page_title: Harthacnut
section_title: Succession
hierarchical_section_title: Harthacnut / Succession
caption_attribution_description: Halfdan Egedius: Illustration for Magnus den godes saga. Snorre 1899-edition. «Magnus den gode og Hårdeknut mødes.» nb: «Magnus den gode og Horda-Knut møtes.» nn: «Magnus den gode og Horda-Knut møtest.»
context_page_description: Harthacnut, sometimes referred to as Canute III, was King of Denmark from 1035 to 1042 and King of England from 1040 to 1042.
  He was the son of King Cnut the Great and Emma of Normandy. When Cnut died in 1035, Harthacnut struggled to retain his father's possessions. Magnus I took control of Norway, but Harthacnut succeeded as King of Denmark and became King of England in 1040 after the death of his half-brother Harold Harefoot.
  Harthacnut died suddenly in 1042 and was succeeded by Magnus in Denmark and Edward the Confessor in England. Harthacnut was the last Scandinavian to rule England.
context_section_description: The political agreement between Harthacnut and Magnus the Good included the appointment of the latter as heir to Harthacnut. At the time, the agreement would have only affected the throne of Denmark. The Heimskringla reports that when Harthacnut died, Magnus extended his claim to England. He reportedly sent a letter to Edward the Confessor, pressing his claim to the English throne and threatening invasion. His own heir, Harald Hardrada, would also press this claim. Both considered themselves legal heirs to Harthacnut. The Fagrskinna contains a scene where Magnus proclaims that "I will take possession of all the Danish empire or else die in the attempt."
  According to the Encomium, Edward the Confessor already served as co-ruler of England since 1041. There is an emphasis on Harthacnut, Edward, and Emma serving as a trinity of rulers, in emulation of the Holy Trinity. Edward, by surviving his co-ruler, would be king by default. The Heimskringla depicts Edward portraying himself as brother and legal heir to both Harold Harefoot and Harthacnut, while pointing out that he had already won the support "of all the people of the country". Unstated in both is that the marriage of Edward to Edith of Wessex would also support his claim by earning him both the political support of her father Godwin and an additional connection to Cnut. She was a niece to the king. The Fagrskinna has Edward point out that he was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, the brother to Edmund Ironside, the stepson of Cnut, the stepbrother of Harold Harefoot, and the half-brother of Harthacnut. In short, he had a much stronger family claim to the throne than Magnus. All the leaders of England had already acknowledged him as their king, and he was consecrated by an archbishop. England was his own heritage. Whether Magnus managed to defeat him in war or not, "you can never be called king in England, and you will never be granted any allegiance there before you put an end to my life." This was supposedly enough to cause Magnus to doubt the strength of his own claim.
  The marriage agreement between Gunhilda of Denmark (sister of Harthacnut) and Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor would allow descendants of this marriage to claim the throne of Denmark and potentially of England. The marriage, from Henry's perspective, was probably orchestrated to allow the Holy Roman Empire to claim control of Denmark and the western areas of the Baltic Sea. However, Gunhilda had died in 1038 with no known sons. Her only daughter was Beatrice I, Abbess of Quedlinburg, who never married.
caption: Harthacnut (left) meeting King Magnus the Good at the Göta älv in modern-day Sweden. Illustration by Halfdan Egedius.
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