Defectors

It must have been a shock when Thorkell the Tall, a leader and warrior of the early 12th-century Danish invasion of England, changed his stance and decided to join the English forces of King Æthelred the Unready, taking 45 ships' worth of loyal men with him. There is some reason to believe that Thorkell was married to a daughter of Æthelred, possibly Eadgyth.As mercenaries for Æthelred, the Danes fought in 1013 against their former liege lord, King Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark and his son, Cnut (who Thorkell had helped raise and educate). Sweyn was successful, forcing Æthelred into exile by the end of 1013. Sweyn died not long after, however, on 2 February 1014, and Cnut was declared his successor.The remaining English nobles called Æthelred back from the continent to reclaim the throne (Cnut was back in Denmark). While Cnut was preparing a fleet to re-take England, Æthelred's eldest son Æthelstan died, making his second son Edmund Ironside the new heir to the throne of England.Cnut's…