Link to the Youtube video and the rest of the series!

Third Episode of Siggie presenting her take on the history of the monarchs of England in the context of her favorite topic….herself. Here she discusses the Wessex and Danish Kings from St. Edward the Martyr to King Cnut.

Right. So, we’re talking about the early kings of England.

Edward the Martyr. A long, long time ago with a few

interrupting episodes, the house of Wessex basically persisted from years 

939 until 1066. And so many of the kings,

so many of their names started with an “E.” What is that all about? I don’t

understand. There’s King Aethelstan, King Edmund the First, King Eadred,

King Eadwig, King Edgar the First, and then there’s a saint but he’s also a

martyr. He’s still someone with the name that starts with “E.” It’s Saint Edward the

Martyr. And why was he a martyr? There was Edward and his younger

half-brother. They contested the throne after the death of their father.

Edward won. He took the crown, but he was unable to unify the country. He was

brutally murdered. His half brother and his supporters are suspected

of murder. 

Then there’s King Ethelred II. He basically kissed the butts of the Danish

invaders to keep the peace but apparently got tired of that and then

killed a bunch of Danish settlers. Among those killed was the sister of

Sweyne Forkbeard, the King of Denmark. Forkbeard invaded, Ethelred fled…

that rhymes… to Normandy, but then he came back to reclaim the throne. He waited for

Forkbeard to die before he did this. So, quickly about King Sweyne Forkbeard. 

He reigned from 1013 to 1014. A really long time.  Ha ha. But no, some of them reigned for shorter periods

of time. Some of them reigned for like like a month, or you know a couple of

months. Anyway, he reigned from 1013 to 1014 in the House of Denmark. He was the

King of Norway and of Denmark. He raided England a bunch of times. But as I just

said, he died and it was Ethelred who reclaimed the throne after Forkbeard’s

death. Forkbeard was the first Viking to be named the King of England. More

importantly, he really did have a chin and a beard that looked like they could

stab a chunk of meat. Another House of Wessex king was king Edmund II. He reigned

only from April 1016 to November 1016. One example of somebody who really was

barely there. They called Edmund’s reign short and violent. His successor was King Cnut who

had 10,000 warriors. King Cnut reigned from 1016 to 1025 in the house of

Denmark. Anyway, he was a seriously fierce and aggressive and unstoppable maniac

who disposed of any nobility who might have challenged his authority.

(Stay tuned for Episode 4: “The Last of the Wessex and Danish Kings”)