Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 11.djvu/398

 3:U ON THE LIFE AND DEATH OF EAKL GODWINE. ■whether with or without Godwine's consent ; finally, that suspicion reached hoth Emma and Harthacunt. I have ari:;ued all alonix that as the aiiiii'cssion ^Yas made on the dominions of Harthacnut, we should have expected that his partisans would have been the persons to resist him, whereas we hear nothing of them, but only of the agents of Harold. But though the attempt was immediately directed against Harthacnut's possession of the crown, it would probably have ultimately attacked Harold's share also. Consequently the partisans of both might well be on the alert. God- share of wiuc might wcll meet iElfred, either on his own iitred-s fat«. accouut or ou Eiuma's, and yet Harold's emissaries seize him in a frontier town without Godwine's inter- vention. This seems to have been the notion of the con- temporary author of the Encomium Emma3. And, on this view, we can easily understand how suspicion of treachery inav have attached to Godwine at the time, and how later writers, forgetting that he was the minister of Harthacnut, may have represented him as acting on the part of Harold. If so, with what aim did Godwine meet iElfred ? He may have gone with a commission, friendly or unfriendly, from Emma ; or why may we not believe that (iodwine really intended to assert the rights of the iEtheling ? Godwine, as we have seen, opposed the Danish })arty after the death of Cnut, and obtained for Harthacnut a portion of the kingdom ; after the death of Harthacnut, he op})osed them again and placed Eadward on the throne. Why attribute to him a single act opposed to botli liis earlier and his later policy ? He had opposed Harold and supported Harthaciuit ; Harthacnut Avas still absent and liis cause was failing ; .Elfrod, the English iEtheling, was actually landed; nothing- was more natural than that Godwine should transfer liis allogicincc to him from the dilatory Harthacnut ; nothing less in character than that the leader of the English party should (tonspire with the Danish King^ against the English yEtholing. J really think this is more probable than the versi(»n devised by Thierry, that (Mtdwine went to see what <• Il:iri (VTlaiiily of I'ji^liKli lilrxxl Kiii;lihli prcfrr i lurtliiicniit, llii.u;;|i, ns on til)' iiiotlii-r'H Hide, if the miri of Ciiiit tin; hoii of ii JJaiiixli fatlin- and a Noniiaii and yl'^lfwvn ; if lie waH not really Cnnt's niother, lie wa.s a fnnijik-to btrangcr. hon at all, ho may will have heeii Knulinh Wan illej,'iiiinai"y a nreat«r obHtacle in on hoth HideH. ^et he fij;iireH ;ih the IOnglif*h than in UaiiiMh eyes '. choHi-n UiiK of the DaniHli |>;iily, ulid'- th<'