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Canute the Great

Canute the Great (or Knud I in a more Danish representation) was the son of Sweyn I Forkbeard and his wife Gunhild. The exact identity of “Gunhild” has been lost to history, though it seems likely that she may have been a Polish princess. Also lost to history is the year of Canute’s birth and it is uncertain if he was the oldest son of Sweyn or the younger brother of Harald II Svendsen.

Canute  was part of his father’s invasion and conquest of England in 1013-14. After his father’s death early in 1014, the Anglo-Saxon Witenagemot recalled the previous king Aethelred the Unready from Normandy to once again become king. Canute and the Danish forces returned to Denmark. His brother Harald was apparently not too keen on Canute remaining in Denmark and offered support for another attempt to conquer England.

Canute and his allies sailed to England in 1015 with a very large force. They landed in Wessex, apparently near the mouth of the Frome River. From there they were able to control Wessex by the end of 1015 and then began to expand into other regions of England in 1016. King Aethelred died in April and his son, Edmund II Ironside became king. After several battles, Edmund and Canute agreed that Canute would control England north of the Thames, with Edmund controlling the rest and Canute would be Edmund’s heir. Conveniently for Canute, Edmund died in November and Canute became king of England.

(in process)

Harald II Svendsen

Harald II of Denmark

Harald II was a son of Sweyn I Forkbeard; his brother was Canute the Great. Actually very little is known about Harald. He served as regent in Denmark while his father was busy in England. After his father’s death in 1014, Harald became King of Denmark and Canute eventually became King of England, as the brothers divided their father’s lands.

It’s believed that Harald died in 1018 and at that point his brother Canute became King of Denmark as well as King of England.