Maybe this is Old English!

[charliedeut]

Cnut cyning gret his arcebiscopas and his leod-biscopas and Þurcyl eorl and ealle his eorlas and ealne his þeodscype, twelfhynde and twyhynde, gehadode and læwede, on Englalande freondlice.

.

Knut the king greeted his archbishops and his lower (that is, plain) bishops and Earl Þurcyl (no idea about its meaning) and all his soldiers and all his priests (?), (...), on England's friendship.

How was that for an approximation? Is it anywhere near its real meaning?

Greetings

Charliedeut

[birdeen's call]

Knut the king greeted his archbishops and his lower (that is, plain) bishops and Earl Þurcyl (no idea about its meaning) and all his soldiers and all his priests (?), (...), on England's friendship.

How was that for an approximation? Is it anywhere near its real meaning?

You did very well. I have found a translation (page 452).

"Leod" was difficult to get. The word didn't manage to become a vital part of Modern English: leed, leod, leud. Speakers of Slavic languages can recognize it ("люди" in Russian) and Germans, who say "Leute".

"Theod-" of "þeodscype" is another word that didn't make it. The word also means people. Its akin to the words "Dutch" and "Teuton", and the Irish word "tuath" (1, 2). It's also clearly the source of Tolkien's Theoden's name.

"Freondlic" means friend-like. "Freondlice" is an adverb: in a friendly way. He greeted the addressees in a friendly way.