( also Cnut ) ( c. 994–1035)
a king of England (1017–35) who was born in Denmark and was also king of Denmark and Norway. He is best remembered for the story of how he proved to his companions that not everything in the world obeyed him. He took them to the sea and ordered it to stop rising, but it continued to rise. Canute’s name is now sometimes used when describing somebody who foolishly tries to do something impossible:
He was the King Canute of Parliament, trying to turn back the tide of reform.