When the Danes seized York and killed the last two kings, Bamburgh and Anglo-Saxon Northumbria disappeared from the records for period of 46 years. Then in 913 Anglo-Saxon Northumbria reappeared, this time ruled not by kings but High-Reeves and one of those rulers was Uchtred ( The Bold).
Uchtred (The Bold) was a High-Reeve (Earldorman) of Bamburgh in Bernicia, an Anglo-Saxon kingdom in The North of England during the time that the Danes ruled Northumbria. Despite constant Danish raids into and though Bernicia, He and his line manage to hold onto the kingdom at a time when most of the county was first in the hands of Saxon and then in the hands of the invaders. Uchtred was probably acting as High-Reeve on behalf of his aging father as early as 995, if not before
1006AD. Uchtred's father Waltheof was now too old to leave Bamburgh and he allowed King Malcolm II of Scotland to travel the length of Bernica unmolested and besieged Durham. It was left to his son Uchtred to raise an army, defeat the Scots and send them back from whence they came. After the battle local women were given a cow each to wash and braid the hair on the severed heads of the enemy, which were then fixed on stakes and displayed on the walls of Durham.
Ethelred II (The unready) was so pleased with the outcome of the battle that he made Uchtred Earldorman of Bernica even though his father was still alive. In addition Ethelred II had Earldorman Aelfhelm of York murdered and appointed Uchtred in his sted. Uchtred was now in control of both Bernica and Deira. Uchtred also dismissed his wife and married Sige the daughter of Styr a citizen of York.
1013AD. King Sweyn of Denmark invaded England and Ethelred II was forced to flee the country. King Sweyn Sailed up the River Humber and Trent to Gainsborough and Uchtred was one of the Lords that submitted to him there.
1014AD.Ethelred II returned, took up his reign and Uchtred along with the others switch allegiance back to Ethelred II. Uchtred also married again, this time to Ælfgifu the daughter of Ethelred II.
1016 Uchtred fought alongside Ethelred's son Edmund Ironside in Cheshire. While Uchtred was away Cnut's (Canute's) forces invaded Yorkshire. Not being strong enough to fight back, Uchtred paid homage to Cnut as king of England.
1018AD. Uchtred was defeated at the battle of Carrun (Carham) also known as the battle of Coldstream, by the Scottish armies of Malclom II and Owen the Bald of Strathclyde.
Uchtred was summoned to a meeting with Cnut. On the way to the meeting Uchtred and the forty men with him, were ambushed and murdered by Thurbrand the Hold. Cnut was behind the killing.
Fred Watson November 2008.
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Northumbria
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Malcolm II ( Mael Coluim Mac Cinaeda)
Malcolm the Destroyer, King of Alba became king in 1005AD after killing his cousin Kenneth III in the battle of Monzievaird near Crieff. On seizing power he immediately began to eliminate rival claimants to the throne, including the grandson of Kenneth III.
Malcolm, as all kings of that era did fought many battles. Apart from the battle of Monzievaird he fought and defeated a Norse army not long after his coronation, constantly skirmished with his rivals the kings of Moray and fought the Northumbrians at least twice; first at the siege of Durham where he was defeated and second at the battle of Carham by the Tweed, where he along with Owen the Bald defeated Uchtred the bold.
King Malcolm was assassinated in 1034AD there are two versions of his assassination: One; that he was murdered by the Britons for trying to place his grandson Duncan on the throne of Strathclyde at the death of Owen the Bald. Two; that he was killed by his own nobles for interfering with the Pictish pattern of inheritance by proclaiming his grandson Duncan as his successor or maybe it was a joint effort by both factions? Either way at his death Duncan became King Duncan I.
After Malcolm’s death at Glamis Castle, he was buried in the graveyard of St Oran’s chapel on the Island of Iona.
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The Siege of Durham
In the year 1006AD in an attempt to impose his over-lordship on Bernicia, Malcolm II king of Alba gathered together a great army and swept over the border into Northumbria. Burning, pillaging and laying waste to countryside, towns and villages on the way.
The aging Earl Waltheof, by then too frail to take to the field, locked himself up in the great castle of Bamburgh and was ignored by the Scottish horde who marched on to Durham. Bishop Ealdhun withdrew into the city and barred the gates fearful for his new Cathedral that contained the sainted remains of Cuthbert and waited for rescue from the fearful horde at his door.
But where was the help to come from? King Ethelred the unready in the south had his hands full with the Danes and Ealdorman Aelfhelm of York seemed content to stay at home and made no move to help the Bernicians in their hour of need.
It was Uchtred the young son of Waltheof who gathered together an army of Bernicians and men of Yorkshire and fell upon the besiegers. So great was the fury of their attack that they cut to pieces nearly the entire multitude of the Scots and it was only with great difficulty that Malcolm and a few of his men managed escape the slaughter and flee back north.
After the battle Uchtred ordered that the heads be cut from the best looking of the Scottish dead and paid four women of the town one cow each in exchange for washing and braiding the hair of the heads. When this task was completed the heads were fixed onto stakes and displayed on the walls of the city.
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Aethelred II (The Unready)
English King 978AD to 1013AD and then from 1014AD to 1016.
Aethelred was the son of King Edgar, the grandson of Alfred the Great and his second wife Aelfthryth and gained the throne when his brother Edward died. Edward was murdered at Corfe Castle by attendants of Aethelred’s mother Aelfthryth. Aethelred however, was not suspected any involvement since he was only about 10 years of age at the time.
Aethelred’s reign was blighted by constant Viking raid and unable to organise any effective means of resistance he fell back on paying Danegeld (in effect he paid the Viking to go away). The Danes took his money and returned time and time again for more.
Finally in the year 1002 in frustration and fear Aethelred ordered the massacre of all the Danes living in England. It was a grave mistake for the great slaughter that followed as the English people turned on their Danish neighbours tore the country apart. It also gave King Sweyn (Forkbeard) of Denmark the excuse to attack England in force. Aethelred once again paid Danegeld, but by 1013 the Danes had taken most of England and Aethelred was force to flee to Normandy.
King Sweyn was now effectively the sole ruler of England, his reign however, didn’t last long he died in 1014. his death left behind a divided country with most of the north and east accepting Sweyn’s son Cnut as king, while London and the south invited Aethelred to return. After sending his son to make sure it was safe, Aethelred returned, raised an army, and catching Cnut by surprise forced him to flee the country.
Despite this, by 1016 when he died Aethelred was king only of London and part of the south. His throne passed to his son Edmund Ironsides.
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Aelfhelm, Earldorman of York and Southern Northumbria.
Aelfhelm came from a wealthy and powerful Mercian family and had two sons, Wulheah and Ufgeat, he also had a daughter called Aelfgifu.
From 994 (when his name began to appear on charters) until 1006 Aelfhelm governed the area surrounding York on behalf of the king.
By 1006 Aethelred II had suspicions as to Aelfhelm’s loyalty and when he failed to come to the assistance of the besieged city of Durham, Aethelred II took the opportunity to replace him with Uchtred the bold.
The King had Aelfhelm murdered by Eadric Streona, who employed a Shrewsbury butcher Goodwine Porthund to carry out the dastardly deed. Later Aelfhelm’s sons were blinded by order of the king.
In 1013 Aelfhelm’s daughter Aelfgifu married King Cnut and in 1016 had a son who became king Harold Harefoot of England.
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Styr
Styr of York, a Deirian, the son of Ulf, who had possible ancestral connection in Cumbria and Strathclyde. Styr was a rich citizen of York, a warlord with his own men and lands, who served the king and the high reeve of Northumbria. He held estates in Teesdale and Derby and was powerful enough to persuade King Aethered II to grant Dearthington (Darlington) to the church of St Cuthbert.
Like most powerful men he had enemies and the deadliest of these was Thurbrand the Hold (Thurbrand of Holderness). So great was this enmity that when Uchtred the Bold married Styr’s daughter Sige he did so on the condition he would take up the bloodfeud against Thurbrand.
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Sige
The Daughter of Styr of York married Uchtred the Bold, High Reeve of Bamburgh when he was made Ealdorman of the whole of Northumbria by Aethelred II. Her Marriage with Uchtred produced two children, both boys, Eardulf, who became Eardulf III and Gospatric.
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Sweyn Forkbeard
Sweyn the Viking became king of Denmark (and later Norway) in 986 after the death of his father Harald Bluetooth. Sweyn and his fellow Vikings raided England almost constantly between the years 1002 and 1012. The raids were carried out in revenge for the massacre of the Danes in England that was ordered by Aethelred II the unready. Sweyn’s own sister was said to have been killed in the massacre.
Sweyn came again in 1013 but this time it was no raid. He came at the head of an invasion army, at first landing at Sandwich and then sweeping north to enter th River Humber and then the River Trent. On reaching Gainsborough the outnumbered Northumbrians had no choice but to submit to him and hand over hostages. Linsey and the Mercian soon followed suit. With the north secure Sweyn left his son Cnut with half his forces and after re-supplying marched south for London, but the city held firm. Sweyn the turned his attention elsewhere and soon Wessex was under his command. Aethelred isolated in London hung on until the end of the year and having already sent his family ahead, followed them to Normandy.
Sweyn was now effectively King of England, but not for long, five weeks later in the February of 1014 he died.
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Aelfgifu
Aelfgifu the daughter of Aethelred II (The unready) King of England and his first wife Aelflaed was married off to Uchtred the bold and had two children by him Ealdgyth and Etheldritha.
After the death of her husband Uchtred she was again married off, this time to Aelfgar of Mercia. Aelfgifu and Aelfgar had five children.
Eadwine earl of Mercia
Morkere earl of Northumbria
Burchard
Ealdgyth (Edith Swan Neck)
Aeldgytha of Mercia.
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Owen the Bald, King of Strathclyde.
Strathclyde was a Brithonic kingdom ruled at first from a castle atop Dumbarton Rock, later the seat of government was to move to Govan. At its most powerful the kingdom stretched from Loch Lomond in the north to Cumbria in the south and Owen the Bald was one of its kings.
Little is known of Owen the Bald, other than that he was king of Strathclyde from 1005 until 1018. Owen the Bald held his kingdom as a sub king to Malcolm II king of the Scots and had no choice but to join forces with Malcolm II as he headed south to do battle with Uchtred the Bold at Carrun (Carham 12miles up the river Tweed from Berwick). The joint Scots/Strathclyde force soundly defeated the Anglo Saxon/Danish force; however Owen the Bald was either killed in the battle or died shortly afterwards.
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Thurbrand the Hold (Hold a title equivalent to king’s reeve)
Thurbrand was a prominent figure, a leader of York Danes and he also held lands in Holderness; maybe enough land to have the area named for him?
He appeared in York in 1013 after King Sweyn Forkbeard’s invasion and was later to help King Cnut by assassinating Uchtred the Bold. If Thurbrand thought that Cnut would reward him for the dastardly deed with the earldom of Northumbria, he was sadly mistaken; Cnut gave the earldom to Eadulf Dudel, Uchtred’s brother.
Thorbrand was killed in a revenge attack by Uchtred’s son.
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