Harthacnut ( da, Hardeknud; "Tough-knot"; – 8 June 1042), traditionally Hardicanute, sometimes referred to as Canute III, was
King of Denmark
The monarchy of Denmark is a constitutional political system, institution and a historic office of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Kingdom includes Denmark proper and the autonomous administrative division, autonomous territories of the Faroe ...
from 1035 to 1042 and
King of the English
This list of kings and reigning queens of the Kingdom of England begins with Alfred the Great, who initially ruled Kingdom of Wessex, Wessex, one of the heptarchy, seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms which later made up modern England. Alfred styled ...
from 1040 to 1042.
Harthacnut was the son of King
Cnut the Great
Cnut (; ang, Cnut cyning; non, Knútr inn ríki ; or , no, Knut den mektige, sv, Knut den Store. died 12 November 1035), also known as Cnut the Great and Canute, was King of England from 1016, King of Denmark from 1018, and King of Norwa ...
(who ruled
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
, and England) and
Emma of Normandy
Emma of Normandy (referred to as Ælfgifu in royal documents; c. 984 – 6 March 1052) was a Norman-born noblewoman who became the English, Danish, and Norwegian queen through her marriages to the Anglo-Saxon king Æthelred the Unready and the ...
. 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
Harold I (died 17 March 1040), also known as Harold Harefoot, was King of the English from 1035 to 1040. Harold's nickname "Harefoot" is first recorded as "Harefoh" or "Harefah" in the twelfth century in the history of Ely Abbey, and according ...
, king of England. Harthacnut himself died suddenly in 1042 and was succeeded by Magnus in Denmark and
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066.
Edward was the son of Æth ...
in England. Harthacnut was the last
Dane
Dane or Danes may refer to:
People Pertaining to Denmark
* Dane, somebody from Denmark
* Danes, an ethnic group native to Denmark
* Danes (Germanic tribe)
Other people
* Dane (name), a surname and a given name (and a list of people with the nam ...
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
Ælfgifu of Northampton ( non, Álfífa, 990 – after 1036) was the first wife of Cnut the Great, King of England and Denmark, and mother of Harold Harefoot, King of England. She was regent of Norway from 1030 to 1035.
Biography
Family b ...
to marry Emma, and according to the ''
Encomium Emmae Reginae
''Encomium Emmae Reginae'' or ''Gesta Cnutonis Regis'' is an 11th-century Latin encomium in honour of the English queen Emma of Normandy. It was written in 1041 or 1042, probably by a monk of Saint-Omer, Normandy.
Manuscripts
Until 2008, it w ...
'', a book she inspired many years later, Cnut agreed that any sons of their marriage should take precedence over the sons of his first marriage. In 1023, Emma and Harthacnut played a leading role in the translation of the body of the martyr
St Ælfheah from London to Canterbury, an occasion seen by Harthacnut's biographer, Ian Howard, as recognition of his position as Cnut's heir in England.
In the 1020s Denmark was threatened by Norway and Sweden, and in 1026 Cnut decided to strengthen its defences by bringing over his eight-year-old son to be the future king under a council headed by his brother-in-law,
Earl Ulf. However, Ulf alienated Cnut by getting the Danish provinces to acknowledge Harthacnut as king without reference to Cnut's overall authority and by failing to take vigorous measures to meet Norwegian and Swedish invasions, instead waiting for Cnut's assistance. In 1027, Cnut arrived with a fleet. He forgave Harthacnut his insubordination in view of his youth but had Ulf murdered. He drove the invaders out of Denmark and established his authority over Norway, returning to England in 1028 and leaving Denmark to be ruled by King Harthacnut.
![Knut syni](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Knut_syni.jpg)
Cnut had left Norway under the rule of
Håkon Eiriksson
Haakon Ericsson (Old Norse: ''Hákon Eiríksson''; no, Håkon Eiriksson; died c. 1029–1030) was the last Earl of Lade and governor of Norway from 1012 to 1015 and again from 1028 to 1029 as a vassal under Danish King Knut the Great.
Biograph ...
, who drowned in a shipwreck in 1029 or 1030. Cnut then appointed his son
Svein Svein is a Norwegian masculine given name which may refer to:
Rulers
* Sweyn Haakonsson (died c. 1016), in Norwegian Svein Håkonsson, an earl and co-ruler of Norway from 1000 to c. 1015
* Svein Knutsson
Svein Knutsson (Old Norse: ''Sveinn Knút ...
to rule Norway with the assistance of Ælfgifu, Cnut's first wife and Svein's mother. However, they made themselves unpopular by heavy taxation and favouring Danish advisers over the Norwegian nobles, and when King
Magnus I of Norway
Magnus Olafsson (Old Norse: ''Magnús Óláfsson''; Norwegian and Danish: ''Magnus Olavsson''; – 25 October 1047), better known as Magnus the Good (Old Norse: ''Magnús góði'', Norwegian and Danish: ''Magnus den gode''), was King of Norway ...
, the son of the former King of Norway,
Olaf
Olaf or Olav (, , or British ; Old Norse: ''Áleifr'', ''Ólafr'', ''Óleifr'', ''Anleifr'') is a Scandinavian and German given name. It is presumably of Proto-Norse origin, reconstructed as ''*Anu-laibaz'', from ''anu'' "ancestor, grand-father" a ...
, invaded in 1035, they were forced to flee to Harthacnut's court. Harthacnut was a close ally of Svein, but he did not feel his resources were great enough to launch an invasion of Norway, and the half-brothers looked for help from their father, but instead they received news of his death in November 1035.
Reign
Harold and Denmark
In 1035, Harthacnut succeeded his father on the
throne of Denmark as Cnut III.
He was unable to come to England in view of the situation in Denmark, and it was agreed that Svein's full brother, Harold Harefoot, should act as regent, with Emma holding Wessex on Harthacnut's behalf. In 1037, Harold was generally accepted as king, Harthacnut being, in the words of the ''
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...
'', "forsaken because he was too long in Denmark", while Emma fled to
Bruges
Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the countr ...
, in
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
. In 1039, Harthacnut sailed with ten ships to meet his mother in Bruges but delayed an invasion as it was clear Harold was sick and would soon die, which he did in March 1040. Envoys soon crossed the channel to offer Harthacnut the throne.
While the general outline of events following Cnut's death are clear, the details are obscure, and historians give differing interpretations. states that it is unclear whether Harthacnut was to have England as well as Denmark, but it was probably a reflection of a formal arrangement that mints south of the Thames produced silver pennies in his name, while those to the north were almost all Harold's. There might have been a division of the kingdom if Harthacnut had appeared straight away. He probably stayed in Denmark because of the threat from Magnus of Norway, but they eventually made a treaty by which if either died without an heir, his kingdom would go to the other, and this may have freed Harthacnut to pursue his claim to England.
According to Ian Howard, Harthacnut agreed to help Svein recover Norway and planned an invasion in 1036. Svein died shortly before it was to set out, but Harthacnut proceeded anyway. War was avoided by the treaty between Harthacnut and Magnus, which Harthacnut agreed to because he had no plausible candidate to rule Norway after Svein's death, and he was in any case temperamentally inclined to avoid campaigns and wars. Howard dates the treaty to 1036, whereas other historians date it to 1039 and believe it freed Harthacnut to launch an invasion of England.
Exiled in Bruges, Emma plotted to gain the English throne for her son. She sponsored the ''Encomium Emmae Reginae'', which eulogised her and attacked Harold, especially for arranging the murder of
Alfred Atheling (the younger of Emma's two sons by Æthelred) in 1036. The work describes Harthacnut's horror at hearing of his half brother's murder, and in Howard's view, was probably influential in finally persuading the cautious Harthacnut to invade England. According to a later edition of the ''Encomium'', the English took the initiative in communicating with Harthacnut in 1039, possibly when they became aware that Harold had not long to live.
Return to England
![Silver penny of Harthacnut (YORYM 2000 687) obverse](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Silver_penny_of_Harthacnut_%28YORYM_2000_687%29_obverse.jpg)
Harthacnut travelled to England with his mother. The landing at
Sandwich
A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...
on 17 June 1040, "seven days before
Midsummer
Midsummer is a celebration of the season of summer usually held at a date around the summer solstice. It has pagan pre-Christian roots in Europe.
The undivided Christian Church designated June 24 as the feast day of the early Christian mart ...
", was a peaceful one, though he had a fleet of 62 warships. Even though he had been invited to take the throne, he was taking no chances and came as a conqueror with an invasion force. The crews had to be rewarded for their service, and to pay them, he levied a geld of more than 21,000 pounds, a huge sum of money that made him unpopular, although it was only a quarter of the amount his father had raised in similar circumstances in 1017–1018.
Harthacnut had been horrified by Harold's murder of Alfred, and his mother demanded vengeance. With the approval of Harold's former councillors, his body was disinterred from its place of honour at Westminster and publicly beheaded. It was disposed of in a sewer, but then retrieved and thrown in the Thames, from which London shipmen rescued it and had it buried in a churchyard.
Godwin, the powerful earl of
Wessex
la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons
, common_name = Wessex
, image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg
, map_caption = S ...
, had been complicit in the crime as he had handed over Alfred to Harold, and Queen Emma charged him in a trial before Harthacnut and members of his council. The king allowed Godwin to escape punishment by bringing witnesses that he had acted on Harold's orders, but Godwin then gave Harthacnut a ship so richly decorated that it amounted to the
wergild
Weregild (also spelled wergild, wergeld (in archaic/historical usage of English), weregeld, etc.), also known as man price (blood money), was a precept in some archaic legal codes whereby a monetary value was established for a person's life, to b ...
that Godwin would have had to pay if he had been found guilty.
Bishop Lyfing of Worcester was also charged with complicity in the crime and deprived of his see, but in 1041 he made his peace with Harthacnut and was restored to his position.
The English had become used to the king ruling in council, with the advice of his chief men, but Harthacnut had ruled autocratically in Denmark, and he was not willing to change, particularly as he did not fully trust the leading earls. At first he was successful intimidating his subjects, though less so later in his short reign. He doubled the size of the English fleet from sixteen to thirty-two ships, partly so that he had a force capable of dealing with trouble elsewhere in his empire, and to pay for it he severely increased the rate of taxation. The increase coincided with a poor harvest, causing severe hardship. In 1041 two of his tax gatherers were so harsh in dealing with people in and around
Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
that they rioted and killed the tax gatherers. Harthacnut reacted by imposing a then-legal but very unpopular punishment known as 'harrying'. He ordered his earls to burn the town and kill the population. Few people were killed, as the people of Worcester had fled in advance of their arrival. Although the city was burnt and plundered, citizens of Worcester who had taken refuge on an island in the
River Severn
, name_etymology =
, image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG
, image_size = 288
, image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle
, map = RiverSevernMap.jpg
, map_size = 288
, map_c ...
fought successfully against Harthacnut's troops, and won the right to return to their homes without further punishment.
The earl of
Northumbria
la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum
, conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria
, common_name = Northumbria
, status = State
, status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...
was
Siward, but Earl
Eadwulf Eadwulf (sometimes Eadulf) is an Anglo-Saxon male name. Notable people with the name include:
* Eadwulf of Elmham, a 10th-century Bishop of Elmham
* Eadwulf of Hereford (died 830s), Bishop of Hereford
* Eadwulf I of Northumbria, king of Northumb ...
of
Bamburgh
Bamburgh ( ) is a village and civil parish on the coast of Northumberland, England. It had a population of 454 in 2001, decreasing to 414 at the 2011 census.
The village is notable for the nearby Bamburgh Castle, a castle which was the seat of ...
ruled the northern part in semi-independence, a situation which did not please the autocratic Harthacnut. In 1041 Earl Eadwulf gave offence to the king for an unknown reason but then sought reconciliation. Harthacnut promised him safe conduct but then colluded in his murder by Siward, who became earl of the whole of Northumbria. The crime was widely condemned, and the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' described it as "a betrayal" and the king as an "oath-breaker".
Harthacnut was generous to the church. Very few contemporary documents survive, but a royal charter of his transferred land to Bishop
Ælfwine of Winchester
__NOTOC__
Ælfwine (died 1047) was Bishop of Winchester from 1032 until his death. He was one of King Cnut's priests prior to his appointment as bishop, and became a powerful and influential figure at Cnut's court.
Biography
From 1033 he was a ...
, and he made several grants to
Ramsey Abbey
Ramsey Abbey was a Benedictine abbey in Ramsey, Huntingdonshire (now part of Cambridgeshire), England. It was founded about AD 969 and dissolved in 1539.
The site of the abbey in Ramsey is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Most of the abbey's ...
. The 12th-century ''Ramsey Chronicle'' speaks well of his generosity and of his character.
Harthacnut had suffered from bouts of illness even before he became King of England. He may have suffered from
tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
, and he probably knew that he had not long to live. In 1041 he invited his half-brother
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066.
Edward was the son of Æth ...
(his mother Emma's son by
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 diale ...
) back from exile in
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
and probably made him his heir. He may well have been influenced by Emma, who hoped to keep her power by ensuring that one of her sons was succeeded by another. Harthacnut was unmarried and had no known children.
Death
On 8 June 1042, Harthacnut attended a wedding in
Lambeth
Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...
. The groom was
Tovi the Proud
Tovi the Proud (also Tofi or Tofig, Tofi pruda), , was a rich and powerful 11th-century Danish thegn who held a number of estates in various parts of southern England. A translation of the legend of Waltham Abbey cites the Lord of Waltham as 'Tovi ...
, former standard-bearer to Cnut, and the bride was Gytha, daughter of the courtier
Osgod Clapa Osgod Clapa (died 1054), also Osgot, was a nobleman in Anglo-Saxon England during the reigns of Kings Cnut the Great, Harold Harefoot, Harthacnut, and Edward the Confessor. His name comes from the Old Danish Asgot, the byname Clapa meaning coarse, o ...
. Harthacnut presumably consumed large quantities of alcohol. As he was drinking to the health of the bride, he "''died as he stood at his drink, and he suddenly fell to the earth with an awful convulsion; and those who were close by took hold of him, and he spoke no word afterwards..."'' The likely cause of death was a stroke, "''brought about by an excessive intake of alcohol"''.
Sten Körner noted that the death of Harthacnut could be part of a plot, but did not further explore the notion, though the implication would be that Edward the Confessor was behind this plot. Brewer points out that Edward benefited from the sudden death of Harthacnut and that while Godwin, Earl of Wessex, was the father-in-law to Edward, he had once led an uprising against his son-in-law. He died suddenly after dining with said son-in-law, again pointing suspicion at Edward as the probable culprit behind both deaths.
Katherine Holman was certain that Harthacnut was poisoned but felt that the culprit will never be known with certainty due to "no shortage of discontented candidates".
Succession
The political agreement between Harthacnut and
Magnus the Good
Magnus Olafsson (Old Norse: ''Magnús Óláfsson''; Norwegian and Danish: ''Magnus Olavsson''; – 25 October 1047), better known as Magnus the Good (Old Norse: ''Magnús góði'', Norwegian and Danish: ''Magnus den gode''), was King of Norwa ...
included the appointment of the latter as heir to Harthacnut. At the time, the agreement would have only affected the throne of Denmark. The ''
Heimskringla
''Heimskringla'' () is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorre Sturlason (1178/79–1241) 1230. The name ''Heimskringla'' was first used in the 17th century, derived ...
'' reports that when Harthacnut died, Magnus extended his claim to England. He reportedly sent a letter to Edward the Confessor, pressing his claim to the English throne and threatening invasion. His own heir,
Harald Hardrada
Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' (; modern no, Hardråde, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler") in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 t ...
, would also press this claim. Both considered themselves legal heirs to Harthacnut. The ''
Fagrskinna
''Fagrskinna'' ( ; is, Fagurskinna ; trans. "Fair Leather" from the type of parchment) is one of the kings' sagas, written around 1220. It is an intermediate source for the ''Heimskringla'' of Snorri Sturluson, containing histories of Norwegian k ...
'' contains a scene where Magnus proclaims that "''I will take possession of all the
Danish empire or else die in the attempt.''"
According to the ''Encomium'', Edward the Confessor already served as co-ruler of England since 1041. There is an emphasis on Harthacnut, Edward, and Emma serving as a trinity of rulers, in emulation of the
Holy Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...
. Edward, by surviving his co-ruler, would be king by default. The ''Heimskringla'' depicts Edward portraying himself as brother and legal heir to both Harold Harefoot and Harthacnut, while pointing out that he had already won the support "''of all the people of the country"''. Unstated in both is that the marriage of Edward to
Edith of Wessex
Edith of Wessex ( 1025 – 18 December 1075) was Queen of England from her marriage to Edward the Confessor in 1045 until Edward died in 1066. Unlike most English queens in the 10th and 11th centuries, she was crowned. The principal source on ...
would also support his claim by earning him both the political support of her father Godwin and an additional connection to Cnut. She was a niece to the king. The ''Fagrskinna'' has Edward point out that he was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, the brother to
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 ...
, the stepson of Cnut, the stepbrother of Harold Harefoot, and the half-brother of Harthacnut. In short, he had a much stronger family claim to the throne than Magnus. All the leaders of England had already acknowledged him as their king, and he was consecrated by an archbishop. England was his own heritage. Whether Magnus managed to defeat him in war or not, "''you can never be called king in England, and you will never be granted any allegiance there before you put an end to my life."'' This was supposedly enough to cause Magnus to doubt the strength of his own claim.
The marriage agreement between
Gunhilda of Denmark
Gunhilda of Denmark ( 1020 – 18 July 1038), was Queen consort of Germany by her marriage with King Henry III from 1036 until her death.
Biography
Gunhilda was a daughter of King Cnut the Great (985/95 – 1035), ruler over the Anglo-Scandi ...
(sister of Harthacnut) and
Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry III (28 October 1016 – 5 October 1056), called the Black or the Pious, was Holy Roman Emperor from 1046 until his death in 1056. A member of the Salian dynasty, he was the eldest son of Conrad II and Gisela of Swabia.
Henry was raised by ...
would allow descendants of this marriage to claim the throne of Denmark and potentially of England. The marriage, from Henry's perspective, was probably orchestrated to allow the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
to claim control of Denmark and the western areas of the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...
. However, Gunhilda died in 1038 with no known sons. Her only daughter was
Beatrice I, Abbess of Quedlinburg
Beatrice I, also known as Beatrice of Franconia (german: Beatrix von Franken; 1037 – 13 July 1061), was Abbess of Gandersheim Abbey from 1043 and Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg Abbey from 1044 until her death.
Beatrix was born in Italy towards ...
, who never married.
Reputation
Apart from the ''Ramsey Chronicle'', medieval sources are hostile to Harthacnut. According to the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' he "did nothing worthy of a king as long as he ruled." Modern historians are less dismissive. In the view of M. K. Lawson, he had at least two of the requisites of a successful medieval king: he was "both ruthless and feared"; had he not died young, the Norman Conquest might not have happened. Ian Howard praises Harthacnut for keeping peace throughout his empire, benefiting trade and merchants, and ensuring a peaceful succession by inviting Edward to his court as his heir. Had he lived longer, Howard believes, his character might have enabled him to become a successful king like his father.
Henry of Huntingdon
Henry of Huntingdon ( la, Henricus Huntindoniensis; 1088 – AD 1157), the son of a canon in the diocese of Lincoln, was a 12th-century English historian and the author of ''Historia Anglorum'' (Medieval Latin for "History of the English"), ...
(12th century) claimed that Harthacnut ordered for the dining tables of his court to be "''laid four times a day with royal sumptuousness''" which O'Brien says is likely a popular myth. Henry of Huntingdon viewed this detail in the context of the monarch sharing these meals with the members of his household, making Harthacnut more generous than his own contemporaries, who "''through avarice, or as they pretend through disgust, ...set but one meal a day before their dependents''". His account produced the image of Harthacnut as a "''very generous
bon viveur ''Bon viveur'' is an English pseudo-French expression denoting someone who enjoys the good things in life, especially food and drink.
It may also refer to:
* A pseudonym used jointly by writers Johnnie Cradock and Fanny Cradock
Phyllis Nan Sor ...
.''"
Ranulf Higden
Ranulf Higden or Higdon ( – 12 March 1364) was an English chronicler and a Benedictine monk who wrote the ''Polychronicon'', a Late Medieval magnum opus. Higden, who resided at the monastery of St. Werburgh in Chester, is believed to h ...
(14th century) viewed the same detail in a negative light. He claimed that Harthacnut insisted on having two dinners and two suppers per day. His example influenced the English people, who supposedly were to Higden's day gluttonous and extravagant. Higden so claimed that Harthacnut had a lasting effect on the English national character. The association of Harthacnut with gluttony was well known enough to appear in the novel ''
Ivanhoe
''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' () by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. Set in England in the Middle Ages, this novel marked a shift away from Scott’s prior practice of setting st ...
'' (1819) by
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', ''Rob Roy (n ...
. The character Cedric comments on his friend Athelstane, whose main character trait is a love for food and drink, that "''The soul of Hardicanute hath taken possession of him, and he hath no pleasure save to fill, to swill, and to call for more.''"
The ''
Knýtlinga saga
''Knýtlinga saga'' (''The Saga of Cnut's Descendants'') is an Icelandic kings' saga written in the 1250s, which deals with the kings who ruled Denmark since the early 10th century.Ármann Jakobsson, "Royal biography", p. 397-8
There are good rea ...
'' treats the death of Harthacnut as the end of an ancient line of kings, and notes that he was the last Danish king to rule over England. But otherwise Harthacnut is treated as a mere footnote in the line of monarchs, while there are many observations on Cnut. The ''
Morkinskinna
''Morkinskinna'' is an Old Norse kings' saga, relating the history of Norwegian kings from approximately 1025 to 1157. The saga was written in Iceland around 1220, and has been preserved in a manuscript from around 1275.
The name ''Morkinskinn ...
'' covers Harthacnut's death in some detail, but records next to nothing about his life, suggesting a lack of memorable details on him, presumably due to his short reign.
The
''Brut'' Chronicle was an
Anglo-Norman Anglo-Norman may refer to:
*Anglo-Normans, the medieval ruling class in England following the Norman conquest of 1066
* Anglo-Norman language
**Anglo-Norman literature
* Anglo-Norman England, or Norman England, the period in English history from 10 ...
work, covering British and English monarchs from Brut (
Brutus of Troy
Brutus, also called Brute of Troy, is a legendary descendant of the Trojan hero Aeneas, known in medieval British history as the eponymous founder and first king of Britain. This legend first appears in the ''Historia Brittonum'', an anonymous ...
) to the death of
Henry III in 1272. It was probably written during the reign of
Edward I
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
(reigned 1272–1307), though the oldest surviving manuscript dates to 1338. The text often includes notable errors. The original author remains unknown, but there were a number of continuations by different hands, continuing the story to the
Battle of Halidon Hill
The Battle of Halidon Hill took place on 19 July 1333 when a Scottish army under Sir Archibald Douglas attacked an English army commanded by King Edward III of England () and was heavily defeated. The year before, Edward Balliol had seized ...
(1333). The material on Harthacnut is largely positive. The author considered both Harold Harefoot and Harthacnut to have been sons of Cnut and Emma of Normandy. He portrays Harold as lacking in chivalry, courtesy, and honour. While Harthacnut was "''...a noble knight and stalwart of body, and he greatly loved knighthood and all virtues."'' He praises Harthacnut for his generosity with food and drink, claiming that his table was open "''...for all who wished to come to his court to be richly served with royal dishes"''. He concludes by portraying Harthacnut as a loyal son for accepting his mother, Emma, back to court.
Contradictory account of his death
There is a contradictory account of Harthacnut's death featured in the ''
Morkinskinna
''Morkinskinna'' is an Old Norse kings' saga, relating the history of Norwegian kings from approximately 1025 to 1157. The saga was written in Iceland around 1220, and has been preserved in a manuscript from around 1275.
The name ''Morkinskinn ...
'' (13th century). According to this account,
Magnus I of Norway
Magnus Olafsson (Old Norse: ''Magnús Óláfsson''; Norwegian and Danish: ''Magnus Olavsson''; – 25 October 1047), better known as Magnus the Good (Old Norse: ''Magnús góði'', Norwegian and Danish: ''Magnus den gode''), was King of Norway ...
(reigned 1034–1047) visited the court of Harthacnut in Denmark, received with all official honours. The two monarchs then argued on a matter of
etiquette
Etiquette () is the set of norms of personal behaviour in polite society, usually occurring in the form of an ethical code of the expected and accepted social behaviours that accord with the conventions and norms observed and practised by a ...
, on whether the host or the guest should drink first, each man offering the honour to the other. The two eventually agreed that the host should drink first. Then Álfífa (
Ælfgifu of Northampton
Ælfgifu of Northampton ( non, Álfífa, 990 – after 1036) was the first wife of Cnut the Great, King of England and Denmark, and mother of Harold Harefoot, King of England. She was regent of Norway from 1030 to 1035.
Biography
Family b ...
) entered the royal hall, welcoming Magnus. She poured a drink for him. But the guest offered the drink to Harthacnut. He drank from the
drinking horn
A drinking horn is the horn of a bovid used as a drinking vessel. Drinking horns are known from Classical Antiquity, especially the Balkans, and remained in use for ceremonial purposes throughout the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period in ...
and fell dead, poisoned. Álfífa had thus intended to poison Magnus, but accidentally killed Harthacnut instead. She fled to escape punishment.
The tale is probably fictional in origin, though consistent with the villainous depiction of Ælfgifu in this work. A nearly identical story appears in the ''
Egils saga
''Egill's Saga'' or ''Egil's saga'' ( non, Egils saga ; ) is an Icelandic saga (family saga) on the lives of the clan of Egill Skallagrímsson (Anglicised as Egill Skallagrimsson), an Icelandic farmer, viking and skald. The saga spans the years ...
'', though the three protagonists are different, with
Egill Skallagrímsson
Egil Skallagrímsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ; 904 995) was a Viking Age war poet, sorcerer, berserker, and farmer.Thorsson, 3 He is known mainly as the anti-hero of ''Egils saga, Egil's Saga''. ''Egil's Saga'' historically narrates a p ...
as the intended victim, with Bárðr of Atley and
Gunnhild, Mother of Kings
Gunnhildr konungamóðir (''mother of kings'') or Gunnhildr Gormsdóttir, whose name is often Anglicised as Gunnhild (c. 910 – c. 980) is a quasi-historical figure who appears in the Icelandic Sagas, according to which she was ...
as the would-be poisoners.
References
Notes
Citations
Sources
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* Based primarily on Einarsson's 1984 edition.
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Further reading
*DeVries, Kelly, ''The Norwegian Invasion of England in 1066'' (2003). Boydell & Brewer Ltd,
*Douglas, David Charles, ''William The Conqueror: The Norman Impact Upon England'' (1964). University of California Press.
*Gillingham, John, ''The introduction of chivalry into England''. Essay included in ''Law and Government in Medieval England and Normandy: Essays in Honour of Sir James Holt'' (1994), pages 31–56. Cambridge University Press,
*Howard, Ian, ''Harold II: a Throne-Worthy King''. Essay included in ''King Harold II and the Bayeux Tapestry'' (2005), pages 35–52. Boydell Press, .
* Rushton, Alan R., ''Royal Maladies: Inherited Diseases in the Royal Houses of Europe'' (2008). Victoria, British Columbia: Trafford,
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Harthacanute
1010s births
1042 deaths
11th-century English monarchs
11th-century kings of Denmark
Anglo-Norse monarchs
Burials at Winchester Cathedral
Christian monarchs
Cnut the Great
House of Knýtlinga
Monarchs of England before 1066
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