The medieval Anglophile: England and its rulers in Old Norse history and saga

The medieval Anglophile: England and its rulers in Old Norse history and saga For Audrey Meaney's students at the University of Sydney some twenty-five years ago, 77ie Battle ofMaldon's account of the glorious defeat near Maldon in 991, of the forces of the Essex ealdorman, Byrhtnoth, by a viking company, probably led by Olafr Tryggvason,1 was a memorable introduction to Old English poetry. The conception of Essays on Early England in Honour of Audrey Meaney during the 1991 Maldon millenium brought back happy memories of those classes and stimulated further reflection on Anglo-Norse relations in the Middle Ages, especially from the West Norse (Norwegian and Icelandic)2 perspective. The encounter is briefly recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. The Parker Manuscript (A) is the only one to make specific mention of 6lafr ('Unlaf): 'Her on fiissum geare com Unlaf . . . to Stane' (The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: A Collaborative Edition, 3: MS A, ed. Janet Bately, Cambridge, 1986, entry for 993. All quotations from A are from this edition; others are from Two of the Saxon Chronicles Parallel, with Supplementary Extracts from the Others, ed. John Earle, rev. Charles Plummer, 1: Text, Appendices and Glossary, Oxford, 1892; 2: Introduction, Notes and Index, Oxford, 1899. For recent comprehensive discussions of the interrelationships of the Chronicle manuscripts see Audrey Meaney, (i) 'D: An Undervalued Manuscript of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle', Parergon ns 1 (1983), 13-38, and (ii) 'St. Neots, jEthelweard and the Compilation of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: A Survey', in Studies in Earlier Old English Prose, ed. Paul E. Szarmach, Albany, N Y , 1985, pp. 193-243. O n the account of the Battle of Maldon in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle see Janet M . Bately, 'The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle', in The Battle of Maldon AD 991, ed. Donald Scragg, Oxford, 1991, pp. 37-50. 6l£fr Tryggvason's presence at the battle remains a controversial issue: for discussions, see E. V. Gordon, (i) "The Date of iEthelred's Treaty with the Vikings: Olaf Tryggvason and the Battle of Maldon', Modem Language Review 32 (1937), 24—32, and (ii) Introduction to his edition The Battle of Maldon, with a supplement by D. G. Scragg, Manchester, 1976, pp. 10-15; Eric John, 'War and Society in the Tenth Century: the Maldon Campaign', Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, 5th series, 27 (1977), 173-95; Simon Keynes, "Ihe Historical Context of the Battle of Maldon', in Scragg, The Battle of Maldon (1991), pp. 81-113. Gordon doubts that 6lafr was at Maldon but concedes that 'whether Olaf was present at the battle or not it is likely that the vikings who came to the neighbourhood of Maldon were in the main a Norwegian force': The Battle of Maldon, p. 2. John concludes: 'There is, then, no doubt that Olaf Tryggvason was at Maldon': p. 175, n. 13. In Keynes's opinion, 'It is possible that the A-chronicler was conflating reports of Olafs activities in 994 with some sketchy information about the Maldon campaign, and simply assumed that Olaf had been present in the force from the time of its first arrival . . . To maintain that the viking army which invaded England in 991 was led by Olaf Tryggvason is thus to give oneself the benefit of the doubt but such leaps of faith are the stuff of Anglo-Saxon history*: p. 89. 2 Norway was the origin of the majority of immigrants to Iceland in the 'Setdement Period' (870-930). Ties remained close between the two throughout the period of the P A R E R G O N ns 10.2, December 1992 12 G. Barnes Although 77te Battle ofMaldon celebrates a heroic loss, the skirmish was a minor event in English history. It does, however, shortly precede and if Olafr Tryggvason did indeed lead the assault can be seen as the prelude to, an event of great significance for Scandinavia, for 6lafr was unexpectedly converted to Christianity on a well-documented raiding trip to the British Isles in 994.3 According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (994), Olafr was confirmed at Andover, with King jEthelred as sponsor, and honoured a baptismal pledge to desist from further attack upon...