ABSTRACT
From the late eighth century to the end of the Anglo-Saxon period, England was a land dominated by Scandinavian activities, some murderous, as Beaduhard, the kings unfortunate reeve, discovered to his cost in 789, some friendly and fruitful, as the enduring Scandinavian contribution to the language illustrates. The composer of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle ushered in a new age: the age of the Vikings. The Maldon poet uses the lord-comitatus image not because it accurately represents the historical situation of Byrhtnoth and his men, but because it raises them to the level of the semi-mythological heroes that are celebrated in Beowulf and the other heroic poems. A united army of men from Somerset, led by ealdorman Eanwulf, and men from Dorset, led by ealdorman Osric and Ealhstan, bishop of Sherborne, overcame a Danish army at the mouth of the Parret.
