Among those killed were Aelle and Osbert.Īfter a series of campaigns against other kingdoms, part of the great Viking army returned to Northumbria in 876. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles recorded that there was ‘an excessive slaughter made of the Northumbrians’. The Viking army spent the winter on the Tyne and had to recapture York in March 867. They took York, although the Northumbrian kings Aelle and Osbert were not captured.

It was All Saints Day, an important festival in York when many of the town’s leaders could have been in the cathedral, making a surprise attack even more effective. This date may well have been chosen with care. After a career in industry and commerce, he has returned to full-time research and has produced several papers covering a variety of aspects of early medieval history.Led by Halfdan and Ivar the Boneless, the Viking army attacked on November 1 866. IAN HOWARD has a PhD from Manchester University and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Many factors leading to the invasions and conquest are investigated through a critical analysis of the chronology of events, an explanation of the economic background, plotting the itineraries of the Scandinavian armies, and a fresh examination ofthe sources, including the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the Encomium, and John of Worcester's Chronicle. New insight into this exciting period of English history is gained by focusing on the activities of Swein Forkbeard and, after his death in 1014, the Danish warlord Thorkell the Tall, both outstanding warriors and political leaders of what is sometimes called 'the Second Viking Age'. It is equally apparent that Swein was more than a marauding Viking adventurer: he was a sophisticated politician who laid the foundations for a great northern empire which was ruled by his descendents for many years after his death. This analysis of the invasions demonstrates beyond doubt that Æthelred was no indolent and worthless king who bribed invading Vikings to goaway: his relationship with the Scandinavian armies was more complex and more interesting than has been supposed. Swein Forkbeard, king of Denmark, played a significant part in these invasions, which culminated in the domination of England and the long reign of his son, Cnut.

From the battle of Maldon in 991 during the reign of Æethelred (the Unready), England was invaded by Scandinavian armies of increasing size and ferocity.

Viking conquest of england