Sigeferth (or Sigefrith) (died 1015) was, along with his brother
Morcar, described by 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 ...
'' as "chief
thegn of the Seven Burghs".
According to the 12th century chronicle of
John of Worcester, Sigeferth and
Morcar were the sons of one Earngrim who is otherwise unrecorded. The Seven Burghs of which they were said to be the chief men are believed to have been the
Five Burghs
The Five Boroughs or The Five Boroughs of the Danelaw were the five main towns of Danish Mercia (what is now the East Midlands). These were Derby, Leicester, Lincoln, Nottingham and Stamford. The first four later became county towns.
Establ ...
—
Derby
Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...
,
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city l ...
,
Lincoln,
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...
and
Stamford—together with
Torksey and
York
York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
. These were among the chief towns of the northern part of the
Danelaw.
Sigeferth was murdered alongside his brother Morcar by
Eadric Streona at Oxford in 1015.
King Æthelred
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
seized both Morcar's and Sigeferth's lands, and imprisoned Sigeferth's widow who was called
Ealdgyth.
King Edmund Ironside seized the widow and married her. Edmund redistributed some of the lands that had previously belonged to Sigeferth.
[These are charter]
S 947
Williams, ''Æthelred'', p. 134 & note 13.
References
Sources
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sigeferth
10th-century births
1015 deaths
Anglo-Saxon thegns