf I Tryggvason, he had 60 warships plus the contribution of 11 warships from the Jomvikingsbr> His ships were captured one by one, last of all the '' Ormen Lange (longship), Ormen Lange'', which Jarl Eirik ...
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