King of Denmark (r. 986–1014), Norway (986–95, 1000–14) and England (1013–14)
"King Sweyn" and "Sweyn of Norway" redirect here. For other people, see Sweyn.
"Forkbeard" redirects here. For the hake, see Phycis phycis.
Sweyn Forkbeard
Sweyn (Suanus rex) invading England in 1013 (detail of a 13th-century miniature) – Cambridge University Library
King of Denmark
Reign
986–1014
Predecessor
Harald Bluetooth
Successor
Harald II
King of Norway
Reign
999/1000–1013/14
Predecessor
Olaf I
Successor
Olaf II
King of the English
Reign
1013–1014
Predecessor
Æthelred the Unready
Successor
Æthelred the Unready
Born
17 April 963[1] Denmark
Died
3 February 1014
(aged 50) Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, England
Burial
Roskilde Cathedral or Lund Cathedral
Spouse
Świętosława / Sigrid / Gunhild
Issue among others...
Harald II of Denmark
Cnut the Great
Estrid Svendsdatter
House
Knýtlinga
Father
Knut Danaást or Harald Bluetooth[2]
Mother
Tove or Gunhild[2]
Sweyn Forkbeard (Old Norse: Sveinn Haraldsson tjúguskegg[ˈswɛinːˈhɑrˌɑldsˌsonˈtjuːɣoˌskeɡː];[3] Danish: Svend Tveskæg; 17 April 963[1] – 3 February 1014) was King of Denmark from 986 until his death, King of England for five weeks from December 1013 until his death, and King of Norway from 999/1000 until 1013/14. He was the father of King Harald II of Denmark, King Cnut the Great, and Queen Estrid Svendsdatter.[2]
In the mid-980s, Sweyn revolted against his father, Harald Bluetooth, and seized the throne. Harald was driven into exile and died shortly afterwards in November 986 or 987.[4] In 1000, with the allegiance of Eric, Earl of Lade, Sweyn ruled most of Norway. In 1013, shortly before his death, he became the first Danish king of the English after a long effort.
^ abRosborn, Sven (2021). The Viking King's Golden Treasure. About the Curmsun Disc, the discovery of a lost manuscript, Harald Bluetooth´s grave and the location of the fortress of Jomsborg. Rivengate AB. p. 335. ISBN 978-9198678017. Archived from the original on 2 July 2023. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
^ abcWeir, Alison (1989). Britain's Royal Families. Vintage. p. 25. ISBN 978-0099539735.
^Svæinn Harallz sunr; Latinized forms of the name Sveinn are Suanus, Suenus, or Sveinus (Haraldi filius). The nickname tjúguskegg is a compound of tjúga "fork" and skegg "beard". Sweyn is so named in Fagrskinna chapters 27 and 41 (ed. Finnur Jónsson 1902–08, pp. 161, 206), in both cases in references to Astriðr dottor Svæins tiuguskægs.
^Cite error: The named reference Sawyer2004 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
son of Ulf Thorgilsson and Estrid Svendsdatter, and the grandson of SweynForkbeard through his mother's line. He was married at least two times, and fathered...
legend of King Canute and the tide. Cnut was a son of the Danish prince SweynForkbeard, who was the son and heir to King Harald Bluetooth and thus came from...
for no more than a few years in the 970s. Some sources say his son SweynForkbeard forcibly deposed him from his Danish throne before his death. Harald's...
1013–14 when the Danish king SweynForkbeard occupied the English throne. Æthelred died in 1016, and Emma married Sweyn's son Cnut. As Cnut's wife, she...
II) from 1014 until his death in c. 1018. He was the youngest son of SweynForkbeard and Gunhild of Wenden, and was regent while his father was fighting...
Wessex and Æthelstan in Mercia. England came under the control of SweynForkbeard, a Danish king, after an invasion in 1013, during which Æthelred abandoned...
Olaf Tryggvasson, then married to SweynForkbeard of Denmark, but elsewhere author Snorri Sturluson says that Sweyn was married to a different woman....
dependent upon the sea. The first king to unite all three kingdoms was SweynForkbeard, king of Denmark since 986 and of Norway since 1000, when he conquered...
was conquered by SweynForkbeard, who died shortly thereafter. Æthelred was able to reclaim the throne, despite opposition. Sweyn's son, Cnut, was defeated...
daughter of the Danish king Harald Bluetooth and thus a sister to King SweynForkbeard. She was first married to the Swedish prince and throne claimant Styrbjörn...
Sweyn is a Scandinavian masculine given name. Notable people with the surname include: Kings: SweynForkbeard (960–1014), King of Denmark, England, and...
Bluetooth's memorial feast (Old Norse: veizluerfi): Later in the account, SweynForkbeard swears on the bragafull to conquer England or die in the attempt, before...
Gunnhild) (died 13 November 1002) is said to have been the sister of SweynForkbeard, King of Denmark, and the daughter of Harald Bluetooth. She was married...
of SweynForkbeard and perhaps Gunhild of Wenden and paternal half-sister of Cnut the Great. By Ulf Jarl, she was the mother of the later King Sweyn II...
infamous Eadwulf Rus who murdered Bishop Walcher.: 15–16 In 1013 King SweynForkbeard of Denmark invaded England, sailing up the Humber and Trent to the...
1013, SweynForkbeard returned to invade England with a large army, and Æthelred fled to Normandy, leading Sweyn to take the English throne. Sweyn died...
Snorri's Heimskringla, the attack happened soon after the death of SweynForkbeard with the city being held by Danish forces. Snorri's account claims...
effort to spread Christianity throughout Scandinavia, the Danish King SweynForkbeard constructed a Monastery in Lund and dedicated it to the holy trinity...
not hesitate to involve himself in a quarrel with King Sweyn I of Denmark by marrying Sweyn's sister Tyra, who had fled from her heathen husband Burislav...
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