While referred to as 'the Great' in Denmark, Cnut (?995–1035) is mostly remembered in Britain for his legendary attempt to turn back the sea. Bartlett sets out to give this much-neglected king of England and his forgotten conquest their proper place in history. Beginning with the earlier Viking incursions, Bartlett tells the story of the protracted 'time of terror' and the epic conflict between Cnut and Edmund Ironside that culminated in the Danish warrior's victory at Assandun in 1016.