Sigfred was a competitor for the

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...

throne in 812. His brief appearance inaugurated a period of throne struggles in Denmark which lasted until 827.

Competing royal lineages

In the early 9th century King Gudfred had made Denmark into an expansive power which threatened the

Carolingian The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippin ...

positions in Frisia, Saxony and the Slavic lands. However, the kingdom was not strictly hereditary since rulers were taken by assemblies of chiefs and peasants. Apart from the House of Gudfred, another lineage strove for power. The members based their claim on kinship with a former King Harald who might have ruled in the 8th century. Since the Houses of Gudfred and Harald often bore the same names (such as Gudfred and Hemming) they were probably related.

Succession crisis

Gudfred's nephew and successor Hemming had a short and peaceful reign and passed away in 812. He is known to have had two brothers called Håkon and Angantyr, but we do not hear more about them. Another nephew of Gudfred, Sigfred, aspired to succeed him. He was, however, challenged by another claimant called

Anulo Anulo or Ale was a pretender-king who vied for the Danish throne in 812. He represents the appearance of the House of Harald which competed with the House of Gudfred for power in Denmark until c. 857 and possibly longer. The lineage of Harald An ...

(Ale), who was a grandson or nephew (''nepos'') of Harald and probably the son of the chief Halfdan who submitted to

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Em ...

in 807. The two rival kings summoned their followers and met in a huge battle which, according to the

Frankish annals The ''Royal Frankish Annals'' (Latin: ''Annales regni Francorum''), also called the ''Annales Laurissenses maiores'' ('Greater Lorsch Annals'), are a series of annals composed in Latin in the Carolingian Francia, recording year-by-year the state ...

, cost the lives 10,940 men on both sides. If correct this would have meant a very considerable loss of manpower for this era. Both Sigfred and Anulo were killed in the melée. However, Anulo's side won, and his brothers

Harald Klak Harald 'Klak' Halfdansson (c. 785 – c. 852) was a king in Jutland (and possibly other parts of Denmark) around 812–814 and again from 819–827."Carolingian Chronicles: Royal Frankish Annals and Nithard's Histories" (1970), translation by Ber ...

and Ragnfred were made kings of the Danish realm. The new rulers sought friendship with the

Carolingian Empire The Carolingian Empire (800–888) was a large Frankish-dominated empire in western and central Europe during the Early Middle Ages. It was ruled by the Carolingian dynasty, which had ruled as kings of the Franks since 751 and as kings of the ...

. However, they were soon challenged by the five sons of Gudfred and were expelled in the following year.

Later historiography

Sigfred and Anulo are mentioned by the historian

Adam of Bremen Adam of Bremen ( la, Adamus Bremensis; german: Adam von Bremen) (before 1050 – 12 October 1081/1085) was a German medieval chronicler. He lived and worked in the second half of the eleventh century. Adam is most famous for his chronicle ''Gest ...

in c. 1075 who believed that they were both nephews of Gudfred. Adam's ''

Gesta Hammaburgensis Ecclesiae Pontificum ''Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclesiae pontificum'' (Medieval Latin for ''"Deeds of the Bishops of Hamburg"'') is a historical treatise written between 1073 and 1076 by Adam of Bremen, who made additions (''scholia'') to the text until his death (poss ...

'' was known to some High medieval Norse writers who elaborated on his data. Thus the unusual name Anulo was misinterpreted as Hring (Latin ''annulus'' meaning "ring") while Sigfred was equated with the common medieval name Sigurd. Various king lists such as the '' Gesta Danorum'' of

Saxo Grammaticus Saxo Grammaticus (c. 1150 – c. 1220), also known as Saxo cognomine Longus, was a Danish historian, theologian and author. He is thought to have been a clerk or secretary to Absalon, Archbishop of Lund, the main advisor to Valdemar I of Denmark ...

(c. 1200) combine the names as

Sigurd Hring Sigurd Ring (Old Norse: ''Sigurðr Hringr'', in some sources merely called ''Hringr'') according to legend was a king of the Swedes, being mentioned in many old Scandinavian sagas. According to these sources he was granted rulership over Sweden a ...

and present this figure as the father and predecessor of the renowned Viking ruler Ragnar Lodbrok, conflated with historical Ragnfred.Saxo Grammaticus, ''The nine books of the Danish history of Saxo Grammaticus'

/ref>

References

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