Description
Despite his striking sobriquet, Eiríkr blóðøx (Bloodaxe) has a less than impressive record as a king. Scandinavian sources report that he ascended the Norwegian throne in 931 only to be ousted a year later in favour of his half-brother. What follows in Eiríkr’s life is obscure. Egils saga and Heimskringla place him in Orkney for a time; Ágrip af Nóregskonungasǫgum claims he fled to Denmark; Historia Norwegie and the Historia of Theodoricus Monachus both state he sailed straight for England. All make England his final landing place, but accounts of events there are no less muddled. While Theodoricus indicates only that Eiríkr found welcome in the court of King Æthelstan (r. 924–39), Ágrip states that Æthelstan granted the former king an earldom in Northumbria, and Historia Norwegie indicates he was made ealdorman of Northumbria. Going yet further, Egils saga and Heimskringla both indicate that Eiríkr became king of the Anglo-Scandinavian kingdom of Northumbria.There is, however, no suggestion in English sources that an expelled Norwegian king claimed the northern throne. Certainly, an Eric reigned from York – this is attested both by numismatic and textual evidence. Indeed, he probably held the throne twice, being dethroned by his own people in both 948 and 954, each time after less than two years on the throne. If this was indeed Eiríkr blóðøx, success in kingship clearly alluded him. However, the timeline given by Scandinavian texts for Eiríkr’s activities, and that established for Eric of York in English sources are difficult to align. Moreover, despite broad consensus that the namesakes are the same person, there is nothing explicit to indicate this to be the case. This is the question this paper sets out to answer: did Eiríkr blóðøx, the dethroned Norwegian king, ever succeed to the Northumbrian throne?
| Period | 30 Jun 2023 |
|---|---|
| Event title | Royal Success(ion): Kings & Queens Conference 12 |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Uppsala , SwedenShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |