Great Heathen Army Anglia and spent the winter of 869–70 at Thetford. There was no peace agreement between the East Anglians and the Vikings this time. When the local king Edmund fought against the invaders, he was captured and killed. In 871, the Great Summer Army arrived from Scandinavia, led by Bagsecg. The reinforced Viking army turned its attention to Wessex, but the West Saxons, led by King Æthelred's brother Alfred, defeated them on 8 January 871 at the Battle of Ashdown, slaying Bagsecg in the process. Three months later, Æthelred died and was succeeded by Alfred (later known as Alfred the Great),
Battle of Ringmere period the Danes wasted East Anglia, burning Thetford and Cambridge. Battle of Ringmere The Battle of Ringmere was fought on 5th May 1010. Norse sagas recorded a battle at "Hringmaraheior"; "Old English Hringmere-hūō", modern name Ringmere Heath. The sack of Thetford occurred in 1004. Sigvat records the victory of King Ethelred, allied with Saint Olaf, over the Danes under Sweyn Forkbeard during the latter's campaigns in England. The Battle site was located in lands under the control of Ulfcytel Snillingr, thegn of East Anglia, at a site once thought to be near Wretham, but now thought to be at Rymer