Thored GUNNARSSON Ealdorman of York [7083] ¹⁶⁷³

   FamilySearch ID: LYXW-BQK.

  General Notes:

Thored was a 10th-century ealdorman of York, ruler of the southern half of the old Kingdom of Northumbria on behalf of the king of England. Believed to have been born about 938, he was the son of either Gunnar or Oslac, both northern ealdormen. If he was the former, he may have attained adulthood by the 960s, when a man of his name raided Westmorland. Other potential appearances in the records are likewise uncertain until 979, the point from which Thored's period as ealdorman can be accurately dated.

Thored appears to have been of at least partially Scandinavian origin, suggested by the title applied to him in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle entry for 992. Here, the ealdorman of Hampshire is called by the English title "ealdorman", while Thored himself is styled by the Scandinavian word eorl (i.e. Earl).
Two accounts of Thored's origins have been offered by modern historians. The first is that he was a son of Oslac, ealdorman of York from 966 until his exile in 975. This argument is partly based on the assertion by the Historia Eliensis, that Oslac had a son named Thorth (i.e. "Thored"). The other suggestion, favoured by most historians, is that he was the son of a man named Gunnar. This Gunnar is known to have held land in the East and North Ridings of Yorkshire.

Although historians differ in their opinions about his relationship, if any, to Kings Edgar the Peaceable and Edward the Martyr, it is generally thought that he enjoyed a good relationship with King Æthelred II. His daughter Ælfgifu married Æthelred. Thored was ealdorman in Northumbria for much of Æthelred's reign, disappearing from the sources in 992 after being appointed by Æthelred to lead an expedition against the Vikings.

"Britain's Royal Families: The Complete Genealogy" by Alison Weir, identifies the wife of Thored and mother of his children as Hilda. In addition to Ælfgifu, they also had a son:

- Ælfgifu (c. 963-1002), the first wife of King Æthelred II 'the Unready', King of England.
- Æthelstan of Ringmere (died 1010)

Thored's exact date of death is not known, only that he was last recorded in 992. His disappearance from records after that is regarded to be because of his death, likely in the Viking expedition he had been appointed to lead.

More information at website:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thored

  Noted events in his life were:

1. Thored served in the military in 966: harried Westmorland. ¹⁶⁷⁴

2. Title Of Nobility: Ealdorman of York; Earl of Northumbria, on an unknown date,. ¹⁶⁷⁴

Thored married Hilda GUNNARSON [7084] [MRIN: 5554]. (Hilda GUNNARSON [7084] was born in 925 in England ¹⁶⁷³ and died in 970 ¹⁶⁷³.)