Uhtred the Bold Uchtred or Uhtred , called the Bold , ( d . 1016 ) was the ealdorman of all Northumbria from 1006 to 1016 , when he was assassinated . He was the son of Waltheof I , ealdorman of Bamburgh , whose ancient family had ruled from the castle of Bamburgh on the Northumbrian coast . In 995 , according to Symeon of Durham , when the remains of St Cuthbert were transferred from Chester - le - Street to Durham , Uhtred helped the monks clear the site of the new cathedral . The new cathedral was founded by Bishop Aldhun , and Uhtred married Aldhun ' s daughter , Ecgfrida , probably at about this time . From his marriage he received several estates that had belonged to the church . In 1006 Malcolm II of Scotland invaded Northumbria and besieged the newly founded episcopal city of Durham . At that time the Danes were raiding southern England and King Ethelred was unable to send help to the Northumbrians . Ealdorman Waltheof was too old to fight and remained in his castle at Bamburgh . Ealdorman Ælfhelm of York also took no action . Uhtred , acting for his father , called together an army from Bernicia and Yorkshire and led it against the Scots . The result was a decisive victory for Uhtred . Local women washed the severed heads of the Scots , receiving a payment of a cow for each , and the heads were fixed on stakes to Durham ' s walls . Uhtred was rewarded by King Ethelred II with the ealdormanry of Bamburgh even though his father was still alive . In the mean time , Ethelred had had Ealdorman Ælfhelm of York murdered , and he allowed Uhtred to succeed Ælfhelm as ealdorman of York , thus uniting northern and southern Northumbria under the house of Bamburgh . It seems likely that Ethelred did not trust the Scandinavian population of southern Northumbria and wanted an Anglo - Saxon in power there . After receiving these honours Uhtred dismissed his wife , Ecgfrida , and married Sige , daughter of Styr , son of Ulf . Styr was a rich citizen of York . It appears that Uhtred was trying to make political allies amongst the Danes in Deira . Through Sige , Uhtred had two children , Eadulf , later Eadulf III , and Gospatric . This Gospatric ' s grandson was the infamous Eadwulf Rus who murdered Bishop Walcher . In 1013 King Sweyn of Denmark invaded England , sailing up the Humber and Trent to the town of Gainsborough . Uhtred submitted to him there , as did all of the Danes in the north . In the winter of 1013 Ethelred was forced into exile in Normandy . After London had finally submitted to him , Swein was accepted as king by Christmas 1013 . However he only reigned for five weeks , for he died at , or near , Gainsborough on 2 February 1014 . At Sweyn ’ s death , Ethelred was able to return from exile and resume his reign . Uhtred , along with many others , transferred his allegiance back to Ethelred , on his return . Uhtred also married Ethelred ’ s daughter Ælfgifu about this time . In 1016 Uhtred campaigned with Ethelred ' s son Edmund Ironside in Cheshire and the surrounding shires . While Uhtred was away from his lands , Sweyn ' s son , Cnut , invaded Yorkshire . Cnut ' s forces were too strong for Uhtred to fight , and so Uhtred did homage to him as King of England . Uhtred was summoned to a meeting with Cnut , and on the way there , he and forty of his men were murdered by Thurbrand the Hold , with assistance from Uhtred ' s own servant , Wighill and with the connivance of Cnut . Uhtred was succeeded in Bernicia by his brother Eadwulf Cudel . Cnut made the Norwegian , Eric of Hlathir , ealdorman ( " earl " in Scandinavian terms ) in southern Northumbria . The killing of Uhtred by Thurbrand the Hold started a blood feud that lasted for many years . Uhtred ' s son Ealdred subsequently avenged his father by killing Thurbrand , but Ealdred in turn was killed by Thurbrand ' s son , Carl . Eadred ' s vengeance had to wait until the 1070s , when Waltheof , Eadred ’ s grandson had his soldiers kill most of Carl ' s sons and grandsons . This is an example of the notorious Northumbrian blood feuds that were common at this time . Uhtred ' s dynasty continued to reign in Bernicia through Ealdred , Earl of Bamburgh ( killed 1038 ) his son from his marriage to Ecgfrida , and Eadulf ( killed 1041 ) his son from his marriage to Sige , and briefly Eadulf ' s son Osulf held the earldom of northern Northumbria 1067 until he too was killed . Uhtred ’ s marriage to Ælfgifu produced a daughter , Ealdgyth , who married Maldred , brother of Duncan I of Scotland and who gave birth to a son , Gospatric , who was Earl of Northumbria from 1068 to 1072 . Fiction . In Bernard Cornwell ' s series The Saxon Stories the protagonist is Earl Uhtred of Bebbanburg , also from Northumbria . The story of the siege of Durham and the severed heads on poles is told about the historical Uhtred ( see " Battles of the Dark Ages " , Peter Marren ) , though it is perhaps possible to assume that the fictional Earl Uhtred of Bebbanburg is an ancestor of this Uhtred . In Bernard Cornwell ' s series he adds a ' historical note ' at the end , in which , especially in the first book , he mentions that Uhtred was his Ancestor . He took the liberty of installing Uhtred earlier in history . While I have no citation for this it is documented across the historical notes of his Saxon novels , though not all in one . Adrian Mourby ' s two Radio Plays , ' The Corsaint ' ( c . 1986 ) and its sequel , ' The King of the North Rides his Horse through the Sky ' ( 1992 ) provide convincing dramatic realisations of these historical events . They were broadcast by BBC Radio 4 .