the townsmen put them to flight, and slew many hundreds of them, and took some of their ships. Then that same year, before winter, the Danish-men who had sat down in Mersey, towed their ships up the Thames, and thence up the Lea. This was about two years after they had come hither over sea.
A. 896. In that same year the fore-mentioned army constructed a fortress on the Lea, twenty miles above London. After this, in summer, a great body of the townsmen, and also of other people, went onwards until they arrived at the Danish fortress; and there they were put to flight, and some four king's thanes were slain. Then after this, during harvest, the king encamped near to the town, while the people reaped the corn, so that the Danish-men might not deprive them of the crop. Then on a certain day the king rode up along the river, and observed where the river might be obstructed, so that they would be unable to bring out their ships. And they then did thus: they constructed two fortresses on the two sides of the river. When they had already begun the work, and had encamped before it, then perceived the army that they should not be able to bring out their ships. They then abandoned them, and went across the country till they arrived at Bridgenorth by the Severn; and there they constructed a fortress. Then the forces rode westwards after the army: and the men of London took possession of the ships; but all which they could not bring away, they broke up, and those which were worthy of capture they brought to London: moreover the Danish-men had committed their wives to the keeping of the East-Angles before they went out from their fortress. Then sat they down for the winter at Bridgenorth. This was about three years after they had come hither over sea to Limne-mouth.
A. 897. After this, in the summer of this year, the army broke up, some for East-Anglia, some for North-humbria; and they who were moneyless procured themselves ships there, and went southwards over sea to the Seine. Thanks be to God, the army had not utterly broken down the English nation; but during the three years it was much more broken down by the mortality among cattle and among men, and most of all by this, that many of the most eminent
