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The Battle of Brunanburh was fought in 937 between Æthelstan, King of England, and an alliance of Olaf Guthfrithson, King of Dublin; Constantine II, King of Scotland, and Owain, King of Strathclyde. The battle is often cited as the point of origin for English nationalism: historians such as Michael Livingston argue that "the men who fought and died on that field forged a political map of the future that remains [in modernity], arguably making the Battle of Brunanburh one of the most significant battles inthe long history not just of England, but of the whole of the British Isles."[1] Following an unchallenged invasion of Scotland by Æthelstan in 934, possibly launched because Constantine had violated a peace treaty, it became apparent that Æthelstan could be defeated only by an alliance of his enemies. Olaf led Constantine and Owen inthe alliance. In August 937 Olaf and his army sailed from Dublin[2] to join forces with Constantine and Owen, but the invaders were routed in the battle against Æthelstan. The poem Battle of Brunanburh in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle recounts that there were "never yet as many people killed before this with sword's edge ... since the east Angles and Saxons came up over the broad sea". Æthelstan's victory preserved the unity of England. The historian Æthelweard wrote around 975 that "[t]he fields of Britain were consolidated into one, there was peace everywhere, and abundance of all things". Alfred Smuth has called the battle "the greatest single battle in Anglo-Saxon history before Hastings". The site of the battle is unknown and scholars have proposed many places. Background After Æthelstan defeated the Vikings at York in 927, King Constantine of Scotland, King Hywel Dda of Deheubarth, Ealdred I of Bamburgh, and King Owen I of Strathclyde (or Morgan ap Owain of Gwent) accepted Æthelstan's overlordship at Eamont, near Penrith.[3][4][a] Æthelstan became King of England and there was peace until 934.[4] Æthelstan invaded Scotland with a large military and naval force in 934. Although the reason for this invasion is uncertain, John of Worcester stated that the cause was Constantine's violation of the peace treaty made in 927.[7][8] Æthelstan evidently travelled through Beverley, Ripon, and Chester-le-Street. The army harassed the Scots up to Kincardineshire and the navy up to Caithness, but Æthelstan's force was never engaged.[9] Following the invasion of Scotland, it became apparent that Æthelstan could only be defeated by an allied force of his enemies.[9] The leader of the alliance was Olaf Guthfrithson, King of Dublin, joined by Constantine II, King of Scotland and Owen, King of Strathclyde.[10] (According to John of Worcester, Constantine was Olaf's father-in-law.)[11] Though they had all been enemies in living memory, historian Michael Livingston points out that "they had agreed to set aside whatever political, cultural, historical, and even religious differences they might have had in order to achieve one common purpose: to destroy Æthelstan".[12] In August 937, Olaf sailed from Dublin[2] with his army to join forces with Constantine and Owen and in Livingston's opinion this suggests that the battle of Brunanburh occurred in early October of that year.[13] According to Paul Cavill, the invading armies raided Mercia, from which Æthelstan obtained Saxon troops as he travelled north to meet them.[14] Michael Wood wrote that no source mentions any intrusion into Mercia.[15] According to medieval chroniclers such as John of Worcester and Symeon of Durham, the invaders entered the Humber with a large fleet,[16][17][18] although the reliability of these sources is disputed by advocates of an invasion from the west coast of England.[19] Livingston thought that the invading armies entered England in two waves, Constantine and Owen coming from the north, possibly engaging in some skirmishes with Æthelstan's forces as they followed the Roman road across the Lancashire plains between Carlisle and Manchester, with Olaf's forces joining them on the way. Livingston speculated that the battle site at Brunanburh was chosen in agreement with Æthelstan, on which "there would be one fight, and to the victor went England".[20] Battle Documents with accounts of the battle include the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the writings of Anglo-Norman historian William of Malmesbury and the Annals of Clonmacnoise. In Snorri Sturluson's Egils saga, the antihero, mercenary, berserker, and skald, Egill Skallagrimsson, served as a trusted warrior for Æthelstan.[21] It has been suggested that the account in Egil's Saga is unreliable. Sagas have more than once placed their hero in a famous battle and then embellished it with a series of literary mechanisms.[22] The main source of information about the battle is the praise-poem Battle of Brunanburh in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.[10] After travelling north through Mercia, Æthelstan, his brother Edmund, and the combined Saxon army from Wessex and Mercia met the invading armies and attacked them.[14][23][24] In a battle that lasted all day, the Saxons fought the invaders and finally forced them to break up and flee.[24][23] There was probably a prolonged period of hard fighting before the invaders were finally defeated.[15][23] According to the poem, the Saxons "split the shield-wall" and "hewed battle shields with the remnants of hammers ... [t]here lay many a warrior by spears destroyed; Northern men shot over shield, likewise Scottish as well, weary, war sated".[25] Wood states that all large battles were described in this manner, so the description in the poem is not unique to Brunanburh.[15] Æthelstan and his army pursued the invaders until the end of the day, slaying great numbers of enemy troops.[23][24] The poem states that "they pursued the hostile people ... hew[ing] the fugitive grievously from behind with swords sharp from the grinding".[25] Olaf fled and sailed back to Dublin with the remnants of his army and Constantine escaped to Scotland; Owen's fate is not mentioned.[23][24] The poem states that the Northmen "[d]eparted ... in nailed ships" and "sought Dublin over the deep water, leaving Dinges mere to return to Ireland, ashamed in spirit".[25] The poem records that Æthelstan and Edmund victoriously returned to Wessex, stating that "the brothers, both together, King and Prince, sought their home, West-Saxon land, exultant from battle."[26][25] It is universally agreed by scholars that the invaders were routed by the Saxons.[23] According to the Chronicle, "countless of the army" died in the battle and there were "never yet as many people killed before this with sword's edge ... since from the east Angles and Saxons came up over the broad sea".[25] The Annals of Ulster describe the battle as "great, lamentable and horrible" and record that "several thousands of Norsemen ... fell".[27] Among the casualties were five kings and seven earls from Olaf's army.[23] The poem records that Constantine lost several friends and family members in the battle, including his son.[28] The largest list of those killed in the battle is contained in the Annals of Clonmacnoise, which names several kings and princes.[29] A large number of Saxons also died in the battle,[23] including two of Æthelstan's cousins, Ælfwine and Æthelwine.[30] Medieval sources The battle of Brunanburh is mentioned or alluded to in over forty Anglo-Saxon, Irish, Welsh, Scottish, Norman and Norse medieval texts. One of the earliest and most informative sources is the Old English poem Battle of Brunanburh in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (version A), which was written within two decades of the battle. The poem relates that Æthelstan and Edmund's army of West Saxons and Mercians fought at Brunanburh against the Vikings under Anlaf (i.e. Olaf Guthfrithson) and the Scots under Constantine. After a fierce battle lasting all day, five young kings, seven of Anlaf's earls, and countless others were killed in the greatest slaughter since the Anglo-Saxon invasions. Anlaf and a small band of men escaped by ship over Dingesmere to Dublin. Constantine's son was killed, and Constantine fled home.[31] Another very early source,[32] the Irish Annals of Ulster, calls the battle "a huge war, lamentable and horrible".[33] It notes Anlaf's return to Dublin with a few men the following year, associated with an event in the spring.[15] In its only entry for 937, the mid/late 10th-century Welsh chronicle Annales Cambriae laconically states "war at Brune".[34] Æthelweard's Chronicon (ca. 980) says that the battle at "Brunandune" was still known as "the great war" to that day, and no enemy fleet had attacked the country since.[35] Eadmer of Canterbury's Vita Odonis (very late 11th century) is one of at least six medieval sources to recount Oda of Canterbury's involvement in a miraculous restitution of Æthelstan's sword at the height of the battle.[36] William Ketel's De Miraculis Sancti Joannis Beverlacensis (early 12th century) relates how, in 937, Æthelstan left his army on his way north to fight the Scots at Brunanburh, and went to visit the tomb of Bishop John at Beverley to ask for his prayers in the forthcoming battle. In thanksgiving for his victory Æthelstan gave certain privileges and rights to the church at Beverley.[37] According to Symeon of Durham's Libellus de exordio (1104–15): …in the year 937 of the Lord´s Nativity, at Wendune which is called by another name Et Brunnanwerc or Brunnanbyrig, he [Æthelstan] fought against Anlaf, son of former king Guthfrith, who came with 615 ships and had with him the help of the Scots and the Cumbrians.[17] John of Worcester's Chronicon ex chronicis (early 12th century) was an influential source for later authors and compilers.[38] It corresponds closely to the description of the battle in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, but adds that: Continues...

The Battle of Brunanburh was fought in 937 between Æthelstan, King of England, and an alliance of Olaf Guthfrithson, King of Dublin; Constantine II, King of Scotland, and Owain, King of Strathclyde. The battle is often cited as the point of origin for English nationalism: historians such as Michael Livingston argue that "the men who fought and died on that field forged a political map of the future that remains [in modernity], arguably making the Battle of Brunanburh one of the most significant battles inthe long history not just of England, but of the whole of the British Isles."[1]

Following an unchallenged invasion of Scotland by Æthelstan in 934, possibly launched because Constantine had violated a peace treaty, it became apparent that Æthelstan could be defeated only by an alliance of his enemies. Olaf led Constantine and Owen inthe alliance. In August 937 Olaf and his army sailed from Dublin[2] to join forces with Constantine and Owen, but the invaders were routed in the battle against Æthelstan. The poem Battle of Brunanburh in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle recounts that there were "never yet as many people killed before this with sword's edge ... since the east Angles and Saxons came up over the broad sea".

Æthelstan's victory preserved the unity of England. The historian Æthelweard wrote around 975 that "[t]he fields of Britain were consolidated into one, there was peace everywhere, and abundance of all things". Alfred Smuth has called the battle "the greatest single battle in Anglo-Saxon history before Hastings". The site of the battle is unknown and scholars have proposed many places.

Background
After Æthelstan defeated the Vikings at York in 927, King Constantine of Scotland, King Hywel Dda of Deheubarth, Ealdred I of Bamburgh, and King Owen I of Strathclyde (or Morgan ap Owain of Gwent) accepted Æthelstan's overlordship at Eamont, near Penrith.[3][4][a] Æthelstan became King of England and there was peace until 934.[4]

Æthelstan invaded Scotland with a large military and naval force in 934. Although the reason for this invasion is uncertain, John of Worcester stated that the cause was Constantine's violation of the peace treaty made in 927.[7][8] Æthelstan evidently travelled through Beverley, Ripon, and Chester-le-Street. The army harassed the Scots up to Kincardineshire and the navy up to Caithness, but Æthelstan's force was never engaged.[9]

Following the invasion of Scotland, it became apparent that Æthelstan could only be defeated by an allied force of his enemies.[9] The leader of the alliance was Olaf Guthfrithson, King of Dublin, joined by Constantine II, King of Scotland and Owen, King of Strathclyde.[10] (According to John of Worcester, Constantine was Olaf's father-in-law.)[11] Though they had all been enemies in living memory, historian Michael Livingston points out that "they had agreed to set aside whatever political, cultural, historical, and even religious differences they might have had in order to achieve one common purpose: to destroy Æthelstan".[12]

In August 937, Olaf sailed from Dublin[2] with his army to join forces with Constantine and Owen and in Livingston's opinion this suggests that the battle of Brunanburh occurred in early October of that year.[13] According to Paul Cavill, the invading armies raided Mercia, from which Æthelstan obtained Saxon troops as he travelled north to meet them.[14] Michael Wood wrote that no source mentions any intrusion into Mercia.[15] According to medieval chroniclers such as John of Worcester and Symeon of Durham, the invaders entered the Humber with a large fleet,[16][17][18] although the reliability of these sources is disputed by advocates of an invasion from the west coast of England.[19]

Livingston thought that the invading armies entered England in two waves, Constantine and Owen coming from the north, possibly engaging in some skirmishes with Æthelstan's forces as they followed the Roman road across the Lancashire plains between Carlisle and Manchester, with Olaf's forces joining them on the way. Livingston speculated that the battle site at Brunanburh was chosen in agreement with Æthelstan, on which "there would be one fight, and to the victor went England".[20]

Battle
Documents with accounts of the battle include the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the writings of Anglo-Norman historian William of Malmesbury and the Annals of Clonmacnoise. In Snorri Sturluson's Egils saga, the antihero, mercenary, berserker, and skald, Egill Skallagrimsson, served as a trusted warrior for Æthelstan.[21] It has been suggested that the account in Egil's Saga is unreliable. Sagas have more than once placed their hero in a famous battle and then embellished it with a series of literary mechanisms.[22]

The main source of information about the battle is the praise-poem Battle of Brunanburh in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.[10] After travelling north through Mercia, Æthelstan, his brother Edmund, and the combined Saxon army from Wessex and Mercia met the invading armies and attacked them.[14][23][24] In a battle that lasted all day, the Saxons fought the invaders and finally forced them to break up and flee.[24][23] There was probably a prolonged period of hard fighting before the invaders were finally defeated.[15][23] According to the poem, the Saxons "split the shield-wall" and "hewed battle shields with the remnants of hammers ... [t]here lay many a warrior by spears destroyed; Northern men shot over shield, likewise Scottish as well, weary, war sated".[25] Wood states that all large battles were described in this manner, so the description in the poem is not unique to Brunanburh.[15]

Æthelstan and his army pursued the invaders until the end of the day, slaying great numbers of enemy troops.[23][24] The poem states that "they pursued the hostile people ... hew[ing] the fugitive grievously from behind with swords sharp from the grinding".[25] Olaf fled and sailed back to Dublin with the remnants of his army and Constantine escaped to Scotland; Owen's fate is not mentioned.[23][24] The poem states that the Northmen "[d]eparted ... in nailed ships" and "sought Dublin over the deep water, leaving Dinges mere to return to Ireland, ashamed in spirit".[25] The poem records that Æthelstan and Edmund victoriously returned to Wessex, stating that "the brothers, both together, King and Prince, sought their home, West-Saxon land, exultant from battle."[26][25]

It is universally agreed by scholars that the invaders were routed by the Saxons.[23] According to the Chronicle, "countless of the army" died in the battle and there were "never yet as many people killed before this with sword's edge ... since from the east Angles and Saxons came up over the broad sea".[25] The Annals of Ulster describe the battle as "great, lamentable and horrible" and record that "several thousands of Norsemen ... fell".[27] Among the casualties were five kings and seven earls from Olaf's army.[23] The poem records that Constantine lost several friends and family members in the battle, including his son.[28] The largest list of those killed in the battle is contained in the Annals of Clonmacnoise, which names several kings and princes.[29] A large number of Saxons also died in the battle,[23] including two of Æthelstan's cousins, Ælfwine and Æthelwine.[30]

Medieval sources
The battle of Brunanburh is mentioned or alluded to in over forty Anglo-Saxon, Irish, Welsh, Scottish, Norman and Norse medieval texts.

One of the earliest and most informative sources is the Old English poem Battle of Brunanburh in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (version A), which was written within two decades of the battle. The poem relates that Æthelstan and Edmund's army of West Saxons and Mercians fought at Brunanburh against the Vikings under Anlaf (i.e. Olaf Guthfrithson) and the Scots under Constantine. After a fierce battle lasting all day, five young kings, seven of Anlaf's earls, and countless others were killed in the greatest slaughter since the Anglo-Saxon invasions. Anlaf and a small band of men escaped by ship over Dingesmere to Dublin. Constantine's son was killed, and Constantine fled home.[31]

Another very early source,[32] the Irish Annals of Ulster, calls the battle "a huge war, lamentable and horrible".[33] It notes Anlaf's return to Dublin with a few men the following year, associated with an event in the spring.[15]

In its only entry for 937, the mid/late 10th-century Welsh chronicle Annales Cambriae laconically states "war at Brune".[34]

Æthelweard's Chronicon (ca. 980) says that the battle at "Brunandune" was still known as "the great war" to that day, and no enemy fleet had attacked the country since.[35]

Eadmer of Canterbury's Vita Odonis (very late 11th century) is one of at least six medieval sources to recount Oda of Canterbury's involvement in a miraculous restitution of Æthelstan's sword at the height of the battle.[36]

William Ketel's De Miraculis Sancti Joannis Beverlacensis (early 12th century) relates how, in 937, Æthelstan left his army on his way north to fight the Scots at Brunanburh, and went to visit the tomb of Bishop John at Beverley to ask for his prayers in the forthcoming battle. In thanksgiving for his victory Æthelstan gave certain privileges and rights to the church at Beverley.[37]

According to Symeon of Durham's Libellus de exordio (1104–15):

…in the year 937 of the Lord´s Nativity, at Wendune which is called by another name Et Brunnanwerc or Brunnanbyrig, he [Æthelstan] fought against Anlaf, son of former king Guthfrith, who came with 615 ships and had with him the help of the Scots and the Cumbrians.[17]
John of Worcester's Chronicon ex chronicis (early 12th century) was an influential source for later authors and compilers.[38] It corresponds closely to the description of the battle in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, but adds that:

Continues...