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789 - In this year King Beorhtric married Offa’s daughter Eadburh. And
in his days [786-802] there came for the first time three ships of
Northmen and then the reeve rode to them and wished to force them to
the king’s residence, for he did not know what they were; and they slew
him. Those were the first ships of Danish men which came to the land of
the English.
850 - In this year Ealdorman Ceorl with the contingent of the men of
Devon fought against the heathen army at Wttganbeorg, and the
English made a great slaughter there and had the victory. And for the
first time, heathen men stayed through the winter on Thanet. And the
same year [851] 350 ships came into the mouth of the Thames and
stormed Canterbury and London and put to flight Brihtwulf, king of the
Mercians, with his army, and went south across the Thames into Surrey.
And King AEthelwulf and his son AEthelbald fought against them at Acka
with the army of the West Saxons, and there inflicted the greatest
slaughter [on a heathen army] that we ever heard of until this present
day, and had the victory there...
870 - In this year the army came into Wessex to Reading, and three
days later two Danish earls rode farther inland. Then Ealdorman
AEthelwulf encountered them at Englefield, and fought against them
there and had the victory, and one of them, whose name was Sidroc,
was killed there. Then four days later [871] King AEthelred and his
brother Alfred led a great army to Reading and fought against the army;
and a great slaughter was made on both sides and Ealdorman
AEthelwulf was killed ... And four days later King AEthelred and his
brother Alfred fought against the whole army at Ashdown; and the
Danes were in two divisions: in the one were the heathen kings Bagsecg
and Halfdan, and in the other were the earls. And then King AEthelred
fought against the kings’ troop, and King Bagsecg was slain there; and
AEthelred’s brother Alfred fought against the earls’ troop, and there
were slain Earl Sidroc the Old. and Earl Sidroc the Younger and Earl
Osbearn, Earl Frasria, and Earl Harold; and both enemy armies were put
to flight and many thousands were killed, and they continued fighting
until night...
Then [AEthelred’s] brother Alfred, the son of AEthelwulf,
succeeded to the kingdom of the West Saxons. And a month later King
Alfred fought with a small force against the whole army at Wilton and
put it to flight far on into the day; and the Danes had possession of the
battle-field. And during that year nine general engagements were
fought against the Danish army in the kingdom south of the Thames ...
And that year nine [Danish] earls were killed and one king...
878 - In this year in midwinter after twelfth night the enemy army came
stealthily to Chippenham and occupied the land of the West Saxons and
settled there, and drove a great part of the people across the sea, and
conquered most of the others; and the people submitted to them,
except King Alfred. He journeyed in difficulties through the woods and
fen-fastnesses with a small force.
And the same winter the brother of Ivar and Halfdan was in the
kingdom of the West Saxons [in Devon], with 23 ships. And he was killed
there and 840 men of his army with him. And there was captured the
banner which they called ”Raven”.
And afterwards at Easter, King Alfred with a small force made a
stronghold at Athelney, and he and the section of the people of
Somerset which was nearest to it proceeded to fight from that
stronghold against the enemy. Then in the seventh week after Easter he
rode to ”Egbert’s stone” east of Selwood, and there came to meet him
all the people of Somerset and of Wiltshire and of that part of
Hampshire which was on this side of the sea, and they rejoiced to see
him. And then after one night he went from the encampment to Iley,
and after another night to Edington, and there fought against the whole
army and put it to flight, and pursued it as far as the fortress, and
stayed there a fortnight. And then the enemy gave him preliminary
hostages and great oaths that they would leave his kingdom, and
promised also that their king should receive baptism, and they kept
their promise. Three weeks later King Guthrum with 30 of the men who
were the most important in the army came [to him] at Aller, which is
near Athelney and the king stood sponsor to him at his baptism there;
and the unbinding of the chrism took place at Wedmore. And he was
twelve days with the king, and he honoured him and his companions...
994 - In this year Olaf and Svein came to London on the Nativity of St
Mary with 94 ships, and they proceeded to attack the city stoutly and
wished also to set it on fire: but there they suffered more harm and
injury than they ever thought any citizens would do to them. But the
holy Mother of God showed her mercy to the citizens on that day and
saved them from their enemies. And these went away from there, and
did the greatest damage that ever any army could do, by burning,
ravaging, and slaying, everywhere along the coast, and in Essex, Kent,
Sussex, and Hampshire; and finally they seized horses and rode as
widely as they wished, and continued to do indescribable damage. Then
the king and his councillors determined to send to them and promise
them tribute and provisions, on condition that they should cease that
harrying. And they then accepted that, and the whole army came then
to Southampton and took winter quarters there; and they were
provisioned throughout all the West Saxon kingdom, and they were paid
16,000 pounds in money...
1011 - In this year the king and his councillors sent to the army and
asked for peace, and promised them tribute and provisions on
conditions that they should cease their ravaging. They had then
overrun: (i) East Anglia, (ii) Essex, (in) Middlesex, (iv) Oxfordshire, (v)
Cambridgeshire, (vi) Hertfordshire, (vii) Buckinghamshire, (viii)
Bedfordshire, (ix) half Huntingdonshire, (x) much of Northamptonshire;
and south of the Thames all Kent, Sussex. Hastings, Surrey, Berkshire,
Hampshire, and much of Wiltshire...
And then in this year, between the Nativity of St Mary and
Michaelmas, they besieged Canterbury, and they got inside by
treachery, for AElfmasr, whose life Archbishop AElfheah had saved,
betrayed it. Then they captured there Archbishop AElfheah ... He was
then a captive who had been head of the English people and of
Christendom. There could misery be seen where happiness was often
seen before, in that wretched city from which first came [to us]
Christianity and happiness in divine and secular things. And they kept
the archbishop with them till the time when they martyred him.
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