5.3 cnut the great (1016 - 1035)

Question 1

chaos after svein’s death

Answer 1

-on svein’s death in 1014, the english earls and bishops rapidly recalled ethelred to be king
-cnut had been fighting alongside his father had to return to denmark
-he had expected to become king of denmark like his father, but his brother harald had already taken the throne
-cnut was having to decide which kingdom to fight for denmark or england
-harald encouraged him to attack england

Question 2

cnut’s army by 1015

Answer 2

-by 1015 cnut had put together a sizeable army and a large fleet
-cnut set sail with 160 ships
-7,000 - 10,000 men

Question 3

how did cnut win back the english crown?

Answer 3

-cnut made landfall at kent, then over-wintered on the south coast

1016
-he fought a series of battles across southern England
-april = ethelred died and was succeeded by edmund ironside
-cnut defeated edmund at the battle of ashingdon, in essex
-made a peace agreement, cnut took all england north of the river thames. -edmund held w mejssex, but died only a few weeks later

Question 4

when did cnut become king of england?

Answer 4

1016

Question 5

what was the naval fleet that ncut had? (how cnut ruled england)

Answer 5

-40 ships to defend the country against further viking raids
-his fleet drove off 30 viking ships in 1018

Question 6

which areas did his naval fleets control? (how cut ruled england)

Answer 6

the north and baltic sea

Question 7

cnut’s army (how cnut ruled england)

Answer 7

-defended the country & helped him crush rebels
-the soldiers were drawn from across scandinavia and served as soldiers for money only

Question 8

how did cut use geld in england? (how cnut ruled england)

Answer 8

-he used geld to pay the army and fleet
-raised £72,000 (in 1018)

Question 9

who did cut replace in england?
(how cnut ruled england)

Answer 9

-he ruthlessly executed anglo-Saxon leaders & took wessex for himself
-he divided the rest of england into four parts
-he gave anglo saxon leaders’ land to danish jarls
-he created an anglo-danish aristocracy
-there was no mass migration of danes into england

Question 10

which laws did cnut use to keep peace in england? (how cnut ruled england)

Answer 10

strict but practical laws

Question 11

who did cnut marry?

Answer 11

emma, ethelreds widow, this helped him guarantee peace from normandy
(1017)

Question 12

how did cnut build relationships with the church?

Answer 12

1. he gave land and important relics to monasteries (the relics brought pilgrims and their journeys encouraged trade)
2. he treated pagans with tolerance in scandinavia
3. he exempt canterbury from geld payments in reverence for the archbishop who died in 2012
4. he worked hard to develop the church in england
5. he did penance for the murder of king edmund in 869 by setting up a monastery at bury st edmunds

Question 13

what does the illustration from the eleventh-century winchester bible tell us?

Answer 13

-winchester was cnut’s capital city

the drawing shows how God favours them:
-at the top are christ, mary and st peter
-below them, angels give emma a veil and cnut a crown
-below them are the monks of winchester

Question 14

which benefits did good relations with the church give cnut?

Answer 14

-other kings and the pope, who had been doubtful about the faith of HB and SF, accepted him as a true christian.
-anglo-saxon archbishops, bishops and clergy supported him throughout his reign
-this, along with his new laws and his armed forces, gave england a period of great stability

Question 15

which lands did cnut own?

Answer 15

directly:
-norway
-scania
-denmark
-england

as overlord:
-scotland
-welsh principalities
-part of sweden
-part of ireland

ruled by allies of cnut:
-poland
-normandy

Question 16

how was cnut able to rule scotland?

Answer 16

-by 1031, cnut had persuaded the king of scotland to accept him as their overlord
-his lordship helped to keep england free from violence from scots helped trade

Question 17

how was cnut able to rule scania and the baltic sea?

Answer 17

-In 1021, thorkell the Tall was back in his homeland in scania
-he caused trouble so
-cnut sailed back to denmark and spent two years subduing him
-cbut gained control of the trade routes between the north Sea and the baltic
-he also made himself overlord of part of sweden and formed an alliance with poland
-this helped english trade with the baltic, particularly through york (jorvik)

Question 18

how did cnut gain control of denmark?

Answer 18

-cnut’s brother harald, who had seized the throne of denmark on Svein’s death, died in 1018
-cnut crossed the north sea in person so that he became king of denmark
-after his coronation, he returned to england

his kingdom there included:
-an area of southern sweden (scania)

Question 19

how did cnut gain control of norway?

Answer 19

-in 1015, olaf haraldson declared himself king
-he was a christian who tried to convert the nation
-his tactics were ruthless: those who refused to convert were blinded or executed and pagan sites were defiled

in 1026, with england secure:
-cnut sailed to scandinavia and campaigned against Olaf
-in 1028 he became king of all norway, driving Olaf out of the country

-when olaf tried to return with an army in 1030 he was defeated and killed

Question 20

how did cnut gain control of norway?

Answer 20

-in 1017, cnut’s marriage to emma, sister of the fuke of normandy, helped to keep peace and encourage trade across the english channel

Question 21

how did cnut get recognition from rome?

Answer 21

-in 1027, in the middle of his war with olaf in norway, Cnut visited Rome
-he attended a coronation of a german emperor
-cnut recognition from kings, dukes, archbishops & bishops as the greatest monarch in europe other than the holy roman emperor himself

Question 22

when did cnut die?

Answer 22

-in 1035
-buried at winchester