The battle lasted till night, without any decisive advantage on either side. In the morning Edmund intended to renew the battle, but Canute, who had other intentions, retired to his ships and set sail, hastily landed his forces, and besieged London a second time with no better success than the first.

As soon as Edric saw that Canute's fortunes were on the decline, he changed sides again, and Edmund, yielding to the extraordinary influence which this villain appears to have possessed, admitted him into his confidence. He soon had to rue his folly, for after winning three battles against the Danes, and freeing London of their presence, Edmund would have utterly overthrown them at Otford had not the advice of Edric dissuaded him from continuing the pursuit. His pretext was that, if hardly pressed, despair might cause them to rally, and convert defeat into victory. Perhaps his idea was to weary out both sides, and so establish himself upon the ruins of their power.

A fifth battle was accordingly fought at Ashdon, in Essex, and here Edric once more acted the part of a traitor, for perceiving that the Danes were being put to flight, he drew off his men, and Canute finally won a crushing victory, slaying many of the chief men on the side of the English. It is hard to believe that his conduct on this occasion can have been as openly base as the chroniclers represent it, for we find that he is still trusted by the king, who, undaunted by his previous disasters, prepared to renew the conflict yet a sixth time. The two armies, therefore, confronted one another yet again, but no battle took place. A famous story is told concerning the two kings on this occasion, but it is not found in the more trustworthy accounts. It is said that Edmund proposed that they should decide their claims to the crown in single combat; an offer which his rival declined, under the plea that he was small of stature and of a sickly constitution; but added that, if the English king wished to avoid the effusion of blood, he was quite willing to consent to a division of the kingdom.

The more probable account of what occurred is that Edric Streona persuaded Edmund that it would be unwise to risk another battle, and that he had better agree to a partition of the kingdom. Anyhow, no battle was fought, and the two kings met on the island of Olney, in the Severn, and agreed that Edmund should be over-king, and should possess Wessex, Essex, and East Anglia, with London, while Canute should have Mercia and Northumberland. As Professor Freeman points out, the division differed from that made between Alfred and Guthrum, for Edmund gave to Canute all that part of Mercia which Alfred had kept, while he retained East Anglia and Essex, which by the old partition had belonged to Guthrum.

MEETING OF EDMUND IRONSIDE AND CANUTE ON THE ISLAND OF OLNEY. (See p. [63.])

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Edmund did not live to enjoy the rest he had won so dearly for many weeks, for on St. Andrew's Day, 1017, he died, and his death, like other unexpected events of the period, was attributed to Edric Streona. Upon this point, however, nothing can be asserted with safety, despite the circumstantial accounts of the chroniclers. Edmund had reigned only seven months, but in that brief space he had proved himself a very different man to his father.

On the death of Edmund Ironside, Canute's position in England was naturally much stronger than when he was maintaining an obstinate contest with the brave English king. Edmund's children were very young, and their claims were not to be entertained when it was of the utmost importance to have a man of courage and resource at the head of affairs. There was, however, a formidable competitor in Edwy, the late king's brother, who was much beloved by the people. But the Witena-gemot, weary of the contest for the kingdom, was convened at London, and Canute was chosen king over all England. It is said that in order to weaken the claims of his rivals he exacted from the assembly a promise that none of Edmund's sons or brothers should be king, and they even advised that Edwy should be outlawed. The pretext for this exclusion was that no mention had been made of the members of the line of Wessex in the treaty between Canute and Edmund.

Edwy was outlawed in 1017, and shortly afterwards died, murdered apparently by order of Canute, although there is another story that an unsuccessful attempt at his assassination was made shortly before his outlawry. In any case he disappears from history. The children of Ethelred and Emma were in Normandy with their mother. Edmund's two sons, Edward and Edmund, were sent to the King of Sweden, with secret orders, it is said, that they should be put to death. But Olaf, though placed in an embarrassing position by this infamous request, resolved to spare them. However, to avoid being drawn into war with his powerful neighbour he in his turn sent them to Stephen, King of Hungary, to be educated at his court. There Edmund died young; but Edward lived and married Agatha, the niece of Stephen's queen. She bore him Edgar Atheling, of whom we shall hear again, and Margaret, who afterwards became Queen of the Scots.