evil-doings. For this purpose duke Leofsy was sent to them, who, on coming, asked them to receive the supplies and the tribute; whereupon they willingly received his embassy, and acceding to his request, fixed the amount of tribute that should be paid them for keeping the peace. And, not long after this, the sum of twenty-four pounds was paid them. In the meantime, the same duke Leofsy slew Easig, a nobleman, the king's high steward, for which reason, the king, being inflamed with anger, banished him from the country. In the same year king Egelred took to wife Emma, called in Saxon Elgiva, the daughter of Richard, the first duke of the Normans. In this, the twenty-fifth year of the reign of king Egelred, and the fifteenth of the indiction, on the seventeenth day before the calends of May, being the fourth day of the week, Ardulph, archbishop of York, the abbats, priests, monks, and religious men being there assembled, raised the bones of Saint Oswald, the archbishop, from the tomb, and placed them, with due honor, in a shrine which he had prepared; and not long after this, that is to say, on the day before the nones of May, he himself died, and was buried in the church of Saint Mary, at Worcester, being succeeded by the abbat Wulstan.

In this year, also, king Egelred ordered all the Danes who lived in England, both great and small, and of either sex, to be slain, because they had endeavoured to deprive him and his chief men of kingdom and life, and to reduce the whole of England under their dominion.

In the year 1003, by reason of the carelessness and treachery of Hugh, the Norman earl, whom queen Emma had appointed over Devonshire, Sweyn, king of the Danes, entered the city of Exeter by storm and sacked it, destroying the walls from the eastern as far as the western gate, and filling 19 his ships with much spoil. After this, while he was laying waste the province of Wiltshire, a stout army manfully assembled from the provinces of Southampton and Wiltshire, and went up with fixed determination to fight against the enemy; but when the armies were so near that the one could see the other, Alfric, the above-named earl, who was at the time in command of the English, forthwith had recourse to his old

19" Reperiit" is evidently a mistake for "replevit."

devices,20 and, pretending illness, began to vomit, saying that a severe fit of illness had come upon him, and that in consequence he was unable to fight with the enemy.

When the army saw his inertness and timidity, in sorrow they turned away from the enemy without fighting, making good the ancient adage-"When the leader trembles in battle, all the other soldiers become still more fearful." Sweyn, on observing the irresoluteness of the English, led his army to Wilton, and spoiled and burned it; in like manner, he also ravaged Salisbury, and then returned to his ships.

In the year 1004, Sweyn, king of the Danes, coming with his fleet to Norwich, laid it waste and burned it. Upon this, Ulfketel, duke of East Anglia, a man of great activity, as Sweyn had come unawares, and he had had no time for collecting an army against him, after taking counsel with the chief men of East Anglia, made peace with him; but he, breaking the treaty the third week after, secretly stole forth from the ships with his forces, and attacking Theodford,21 laid it waste, and after staying in it one night, burned it at daybreak. On learning this, duke Ulfketel gave orders to some men of the province to break up the ships of the enemy; but they were either afraid to do so, or neglected to obey his commands. He himself, however, as soon as he possibly could, having secretly collected an army together, boldly advanced against the enemy; and, on their return to the ships with an unequal number of soldiers, he met them, and had a most severe engagement with them; and many on both sides being slain, the most noble men of East Anglia fell, and the Danes escaped with difficulty. But if the full forces of the East Anglians had been present, the Danes could have never regained their ships; as, indeed, they themselves bore witness that they had never experienced in England a more severe and hard-fought battle than that in which duke Ulfketel had engaged with them.

In the year 1005, a severe and dreadful famine afflicted England. For this reason Sweyn, king of the Danes, returned to Denmark, with the intention of returning before long.

In the year 1006, Alfric, archbishop of Canterbury, departed this life, and was succeeded by Elphege, bishop of Winchester, who was succeeded in his bishopric by Kenulph. In the 20 'Arces," a mistake for "artes."

21 Thetford.

month of July an innumerable fleet of Danes arrived in England, and entered the port of Sandwich, and ravaging all places with fire and sword, first in Kent and then in Sussex, collected a very large quantity of spoil. On this, king Egelred assembled an army in Mercia and Wessex, and resolved to fight manfully with them; but they would under no circumstances engage with him openly, but frequently committed their ravages, now in one place, and now in another, immediately, after their usual manner, retreating to their ships; and in this way, throughout the autumn, they harassed the army of the English.

At length, on the approach of winter, as they were returning homeward with enormous booty, they repaired to the Isle of Wight, and remained there until the Nativity of our Lord;22 on the approach of which, as the king was at that period staying in the province of Shrewsbury, they made way through the province of Southampton to Berkshire, and burned Reading, and Wallingford, and Ceolesy,23 with a great number of men. Moving thence, they passed Easterdune24 and came to Cwichelmelow;25 returning from there by another road, the pirates provoked the natives of the place to battle, and at once engaging with them, put them to flight, and then retreated to the ships with the booty they had taken.

In the year 1007, by the advice of his chief men, Egelred, king of the English, sent ambassadors to the Danes, and told them that he was willing to give them sustenance and tribute, on condition that they should desist from their ravages, and keep a lasting peace with him; to this request they consented, and from that time, provisions, and a tribute of thirty-six thousand pounds, were given to them from the whole of England. In this year, also, king Egelred made a certain Edric, whose surname was Streone, duke of the Mercians; who, although he had Edgitha the king's daughter in marriage, was still frequently found, by his shifting craftiness, to be a perfidious traitor to his country, and a public enemy, as will appear in the sequel; at last, in the reign of king Canute, he received a worthy reward for his treachery.

In the year 1008, Egelred, king of the English, ordered for 22 Christmas Day. 23 Cholsey.

21 Ashdown, in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.

25 The same place that is also called Ceolesy; it is four miles froin Wallingford, in Berkshire.

every one hundred and ten hides of land, one galley to be built, and for every nine,26 a coat of mail and a helmet to be provided, and gave directions that ships should be built with all speed throughout the whole of England. These being prepared, he put on board of them picked soldiers, with provisions, and that they might protect the extremities of his kingdom from the incursions of the foreigners, collected them at the port of Sandwich. At this period, Brithric, the brother of the perfidious duke Edric Streone, a slippery, ambitious, and haughty man, unjustly accused before the king, Wulnoth,27 a thane of the South Saxons, who shortly after took to flight to avoid being seized, and having obtained nine vessels, committed numerous ravages near the sea-shore.

But when word was brought to the royal fleet, that if any one wished, he might easily take him; Brithric, having collected eighty galleys, set out to give him chase; however, after he had sailed for some time with a fair wind, on a sudden a most violent tempest arose, and wrecked and shattered his ships, and threw them ashore, where they were shortly after burnt by Wulnoth. On this being known, the king with his chieftains and nobles returned home. But by his orders the fleet repaired to London, and thus this mighty labour of the people was wasted.

In the year 1009, the Danish earl Turkill came with his fleet to England, and afterwards, in the month of August, another innumerable fleet of the Danes, the chiefs of which were Hemming and Ailaf, came to the Isle of Tenedland, 28 and without delay united with the aforesaid fleet, after which both of them entered the harbour of Sandwich, and the men disembarking, hastily attacked the city of Canterbury, and began to storm it; but shortly after, the citizens of Canterbury, with the people of East Kent, suing for peace, obtained their request, and gave them, in consideration of a treaty of peace, three thousand pounds.

Upon this they returned to their ships, and steered their course to the Isle of Wight, and after that, according to their usual practice, frequently collected spoil in Sussex and in the

26 Roger of Wendover and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle say, "for every eight."

27 The father of Earl Godwin. He was accused of treason. 28 Thanet.

province of Southampton, in the neighbourhood of the sea-shore, and burned a great number of towns. On this, king Egelred collected an army throughout all England, and stationed it in the provinces adjoining the sea, as a protection against their incursions; but for all this, the enemy did not cease committing ravages in all quarters, according to the situation of the places. But upon one occasion, when they had made a descent for plunder at a greater distance than usual from the sea, and were returning laden with spoil, the king, attended by many thousands of armed men, got before them, prepared, as was all his army, to conquer or die.

But the perfidious duke Edric Streona, his son-in-law, used his endeavours in every way, both by treachery and ambiguous speeches, that they might not engage, but for that time let the enemy escape. To this he persuaded the king, and prevailed, and, like a traitor to his country, rescued the Danes from the hands of the English, and allowed them to escape; on which, taking a different direction, with great joy they returned to their ships. After the feast of Saint Martin, they arrived in Kent, and chose their winter quarters on the river Thames, and collected provisions in Essex and other provinces that were adjoining either bank of the river. They also frequently attacked the city of London, and endeavoured to take it, but were repulsed by the citizens, not without some little loss to themselves.

In the year 1010, the above-mentioned army of the Danes, in the month of January, disembarking from their ships, came through the forest which is called Cyltern,29 into Herefordshire, and after laying it waste ravaged it with flames, and on their return collected booty on both banks of the river Thames. When they had been informed that an army was collected against them at London, and was about to engage with them, a part of the army passed over to the southern side of the river, at a place which is called Stane,30 and having united and enriched themselves with abundance of spoil, proceeded through Surrey, and then returned to their ships, which during the season of Lent, while they were staying in Kent, they refitted.

After Easter, they came to East Anglia, and having disembarked near Gipeswic, marched to a place which is called Rigmere, where they had learned that duke Ulfketel was en31 Ipswich.

29 Chiltern.

30 Staines.