Editing Eric Bloodaxe (section)

==Death==
[[File:Eric places.jpg|thumb|Map with relevant locations.]]

The ''Chronicle'' gives no explanation, but it seems as if the abdications of Amlaíb and Eric are described as essentially northern affairs, apparently without much (direct) West-Saxon intervention, let alone invasion.<ref>A. Woolf, ''From Pictland to Alba''. p. 190.</ref> The historical accounts of Eric's death point to more complex circumstances, but Northumbrian politics are to the fore. Following a report on the invasion of Scotland by [[William the Conqueror|William I]] in 1072, the ''Historia regum'' attributed to [[Symeon of Durham]] recalls that Eric was driven out and slain by one Maccus son of Onlaf.<ref name="ftn0">'Illico Northymbrenses, expulso rege suo atque occiso a Maccus filio Onlafi, juramentis et muneribus placaverunt regem Eadredum, commissa provincia Osulfo comiti.' ''Historia regum ''AD 1072, ed. Arnold, p. 197; similarly, Roger of Howden, ''Chronica'' I, p. 57.</ref> The ''Flores historiarum'' (early 13th century) by [[Roger of Wendover]] is thought to have relied on a northern source now lost to us when it adds the following details:

{{verse translation|lang=la|... rex Eilricus in quadam solitudine quae 'Steinmor' dicitur, cum filio suo Henrico {{noitalic|{{Lang|en|italic=unset|[in other MSS, ''Haerico'']}}}} et fratre Reginaldo, proditione Osulfi comitis, a Macone consule fraudulenter interempti sunt, ac deinde in partibus illis rex Eadredus regnavit.
|King Eric was treacherously killed by Earl [{{lang|la|consul}}] Maccus in a certain lonely place which is called Stainmore, with his son Haeric and his brother Ragnald, betrayed by Earl [{{lang|la|comes}}] Oswulf; and then afterwards King Eadred ruled in these districts.<ref name="ftn66">Roger of Wendover, ''Flores Historiarum'', ed. Coxe, vol. 1. pp. 402–03, tr. Dorothy Whitelock, ''English Historical Documents I''. 2nd. p. 284.</ref>}}

[[Stainmore]], traditionally in [[Westmorland]] and administratively in [[Cumbria]], lies in the main pass through the northern [[Pennines]], the Stainmore Pass or Gap, which marks the boundary between Cumbria in the west and modern [[County Durham|Durham]] in the east. It is here that the mountains are traversed by an old Roman road&nbsp;– more or less followed by the [[A66 road|A66]] today – leading from York to [[Catterick, North Yorkshire|Catterick]] and north-westwards from Catterick (via [[Bowes]], Stainmore, [[Brough, Cumbria|Brough]], [[Appleby-in-Westmorland|Appleby]] and [[Penrith, Cumbria|Penrith]]) to [[Carlisle, Cumbria|Carlisle]]. Eric may therefore have followed by and large the same route that St Cathroé had taken, except in the opposite direction, possibly with Strathclyde or the Hebrides as his intended destination.

The ''comes'' [[Osulf I of Bamburgh|Osulf]] who betrayed Eric was high-reeve of the northern half of Northumbria, centred on Bamburgh, roughly corresponding to the former kingdom of Bernicia. He clearly benefited from his murderous plot against Eric. The ''[[Historia regum]]'' says that the province of Northumbria was henceforward administered by earls and records the formal appointment of Osulf as earl of Northumbria the following year.<ref name="ftn68">''Historia regum'' (6th section) AD 952, ed. Arnold, vol. 2, p. 94: 'defecerunt hic reges Northanhymbrorum; et deinceps ipsa provincia administrata est per comites'; ''Historia regum'' (section 6) AD 953, ed. Arnold, vol. 2, p. 94: 'Comes Osulf suscepit comitatum Northanhymbrorum'.</ref> Likewise, the early 12th century ''[[De primo Saxonum adventu]]'' notes that "[f]irst of the earls after Erik, the last king whom the Northumbrians had, Osulf administered under King Eadred all the provinces of the Northumbrians."<ref name="ftn69">'Primus comitum post Eiricum, quem ultimum regem habuerunt Northymbrenses, Osulf provincias omnes Northanhymbrorum sub Edrido rege procuravit'. ''De primo Saxonum adventu'', ed. Arnold, vol. 2, p. 382, tr. Anderson, ''Scottish Annals'', p. 77.</ref>

By contrast, the identity of Eric's slayer, the ''comes ''Maccus son of Anlaf, is unclear. His name may point to origins in a Norse-Gaelic family based in the [[Border country]]. While Anlaf (Middle Irish: ''Amlaíb'', Old Norse: ''Óláfr'') is a common Scandinavian and Norse-Gaelic name, [[Maccus]], a Norse-Gaelic name of Middle Irish origin, is geographically more restricted and is particularly well attested in southern Scottish place-names.<ref name="ftn77">David E. Thornton, "Hey Mac! The name Maccus, tenth to fifteenth centuries". ''Nomina'' 20 (1997–99): 67–98. Alex Woolf concludes that the name would seem to be "intimately connected with the zone of Gaelic, Norse and Anglo-Saxon fusion in Northumbria". ''From Pictland to Alba''. p. 190 note 26.</ref> Based on Eric's confrontation with his predecessor Óláfr in ''Fagrskinna'', attempts have been made to connect Onlaf to [[Amlaíb Cuarán]], but this must remain in the realm of speculation.

Eric's death receives a grander treatment in the synoptic histories and sagas. ''Fagrskinna'', apparently the ''Eiríksmál'' which it incorporates, and ''Heimskringla'' assert that Eric and five other kings died together in battle in an unnamed place in England.<ref name="ftn80">''Fagrskinna'' ch. 8; ''Heimskringla'' ''(Hakonar saga) ''ch. 4.</ref> According to ''Ágrip'' and ''Historia Norwegiæ'', Eric died on a foray in Spain after being forced out of Northumbria.<ref name="ftn81">''Ágrip'' ch. 7; ''Historia Norwegiæ'' 106.</ref> Somewhat in line with the former version, earlier generations of scholars have envisaged the occasion of Eric's death on Stainmore to have been a last stand in battle.<ref name="ftn79">W. G. Collingwood, "King Eiríkr of York".</ref> The view was espoused by W.G. Collingwood and later still by [[Frank Stenton]], who speculates that Eric might have attempted to regain the kingdom or was fighting off pursuers.<ref name="ftn67">W. G. Collingwood, "The Battle of Stainmoor"; F. M. Stenton, ''Anglo-Saxon England''. p. 360.</ref> [[Finnur Jónsson]] re-interprets the alternative tradition in a historical light by proposing that ''Span-'' "Spain" in ''Ágrip'' goes back to a scribal confusion for ''Stan''-, which in turn would have referred to Stainmore (OE *''Stan''). Having thus ascribed a historical core to the body of Scandinavian material, he in turn interprets the event as a battle.<ref name="ftn75">Finnur Jónsson, ''Den Oldnorske og Oldislandske Litteraturs Historie''. Copenhagen, 1920–1924. 3 vols: vol 2. 2nd ed. p. 614, note 2.</ref>

However, scholars today are usually less prepared to colour the sober records with details from the sagas, preferring to take the view that Eric was assassinated in exile.<ref name="ftn82">Smyth, ''Warlords''. p. 228; Hudson, ''Viking pirates''. pp. 5, 38.</ref> In sum then, it looks as if Eric, expelled and heading in a north-westerly direction (possibly in search of support), was about to cross over into Cumbria, when in a bid for power, his official Osulf had him killed through the agency of Maccus. Exactly what made this a betrayal (''proditio'') in the eyes of the 10th century chronicler or those of [[Roger of Wendover]], is unclear. It is unknown whether Osulf was also behind Eric's expulsion, despite being the main beneficiary, and whether he was expected to grant Eric safe passage and perhaps an escort to guide him safely through that part of Northumbria over which he (Osulf) had jurisdiction. It is equally obscure whether Maccus ambushed his victims, or was part of the escort, betraying them (''fraudulenter'') as soon as he saw the opportunity.

===''Eiríksmál''===
Towards the end of its portrait of Eric, ''[[Fagrskinna]]'' cites the ''[[Eiríksmál]]'' ("Lay of Eric"), an anonymous panegyric written in commemoration of Eric's death and according to the saga's introduction, commissioned by his widow Gunnhild.<ref name="ftn85" /> Except for a single stanza in the Edda, the skaldic poem is preserved nowhere else and what has survived may represent only the opening stanzas.

Cast as a dialogue between [[Bragi]], [[Odin]], and fallen heroes, it tells of Eric's arrival in [[Valhöll]], accompanied by five other kings, and his splendid welcome there by Odin and his entourage. Odin had eagerly awaited his coming because "many lands [...] / with his sword he has reddened" and on being asked why he had deprived Eric of such earthly glory, answers that "the future is uncertain", since the grey wolf is always lying in wait. Eric is then greeted by the famous hero [[Sigmundr]]: "Hail now, Eiríkr [...] / here you shall be welcome; / brave hero, enter the hall."<ref name="ftn88">''Eiríksmál'', tr. Finlay, ''Fagrskinna'' ch. 8.</ref>

Some have argued that the language of the poem shows influence from [[Old English]].<ref name="ftn86">Edith Marold, "''Eiríksmál''". In ''Medieval Scandinavia. An Encyclopedia'', ed. Phillip Pulsiano and Kirsten Wolf. New York: Garland, 1993. pp. 161–62.</ref> However, on recently examining the poem, John McKinnell could find little trace of this.<ref>"Eddic poetry in Anglo-Scandinavian Northern England". p. 327.</ref> The (original) date of composition remains a matter of some debate: some argue that it was written shortly after Eric's death, while others who regard the poem as an imitation of the ''[[Hákonarmál]]'' in honour of [[Haakon the Good]] prefer a date sometime after Haakon's death, ''c''. 961.<ref>Edith Marold, "''Eiríksmál''".</ref>

In spite of the decidedly pagan contents of the poem, Eric may have died a Christian, as some of the sagas suggest.<ref>For instance, ''Historia Norwegiæ'', tr. Kunin, p. 15; ''Fagrskinna'' ch. 7.</ref> There is no evidence for his religious beliefs, but if ever Eric was to be accepted and consecrated as king, probably with Wulfstan as king-maker, acceptance of the Christian faith would have been set as a condition to royal office. The impression is borne out by Wulfstan's earlier removal of Amlaíb Cuarán and Ragnald on grounds that they had become, in Æthelweard's words, ''deserti'' "deserters" (see above).

In support of this view, it has sometimes been suggested that the name of one ''Eiric rex Danorum'', "Eric king of the Danes", written into the [[Durham Liber Vitae|Durham ''Liber Vitae'']], f. 55v., may represent Eric of York.<ref name="ftn70">"Eiric rex danorum, Botild regina, Tovi, Modera uxor Tovi, Alf, Sunapas, Thor Muntokes sune, Ulf Duft, Torkitell muli, Osbern, Eoltkill, Askill, Turkill, Walecho, Gerbrun". Durham ''Liber Vitae''. p. 78. E.g. Charles Plummer, ''Two of the Saxon Chronicles Parallel''. p. 148; Richard A. Fletcher, ''The Barbarian Conversion''. p. 392.</ref> However, this can now be safely rejected in favour of an identification with Eric Ejegod (r. 1095–1103), whose queen Bodil (''Botild'') occurs by name after him.<ref name="ftn71">John Insley, "The Scandinavian Personal Names". In ''The Durham Liber Vitae and Its Context''. p. 90.</ref>

===Rey Cross===

[[File:The stump of the ancient Rey Cross - geograph.org.uk - 846388.jpg|thumb|left|Rey Cross]]
[[File:Eirik Blodøks with Gunhild, Egil Skallagrimsson standing.jpg|thumb|left|Eric Bloodaxe, seated, and [[Gunnhild, Mother of Kings|Gunnhild]] are confronted by [[Egill Skallagrimsson]].]]

On the north side of the A66 in Stainmore today stands the so-called [[Rey Cross|Rey cross]], also known as Rere Cross, though what survives is little more than a stump consisting of the socket and a fragment of the shaft. Before it was temporarily housed at the [[Bowes Museum]] in 1990 and moved to its present location, it stood on a mound of rock a little further west on the south side of the road – [[British national grid reference system|coordinates]]: {{gbmaprim|NY89991230|NY 89991230}}.<ref>"Rey Cross". In ''Corpus of Anglo-Saxon Stone Sculpture. Volume VI: Yorkshire North Riding (Except Ryedale)'', ed. James Lang. pp. 283–84. The following is also based on the description there.</ref> The two sides of the shaft once seem to have borne carvings, if that much can be concluded from [[John Speed]]'s supposed description in 1611. Based on stylistic observations made by W. G. Collingwood when certain features were apparently still visible, it has been described as an Anglo-Scandinavian cross, possibly of the 10th century. No burials have been found. All evidence seems to point to its use as a boundary marker (between Cumbria and Northumbria), much like the [[Legg's cross]] (County Durham) on [[Dere Street]]. The name has been explained as deriving from [[Old Norse]] ''hreyrr'', "cairn", or "boundary cairn". Towards the end of the 19th century, however, [[W. S. Calverley]] argued that whatever its function in later ages, crosses in those times were usually tombstones, whereas boundary crosses postdate the Conquest. In the absence of a churchyard, he tentatively links the erection of the Rey cross to the putative battle on Stainmore. Although he ultimately rejects the idea of a memorial stone for Eric as "mere romance", W. G. Collingwood was less prepared to dismiss it out of hand: "a romancer might be justified in fancying that the Rey cross was carved and set up by Northumbrian admirers of the once mighty and long famous last King of York."<ref>[[William Slater Calverley]], "Stainmoor"; W. G. Collingwood, "King Eirík of York", p. 327; "The Battle of Stainmoor", pp. 240–41, cited passage on p. 241.</ref> No further evidence has been adduced to support the suggestion.