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Olaf Cuaran (Óláfr Kváran; ; Amlaíb Cuarán; died 980), also known by his patronymic Olaf Sitricson (Óláfr Sigtryggsson; ; Amlaíb mac Sitric), and in some nineteenth century works as Olaf the Red, was a Viking leader who ruled Dublin and Viking Northumbria in the 10th century.

Name
In the Irish Annals Olaf's name is rendered as Amlaíb Cuarán or Amlaíb mac Sitric. Olaf's byname Cuarán is usually translated as "sandal" or "shoe". It is first applied to him in the report of a battle at Slane in 947 in the Annals of Ulster. The byname also appears in the Icelandic Sagas, in particular Njáls saga and the Saga of Gunnlaugr Serpent-Tongue, as Kváran. The origin of this epithet is not known with any certainty, but it may be in reference to an Irish ceremony adopted by the Vikings of Dublin whereby the new king would wear or throw a shoe, symbolically "filling the boots" of those that preceded him. Olaf's culutrally mixed name - Norse first-name and and Irish byname - is an accurate reflection of the bicultural nature of Vikings in tenth-century Ireland.

The epithet "the red" is attached to Olaf in some nineteenth-century scholarly works. This is believed to arise from a mistranslation of the Annals of the Four Masters where a phrase which should have read "Amlaíb, in particular", was instead translated to read "Amlaíb of the blood-red colour. This mistranslation lead to the misidentification of Olaf with the character Rufus who features in Egil's Saga.

Background
The Viking Kingdom of Dublin was founded in the mid ninth-century and its first kings were Olaf's great-grandfather Ímar and his brothers. The Kingdom of Northumbria was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom which was conquered by Vikings of the Great Heathen Army in 867. By the early tenth-century the leadership of both countries were dominated by the Uí Ímair, the descendants of Ímar. Olaf's father Sitric Cáech was king of Dublin from 917 to 920, and then king of Northumbria from 921 until his death in 927, being succeeded in both kingdoms by his brother Guthfrith. Guthfrith ruled both kingdoms in 927. but that year he was driven out of England by King Æthelstan. He was succeeded in Dublin by his son Olaf Guthfrithson upon his death in 934. In 939, shortly after the death of Æthelstan, Olaf Guthfrithson went to England and successfully established himself as king of Northumbria. He ruled Dublin and Northumbria until his death in 941.

Early life
Olaf first appears in the historical record in 940, when two Irish annals record him departing for York, with his cousin Blácaire Guthfrithson arriving in Dublin to take control there around the same time. The following year Olaf's cousin Olaf Guthfrithson died and Olaf succeeded him as King of Northumbria. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that "the Northumbrians belied their fealty oaths, and chose Olaf of Ireland for their king". The mention of the breaking of oaths probably refers to oaths of loyalty given by some Northumbrians to Edmund of England immediately after the death of Olaf Guthfrithson and before Olaf's appointment as his successor.

First reign in Northumbria
Olaf came to the throne amidst conflict between the vikings of Northumbria and the Anglo-Saxons of England. This conflict began in 939, when Olaf Guthfrithson sucessfully claimed Northumbria from the Anglo-Saxons, an event which was precipitated by the death of the English king Æthelstan that same year. A hasty peace treaty was agreed by Æthelstan's successor Edmund and Olaf Guthfrithson in 939, but this did not last and by 942 the vikings had occupied the five boroughs of Nottingham, Leicester, Lincoln, Derby, and Stamford. In 942 the English took back the the five boroughs, which according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle had been controlled by the vikings for "a long time". This reference suggests that some of this land was previously ruled by the vikings of Northumbria prior to their expulsion in 927, and had been regained by them following the death of Æthelstan.

The English reclamation of land in central England in 942 is evidenced by surviving royal diplomas. For example, one document details the granting of land to a thegn, Wulfsige the Black, along the trade route from Tamworth and Lichfield in the west to Nottingham and Derby in the east. Sawyer has suggested that King Edmund may have reclaimed the five boroughs through purchase, rather than military intervention, but this is disputed by Downham, who argues that the sudden and dramatic recapture of territory as described by a poem in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle suggests a military expedition, although resistance may have been minimal.

The vikings fought back later in 942, with the Chronicle recording that the vikings made an attempt to capture Tamworth in Mercia, and although both sides suffered many casualties Olaf's side was victorious. Edmund retaliated the following year and his army besieged Olaf and his viking army while they were encamped at Leicester, however Edmund and his ally Wulfstan, Archbishop of York, were able to escape from the city under the cover of darkness. Neither Olaf nor Edmund wanted to persist with the war and later in 943 a peace treaty was agreed with Wulfstan, Archbishop of York and Oda, Archbishop of Canterbury, acting as mediators. The border between Olaf and Edmund's lands was agreed as Watling Street, effectively granting the Five Boroughs to Olaf - a recognition of the vikings' military success in 942-943. In addition, by the terms of this treaty Olaf agreed to be baptised with Edmund as sponsor. Such an agreement was with precedent in wars between vikings and the Anglo-Saxons and had the effect of Edmund recognising Olaf as a legitimate ruler, while at the same time placing the English king in a position symbolically superior to that of the Northumbrian.

Ragnall Guthfrithson, Olaf's cousin, appears in the historical record in 943. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says that that year "after a fairly big interval" following Olaf's baptism Ragnall was confirmed with Edmund as sponsor. In the text, both Olaf and Ragnall are called king, but it is not made clear whether they were co-rulers or rival kings. Alex Woolf has suggested that a rivalry between Olaf and Ragnall may have been encouraged by Edmund for his own benefit. There exists coinage featuring the name of Ragnall and coinage featuring the name of Olaf, suggesting both ruled at York for a time. There also exists coinage featuring the name of an otherwise unknown Sitric, who may have co-ruled Northumbria with Olaf before Ragnall arrived. If Ragnall arrived in Northumbria in late 943 the confirmation ceremony may have been held to demonstrate that Ragnall too accepted the peace treaty that had been drawn up earlier that year.

The Historia Regum records that in 943 Olaf was driven out of Northumbria by the Northumbrians. However, all texts of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle state that both Olaf and Ragnall were driven out in 944 by King Edmund. A possible explanation for this discrepancy is that Olaf was driven out of York by Ragnall in 943 (but not wider Northumbria), and continued to contest Ragnall for the kingship until Edmund took advantage of the discord and drove them both out the following year. An account by the chronicler Æthelweard relates that it was Archbishop Wulfstan, who had switched alleigance to Edmund, and an unnamed ealdorman of Mercia who drove out Ragnall and Olaf. Æthelweard calls Olaf and Ragnall "traitors" in his account, perhaps suggesting they had both broken promises they had made as part of the peace treaty of 943.

First reign in Dublin
Following his expulsion from Northumbria Olaf returned to Ireland where his cousin Blácaire ruled as king of Dublin. Blácaire, who had overseen a disastrous defeat fighting against the Irish of Leinster and the Southern Uí Néill in 944, resulting in the sack of Dublin, was forced out of power in 945, with Olaf replacing him as king. It is possible that Blácaire was forced out by Congalach Cnogba, overking of the Southern Uí Néill, with Olaf replacing him as a client king, although this is not known with any certainty. Regardless, Olaf and Congalach are recording as fighting alongside one another following the invasion of Brega by Ruaidrí ua Canannáin, king of the Cenél Conaill in 947. The pivotal battle between the two sides resulted in victory for Ruaidrí's forces, with the vikings of Dublin bearing the brunt of the casualties inflicted on the losing side. Shortly after this defeat Olaf was deposed, with his cousin Blácaire regaining the throne.

Family
Olaf has been identified by scholars as a son of Sitric Cáech, king of Dublin and Viking Northumbria, and brother to Harald, who ruled Limerick. The Annals of Clonmacnoise mention two more sons of Sitric, Auisle and Sichfrith, falling at the Battle of Brunanburh in 937. Guthfrith (d. 954) may have been another brother though his father his only named as "Sitric" so it is not possible to say conclusively whether he and Olaf were siblings. According to the Orkneyinga saga, a daughter of Sitric Cáech named Gytha was married to Olaf Tryggvason, King of Norway, but Hudson suggests this is unlikely to be correct since the marriage is said to have occurred sixty-three years after Sitric's death. It is much more likely that Gytha was actually a granddaughter of Sitric through Olaf. Sitric married an unnamed sister of Æthelstan, King of the Anglo-Saxons in 926. It is not known which, if any, of Sitric's children were by her, but traditions first recorded at Bury in the early twelfth century identify her as Saint Edith of Polesworth. The truth of his identification is debated, but regardless of her name but it is likely that she entered a nunnery in widowhood.

Family
Gofraid has been identified by scholars as a son of Sitric Cáech, king of Dublin and Viking Northumbria, and brother to Amlaíb Cuarán, who also ruled Dublin and Northumbria, and Aralt, who ruled Limerick. The Annals of Clonmacnoise mention two more sons of Sitric, Auisle and Sichfrith, falling at the Battle of Brunanburh in 937. According to the Orkneyinga saga, a daughter of Sitric Cáech named Gytha was married to Olaf Tryggvason, King of Norway, but Hudson suggests this is unlikely to be correct since the marriage is said to have occurred sixty-three years after Sitric's death. It is much more likely that Gytha was actually a granddaughter of Sitric through Amlaíb Cuarán. Sitric married an unnamed sister of Æthelstan, King of the Anglo-Saxons in 926. It is not known which, if any, of Sitric's children were by her, but traditions first recorded at Bury in the early twelfth century identify her as Saint Edith of Polesworth. The truth of his identification is debated, but regardless of her name but it is likely that she entered a nunnery in widowhood.