Gorm the Old

Gorm was born before 900 and took power around 936, ruling Denmark from Jelling for roughly two decades. He commissioned the oldest of the Jelling stones to honour his wife Thyra — a granite marker that would anchor a kingdom's memory. He died around 958, though some sources push the date to 963 or 964. The stone remains; the man behind it earned two nicknames, one calling him Old, the other Languid.