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King Cnut

King Cnut (also known as King Canute) ruled over England between 1016 and 1035. He is one of the Anglo-Saxon period's most prominent figures. Born in Denmark in c985–995 AD, and the son of Danish prince Sweyn Forkbeard, Cnut became a fierce Danish warrior king who conquered vast swathes of northern Europe

A 15th-century stained glass window from Canterbury Cathedral, depicting King Cnut.
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8 things you (probably) didn’t know about King Cnut

The ninth-century Alfred Jewel, adorned with the inscription: "Alfred ordered me to be made". This masterpiece of Anglo-Saxon art is thought to have been an aestel, a pointer used to follow text. (Picture by Alamy)
Anglo-Saxon

10 ways the Anglo-Saxons changed the course of British history

Edward the Confessor, the penultimate Anglo-Saxon king of England, depicted here in a scene from the Bayeux Tapestry. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)
Anglo-Saxon

10 things you (probably) didn’t know about the Anglo-Saxons

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Jewelled terminal of aestel, The Alfred Jewel. (Photo by Alamy)
Anglo-Saxon

Anglo-Saxon treasures

A section of the Bayeux Tapestry depicting Harold Godwinson being crowned king of England. Harold was the last Anglo-Saxon king of England and was killed by William, Duke of Normandy at the battle of Hastings in 1066. (Photo by Universal History Archive/Getty Images)
Anglo-Saxon

1066: eight days that rocked England

Viking ships arriving in Britain, c1130. (Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty
Viking

8 key Viking dates you need to know

Tostig Godwinson, brother of King Harold II of England, and King Harald Hardrada of Norway (1015 - 1066) receive the submission of the city of York, 1066. Shortly afterwards, they were both killed at the nearby Battle of Stamford Bridge. Engraving by L. Gruner after D. Maclise RA. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Norman

Hastings, Stamford Bridge and Gate Fulford: three battles that lost England

A scene depicted on the 11th-century Bayeux Tapestry. (Photo by: Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)
Norman

The Normans: a timeline

Section of the Bayeux Tapestry depicting a woman and child fleeing from a burning house. (Photo by Universal History Archive/Getty Images)
Norman

The Library The Anglo-Saxons’ last stand

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A portrait of Cnut holding a sceptre. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Anglo-Saxon

Cnut: the great Dane

Detail of a Viking helmet from grave one at Vendel, Uppland, Sweden. In the 860s and 870s, the Vikings would bring war to England’s four kingdoms on a massive scale. (Photo by CM Dixon/Print Collector/Getty Images)
Viking

The great Viking terror: how Norse warriors conquered the Anglo-Saxons

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Viking

Life of the Week: King Cnut

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Viking

Cnut’s invasion of England: setting the scene for the Norman conquest

Medieval ploughmen ploughing with oxen
Anglo-Saxon

The dark side of the Anglo-Saxons

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The jokes that Christianised the Anglo-Saxons