He succeeded to the throne after the
murder of his half-brother, Edward II, the Martyr, at the age of ten. His
reign was plagued by poor advice from his personal favorites and
suspicions of his complicity in Edward's murder. His was a rather long and
ineffective reign, which was notable for little other than the payment of
the Danegeld, an attempt to buy off the Viking invaders with money. The
relentless invasions by the Danish Vikings, coupled with their
ever-escalating demands for more money, forced him to abandon his throne
in 1013. He fled to Normandy for safety, but was later recalled to his old
throne at the death of Svein Forkbeard in 1014. He died in London in 1016.