In the ninth century a number of Danes who are known by name were active in the Low Countries as Frankish vassal, or as plunderer, mercenary and negotiator. What do we know about them? They are all shortly introduced. Contemporary sources will serve for guidance. Because these - mostly Frankish and Anglo-Saxon - Christian sources are very hostile with regard to pagans they are exaggerated, to put it mildly. We must regard these reports in their proper proportions by placing them in the political frame of their age. A comprehensive profile of these Danes is only available on the Dutch version of this page.

Klakk-Haraldr (Harald Klak)
This impatient member of a royal clan lost the struggle for the Danish throne and had to leave the country to his opponents. He was manipulated by Louis the Pious, the Frankish ruler of his time. He became an instrument in the power-politics of Louis the Pious. The emperor tried to use his vassal to bring Denmark under Frankish influence. Klakk-Haraldr was the first Christian king of Denmark but was expelled soon afterwards. At last Louis the Pious granted him the county of Riustringen in Eastern Frisia. Here he was murdered by Saxon noblemen in 852.

Hemingr (Hemming)
Hemingr was a brother of Klakk-Haraldr. He was appointed by the Frankish rulers as 'dux', a military commander. As such he was killed while beating off a viking attack on the island of Walcheren in the mouth of the River Scheldt. This defense was part of the arrangements of Louis the Pious against the vikings.

Haraldr 'junior' (Harald 'junior')
Haraldr was called 'iunioris' in the annals of Xanten. Accordingly he is called 'junior' here, to distinguish him from his uncle Klakk-Haraldr. He got Louis the Pious to lose his temper as he sided with Lothar, the revolting son of the emperor. Lothar made Haraldr terrorize the coastal territories of his father for years. To thank him, but also to buy his alliance, Lothar granted the Dane the coastal areas of Zealand in 841. The place was useful as a base for Haraldr to attack the kingdom of Charles the Bald. Haraldr died a few years later under suspicious circumstances.

Hrœrekr (Rorik)
'Faithful to the Frankish kings'. The Annals of Fulda characterize this Dane, operating a long time in the Low Countries, with these words. The sources are indistinct about the rise of Hrœrekr. It seems that he at first operated in the shadow of his brother Haraldr 'junior'. After he fell into disgrace with the Frankish King Lothar he showed his teeth and was accepted as a Frankish vassal. In the beginning he seemed to have his own agenda, because he kept ambitions in Denmark. But Hrœrekr slowly adapted and was assimilated in the Frankish political game of his time. At last he was very much appreciated by the Frankish kings because of his loyalty and effective defense of Western Frisia. The local population was more hostile and succeeded to expel this Dane for some time.

Ragnarr (Ragnar)
Ragnarr emerges in the sources when Charles the Bald granted him the cella Torhout in Flanders, possibly after the Treaty of Verdun in 843. Of the few contemporary occasions in which he is mentioned most point at Saxony. According to the Annals of Xanten, Ragnarr left for Hrœrekr who stayed in Saxony. In the Miracula S. Germani he encountered a Saxon nobleman and according to the Vita Anskarii he was well-known in the Saxon monastery of Corvey. The Annals of Saint Bertin mention a visit to the Danish King Hárekr, but an absurdity in this chronicle makes it unlikely that such a visit actually took place. If the Reginarius who occurs on several occasions in the sources is the same as Ragnarr, then it is possible that this Dane permanently established himself as a vassal of the Frankish king.

Hróğulfr (Rodulf)
The sources are equally negative as far as they concern this son of Klakk-Haraldr, while the opinions about the other members of the clan are divided. He looted in all three Frankish kingdoms as well as over sea. However you can not accuse him of infidelity, while he never made an alliance with a Frankish ruler, as far as we know. Nevertheless he was of ill repute. Adam of Bremen mentioned him in his chronicle at the end of the 11th century as one of the five most important tyrants that looted the Frankish coasts.
He was killed during an attack on Oostergo in 873. He probably attempted to gain power in this Frisian area.

Guğröğr Haraldsson (Godfrid Haraldsson)
Guğröğr wandered around a few years as a pirate on the West-Frankish coasts after Saxon noblemen had killed his father Klakk-Haraldr, count of Riustringen. In the meanwhile he made two vain attempts to gain power in Eastern Frisia by force before he joined his cousin Hrœrekr in Western Frisia. Together the cousins tried to gain 'royal power' in Denmark. Their effort failed and they returned to Frisia. Afterwards Guğröğr was expelled and he took refuge to England.

Guğröğr (Godfrid the younger)
In 879 Guğröğr came to the European continent as one of the commanders of the 'great army'. He could not have been Guğröğr Haraldsson, who was much older and already baptized in Mainz in 826. However he most likely belonged to the same clan.
Witbert, a supporter of the rebellious Carolingian prince Hugh, succeeded in achieving that Emperor Charles III granted Frisia, that is the northern part of the former Middle Kingdom, to Guğröğr. But not for nothing. And so Guğröğr was entangled in a political web that would lead to his death. In 885 he was lured to a place outside his territory and was murdered by followers of the emperor.