HAROLD HAREFOOT. 205

to maintain his claim ; lie was savoured by all cthe Danes; and he got immediately posselTion ofhis father’s treasures, which might be equallyuseful, whether he found it necessary to proceedby lorce or intrigue, in insuring his succession.On the other hand, Hardicanute had the suffragesof the English, who, on account of his beingborn among them of queen Emma, regarded himas their countryman; he was savoured by thearticles of treaty with the duke of Normandy;and ubove all, his party was espoused by earlGodwin , the most powerful nobleman in thekingdom, especially in the province of Wessex,the chief seat of the ancient English. Affairs werelikely to terminate in a civil war; when, by theinterposition of the nobility of both parties, acompromise was made; and it was agreed, thatHarold should enjoy, together with London, allthe provinces north of the Thames , while thepossession of the south should remain to Hardi-canute: And till that prince should appear andtake possession of his dominions, Emma fixed herresidence at Winchester , and established her au-thority over her son’s share of the partition.

IMeanwhile, Robert, duke ofNormandy, diedin a pilgrimage to the Holy Land , and beingsucceeded by a son, yet a minor, the two Eng-lish princes, Alfred and Edward, who foundno longer any countenance or protection in thatcountry, gladly embraced the opportunity ofpaying a visit, with a numerous retinue, to theirmother Emma, •\yho seemed to be placed in a slate

HAP

111.