The battle of Thetford occurred in 1004. Sigvat records the victory of King Ethelred, allied with Olaf Haraldsson,[1] over the Danes under Sweyn Forkbeard during the latter's campaigns in England.
| Battle of Thetford | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Viking invasions of England | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
|
Anglo-Saxons Norwegian Vikings | Danish Vikings | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Ethelred the Unready Olaf Haraldsson | Sweyn Forkbeard | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
The battle site was located in lands under the control of Ulfcytel Snillingr, then of East Anglia, at a site once thought to be near Wretham,[1] but now thought to be at Rymer in Suffolk.[2] The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that the battle of Thetford occurred after an attempt by Ulfcytel and the "councillors in East Anglia" to negotiate a truce with Sweyn in return for a financial settlement; the Danes broke the truce, and marched on Thetford where they were met and engaged by a contingent of the East Anglian fyrd.
References edit
- ^ a b Sturlason, Snorre (2004). Heimskringla or the Lives of the Norse Kings. Kessinger Publishing. p. 225. ISBN 0-7661-8693-8.; Edited with notes by Erling Monsen
- ^ Briggs, Keith (December 2011). "The battle-site and place-name Ringmere". Notes and Queries. 256 (4). OUP: 491–492. doi:10.1093/notesj/gjr151.