Everything about Godwin Earl Of Wessex totally explained
Godwin of Wessex, also known as Godwine, Goodwin, Godwyn or Goodwyn (c.
1001–
April 15,
1053) was one of the most powerful lords in
England under the
Danish king
Canute the Great and his successors. Canute made him the first
Earl of Wessex. Godwin was the father of King
Harold Godwinson and
Edith of Wessex, wife of King
Edward the Confessor.
Rise: support of Edmund, then Canute
Godwin's father was probably
Wulfnoth Cild who was
Thegn of
Sussex, although later documents describe his father as a
churl. Wulfnoth was supposedly a sixth generation descendant of King
Ethelred of Wessex, the older brother of
Alfred the Great; Ethelred's descendants were passed over in the royal succession, but became prominent nobles in the kingdom. However this descent of Godwin is still being researched, and shouldn't be taken as certain. Wulfnoth led a section of the royal fleet into
piracy and as a consequence had his lands forfeited, and was exiled. It was left to his young son, Godwin, to improve the family fortunes after his father's death in 1014. In his day, Earl Godwin was seen as very much of a new man, who had been "made" by two advantageous marriages to Danish noblewomen.
Godwin was a major supporter of
Edmund Ironside, the son of King
Ethelred the Unready. While Edmund was in rebellion against his father, Canute and his army invaded England. Edmund was killed, along with many of his supporters, but Godwin survived and pledged his loyalty to Canute. He befriended Canute's brother-in-law, Earl Ulf, and became one of Canute's advisors, accompanying him to Denmark to suppress a rebellion there. By 1018 he was an earl, becoming Earl of the Wessex in about 1019. In 1022 he married
Thyra Sveinsdóttir (also called Thyra Swensdottir) Canute's sister. She died soon afterwards without issue, but Godwin continued to gain prestige and by 1023 he was the most powerful earl in England.
Height of power: support of Harold
On
November 12,
1035, Canute died. His kingdoms were divided among three rival rulers.
Harold Harefoot, Canute's illegitimate son with
Aelgifu of Northampton, seized the throne of England.
Harthacanute, Canute's legitimate son with
Emma of Normandy, reigned in Denmark. Norway rebelled under
Magnus the Noble. In 1037, the throne of England was reportedly claimed by
Alfred Aetheling, younger son of
Emma of Normandy and
Ethelred the Unready, and half-brother of Harthacanute. Godwin is reported to have either captured Alfred himself or to have deceived him by pretending to be his ally and then surrendering him to the forces of Harold Harefoot. Either way Alfred was
blinded and soon died at
Ely.
In
1040, Harold Harefoot died and Godwin supported the accession of his half-brother Harthacanute to the throne of England. When Harthacanute himself died in
1042 Godwin finally supported the claim of his half-brother
Edward the Confessor to the throne. Edward was another son of Emma and Ethelred, having spent most of the previous thirty years in
Normandy. His reign restored the native royal house of Wessex to the throne of England.
Later conflicts, decline, and death
Despite his alleged responsibility for the death of Edward's brother Alfred, Godwin secured the marriage of his daughter
Edith (Eadgyth) to Edward in 1045. As Edward drew advisors, nobles and priests from his former place of refuge in a bid to develop his own power base, Godwin soon became the leader of opposition to growing
Norman influence. After a violent clash between the people of
Dover and the visiting
Eustace II,
Count of Boulogne, Edward's new brother-in-law, Godwin was ordered to punish the people of Dover (as he and
Leofric, Earl of Mercia had done in
Worcester, in Leofric's own earldom). This time, however, Godwin refused, choosing to champion his own countrymen against a (visiting) foreign ruler and his own king. Edward rightly saw this as a test of power, and managed to enlist the support of
Siward, Earl of Northumbria and Earl Leofric. Godwin and his sons were exiled from the kingdom in September 1051. However, they returned the following year with an armed force, which gained the support of the navy, burghers, and peasants, so compelling Edward to restore his earldom. This however set a precedent to be followed by a rival earl some years later, and then by Godwin's own son in 1066.
On
April 15 1053 Godwin died suddenly, after collapsing during a royal banquet at
Winchester. Some colourful accounts claim that he choked on a piece of bread while denying any disloyalty to the king. However this appears to be later
Norman propaganda, contemporary accounts indicate that he just had a sudden illness, possibly a
stroke.
His son Harold succeeded him as Earl of Wessex, an area then covering roughly the southernmost third of England. With the death of Earl Siward (1055) and later Earl
Ælfgar (1062), the children of Godwin were poised to assume sole control. Tostig was helped into the earldom of Northumbria, thus controlling the north. The Mercian earl was sidelined, especially after Harold and Tostig broke the Welsh-Mercian alliance in 1063. Harold later succeeded Edward the Confessor and became King of England in his own right. At this point, both Harold's remaining brothers in England were earls in their own right, Harold was himself king and in control of Wessex, and he'd married the sister of Earl Edwin of Mercia and
Morcar, Earl of Northumbria (who had succeeded his brother Tostig). Godwin's family looked set to inaugurate a new royal dynasty.
Progeny
Godwin married a second time to a Danish noblewoman,
Gytha Thorkelsdóttir (also known as Githa), said to be the granddaughter of the legendary Viking
Styrbjörn Starke and great-granddaughter to
Harold Bluetooth, king of Denmark and thus also ancestor to King Canute. The marriage resulted in the birth of many children:
- Sweyn Godwinson, Earl of Herefordshire (c. 1023-1052). At some point he declared himself an illegitimate son of Canute the Great but this is considered to be a false claim.
- Harold II of England (c. 1022-October 14, 1066)
- Tostig Godwinson, Earl of Northumbria (c. 1026-September 25, 1066)
- Edith of Wessex, (c. 1030-December 19, 1075), queen consort of Edward the Confessor
- Gyrth Godwinson (c. 1030-October 14, 1066)
- Gunhilda of Wessex, a nun (c. 1035-1080)
- Ælfgifu of Wessex (c. 1035)
- Leofwine Godwinson, Earl of Kent (c. 1035-October 14, 1066)
- Wulfnoth Godwinson (c. 1040)
- Marigard of Wessex (February 6, 1033 - August 6, 1083)
Family Trees
- House of Wessex family tree
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Sources
Mason, Emma. The House of Godwine: The History of Dynasty. Hambledon Press, 2003.
Stenton, F.M. Anglo-Saxon England (Oxford History of England), 2001.
Thorne, J.O. and Collocott, T.C. Chambers Biographical Dictionary, Revised Edition. (Edinburgh: Chambers, 1984) ISBN 0-550-16010-8
Walker, Ian. Harold: The Last Anglo-Saxon King, 1997.
Ancestral Roots of Certain American Colonists Who Came to America Before 1700 by Frederick Lewis Weis, Lines: 1B-15, 1B-23, 1B-26, 166-23.
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