Gytha of Wessex

Gytha of Wessex was one of several daughters of Ealdgyth Swan-neck by Harold II, the last Anglo-Saxon king of England.

Related Topics:
Ealdgyth Swan-neck - Harold II - Anglo-Saxon - England

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According to Saxo Grammaticus, two of Harold's sons and a daughter escaped to the court of their uncle, king Sweyn Estridsson of Denmark. They were treated by Swein with hospitality, while their sister was married to Waldemar, king of Ruthenia, i.e. Vladimir Monomakh, one of the greatest rulers of Kievan Rus.

Related Topics:
Saxo Grammaticus - Sweyn Estridsson - Denmark - Ruthenia - Vladimir Monomakh - Kievan Rus

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Gytha was the mother of Mstislav the Great, the last ruler of united Kievan Rus. In the Norse sagas, Mstislav is called Harald after his grandfather. The pateric of St Pantaleon Cloister in Cologne says that "Gytha the Queen" died as a nun on the 10th of March. It is assumed that she followed Godfrey of Bouillon in the first Crusade and died in Palestine, most likely in 1098, as a year later Vladimir Monomakh married another woman.

Related Topics:
Mstislav the Great - Saga - Cologne - Godfrey of Bouillon - First Crusade - Palestine - 1098

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