Source.—Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Translated by J. A. Giles. Bohn’s Library.

Anno 787.—This year King Bertric took to wife Eadburga, King Offa’s daughter; and in his days first came three ships of Northmen. And then the reeve rode to the place and would have driven them to the king’s town [? Dorchester] because he knew not who they were: and they there slew him. These were the first ships of Danish men which sought the land of the English nation.

Anno 794.—The heathens ravaged among the Northumbrians, and plundered Egfert’s monastery at the mouth of the Wear; and there one of their leaders was slain, and also some of their ships were wrecked by a tempest; and many of them were there drowned, and some came on shore alive, and they were soon slain at the river’s mouth.

Anno 835.—This year the heathen men ravaged Sheppey.

Anno 836.—This year King Egbert fought against the men of thirty-five ships at Charmouth, and there was great slaughter made, and the Danish men maintained possession of the field.

Anno 838.—This year a great hostile fleet came to the West Welsh [Cornwall], and they united together, and made war upon Egbert, king of the West Saxons. As soon as he heard of it, he went thither with an army, and fought against them at Hengestdune, and there he put to flight both the Welsh and the Danish men.

Anno 840.—This year Wulfherd the ealdorman fought at Hamtun [Southampton], against the forces of thirty-five ships, and there made great slaughter, and got the victory. And the same year Ethelhelm the ealdorman fought against the Danish army at Portland isle, with the men of Dorset, and for a good while he put the enemy to flight; but the Danish men had possession of the field, and slew the ealdorman.

Anno 841.—This year Herebert the ealdorman was slain by the heathen men, and many with him among the Marshmen [Romney Marsh]; and afterwards, the same year, in Lindsey, and in East Anglia, and in Kent, many men were slain by the enemy.

Anno 842.—This year there was great slaughter at London, and at Canterbury, and at Rochester.

Anno 843.—This year King Ethelwulf fought at Charmouth against the crews of thirty-five ships, and the Danish men maintained possession of the field.

Anno 848.—This year Eanwulf the ealdorman, with the men of Somerset, and Bishop Ealstan, and Osric the ealdorman, with the men of Dorset, fought at the mouth of the Parret, against the Danish army, and there made great slaughter, and got the victory.

Anno 851.—This year Ceorl the ealdorman, with the men of Devonshire, fought against the heathen men at Wembury [near Plymouth], and there made great slaughter and got the victory. And the same year Athelstan and Elchere the ealdorman fought on shipboard, and slew a great number of the enemy at Sandwich in Kent, and took nine ships, and put the others to flight; and the heathen men, for the first time, remained over winter in Thanet. And the same year came three hundred and fifty ships to the mouth of the Thames, and the crews landed and took Canterbury and London by storm, and put to flight Berthwulf, King of the Mercians, with his army, and then went south over the Thames into Surrey; and there King Ethelwulf and his son Ethelbald, with the fyrd of the West Saxons, fought against them at Ockley, and there made the greatest slaughter among the heathen army that we have heard reported to the present day, and there got the victory.

Anno 853.—This year Ealhere, with the men of Kent, and Huda, with the men of Surrey, fought in Thanet, against the heathen army; and at first they were victorious; and many there were slain, and drowned on either hand, and both the ealdormen were killed.

Anno 855.—This year the heathen men, for the first time, remained over winter in Sheppey.

Anno 860.—This year Ethelbert succeeded to all the realm of his brother. And in his days a large fleet came to land, and the crews stormed Winchester. And Osric the ealdorman, with the men of Hampshire, and Ethelwulf the ealdorman, with the men of Berkshire, fought against the army, and put them to flight, and had possession of the place of carnage.

Anno 865.—This year the heathen army sat down in Thanet, and made peace with the men of Kent, and the men of Kent promised them money for the peace; and during the peace and the promise of money the army stole away by night, and ravaged all Kent to the eastward.

Anno 866.—This year a great heathen army came to the land of the English nation, and took up their winter quarters among the East Angles, and there they were horsed; and the East Angles made peace with them.

Anno 867.—This year the army went from East Anglia over the mouth of the Humber to York in Northumbria. And there was much dissension among that people, and they had cast out their King Osbert, and had taken to themselves a king, Ælle, not of royal blood; but late in the year they resolved that they would fight against the army; and therefore they gathered a large force, and sought the army at the town of York, and stormed the town, and some of them got within, and there was an excessive slaughter made of the Northumbrians, some within, some without, and the kings were both slain: and the remainder made peace with the army.

Anno 868.—This year the same army went into Mercia to Nottingham, and there took up their winter quarters. And Burhred, King of the Mercians, and his witan begged of Ethelred, King of the West Saxons, and of Alfred his brother, that they would help them, that they might fight against the army. And then they went with the West Saxon fyrd into Mercia as far as Nottingham, and there met with the army within the fortress; and besieged them therein: but there was no great battle; and the Mercians made peace with the army.

Anno 869.—This year the army again went to York, and sat there one year.

Anno 870.—This year the army rode across Mercia into East Anglia, and took up their winter quarters at Thetford: and the same winter King Edmund fought against them, and the Danes got the victory, and slew the king, and subdued all the land, and destroyed all the minsters which they came to. The names of their chiefs who slew the king were Inguar and Ubba.