Extract from Merefin Swanton (ed.),
The Great Chronicle Vol. 20: St Wæburh’s Recension, (Grantbridge: Grantbridge University Press, 2010).
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1070: Here Lanfranc of Caen came back to England; he had been ordained by Pope Alexander as the metropolitan bishop of Saint Peter in York but still submitted
personally[1] to Cardinal Stigand. And Sæwold, abbot of Bath passed away on Easter Sunday
[2] and Wulfwold the sacristan became abbot there.
In this year the Whitsun witan was held at Tamworth; and there was a festive
[3] air for afterwards all the best men were to go to Radmore[4]. While the witan was meeting word was received that King Malcolm came from Scotland into England with a great army; and King Edgar was pleased. Earl’s Godwin and Æthelnoth
[5] went south to gather the raiding ship-army; and the sheriffs were sent to summon the fyrd; and King Edgar took all the earls and their soldiers, the thegns and the huscarls gathered at the witan and headed up the Icknield Street to Yorkshire. The king’s pleasure was short-lived as the Scots withdrew after raiding Teesdale; and the raiding-land army pursued as far as the Forth but the Scots refused to give battle. And on the Feast of St Neot[6] King Malcolm came and made peace with King Edgar, and gave him hostages
[7]; and afterwards Malcolm received Margaret the king’s sister as his wife but no-one except Edgar and Malcolm seemed pleased by the bargain.
And in this same year King Swein came from Denmark with 300 ships to Norwich and there took men and gold and silver; and then sailed up the coast into the Humber, and the local people did greet him with weapons in hand and so he continued up the Ouse to York. And on
8 August the Danes landed near York
[8] and the next day Swein led his army towards York and there by Stillingfleet
[9] did King Edgar and his raiding land-army returning from Scotland stop him. Many men were killed on both sides and the English held the slaughter field.
Thorkell made this known
[10] but I
[11] must set down what I saw. The battle was joined between terce and sext
[12] as our men did rain down arrows on the Danes and many of them fell. Then, with Edgar our king out front, their shield wall was fiercely attacked and there was a great slaughter on either side. There were killed Ansgar[13] and Hakon
[14] and Ringulf
[15] and Godwine
[16] and the other Godwine, my fellow companion
[17]. And then Toki put down his arms for he faced his father and could not strike him; his father had no such honour but before he could strike, Waltheof that terrible battle-lord swung his axe and removed his head. Thus died the traitor Wigod and his head still adorns London bridge. And Waltheof killed the other traitor
[18] and his head is spiked next to his lords. Then Skalpi[19] was cut down by Jarl Osbeorn
[20] who was slain in his turn by Edgar our king. And there were killed Edward
[21] and Ælfwold
[22] and Wulfwine
[23] and many other good men and shortly before vespers the Danes retreated and our men gave thanks to God. The Danes headed back to Riccall to find the only ships of theirs not burned were taken by Godwin and Æthelnoth and the raiding ship-army. The next day we found a much reduced Danish host drawn up near the woodland at Skipworth
[24] and right after terce we rained arrows upon them; and Edgar our king again led the advance on their shieldwall. And the slaughter continued and there was killed Æthelwine and Wihtgar
[25] and Ordgar
[26] and Ketel
[27] and just after sext, Swein the king of the Danes did die and two of his sons
[28] followed him and then Jarl Thurkil was killed and the rest ran, pursued by our horsemen and no mercy was shown.
Here Count Baldwin and Duke Robert died[29].
[1] Emphasis in original where it is underscored twice. The underscoring also appears in the Lincoln and Dunholm recensions.
[2] 4 April.
[3] An interesting word choice which has caused much speculation, namely that Edgar intrigued to draw Malcolm into open battle. See Erik Hood,
History of English Diplomacy (Stamford: Stamford University Press, 1967).
[4] Earl Morcar’s hunting lodge in the Forest of Cannock.
[5] Respectively, earl of Sussex and earl of Kent.
[6] 31 July.
[7] Including his eldest son Duncan.
[8] At Riccall, about 8 miles south of York.
[9] Some 7 miles south of York.
[10] Thorkell Skallason, skald from Iceland and retainer of Earl Waltheof. Composed
The Battle of Riccall in ON of which only a fragment survives. A much later ME version, essentially a panegyric to Waltheof, survives in half dozen manuscripts.
[11] This switch to first person is what makes the Chester recension so valuable. From the scribe’s description of events, he is to be identified as Wulfgeat the White, one the kings companions who became a monk at Evesham before being appointed the first prior of St Werbergh in 1090.
[12] Terce is 9am and sext noon so if taken literally about 10.30am.
[13] the Staller.
[14] Son of Earl Swein Godwineson.
[15] Thegn from Norfolk.
[16] Possibly the brother of Ralf, staller of Edward III.
[17] Godwine, companion of the king, appears as a witness on a charter from 1068.
[18] Æthelwine White, Wigod’s man who shared his outlawry and exile.
[19] A huscarl.
[20] King Sweyn’s brother.
[21] Sheriff of Wiltshire.
[22] One of Edward III’s chamberlains.
[23] Thegn from Hertfordshire, one of Angsar’s men.
[24] About 9 miles south-east of York.
[25] Thegns from Derbyshire.
[26] Sheriff of Grantbridgeshire.
[27] Thegn of Norfolk.
[28] Cnut and Beorn.
[29] Baldwin VI of Flanders and Duke Robert II of Normandy, both on 17 July. Interpolation.