w withdrew most of his army from
England, so as to spare as much as possible the susceptibilities of the
Anglo-Saxons. For the same reason he had previously dispersed all his
warships but forty. On his return from Denmark he went a step farther.
In a remarkable letter, addressed to the prelates, ealdormen and people,
he declared his intention of ruling England by the English, and of
upholding the laws of King Edgar, at the same time threatening with his
vengeance all those who did not judge righteous judgment or who let
malefactors go free. The tone of this document, which is not merely
Christian but sacerdotal, shows that he had wisely resolved, in the
interests of law and order, to form a close alliance with the native
clergy. Those of his own fellow-countrymen who refused to co-operate
with him were summarily dismissed. Thus, in 1021, the stiffnecked jarl
Thorkil was banished the land, and his place taken by an Anglo-Saxon,
the subsequently famous Godwin, who became one of Canute's chief
counsellors. The humane and conciliatory character of his government is
also shown in his earnest efforts to atone for Danish barbarities in the
past. Thus he rebuilt the church of St Edmundsbury in memory of the
saintly king who had perished there at the hands of the earlier Vikings,
and with great ceremony transferred the relics of St Alphege from St
Paul's church at London to a worthier resting-place at Canterbury. His
work of reform and reconciliation was interrupted in 1026 by the attempt
of Olaf Haraldson, king of Norway, in conjunction with Anund Jakob, king
of Sweden, to conquer Denmark. Canute defeated the Swedish fleet at
Stangebjerg, and so seriously injured the combined squadrons at the
mouth of the Helgeaa in East Scania, that in 1028 he was able to subdue
the greater part of Norway "without hurling a dart or swinging a sword."
But the conquest was not permanent, the Norwegians ultimately rising
successfully against the tyranny of Alfifa, who misruled the country in
the name of her infant son Sweyn. Canute also succeeded in establishing
the dominion of Denmark over the southern shores of the Baltic, in
Witland and Samland, now forming part of the coast of Prussia. Of the
details of Canute's government in Denmark proper we know but little. His
most remarkable institution was the _Tinglid_, a military brotherhood,
originally 3000 in number, composed of members of the richest and
noblest families, who not only formed the roya