Thorkell the Tall Thorkell the Tall , also known as Thorkell the High in the Anglo - Saxon Chronicles ( Old Norse : Þorke ( ti ) ll inn hávi ; ; Swedish ; Torkel Höge : Danish : Torkild den Høje ) was a Jomsviking , a son of the Scanian chieftain Strut - Harald , a brother of Jarl Sigvaldi , commander of the Jomvikings and the legendary stronghold , mythical Jomsborg , on the Island of Wollin , while himself a notable lord . Thorkell took part in the Battle of Hjörungavágr in 986 and in the Battle of Swold in 1000 . He attacked England in 1010 , landing near Ipswich on the shores of the river Orwell at Nacton with a large army , defeating the local army sent from Ipswich . He was eventually paid an unusually large Danegeld in 1011 . In 1012 , Thorkell ' s men took Archbishop Alphege hostage , who had previously been instrumental in negotiating danegeld payments . It is said that Alphege refused to be exchanged for ransom organised by Eadric Streona as he did not wish to further impoverish his countrymen . As a consequence of this he was murdered by Thorkell ' s men during a drunken feast . Sensing that he was losing control over his men , Thorkell and his loyalists defected and he and his men entered into the service of king Ethelred the Unready , whom they fought under in 1013 against the invasion of king Sweyn Forkbeard and his son Cnut . After the death of Sweyn , and the English attacks on the Danish invaders which drove his son to abandon the conquest , Ethelred ' s forces were turned against the Jomsvikings in his service . Thorkell ' s brother Heming was killed , and he went back to Denmark , with a score to settle in England . He was to return with the future king , in 1015 , and the invasion ' s success meant he was proclaimed to be the Jarl of East Anglia , in 1017 , after the coronation of the Viking king of England . An explanation for Cnut the Great ' s acceptance of Thorkell ' s allegiance , not to mention his military prowess , may be that he was in fact his childhood mentor , and the Jomsvikings were also of special worth to Cnut . He himself held a score against the men responsible for the betrayal of oaths of allegiance given by the English nobles after his father Forkbeard ' s conquest . If it was Thorkell ' s men who taught Cnut to fight his battles , such bonds as these were surely hard broken , even with opposition in war . In 1021 , though , Jarl Thorkell fell out with king Cnut , and had to make himself scarce and went to Denmark . This appears to have been as a result of a trial of his wife , who was found guilty of poisoning his son by his first marriage , with the help of a witch . Thorkell had sworn to her innocence and consequently lost face . He was soon reconciled with Canute again , who proclaimed him Jarl of Denmark once more , although he seems to disappear in 1023 , as there is no mention of him after this point . It may be he was simply too old for any more conflict , and the final years of his life spent at court , yet with no military commands . It may also be that he was cast out of the kingdom , to return to Jomsborg , or Scane , and lived the rest of his days as a wayward old soldier . Equally , he might have been dead soon after he was made Jarl of Denmark , and the causes either natural or malevolent . While we are sure Thorkell is undoubtedly a real historical figure , his career , especially its early part , is steeped in legendary associations with the mysterious Jomsvikings , which too often distract and distort from the facts of his life . In fiction . Thorkell the Tall appears as a character in the Japanese manga " Vinland Saga " , a fictionalized account of the era . His character is first seen defending London from the Danish Invasion , but he later aligns himself with Prince Canute in an effort to dethrone Sweyn Forkbeard .