Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 16.djvu/411

 renewed the fight, and the army of Eadmund had, it is said, gained a decided advantage, when Eadric Streona discouraged the English by holding up a head which he declared to be the head of their king (ib.) Eadmund, we are told, got upon some mound, took off his helmet that his men might see his face, and then with all his strength hurled a spear at Eadric, who warded it off; it glanced from his shield, struck the soldier who was standing by him, and pierced him and another man also (Gesta Regum, ii. 180); such was the tradition as to his strength in the twelfth century. The battle again lasted till twilight, and again both armies fell back from each other, but though the issue was undecided Eadmund reaped the fruits of victory, for in the stillness of the night Cnut drew off his forces and marched back towards London, where he again pressed the siege, thus leaving Eadmund undisputed possession of Wessex A legendary account of the battle is given in the ‘Knytlinga Saga’ (c. 10), and in a still stranger version of it the command of Cnut's army is attributed to Thurcytel, and he is represented as the victor (Enc. Emmæ, p. 15).

After the battle of Sherston, Eadric, impressed by the success of his brother-in-law, came to him and owned him as king. Eadmund now gathered a third army, for the local levies appear to have dispersed after every action, ‘whether a victory or a defeat’, and with it set out to raise the siege of London. He marched along the northern bank of the Thames and drove the Danes to their ships, a success which is reckoned as the third of his battles. Two days later he crossed the river at Brentford, and it is said again routed the enemy (A.-S. Chron.), who appear to have fought behind some fortifications. Several of his men were drowned in crossing the river, for they rushed heedlessly into the water excited by the hope of plunder (, Knutz-drapa in Corpus Poet. Bor. ii. 156, where the victory is attributed to Cnut). He again went into Wessex to raise another army, and Cnut renewed the siege of London, but after a short time gave it up, and after bringing his ships into the Medway employed his men in plundering expeditions, which showed that his hopes of conquest were dashed by the constant success of the English king. The fourth army raised by Eadmund was made up of men from every part of the country ; he again crossed the Thames at Brentford, marched into Kent, fought a fifth battle at Otford, where the Danes made little resistance, and compelled the enemy to take refuge in Sheppey. He did not follow up his success, for when he had reached Aylesford he listened to the counsel of Eadric, who persuaded him not to press the pursuit. The counsel is said to have been evil (A.-S. Chron.), and by later writers to have been given in subtlety However this may have been, Eadmund is of course responsible for the course he took, and he probably had good reason for it. If his troops had begun to disperse, he may well have hesitated to incur the risk of attacking the Danes when in a strong position. A defeat would probably have been fatal to his cause, for it would have made it difficult to raise new levies, while a victory would not necessarily have been final, for the Danes would have taken to their ships, and have sailed off, only to land on some other part of the coast. The English army now dispersed, and Eadmund, finding that the enemy was again making head, set about raising another force. His fifth army was, we are told, a gathering of the whole nation, and with this vast force he came up with the Danes ‘at the hill which is called Assandûn’ (A.-S. Chron.) This has been clearly identified with Ashington (‘mons asini,’ ) in Essex, one of two hills which ‘look down on a swampy plain watered by the tidal river’ the Crouch (Norman Conquest, i. 390), though Ashdown (‘mons fraxinorum,’ Enc. Emmæ, p. 18) has also been suggested. Dr. Freeman, in his account of the battle, points out that both the armies were on high ground, and that it was the object of the Danes, who were far inferior in number to the English host, to gain their ships in safety. The raven's beak opened and her wings fluttered. Thurcytel cried that the banner gave the lucky omen, and shouted for the battle (ib.) Cnut, however, did not venture to attack the English army, and began to lead his men down to the plain Both armies were on foot, and the English were drawn up in their usual close formation. Eadmund himself stood between the dragon of Wessex and the royal standard. When he saw that the Danes were making their way to their ships, he left his position and charged them furiously. At this moment, before the shock of battle actually took place, Eadric fled with the body of troops under his command, and, according to Henry of Huntingdon, who probably confuses the stories of the two battles, practised much the same trick as that ascribed to him at Sherston. The battle lasted until men could only tell friend from foe by the light of the moon. At last the English host began to give way, and was finally routed with great slaughter.