Sweyn Godwinson, Rogue

Godwin, Earl of Wessex, was very powerful in the England of the 11th century, and he was able to procure good positions for his family. His son, Sweyn, was made an earl in the southwest Midlands by King Edward in 1043. This earldom included Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, and Somerset.

Sweyn was Godwin's eldest son, although he claimed at times to be the son of the former King Cnut. His mother Gytha, a sister-in-law of Cnut, denied this.

Sweyn managed some international diplomacy on his own, making peace with Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, the King of Gwynedd in northern Wales, which helped Llywelyn against his chief Welsh rival, the king of south Wales. The two men invaded south Wales together, after which Sweyn made a less-intelligent decision.

Sweyn abducted the Abbess of Leominster, Eadgifu ("Edith"), in order to force her to marry him and gain control of the estates attached to Leominster. King Edward refused to approve this marriage and sent Eadgifu back to the abbey. Sweyn left England to escape any threat of punishment, traveling to Flanders and then to Denmark, looking for support.

He came back to England in 1049 to ask to be forgiven and be reinstated in his earldom. (Records suggest that he was forced to leave Denmark due to some unknown action on his part.) His brother Harold Godwinson and cousin Beorn, who had both received earldoms as well, opposed his return. (His former lands had been divided between them, and they did not want to relinquish them.)

Sweyn convinced Beorn to support him in his audience with the king, but along the way Sweyn thought one way to get his lands back was to have Beorn murdered. Sweyn was condemned and sent to exile. In 1050, however, he was apparently pardoned, because he returned to England.

This was not the end of Sweyn's story, but the conclusion is not just about him, but includes his father and the rest of the family. Tomorrow we'll see what Edward did about the entire Godwin family. (The illustration is of two of Godwin's sons fighting at the court of King Edward.)

Edward and Godwin

When Edward the Confessor came to the throne in 1042, he was not in a good position. The country had swayed back and forth between English and Danish rule, and plenty of Danes were in powerful positions that an English king might have had difficulty dealing with. Much of the real estate of England was in the hands of others, even though he confiscated that of his mother, Emma, whose loyalty he justly mistrusted.

There were three powerful earls with whom he needed to stay on good terms: Godwin of Wessex, Leofric of Mercia, and Siward of Northumbria. Godwin, although English, had been loyal to the Danish Cnut (he married Cnut's sister-in-law, Gytha). "Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer." Edward had to keep close to Godwin for both those reasons.

In 1043, Edward made Godwin's eldest son (who had the Danish name Sweyn) an earl in the south-west Midlands. Godwin's son Harold Godwinson (later King Harold) was also given an earldom in southern England, and a cousin of theirs, Beorn (a nephew of Cnut!), also became an earl in the south. Godwin's family now owned all of southern England.

In January 1045 Edward married Godwin's daughter, Edith of Wessex, ensuring that a grandson of Godwin's could come king after Edward.

Despite all this favoritism shown to Godwin, we cannot forget what happened here: Godwin blinded Edward's brother at an earlier attempt by Edward to return to England. Edward had no love for Godwin, but needed to work with him when necessary for the sake of his own kingdom.

Edward did not do whatever Godwin asked, however. In 1045-46, Magnus the Good was threatening to attack England and re-create his father's empire. The Beorn mentioned above was the younger brother of Sweyn II of Denmark, who subordinated himself to King Edward to gain England's help in making Sweyn king of Denmark. Godwin demanded that Edward send aid to Sweyn, but Edward refused. This could have been disastrous for England, but for the fortunate event of Magnus' unexpected death ending his England aspirations.

Nor did Edward support Godwin's eldest son, Sweyn, when he screwed up, but that's a good story for tomorrow.