When the eleventh century began its fourth decade, Canute was, with the single exception of the Emperor, the most imposing ruler in Latin Christendom. . . . ()e was lord of four important realms and the overlord of other kingdoms. Though technically Canute was counted among the kings, his position among his fellow-monarchs was truly imperial. Apparently he held in his hands the destinies of two great regions: the British Isles and the Scandinavian peninsulas. His fleet all but controlled two important seas, the North and the Baltic. He had built an Empire.〔Laurence Marcellus Larson, ''Canute the Great: 995 (circ.)-1035 and the Rise of Danish Imperialism During the Viking Age'', New York: Putnam, 1912, , (p. 257 ).〕