The Last Danish Viking King | Canute the Holy

Cnut the Holy was a king of Denmark in the late 11th century. An ambitious ruler, he sought to strengthen the Danish monarchy and restore the North Sea Empire, once forged by his grand-uncle, Cnut the Great. Viewing William the Conqueror as a usurper, with no rightful claim to the English throne, Cnut launched several raids against England A devout supporter of the Roman Catholic Church, Cnut was deeply committed to religious reform, yet this very devotion ultimately contributed to his downfall. He insisted on a strict collection of tithes, or church taxes, a policy that proved deeply unpopular among his subjects. By granting the clergy extended authority to tax and fine peasants on church lands, he further alienated the common people. These mounting grievances sparked a peasant uprising in early 1086. The mob of peasants would chase Cnut into a church, however they would soon storm it and killed him, bringing his reign to a violent end. Cnut later became the first Danish king to be canonised. In the early 12th century, the Roman Catholic Church declared him a saint and recognised him as the Patron Saint of Denmark. This is his story. Cnut was born in the year 1042, as one of the many sons of Sweyn II Estridsson. His mother was an unknown mistress. Sweyn himself was the son of Ulf Torgilsson, the Danish jarl and regent who had governed Denmark on behalf of Cnut the Great. Sweyn's mother was Estrid Svensdatter, who was the daughter of Sweyn Forkbeard. Through this lineage, both Cnut the Holy and his father Sweyn were connected to the former ruling dynasty through the maternal line. With the death of Harthacnut, son of Cnut the Great, that royal line had come to an end, plunging Scandinavia, particularly Norway and Denmark, the remnants of the North Sea Empire, into periods of conflict and war. Nothing is recorded about the early years of Cnut the Holy. He first enters the historical record in the year 1069, taking part in his father Sweyn's raid on England. In 1066, William the Duke of Normandy crushed the Anglo-Saxons at the Battle of Hastings, becoming William the Conqueror and bringing an end to the long line of Anglo-Saxon and Danish Viking kings who had once ruled England. Yet, the Anglo-Saxon nobility refused to submit to William's authority, rising repeatedly in rebellion. Their resistance ignited the Norman Conquest of England, one of the bloodiest episodes in the nation's history. With England in turmoil, King Sweyn of Denmark seized the opportunity. In the year 1069, he launched an invasion fleet, its strength estimated at between 240 and 300 longships. The force had been recruited not only in Denmark, but also in Norway, Frisia and Saxony, and it was led by not Sweyn himself, but by his sons Harald Hen and Cnut the Holy. The Danes sailed for the Humber, where they made a successful landing and were joined by several English leaders, including Waltheof, Gospatric and Edgar the Etheling, a claimant to the English throne. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, these nobles were accompanied by all the people of the country, suggesting a widespread uprising in Yorkshire. The combined Anglo-Danish force marched upon York, riding and marching in high spirits. They would defeat the Norman garrison in open battle and would then capture the city. William, who had been in the forest of Deane when he received news of the invasion, would march north at once. Upon learning of William's approach, the Danes abandoned York, either retreating to their ships, or establishing a defensive line along the Humber. William drove part of the Danish army out of Lindsay, and by Christmas he had retaken York. After the holiday, he unleashed a brutal campaign known as the Harrying of the North. Northumbria, England's northmost region was ravaged. Fields and towns were burned, famine spread so widely that some people were driven to cannibalism, and an estimated 100,000 lives were lost to William's fury. The Danes eventually reached an agreement with William. In exchange for a large payment and permission to sustain themselves by plundering the eastern coast, they would withdraw from England the following spring. However, in the spring of 1070, Sweyn Estridsson himself joined the fleet. King Sweyn would land with his army on the Isle of Ely. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that Englishmen from all the Fenlands came to meet him, thinking that they were sure to conquer the whole land. Among them was Heroard, a Lincolnshire then who led a band of men in the sacking of Peterborough Abbey. That summer, Sweyn and William reached another agreement, its terms unknown, though almost certainly involving a second payment, after which Sweyn returned to Denmark, his son Prince Canute likewise made his way home. In the year 1075, several earls conspired at the wedding feast of Ralph de Gale to raise a rebellion against King William. According to Alderic Vitalis, their grievances included William's habit of eliminating any real or suspected threats to his authority. After the wedding, each lord returned to his own earldom and envoys were dispatched to Denmark to seek assistance. A Danish fleet of 200 ships, commanded by Sweyn's son Canute the Holy, set sail for Norfolk. However, upon arriving, they discovered they were too late, the rebellion had already collapsed. The Danes therefore turned northward, ravaging the Lincolnshire coast and sacking York, before steering south once more and making for Flanders. Their leaders evidently recognised that without English support, their force was far too small to accomplish anything further. King Sweyn of Denmark would die in the year 1076, he was known as the Father of Kings, for five of his fifteen sons would go on to rule Denmark. Following Sweyn's death, his son Harald Hen was elected king. Harald swore what became known as Harald's Laws, pledging to uphold the established legal order. His reign however was marked by opposition from several of his brothers, likely including Canute who sought the support of King Olaf III of Norway. Pope Gregory VII intervened, advising Olaf to remain neutral and urging Harald to share power with his siblings. Despite this counsel, Canute went into exile in Sweden and he may have taken part in an active resistance against his brother Harald. However on the 17th of April in the year 1080, Harald died and Canute succeeded him as the King of Denmark. Upon his ascension, Canute married Adella, the daughter of Count Robert I of Flanders, the couple had one son, Charles born in the year 1084. Canute quickly proved himself both a highly ambitious and deeply devout king. He strengthened the authority of the church in Denmark and bestowed generous gifts upon the ecclesiastical institutions, reinforcing his reputation as a champion of the faith. His determination to reinforce the collection of tithes further reflected his commitment to elevating the church, an institution that in return became a powerful ally in bolstering his own authority. In May of the year 1085, Canute issued a letter of donation to the still uncompleted Lund Cathedral, granting it extensive lands. At the same time, he founded Lund Cathedral School. Much of the land he donated had come into his possession as payment for the pardoning of outlaws. The clergy at Lund were granted expanded rights over these estates, including the authority to tax and fine the local peasantry, yet Canute retained his royal prerogatives, the power to pardon outlaws, to levy fines on those who failed to answer his call to war, and to demand transportation for his retinue. His reign was characterised by vigorous efforts to consolidate royal power in Denmark, restraining the nobility and compelling them to abide by the law. He issued decrees claiming the ownership of common lands, the goods of shipwrecks, and the estates of foreigners or those without heirs. He also enacted protections for freed thralls, foreign clerics, and visiting merchants. These measures however stirred resentment among his subjects, who were unaccustomed to a king asserting such sweeping powers or intervening so directly in their daily affairs. Canute's ambitions however were not purely domestic. As the grand-nephew of Canute the Great, who had ruled England, Denmark, and Norway until the year 1035, Canute the Holy believed the crown of England was his by right, and regarded William the Conqueror as a usurper. In the year 1085, supported by his father-in-law, Count Robert of Flanders, and by King Olaf III of Norway, Canute prepared to invade England. William however was a seasoned king and warrior. Rumours of the planned invasion soon reached him, and he made ready to defend his realm. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records, This year men said, and reported as certain, that Canute the King of Denmark, the son of King Swain, was coming hither, and that he intended to conquer this land with the help of Robert the Earl of Flanders, whose daughter he had married. When King William, who was then in Normandy, heard this, he hastened to England with a great army, one which had never before been seen in this land. Men wondered how the country could feed them all, but the king entrusted his soldiers upon his subjects throughout the nation, and they provided for them, each man according to the land he possessed. And the people suffered greatly this year, for the king ordered the countryside near the sea to be laid waste, so that if his enemies landed, they would find nothing to plunder. With William fully prepared for the threatened invasion, and with England's coastal regions stripped of anything worth plundering, Canute would face immense difficulty in bringing his forces ashore. William commanded a vast army, said by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle to be the greatest England had ever assembled. The Danish host however, was composed largely of peasants, who needed to return home for the harvest. Growing weary of the long delay, they chose Canute's brother Olaf to present their grievances. This aroused Canute's suspicion, and he had his brother Olaf arrested and sent to Flanders. At the same time, Canute was troubled by the looming threat posed by Henry IV, the Holy Roman Emperor, with whom both Denmark and Flanders maintained uneasy relations. Fearing an attack from Henry, Canute hesitated and postponed the English campaign. As the weeks passed, the warriors returned home to tend to their fields, and the once formidable fleet never set sail. Before the fleet could be summoned again, a peasant uprising erupted in early 1086, in the region where Canute was residing. Many peasants had grown resentful of the heavy taxes he imposed, and many more were enraged by the fines levied against those who had abandoned his army to save their harvests. In their eyes, they faced only two choices, punishment from the king, or starvation for their families. Forced to flee, Canute retreated to Odense, the largest town on the island of Funen. He and his loyal men sought refuge within the wooden church of St Alban's Priory, but the rebels soon stormed the sanctuary and brutal fighting broke out. According to legend, Canute received the sacraments of reconciliation and holy communion and forgave his enemies before they forced their way inside. The attackers first tried to burn the church and batter down its doors, but when these attempts failed, they climbed through the windows to reach those within. Kneeling before the altar, with only seventeen men still at his side, Canute accepted his fate. He was defended by his men, and by his brother Benedict, until the end. The king was struck down by a spear that pierced his side or abdomen, ending his reign. Every member of the king's entourage was killed, and he was then succeeded by his brother Olaf. In the wake of his death, Canute's martyrdom and his steadfast support of the church quickly elevated him to the status of a holy figure. During Olaf's reign, Denmark suffered a devastating crop failure, widely believed to be a divine punishment for the sacrilegious killing of the king. Reports of miracles at Canute's grave soon followed, and efforts to secure his canonisation began even before Olaf's rule came to an end. On the 19th April of the year 1101, Canute the holy was canonised, the first Dane ever to receive sainthood. Through the centuries, Canute's reign has been variously interpreted. To some, he was a harsh and violent ruler who oppressed his people, to others, he was a strict yet just king, fiercely devoted to the Roman Catholic Church and unwavering in his pursuit of righteousness, even at the cost of his own life. I would like to give a huge thank you to all of my members, your contribution is valuable to the continuation of the channel and I appreciate you all immensely. A special thank you to John Sides. 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