A Brief History
On November 13, 1002, English king Æthelred II the Unready ordered the killing of all Danes in England, known today as the St. Brice’s Day massacre.
Digging Deeper
When Æthelred became King of the English in 978, his realm had experienced repeated incursions by Danes. The situation was so bad that the English king even had to pay tribute to Denmark’s king starting in 991. Not surprisingly, Æthelred would eventually want some kind of way out of these humiliations. So, he decided to take decisive action on the feast day of a fifth century Bishop of Tours.
On that day, the English king ordered what we might in effect call the genocide of all Danish men in England. We historians do not know the total number of Danes slain in the massacre, but the remains of 34 to 38 men aged 16 to 25 found in 2008 may be what is left of some of the victims. Possible named victims also include the sister of Denmark’s king along with her husband.
Two years later, the English king attempted to justify the massacre while calling for the rebuilding of Saint Frithuswith‘s Church: “For it is fully agreed that to all dwelling in this country it will be well known that, since a decree was sent out by me with the counsel of my leading men and magnates, to the effect that all the Danes who had sprung up in this island, sprouting like cockle amongst the wheat, were to be destroyed by a most just extermination, and thus this decree was to be put into effect even as far as death, those Danes who dwelt in the aforementioned town, striving to escape death, entered this sanctuary of Christ, having broken by force the doors and bolts, and resolved to make refuge and defense for themselves therein against the people of the town and the suburbs; but when all the people in pursuit strove, forced by necessity, to drive them out, and could not, they set fire to the planks and burnt, as it seems, this church with its ornaments and its books. Afterwards, with God’s aid, it was renewed by me.”
As can be imagined, killing the Danish king’s sister among other notable Danes might not necessarily result in a Viking monarch just turning the other cheek. Instead, this king, Sweyn I Forkbeard, conducted further raids against the English over the next decade culminating in an invasion that oddly enough occurred almost exactly 1,000 years ago in 1013. In fact, Sweyn’s invasion was so successful that he managed to force Æthelred into exile in Normandy, while Sweyn was crowned King of England on Christmas Day of 1013. Sweyn died just five weeks later in February of 1014. Æthelred then returned for a short second reign, dying in 1016. In that same year, Sweyn’s son, Cnut the Great would reconquer England for the Danes and rule a northern empire that included England, Denmark, and Norway. Thus, Æthelred’s attempt to purge England of Danes was a failure that only invited more intense Danish incursions on English soil.
Questions for students (and subscribers): Was Æthelred justified in his attempted purge of Danes from England? Why or why not? Please let us know in the comments section below this article.
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Historical Evidence
For more on the above incident in the broader context of English history, please check out the following book:
Tout, T. F. (Thomas Frederick). An Advanced History of Great Britain From the Earliest Times to the Death of Queen Victoria: With 63 Maps and Plans, by F.T. Tout … (1909). Cornell University Library, 2009.
The featured image in this article, a gold mancus of Æthelred wearing armour, 1003–1006, photographed at the British Museum by PHGCOM, has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder of this work worldwide.
<span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="676 http://www.crackedhistory.com/?p=676">143 Comments
I do believe this was an attempt of genocide, the declaration of any raceor group of people is genocide. Though it was poorly carried out and worked against the English monarch’s favor.
I also believe that this act was in essence a genocide. Although there is obviously a lot of turmoil within and among all of these countries, an act such as this would considered a genocide to me. Didn’t sound like it really worked in their best interest though.
I think it was in a way genocide and in a way a act of war I think the line is blurred on this because they were at war before and continuously fighting each other if you look at most of the wars back then you could also consider them genocides. If the English king would of invaded about the same would of happened.
While I’m not positive of the definition of a genocide exactly, I do not believe that this is one. It seems to me that a genocide is an attempt to extinguish a group of people from the world. The King only killed the ones in his country. Either way it’s obviously gruesome and wrong.
I do believe that this was an act of genocide. The King tried to exterminate a whole race, the Danes, and even though it may have only been in one Country, and not entirely successful, the goal was still to kill a whole group of people.
I think that this was an act of genocide. Even though he was not fully successful, he did try to kill the Danes. To try and kill an entire group of people is genocide whether it was successful or not.
Yes an act of genocide, maybe not all that successful but still an attempt to remove a specific group of people. Then again according to the passage only Danish men were executed possibly the kings attempt to weaken the morale of Danes living in english kings land.
This was most definitely an act of genocide. Even though it was not totally successful he still did kill many Danes. His attempt to kill a group of people makes it genocide, even though he killed less than what he wanted.
This was definitely an act of genocide.
The definition of genocide is “the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, caste, religious, or national group.
The English king declared that all Danish men were to be killed even though he was not completely successful.
This was genocide. When someone wants to kill an entire group of people, whether the attempt is successful or not, it is genocide. The entire goal here was to kill all of the Danes, and though that did not happen it was the intent all along.
I almost want to say no, because it didn’t work out the way they had planned, but it was definitely an ATTEMPTED genocide.
It sounds like Æthelred was another Hitler. Why didn’t anybody give Æthelred some of those Roman mushrooms?
He wanted to kill all Danes, and stated that he decreed it. That is genocide.
I would say yes this was an attempt at genocide. Any plan to eliminate a certain group of people sure sounds like it to me.
Yes, I think that the event was a genocide. It was a deliberate attempt the get rid a specific, large group of people.
Large group, check. Single genetic trait bundle, check. Carried out as a direct targeting by an accepted legitimate authority, check. Looks like genocide (or attempted genocide)Jake to me.
Because he was targeting a specific group of people to try and eliminate them i would consider this event genocide.
TMK
At that time they probably did not see it as a genocide, and they probably really did not care, but when you pick just certain people and there is not enough to people to fight back from that certain group then it is genocide.
I believe this event to be genocide because of the targeting of a particular group.
yes this was genocide. It was an attempt to eliminate all Danes in England via massacre.
Yes this was a genocide. A way to eliminate them.
If you are targeting a specific group just like in this article then it is definitely a genocide.
I believe it was genocide. When you target and then “take out” a significant amount of people especially of one race, then yes…genocide!!
It seems as if when one group is singled out such as they were, it deffinately feels like genocide.
I think it was a genocide because they killed so many of the same people which is a defiantly a genocide!
It is a cruel world, with vicious people, that we live in! — DAVID WARDLE
It’s no doubt genocide I mean he murdered all those people that were just Danish
It’s clearly a genocide. He killed all the same people, Danish. That classifies it as a genocide.
Interesting read, I’m always amazed by how much violence there back then. Kings killing their sisters, constant invasions. It really was a mad world.
I find it interesting that every single ruler finds justice in killing or slaughtering other people. Such as hitler justified the holocaust, this English king justified slaughtering Danes by building a church….
It is baffling that someone could try to justify a mass killing.
These old rulers had some interesting names that I am not entirely sure how to pronounce(like Cnut). Regardless, the king obviously order the genocide of all Danes in his country regardless of how he justified it and how badly it came back to bite him in the butt.
Its interesting to see that forms of genocide have existed for centuries and it took the human race till the end of world war II to truly do something against genocide. However, the UN still has its own issues when trying to stop genocide.
Really interesting to read about…Its crazy to think about the reality of all the murders that were done throughout those time periods and that since that exacted, showing just how much power a king had. I think its definitely a genocide because he targeted a certain group.
I find it interesting to see the parallels between the ages of past and ours now. These kinds of planned killings do still happen now, but are better covered up in most cases.
Interesting to read…. so many people killed
Just a story of revenge. I did find it funny that is his title was The Unready.
Europe has had a history riddled with invasions and changing rulers. It’s sometimes easy to forget how many different peoples were around fighting for territory.
I think the most frightening part about this article is that someday the atrocities that have happened during our lifetimes will be talked about very nonchalantly. It kind of boggles my mind that eventually (however long it might take), there might be a history class just like our own that discusses the important events that are taking place today. Can anyone imagine how weird it will be if people discuss 9/11 like any other atrocity in history? I guess that is just a part of living in today’s world. It kind of makes me wish we could get a glimpse of the past and the future so that we would know how exactly things might turn out.
It is ironic how the danish king tried to constitute the massacre he had bestowed upon his people while the rebuilding of a church was being done.
This genocide was terrible and reminds me of how people say the Holocaust does not exist….it did happen people.
The most interesting part of this i find is that the massacre was said to be a rebuilding of the church, yet murder is a sin….
it amazes me how common is the assumption that “back then” we were violent, but now we are not. Last I checked the twentieth century was the most violent in human history and the twenty first isn’t exactly off to a great start either. At any rate, nice article.
I find it extremely disheartening that the King of England told his people that it was with God’s help that the church was restored, even though the reason the church was burned down in the first place was to kill the Danes who were using the church as a refuge.
It is very surprising that these people would be massacred, and then their killings would be justified. The Middle Ages is largely associated as a very religious period, but this does not seem to be the case with these killings.
It is insane to think that all those people were massacred, for no reason. i understand everyone was standing for god but, just because your for god you do not have to kill.
I wonder why this genocide is not taught as much as others. It could be because there is an unknown amount of deaths, and we do not know the exact severity of it, but it did result in a response from the Vikings so it was severe enough. It makes me wonder if it is because of the church’s involvement with the genocide, and if the controversial aspect of it has anything to do with why it is not as popular as other genocides in history.
I had never heard of this genocide before now. it is interesting that we do not learn more about it in middle schools and high schools. Genocide is an issue that history has seen time and time again, this is not an exception.
This is the first time I’ve read or heard about this genocide. I feel that there is never a proper reason to justify any sort of genocide amongst people.
This is all new to me, I was not aware that such a genocide took place. Any time a large group of people are killed for simply being that race or having a certain characteristic, it is just unjustifiable.
Sounds like the English deserved all those raids from the Vikings
Strange that such a brutal event in history is as glossed over at it seems to be… not the first time something like that has occurred, of course.
I think they were in the wrong for the massacre. Making it be known you believe in something does not mean you can just go off and kill a bunch of people know matter the circumstance. the violence people have is sickening
It is without a doubt genocide. He killed all of the people just because they were Danish.
Genocides are so aweful. It was so wrong to kill those people.
It was good that the Danish came back to retaliate
Just because they were Danish and believed certain things doesn’t mean Genocide is the right answer.
Its very sad that this happened. I get they believed in God but at the same time it was very wrong that they made it about there belief. Murder is murder under any circumstance
It is so appalling to me that people can be so vicious. — DAVID WARDLE
Seems to me that killing the Danes only awoke a sleeping beast and was a costly mistake in the long run for England.
Genocides are never good idea no matter the situation
Horrible, ugly part of history
I see this as a bad thing that had to happen. does that mean I agree with it. no but I believe it happened for a reason
While I’m not sure that civilization, at this point in time, would have understood this massacre as we do, as genocide, I’d imagine that because of things like Æthelred’s “Rebuilding” facade, English people may have been prone to carrying this mindset around with them, and through similar language, create a situation where Danes were almost demonized.
Another reason why you should never mess with the Vikings.
He probably should have expected retaliation from the Vikings when he ordered so many of the Danes to be killed.
Genocide is such an ugly thing. It’s a shame we’ve seen it so manty times in our history
“I got a great idea; to halt the danes, we kill the danes!”
“Brilliant, sire; there’s no way this could backfire!”
*Backfires*
“Well, I was surprised.”
It’s always interesting to see what events lead up to genocides in history. Knowing what caused a group of people to be massively killed helps further generations to know not to repeat what happened.
That’s crazy that after all that more Danes came.
It is terrible that genocides happen and it is always interesting to see the events leading up to them!
it is very sad that these genoicdes have to happen why cant everyone just get along but its true what people say history always repeats itself.
I agree with the other comments saying that history repeats itself. But it is the actions of people that cause history to repeat itself. When will we learn? And notice that it normally revolves around religion…
Heartwrenching
I love how anarchic the Vikings monarchies were. Imagine how differant history may have been if they acted as a unified force beyond their invasions.
There
It is sad to think of such a massacre happening but the fact that only 34-38 men remains were found from 1002 makes me wonder how many were actually murdered. The article states that the Danish king’s sister was also murdered so it goes to show that in fact those murdered is a much higher number.
This type of story seems to be a reoccurring theme throughout human history.
All genocides that have occurred are just ugly parts of this worlds history; Its sickening really.
It does go to show that history does repeat itself, there have been so many massacres that may have been more devastating then even this.
Crazy that massacres are still happening today. Also never heard of the genocide of the Danish men. That’s an interesting story that I never knew.
The king wanted a lot of revenge for his sister being killed, so he did by starting a massacare.
It’s sad to see how history played out, it’s really just an embarrassment of our past. But it’s even scarier to think that history repeats itself. We should all be mindful of these situations so that they’re not doomed to repeat.
Genocides have happened so much through history, it is crazy and sad. I never will understand why people do these kind of things. Also I always wonder how people can do this to another group of people, murder is sick no matter your beliefs or how you justify it.
No (.Y.) for Dane’s go somewhere else. Don’t make us build a wall
While genocides have gone on, are going on and probably will go on for as long as long as we are I’d like to hope that people will eventually realize that no good will ever come from massacring entire groups of people.
When people think genocide, they usually think of Nazis and WWII. Sadly they have been going on way before WWII and will probably always be attempted by someone.
Genocides disgust me. People have no right to decide that anyone gets to die. Only God get to decide when your time comes.
We cant play God.. though people try to, we cannot decide when people should die
Hard to understand why people with such poor judgement and evil intentions hold positions of power. Not just then, but throughout history and now.
I find it repulsive that the English king tried to justify these heinous acts
Just goes to show that killing people in order to prove a point and keep people out of your land doesn’t do much. In this case, it just made people mad and gave them the drive to take control of this land later.
People holding high positions of power and doing things such as Genocide is unfair and a disgusting, selfish act.
I am sure no one ever thought this could happen when it was about to happen. It may sound far fetched, and I am not suggesting he is promoting genocide, but This is why many of us fear the possibility of Donald Trump as President.
The idea of genocide is just proof that some people can’t grow out of outdated idiotic beliefs and are unwilling to see that because one person is bad, someone appearing, acting or believing like them does not make them the same.
having people in power who promote killing mass groups, or taking people out depending on their beliefs is wrong. im not sure how these things get across some peoples minds that this would be “right”
Mass genocide in general is awful let alone a leader who believes in it
Its sad to see history continue to repeat itself time after time.
Mass extinction of groups is a very sad but real. Cannot believe some groups still Want to practice it today.
Yet another mass genocide due to the religious beliefs of one man. A man who of course had the power at the time to commit such a horrible act. A shame that these events happen.
More senseless killings genocide has been happening for thousands of years for senseless and childish reasons. People seem to use religion to justify their actions. There is no justification for such acts like these.
genocide is bad.
It’s scary to realize that religion often times goes hand in hand with hatred and how the hatred can fuel and inspire the unjust killings of innocent people.
I’ll never understand someone’s need to start mass killings
Everyone needs a hobby…
Mass killings like that just reminds me how fd up this world really is.
I do understand how certain person can hate a group of people so much they want to exterminate an entire population.
After you pick on someone for so long they eventually get fed up and are going to stand up and fight back ten ties harder. Since the Danes continued to invade and attack England they stood up and attacked back with the burning of churches with people in them, reversing the humiliation. Its all about cause and effect
I believe this something that has happened through out history time and time again; Countries bullying/harassing other countries. Obviously it wasn’t right of King Æthelred to order the massacre of Danes, but they (Denmark) should’ve expected something to occur at some point in time
Sad to say but genocides always happen
I just didn’t see the reason why they would have to do that to the Danes. This world has a long history of killing specific groups of people.
So much history of all the killings, and burning people. Everyone should be treated the same.
It’s crazy the amount of genocides that occurred back then.
It seems like old kings and rulers didn’t consider many other options when deciding how to deal with enemies. I imagine Æthelred II sitting on the throne saying something like “Hmm we should just kill them that would solve the problem!”
So many deaths for no apparent reason, it’s a shame.
Moral of the story:
Don’t mess with the Danes. Vikings > English!
Never pick a fight with a dude named Forkbeard.
Let me begin by saying it is incredible that historians are able to dig up information from as far as the 900s! After reading the article, I am shocked about the mass killings. Mass killings still happen in present day.
I can’t believe that in the same year Æthelred died,(in 1016). Sweyn’s son, Cnut the Great would reconquer England for the Danes and rule a northern empire that included England, Denmark, and Norway.
Interesting that a King kills Danish men in England and then in 1013 a Danish was King.
So would this qualify as fulfilling the statement “You mess with the bull, you get the horns?”
Its crazy how many of these guys died
Its sad to think of all who died in the mass killings.
It’s so cool that remains from back then can be found and identified as part of a certain time period today.
It’s sad how many people died
looking at the title i thought this was going to be about great danes the dog not danish men
murder and death usually never leads to good things. if someone killed my sister it would be hard to reconcile with them
In comparison to modern drones killing much more, these numbers are still impressive for the tools of the day.
I found it interesting that they were still digging up the remains to this day. J.K.
It crazy to see how much we can learn from bones from that far back.
I think it’s crazy how really nothing has changed. Even still people can’t accept others for who they are and their solution to it is to get rid of the people who are different in some way.
But that’s part of being human i guess. Everyone has different views and that is what makes life interesting. But the sad part is this commonly leads to violence in life.
King Æthelred II the Unready’s genocide order on November 13th, 1002, does not seem like a great way to start off the millennium.
Hey! Karma is timeless!!
The sad truth is that nothing really changes. When something is seen as wrong we do not try to fix it we just get rid of the problem.
I don’t know much about science, but it’s amazing what you can find with it.
I find it crazy how much knowledge people are able to find out by the remains of humans and fossils that are countless years old.
It was interesting to find out that there are still remains of people still being discovered to this day! I also found it interesting that some of the bodies they found were sometimes as young as 16!
It is amazing to me you can figure out how old and what gender the victims of the massacre were by the little remains left of them!
It’s my understanding that during the dark ages, not a lot of historical events were recorded, so the only real hard evidence in any of this is the forensics of those remains. Well done scientists, well done.
That’s crazy that scientist can figure out ages as young as 16 being uncovered. The trace back of the murder of the Danish’s kings sister is insane. The term justice has changed so much, back then continuous battles against the enemy was justice for them but these days we just throw people in jail.
I find it troubling to think how the angry mob reacted. Usually the church was a place of safety where a person could claim sanctuary, but they just burned the church to the ground without a second thought. I guess people don’t fear their gods as much when they are angry
leaders really have no remorse for anyone, especially their enemies. “Kill them All, show no mercy”