The world of the 11th century was bound together less by nations and more by people — by families, whose loyalties crossed seas, by dynasties with roots in several lands at once. A Scandinavian noble ...

Ælfgifu never wore a crown, but she played the game better than most kings. As one of King Cnut’s wives, she battled Emma of Normandy for control of England — using feasts, alliances, and her sons as ...