Yesterday was the anniversary of the Battle of Maldon. On 10th August 991, one of the most famous and culturally significant defeats in English history occurred.
A massive Viking invasion fleet landed on Northey Island in the River Blackwater, Essex. Because of the high tide, they were completely stranded and could only cross to the mainland via a narrow underwater causeway. Three English warriors could easily block and prevent the entire Viking army from advancing.
The Vikings, aware of their position, asked the local Earl Byrhtnoth to let them cross freely so they could have a "fair fight". In a ludicrous display of England's sense of fair play, Byrhtnoth agreed. He stood his army down, let the Vikings walk right across when they subsequently slaughtered the Anglo-Saxons defenders,
- including Earl Byrhtnoth.

Following the catastrophic defeat, England's King Athelred followed the advice of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Instead of fighting on, he chose to buy off the invaders, paying the Vikings 10,000 Roman pounds of silver to leave.
This transaction is widely considered the first official instance of “Danegeld”, a protection tax that ultimately incentivised the Vikings to launch bigger, more frequent raids until they conquered England entirely.
History repeats itself today…. An English sense of fair play allowed unwanted invaders from Continental Europe to arrive in England and slaughter England's people, and instead of fighting to stop the invaders, those in power responded by following the advice of the Archbishop of Canterbury and actually paying the Continentals large amounts of money to stop the invasion, which continued regardless. When will we ever learn?