by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Harthacnut, King of Denmark and England; Credit – Wikipedia

The last of the House of Denmark to reign in England, Harthacnut was the elder of the two children and the only son of Cnut the Great, King of England, Denmark, and Norway and his second wife Emma of Normandy, daughter of Richard I, Duke of Normandy. Harthacnut was born in England around 1018.

After Cnut’s conquest of England in 1016, he had put aside his first wife Ælfgifu of Northampton and married Emma of Normandy, the widow of Æthelred II the Unready, King of the English. At that time, it was acceptable to put aside one wife and take another. Cnut succeeded his brother Harald II as King of Denmark in 1019. In 1029, Cnut invaded Norway and when King Olaf II of Norway was killed in 1030 at the Battle of Stiklestad, Cnut became King of Norway. He also ruled parts of Sweden, Pomerania, and Schleswig. Cnut’s dominions were known as the North Sea Empire.

The North Sea Empire of Cnut the Great; Credit – By Hel-hama – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19863973

Harthacnut had one younger sibling:

• Gunhilda of Denmark (circa 1020 – 1038), married Heinrich III, Holy Roman Emperor, had one daughter

Harthacnut had two half-siblings from his father’s first marriage to Ælfgifu of Northampton:

• Sweyn Cnutsson (circa 1016–1035), unmarried
• Harold Harefoot, King of England (circa 1016 – 1040), unmarried (?)

Harthacnut’s mother Emma of Normandy, with her two sons by Æthelred II; Credit – Wikipedia

Harthacnut had three half-siblings from the first marriage of his mother Emma of Normandy to Æthelred II, King of the English:

• Saint Edward the Confessor, King of England (circa 1003 – 1066), married Edith of Wessex, no children
• Goda of England (1004 – circa 1047), married (1) Drogo of Mantes, Count of the Véxin, had three children (2) Eustace II, Count of Boulogne, no children
• Alfred Ætheling (circa 1005 – 1036), unmarried

Harthacnut was first mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle when he and his mother attended the transfer of the remains of Ælfheah, Archbishop of Canterbury from London to Canterbury in June 1023. In 1028, at the age of ten, Harthacnut accompanied his father to Denmark. Cnut left his son there as his deputy and he was still in Denmark when Cnut died on November 12, 1035.

Cnut, King of England, Denmark, and Norway, and his sons Harold Harefoot and Harthacnut; Credit – Wikipedia

Cnut had decreed that any sons of his second marriage should take precedence over the sons of his first marriage. This meant that Cnut and Emma’s only son Harthacnut was the legitimate heir to England and Denmark. As Harthacnut was in Denmark, he easily succeeded his father as King of Denmark. However, he was unable to come to England because Denmark was under threat of invasion by Norway and Sweden. Because of this, the council elected Cnut’s son by his first wife Harold Harefoot Regent of England as a temporary measure. Harold Harefoot, almost immediately, requested that he be proclaimed King of England but Æthelnoth, Archbishop of Canterbury, refused to do so.

In 1037, with the support of Leofric, Earl of Mercia and other nobles, Harold Harefoot was proclaimed King of England and crowned in Oxford. One of his first acts was to banish his stepmother Emma, who went into exile in Bruges, then in Flanders, now in Belgium. Harold Harefoot had a short reign, dying in Oxford, England on March 17, 1040, aged about 24-years-old.

On June 14, 1040, Harthacnut arrived at Sandwich, England with sixty-two warships and ascended the English throne unchallenged. He had Harald Harefoot’s body exhumed, decapitated, and thrown into a swamp but then it was retrieved and thrown in the River Thames. Shortly afterward, Harold Harefoot’s body was pulled from the River Thames by a fisherman and was buried at St. Clement Danes Church in London.

Harthacnut was crowned at Canterbury Cathedral on June 18, 1040, by Eadsige, Archbishop of Canterbury. England was accustomed to the king ruling with a council but Harthacnut became more authoritarian. To enlarge and maintain his naval fleet, he severely increased the taxation rate. At the same time, the tax rate was increased, the harvest was poor and this caused hardship and dissatisfaction. The town of Worcester became the focal point of the tax resistance against Harthacnut. Two tax collectors were killed there in May 1041. A military force was sent to deal with the situation but the townspeople defended themselves by moving away from the town. However, Harthacnut’s army sacked and burned Worcester. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says about Harthacnut, “He never did anything worthy of a king while he reigned.”

Death of King Harthacnut at a wedding feast; Credit – Wikipedia

Harthacnut was unmarried and in 1041, he invited his half-brother Edward (the Confessor) home from his exile in Normandy and made him his heir. On June 8, 1042, Harthacnut attended a wedding in Lambeth, London, England. As he was drinking to celebrate the wedding, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, “He died while standing with his drink. Suddenly he fell to the ground with violent convulsions.” Harthacnut was only 23-24 years old. There were unproven suspicions that he was poisoned and certainly there were people who would have benefitted from his death. His death also could have been caused by a stroke due to excessive drinking. A 2015 study speculated that perhaps up to fourteen Danish kings, including Harthacnut, who suddenly died at a relatively young age without being ill, possibly died of Brugada Syndrome, a genetic disorder in which the electrical activity in the heart is abnormal. It increases the risk of abnormal heart rhythms and sudden cardiac death.

Harthacnut’s half-brother Edward the Confessor succeeded him as King of England. A political agreement Harthacnut had made with King Magnus I of Norway stated Magnus would succeed him as King of Denmark. Harthacnut was initially buried at the Old Minster in Winchester, England. When the Old Minster was demolished in 1093, Harthacnut’s remains were moved to Winchester Cathedral and were placed in a mortuary chest near the shrine of St. Swithun. However, his remains were ultimately interred in a tomb below the eastern arch of the cathedral in the north aisle. In 1525, Harthacnut’s tomb was remodeled and a plaque was placed on the tomb.

Harthacnut’s tomb in Winchester Cathedral; Credit – http://www.dandebat.dk/

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

England: House of Denmark Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Denmark Index
• Coronations before the Norman Conquest (871 – 1066)

Works Cited

• Ashley, M. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings & Queens. New York: Carroll & Graf Pub.
• Cannon, J. and Griffiths, R. (1988). The Oxford Illustrated History of the British Monarchy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Dodson, A. (2004). The Royal Tombs of Great Britain. London: Duckworth.
• En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Harthacnut. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harthacnut [Accessed 4 Mar. 2019].
• Flantzer, S. (2019). Cnut the Great, King of England, Denmark, and Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/cnut-the-great-king-of-england-denmark-and-norway/ [Accessed 28 Feb. 2019].
• Flantzer, S. (2019). Emma of Normandy, Queen of England, Denmark, and Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/emma-of-normandy-queen-of-england-denmark-and-norway/ [Accessed 28 Feb. 2019].
• Flantzer, S. (2019). Harold I Harefoot, King of England. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at:  https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/harold-harefoot-or-harold-i-king-of-england/[Accessed 28 Feb. 2019]
• Williamson, D. (1998). Brewer’s British Royalty. London: Cassell.

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Cnut the Great, King of England, Denmark, and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

One of only two British monarchs to be given the epithet “the Great” (the other was Alfred the Great), Cnut was King of England, Denmark, and Norway, and his dominions were called the North Sea Empire. He was born circa 995 in Denmark, the elder son of Sweyn Forkbeard, then King of Denmark and Norway, later also King of England. Sweyn Forkbeard had two wives: Sigrid Storråda (the Haughty) and Gunhilda of Wenden. Both women are mentioned in the Norse sagas but there is very little information about them in the medieval chronicles. Sweyn Forkbeard had seven known children but which of the two women are their mothers is uncertain. Gunhilda of Wenden was probably the mother of Cnut and his brother Harald.

Cnut had six known siblings:

• Harald II, King of Denmark (died 1018), unmarried (?), childless
• Estrid Svendsdatter (990/997 – 1057/1073), married Ulf, Jarl of Orkney, had two sons including Sweyn II, King of Denmark
• Gytha
• Gunnhild
• Santslaue, a nun in England
• Thyra

Nothing is known about Cnut until 1013 when he was part of an army under his father Sweyn Forkbeard in his invasion of England. This was a culmination of Sweyn Forkbeard’s raids in England since 1003. According to The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, in 1002 Æthelred II, King of the English was told that the Danish men in England “would faithlessly take his life, and then all his councilors, and possess his kingdom afterward.” In response, Æthelred “ordered slain all the Danish men who were in England.” St. Brice’s Day Massacre occurred on November 13, 1002. There was a significant loss of life including Gunhilde, the sister of Sweyn Forkbeard. In retaliation, Sweyn attacked England during 1003 – 1004 but famine in 1005 caused him to retreat. The Danish invaders returned and within a few years, all of England came under Danish rule. On Christmas Day in 1013, Sweyn was formally proclaimed King of England. Æthelred II had fled to the Isle of Wight and then to Normandy.

However, Sweyn Forkbeard’s reign was short-lived as he suddenly died on February 3, 1014. Sweyn’s younger son succeeded him as Harald II, King of Denmark, and his elder son Cnut, was proclaimed King of England by the Danes in England. However, English noblemen sent a deputation to Æthelred II to negotiate his restoration to the throne. Æthelred returned from exile in Normandy in the spring of 1014, managed to drive Cnut out of England, and reigned until his death on April 23, 1016.

Medieval illumination depicting Kings Edmund Ironside (left) and Cnut (right), from the Chronica Majora written and illustrated by Matthew Paris; Credit – Wikipedia

Æthelred II’s son Edmund Ironside became King of the English but had to fight Cnut to keep the Kingdom of England. He earned the added name “Ironside” because of his bravery in resisting the Danish invasion led by Cnut the Great. The war between Edmund and Cnut ended in a decisive victory for Cnut at the Battle of Assandun on October 18, 1016. Because Edmund’s reputation as a warrior was great, Cnut agreed to divide England, with Edmund taking Wessex and Cnut the rest of the country beyond the River Thames. However, Edmund died on November 30, 1016, and Cnut the Great became King of England. Cnut succeeded his brother Harald II as King of Denmark in 1019. In 1029, Cnut invaded Norway and when King Olaf II of Norway was killed in 1030 at the Battle of Stiklestad, Cnut became King of Norway. He eventually also ruled parts of Sweden, Pomerania, and Schleswig.

Cnut’s North Sea Empire: Red = Countries where Cnut was king, Orange = Countries where rulers submitted to Cnut, Yellow = Countries who were allies of Cnut; Credit – By Soerfm – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=65042103

Cnut’s first wife was Ælfgifu of Northampton, daughter of Ælfhelm, Ealdorman of Northumbria. In 1006, her father and brothers were suspected of consorting with the Danes in northern England. Her father was murdered and her brothers were blinded, probably at the command of Æthelred II. When Sweyn Forkbeard invaded England, the people of the north, many of them of Scandinavian descent, immediately submitted to him. He then married his son Cnut to Ælfgifu to seal their loyalty.

After Cnut’s conquest of England in 1016, he married Emma of Normandy, the widow of King Æthelred II. At that time, it was acceptable to put aside one wife and take another wife. Exactly how Cnut’s second marriage affected Ælfgifu’s status is unknown but there is no evidence to suggest that she was repudiated. In fact, in 1030, after the defeat and death of King Olaf II of Norway by forces loyal to Cnut, Cnut sent Ælfgifu with their eldest son Sweyn to govern Norway. The Norwegians considered their rule oppressive and they were expelled in 1035.  Magnus the Good, a son of Olaf II, then became King of Norway. There are no records of Ælfgifu after 1036 but it is unknown when she died.

Cnut and Ælfgifu had two sons:

• Sweyn Cnutsson (circa 1016–1035), unmarried
• Harold Harefoot, King of England (circa 1016 – 1040), married (?) Ælfgifu, possibly had a son Ælfwine who became a monk

Cnut’s second wife, Emma of Normandy, with her two sons by Æthelred II; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1017, Cnut thought it would be expedient to marry Æthelred II’s widow and sent for Emma of Normandy, a daughter of Richard I, Duke of Normandy. It is unclear whether Emma married Cnut by force or if she chose to accept Cnut’s proposal but she returned to England from Normandy and married Cnut.

Emma and Cnut had two children:

• Harthacnut, King of Denmark and England (circa 1018 – 1042), unmarried
• Gunhilda of Denmark (circa 1020 – 1038), married Heinrich III, Holy Roman Emperor, had one daughter

Emma’s children by Æthelred II remained in exile in Normandy:

• Saint Edward the Confessor, King of England (circa 1003 – 1066), married Edith of Wessex, no children
• Goda of England (1004 – circa 1047), married (1) Drogo of Mantes, Count of the Véxin, had three children (2) Eustace II, Count of Boulogne, no children
• Alfred Ætheling (circa 1005 – 1036), unmarried

Emma and Cnut’s marriage began as a loveless, political strategy but Emma’s importance in the kingdom’s affairs grew. Chroniclers often mentioned that Emma was alongside her husband as if they were inseparable. After Cnut became King of Denmark in 1019 and King of Norway in 1028, it was often necessary for him to be absent from England. Emma assumed a form of regency during those periods with the main nobles of the kingdom and the Archbishops of Canterbury and York.

Cnut the Great died on November 12, 1035, when he was about 40 years old. He was buried at the Old Minster in Winchester. When the Old Minster was demolished in 1093, Canute’s remains were moved to Winchester Cathedral. His remains are in the mortuary chests that rest on top of the choir screen. Cnut was succeeded in England by Harold Harefoot, his son from his first marriage to Ælfgifu of Northampton, and in Denmark by Harthacnut, his son from his second marriage to Emma of Normandy.

Mortuary chest from Winchester Cathedral that claims to contain the remains of Cnut and his second wife Emma; Credit – Wikipedia

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

England: House of Denmark Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Denmark Index
• Coronations before the Norman Conquest (871 – 1066)

Works Cited

• Ashley, M. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings & Queens. New York: Carroll & Graf Pub.
• Cannon, J. and Griffiths, R. (1988). The Oxford Illustrated History of the British Monarchy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Da.wikipedia.org. (2019). Knud den Store. [online] Available at: https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knud_den_Store [Accessed 28 Feb. 2019].
• Dodson, A. (2004). The Royal Tombs of Great Britain. London: Duckworth.
• En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Cnut the Great. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cnut_the_Great [Accessed 28 Feb. 2019].
• Flantzer, S. (2019). Emma of Normandy, Queen of England, Denmark, and Norway. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/emma-of-normandy-queen-of-england-denmark-and-norway/ [Accessed 28 Feb. 2019].
• Flantzer, S. (2019). Sweyn Forkbeard, King of Denmark, Norway, and England. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/sweyn-forkbeard-king-of-denmark-king-of-norway-king-of-england/ [Accessed 28 Feb. 2019].
• Williamson, D. (1998). Brewer’s British Royalty. London: Cassell.

by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2019

Sweyn Forkbeard, from an architectural element in the Swansea Guildhall, Swansea, Wales; Credit – Wikipedia

Born about 960, Sweyn Forkbeard was the son of Harald Bluetooth, King of Denmark and Norway and probably his first wife Gunhild of Wenden. Harald Bluetooth, who unified Denmark and Norway in the tenth century and eventually lost Norway, was the inspiration for the name of the wireless technology company Bluetooth. The Bluetooth logo    is a bind rune merging the runes   (Hagall) (ᚼ) and  (Bjarkan) (ᛒ), Harald’s initials.

Besides Gunhild, Harald Bluetooth had two other wives: Tove of the Obotrites and Gyrid Olafsdottir of Sweden. Harald had three other children besides Sweyn but there is no certainty which of his wives were their mothers.

Sweyn Forkbeard’s siblings:

• Tyra Haraldsdatter, married (1) Styrbjörn Starke, Crown Prince of Sweden (2) King Olav I of Norway
• Haakon (born around 961)
• Gunhilde, (died 1002), married Pallig, Jarl and Ealdorman of Devonshire, both were killed in the St. Brice’s Day Massacre in November 1002

In 986, Sweyn became King of Denmark. Sweyn and Olav I, King of Norway sailed up the River Thames and raided London in 994. Æthelred II, King of the English, and his council bought them off with 22,000 pounds of gold and silver, instituting the policy of paying regular protection money called Danegeld to the Danes. These raids and the subsequent payment of Danegeld continued for several years.

Sweyn later allied with Olof Skötkonung, King of Sweden, and Eirik Hákonarson, Jarl of Lade, and together they ambushed Sweyn’s former ally Olav I, King of Norway in the Baltic Sea. Norway was divided up among the three victors.

Sweyn Forkbeard invading England; Credit – Wikipedia

According to The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, in 1002 Æthelred II, King of the English was told that the Danish men in England “would faithlessly take his life, and then all his councilors, and possess his kingdom afterward.” In response, Æthelred “ordered slain all the Danish men who were in England.” St. Brice’s Day Massacre occurred on November 13, 1002, the feast day of St. Brice, fifth-century Bishop of Tours. There was a significant loss of life including Gunhilde, the sister of Sweyn Forkbeard. In retaliation, Sweyn attacked England during 1003 – 1004, burning Norwich but a famine in 1005 caused him to retreat. The Danish invaders returned and within a few years, all of England came under Danish rule. On Christmas Day in 1013, Sweyn was formally proclaimed King of England. Æthelred had fled to the Isle of Wight and then to Normandy.

Sweyn’s marriage history is sketchy. Supposedly, Sigrid Storråda (the Haughty) was the daughter of Skogul-Tosti, a powerful Swedish nobleman and the widow of Eric the Victorious, King of Sweden. Gunhilda of Wenden supposedly was a Polish or Slavic princess. Both women are mentioned in the Norse sagas but there is very little information about them in medieval chronicles. Sweyn had seven known children but it is uncertain which of the two women are their mothers.

• Harald II, King of Denmark (died 1018), it is thought Gunhilda of Wenden was his mother
• Cnut the Great, King of England, Denmark, and Norway (circa 995 – 1035), it is thought Gunhilda of Wenden was his mother, married (1) Ælfgifu of Northampton, had two sons Sweyn Cnutsson, King of Norway and Harold Harefoot, King of England (2) Emma of Normandy, had two children including Harthacnut, King of Denmark and England
• Estrid Svendsdatter (990/997 – 1057/1073), married Ulf, Jarl of Orkney, had two sons including Sweyn II, King of Denmark
• Gytha
• Gunnhild
• Santslaue, a nun in England
• Thyra

Sweyn Forkbeard’s daughter Estrid Svendsdatter was the mother of King Sweyn II of Denmark. Her descendants have reigned in Denmark ever since. One of her descendants, Margaret of Denmark, married James III, King of Scots in 1469, introducing Sweyn’s bloodline into the Scottish royal house. In 1603, James VI, King of Scots inherited the English throne upon the death of Queen Elizabeth I. Since that time, all English and British monarchs have been Sweyn’s descendants.

Swen Forkbeard by Lorenz Frølich, circa 1883-1886. The work was made as decoration in Frederiksborg Castle in Denmark and was inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry from the 1000s; Credit – Wikipedia

Sweyn made his English base in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, and began organizing his new kingdom. However, his reign was short-lived as he suddenly died in Gainsborough on February 3, 1014, at around the age of 54. Although there are reports that Sweyn died after a fall from his horse, a 2015 study speculated that he may have died from Brugada Syndrome, a genetic disorder in which the electrical activity in the heart is abnormal. It increases the risk of abnormal heart rhythms and sudden cardiac death. The study showed that perhaps up to fourteen Danish kings who suddenly died at a relatively young age without being ill possibly died of Brugada Syndrome.

Sweyn’s father Harald Bluetooth had named Roskilde the capital of Denmark in 960, and a small wooden church dedicated to the Holy Trinity was built on the site of the current Roskilde Cathedral, the traditional burial site of the Danish monarchs. Harald Bluetooth was buried at the Holy Trinity Church. Sweyn Forkbeard was first buried in England and his remains were later moved to Denmark where they were interred near his father at the Holy Trinity Church. However, their tombs have never been found.

Sweyn’s younger son succeeded him as Harold II, King of Denmark, and his elder son Cnut (the Great), was proclaimed King of England by the Danes in England. However, leading English noblemen sent a deputation to Æthelred II to negotiate his restoration to the throne. Æthelred returned from exile in Normandy in the spring of 1014 and managed to drive Cnut out of England. In 1016, following the deaths of Æthelred and his son Edmund Ironside, Cnut became King of England. He succeeded his brother as King of Denmark in 1019.  He eventually also became King of Norway, and also ruled parts of Sweden, Pomerania, and Schleswig. Cnut and his sons Harold Harefoot and Harthacnut ruled England from 1016 – 1042. After Harthacnut’s death, the English throne reverted to the House of Wessex under Æthelred II’s younger son Edward the Confessor.

This article is the intellectual property of Unofficial Royalty and is NOT TO BE COPIED, EDITED, OR POSTED IN ANY FORM ON ANOTHER WEBSITE under any circumstances. It is permissible to use a link that directs to Unofficial Royalty.

England: House of Denmark Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Index
• House of Denmark Index
• Coronations before the Norman Conquest (871 – 1066)

Works Cited

• Ashley, M. (1998). The Mammoth Book of British Kings & Queens. New York: Carroll & Graf Pub.
• Cannon, J. and Griffiths, R. (1988). The Oxford Illustrated History of the British Monarchy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Da.wikipedia.org. (2019). Svend Tveskæg. [online] Available at: https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svend_Tvesk%C3%A6g [Accessed 26 Feb. 2019].
• Dodson, A. (2004). The Royal Tombs of Great Britain. London: Duckworth.
• En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Sweyn Forkbeard. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweyn_Forkbeard [Accessed 26 Feb. 2019].
• Flantzer, S. (2015). Æthelred II (the Unready), King of the English. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/aethelred-ii-the-unready-king-of-the-english/ [Accessed 25 Feb. 2019].
• Williamson, D. (1998). Brewer’s British Royalty. London: Cassell.

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2019

Emma of Normandy, Queen of England, Denmark and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

Emma of Normandy was the queen consort of two Kings of England and the mother of two Kings of England. Born in Normandy around 985, she was the eldest daughter of Richard I, Duke of Normandy, and his second wife Gunnora de Crêpon. Richard and Gunnora met shortly after the death of his childless first wife. Gunnora was living with her sister Seinfreda and her husband, the local forester. Richard had heard how beautiful Seinfreda was and stopped by her home while hunting. He ordered Seinfreda to come to his bed but she substituted her unmarried sister Gunnora. Richard was pleased with Gunnora and the couple went on to have three sons and three daughters. The Dukes of Normandy recognized marriage by cohabitation. However, Richard was prevented from nominating his son Robert as Archbishop of Rouen because, in the eyes of the Church, his children were illegitimate, and so the couple married.

Emma had five siblings:

• Richard II, Duke of Normandy (died 1026), married (1) Judith of Brittany, had six children including Robert I, Duke of Normandy who was the father of William I the Conqueror, King of England (2) Poppa of Envermeu, had two children
• Robert, Archbishop of Rouen, Count of Evreux (died 1037), married Herlevea, had three children
• Mauger, Count of Corbeil, married Germaine de Corbeil
• Maud of Normandy (died 1006), married Odo II, Count of Blois, no children
• Hawise of Normandy (died 1034) married Geoffrey I, Duke of Brittany, had four children

Æthelred II, King of the English; Credit – Wikipedia

Shortly after the death of his first wife, Æthelred II, King of the English sent an emissary to Normandy to ask for Emma’s hand in marriage. The marriage would benefit both Æthelred and Emma’s brother Richard II, Duke of Normandy. Viking raids on England were often based in Normandy and Æthelred hoped to quell the Viking threat. Richard hoped to improve relations with the English in the wake of the recent conflict. This marriage would also prove important in the future because it gave Richard II’s grandson, William the Conqueror, the basis of his claim to the throne of England.

During Lent 1002, Emma and her entourage arrived in England. It is probable that she married Æthelred sometime after Easter, most likely in April. Emma was given the Anglo-Saxon name of Ælfgifu, to be used for formal and official matters, and became Queen of England.

Emma with her sons Edward and Alfred; Credit – Wikipedia

Emma and Æthelred had three children:

• Saint Edward the Confessor, King of England (circa 1003 – 1066), married Edith of Wessex, no children
• Godgifu of England (1004 – circa 1047), married (1) Drogo of Mantes, Count of the Véxin, had three children (2) Eustace II, Count of Boulogne, no children
• Alfred Ætheling (circa 1005 – 1036), unmarried

Emma also became the stepmother to Æthelred’s children from his first marriage to Ælfgifu of York. All of Æthelred’s sons were named after Æthelred’s predecessors. Ætheling was used in Anglo-Saxon England to designate princes of the royal dynasty who were eligible for the kingship.

• Æthelstan Ætheling (died 1014)
• Ecgberht Ætheling (died circa 1005)
• Edmund Ironside, King of the English (died 1016), married Ealdgyth, had two sons
• Eadred Ætheling (died before 1013)
• Eadwig Ætheling (died 1017)
• Edgar Ætheling (died circa 1008)
• Eadgyth, married Eadric Streona
• Ælfgifu, married Uhtred the Bold, Ealdorman of Northumbria
• Wulfhilda, married Ulfcytel Snillingr
• Name unknown, Abbess of Wherwell Abbey

In 1013, Sweyn Forkbeard, King of Denmark and Norway launched an invasion with the goal of also becoming King of England. As Sweyn’s forces approached southern England, Emma and her children were sent to the Isle of Wight for safety. Æthelred soon followed them to the Isle of Wight and in August 1013, he sent Emma and their children to safety in Normandy. By the end of 1013, English resistance had collapsed and Sweyn had conquered the country, became King of England, and forced Æthelred into exile in Normandy.

Sweyn Forkbeard’s reign did not last long as he died on February 3, 1014. The Danes in England swore their allegiance to Sweyn’s son Cnut the Great but leading English noblemen sent a deputation to Æthelred to negotiate his restoration to the throne. Æthelred launched an attack against Cnut and his allies. However, Cnut’s army had not completed its preparations and in April 1014, he decided to withdraw from England without a fight. Æthelred returned to England and reigned until his death in London on April 23, 1016.

Æthelred was succeeded by his eldest surviving son from his first marriage Edmund II (Ironside). After Æthelred’s death, Cnut attacked London and demanded a large sum of money for Emma’s ransom. London held out and Cnut was forced to retreat from London but he did not leave England. Edmund fought five battles against the Danes, ending in his defeat on October 18, 1016, at the Battle of Assandun. Edmund and Cnut agreed to divide the Kingdom of England with Edmund taking Wessex and Cnut the rest. However, Edmund died on November 30, 1016, leaving two young sons. Cnut became the king of all England and exiled the remaining members of Edmund’s family.

Emma and Cnut; Credit – Wikipedia

In 1017, Cnut thought it would be expedient to marry Æthelred’s widow and sent for Emma. It is unclear whether Emma married Cnut by force or if she chose to accept Cnut’s proposal but she returned to England and married Cnut. Her children by Æthelred remained in exile in Normandy.

Emma and Cnut had two children:

• Harthacnut, King of Denmark and England (circa 1018 – 1042), unmarried
• Gunhilda of Denmark (circa 1020 – 1038), married Heinrich III, Holy Roman Emperor, had one daughter

Emma and Cnut’s marriage had begun as a loveless, political strategy but Emma’s importance in the affairs of the kingdom grew. Chroniclers often mentioned that Emma was alongside her husband as if they were inseparable from the other one. Cnut became King of Denmark in 1019 and King of Norway in 1028. It was often necessary for Cnut to be absent from England and Emma assumed a form of regency during those periods with the main nobles of the kingdom and the Archbishops of Canterbury and York.

Cnut the Great, King of England, Denmark, and Norway; Credit – Wikipedia

Cnut died in 1035 and was succeeded in England by Harold Harefoot, his son from his first marriage to Ælfgifu of Northampton, and in Denmark by Harthacnut, his son from his second marriage to Emma. In 1036, Edward the Confessor and Alfred Ætheling, Emma’s sons from her marriage to Æthelred, returned to England from their exile in Normandy to visit their mother. As they made their way to London, they were betrayed. Alfred Ætheling was blinded with a hot iron to his eyes and died soon afterward. Edward escaped the attack and returned to Normandy. It is unclear exactly who was behind the attack on Alfred Ætheling. Some historians claim Harold Harefoot was behind the attack so he could rid himself of two more potential claimants to the English throne by killing Edward and Alfred. Other historians argue that Godwin, Earl of Wessex, who was traveling with Alfred and Edward as their protector, could have been the instigator of the attack.

When Harold Harefoot died in 1040, Harthacnut, King of Denmark also became King of England. Harthacnut lived only two more years and upon his death in 1042, Emma’s surviving son from the marriage to Æthelred, Edward the Confessor, became King of England. Harthacnut’s throne in Denmark was inherited by Magnus I, King of Norway. Emma was present at Edward’s coronation on Easter, April 3, 1043, at the Old Minster in Winchester, England.

Emma died on March 6, 1052, at St. Mary’s Abbey in Winchester, England, aged 66-67. She was buried at the Old Minster in Winchester beside her second husband Cnut and their son Harthacnut. When the Old Minster was demolished in 1093, Emma’s remains were moved to Winchester Cathedral. They were among the remains in the labeled mortuary chests that rest on top of the choir screen.  During the English Civil War, Winchester Cathedral was ransacked and the remains were scattered.  The remains were returned to the mortuary chests but were mixed up. In 2012, an examination of the remains in the chests began. The examination included DNA testing, reassembly of the skeletons, and analysis to determine the sex, age, and other characteristics of the remains. In May 2019, it was announced that Emma’s remains were found in several chests.

• BBC: ‘Queen’s bones’ found in Winchester Cathedral royal chests

Mortuary chest from Winchester Cathedral that claims to contain the remains of Cnut and Emma; Credit – Wikipedia

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England: House of Wessex Resources at Unofficial Royalty

• Unofficial Royalty: House of Denmark Index
• Unofficial Royalty: House of Wessex Index
• Unofficial Royalty: British Royal Burial Sites: House of Wessex
• Unofficial Royalty: Coronations before the Norman Conquest (871 – 1066)

Works Cited

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• Dodson, A. (2004). The Royal Tombs of Great Britain. London: Duckworth.
• En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Cnut the Great. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cnut_the_Great [Accessed 25 Feb. 2019].
• En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Emma of Normandy. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emma_of_Normandy [Accessed 25 Feb. 2019].
• Flantzer, S. (2015). Æthelred II (the Unready), King of the English. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/aethelred-ii-the-unready-king-of-the-english/ [Accessed 25 Feb. 2019].
• Williamson, D. (1998). Brewer’s British Royalty. London: Cassell.