Danegeld

[Middle English : Dane, genitive pl. of Dan, Dane; see Dane + geld, tribute (from Old English geld, gield, payment).]

(DAYN-geld)

noun
1. An annual tax imposed on English landholders (c. 10-12th century) to buy off Danish invaders, continuing later under the name tallage.
2. Protection money, or some other coercive payment.

Etymology
From Middle English, from Dane + geld (payment, tribute), from Old English

Here is Rudyard Kipling's poem on Danegeld: poetryloverspage.com/poets/kipling/dane_geld.html.

For more information on Danegeld, visit Britannica.com.

The term is often wrongly applied to tribute payments made to the Vikings in the reign of Æthelred II (978-1016); these payments are known as gafol in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. In 1012 Æthelred introduced an annual land tax to pay for a Scandinavian force led by Thorkell the Tall which he had recruited to fight for him. The levy was continued by Cnut and his sons to pay for their own forces. It was this tax which Norman administrative documents called ‘Danegeld’.