KING OF DENMARK (d. 1014), son of Harold Bluetooth, the christianizes of Denmark, by his peasant mistress Aesa, according to the Jomsvikinga Saga, though more probably his mother was Queen Gunild, Harold's consort. The lad was a born champion and buccaneer. His first military expedition, in alliance with the celebrated Jomsborg Viking, Palnatoke, was against his own father, who perished during the struggle (c. 986). Six years later he conducted a large fleet of warships to England, which did infinite damage, but failed to capture London. During his absence, Denmark was temporarily occupied by the Swedish king, Eric Sersel, on whose death (c. 994) Sweyn recovered his patrimony. About the same time he repudiated his first wife Gunild, daughter of duke Mieszko of Poland, and married King Eric's widow, Sigrid. This lady was a fanatical pagan of a dis quieting strength of character. Two viceroys, earlier wooers, were burned to death by her orders for their impertinence, and she refused the hand of Olaf Trygvesson, king of Norway, rather than submit to baptism, whereupon the indignant monarch struck her on the mouth with his gauntlet and told her she was a worse pagan than any dog. Shortly afterwards she married Sweyn, and easily persuaded her warlike husband to unite with Olaf, king of Sweden, against Olaf Trygvesson, who fell in the famous sea fight off Svolde (I000) on the west coast of Riigen, after a heroic resistance immortalized by the sagas, whereupon the confederates divided his kingdom between them. After his first English expedi
tion Sweyn was content to blackmail England instead of ravaging it, till the ruthless massacre of the Danes on St. Brice's day, Nov. 3, 1002, by Ethelred the Unready (Sweyn's sister was among the victims) brought the Danish king to Exeter (1003). During each of the following eleven years, the Danes, materially assisted by the universal and shameless disloyalty of the Saxon ealdormen, systematically ravaged England, and from 991 to 1014 the wretched land is said to have paid its invaders in ran soms alone £158,000. Sweyn died suddenly at Gainsborough on Feb. 13, 1014. His memory has suffered from the fact that the chief chroniclers of his deeds and misdeeds were ecclesiastics.
See Danmarks riges historie. Oldtiden og den aeldre middelalder, PP. 364-381 (Copenhagen, 1897-1905). (R. N. B.; X.)