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1013 CEReputable source · 2 sourcesWell documented

Sweyn Forkbeard conquers England

The Danish king drives out Aethelred the Unready, then dies within months of victory

On the timeline · around 1013 CE · Kings, Christianity, and the EndGreenland and VinlandKings, Christianity, and the EndSweyn Forkbeard conquers England990 CE10001010102010301040

Quick facts

Conqueror
Sweyn Forkbeard (r. 986-1014)
Date
1013 CE
Deposed king
Aethelred the Unready
Sweyn's death
February 1014

What happened

The Danish king Sweyn Forkbeard, who had led or joined Viking invasions of England as early as 991 and 994, launched a full conquest campaign in 1013 that drove the English king Aethelred the Unready into exile in Normandy. Sweyn brought his son Cnut on the campaign and arranged Cnut's marriage to Aelfgifu of Northampton, an English noblewoman whose family had feuded with Aethelred since 1006, tying the new Danish regime to an existing English faction. Sweyn's success was short-lived: he died suddenly in February 1014, only weeks after completing the conquest, and Aethelred returned from exile to briefly reclaim the throne.

Why it matters

Sweyn's conquest, brief as his own rule over England was, opened the door for his son Cnut to fight his way back to the English throne within two years and eventually rule an empire spanning England, Denmark, and Norway. It shows the Viking Age's final phase was not raiding at all but full dynastic conquest of an established kingdom.

How we know

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records Sweyn's 1013 campaign, Aethelred's flight, and Sweyn's sudden death in February 1014.

Sources

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