With Edric fell Norman, nephew of Leofric the ealdor- Edric. man; Ethelward, son of Ethelmar the ealdorman; and Brihtric, son of Elphege, ealdorman of Devon. Thus perished this mighty plotter. We do not read that he ever used the sword, except against Osmer; yet his influence over kings, Witans, and the people was apparently unbounded. In the art of ascending the ladder of fortune upon the passions and weaknesses of his fellows, he has no rival in ancient or modern history. LEADING EVENTS. The Marriage of Ethelred and Emma, and the Massacre of the Danes...... 1002 A.D. Meeting of the Witan, and the construction of a Sweyn's fourth visit to England, and the Flight of Ethelred The Death of Sweyn, and the Flight of Canute The Marriage of Canute and Emma, and the Assassina 1013 1014 ...... 1015 tion of Edric......... 1016 1017 ...... Canute, 1016 to 1035. CHAPTER XIII. CANUTE, THE KING. WE have read that Canute crushed at one blow the machinations of the powerful and terrible Edric, ealdorman of Mercia; and that, not content with the destruction of the leader, he slew with him his chief supporters. The hopes of the Saxons perished at the banquet of blood with which Canute terminated the feast of our Lord's Nativity in the year 1017, for with Edric, Norman, Ethelward, and Brihtric, fell the only Saxon confederation that Canute dreaded. The long wars between the Danes and the Saxons had cleared the land of the old nobility, so that when Canute became king, the Saxon Witan had not a single independent member. This representative assembly of the Saxon people decreed anything and everything that was likely to conciliate the Danish conqueror. Canute was determined to remove every rival out of his way. And Removal everyone' who was related to the Saxon royal family royal he banished. And we have read that he sent the sons family. of his brave rival Edmund to Norway, but that Olave, king of that country, refused to comply with his request to put them to death. With their removal, and by the death of Edwy the Atheling, and the exile of Alfred and Edward, there was not a single member of the Saxon royal family in the land to conspire against his of Saxon 1 Matt. of Westminster. 2 authority. The king was most anxious1 to secure the crown of England for his sons by his first wife, Elgiva of Mercia Upon the death of Elgiva, Canute married Emma of Emma. Normandy. He was wishful that she should become his wife for two reasons: first, to reconcile the Saxons to his rule by the sight of one seated by his side to whom they had been accustomed to pay obedience : secondly, to acquire the favour of her brother, Richard II., Duke of Normandy, and thus check his inclination to take the part of his nephews, Alfred and Edward. William of Malmesbury is in doubt who deserves greater blame the uncle who neglected the cause of his nephews, or the woman who had consented to marry the man who had injured her first husband and driven her children into exile. forces. Canute's precautions did not rest with slaughter, banishment, and marriage. He determined to send back to Denmark all his ships except forty; and to reduce Dismissal his Danish army to 3,000 men. One authority' states of Danish that this was done at the advice of Queen Emma, and that "all the paid troops" were sent back to Denmark. But they did not go back to their native shores empty handed. Some had sold the lands which had been bestowed upon them; and to pay his* Danish army the provinces were obliged to contribute 72,0005 or 73,000,6 and London 10,5005 or 11,000 pounds of silver. The 3,000 troops that remained in England were particularly well disciplined. It would appear that Matt. of Westminster. Dr. Lingard, and Mr. Green, in direct contradiction to Matt. of Westminster, state she was not his queen. 3 Will. of Malmesbury. Flor. of Worcester. Saxon Chronicle. • Henry of Huntingdon. The Witan the king was anxious to secure their attachment: with this object in view he placed himself under the same rules which they were obliged to observe, for, killing a soldier in a passion, he pretended to place himself at the mercy of his huscarls and to submit to their judgment. As they were silent, he condemned himself to pay 360 talents of gold, nine times the amount of the usual fine, and nine additional talents. Such conduct as this was highly calculated to win not merely the ready obedience, but also the sincere affections of his trusted followers. Canute summoned all the bishops, ealdormen, and chief men to meet him in London. When they met, he asked them whether Edmund intended that his brothers or his sons were to succeed him. At once they replied that Edmund never intended that his brothers should succeed him: and they also stated that it was his wish that Canute should be the guardian and protector of his sons until they were of age. This was done to gain the king's favour: instead of that, some of these false witnesses were put to death by his orders. After this enquiry he used every effort to win the Saxon nobility to his cause. He was successful: the members of the Witan elected him king, and swore they would obey him; and, at the same time, they repudiated the claims of Edmund's brothers and sons, and denied their rights to the throne. Canute also made an agreement with all the nobles and people; and they made, upon oath, a solemn concord between them, and in this way they ended and put into oblivion all their past animosities.1 1 Florence of Worcester. Canute was successful in a threefold character-as a soldier, a legislator,' and a regulator of church affairs. a soldier. As a soldier he was eminently successful in securing Canute as the confidence of his own troops, and in winning over to his cause the leaders of the armies to which he was opposed. It was his determination that, undaunted by reverses and repeated encounters, ultimately led to his sovereignty over England, Denmark, Norway, and part of Sweden, and to his lordship over Scotland. We shall now refer to his warlike expeditions. In 10192 he sailed from England with his forty ships, to Denmark, and spent the winter there. In 1024 he fought against the Swedes, who were led by Ulf and Eglaf. victory Swedes, One of his companions in this enterprise was Godwin, Godwin's son of "Child" Wulfnoth. On the first day of battle over the the Swedes were victorious. Under the year 1025 1025. the Saxon Chronicle states that Ulf and Eglaf came against Canute in Denmark, with a land army and a fleet; and that, in the engagement that followed, very many Danes and English were killed, and that the Swedes remained upon the battle-field. No doubt this passage has reference to the first day's fight mentioned by Matthew of Westminster. On the evening of the next day Godwin addressed his fellow-countrymen, and exhorted them not to forget their ancient fame, but to display their courage before their new lord; and he 1 Matt. of Westminster states that Queen Emma advised Canute to reconcile the English to him by gifts, and by the promise of good and welcome laws. Saxon Chronicle; Matt. of Westminster. Matt. of Westminster; Henry of Huntingdon gives 1020 as the date of this expedition; Will. of Malmesbury states that it took place the year before the death of Olave of Norway, that is, in 1029. |