Olaf, son of Sigtrygg, fled to Ireland, but his brother Gušred went to Constantine, King of Scotland, and Eugene, lord of Cumberland, soliciting their assistance. Threatened by emissaries from Athelstane, they dared not comply with the wishes of Gušred, and he was compelled to depend upon his own resources, supported only by a faithful friend, Thurfred; they besieged York, but did not succeed, shortly afterwards they were taken prisoners and confined in a castle; they escaped and went to sea, but Thurfred was drowned, and Gušred, having met with many misfortunes, chose to throw himself on the mercy of Athelstane, and repaired to his court, where he indeed got a good reception; but only for four days could the old Viking stand this quiet life, and "went back to his ships like a fish to the sea." It seems that the battle of Vinheid, described at large and very spiritedly in the Egils-Saga, is one of the incidents of the feud here mentioned (only the Saga-author has probably made a little more of it than it really was), and not, as has been believed, the celebrated battle of Brunanburg, which took place in 938; at least the Egils-Saga itself says distinctly that the battle of Vinheid was fought shortly after the accession of Athelstane.
Olaf, son of Sigtrygg, is not the only king of this name at that time appearing in the English and Irish annals, and making war against Athelstane. There was also another Olaf, son of the cruel Gušred King of Dublin, who left Dublin some time after the death of his father, A.D. 934, either expelled by his subjects or allured by the hope of getting possessions in Northumberland but the annals here are so meagre and obscure, that in many cases it is impossible to see which of the two is meant, perhaps even the annalists themselves did not know.
One of these Olafs was married to the daughter of Constantine, King of Scotland, and tried to get possession of Northumberland through his help; and although Constantine had done homage to Athelstane, he was seduced by Olaf to shake off his allegiance, which caused Athelstane to make a great expedition against Scotland, A,D. 934. In this war Athelstane was successful, and compelled Constantine to submit anew, and give his son as a hostage for his future obedience. A few years after, however, Constantine, as the annalists tell, prevailed on his son-in-law to attack England; and it is to be inferred, from the greatness of the armament as well as from the importance which the entries in the old annals evidently assign to these events, and lastly from the Epinicion composed by the English poets to commemorate the victory of Brunanburgh (Chronicon Saxonicum), that, all the Danish and Norwegian chiefs in the north of England and south of Scotland had formed a league to regain their former position in Northumberland, and that they were supported by their brethren from Ireland, and the Isles, as well as by Constantine.
The son-in-law of Constantine had amongst his auxiliaries his namesake, the other Olaf. With 615 ships he landed in the Humber, accompanied by five kings besides Constantine, and seven earls. He was, however, totally defeated by Athelstane in the great battle of Brunanburgh, A.D. 935 and the Norwegians, so says the ancient poem, were driven back to Dublin and Ireland. The return to Dublin of Olaf son of Gudred, is even mentioned in the Ulster annals 23 of the other Olaf, however, nothing is heard for the next years; that it was he who had married the daughter of Constantine, and therefore did not then go to Ireland, but returned to Scotland, where no annals are left to record his arrival. At the death of Athelstane, the annals proceed to tell us that the Northumbruans again revolted, and took Olaf from Ireland to be their king; and that Olaf was now successful, being supported even by the Archbishop Wulfstrin. Both archbishops, Odo of Canterbury and Wulfstin of York, negotiated a treaty between Olaf and Eadmund, the successor of Athelstane, by which treaty Eadmund ceded to Olaf the ancient Danish kingdom north-east of Waetlingastraet, on condition that Olaf should embrace Christianity.
Olaf was really christened, and Eadmund himself acted as his godfather. Shortly afterwards Olaf died, A.D. 943, and Eadmund now, it is said, expelled Reginald, the son of Gudred, probably the brother of Olaf, who had also been christened, as well as Olaf the son of Sigtrygg, 944, which shows that this person had now returned to Northumberland, and that it was not he, but Olaf of Dublin, who concluded the treaty with Eadunund. Eadmund died in 946, and was succeeded by his brother Esidred, who went immediately to Northumberland, and received the homage of the Archbishop and the principal Chiefs. Not long time afterwards, however, they rebelled anew, and took Eric Bloodaxe, son of Harold Fairhair, to be their king. Eric is no other than Eric Bloodaxe, the son of Harold Fairhair, King of Norway, who was expelled from his kingdons in the yeare 934. He is said by the Norwegian sagas to have addressed himself immediately to King Athelstane, and to have received from him the kingdom of Northunmberland, where he reigned peaceably till the accession of King Eadmund, it is said, who did not like the Norwegians, and intended to give Northumberland to another king, which caused Eric Bloodaxe to go away, join some Viking-kings in Ireland, and in their company to make an attack somewhere on the south of England, where he was killed. The statement of the English annals as to the events in Northumberland from the reign of Atheistane to the times of King Eadred, show that the Norwegian account cannot be accurate, and that Eric did not make his appearaince in Northumberland till 948, as above stated, and during the reign of Eadred.
Eric Bloodaxe, the English annals say, was expelled by the Northumbrians themselves, terrified by the threats of Eadred; them came Olaf Cwaran from Dublin, who seems to be no other person than the Olaf Sigtryggson above mentioned, who was likewise made king, and afterwards expelled by the Northumbrians; then Eric again returned, but was killed in a battle on the "Stone-moor" (Stanmor), 950 The particulars of this battle, as given by Matthew of Westminster, bear still more witness as to the identity of this Eric, Harold's son, with Eric Bloodaxe, son of the Norwegian Conqueror. Since that time there were no northern kings in Northumberland, but the king gave it as an hereditary earldom to the heagerefa Osulf, by whose treason the death of Eric is said to have been caused.