Index Part 0 Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 The Causes of the Viking Age Timeline The Origins of the Vikings The Scandinavian Environment Scandinavia Before the Vikings Pagan Religion and Burial Scandinavia in the Viking Age From Chiefdoms to Kingdoms Rural Settlement Trade and Trade Routes Ships and Seafaring Viking Towns Women in the Viking Age The Viking Raids The Raids Begin The Vikings in the Mediterranean The Franks Fight Back The Great Army in England The Great Raids on Francia Wessex Defended The Conquest of the Danelaw The Kingdom of York Vikings in Ireland 1. Vikings in Ireland II. The Vikings in Scotland Scandinavian Placenames in Britain The Duchy of Normandy The Vikings in Britany The Viking Warrior The North Atlantic Saga The Faeroes and Iceland The Settlement of Iceland Icelandic Literature The Vikings in Greenland Voyages to Vinland The Vikings in the East The Swedes in the East From Scandinavian to Slav The Transformation of the Vikings Raids on the Aethelraed’s Kingdom The Danes Conquer England The Empire of Cnut The Thunderbolt of the North The Struggle for England The Kingdom of Man and the Isles TheTwillight of Viking Scotland Scandinavia After the Vikings The Early Scandinavian Church Viking Kings and Rulers Further Reading Index Acknowledgements Back cover = OA rh oO bh bo bo A bt Ned & BRESSREBSRARNSARBRAHSRHLHKEBS SS 100 106 108 110 118 120 122 124 124 128 130 132 134 136 138 139 144 145PENGUIN BOOKS Published by the Penguin Group Penguin Books Ltd, 27 Wrights Lane, London W8 5TZ, England Penguin Putnam Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA Penguin Books Australia Ltd, Ringwood, Victoria, Australia Penguin Books Canada Ltd, 10 Alcor Avenue, Toronto. Ontario. Canada M4V 3B2 Penguin Books (NZ) Ltd, 182-190 Wairau Road, Auckland 10, New Zealand Penguin Books Ltd, Registered Offices: Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England First published 1995 Published simultaneously by Viking 57910864 Text copyright © John Haywood, 1995 Design and maps copyright © Swanston Publishing Limited, 1995 All rights reserved The moral right of the author has been asserted Printed and bound in Great Britain by The Bath Press, Avon Except in the United States of America, this book is sold subject to the condition that it shail not. by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without 6 similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser ISBN 0-14-0-51328-0The Causes of the Viking Age The Vikings burst quite suddenly into European history in the last decade of the 8th century with a series of terrifying attacks on the coasts of Britain, lreland and Francia. For centuries, their Scandinavian homeland had been a remote region about which other Europeans knew little and cared less. Why then, after centuries of obscurity, did the Scandinavians take to the seas to make such a dramatic impact on the world? At the time of the first Viking raids, strong rulers such as the Frankish Emperor Charlemagne and King Offa of Mercia had brought western Europe a level of peace and prosperity it had mot enjoyed since the fall of the Roman Empire. Ports, towns and monasteries were unc ed. The unexpected attacks of these Scandinavian pirates we shocking, the more so as the Vikings were pagans and recognized end- none of the accepted taboos that protected the proper ty and person= nel of t in times of war between Christians. The mobility of their fast, seaworthy ships made the Viking attacks doubly terrify- ir hure as they could strike almost without warning anywhere on the coast or on navigable rivers. The first raiders attacked c al com- munities and monasteries to acquire portable wealth and captives for ransom or the slave mar’! s. Later, conquest and settlement me more important motives for Viking attacks. The period of Viking activity lasted about 300 years, from roughly 789 to 1100. In that time the Vikings played a decisive role in the development of much of western and eastern formed from pagan barbarians to Christian Europeans. be irope, and were themselves trans- Abov Nesaadléongy wi in the centuries to the Viking Age, "The geographical range of Viking activity was enormous, spanning most of Scandinavia was ruled by the known world and going some way beyond it. V warrior aristocrats whose i ve. - pater and status depended on whole coastline of western Europe, and even North Af were not secure from attack. In the t the V t rivers of Russia to cross the Black Sea and th Se re ee 10ple and the Abbasid ( . Vikings settle ely iron helmet froma 7th. in the British Isles, Normandy and, to a lesser extent, in Russia but they also centery ship: burial at Vendel, pushed at the limits of the known world, crossing the North Adantic to set- ee in the uninhabited Facroe Islands, Iceland and Greenland and to discov er, but fail to settle, North America. Viking traders and hunters extended the limits of the known world even further, sailing far into the Arctic waters of the White Sea and exploring the west coast of Greenland as far north as Melville Bay in search of walrus ivory and hides, Faced with this far-flung activity itis all too « Scandinavia itself was also the scene of tt deal of Viking raiding and piracy. The Viking expansion was in no pandinavian campaign ag tof the world: V quite happy to plunder their own k f the opportunity arose. ng raids affected the 1 the Medi- ings sailed down Caspian Sea to war and plunder, Their prestige was enhanced by iph exten y to forget thi a gr way ast the r sl ings were The term “Viking” has come to be applied to all Scandi od, but in the Viking age itself the term vikingr who went f viking, that is plundering. In this sense, most Vi dinavians were not ings at all, but peaceful farmers and cr stayed qu all their lives, For many others, being 3 just an occupation they resorted to for long enough to nais ivians of the ¢ yplied only to sot g-age Scan- fismen who 5 was € money to ly at homebuy, or otherwise acquire, a farm and settle down. Nor were those who went viking necessarily exclusively Scandinavian: Irishmen, Anglo-Saxons, Franks, Bretons and Slavs all joined in Viking raids at times. Though it has led to unneccessary controversy on some important aspects of the history of the Viking age (the question of Viking violence, for example), the wider use of “Viking” is too well established to insist on using the word only in the narrow meaning of “pirate”. The Wrath of God The Vikings’ victims had little difficulty explaining the raids: they were God's punishment on a sinful people. Archbishop Wulfstan of York expressed this view eloquently in his Sermon of the Wolf to the English, written after Svein Forkbeard’s victory over the English in 1014: “Things have not gone well now for a long time at home or abroad, but there has been devastation and perse- cution in every district again and again, and the English have been for a long time now completely defeated and too greatly disheartened through God's anger; and the pirates so strong with God's consent that often in battle one puts to flight ten, and sometimes less, sometimes more, all because of our sins ... what else is there in all these events except God’s anger clear and visi- ble over his people?” (tr. D. Whitelock, English Historical Documents I, Oxford 1979). Modern historians have found the Viking age harder to explain. Land- hunger caused by a growing population has often been proposed as a cause of the Viking expansion. The population of Scandinavia certainly was rising in the centuries before the first raids, and it continued to do so during and after the Viking age. The area under cultivation was expanding, new settle- ments were created and iron production increased to meet the demand for tools. Scandinavia has relatively litte good arable land and it might be expected that the pressure of a rising population would soon be felt. Norway has not been self-sufficient in food since the Middle Ages, and both Norway and Sweden have seen considerable emigration in periods of population growth in recent historical times. There is evidence of migrations out of Scandinavia before the Viking age. The Cimbri and Teutones who invaded the Roman Empire in 113 Bc probably originated in Judand, while many of the Germanic peoples—including the Goths, Burgundians and Vandals— who invaded the Roman Empire in the 5th century Ap had traditions that they had originally lived in Scandinavia. To the 6th-century Gothic historian Jordanes, Scandinavia was the “womb of peoples”. There was also consider- able emigration out of Scandinavia during the Viking age, and it may be sig- nificant that the earliest Scandinavian setwements, dating from the early to mid-9th century, were made by Norwegians in the northern and western isles of Scouland and the Faeroe islands. But the first wave of Vikings was dominated by raiders, not settlers—more than 80 years passed before any major settlements were made. Iceland was only settled in 870s, and the Danish settlement of eastern England began around the same time. Norwegians did not begin to settle in northwest England until around 900, and the Danish settlement of Normandy dates from 911, Despite the intensity of Viking raiding in Ireland, there were never any extensive Scandinavian settlements there, while the Rus (Swedes) who ruled in eastern Europe were a small warrior-elite; their subjects remained overwhelmingly Slav. Land-hunger, then, can hardly have been the main cause of the Viking expansion—it is more likely that it was the success of theAbove: This bronze statnette of the Buddha samebour found Tram northern ladia to Helgd in Sweden in the 6th or 7th century an. Finds like this are evidence that the Scandinavians already had wide-ranging trade contacts before the Viking age. its a \ woithicks thatopened the way for Scandinavian seqdement Another reason put forward for the Viking explosion is $ building. The 8th century, it has been argued, saw the S ns per- fect the technology of the scagoiny sailing ship: before this time they had relied on large rowing boats which, while suitable for piracy in sheltered coastal waters, were inadequate lor long-distance raiding. The adoption of the sail, therefore, opened up enormous new opportunities for piracy which the Scandinavians were quick to exploit. It is true that without seaworthy ships the Viking expansion could mot have happened, but this is not the thing as demonstrating that they were a cause of it, Though no pre- Viking ship yet discovered in Scandinavia has provided any evidence of the use of the sail, late 7th-cent from the Baltic is Gotland do show sailing ships, as does a recently discovered 7th-century stone carving from juthind. Mis therefore possible that the Scandinavians had suitable ships fur some time before the start of Viking raiding. andin pletely unknown before the Viking aye, the earliest recorded one being a raid of the Heruls (from Jutland) on the lower Rhine andinavian ship- ‘ancl san ry stone carving: Moreover, sea-raids out of S$ ao were not co Traders and Raiders Adnore important fictor in the Viking expansion was probably trade: it is certainly the most convincing explanation of the or ns of the Swedish expansion to the east, The 8th century was a time of political stability in western Europe. The resulting economic recovery led to an increase in trade with Scandinavia, which was an important source of luxury goods such as fi umber and walrus ivory, and probably of more mundane prod- ucts such as hides. By the mid Sth century the Swedes had already be establish themselves in settlements such as Star Wn 1 “S ja Ladoga, cast of the Baltic. These are best explained as bases for the collec tion of tribute in furs, which the Swedes could then use to supply the western European market. At about the Salrtit: lime, Arab mh ants were penetrating enster south along the Volga and the Don. As a result, high qual coins known as dirkems began to circulate in eastern Europe, giving the an incentive to push further east to tap direcudy into a new and ve mmurket. ALP] from the ve silver The existence of piracy implies the presence of sometl ing, so the increase in tade with western Europe may also have encouraged ag worth phunder- Es Viking raiding. Viking piracy, preying on merchant ships, may have been endemic in ihe long before it spilled over into the North Sea. in the we! m to have known which plac ful merchant voyages that the Seandinavians first learned about western Europe's rich and unguarded ports and coastal monasteries. The Scandinavians were certainly known to the Anglo-Saxons and Franks before they began raiding; according to the Northumbrian scholar Alcuin, writing after the sack of Lindisfarne in 793, attack, ‘and it was probably on peac his countrymen were so familiar with them that they had even adopted their The circumstances of another aid, on Portland so suggests that the Anglo-Saxons were already Seandinavian merchants, Three ships from Horthaland (in Norway) arrived at the port. The king's reeve Beaduheard, believing them to be merchants, ordered the crews to go to the royal residence at Dorchester: Beaduheard was killed for his trouble. Small-scale pirate raids like this continued to prey on comstal seulement and merc iliar with nt shipping until the 12th cenurry,Rivals and Exiles Many Viking leaders were royal exiles, and this points to another reason for the Viking expansion, Immediately before and during the Viking age, Scandinavian society was going through major changes which saw the pro- gressive centralization of power in fewer and fewer hands. However, Scandinavian society had a relatively numerous class of men who, through the possession of royal blood, could aspire to kingship. Competition for power was intense, and succession disputes were frequent and bloody. For the losers in these struggles, there was little choice but to go into exile. Some of these exiles, like Olaf Tryggvason in the 10th century, went raiding to build up their wealth and reputation. This would gain them a following of warriors, who would support a bid for power at home. Even the great Cnut was successful abroad before he won power in Denmark. Others, like Erik Bloodaxe, may have decided that if they could not rule at home, they would rule abroad. Erik, driven off the Norwegian throne by his brother, sought a kingdom overseas in compensation, establishing himself as the King of York in 948. Ivar, Halfdan and the other leaders of the Great Army that invaded England in 865 seem to have been intent on establishing overseas kingdoms from the start of their careers. The Danish King Svein Forkbeard was an example of another kind of leader. Recognizing the threat successful Vikings could pose to his own position, he led his own plundering raids to overawe potential rivals with his wealth and military prowess, As royal power became more entrenched in the 11th century, the Scandinavian nations evolved into medieval European kingdoms, Their rulers could depend on reliable institutionalized sources of wealth-gather- ing, such as taxes and tolls, and the importance of plunder as a means of buying support declined. There was no longer such a strong incentive to go raiding, and the Viking age faded away. Right: This silver coin was struck at the Channel port of Quentovic during the reign of the Frankish Emperor Charlemagne (769-814). The trading ship int the design reflects the growing commercial prosperity of western Europe at the time, By the end of the 8th century the rich pickings were encouraging the Scandinavians to turn to piracy.Timeline: AD 1—824 BRITAIN AND SCANDINAVIA IRELAND ¢c AD 1-400 warrior aristocracy emerges in southern Scandinavia ce. 400-600 forts built at Eketorp and Ismantorp on Oland. Angles and Jutes migrate to Britain ¢, 425-500 Saxons migrate to Britain ¢, 550 Gothic writer Jordanes records locations of Scandinavian peoples 597 St Augustine begins conversion of Anglo-Saxons c. 600-800 kingdoms develop in Denmark, Norway and Sweden 635 St Aidan founds monastery on Lindisfarne 664 Synod of Whitby ensures dominance of Roman church in England c. 700 ship burial at Vendel « 720 Angantyr king of Denmark c. 725 Willibrord leads the first Christian mission to Scandinavia 726 military canal built at Kanhave, Denmark 737 First phase of Danevirke rampart completed « 789 Norwegian Vikings attack Portland 793 Vikings plunder monastery of Lindisfarne 795 First recorded Viking raids on Scotland and Ireland 808 Godfred king of the Danes destroys Slay town of Reric and transfers merchants to Hedeby. Danevirke extended 810 Godfred murdered 815 Danish kings campaign to re-establish their authority in Vestfold, Norway 823-4 Ebo, archbishop of Reims, makes mission to Denmark WESTERN EUROPE THE EAST 6 455 & 460 Heruls raid Spain ¢. 528 Hygelac king of the Geats raids Frisia and the Rhine «570 Danes raid Frisia c. 750 Swedes established at Staraja Ladoga 799 Vikings raid Aquitaine 800 Charlemagne organizes defences against Vikings 810 King Godtred raids Frisia WORLD EVENTS 410 Visigoths sack Rome. Emperor Honoris tells Britons to fend for themselves 4176 fall of Roman Empire in west 482 Clovis king of Franks 511 Clovis dies; Frankish kingdom divided 535 Byzantine reconquest of Italy begins 622 Mohammed's flight (hijra) from Mecca begins Muslim era 642 Muslims conquer Egypt 711 Muslims begin conquest of Spain 732 Frankish King Charles Martel halts Muslim advance near Poitiers 750 Umayyad Caliphate overthrown by Abassid dynasty; Umayyad exiles take over Spain 800 Charlemagne crowned emperor in Rome 814 death of Charlemagne; succeeded by Louis the PiousAD 825-906 BRITAIN AND IRELAND ¢. 825 Irish monks driven out of Faeroes by Vikings SCANDINAVIA ¢ 825 Danish coinage in Hedeby begins 826 Danish King Harald Klak baptized at Mainz. Ansgar’s first mission to Denmark §29-30 Ansgar’s first mission to the Svear at Birka 832 Armagh raided three times in one month 839-40 Vikings winter in Ireland for the first time 841 Viking base established at Dublin 850 Ansgar builds churches at Ribe and Hedeby 8524 Ansgar’s second mission to the Svear 854 Horik, king of Denmark, killed in civil war 850 Vikings winter for the first time in England « 860 Gardar the Swede explores coast of Iceland 865 Danish Great Army invades England 867 Danes capture York 870 Danes conquer East Anglia «. 870-930 Vikings settle é, 870 Earldom of Orkney Iceland established 871-99 Alfred king of Wessex 874-914 “Forty Years Rest” in Ireland 876-9 initial Danish ~ settlement in England 878 Alfred defeats Danes at Edington. Treaty of Wedmore establishes Danelaw ¢. 885-900 Harald Finehair wins the battle of Hafrsfjord uniting most of Norway under his rule 886 London recaptured from Danes c. 900 Norwegian settlement in northwest England 902 Vikings expelled from Dublin 902-54 West Saxon conquest of Danclaw WESTERN EUROPE THE EAST 834-7 Dorestad raided annually 839 Swedes reach Constantinople 842 Vikings winter in Francia for the first ime 843-85 Frisia under intermittent Danish control 844 First Viking raid on Spain 845 Hamburg and Paris sacked, First Danegeld paid by Franks 859-62 Bjorn Ironsides and Hastein raid in Mediterranean 860 Rus attack Constantinople for the first time c. 862 Charles the Bald orders construction of fortified bridges against Vikings Novgorod. Askold and Dir seize Kiey ¢. 882 Oleg unites Novgorod and Kiev 885-6 Vikings besiege Paris 891 Vikings defeated by Arnulf at the Dyle ¢. 862 Rurik becomes ruler of WORLD EVENTS 827 Muslims invade Sicily 830-4 civil war in Carolingian empire 843 Carolingian empire partitioned 846 Muslim pirates sack Vatican ¢. 850 Spanish Christians push Muslims back to R. Duero « 863 Byzantine missionaries Cyril and Methodius sent to convert Slavs. Schism between Orthodox and western churches 888 Final breakup of the Carolingian empire. Odo king of West Franks, Arnulf king of East c. 900 revival of Byzantine power in Turkey and the BalkansTimeline: AD 907—1024 SCANDINAVIA 930 Icelandic Althing founded 934 Danes defeated by Henry the Fowler, king of Germany 948 bishops appointed to Ribe, Hedeby and Arhus 958 death of Gorm the Old 960 Harald Bluetooth restores Danish dominance in Norway ¢. 965 Harald converts Danes to Christianity 968 Danevirke refortified against German invasion « 970 Sigtuna founded 974-81 Hedeby under German occupation c. 980 round forts built in Denmark 986 Erik the Red begins settlement of Greenland 995 Olaf Tryggvason unites Norway. Olof Skétkonung becomes first king of both Svear and Gétar 1000 conversion of Iceland. Olaf Tryggvason killed at battle of Svéld c. 1000 voyages to Vinland 1015 Olaf Haraldsson conquers Norway 1027 first stone church in Denmark built at Roskilde 10380 Olaf Haraldsson killed at battle of Stiklestad. He is soon regarded as a saint BRITAIN AND IRELAND WESTERN EUROPE 911 Rollo founds Normandy 914-36 Vikings occupy Brittany 917 Vikings recapture Dublin 937 English defeat Norse- Scottish alliance at battle of Brunanburh 954 Erik Bloodaxe killed at Stainmore: end of Viking kingdom of York 980 Viking raids on England recommence : 991 Olaf Tryggvason defeats English at Maldon 1002 Svein Forkbeard uses Normandy as base to attack England 1014 Brian Boru defeats alliance of Leinster and Norse at Clontarf. Svein Forkbeard conquers England 1016-35 Cnut king of England c. 1080-5 battle of Tarbet Ness: Earl Thorfinn of Orkney wins control over most of northern Scotland 1042 end of Danish rule in England THE EAST 907 Rus attack Constantinople 911 Rus make treaty with Byzantines 912-13 Viking raiders in Caspian Sea 941 Igor unsuccessfully beseiges Constantinople and makes treaty, Rus becoming assimilated into Slavic population 964-71 Svyatoslay campaigns against Bulgars, Khazars and Byzantines ¢. 980 Varangian guard formed at Constantinople 988 Vladimir, prince of Kiev, converts to Orthodox Christianity 1019-54 zenith of Kievan power 1041 Ingvar the Widefarer's expedition to the east WORLD EVENTS 936-73 Otto the Great emperor of Germany 941 Hugh Capet King of France c. 965 Muslim silver mines exhausted 978 war between East and West Franks, Athelrad king of England (to 1016) 1002 Muslim Caliphate of Cordoba collapses into petty states 1042-66 Edward the Confessor king of EnglandAD 1043-1500 SCANDINAVIA 1043 Magnus the Good defeats Wends at battle of Lyrskov Heath near Hedeby 1047-64 conflict between Harald Hardrada of Norway and Svein Estrithson of Denmark 1085 oldest known grant of land to the church in Scandinavia. Cnut IV abandons planned expedition to England 1107-11 Norwegian king Sigurd the Jerusalem-farer leads crusade to Holy Land 1122-33 Ari Thorgilsson writes Islendingabok (the Book of the Icelanders) 1147 Danes attack pagan Wends as part of Second Crusade 1155-70 civil wars in Scandinavia 1163 first coronation in Scandinavia: Magnus Erlingsson crowned king of Norway 1169 Danes conquer Rigen Island and begin expansion into Baltic 1261 Greenland comes under direct rule from Norway 1263 Iceland comes under Norwegian rule 134] Eskimos occupy Western Setidement, Greenland 1380 Eskimos occupy Middle Settlement, Greenland late 15th century last Norse Greenland colony becomes extinct BRITAIN AND IRELAND «1050 bishopric founded in Orkney 1066 Harald Hardrada killed at Stamford Bridge. Battle of Hastings 1069 Svein Estrithson invades England 1075 last Danish invasion of England 1079 battle of Skyhill, Isle of Man: Godred Crovan unites Man and Hebrides 1095 Malcolm Canmore, king of Scotland, recognizes Norwegian sovereignty over Hebrides 1103 Magnus Barelegs, king of Norway, killed raiding Ulster 1153 King Harald Eystein raids east coast of England from Norway 1156 Somerled wins southern Hebrides from Godred H of Man 1170 Anglo-Normans conquer Dublin 1263 Scots defeat Hakon IV at Largs 1266 Norway cedes Man and Hebrides to Scotland 1469 Denmark cedes Orkney and Shetland to Scotland WESTERN EUROPE THE EAST 1048 last Rus attack on Constantinople 1071 Normans expand into southern Italy 1271 end of Rurik dynasty in Rus WORLD EVENTS 1055 Seljuk Turks take Baghdad 1071 Seljuks defeat Byzantines at Manzikert 1085 King Alfonso T of Leon takes Toledo from Muslims 1095-95 First Crusade 1147-8 Second Crusade 1155 Frederick Barbarossa crowned emperor 1187 Saladin takes Jersualem 1204 Fourth Crusade takes Constantinople 1237-42 Mongols invade eastern Europe 1337 outbreak of Hundred Years War between England and France 1347 Black Death in Europe 1458 Ottoman Turks take Constantinople. End of Hundred Years WarI: The Origins of the Vikings Below: The circular stone fort of Griborg is the langest of mary built on Oland during the Migration Period, a time of intense competition between ritual eli fort wes pressed into service again in the late Vik jad asa refuge against Wendisl pirates, The Vikings’ way of life was shaped by their Scandinavian 5 ) J homeland. Its harsh environment, seafaring tradition and the i power struggles between rival warlords led the Scandinavians to plunder their richer neighbours to the south. The homeland of the Vik tics: Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Scandinavia is a vast region stretching some 1200 miles (2000km) from the neck of the Jutland peninsula in the south to North Cape well beyond the Arctic Circle. Only in the far north and south does Scandinavia lack clearly defined borders. In the north Scandinavia me was the three modern Scandinavian coun- es seamlessly into the tundras of north Russia, Scandinavia's short southern land frontier across the neck of the Jutland has always been hard to define, and its present position dates only from 1920. However, southern Jutland has extensive areas of infertile soils and until the advent of modern area which acted icultural methods it was a sparsely populated as a natural buffer zone between the German peoples to the south and the Scandinavians to the north. Southern Scandinavia—Juuvand, the Danish islands and Sweden south of the Southern Uplands—is essentially a low-lying extension of the north European plain, Though there are large areas of infertile sands deposited by rivers of meltwater from ice sheets during the | the best soils in Scandin: at has Iee Age, this ia. Though rarely rising above 1000 feet (300m), the Swedish Southern Uplands, an area of lakes, bogs and dense forest, a significant obstacle to travel and formed a natural ba the Danes and the Swedes until the 17th century. wel er betweenNorway, on the west of the Scandinavian peninsula, is completely dominat- ed by along range of ancient fold mountains known in Viking times as “The Keel", These rise steeply from the sea in the west and decline gradually in the southeast to the Gulf of Bothnia and the lowlands around Lake Vanern and Lake Milaren in Sweden, The west coast is indented with deep fjords, some of which penetrate over a hundred miles inland, Off the coast are chains of islands and reefs, the Skerry Guard, which form a sheltcred coastal passage for shipping. This sca route to the north, the “North Way”, gave Norway its name. During the Ice Age the Scandinavian peninsula was very heavily glaciated, and the landscape of Norway and northern Sweden has been scoured by ice. Soils are generally thin, stoney, waterlogged and infer- tile: only in the Trondelag, around Oslo Fjord and the plains around Lake Vanern and Lake Malaren are there extensive areas of fertile soils. During the Ice Age, the weight of the Scandinavian ice cap depressed the land sur- face. Since the ice cap melted at the end of the Ice Age, the land—relieved of the huge weight of ice—has been steadily rising. As a result, the coastline has receded since Viking times. This is most evident in central Sweden: in Viking times Lake Malaren was an inlet of the sea offering easy access to the interior. The relative fall in sea level was a contributory factor in the decline of some Viking age ports and trade centres such as Birka on Lake Malaren and Kaupang on Oslo Fjord, which gradually became more and more diffi- cult to reach by ship, Climate and Agriculture The climate of Scandinavia is maritime in the west and continental in the east. Because of the moderating influence of the Gulf Stream the Norwegian coast has cool summers and, for its latitude, mile winters, [tis a poor climate for growing grain, but agriculture based on pastoralism is pos- sible even in the Lofoten Islands over 120 miles (192km) north of the Arctic Circle. Norwegian waters remain ice free throughout the year. Inland the climate deteriorates rapidly and winters in the mountains are severe, with heavy snowfalls. However, the mountains were an important source of sum- mer grazing and of bog-iron ore. Most of Sweden lies in the rain shadow of the Norwegian mountains, and the climate is much drier, Summers are warm and sunny, but Sweden's remoteness from the warming influence of the Gulf Stream means that winters can be severe, and sea ice can close the Baltic to shipping for several weeks or even months cach year. The climate of Denmark and southernmost Sweden shows both maritime and continen- tal influences, with moderate rainfall, warm summers and cold but not severe winters. The climate is well suited to pastoral and arable farming which, combined with the best soils in Scandinavia, has always made Denmark and southern Sweden the richest farming region in Scandinavia. The geography of Scandinavia has always exerted an influence on its histori- cal development, most obviously in the field of communications. Mountains, forests and bogs have always made overland travel difficult in the Scandinavian peninsula: most long-distance overland travel took place in the winter when the ground was frozen hard, However, Scandinavia is well provided with sheltered coastal waters, fjords, lakes and navigable rivers; from the Stone Age, boats and ships became the most important means of transport, so the Vikings were heirs to a long tradition of seafaring and shipbuilding, The poverty of the soils in much of Scandinavia added another incentive for seafaring as fishing, seal and walrus hunting and wade all offered attractive alternatives, or at least supplements, to a hard living onAbove: The importance of ipa and the sea is evident throughout Scandinavian Prehistoric art, religion and ieftains were frequently buried in burial customs, C ships, or within an enclosure of stones arranged to form the outline of a alip, as in this Bronze Age burial in Gotland, the land. The shortage of good soils t have led to lind hunger at times of population Volso growth, and bred a willingness to cimigrate, The nature of the Land also had a great effect on the political development of Scandinavig do sea were casi- Communication by both land est in Denmark and southern Sweden. This region had the best soils and climate, so it could tion. As a result, it was support the densest popu the first arca of Scandinavia to see the formation of a unified state; this explains why Denmark, in spite of its small size, remained the leading Seandinavian kingdom until the 17th century. Norway by contrast has a highly fr graphy which naturally lends itself to the forma- tion of strong local identities. The two lar areas of good farming land, and hence the wealthiest and most densely populated parts of Norway, were the Trondelag and the Oslo Fjord region, Since they lely sepa developed as rival power centres, delaying the unification of the country. mented peo- st ed, they ‘he Early Scandinavians The first human inhabitants of Scandinavia were nomadic hunters who followed the seasonal 1 veross what was then the north German tundra into southern Scandinavia at the heig ment in grations of reindeer herds ht ofthe last glaciation around 11,000 ne. Permanent human settle- naround S000 years ago as bands of hunter-gath- erers moved north in the wake of the retreating ice sheets. These bands indinavia be; 5B moved between semi-permanent camps every few months to exploit a wide range of seasonal animal and plant foods. There is no convincing evidence of any later migrations into Scandinavia, so it seems likely that the Vikings ¢ the direct descendants of these hunter-gatherers. Around 4000 pe the early Scandinavians adopted agriculture, probably as a result of contacts with farmi peoples to the south. Around 2000 ne flint tools began to be replaced by bronze, and iron tools began to appear « 500 pe. The Stone Age (Neolithic) farmers lived in isolated family farms, but impressive meg lithic communal tombs s tity. By the Bronze Age, in the r ning to cluster together in vill among otherwise smaller dwelli 1d as monuments to some sort of common iden- ore fertile areas at least, farms were beg es. The presence of a single large dwelling ests that villages were dominated by S$ sug a heads nor chief. Small numbers of richly furnished graves also point to ce of a ruling class in Bronze-Age Scandinavia. This process of the em social stratification continued throughout the Scandinavian Iron > (¢ 500 bc —-Ap 1000), Increasit The beginning of the Early Iron A marked by a decline in populatio tion, but the population was would continue to do so throughout the remainder of the Tron Age, Some (500 no-ap 1) appears to have been perhaps caused by climatic deteriora- rowing again by the end of the period and of the most important finds of this period are votive offerings of weapons, cauldrons, pottery and food, as well as several human sacrificial victims, deposited in bogs and superbly preserved by the acid conditions.Below; Human sacrifice was common in tron Age seandinavia, The victims! ba offerings te the gods in peat bogs, where the chemicals in the gromnd have preserved thems in remarkable condition, Tollund nian was found in Jutland, with the hide rope used to hang Irina still in place around his neck, ies were placed with other It was in the Roman Iron Age (Ap 1-400) and the succeeding Germanic y developed its familiar Viking Tron Age (100-800) that Scandinavian soci tual absenee of literary sources, it is impos- charact ics. Because of the sible to reconstruct the politi detail, but they and social chi m be drawn in outlit 2s of the period in any on the basis of archaeological evi- dence and by comparison with the better-documented German peoples to the south. In the Roman Iron Age the objects found in votive deposits are almost exclusively weapons, presumably thank offerings for victory in batde. The presence, especially in Denmark, of many Roman weapons in these offer- s that the Scandinavians were often engaged in battle with the German tribes to the south, who were in direct contact with the Roman Empire. The increasing importance of war in society is also indicated by the appearance of warrior g¢ furnished with weapons, suggesting that Scandinavian society was now dominated by a warrior elite. A smaller num- ber of graves containing weapons and prestige luxury goods suggests that this warrior clite included a class of chieftains or, perhaps, petty kings. Finds of everyday Roman objects like pottery and coins alongside luxury goods and jewell show that there were direct or indirect trade links between Scandina ind the Roman world, Seasonal trading ed with cult centres, such as Lundeborg in Denmark, sprang up. Finds of Roman goods are, not surprisingly, most common in southern Scandinavia but they are not evenly distributed: a notable concen- ings sugge like glass, silverwar centres, often assocAbove: The centuries immediately preceding the outbreak of Viking raiding sau great development in Seandinavian shipbutlding techniques. This Sth century carved picture stone front Gotland shows an early sailing ship alongside mythological scenes, tration in Sjelland suggests that in the late Reman Iron Age a centralized authority, probably a kingdom, had developed here with cnough power to control trade over a wide areca, The indirect cause of these soci S wals probably the Roman infl on the German tribes to the south. Through a com- bination of trade, subsidy, plunder and pay- t for mercenary services, the German uibes in direct contact with the Romans were greatly enriched, and this must have made them an attractive target for raidiy poorer neighbours to the north. Those who were most successful in these raids would by their soon be t fram the rest of so y by ly that clopment of lion engin their greater wealth and status, [tis li the Roman fron Age saw the de the comifatus or war band, an insti which is well attested among the G tribes in this period. The comitatus was 1 up of young warriors who became the follow- ers of a successful chicfain or king. In return for their loyalty the warriors expected to be rewarded, and the war band would only stay together as long as the leader had the w to reward them, Though a leader could alth through peaceful means such as landownership or by controlling trade, military expeditions to win plunder and tribute were usually more effective. This cre in war was the key to power and status. It also led to the concentration of power in fewer and fewer hands and to the merging of tribes, either volun- tarily to wage wa ssion more effectively, or be a weaker tribe had been conquere tronger. It was probably in this way, for example, that the Danes emerged as the dominant people of southern indinavia by the 6th century, le wi tted a very competitive, predatory society, where success por re Scandinavia suffered no invasions fror tions should be seen as evidence of internal insecurity born of these intense power struggles. Many of these fortifica tres of chieftaincies and local kingdoms, There is also evidence of a tendency for settlement to move away from the coasts, a sign that piracy was ril Though, no doubt, unre Seandinavians hold that tl oubide in this period these fortifica- ons were probably the ce ble in detail, the carly historical traditions of the s was indeed a period of constant conflict between competing tribes. Though Scandinavia escaped invasion during the Migration Period, the Jutland wibes of the Angles and Jutes joined the ms in migrating to Britain in the 5th century. What prompted this migration is not known, but it is possible that they were under pressure from hbouring peoples. The Rise of Kingdoms The archaeological evidence points to the development of powerful 1 al kingdoms in the Late Germanic Tron Age (600-800), the last period ofthe Scandinavian Iron Age before the Viking age. One such kingdom was centred in Uppland in Sweden, north of Lake Malaren, around the pagan cult centre of Gamla Uppsala. Nearby are cemeteries at Vendel and Vals- garde containing burials with exceptionally rich furnishings, including ships and fine armour. These were probably cemeteries of the royal dynasty of the Svear people from whom Sweden would take its name. Jutland was the cen- tre of another early kingdom, though the evidence here comes from large scale defence works rather than burials. In 726, a canal was built through an isthmus on the island of Sams, proba- bly to regulate shipping and in 737 an earthwork barrier —the Danevirke— was built across the neck of the Jutland peninsula. (The reason we have such precise dates is because timbers can be dated by dendrochronology, the study of their ring patterns), Both were major projects, and whoever built them must have been able to command labour and resources over a wide area. At around the same time a trading place at Ribe was founded. All of these projects were perhaps the responsibility of King Angantyr, who St Willibrord met on a mission to Jutland in the early 8th century, Angantyr is described as king of the Danes, but whether this means all of them or just the Danes in Jutland is uncertain: the latter seems more likely, The rich bur- ial mounds at Borre and Oseberg in Vestfold suggest the development of an emergent kingdom in this part of Norway immediately before the Viking Age. In the course of the Viking age these primitive and precarious states would be forged into the medieval kingdoms of Denmark, Sweden and Norway. Right: The wealth and splendour of the late Iron Age Scandinavian aristocracy is evident from this jewelled Vendel-style brooch from Aker, Norway.The Scandinavian Environment Two contrasting Scandinavian landscapes; the steep, rocky chasm of Norway's Geiranger Fjord (right), and the pastoral landscape of Brendeshaj in Denmark, with a view across the Sejera Bugt to Sjacllands ‘Odde (below). Scandinavia’s history has always been shaped by its landscape, especially its relationship with the sea. Despite its northerly latitude idinaviz y mild climate thanks to the warming Gulf Stre wet, are mild. Sweden has seve has a surprisiz The coastal areas of Norway, though winters, but warn, dry summers compen- sate. Agriculture is restricted by the scarcity of suitable soils. Denmark, the ble land, making the id most politically advanced of the smallest country, has the highest proportion of ari Danes the wealthiest, most numerous Scandinavians in the Viking a farmland: around Trondheim in the north and Oslo Fjord in the south Be they be Norwegi e. Norway has only two extensive areas of use of the distance and poor communications between them, ion of a unified im kingdom until the 12th century. In times of rapid population growth, shortage of arable land became serious; the Viking age was just one me rival power centres, delaying the cre of many periods in which Scandinavians migrated in search of land to farm. The sea was an important fact of life. The poverty of the land made fishing an essential source of food, and the geography of the region meant that it was often easier to travel by water than by land. Boat-building and seaman- ship were essential skills, most obviously for the island-dwelling Danes. In Norway the mountainous terrain and deeply indented coastline made inland travel arduous; sailing along the sheltered fjords was far quicker and safer. In Sweden, rivers and lakes offered the best routes into the densely forested country; long-distance travel overland mainly took place in winter, when the bogs and rivers were frozen. The pattern of Viki activity is closely related to the locations of the Scandinavian peoples. Norwegian expansion was mostly to the west: to Scotland, Ireland, the Faeroe Islands, Iceland and ultimately to Greenland and North Ameri the Baltic to the Rhine, so it is net a. The Danes’ territory straddled the main sea route from surprising they first concentrated on Frisiz d then spread to England and Francia. Swedes, cut off from the western seas by the Danes and Norwegians, had only one outlet: east, along the great rivers that led into the heartlands of Russia.Lope Ps Islands os er warming Gulf Stream @ . Mos makes pastoral farming ‘\. possible as far north” — as Lofoten ngs 5 Meat Te f = Aa ie is se ie ieee J we” 2s a * @ “North Way" Sear foute ¥ through sheltered channels LRA s ae Sts were ap spor FS a 3 ite 4 ( source o a oy ENG ing AN, 2 sy o , Ace Bundsvall Wiking-age Sweden, 4 ts fy cn Gotland its commanding aslo h i @ sheltered Limfjord, main sailing route be North Sea and Baltic the Baltic made Goffag major centre of Viking sg Oland NY D Climate and arable land in Scandinavia ees land over 200 metres [seer] land over 500 metres land over 1000 metres (PB) rable soil __ average January temperature OC (eastern limit) average July temperature 15jC (northern limit) 1000mm mean annual rainfall (eastern limit)Scandinavia Before the Vikings “Our feud with the Franks grew worse when Hygelac sailed with his fleet to the shores of Frisia, Frankish warriors attached him there, and outfought him ... he jell, surrounded by his retainers...” from the 8th- century Anglo- Saxon poem Beowiul/ \/Hygelac’s raid, 528 (One of the earliest recorded Scandinavian pinate raids on western Europe was by Hygelac, a king of the Danes or the Geats (i.e. Gotar), c. ap $28. The raiders were defeated by the Franks on the lower Rhine, but they created a lasting impression as the raid is recorded in four independent literary sources including Gregory of Tours's 6th-century history of the Franks and the Sth- century Anglo-Saxon epic poem Beowulf, et éth-century coastline Danes Franks 2G bate The hallmarks of Viking society—trade, seaborne raids and a warrior elite—have their roots in the earlier Iron Age. Scandinavia was first settled by bands of hunter-gatherers moving north in the wake of retreating ice sheets about 8000 years ago. Farming was prac- tised in southern Scandinavia by 4000 Be, bronze-working by 2000 nc and iron-working by 500 ac. Little is known about Scandinavia in the Early Iron Age (« 500 Be-ap 1): discov important finds are the s tims which are sometimes found in Danish peat bogs. During the Roman Iron Age (« ap 1-400) chicfly dwellings, cult centres, richly furnished war- tier burials and votive hoards of weapons appear in southern Scandinavia. These point to the emergence of a warrior aristocracy and the beginnings of political centralization. The impetus for this was probably competition to control the wealth generated by contacts with the Roman Empire. and the most The votive offerings of a ship and weapons from Hjortspring (¢ 350 Bc) sug- gests that sea-raiding was already common in Scandinavia during the Early Iron Age. The Heruls (from Jutland) raided Frisia in Ab 287 and Spain in e 455 and « 460, while the Danes are known to have raided Frisia in « 528 and ¢ 570, The migrations of the Jutes and Angles from Jutland to Britain in the 5th century are also unlikely to have been entirely peaceful. Scandinavia largely escaped the dislocation suffered in the rest of Europe during the Migration Period (« 400-600), Fortified local power centres, such as Eketorp on Oland, and the impres- sive burial mounds at Gamla Uppsala point to the emergence of well-orga- nized chiefdoms. The final period of the Scandinavian Iron Age before the Viking Age was the Vendel period or Late Germanic Iron Age (¢ 600- 800), A rampart—the Dane- virke—was built to protect Denmark from the south, and lavish ship burials were made—evidence that Scan- dinavia's first regional kingdoms had developed.Uiron-Age Scandinavia Early Iron Age, ¢, 500 BC-AD |; 6 body in bog @ = votive ship Roman Iron Age. c. AD 1-400: ® warrior grave = votive ship 4 other votive offering Migration period, «. 400-600 ww" = migration out of setthed area —_ burial mounds Svear main Scandinavian peoples, c, 500 Late Germanic, c. 600-800; unsettled area c. 700 « chief's residence and religious centre ++ seasonal trading place sex royal defence work pre-Viking ship burials: . royal or aristocratic = other votive ship Norwegian Ae a of wKvalsund -» Raumi Dankirke a * Jutlane les oo eee einen oa the Danevirke, a buile eros the jutiond peninsula in 737 This helmet comes from one of the Sth- century ship burials at Vendel in Sweden, The size and ificence of such burials ce that states now existed, ruled by powerful kings who could command people and resources over awide area. ALY ¥Pagan Religion and Burial Customs Above: Thor goes fishing for the world serpent. In his right hand be wields bis hammer Mijallnir, ready to stun the beast, This scene appears on a runestone from the church at Altura in Sweden, testimony to the lang coexistence of Christianity and paganism in much of Scandinavia, Above right: « warrior rides into Valhalla on Odin's eight- legged horse Sleipnir and is welcomed by a Valkyrie. The scene appears on an Sth- century stone carving from the island of Gotland. Most Vikings were pagans, and the old gods Thor, Odin and Freyr lived on in Scandinavia long after much of Europe was Christian. Unlike Christianity, Scandinavian pagan- ism did not have a systematic theology and lacked absolute concepts of good and evil or of the afterlife, Religion was a matter of the correct performance and observance of sacrifices, rituals and festi- vals, rather than of personal spirituality. There was no fulltime priesthood; it was Su cal chiefiains who that festivals were obs d. A cycle of cosmological myths told of the cre- ation of the world and of its ultimate destruction, Vikings believed that all things were subject to fate, including the gods who would perish at Ragnardk, the final cataclysm that would destroy the world, As in other polytheistic igions, the Viking gods ruled over different aspects of human life. The most important were Odin, Thor and Freyr. Odin was a rather sinister deity who, with his brothers, had created the human race and gave man the knowledge of poetry and of writing in runes. Odin was the god of wisdom, power, war and poetry: he was a sorcerer and could deprive men of their wits and exercise his power of life and death in wildly unpredictable ways. Odin's attributes made him the god of kings, chieftains, warriors and poets: both the Danish royal far ily Hladir claimed descent from him. The most popular god among the peas- antry was Thor, the god of phys strength, thunder and lightning, wind, rain, good weather and crops. ng his mighty hammer Mjollnir, Thor defended the world against the destructive power of the giants. Unlike Odin, Thor was a straightforward, reliable god, but he was none too bright and the myths concerning his deeds often highlight in a humorous way the limitations of brute strength, Pendants fashioned in the sign of the hammer were often worn by Thor's devotees, and the Earls of dynasty traced its ance giant woman. Freyr had a luck in love and represented sensuality, Fr was the leader of the disir, a race of female demigods who presided over fertility in nature and in humans. The god Loki was a cunning, witty mischief-maker, whose schemes were always getting the gods and himself into trouble. Though he was not an unambiguously evil figure like Satan, Loki was capable of great wicked- ness and treachery, and the Vikings believed that his scheming would lead in the end to Ragnarok. The Vikings had rather vague ideas about the afterlife. The souls of heroic warriors who had died in battle were taken by the Valkyries—fe tand fight in Odin's home, Valhalla, the hall of the slain, until the time ca for them to march out to fight side by side with the gods against the giants at Ragnardk. Freyja too might c warriors’ souls, as well as at least some women's. Others went to the dismal twilight world of Hel. It was also believed that the dead could live on in the ile demigods—to f m a share of thegrave. The common practice of placing everyday objects, weapons, tools and even horses, wagons i ships in graves is probably a sign that people believed that the afterlife would resemble this life, and that somehow these ds. Here, at the Viking cemete Hoje fn Denmar objects would be useful to the dead. However, in some cases, such as the yt Line . Stones were nich ship burials at Oseberg and Gokstad, the grave goods may have been f form: the ontline of a pronnerned 1 ace intended more to impress the living with the wealth and status of the ceased’s family than to help the dead. Whatever the beliefs that lay has provided archae- i ae } behind it, the practice of furnishing graves in this 4 Paganism in Scandinavia, c.800-1000 > vi ologists with a major source of information about Scandinavian society in the Viking Before the Viking age, cremation was the normal method of disposal of the i Scandinavia. The dead were cremated in everyday clothes d throug together with any goods that were to accompany them. The remains were afterwards gathered together and placed in an pottery urn and buried or a scattered on the ground. The grave could be x * a. “=| marked by a mound or pile of stones or, as at Lindholm Hoje, by ship-shaped settings of stones. Early in the Viking age inhumation began to be practiced in Denmark, Gotland and re of the Sirka. The richer inhumations w “chamber grave” type, where the body was laid fully clothed in a timber-lined pit surrounded by grave goods and sometimes horses or human sacrifices. The common people would be more likely to be buried in a simple wooden coffin o1 birch-bark shroud. With the spread of Christianity, inhumation, without grave goods, became the normal burial practice across Scandinavia by around 1000.II: Scandinavia in the Viking Age The Viking age was a period of prosperity in Scandinavia. The influx of wealth from trading and raiding boosted the economy. The population was rising; new villages were founded and the area under cultivation increased. Scandinavia’s first towns developed and the medieval kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden emerged. With the start of Viking raids in the last decade of the 8th century, western Europeans, not surprisingly, began to take a greater interest in Scandinavia than they had before, and contemporary literary evidence becomes more plentiful. Western European writers understandably tended to concentrate on what the Vikings were getting up to abroad, however, and though there are numerous scattered references to events in Scandinavia, there are long periods for which they give no evidence at all. These accounts can be sup- plemented by the works of later Scandinavian historians such as the 12th- century Dane Saxo Grammaticus and the 13th-century authors of the Ice- landic sagas. Though vivid and realistic in style, these later works are based largely on orally transmitted historical traditions and contain unreliable and even fictionalized material, so they have to be used with some caution. The Scandinavians themselves were not fully literate in the Viking age, but runes (which had come into use in the Roman Iron Age) were used for charms and for memorial inscriptions, some of which include valuable historical information. Despite the limitations of the sources, it is fair to say that the Viking age marks the end of Scandinavian prehistory. The Free and the Unfree Scandinavian society in the Viking age was divided into the free and the unfree. Of the unfree—the slaves—we know very litle, but their weatment probably varied greatly according to their skill and abilities, and many were freed as a reward for good service. The free shared the right to bear arms, to speak at the local assembly (the allthing) and to the protection of the law. Though most freemen were tenant or frechold farmers, Scandinavian soci- ety was not egalitarian, and the free class included a great range of wealth and status, from the landless labourer to the aristocracy. This inequality was reflected in the scale of fines laid down by law to compound a homicide: the more wealthy and influential the victim, the higher the fine that had to be paid to his family by the guilty party. As legal judgements had to be enforced by the individuals concerned, this also put poorer freemen at a disadvantage unless they had a powerful lord to force the guilty party to comply. Though hierarchical, society was not static, and the Viking age offered the ambitious and the able many opportunities to increase their wealth and raise their status by joining pirate or trading expeditions over- seas or by entering royal service. The aristocracy exercised considerable power locally, even down to resiting and replanning whole villages. The aristocracy played a leading role at the local assembly, where they would arbitrate in legal disputes, and also at the more important regional assemblies (¢hings) where major issues were dis- cussed, The aristocracy's power and influence was based on landownership, and by offering protection to less powerful men in return for their political support, The highest of the aristocracy bore the tide jeri (English “earl”),Below: Reconstructions of Viking-age trading ships under sail in Roskilde Fjord, Denmark. The growth of trade in Viking-age Scandinavia led to the development of a variety of specialist merchant ships: right, a small coaster and left, a deep-sea trader or knarr, Unlike warships, merchants relied on their sails for propulsion, which probably origit ful jarls, such as those of Hladéir in Trondelag or of Orkney, were consider- lly meant simply “prom “nt man”. The most power- able rulers in their own right, exercising virtually royal powers over wide ter- ritories. The aristocracy played an important role as war leaders, organizing local defences and raising contingents of troops for the royal army. Some chiefts the Tall at the end of the LOth century, built up such large that they be ns led Viking raids and the most successful, like the Dane Thorkell armed followings ame potential rivals to the king. The independence of the aris tocracy was challenged in the Viking age by the growth of royal power which sought to exercise direct authority at a local level, rather than having to work through the intermediary of the local chieftains Struggles for Power By the beginning of the Viking age, monarchy was already the dominant force in society, Though the power of the monarchy was lix 1 to some extent by the need for the king to consult the assemblies before taking jor decisions, the king ust asked King Olaf of the ), the king told him that he would have to seek the approval of the assembly. The lly got his own way. For example, when St nska vear for permission to preach in proposal initially aroused opposition but Olaf, who favoured Christianity, was able to manipulate proceedings to persuade the assembly to agree. Another theoretical limitation on the power of the monarchy was that the had to be was usually a formality and, if necessary, the assemblies could be overawed by an impressive show of force, as Olaf Tryggvason did with the Norwegian accepted by the more impor t assemblies. In practice this assemblies in 995,The king’s income came from landownership, tolls on trade, tribute and plunder from war. Royal administration was rudimentary and was per- formed by members of the king's retinue, the hind, probably appointed on an ad hoc basis for a specific task. Kings moved constantly from estate to estate: they had favoured residences but the Viking kingdoms did not have permanent administrative capitals. Viking kings were primarily rulers of men rather than rulers of territory. Though usually the two went together, it was not always necessary to have a kingdom to be recognized as a king: many of the 9th-century Viking leaders were kings who, apparently, pos sessed no lands, Right: This silver ring from Homelund in Denmark was made in the 10th century, a fine example of Viking craftmanship in precious metals, The rules governing royal succession were that a king had to be descended from a king on either his father’s or his mother’s side. A king might usually be succeeded by one of his sons, but any male member of the royal dynasty was eligible. This meant that there could be many potential claimants for the throne, and succession disputes were common. Joint kings were a com- mon expedient when rival claimants who had equal support were prepared to compromise, but disputed successions often led to civil wars. The losers in these civil wars, if they survived, went into exile to lick their wounds. All was not lost for exiles of royal blood: they might persuade the ruler of a neighbouring kingdom to provide them with military support to renew the struggle or they might use the prestige that came from possessing royal blood to raise a warrior band and go plundering. With luck, an exile might acquire wealth, fame and a mighty following of warriors with which to try once again to win power at home or a kingdom overseas. Returning exiles were a major destabilizing influence in the Viking kingdoms and a constant headache for established kings. Denmark The Viking kingdom we know most about in this period is Denmark. By around 800 the Danes had already created a kingdom which included all of modern Denmark, part of Germany and the provinces of Skane and Halland which are now in Sweden. The Danish kings also seem to have exercised some form of dominion over the Vestfold region of Norway. Inthe early Middle Ages Skane and Halland formed the Danes’ “mark”, or border, which gave its name to the whole country. The main preoccupation of the Danish kings at the beginning of the Viking period was the threat (real or imagined) of Frankish expansionism. Godfred, the first Danish king about whom we know much more than his name, pursued an aggressive policy towards the Franks, attacking their Slav allies in 808 and leading a large fleet to ravage Frisia in 810, Godfred also rebuilt and extended the Danevirke rampart in 808, to protect Jutland from Frankish invasion. After Godfred was murdered in 810, his nephew Hemming became king and Godfred’s sons fled into exile. Two years later Hemming died, and the crown was fought over by Sigfred, another nephew of Godfred, and Anulo, a nephew of an earlier king. Sigfred and Anulo were both killed in the battle which followed, but Anulo's party was victorious and chose his brothers Harald Klak and Reginfred as joint kings. In 813 the sons of Godfred returned and drove Harald and Reginfred into exile where they recruited an army and tried, but failed, to win their throne back the following year. Reginfred was killed and Harald went into exile in Francia. When Godfred’s sons fell out among themselves in 819, Harald returned and became joint king with one faction of the Godfred sons but was driven out again in 827. By the 830s only one of Godfred’s sons, Horik, survived. He was to hold onto his power until 853 when he was overthrown by a rebel- lion within his own family. Little is known about Denmark for the next century. The kingdom was fre- quently divided and for some time around 900 at least part of it was ruled by a Swedish dynasty. Around the mid 10th century, Gorm the Old (d. 958) founded a new, and soon to be illustrious, dynasty. Gorm’s son, Harald Bluetooth united Denmark and built a series of fortresses across the king- dom to secure his direct authority in all parts of the country. Denmark was under pressure from the Germans in the 10th century; in 974 they occupied Hedeby, but were driven out seven years later by Harald. In 987 Harald was deposed by his son Svein Forkbeard. Viking raiding had begun to revive in the late 10th century, and successful Viking leaders like Olaf Tryggvason and Thorkell the Tall rivalled Svein in prestige and wealth. Svein bolstered his own position by leading his own highly successful raids against England. At first Svein was content to milk England for Danegeld, but as English resistance crumbled he conquered the country in 1013, only to die a few months later. Norway At the beginning of the Viking period Norway was divided up into some- thing like a dozen chiefdoms and petty kingdoms, and local identities were still very strong. The Vestfold was probably the most politically advanced area of the country in the 8th century, but by around 800 this region was under Danish control. Danish influence declined as a result of the damag- ing succession disputes of the 9th century, and shortly before 900 the king of Vestfold, Harald Finehair, succeeded in winning control of much of Norway at the battle of Hafrsfjord. For this achievement Harald is tradition- ally credited with being the founder of the Norwegian kingdom. He and his successors, however, faced the continuing opposition of the powerful jarls of Hladir, Harald reigned for some 50 years, and was succeeded around 930 by his son Erik Bloodaxe. Erik was soon driven off the throne by his younger brother Hakon the Good, and went into exile to earn a fearsome reputationas a Viking leader and to become, for two short periods between 948 and 954, King of York. Hakon was killed some time around 960 by Erik Bloodaxe’s son Harald Greycloak, who then became king. Harald spent much of his reign trying unsuccessfully to gain control of the Trondelag, and was eventually killed around 970 fighting against an alliance of Jarl Hakon of Hladéir and Svein Forkbeard. The allies restored Norway to Danish control—if the jarls of Hladir had to submit to a king, they preferred to do so to a distant rather than a near one. Hakon remained the most powerful man in Norway until 995, when Olaf Tryggvason, a grandson of Harald Finehair who had won much fame and wealth as a Viking leader, invaded, put Hakon to flight and established him- self as king over the whole country. Olaf ruled only five years before being killed at SvGld (location unknown) in battle against an alliance between Svein Forkbeard and Jarl Erik of Hladir. Svein and Erik divided control of the country between them, but Norway had been united and it would be again before long. Sweden Sweden is the Scandinavian country we know least about in this period. There were two main peoples, the Svear, from whom Sweden takes its name, in the region around Lake Malaren, and the Gotar around Lakes Vanern and Vattern. Very litde is known about the Gotar, and they are not mentioned in primary sources as being involved in Viking raiding (though that might only be the result of confusion over identities). The names of a few Svear kings are known from the 9th century, but the extent of their authority is not known with any precision. However, by around 890 the Svear kingdom probably included most of central Sweden and the islands of Gotland and Oland. The relationship between the Svear and Gétar appears to have been close, and some Svear kings were actually of Gotar origin. The first king known for certain to have ruled both the Svear and the Gotar was Olof Skétkonung (ruled ¢« 995-1020), but the unification of the two peo- ples in a single kingdom was not complete until the 12th century. From Pagan to Christian The period between 800 and1000 saw the beginning of the Christianization of Scandinavia. The Vikings came into contact with Christianity through preaching missions like St Anskar's, which began in the 820s, and also through their activities in the Christian lands. Many early conversions may have been motived by practical rather than spiritual concerns. The first Viking king to be baptized, Harald Klak in 826, probably did so to win the support of Emperor Louis the Pious against his rivals at home. Christian rulers such as Alfred the Great often made baptism a condition of peace treaties. Some Vikings were baptized several times in this way without ever truly accepting Christianity. The Annals of St Bertin record that after a Frankish abbot had baptized a group of Vikings in 876 “he bestowed gifts on them and sent them back to their own people, but afterwards, like typi- cal Northmen, they lived according to the pagan custom just as before.” Despite such setbacks, Christianity was well established among the Viking settlers overseas by 900. Christianity was tolerated in Scandinavia from the early 9th century, and there were churches in Hedeby, Ribe and Birka by the 850s. The Vikings seem to have readily accepted Christ as a god to be invoked along with the traditional Norse gods, but it took far longer for theChristian god to be accepted as the sole god. An Icelander, Helgi the Lean, said that he was a Christian “but invoked Thor in matters of seafaring and dire necessity.” The real breakthrough for Christianity came only in the later 10th century, when kings like Harald Bluetooth and Olaf Tryggvason converted, While no doubt sincere enough converts, these kings recognized the potential of Christian doctrines and church organization as a means of strengthening the monarchy and promoting the unity of their kingdoms. Right: Thor was the most popular of the Norse gods, and his hammer symbol was often worn to invoke his protection. This 10th-century amulet was found in Iceland; its design has been strongly influenced by the Christian crucifix,From Chiefdoms to Kingdoms Above: Harald Bluetoath's rune stone in the Danish royal cemetery at Jelling would originally have been brightly painted, It is inscribed: “King Harald commanded these memorials made to Gorm his father and Thyre bis mother, that Harald who won for himself all Denmark and Nonway and made the Danes Christian.” The newly baptized king bad the pagant great beast and serpent engraved on this side of the stone, and the figure of Christ ort the other. directly. 2/The round fort at Fyrkat This is one of four rownd forts in Denmark which were probably built around 980 ly Harald Bluetooth, They all follow a standard design, suguesting that they were planned by a central authority with power over considerable amounts of labour and resources. Earlier Danish kings had exercised poser indirectly through the chieftains; by building and garrisoning these forts (known as Trelleborg-type round forts), Harald could control bis kingdom The kings of Denmark emerged as the most powerful force in Scandinavia as chiefdoms gave way to organized states. When Scandinavia emerged from its prehistoric period at the end of the 8th century, the Danes were politically the most adva Scandinavian peoples. The kings of Denmark dominated an area far larger than modern Denmark; their overlordship was recognized over much of what is now southern Sweden and as far north as Vestfold in Norway. Kings were chosen from a single royal family, but any member of that family could aspire Lo the kingship. As a result, succession disputes were common Unsuccessful claimants often went into exile rareer as Viking leaders in order to win wealth ake a fresh bid for the , and its authority collapsed ed of the bo pursue 1 te d reputatic nish monare fof the 9th century. throne. This destabilized the | the second hz Shortly before 900 Harald Finehair (d. 930), a king or chieftain in Vest- -fold, exploited the collapse of Danish power to F most of southern Norway. Harald is traditic Norweg ke himself master « ally seen as the founder of the n kingdom, though his control over the powerful Jarls of Hladir in the Trondelag remained weak. By the mid-LOth century Danish power was reviving under King Gorm (d. 958) and his son I dl Bluetooth (958-87) re-established Danish control over N d was baptized in 965 and became the first Scandinavian king actively to promote Christianity, Harald’s successor Svein Forkbeard increased the wealth and authority of the monarchy by leading « series of well organized and successful 1 England, culminating in his conquest of the country in LOLS. By leading the raids himself, Svein largely prevented any other Viking getting enough wealth and prestige to challenge his throne, though in ¢ Norwegian Viking, Olaf Tryggvason, did temporarily establish | mself as king of Norway. He lost his kingdom and his life at the Battle of Sv6ld in 1000, way. F The history of Sweden ghbouri in this period is less well known, The Svear people appear to have had a 5 Olof Skotkonung was described as king of the « relations ad by 4 Gor ar and Ge . ar, ic two peoples were not securely united until the 12th century, however. The Svear kings ibute from Finnish areas east of the Baltic. Danish influence was not as strong as in Norway, but Olof, whose nickname “Skotkonung” means tribut: o collec ing, acknowledged Svein as overlord.pin we Jors of Hla rl Trondelag . _ Ant eRe i ae : ee ae : Vee Ie. gqare™ > Vane 9 a | af we ae . nan orsburgenG> Vastergarn ALS KS vik pingsv © ee Lies | { Gotland : o smantorp 5 | 1 Oland ie |/State power in Scandinavia, c. 800-1000 area under Danish control: | ¢. 800 ff c. 995 no permanent settlement the “Army Re ayes , ed royal or aristocratic centre f # ag site of regional assembly defended settlement OSS M ‘Wllin _base of independent round fort A M y mercenary Jomsvikings other fort ie 968-81 Seen royal defence work Fe ee _ Germans invade Denmark trading place Danish King Godfred “and occupy Hedeby ] a &P cl repairs and extends . ishopric with date Danevirke, fearing “€ » of foundation a Frankish invasion 22 ee : . . Abodrites . other church 7 eae battleRural Settlement “Ohthere was among the foremost men of [Halogaland}; yet he did not haze more than 20 head of catlle, and 20 sheep, and 20 pigs; and the Little that he ploughed, he ploughed by horses.” Ohthere’s voyage to the White Sea, c. 890 Above: the wooden spade nas one of the standard agricul- tural implements of the Viking world, This Sth-cemtury example is made of oak, and hus seen considerable wear, It was found in one of the wells at Vorbasse. Most Scandinavians of the Viking age lived peacefully by agriculture, rearing animals and growing crops in small villages. The main farming activity in all the settled parts of Scandinavia—including Halogaland, well beyond the Arctic Circle—was animal husbandry; cattle, pigs, sheep and goats were all reared by the Vikings. In Denmark and south- eden, arable farming was also important; the main crops were barley, peas, beans and cabbage, Denmark may even have produced sur- plus grain. In Arctic Norway and the marginal upland areas of Norway and Sweden, hunting and fishing made a significant contribution to the diet as well as providing valuable trade goods, small villages were the normal form of settlement. These vil- lages seem to have shifted their sites slightly every hundred years or so, and only settled down onto permananent sites after the end of the Viking age. There are few large areas of fertile land in Norway, and the broken nature of the terrain led to a dispersed settlement pattern with isolated farms on small pockets of cultivable land. In Sweden too, set- Hement was dispersed, but in the fe stergotand and Uppland, villages were begin- to appear by the end of the Viking age as subdivision of existing farms, The population of Scandinavia was rising during the Viking age, the period saw an expan of the area under cultiva and the creation of new : ements where enough si able land could be claim- ed in between established settlements, e areas of The most typical Viking-age farm building was the long house, which accommodat- ed both people and animals ms had many outbuildings for use as workshops or storage, A com- mon type of smaller building was the sunken-floored hut, which was half buried in the ground. These buildings were well insulated and may have been used for storing products which needed to be kept cool, Building techniques reflected the local environment, In much of Norway and Sweden, where timber was plentiful, buildings had solid wooden walls and roofs made of a layer of waterproof birch bark covered with insulating turf. 1 less forested a such as Jutland, timber-framed buildings were walled 1 clay-plastered wattle and roofed with thatch. In treeless areas such as land, turf and stone were used as much as possible, under one roof, leVorbasse: a Viking farming village Vorhasse in Jutland is the only complete Viking farming village to have been excavated, The site has a complex history of oceupation lasting from around 100 0 to Ab 1100, when the village mowed to its present location about 750m to the south, In the period from 700-1000 there were six farms int the village, all of roughly the same size. The main occupation was stock rearing —the farms bad about 20 cows each—but grain was also grown. The village must have produced a surplus of food wwilic necessities it could not prowide for itself: good building timber, iron, whetstones and soapstone pots from Norway, and goad quality y and lave quernstones from the Rhineland,Trade and Trade Routes Above: in Viking transactions, silver was valved by weight. This pair of balance scales from Viking Dublin dates from the 9th century and soonclel Inave bean scsed few weighing cobes or hacksilver. I/Viking trade routes, c. 925 Scandinavian state —! or settlement Viking-controlled international i trading place Viking trade route other major trade route Alongside raiding and settlement, Vikings operated a far-flung trade network from Greenland to Central Asia. Scandinavian trade with the rest of Europe increased in the 8th century, and probably encouraged the Viking expansion. Scandinavians on trading vovages would have become aware of the unguarded riches of western Europe, while the growing fur trade provided the incentive for the Swedes to establish themselves in northern Russia. Some Scandinavians made a liv ing exclusively as merchants, but most were part-timers who also engaged in farmi ig, crafts or even piracy. The most valuable goods were initially acquired as plunder or tribute. Huge amounts of silver, paid as Danegeld, came from England and Francia; furs and slaves were extorted as tribute from the Finns, Lapps and Slavs and then traded for silver with the Arabs, Wealth flooded into Scandinavia during the 9th and 10th centuries; on the Baltic island of Gotland alone, 40,000 Arabic, 38,000 Frankish and 21,000 Anglo-Saxon silver coins have been found in hoards from this period. Most trade was short-distance, conducted by farmer-merchants to and from dozens of small ports around the Scandinavian coasts. A smaller number of international trading places attracted merchants from England, Frisia, Germany and occasionally even as far afield as the Caliphate of Baghdad. Most of these centres began as seasonal meeting places where craftsmen set up temporary workshops and merchants could trade by barter or for silver. Successful centres, like Hedeby and Ribe, developed into Scandinavia’s first towns. Kings sought to encourage and control trade by protecting mer from piracy in exchange for tolls and taxes. In , wade aided the growth of royal power i 4 ScandinavKaupang: a Viking-age trading place Kaupang was sited on a sheltered bay close to the mouth of Oslo Fjord. Large seasonal markets were held here (the name means “market place” from c. 730-900. Trade was international; English, Frankish, Danish and Arabic coins have been found, along with Rhenish, Frisian and Slavic potiery, Rhenish glass and English . There was probably no permanent population; most of the buildings so far excavated were crafismen's workshops. Industrial activities included ship repairs, soapstone ing, metalworking and glass bead production. Graves in the nearby cemeteries contained imported goods and agricultural tools, and were probably those of local farmers who were also seasonal traders. brortz KHAZAR KHANATE teilShips and Seafaring “The winier after King Olaf came from Halogaland, he had a great vessel buili at Ladehaminer, which was larger than any ship in the country... Thorberg Shafhogg was... the master builder af the ship; but there were many others besides—some to fell wood, some to shee it, some to make nails, some to carry timber; and all that was used was of the best.” King Olaf Trygevason's Saga Right: memorial slabs from the Baltic island of Gotland offer the earliest clear evidence of the use of the sail in Scandinavia. This &th- century stone shows the diagonal stitching in the sail, and the rigging held by the two crew members. Without seaworthy sailing ships, the Viking expansion would have been impossible. Their importance is demonstrated in art, poetry, religion and burial practices. Viking ships were built using the clinker or lapstrake technique in which the lower edge of each hull plank overlaps the upper edge of the one below it. This technique gave the Viking ships light, flexible hulls which “rode” the waves and had excellent sea-keeping qualities. Viking ships were double- ended, with the bow and the stern built in the same way, and were steered by a side rudder (always on the right, hence starboard). There were many different types of Viking ship, all built to suit a particular purpose or mari- time environment. Typical of a small Viking warship is the 11th-century longship known as Skuldelev 5, found with four other wrecks at Skuldelev near Roskilde in Denmark, The ship was 57 feet (17.5m) long by 8 feet (2.5m) wide, and had a crew of 26 oarsmen. Tests with a replica of the ship have shown that it could reach speeds of over 9 knots under sail and over 5 knots when rowed by a full crew. Even fully loaded it drew only 18 inches (50 cm) of water; it would have been ideally suited to raiding in the shallow waters of the Baltic and the southern North Sea, and could have sailed far inland up rivers. Norwegian longships, such as the Gokstad ship, sailed mostly in deeper Atlantic waters and were broader and had deeper keels than Danish longships. The royal fleets of the late Viking age also included much larger “dragon” ships such as King Olaf Tryggvason’s “Long Serpent”. At 100 feet (30m) long and needing a crew of over 50 oarsmen, Skuldelev 2 was probably such a ship, Trade ships, built with cargo carrying capacity in mind, were shorter than longships and had wider, deeper and heavier hulls. Trade ships relied on their sails for propulsion and could be worked by small crews of four to six men: a few oars only were carried for manoeuvring in harbour. The most important type of seagoing trade ship was the sturdy knars, represented by wreck 1 from Skuldelev. This was 54 feet (16.5m) long and had a cargo capacity of 24 tons, The knarr was undoubtedly the type of ship which was used for to carry settlers across the North Atlantic to Iceland, Greenland and America (» pages 98-9). Local trade was carried on in small ships such as Skuldelev 3, which had a cargo capacity of 4 tons, It is not known exactly how the Vikings navigated their ships. Where it was convenient they hugged the coast, navigating by prominent landmarks ashore: certainly most of the Danish raids on Francia and southern England could have been carried out this way. However, the Vikings, especially the Norwegians, did make considerable open sea voyages on which they could be out of sight of land for several days or longer. Though they lacked the magnetic compass, theVikings possessed a simple sun compass which could locate north with tolerable accuracy in clear weather, Viking navigators could also use the stars to judge latitude, a great aid to navigation if the latitude of the destination was | known. Navigators would have been heirs to a stock of orally transmitted practical knowledge of sea and weather conditions. The presence of an island over the horizon might be detected by cloud formations or the direction of flight of seabirds; a slackening of the sea in stormy conditions could indicate that the ship had sailed into the lee of an island made invisible by rain or cloud. Despite tricks like these, the Viking seafarer was desperately vulnerable to being blown off course or shipwrecked in bad weather. Sometimes a storm-driven mariner would find his way home to tell of a sighting of a new land, but many more must have been lost without trace. Below: fine weather vanes adored the masts of stems of Viking ships. Originally streamers were attached to the holes in the edge to give an indication of wi and strength, The V: bad few navigational aids and relied on an expert knowledge of landmarks, sea conditions and the positions of the sin and stars to find their way. Right: “Helge Ask”, a replica of the Skuldelew 5 ship, a small Danish warship of c. 1000 foune in Roskilde Fjord, Swift under sails or oars, even fully laden it bas a draught of only 18 inches (50.cm) making it ideally suited for raiding far inland ont rivers like the Seine and the Loire.Viking Towns “[Healely] is a large town at the other end of the world The town is SU... nol rich im goods... The staple Jood Ay fish, since it is so plentiful. It often happens that a newhor " inja ree as tossed into the sea to save raising it Also women may divorce thei husbands. . Nothing can compare with the dreadful singing of these people, worse even thian the barking of dogs.” al-Tartushi, an Arab merchant from Spain, ¢. 950 Towns were slow to develop in Viking Age Scandinavia, but by 1000 there were several thriving urban centres. Scandinavia had no true towns before the Viking age, though there were several seasonal market centres. When towns did spring up, it did not hap- pen spontancow Irban development went hand in hand with the growth of royal power, and most towns appear to have been deliberately founded, often on virgin sites, by rulers to encourage, control and profit from trade. By the late 10th century towns were also being founded as adminis and ecclesiastical centres, The earliest towns in Scandinavia, Ribe, Birka and Hedeby, all date from the late 8th century, The Danish monarchy played an important role in the foundation of Hedeby, and both Ribe and Birka were under close royal con- trol in the early 9th century, suggesting that they too were deliberate royal foundations. Hedeby, the largest of the three towns, had a population of 1000-1500: Ribe and Birka were somewhat smaller. Ribe has sur- vived as a trade, ceclesiastical and administrative centre to the present day, making it idinavia’s oldest town, but Birka and Hedeby both fell victim to falling sea levels, which made it increasingly difficult for the deeper draught- ed merchant ships of the 10th century to use them. Birka was abandoned around 70, Hedeby by 1100. Hedeby, Ribe and Birka remained the only towns in Scandinavia until the 10th century, when Arhus was founded, apparently as a craft and manufacturing centre. The pace of urban development increased around 1000: Sigtuna, Trondheim, Oslo, Viborg, Odense, Ros- kilde and Lund were all founded as administrative or Hedeby For most of the Viking age Hedebry was Scandinavia’s largest town. Thowgh some sort of settlement existed at Hedetry before King Godfred settled a colowy of merchants there in B08, it was probably this act that led to Hedely developing into an international market centre. There was a nrint, and the remains of what teas probably a toll station have been exca- vated, but little else is krown about the admsnistration of the town. A wide range of manufacturing activities were carried out, including metal, bone, amber and glassworking, pottery and ship repair. In the 10th century Hedeby was provided with substantial defences linking it with the Danevirke rampart bur it was sacked by Harald Hardrada in 1050 and bry the Wends in 1066. By 1100 Hedetry bad been abandoned in favour of nearty Schleswig, probably because Schleswig was easier of access to the deeper draughted merchant ships which were then coming into use.ecclesiastical centres shortly before or after this date, Urban development was slowest in Sweden, where royal authority developed more slowly than in Denmark and Norway. By 1100 there were still only four towns in Sweden, while 1 there were e! n Denmark there were 15 and in Norway ht Right: Hedeby was the first town it Scandinavia to have a regular sist, The ship design ow this early Stb-century coin minted at Hedeby shows the importance of seafaring in the life of the torn.Women in the Viking Age Scandinavian society was male dominated, but women were far from being chattels: many were strong-minded and had a high status in the community. Men and women had clearly defined and separate social roles in Viking-age Scandinavia, Men ploughed, fished, hunted, traded and fought. Most women's lives were more rowly confined to the home: they milked the cows and churned butter, ground grain and baked bread, spun wool, wove cloth and looked after the children. The grave goods in pagan burials mir- ror these roles exactly: men were buried with weapons and tools, women with jewellery, needlework and weaving equipment, and other household utensils that would be useful in the afterlife. Though marriages were usually arranged by negotiations between the prospective husband and the bride’s father, the woman's wishes would usu- ally be taken inte account. At wT ge was regarded as an alliance between juals. The bricle mally brought a dowry to the part rship, and the ained her property after 1 riage. Women had the right to a divorce if a marria husband paid her a “bride-price”; both re ge proved unworkable, c , and the marriage contract could stipulate how th divided in such an eventuality. Though they had no role in public life, with- in the home women exercised joint estate should be thority over slaves and dependents, and would always be closely involved i ajor decisions affecting the family. If her husband was away, at war or on business, a wife would have full responsibility for the running of the house and farm in his absence; and if she were widowed she would have to take her husband's place full time. Family honour was of as much concern to women as it was to men, In Above Right: these bone pins leelandic literature au le ist, they were me ver slow to urge their me nfolk to are typical of the cloak — take revenge for any injury, and it is likely that they took the lead in com fastenings by Viking-age =memorating the dead. P: k suggest that women's sta- women for everyday wear. wan graves in Dero tus increased with a fe: some of the most richly furnished burials are of They come frowt a settlement at the Udall in North Uist in = Women aged 50 or over, while the quality of grave goods in male burials the Ourer Hebrides decreased with the age of the dead manRight: few large, trtricately- There is no reliable evidence to decorated gold disc brooches suggest that women ev of the type nsed bry both ‘i re ‘ : fought as warriors alongside women and men for fastening cloaks or sleeved couts—a their menfolk, but it is very expensive alternative to known that at least some of the bone pins illustrated on the left r the warriors of the great Viking armies that were active in weste »pe in the sec- ond half of the Oth century were accompanied by their wi t ilies. These women would have given ag and caring for the wounded. Wome rent participants in the Viking settle- id, where their presence was essential from Iceland d scful support to the ar ally, were much more pro! ments in Ice, the start. Women ring the settlement period seem to have enjoyed higher status than those ¢ here in Scandinay minded independent women cc only appear in the in the attempt to sete Vinland is also re and by finds of spindle whorls at the short-lived Norse settleme; aux-Meadows ( pages 98-9). There is very little evidence that Sc women accompanied the Rus on their journeys in the ez finds of typically Scandinavian female ences show that thi dand Green and strong- lion of wor dinavian i, though and rare literary refer- were at least some. Arab sources suggest that most of the Rus found local wor if this is true, it could explain why the Rus were so rapidly assimilated into the native Slav popu- lation. Left: women's clothing of the Below: a group of everyday household Viking age can be items, including spindle whorls and reconstructed from rags whetstones from a Viking-age farm at found at Hedeby and Birka. Bryants Gill, Kentmere. Place names A good-quality ouifit would suggest that there were many farms in have consisted of a pinafore Oris part of the Lake District during the dress of fine woolen fabric Viking-age, but Bryants Gill is the only over a long-sleeved, ankle- one to bave been excavated; the rest are length linen tunic. A pair of buried under present-day farms. gilt oval brooches would Women’s skill with the spindle whorls have fastened the dress at the ensured that Viking-age farms were shoulders; gold thread was virtually self-sufficient as far a3 used to decorate the hem. clothing was concerned.Ill: The Viking Raids Below: Thongh the Vikings can no longer be regarded simply as the bloodthirsty Plunderers shows in this 19th century painting bry Lorenz Frolich, there can be no doubt that their raids caused great destruction in westert Europe, especially to momasteries. The Vikings have become a byword for seaborne terror: violent raiders descending in their longships to plunder monasteries and butcher peaceful communities of men, women and children. But were they really more violent than their Christian contemporaries? The most hotly debated issues rega number re their ind the destructiveness and violence of their raids. Traditionally, the Vikings have been regarded by historians as wantonly cruel, violent and destructive pirate hoards. However, in recent years a new view of the Vikings has gained widespread acceptance. The Vikings, it is argued, were the vic- tims of a bad press: their numbers, violence and destructiveness were preatly exaggerated by monastic chroniclers who were prejudiced against them because of their paganism and their habit of plundering monasteries. Rather than destructive raiders, the Vikings should be regarded primarily as ling the history of the Vikings fismen. The level of Viking violence was only that normally prevailing in early medieval Europe in so far as it did not exempt the church. worse tha In facet, these two views of the Vikings are not irreconcilable, Most Viking- age Scandinavians were indeed peaceful farmers, craftsment and traders whose lives were probably rarely touched by violence. However, those Seanclir 1s who chose warfare or pi ors who went / viking and participated so terrified the monks of Christi extreme violence to achieve th occupation acy as a profession, that is the war- the plundering expeditions that ust have been prepared to use ng was by definition a violent Apo pe ends: 1Feeding the Wolves Were the Viking warriors actually any more violent than their Christian con- temporaries? Charlemagne’s execution of 4500 Saxon rebels at Verden in 782 shows that the Christians were capable of waging war ruthlessly. As early medieval armies had to live off the land, there can be litthe doubt either that in wars between Christian states, the peasantry would have suffered greatly from pillaging by enemy armies—and the foraging of “friendly” armies may have been only slightly less destructive. While western Christendom was no stranger to violence, at the time of the outbreak of Viking raiding it was nev- ertheless more peaceful than it had been at any time since the fall of the western Roman Empire, and, away from disputed borderlands, fortifications of any sort were rare. From being exceptional, the Vikings made violence into an everyday threat for the population of much of western Europe for long periods of time, Even in Ireland, the most anarchic region of western Christendom, the Vikings brought a great increase in the scale of violence. In the period 831-919, Irish sources record only 16 instances of natives plundering and burning, compared to 110 by the Vikings. The group that arguably suffered the most from Viking raids, the church, was relatively immune from warfare between Christians; even in Ireland, where battles between the monks of rival monasteries were not unknown, churches were rarely plundered. Monasteries were the main centres of liter- acy in western Christendom, and most of our contemporary accounts of Viking raids were written by monks. According to these sources, Viking raids were often marked by wanton destruction and appalling savagery unparal- leled in the knowledge of the writers. It is, of course, possible that some of these accounts may have been exaggerated by the writers’ very personal fear and horror of an enemy who made a point of attacking churches, but gener- ally they agree very closely with accounts of Viking raids written in the very different cultural atmospheres of Orthodox Constantinople and the Islamic lands. They also agree very closely with what the Vikings said about them- selves. Skaldic poetry of the Viking age glories in bloodshed: “The destroyer of the Scots fed the wolves: he trod on the eagle’s evening meal [of corpses]. The battle-cranes flew over the rows of the slain; the beaks of the birds of prey were not free from blood; the wolf tore wounds and waves of blood surged against the ravens’ beaks.” (trs. A P. Smyth, Warlords and Holy Men London 1984). Egil Skallagrimsson composed these words in praise of Erik Bloodaxe, but to judge the values of the whole of Scandinavian society on the basis of skaldic verse would be as unwise as it would be to judge late 20th-century western society on the basis of violent movies. However, skaldic verse was composed for an elite warrior audience, and everything else that we know about this class suggests that it accurately reflects its values. It is also from Scandinavian sources that we know of the “blood eagle”, the Viking practice of killing cap- tives by hacking through the ribcage on either side of the spine and then tearing the victim's lungs out. This horrific act, of which some historians are oddly reluctant to believe the Vikings capable, may have been performed as a sacrifice to the warriors’ god Odin. In fact, it is only common sense to assume that Viking pirates went out of their way to create fear and terror, if only to weaken their victims’ will to resist. The ruthless Viking image may not be typical of Viking-age Scandinavian society taken as a whole, but it is certainly representative of an important class within it. Having said this, there is no reason to suppose that the Vikings were uniquely inhuman: they were barbarian warriors, and their behaviour was probably neither betternor worse than that, for example, of the the pagan ancestors of the Franks and Anglo-Saxons who invaded the Roman Empire in the 3rd to 5th centuries. Fleets and Armies Western European sources tend to give the strength of the Viking invaders in terms of numbers of ships in their fleets, rather than the number of men in their armies, This raises some obvious problems when used as a basis for calculating the size of the Viking armies. How many men can you get in a ship? Were all Viking ships the same size? How accurately were they count- ed? To deal with the last question first: when the numbers mentioned in the sources are small, for example the account in the Frankish Royal Annals of a raid by 13 Viking ships in 822, it is reasonable to assume that it is an exact count. With larger fleets there is certainly a much greater likelihood that the figures are an approximation. But at what point can we justifiably begin to suspect exaggeration? There is in fact remarkable consistency between sources from Ireland, Francia and Britain as to the size of Viking fleets. Before 850 fleets of over 100 ships are rarely mentioned, the exceptions being fleets under royal leadership such as Godfred’s attack on Frisia with 200 ships in 810, After 850, sources often mention Viking fleets that were 120, 150, 200 or 250 strong, as well as many smaller ones. The tendency has been to accept the smaller figures as reliable and to reject the larger ones as exaggerations, although in most cases the only “evidence” of exaggeration is that the figures are large—a dangerously circular argument. The wide- spread agreement between independent sources of the same period argues strongly in favour assuming most of the figures, large and small, to be at least approximately accurate. Only in exceptional circumstances can figures from primary sources be rejected outright, For example, the assertion of Abbo, the historian of the siege of Paris in 885-86, that the Viking force numbered 700 ships and 40,000 men is almost certainly a gross exaggera- tion, because it would have been impossible to keep such a huge army in the field for so long under early medieval conditions. We do not yet know enough about Viking ships to be able to say how many men they held on average. The 9th-century Gokstad ship was built for a crew of 32 oarsmen, but it was fitted with 52 shields on each side, suggesting a total complement of up to 70 (a double crew would allow rowing in shifts). The slightly later Ladby ship also had 32 oars, but was less broad than the Gokstad ship, and so probably could not carry as many men, while the smaller of the two longships of ¢, 1000 found at Skuldelev had only 24 oars, If ships were carrying horses, provisions, wives and children, plunder or captives, they would also have carried fewer men than the theoretical maximum. Even so, if we take the smallest of these three ships as being typi- cal, and assume that it carried no supernumeraries, we would still have to conclude that the larger Viking fleets of the later 9th century carried armies of a few thousand warriors rather than the few hundred some historians have argued for, An army of this size would be difficult to keep together for a long time, and the evidence suggests that once a base was established the Viking armies often split up into raiding bands of a few hundred men to plunder the countryside. Literary and archaeological evidence suggests that the royal fleets that attacked England in the period leading up to the Danish conquest (980-1016) included longships that were rather larger than those used in the 9th century. The larger of the longships from Skuldelev was just such aship: it had 50 oars and could have carried a complement of 80-100, Even if there were only a few dozen of these “dragon ships” in the fleet of 160 ships Cnut used to invade England in 1016, his army could very easily have numbered 6-7000. By way of comparison, it is estimated that the Norman army at Hastings—which also invaded in a fleet of longships—numbered some 5-6000 men. There were even larger ships available at this time; King Olaf Tryggvason's ship the “Long Serpent” had 68 oars and was capable of carring several hundred men. These dragon ships were probably used mostly for coastal defence, however. Important further evidence that the Viking armies were not small comes from a document known as the Burghal Hidage, compiled in Wessex around 900, This is a list of the burhs or fortified towns in Wessex, and the number of hides (a measure of land) which were assigned to each for the purposes of garrisoning. The for- mula used assumed that four men were needed to defend one pole (5 '/2 yards) of wall and that one man was to be supplied from each hide assigned to the burh. Wareham, for example, was assigned 1600 hides, meaning that its eee defences were of such a length as to require 1600 men to man them, that is during the reign of Alfred the 400 poles (2200 yards). This corresponds exactly with reality: Wareham’s Great (871-901) to give defences still exist, and are 2180 yards in length. Defences would not have Sacco been built unless the men were available to man them—walls that were too baw of Wensex ta long to be manned properly would have been worse than useless, As the combatting the Vikings. These total number of hides assigned to burhs in Wessex was 27,071, it must be a pages cover the years 862-74, fair assumption that this number of armed men could be raised by the king- Bcueean eae ee dom of Wessex for garrison duty alone. When it is also taken into account overrun by the Danes, that Alfred the Great kept an army on standby and also had a fleet, the armed strength of Wessex must have been somewhat over 30,000 men, Admittedly they could not all be concentrated in one place at the same time, but it is difficult to believe that a Viking army numbering in the hun- dreds, rather than the thousands, could have brought Wessex to its knees, let alone conquer all the ather Anglo-Saxon kingdoms as well. On the other hand, the only excavated Viking fortification in Britain, a camp built by the Danish Great Army at Repton in the winter of 873-4, had defences of only 200 yards in length. The enclosed area is therefore small, and could not have accommodated a large force, while the defences could have been manned adequately with a garrison of no more than 150. However, the fort lay on the banks of the River Trent and, as it had a slip- way, it may have been built primarily as a protective enclosure for ships rather than as accommodation for the whole army. A mass burial discovered outside the fort at Repton contained the remains of at least 249 individuals, 80 percent of them males aged 15 to 45. The bones were arranged around a central burial of a high status male, presum- ably one of the leaders of the Great Army surrounded by his followers. As none had apparently died of injuries, the most likely explanation of the bur-ial is that these were the victims of an epidemic. Pre-modern armies could expect to suffer heavy casualties from disease, and a death rate in winter camp of less than 5 percent would be improbable even in good conditions, and one of more than 35 percent unlikely even in a major epidemic, If the mass burial contains the total Viking dead (the presence of other scattered burials around the site shows that actually it does not), it would point to the Great Army having a minimum strength of 600 and a maximum strength of 4000 men, plus camp followers. Though a major Viking army of the 9th century may have numbered a few thousand warriors, there certainly were not vast hordes of Vikings streaming out of Seandinavia. Vikings tended to concentrate in particular areas at par- ticular times. When Francia was intensively raided in 879-92, England and Ireland saw little Viking activity, and when the Vikings moved to England in 892, Francia enjoyed a respite. There were rarely more than one or two large Viking forces active at any one time, so total Viking numbers must have been quite limited. The First Raids The earliest recorded Viking raids were on England: the first, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, around 789, was a raid by three ships from Right: The martyrdom of St. Edmund, from a tSth-century wall painting in Pickering \™ church, North Yorkshire. The Viking Great Army which invaded England in 865 made short work of the small (EO kingdom of East Anglia, Its a ie king, Edmund, was captured in battle and put to a cruel | death. The cult of St. Edmund | became popular in the Danelaw after the Viking | settlers began to convert to | Christianity. | Norway on Portland in which the reeve Beaduheard and his men were killed. In 792 the great Mercian King Offa arranged coastal defences, pre- sumably against Viking pirates, and in 793 came the shocking raid on the famous monastery founded by St Cuthbert on the Northumbrian island of Lindisfarne, one of the holiest places in the British Isles, The Vikings ran- sacked the church, killed some of the monks and carried off others into captivity, However, the monastic buildings were not destroyed and many of the monastery’s treasures, such as the splendid Lindisfarne Gospels, sur- vived, Presumably the monks had at least a little warning of the attack and were able to hide much of the monastery’s wealth before the Vikings struck, It is difficult today to appreciate quite how appalling the attack must have seemed to contemporary Christians. When Alcuin wrote of the attack, “it was not believed that such a voyage was possible,” he was not expressing sur-prise at some hitherto unsuspected seafaring ability on the part of the Vikings—he was well aware of contacts between Northumbria and Scandinavia—but shocked that God and the saints had not intervened to prevent it happening. If somewhere as holy as Lindisfarne was not safe, nowhere was. The raid on Lindisfarne was typical of the first phase of Viking activity which lasted until around 834. Small fleets of up to about a dozen ships launched uncoordinated raids on the coasts of Britain, Ireland, Frisia and Francia but rarely penetrated more than a few miles inland. Though the speed and mobility enjoyed by the Vikings made such hit-and-run raids hard to pre- vent, Frankish and Anglo-Saxon resistance was often well organized and effective. All too often, however, the Vikings would have struck and put to sea again by the time a force had been gathered against them. The Irish, who were in a permanent state of anarchic disunity, put up much less effec- tive resistance and suffered severely from Viking raids in this period. While disunity in western Europe did not cause of the Viking raids—Europe has only rarely been more united—the Vikings were sensitive to political problems and quick to take advantage of them, When civil war broke out in the Frankish empire in 830, with serious consequences for the effectiveness of the coastal defences, Viking raiding entered a new and more serious phase which lasted until 865. Viking fleets became larger (30-35 ships at first, rising to over 100 by the 850s) and bolder, sailing far inland along navi- gable rivers like the Rhine, Seine, Loire and Shannon to sack major towns. A few raids were also made on Spain and the Mediterranean, though these were not great successes. In the first phase of Viking activity, raiding had been a seasonal activity with the fleets returning home for the winter. In this second phase the Vikings built camps and began to overwinter in western Europe, allowing an earlier start to raiding the next spring. Permanent settlements were also made in Scotland and Ireland. The Carolingians’ dynastic disputes ensured that for most of this period Francia was the focus of Viking activity. The granting of Walcheren as a fief to a troublesome Viking leader in 841 began a period of intermittent Viking rule in Frisia which lasted until the 880s. Conquest and Settlement A third phase of Viking activity, characterized by conquest and settlement, began in 865 when a large Viking army invaded East Anglia, shifting the focus of Viking activity to England. After conquering East Anglia, Northumbria and Mercia, the Vikings made extensive settlements in eastern England in the 870s, This period also saw the beginning of the settlement of Iceland, though this was a peaceful affair. The successful resistance of Wessex under Alfred the Great caused those Vikings who did not have the means or the inclination to settle to move their activities back to Francia in the period 879-92. After the Franks made things too hot for them there, the Vikings tried their luck again in England. Alfred the Great had completely reorganized the defences of his kingdom in the previous decade, and the Vikings were harried constantly by the English until their army dispersed in 896, bringing this phase of Viking activity to a close. More effective Irish resistance led to a virtual cessation of Viking activity in Ireland after 874. The period from 896 to 954 saw a gradual decline in Viking activity. In Francia Rollo and his Vikings were given lands to settle on the lower Seine by Charles the Simple in return for undertaking to keep other Vikings out.Above: This wood carving shows an impressive fleet of late-Viking slips drawn mp on the shore. Contemporary accounts of Viking invasions usually assess the strength of their forces in terms of numbers of ships, making it difficult for modern historians to be sure of the size of Viking armies. Though there were occasional border troubles, the settlement, which became known as Normandy, effectively ended Viking incursions up the Seine. In 914 the Vikings attempted to create another settlement in cont- nental Europe by conquering Brittany, but in 936 the Bretons drove them out, virtually ending Viking activity on the Continent. Only Frisia, on the main Viking route from Denmark to southeast England, was still raided reg- ularly, Northwest England was settled by Norwegians from around 900, but after this the Vikings were thrown onto the defensive by the kings of Wessex, who had conquered all of the Scandinavian settlements in England by 954. This was not to be the end of Viking activity in England, however; raids began again in the 980s on an increasingly devastating scale. In Ireland, the long hiatus in Viking activity known as the “Forty Years Rest” came to an end in 914. Raiding continued steadily from then on, but the distinction between Viking attacks and internecine conflicts became increasingly blurred as the Scandinavians became absorbed into the indige- nous population of Ireland, The Impact of the Vikings The Viking raids had a great, sometimes decisive, impact on western Europe. But although the Vikings have been blamed for the break-up of the Carolingian empire, the driving force for this process was internal and dynastic: the Vikings profited from the empire's internal problems but did not cause them, The Vikings usually came a poor second to dynastic con- cerns in the priorities of the Carolingian rulers, and they were sometimes even welcomed as allies in internecine struggles. Royal measures against the Vikings were often perceived by the Franks to be half-hearted, and by demonstrating the ineffectiveness of royal power, the Vikings may have has- tened its decline. The Vikings brought the Franks one certain benefit: their occupation of Brittany in 914-36 broke the power of the native rulers and paved the way for the region’s incorporation into Francia. The most impor- tant long-term consequence of the Viking involvement in Francia was, how- ever, the establishment of the Duchy of Normandy. Though the Norman expansion of the Llth century cannot be considered an expression of inher- ited Viking spirit—it was caused by internal political and social develop ments—its importance to the history of England, France and Italy can hard- ly be understated. In England and Scotland, the Vikings broke up the existing power struc- tures with far-reaching consequences for the history of both countries. In Scotland the Viking attacks on the Picts, the Northumbrians and Strathclyde Britons shifted the balance of power in favour of the Scots, allowing them to unify the country. In England the Vikings eliminated the kingdoms of East Anglia, Northumbria and Mercia, leaving Wessex as the sole Anglo-Saxon kingdom, When the Danelaw was conquered by Wessex in the 10th century, the English were, for the first time, united under onecrown. Thus both England and Scotland owe their existence as unified states indirectly to the Vikings. The extensive Danish settlements in eastern England have also had a major influence on the development of the English language, which has acquired hundreds of loan words from Old Danish, including ones as basic as sky, egg and sister. Despite this, the Scandinavian settlers in England were absorbed into the native population within 150 years or so. In the Hebrides they preserved their identity a little longer and in Orkney and Shetland, well beyond the end of the Viking age. Aside from the cultural damage caused by attacks on monasteries, the Vikings had sur- prisingly little effect on Ireland, but they did give the country its first towns and drew it more closely into the European economy. The effects of the Vikings on the European economy are harder to gauge. Damage to the agricultural economy caused by raids and campaigns is likely to have been short-lived. Towns were built mainly of wood, so although they burned easily, they were also easy to rebuild. Repeated raiding would not be good for their prosperity, but the two main towns which are known to have gone out of existence altogether in the Viking period, Quentovic and Dorestad, probably did so because the rivers which provided access to them silted up, rather than because of Viking attacks. In Ireland and England, the Vikings seem actually to have benefitted trade and promoted urbanization, both directly by founding towns and settlements themselves and indirectly by prompting the Anglo-Saxons to build their fortified burhs. The most damaging aspect of the Vikings’ activities was their attacks on monasteries, which were the main cultural centres of early medieval Europe. Over a large area of northwest Europe, monastic life came to a vir- tual end. Many monasteries were completely destroyed, others were simply abandoned by their terrified monks. The monastic libraries were destroyed, their books burned or looted for the sake of their decorated covers. Works of art and craftsmanship in precious metals were hacked up and melted down. Perhaps most importantly, the monks—that is the writers, artists and craftsmen themselves—were dispersed, carried off into captivity or killed. The revival of learning fostered by Charlemagne, known as the Carolingian Renaissance, had collapsed before the end of the of the 9th century, while the brilliant monastic culture of early Christian Ireland never recovered from the Viking attacks. Whether this was a long-term setback to European civilization is impossible to say, but the short-term damage to the cultural life of Europe was immense. Right; This silver ecclesiastical chalice with gilt-bronze decorations was made around AD 700, and is one of the finest achievements of late Celtic art. Part of a board of valuables buried during the Viking age, presumably to conceal them from raiders, it was unearthed in 1868 in Ardagh, County Limerick.The Raids Begin ey been seen The church of St Cuthbert is spattered with the blood of ¢ ty aul its furnishin RET any in £ 4 Alcuin of York, Right: the Viking ratd om the monastery at Lindisfarne is vividly depicted on this 9th- century tombstone from the priory there, The attack sent shock waves through Europe: wiry bad God allowed such a haly place to be defiled by pagans? Were the Vikings a punishment for some terrible sin? The peace and prosperity of 8th-century Europe was shattered by a terrifying new threat from the sea. Viking raids on the British [sles began in the late 780s and began to affect the continent by 799. Initially the Vikings attacked isolated coastal commu- nities and monasteries. Rarely defended, they were easy and profitable tar- gets. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the first Viking raid on gland took place around 789, when three pirate ships from Norway attacked Portland. In 792 the Mercian King Offa arranged coastal defences for his kingdom; in the following year the famous monastery on Lindisfarne was pillaged. The first raids on Ireland and Scotland were recorded in 7 and the first on Francia in 799. For the first 30 years or so, the raids were fairly effectively resisted, Both the Anglo-Saxons and the Franks recognized that the greatest danger was that the Vikings would sail upriver and penetrate inland, The Anglo-Saxons blocked the rivers with bridges, while the Frankish emperor Charlemagne stationed coastguards and fleets on them, However, there was little that could be done to protect exposed coastal areas like Frisia. In 810, the Danish King Godfred, feeling threatened by Frankish expansion on his bor- der, ravaged the empire's vulnerable Frisian coast: by the time the Frank fleet and army had gathered, the raiders were long gone. Like an eat ‘ attack on the Franks’ Slav allies, the Abodrites, this was as much a show of strength as a plundering expedition. After his death in 815, C successor Louis the Pious at first continued to maintain effective coast defences. However, in the 830s, the empire was riven by internal conflicts, and its defences weakened. By 840 the Vikings had penetrated the Rhine four times to sack Dorestad, the empire's richest port lemagne's| healed Steen ATLANTIC OCEAN | te ‘ Ete | & eh) ow TS my] 4S Viking raids, 789-839 C = oe coastal Viking attack routes 4 Charlemagne and Louis the Pious campaigns of King Godfred ee ee «4 — Viking raid, 789-833 ches ee Manitifed a a Wiking raid, 834-9 for certain. A chain of eight Viking victory eee |X wn coast, but only limited = Viking camp excavations bave been done, and — border none has definitely been dated to the early 9th century. = coast defence fleets fi town sacked a 6 possible site of Frankish fortThe Raids Intensify “A very hard unnier In March, 120 ships of the Northmen sailed up the Seine to Paris, laying waste to everything ... Charles ... realized his men could not possibly win, So he made a deal... by handing over 7000 tb of silver ... he persuaded them to go away.” The Annals of St Bertin, ab 845 Civil war among the Franks allowed Viking raiders to sail upriver and strike deep into the heart of Francia. As soon as the Frankish emperor Louis the Pious died in 840, his three sons—Lothar, Charles the Bald and Louis the German—fell out over their inheritance. The Vikings were quick to exploit political weakness, and raids became more frequent. The civil wars damaged royal authority, and the coastal defences created by Charlemagne collapsed. The great rivers of the empire lay open to Viking fleets which could penetrate far inland, sacking major towns, ports and inland monasteries, From being a seasonal threat, ihe Vikings now became a permanent presence, seizing river islands such as Oissel in the Seine to use as bases for prolonged campaigns of raiding. Charles the Bald’s kingdom, with its long coastline and many navigable rivers, was hit the worst. The Vikings benefited from his internal problems; in 843 a rebel count allied with them to seize Nantes, and in 858 his brother Louis the German invaded, forcing Charles to abandon a siege of the Viking base at Oissel. Charles was forced to pay ‘Danegeld’ to buy the Vik- ings off. In the long term this only encouraged more raids, but it bought him time to deal with his internal enemies. Sometimes the Vikings could be a help—their attack on Bordeaux in 848 discredited the rebel prince who controlled the city, enabling Charles to restore his authority there, Lothar’s kingdom included Frisia and the Rhine estuary, both frequent tar gets of Viking raids. Lothar solved his Viking problem by granting lands in these areas to Viking chiefs on condition that they kept other Vikings out. These Vikings were unreliable allies, but there were no raids fur- ther down the Rhine than Dorestad before 863. The eastern king- dom of Louis the Ger- man, with only a short coastline, had litte trou- ble from the Vikings. England also remained relatively untroubled by raids. The Anglo-Saxons inflicted some severe defeats on the Vikings in this period, making England an unattractive target in comparison to Francia. Right: Charles the Bald, King of the West Franks (843-77), shown seated on bis throneATLANTIC OCEAN | Europe, 840-860 | division of Frankish Empire, 843: Kh ew kingdom of Charles the Bald =” = kingdom of Lothar | kingdom of Louis the German Viking raids: 5 Norwegian attack route F ae Danish attack route L| 2G Viking victory te Amp ta t 4 2 Whig dfn He | | 4S place or area ravaged by Vikings | A. Uyerhanton 7 Viking camp . Pad Creer Tees Sea sf - Sea — be | ) +The Vikings in the Mediterranean Viking fleets raided Christian and Muslim Spain, and struck deep into the Mediterranean. Only a year after they had established a base at the mouth of the Loire, the Vikings turned their attention to Spain, A fleet of around 100 ships left the Loire and pillaged on the Garonne before de on the Sp. n Kingdom of Galicia and Astur Local resistance was effective, and the Vikings moved on round Cape Finisterre, to try their luck against the Umayyad te of Cordoba, The Vikings took Lisbon virtually unop- “They came aflerwards across the plac e where te Vedilerranecan goes into the outer ocean and veached Africa, They gave battle to the Moors, and a great slaughter was made... After that the Norsemen brought a great host of Moors in captivity with them io drelane... Long were these blue men in Ireland.” Duald Mac-Fuirbis on Hastein ancl Bjorn’s raids, AD 850-62 KINGDOM OF GALICIA AND — IDRISID CALIPHATE,River Guadalquivir and captured Seville, From there they raided the sur- rounding countryside until, five we ter, the Vikings were heavily defeat- ed by a Muslim army: the Muslims claimed to have destroved 30 ships, killed 1000 men and taken 400 prisoners, most of whom were later executed. The survivors surrendered their captives and booty and were glad to escape back to the Loire ith r lives. Thirteen years later the Vikings returned to Spain with 62 ships under Hastein and Bjorn Ironsides, two of the most famous Viking leaders. At first they had as little luck as their predecessors, being soundly beaten by both the Asturians and Muslims as they cruised south along Spain's Atlantic coast. However, at the Straits of Gibraltar the Vikin luck changed. Algeciras was sacked, then the coasts of Morocco, Murcia, the Balearic Islands and Rousillon were ravaged. They spent the winter of 859-60 on the island of Camargue, at the mouth of-hie Rhor as far as Valence the following spring. But ing up the River Arno to s are said to have to sailed ‘k Pisa and Fiesole. After this Hastcin and Bjorn nto the eastern Mediterranean, but their move- ments are uncertain until 861, when they were again defeated by a Muslim The capital of Muslim Spain was at Cordoba, where the Great Masque (above) was begun in 785, The Vikings tel for thi: sogeh ee caae The Vikings prefered ca highly motivated state, ed, and the Vikings never re ao - “ * R A NK I Viking raids on KINGDOM OF Spain and the i Mediterranean, SA \ 844-62 | Christian states | Muslim states Viking raid, 844 Hastain and Bjorn Ironsides, 859—62 ell — ‘ (Mm town sacked, B44 Ree? i , hed, pown sacle sea battle Wiking base Muslim fortifications against pirate raids later Wiking raid MonutreThe Franks Fight Back “Charles caused all the leading men of hus realm to assemble about I fune, with many workmen and carts, al the place called Pitres. where the Andelle... and the Fure.,. flow into the Seine, he closed it off to ships sailing up or down the river, This was done because of the Northimen. ” The Annals of St Bertin, Ab 862 By 859 Charles the Bald had survived the worst crises of his reign and could turn his attention to the Vikings, who now posed a serious threat to the economy of the Frankish heartlands. New fortifications were built, Roman town walls were restored, and fortified bridges constructed across the rivers Seme and Loire, But the bridges were positioned well inland, and while they protected Paris and the Frankish heartlands, they effectively abandoned the lower reaches of both rivers to the Vikings. Charles's army was still unreliable—it ran away from the Vikings in 866— but his siege of the Vikings in Angers in 873 was a notable victory. He also tried to play one Viking army off against another. In 860 he hired the ser- vices of Weland, a Viking chief based on the Somme, to attack the Seine Vikings at their base on Oissel. The Seine Vikings offered Weland a huge bribe to let them escape, and the next year they were back again, raiding on the Marne. The ngs only left the Seine in 866 after Charles had resorted to the old expedient of paying Danegeld. Increasingly the most effective defence came not from the king but from local leaders. The Loire Vikings suffered a number of sharp defeats in the 860s at the hands of local counts, who could react more quickly than centralized royal forces. By the end of the 9th century, they had become the basis of Frankish defence. There were limits to the devolution of defence, however, and peasant bands which had formed in 859 to fight the Vikings were suppressed by the counts. This stiffening of Frankish resistance certainly contributed to the decline of Viking activity in the late 860s, but it was the success of the Danish Great Army which invaded England in 865 that more than anything turned Viking attentions away from Francia. The key to Charles the Bald"s defences for the Seine was the fortified bridge at Pont de VArche near Pitres. The bridge was protected by garrisons stationed in large forts of wood and stone on both banks of the river. Construction was 862, bet work was the unfinished br ws ting conti Wi the brit forts was fina argiénd 870, A Vik i tered the Seine in bridge, and the Vil away for the next The bridge and fort eventually destroyed im Viking attack in 385. 2/The fortified bridge at Pont de l’'Archeny No 100 kms eee erect f a 4 oe North Sea “MERCIA ah He 850-873 © 866 “held as fief Roric temporarily 4 by Roric driven out utrecht | € 863. #860 ae er a feat Weland defeated a, ares ao an : : ae nea WESSEX #,, Se SSIES eg ‘Cologne & Loaf gboulogne a f ‘ Wig € 860 dees | My Charles pays to pale e ips ane ap KINGDOM OF [2 ‘Quentovie™ - LOUIS THE GERMAN ie 9860 ae ee = = — 4 lntartl cas Mikings on Se ompiegne: 7 ey #886 Rowen =. Seine Vikir ig? ge eat aae Bay eet 2 | to Frisia and England | #B6S Count Robert kills : 5 500 Wings wth) rts wih Love om : © no Frankish attack : ot yeas «0 orleans of silver to feave Seine na Angers Le Mans _ AL si 4 Mi \ a Fleury % 4 © Ee 997; Totty Bourges ew Count Robert of Angers Vikings out of KINGDOM OF captures 12 Viking ships Angers ‘ cond kills their crews ? Nose |, : : E£ & va CHARLES THE BALD : | Ree 868 Poitou \ Aquitaine ©2864 ftreneni e ; ae af ae B6S@ | Clermont Aquitainians kill f jt = PO Vikings [S| Fertgenne I Viking raids and Frankish jefence, 860-78 5 |—— Kingdom of Charles the Bald, 870 . * ir ee re @ Frankish fort : a Frankish fortified bridge || saw Danish Great Army, 865 Viking vietary F | 26 Viking defeat Viking camp Viking raid, 862-6 Wiking raid, 866-78 Pe BAThe Great Army in England “In this year the host went across Mercia into East . St Edmund the king Anglia fought against them, and the they slew the king and Danes won ... overran the entire kingdom, and destroyed all the monasteries to which they came,” The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Ab 869 A great Danish army arrives in England, and one by one the Saxon kingdoms fell to the invaders. For most of the 9th century, England seems to have escaped the worst of the Viking raids that plagued Ireland and Francia. But it was yulnerable—tivid- ed into small, uncooperative kingdoms which could be picked off one at a time, and crisscrossed by Roman roads along which an invader could move quickly, When the Danes did arrive in force, their intention was not merely plunder, but conquest. In 865 a “great heathen army” under the command of Ivar and Halfdan arrived in East Anglia. The kingdom bought peace with a supply of horses, and in 866 the Danes rode north. The Northumbrians were preoccupied with a civil war, and the Danes entered York unopposed. The following spring, the two rival kings united to try to recapture York, but the attack failed and they were both killed. The kingdom of Northumbria died with them: by 876 York had become capital of a new Viking kingdom. In 867 the Danes forayed into Mercia. A joint Mercian-West Saxon force besieged them at Nottingham—the only time that one Anglo-Saxon king- dom helped another against the Danes—and they withdrew to York. The Danes returned to East Anglia in 869, where they defeated and killed King Edmund, bringing a second Anglo-Saxon kingdom under their control. The next year they invaded Wessex. King Ethelrad and his brother Alfred resisted fiercely; the Danes withdrew to London, then back to York. They invaded Me again in 875, and the kingdom collapsed after the Danes took the royal centre of Repton. Here the army split: Halfdan returned to consolidate his hold on York, while the other half under Guthrum, Oscetel and Anund went to Cambridge before invading Wessex in 875, Alfred, now king, was forced to take refuge in the Somerset marshes. But the Danes had been weakened by the division of the army, and by the fact that many of their fighters had decided to settle on the lands they had won in North- umbria and Mercia. When Alfred managed to raise another army and won a great victory at Eddington, the Danes agreed to leave Wessex. 2/The Vildng fort at Viking armies chose defensible positions for their winter defended by water or marshland. The small camp at Repton was built for the Great Army in the winter of 873-4. The river Trent protected one eae the other ge* a am WN =a a’ “o 125 fe ‘ ioe q\/Danish conquest and settlement, 865-79 settled by Danes: ar Ea «7 | 5) # Danish attack routes: sa Great Army, 865-73 ~ leave after being paid 12,000 Ibs of sitver ~ Brittany fi i : F ‘ N Sees /FRANKISH 5 4 | | KINGDOM Hi ¢ a | 7 Nov 891 _| 2/The attack on the Seine, | ose Frankel King Artal. 885-92 defeats Vikings, who mave | Viking attack rautes: 4 place attacked to Boulogne and prepare J nea by Vildngs to invade England @ place fortified Ba9—90 by Franks ~~ | 890-92 Viking victory @ Viking base 3 Frankish victory fortified fy * betlge Aion fre EAST FRANKISH KINGDO England ee Nantes 892 SP MMos — Touts____ a . oe e Mi \Wessex Defended “Then the Eng AIRY Greed and put the \ army to flught and stormed the Jor tification Benfleet! ane seized everything that wa inside it in the way fF woods. wt 0] foe . Worter and children. as well... Hastein’s sand his two 1 them back Gian, DECHUSE OTE CLES has godson and the other the godson of Raldorman Ethetred. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, ap 893 Right: the Alfred Jewel was made as a handle toa pointer, intended to be used as an aid to reading. Alfred actively promoted education and monasticism in the belief that moral and spiritual defences were as necessary to his kingdom as physical defences, such as the burhs. The departure of the Great Army gave Wessex a breathing space, and when the Vikings returned they found conditions utterly changed. After the Danes left for the continent in 879, Alfred reorganized the /yrd, or peasant militia, so that it could stay in the field for longer. The royal army also became much more mobile, and was able to react quickly to Viking attacks. A fleet was built to challenge the Vikings on the high seas. Most important was the construction of a network of surks—fortified settle- ments—across the whole of Wessex. The overall effect of these measures was to deny the Viking armies the freedom of movement which they had enjoyed in the 860s and 870s, and make them much more vulnerable to counter-attack, The acceptance by the Mercians of Alfred's leadership in 886 also ensured a greater degree of cooperation between the Anglo-Saxons than had existed before. The Vikings continued to hold the initiative, however, and had the great advantage of being able to retreat into friendly Danish-held territory if they suffered a reverse, The Danes of Northumbria and the Danelaw also sup- plied reinforcements and launched diversionary raids on the coasts of Wessex. Despite this, the two Viking armies which arrived in Kent in 892 were not destined to prosper. The only major raid into Wessex was defeated in spring 893 and when, shortly after, the two Viking armies joined up at Benfleet in Essex they had no sooner gone on a raid than the English cap- tured their camp, together with their families and loot, Their ships were either destroyed or taken to London and Rochester by the English. A raid deep into Mercia later in the year also ended in defeat and the Vikings were lucky to escape into the Danelaw. Late in 893 the Vikings took Chester, but the English destroyed the local food supplies and hunger forced them into Wales. To avoid English forces, they returned to their East Anglian base through Northumbria in 894, The Viking army now moved to the River Lea, threatening London, but Alfred blockaded the river and forced it to abandon its ships and flee over- land into Mercia in 895, After spending another winter under siege at Bridgnorth, the frustrated Viking army broke up: some settled in Northumbria and East Anglia, others retu Francia. After their departure the Anglo- Saxon chronicler heaved a sigh of relief: “the Viking army had not—by God's grace!—afflicted the English people to a very great extent” he conclud- ed. Though the English had not won any great victories, they had prevented the Vikings from plundering at will, and at no time had Alfred's defences looked likely to break down, ed toViking campaigns and Saxon resistance, 886-96 Wessex and allies other area under Saxon control Danelaw Bee other area under Danish control Danish attack routes: 892 — ~~ = spring and summer 893 ~<—" autumn 893-896 xr . Saxon victory siege Danish camp o burh 7 a ‘ pir é Above: a late Saxon ind pit) Beets manuscript illustration depicting the defence of a B #992 A burh. These fortified towns 80 Viking ships fram ie acted as refuges for the C #492 a population in time of attack, 250 Viking ships from ieee guarded the main overland D © spring 893 routes and provided bases for 2 Viking fleets from East counter-attack, Northumbria E @ spring 893 Vikings besiege Pilton and Exeter but fail to take them F # spring 893 Viking fleet under King Sigfrid of York G to Dublin H © spring 893 aap Saxons capture Danish aes pan dred out raiding. Danes \ © summer 893 English ond Welsh Danes break out and flee to East Anglia | # summer 893 ao | Haba os.The Conquest of the Danelaw In just seven years, Wessex conquered much of the Danelaw, creating a unified kingdom of England |/Campaigns and conquests, 902-16 Wessex and allies, | 902 When Alfred the Great died in 899, Wessex was still on the defensive, His anaes from Mercia, successor, Edward the Elder, was faced by a revolt by his cousin Aethelwold. In 903 the rebel persuaded the East Anglian Danes to invade Mercia and Wessex. Edward retaliated with a raid into the Danish-held Fens. Part of his army was defeated, but Aethelwold and the Danish King Eohric were killed. Peace returned until 909, when Edward despatched an army to attack the Northumbrian Danes. A Danish counter- EE conquered by Wessex, 912—6 fees other area under English control, $02 border of Danelaw, 902 —r ate ey paeeenent 2 attack, was defeated at Tettenhall in 910. sau’ Anglo-Saxon artack 6g Danish attack 5 The power of the Kingdom of York was broken, and Edward's Dublin Vikings Situation transformed. In co-operation with his sister Atheflad, the ruler of Mercia, he began a piecemeal but methodical conquest of the Danelaw south of the Anglo-Saxon victory | Anglo-Saxon fortified rowns: _ burh established Humber. After the Danish king of East Anglia was Bafots 702 killed in battle at Tempsford in 917, organized Danist 25 Hieeeeebahd illed in battle at Tempsford in , organized Danish afer #02 Danish fortified towns: ® — the Five Boroughs resistance crumbled. Edward narrowly missed adding Northumbria to his kingdom, The Danes of Northumbria had submitted to thelflaed in 918, but she died before this coup could be followed = up, and in the following year Ragnald, a ae Viking chief from [reland, took control of s York and the English-ruled Earldom of : Northumbria. ( The conquest of the Danelaw had taken just seven years. Alfred had left Edward with an efficient army which could remain in the field for months if need be, while the building of burh was an effective way of other forcified towneAtlantic Ocean 2/Campaigns and conquests, 916-20 Wessex and allies, 916 conquered by Wessex: a7 (OY eye OO veo annexed by Wessex, 919 other area under English control, 916-19 border of Danelaw, 916 _ Anglo-Saxon attack, Sts Danish attack, 917 er Dublin Vikings >< _ Viking vietory Anglo-Saxon fortified towns: @ burh established before 916 burh established after 916 o @ Danish fortified town e other Danish town “[Edward] devised a mode of frustrating the Danes; for he repaired many ancient cities or built new ones in places calculated for his purpose, and filled them with a military force ...” William of fem \ Malmesbury Rognald siezes |, Kittgdom of York. “ @ York r Irish Sea orthampten'@ Ci — "Cambridge ANGLIA Huglish Channel Left: this 10th-century carving of a Danish warrior, from a stone cross in St Andrew's Church, Middleton in North Yorkshire, shows bim wearing a Viking helmet and surrounded by the weapons of the period—a spear, round shield, sword and battle-axe, Tt may be a memorial to a Danelaw aristocrat who had been converted to (Christianity. consolidating every advance, But the decisive factor was Danish weakness rather than English strength, Now that the Danes were settled, they had lost their main military advantage over the English, their mobility, They had crops to tend and homes to defend, and were less willing to spend months on campaign. Edward’s achievement is often called the “reconquest” of the Danelaw, but it was, in effect, the West Saxon conquest of England. By no means all the English regarded Edward as a liberator—many fought with the Danes—and his campaigns ended with the formal annenation of English Mercia by the Kingdom of Wessex in 919.The Kingdom of York Above: Viking York flourished as a market for local goods and imports from Scandinavia, Ireland and Germany, and its kings struck large quantities of silver pennies. This coin of Olof Guthfrithssan (c. 939-41, below) carries the pagan symbol ofa raven-aib outstretched wings. From 866 to 954 York was the centre of a Viking kingdom including most of the old kingdom of Northumbria south of the Tees. After they took York in 866, the Danes at first ruled through English puppet kings, but in 876 Halfdan, one of the leaders of the Great Army, seized power, Halfdan—the first of many Vikings to dream of uniting York and Dublin—was killed in Ireland in 877. Little is known of his successors; some of them are known only from their coins. Danish control came under threat after an Irish victory over the Dublin Vikings in 902 brought an an influx of Irish-Norse settlers to northwest England, The death of three Danish kings at the battle of Tettenhall in 910 left the kingdom leaderless, and opened the way for the Irish-Norse Viking Ragnald to seize York in 919, The Irish-Norse were never to establish themselves securely, however, and in 927 they were driven out by King Athelstan, who thereby completed the West Saxon dynasty’s takeover of England. Olaf Guthfrithsson, King of Dublin, tried te regain York with the support of the Scots and Strathclyde Britons in 937, but was crushingly defeated by Athelstan at Brunanburh (location unknown, but probably near the Humber). In 959 Olaf was back. He conquered Northumbria and the Five Boroughs of the Danelaw in a lightning campaign, but his victory proved to be ephemeral; by 944, York was back in English hands. Erik Bloodaxe, an exiled king of Norway with a mighty reputation as a warrior, returned York to Viking control for the last 1948. For the next six years he struggled for control with King Olaf Sih on of Dublin and the English King Eadred, but it was the North- umbrians themselves who drove him out of York to his death in an ambush on Stainmore in 954, Eadred, apparently unopposed, took control of Northumbria. I/Viking Jorvik, 886-954 Most of the Scandinavian {predominantly Danish) settlement in York—Jorvik, as the Vikings called tt—lay to the south af the old Roman fort, which was the ecclesiastical and administrative centre. This continued to function undisturbed under the Vikings, whose kings were often on friendly terms with the archbishops. Scandinavian York grew rapidly, and settlement spread onto the west bank of the Ouse is the 10th century. By 1000 York's population was probably around 10,000, making it a large city by the standards of early medieval Excrope, ft | main area of Scandinavian settlement § excavated Viking site ++ pre-Norman church60 kms aa 2/The struggle for York, 918-54 N Kingdom of York: probable border, 902 temporary conquest, 919-20, 4144 temporary conquest, 340-42 Norwegian sectlemenc, from < 900 ‘Wessex and allies, 902 —— border of Wessex, 920 border of English kingdom, 954 | Viking campaigns: ue Ragnald, 918-9 Olaf Guthirithsson, 940-| ool8 : Rognald defeats Anglo-Saxon campaigns: Northumbrians wee Athelstan, 927 Scots me Edmund, 942-4 battle i6 > place sacked ee © the Five Boroughs Rognald takes York Be 927 6 ary King Athelston of Wessex | storms York and drives out | Olaf Sihericson and Guthfith a OS North C 9939 Paste EN aas ; Olof Guthfrithsson retakes hie KINGDOM SPY : ‘ Kingdom of York ee i PB CBE Sea D 9 944 ac OF YORE English retake Kingdom of York oe @ °on7 E 9948 f | possible location of Eric Bloodaxe takes York, “Battle of Brunanburh: becomes last Viking king there Athelstan defeats #,, caalition of Dublin Vikings, Scots and Strathclyde Britons led by Olaf Guthfrithsson The Wench BNorthampton EAST ANGLIA Scandinavian York Danish contral = 866-76 Danish Kings 876-919 Norwegian Kings 919-927 Norwegian Kings 939-944 Norwegian Kings 948-954 | Norwegian kings of % - §, Dublin make several - ‘gttempts to contro! YorkVikings in Ireland I Above: this small bwman figure, an enamelled mount from a bronze bowl, was found in a Viking grave in Scandinavia. It is typical of the mary fine pieces of [risl craftsmanship pillaged by the Vikings, The 9th century saw the end of the “golden age” af early Christian [nish civilization, which produced treasures such as He righ crosses, the Book of Kells and the Ardagh chalice. Vikings raided the coast of Ireland, sailed up rivers to strike deep inland and established a permanent settlement at Dublin. Ircland’s Viking age began with a raid on a church on Lambey Island near Dublin in 795. Viking activity developed in a similar way to that in Britain and Francia. The first phase, which lasted until around 83( fleets in uncoordinated attacks on targets—pri ly monasteries—within 20 miles of the coast. In the 830s raiding became much more frequent, and involved small the fleets larger. Inland areas became vulnerable as the Viking fleets began to sail up navigable rivers such as the Shannon, sacking the monastery at Clonmacnoise in 836, and then into Lough Erne and Lough Neagh, , 9th-century Ireland was divided into five competing high kingdoms, but the high kings had little control over their quarrelsome sub-kings, so there was no coordinated response to the raids. By 840 the Vikings had become a permanent presence, building fortified camps, the most impor- tant of which was at Dublin, Around this time the shadowy warlord Turgeis provides the first evidence that Viking ambitions now extended beyond plunder to conquest and political control, Once the Vikings began to de- velop permanent settlements, they became more vulnerable to counter- attack, and Irish resistance became more effective. In 847 the Vikings suf- fered four major defeats, after which many of them moved to Francia. The first raiders and settlers had been Norwegians, but in 851 the Danes won control of Dublin, only to be expelled two years later by Olaf the White, a son of a Norwegian king. Olaf made himself king of Dublin, and under him the Vikings began to be drawn into Irish political life, alternately fighting and allying with their neighbours. When Olaf's successor Ivar died in 873, the Dublin kingdom entered a period of political instability. Many Vikings left Ireland to raid in England or Francia or settle in Iceland, and for the next 40 years Ireland saw little Viking activity. 3 r I/Viking Dublin = Dublin, Ircland’s first true town, originated as a longpbort, a fortified enclosure built by the Vikings in 841 to protect their ships and act as a raiding base. Declbslin probably developed as centre for slave trading, | and excavations bave | ‘gp shown that by the 10th century it had become a prosperous merchant and manufacturing town. ® = major excavation 1Och-century Dublin Expansion in | th and 12th centuries pre-Norman church marshland (drained in Anglo-Norman period) @+85| UThe Vikings in Ireland: the first wave, 795-873 ~~" major Wiking raid —#" Dublin Vikings, 851-2 Pree xXkK @ 853 Olaf and Iver fram Norway drive Danes out of Dublin Danish attack on Viking victory Viking defeat Viking camp permanent Viking settlement Viking raid, 795-836 Viking raid, 837-73 ale a6 551-3 @ as3@ Norse kingdom of Dublin foundedVikings in Ireland II “Brodir... ran from the woods and bnerst through the wall of shields, and hacked at the king. The boy ladk threw up an arm to protect King srian, fet the sword cut off the arm and the king’s head, The king's blood spilled over the stump of the boy’s arm, and the wound heeled at once.” the death of Brian Boru, from Njal's Saga The “Forty Years’ Rest” was followed by renewed raiding but gradually the Vikings were assimilated into the Irish population. The long respite from Vi raids which Lreland enjoyed between 874 and $14 became known as the “Forty Years’ Rest". Many Vikings had moved to England or Francia where raiding was now reaching its peak; those who remained suffered a series of defeats culminating with their expulsion from Dublin in 902. But as the opportunities for raiding in. England and Francia declined, the Vikings turned their attention to Ireland again. Within a few years the Vikings were re-established in strength at Dublin, Wexford, Waterford and Limerick, and were once again raiding deep inland along Ireland’s navigable rivers. Ireland also experienced a great deal of small scale coastal raiding by Vikings settled in the Hebrides and northern isles, which continued into the 12th century. The Vikings made no lasting territorial conquests or extensive settlements. The Dublin Vikings were frequently diverted by their ambitions to rule York, while the Irish-Norse towns were often at odds with each other. Irish resis- tance was often highly effective and it was only Ireland's disunity that enabled the Viking enclaves to survive. Tradition has it that Ireland's Viking age ended at the battle of Clontarf in 1014, when Brian Boru, the king of Munster, defeated an alliance between Leinster and the Dublin Vikings, though he himself was killed in the fighting. In reality, it ended more with a whimper than a bang. Under constant pressure from the kings of Munster in the south and the kings of Meath in the north, the power of the [rish- Norse was in sharp decline by the late 10th century. Though the native king- doms often sought them as allies because of their fighting qualities, they had little influence in their own right: several times before 100 the Dublin Vikings had been forced to pay tribute to Irish kings as the price of keeping their indepen- dence. By this time the Irish-Norse were begin- ning to lose Viking identity through con- version to Christianity, intermarriage with the Irish and adoption of the Gaelic language; the Irish now knew them as the “Ostmen” (men of the east) to distinguish them from the Scandin- avians. Left: in response to the Viking raids of the 10th century, the Irish built a series of church belltowers which could also serve az lookout posts and refuges, like this one on the monastic island of Deverisl Right: altbough the Vikings in Lough Erne. . had little long-term influence in Ireland, Scandinavian styles did find their wey into Irish art. The Cross of Cong was made around 1123, long after the Irish Vikings had lost their independence but its decoration still shows a strong influence of the late Norse Urnes style.ri Muirchertach, king of northern Ui Néill, ravages Hebrides in reprisal for Viking raids The Vikings in Ireland: conflict and assimilation, 874-1014 area of Viking settlement: | BBD certain probable trish-Norse town Danish campaign Irish-Norse campaign Hebridean Viking campaign Irish campaign Viking victory Viking defeat Viking versus Viking battle Viking raid, B74-912 Viking raid, 913-c. 950 Pa ‘ata Bot =i ae aS eo at -~ Donaghpatrick Connacht ‘ Kelisa *"% Pera i Ardbrachan® 94 Meat h« =f, Owel ea Clonard % aipstee Tel Ag Killeigh = eae 226 968-96 Mathghamain, king of — Dal Cais, blinders *924 Dublin Vikings’ attempt to conquer Limerick Vikings defeated E @ 980, 989, 995 G @/0l4 A® 875 8 4902-17 C #9/2-27, Delo tribute paid to Mdel Brian Baru, king of Halfdan driven off Vikings expelled 939-44, high king of Tora Sechnaill, king of Munster, defeats from ublin by 949-52 linked and (2 sub-kings Meath Leinster-Viking comltion Norwegians with York killed in failed otaernist-to drive F 0999 H@1170 Vikings from Dublin tribute to Brion Boru, Dublin fails to Angio-, king of Munster Normans.The Vikings in Scotland Below: St Columba’s Abbey on the island of Iona was one of the first places in Scotland attacked by the Vikings. As the Norse settlers of the isles converted by Christianity, Viking ners became patrons rather than plunderers—of the abbey. By the 11th century it had become the burial place of the Norse kings of Man and the Isles. Viking raids on monasteries were followed by permanent settlements in the Scottish islands and along the coast. The earliest recorded Viking activity in Scotland was an attack on the monastery of Colmeille on Iona in 795, Over the next 50 years raids contin ued unabated around the western coasts. By the mid-9th century, however, the emphasis had shifted from raiding to settlement. Very little is known about the settlement process, but the first settlements probably began as raiding bases early in the centr By 900, settlers—mostly Norwegians— were well established in the islands and along the coast from Galloway to the Moray Firth, In Orkney and Shetland the native Celts were completely submerged by the newcomers, but in the Hebrides and the southwest they were soon intermarrying with the Norse to produce a hybrid people known to the Irish as the Gall-Gaedhil (“foreign Gael”), from which Galloway gets , One result of Celtic influence was that many of the settlers adopt- ianity before 900. its 6 ed Chris The political organization of the settlements is uncertain but, as later in Iceland, they were probably made under aristocratic leaders such as Ketil Flatnose who ruled in the Hebrides from around 840 to 880. Towards the end of the 9th century, the Norwegian Vestfold kings extended their authority over Orkney, establishing an earldom under loose royal control They also claimed sovereignty over the Hebrides, but it would be 200 years before their authority there was anything more than theoretical. The Orkney earldom soon expanded, taking control of most of the Scandina- vian settled areas of Scotland by the reign of Earl Sigurd the Stout (¢. 985- 1O14), The most important effect that the Vikings had on Scotland in this period was to break the existing power structures. In 800, Scotland was divided between four ethnic groups: the Picts of the Highlands, the Scots of Dalnada, the Britons of Strathclyde and the Anglo-Saxons of Northumbria, All four suffered from Viking attacks, but the Scots seem to have been weak- ened less than their neighbours. Turning circumstances to their advantage, j an the Picts in 844, the Strathclyde Britons in the 920s and Lothian in 973, to create the kingdom of Scotland,late #th century + Rae: adh — — Shetland comes under Viking Scotland, 800-1014 direct rule from Tone [esenes ethnic groups 800 Earldom of Orkney: 3 ee area of Norse settlement, wee cH) q 9th and 10th centuries ome 6.900 a ttlerm ae date of se ent given ¢. 1000 | Wiking raids: aT) Danes, 874 ee etal : Snir | | 5 monastery or | at Sigurd se Mighty an = settlement raided = | Thorstein the Red, 889-900 | | doshed lines show conjectural raids Viking trade route Pers ; PORTRIU é ER Trimmed | Dunkeld Sg | ely ay North #839 904. | ravaged by Vikings 839,866 and 903-4 Soy i ee af Barth | ) GALL-GAEDHIL eg | To woe ublin Clontarf | i4@ 104 Earl Sigurd and King Brodir of Man killedScandinavian Place Names in Britain Keld 4, Thwaite 6 Above: placenames of Norse origin predominate in ntuch of northwest England. However the survival of Anglo-Saxon placenames such as Kaber (ca-beorg = “jackdaw bill”) alongside names of pure Norse origin such as Keld (“spring”) and Thwaite (“clearing”) show that the native inhabitants were not driven owt by the new settlers, Below: this sundial in the porch of St Gregory’s Minster at Kirkdale in Yorkshire shows the Novse settlers becoming assieilated into the Anglo- Saxon population, A man with @ Scandinavian name has restored a Christian church and recorded the fact in Anglo-Saxon: “Orm, son of ‘Gamal, acquired the church of St Gregory wher it was tumbled and ruined, and had it rebualt from the erosend in honour of Christ and St Gregory” during the earldom of Tastig (1055-65). Placenames are the most important source of evidence about the extent of Viking settlement in Britain and Ireland. , such as burials, stone- carvings or settlements, the picture would be much less complete. This is especially true in England, where Scandinavian settlements have proved very difficult to identify. Though many Scandinavian placenames date from after the Viking age, their distribution gives a broad indication of the densi- ty of Scandinavian settlement. In Orkney, Shetland and Caithness, almost character, Scandinavian placenames are also common in the Isle of Man, Gumbria, Yorkshire and the East Midlands; in East Anglia, the Hebri -r extent, along the coasts of northwest Scotland, Lancashire, Cheshire and South Wales, There are few Scandinavian plz nes in England south of the 9th-century bor- der of the Danelaw, and they are absent even from many areas north of it If we had to rely only on archaeological evidence all placenames are of Scancinav es and Galloway; and, to a les: Despite the Vikings’ long involvement in Ireland, there are few Scandin- 1 placenames there, mirroring the lack of literary and archaeological evidence for Seandin ent outside their coastal bi ing of prominent coastal features, especially around the Irish Sea, Scandinavian names—a sign of the Scandinavian domination of waters during the Viking age. In general, Norwegian placename cleme are commonest in northwest England, Man and Scotland, and Danish ele- ments in eastern England. The most characteristic Danish placename elen as in Thurkleby (“Thurkil’s s. A scatter- have an settler sare farmstead”), and -thorfe as in Kettlethorpe (“Ketil’s outlying farm"), Hybrid names incorporating a Danish perso ve and the English element -tun, as ston (Grim’s village”) also common in the Danelaw. Typical Norwegian placename ele- ments found in northern isles are -stathiy, found in Grimista (“C n’s place”), and -hilstadr, as in Isbister (“eastern farm”). The Norwegian -thveit in, Brackenth (“bracken clearing”), is co! and Dumfries, Common Scandinavian ele- ments in coastal placenames are -ey (island), -holm (islet), awick (bay) and -ford (fjord). theScandinavian placenames in Britain and Ireland | Seandinavian placenames: mixed Danish and |g almost totally Norse es | prea tbe (EI xed Gaelic and Norse fe ancien [ERM ized Gaelic, Norse and Danish stein egies Danish and Anglo-Saxon Lundy — isolated Scandinavian placename border of Danelaw archaeological evidence of Scandinavian settlement: @ © settlement == burial « sculprure = probable serlement == multiple burial Hf thing ‘ee insetThe Duchy of Normandy Rollo’s Vikings, allowed to settle in Normandy as a defence against other raiders, rapidly adopted a French, Christian identity. In 892, most of the Vikings on the Seine crossed the Channel to raid in England, and those who remained began to settle down. Their last major raid—on Chartres in 911—was defeated, and their leader Rollo made a peace agreement with the Frankish King Charles the Simple. In return for his homage and conversion to Christianity, Rollo was made count of Rouen (the rulers of Normandy did not use the de “ “duke” before 1006), Charles’ intention was that Rollo would prevent ings sailing down the Seine to attack his kingdom. In th ect, the agreement was a great suc- cess and, apart from some border troubles, the Viking threat to the Seine valley was: permanently ended. Rollo was granted further lands around Bayeux in 924 and his successor William Longsword acquired the Cotentin peninsula in 933, but attempts to expand eastwards were defeated. y other Normandy—from Normannia, or “Northman’s Land”—owes its name to the Vikings, but their long-term influence was slight, Placename evidence points to fairly dense Scandinavian (mainly Danish) settlement in coastal , but elsewhere it was very sparse: the Scandinavians were cle: yin Normandy as a whole. The settlers have left little archaeological evidence of their presence, indicating that they quickly adopted Frankish material culture and burial practices. Some newly arrived settlers started a brief pagan revival around 942, but most of the earlier settlers had already converted by this stage, Economic ties with the north, never strong, were abandoned by the late 10th century. Scandinavian speech probably survived until the early 11th century. The last vestige of ence was the presence of a Norwegian poet at the ducal court in 1025. Well Above: one ofa pairof before 1066, Normandy had Scandinavian fibulae.or become, adm inistratively, clothes fasteners, found in a i oak Viking grave at Pites in Culturally and linguistically, Normandy. a French principality. ndinavian culoural influ-The growth of the Duchy of Normandy, 911-1051 Scandinavian settlement: eee dense men dispersed . Seandinavian place names Norman territory: original grant, 91 | acquired 924 acquired 933 acquired 1051 “Merman campaigns, 911-1014 \ 7A Frankish campaign, 943-5 ACPA Fe A z - . Thal town sacked Above: William of Normandy (2 oR anders i besieges the castle of Dinas in \ Thérouinnee® ¥ Ea Brtamy in 1064, tm a scene Norman defeat fromt the Bayeux Tapestry. ‘The castle is a typical motte- and-bailey af the period, with at wooden stockade on top of an earth mound. The three- pointed hanners—knoum as gonfalons—are of Norse origitt, as are the mythical beasts in the tapesiry's margins. oes — + ors Viking chief “Rado” arrives on Seine rmandois N - : 6 3 kms campaign of reconguest Chartres aseThe Vikings in Brittany “The Northmen.. levastated all i Britanny... Mathedoi, count of Poher and a great throng of Bretons took refuge with 4 thelsian, king of the Angles... But the poorer Bretons who tilled the soit remained in the power of the Northmen, dejenceless and lecred rless Chronicle of Nantes, 919 | N 2/The fort at Camp | ; " | de Péran hes app ss ae The fort at Camp de Péran pebble? SP fa was either built or occupied by 3 an on 5 SS a the Vikings in the early 10th : mi yy a century; weapons and pottery of Sat F | the period have been found there, as well as a coin from York, Its shape and construction ave sineiliar to that of the round forts of Denmark |p page 84). Its earthen ramparts, some 12 feet (4 metres) high, would have been topped by a wooden stockade. The fort was destroved by fire some time during the 930s, possibly during Alas: Barbetorte’s invasion, In places the beat twas so intense that the clay Blocked out of the Seine by the Normans, the Vikings invaded Brittany and drove its nobles into exile. For most of the 9th century, Britany escaped relatively lightly from Viking attacks; although it suffered its share of coastal raids, the region was periph- eral to the Vi s' main interests. The worst attacks were probably in 847 and 888, when parts of Brittany were briefly occupied, but a series of Breton victories 888-91 won the region a 2(bveat espite. In many ways the Vikings were more of a help than a hinderance to the Bretons in this period. The Frankish emperors were too preoccupied with internal problems and Viking attacks to prevent the Bretons expanding to the south and west, and were obliged to recognize Brittany's independence. The Vikings proved use- ful allies; a joint Breton-Viking army attacked Le Mans in 865, But in the 10th century, the situation changed. The settlement of Rollo and his followers in Normandy in 911 closed the Seine to Viking raids England the Danes were being pushed onto the defensive, Only Brittany and Ireland remained open to attack, and from 912 the raids intensified. Most coastal monasteries were abandoned as their terrified monks fled with their relics and manuscripts. By 919 Brittany's defences had completely col- lapsed: the nobility fed to Francia and England, and the Vikings under Rognvald conquered the whole country, making their capital at Nantes. The conquest seems to have been a purely military takeover: there is no evi- dence of any settlement nor, apparently, did the Vikings engage in trade. Nantes, whose position at the mouth of the Loire should have enabled it to become a flourishing trade centre like York or Dublin, was semi-derelict when the Bretons recaptured it. and: in ramparts bave become vitrified, % [0ch-century coin from YorkiS ee eee 9 yi [The Vikings in Brittany, 836-939 | SSS SS . #938 = border of Brittany, after 851 Vikings {rom Nanees build fire N I area accupied by Vikings, 914-39 0939 i ee a” Viking raid Bretons storm fort a ; ar * % Monastery or other church eiol4 } peantn Pa: i * aracked or abandoned, 836-939 Dolinméd Rhea y B® Viking capital, 919-37 Viking attack on Brittany eo c i Viking fort ‘ ens M® Viking ship burial x Viking victory 936% x Viking defeat with fleet from England Breton reconquest, 936-9: A ; | smut” Alan Barbetorte eS pee L_ 3 Alan surprises party of Vikings at @ wedding B t oe and: executes them . eg = ae ee x a= ie de : 3 Domnonee . « Sorina 3 “ii 4 7 Poher ta 3 f 912 3 y¢ Viking raid. Monks flee with relics of St Winwaloe - Cornouaille ~<@ulmnpe 7 ew } = be : abt, Atlantic Orean Above: three of the weapons In 931 the Vikings concentrated at Nantes to launch an invasion of Francia. found in the Viking fort at = The Bretons saw their chance and rebelled. Though the rebellion was put (Camp de Péran—a longsword down the weakne f the Vikings a Re d. This ecemuraced with a pattern-welded blade, own the weakness ~ the IRIN ES. PORUON Wal expose * 1s enenurages and two iron spearheads. — Alan Barbetorte (“twisted-beard”), an exile in England, to lead an invasion of Brittany in 936. Nantes was retaken after a fierce battle in 937 and the last Vikings were expelled from their fort at Trans near Dol in 939. The effect of the Viking occupation was disastrous for Breton independence, however. The authority of the dukes never fully recovered, and by the 11th century Brittany had become a satellite of Normandy,The Viking Warrior Richly decorated weapons and lavish burials proclaimed the status of Viking warriors; bonded by loyalty and pride, they were the elite of their society. Right: this carved wooden head on the Oseberg cart (c. 800) shows the fierce Viking warrior of legend. The cart is part of the rich assemblage of grave goods of a Viking queen in the Oseberg ship burial from Norway. Verv little is known about the orga- nization of the Viking armies that ravaged western Europe. The basic unit was the /id, a king's or chief tain’s private retinue of warriors. The warriors of the lid formed a felag or fellowship, bonded together by mutual loyalty. Discipline was probably maintained mainly by the individual warrior’s fear of dishon- our if he abandoned his leader and companions in battle: ideally a rior should follow his leacer to his death if necessary. A Viking army ply a group of dd which had come together for a common pur- pose. When a campaign w: was over the a army dispersed into its respective fel- lowships to settle, go home or join another army somewhere else. Local defence within Scandinavia was provided for by a levy system which required all able-bodied men to bear arms in an emergency. The local chieftain’s /id probably provided the backbone of the levies, In battle, Viking warriors expected their kings or chiefiains to lead from the front under their standards. In an age of primitive battlefield communications, the standard showed warriors the direction of advance and provided a rally- ing point in dire emergency. The most feared Viking warriors were the berserkers, devotees of the war god Odin, Their name is probably derived from the bearskin shirts they wore. Berserkers worked themselves into a trance-like frenzy before battle which apparently left them immune to the pain of wounds. Vikings did not go out of their way to seek battle, but if there was no alter- native the usual tactic was to form a defensive shield wall to meet the enemy attack, Two forces could be locked in battle for hours, shield wall to shield wall: the decisive moment came when one force lost its nerve and tried to withdraw, or when its shield wall was broken. Casualties could be very one- sided, as the yictors could inflict great slaughter on a Neeing enemy without much risk to themselves. Despite the Vikings’ skill as navigators, sea battles were rare; when they did occur, the main tactic was to board the enemy ship and clear its decks by hand-to-hand fighting. The most favoured weapon in Denmark and Norway was the double-edged longsword, which was used for hacking at the enemy rather than thrusting. Frankish swords were prized for their quality, but Scandinavian smiths were also highly skilled, and their finest swords had a pattern-welded core to give greater strength and flexibility, Axes are the weapon with which the Vikings are most often associated, and these were often used as a cheaper alterna- tive to a sword. In Sweden the ost ComMOn weapon was the spear, with a pattern-welded socketed blade up to 2 feet (60 cm) long mounted on anWar was the most prestigious activity in Viking-age Scandinavian society, and possession of beautifully finished weapons was an important means of displaying a warrior's status and wealth, The hilts and scabbards of swords were often nichly decorated, as were ceremonial axes (right). vhaps the commonest weapon, though, was the r (above). ash shaft 6-9 feet (2-5 m) long. The sockets of the finest quality spears were inlaid with patterns in si were also er. Bows and arrows and fighting kni used, The most important defensive weapon was the circular shield. Usually these were made of wood with iron bands to strengthen the rim and an iron boss which held the grip and could be used also as a knuckle-duster. Shields were about 3 feet (1 m) in diameter to protect the whole body from the neck to the thighs. Towards the end of the Viking age, the round shield was superseded by the kite-shaped shield. Those who could afford them wore chain mail coats and metal helmets (usually fitted with face guards), but most warriors probably had to make do with a tough leather jerkin and a hardened leather cap. Scale armour, probably imported from Byzantium, is known from Sweden. The Vikings’ success depended not on superior equipment, organization or —most Europeans waged war in a very similar way—but on their mobility, which kept them constantly one step ahead of the defenders. Their fast, shallow draughted ships were ideal for lightning attacks on coastal settlements or taking larger armies far inland along rivers. On land the Vikings campaigned as mounted infantry, covering long distances quick- ly on commandeered horses. By the time the local defences had been mus- tered, the Vikings would be long gone. In the 12th century, traditional infantry tactics were abandoned in favour of armoured cavalry. Left: metal belmets and chainmail coats were worn by wealtiry chieftains even before the Viking age; this helmet was found in the 7th-century ship burial at Verdel in Sweden,IV: The North Atlantic Saga The Viking expansion in the North Atlantic was very different jfrom the Viking raids in the British Isles—from the start, settlement was the main motive. Though Danes and Swedes were involved, the settlement of the Faeroe Islands, Iceland and Greenland was dominated by emigrants from Norway. Above: The Vesturhont on The first explor Ieeland’s ragged southeast of the North Atlantic were Irish monks, whose practice const dianld lewd haneiwuite) , ling into voluntary exile for God—had given them an settlers’ first sight of theirnew “rivalled knowledge of the northern seas. These voyages were acts of faith, homeland. and the monks trusted to God to bring them to a safe landfall, No doubt a great many of them must have vanished without trace, but by around 71) Irish monks were living on the Faeroe Islands as hermits and by 800 they had discovered Iceland, which they called Thule, and even sailed beyond it to the frozen sea. of peregrinatio— The Viking expansion in this area was originally a by-product of the raids on the Scottish islands which began at the end of the 8th century, The environ- ment of the isles is similar to that of western Norway, and in the first half of the 9th century Norwegians be: 1 to settle permanently in the area, Here they will have come into contact with Irish monks, and it was probably from them that the Vikings learned of the existence of land to the north Beyond the Control of Kings In Icelandic tradition, the settlement of the F. es and Iceland is held to have been begun by exiles flecing the tyrannical rule that king Harald Finehair is said to have imposed after his victory at Hafrsfjord. This isunlikely to be the whole story. The battle of Hafrsfjord is believed to have taken place between 885 and 900 but, according to the Irish monk Dicuil, Vikings had reached the Faeroes and frightened off the Irish hermits there by the time he was writing in 825, The settlement of Iceland had also begun before Hafrsfjord. The first Vikings to reach Iceland were offcourse seafar- ers c. 860 and the first settlers began to arrive about 10 years later, at which time Harald Finehair is unlikely to have been much more than a toddler. Iceland was not fully settled until ¢ 930, so Harald’s rule may have played a part in sustaining emigration, but it cannot have been the initial cause. However, there may be a wider truth in the Icelandic tradition. The leaders of the settlements were aristocrats of middling rank—local chieftains— there were no jarls or kings among them. The local chieftains were the main losers by the growth of centralized authority in Scandinavia in the 8th and 9th centuries, and the opportunity to emigrate to a new land beyond the control of kings must have been attractive to them. The government of Iceland, with its system of district things and the national Althing in which the chieftains or goCar played the leading role, was probably very similar to traditional forms of government before the rise of royal power in Scandinavia. The only significant national official was the Lawspeaker, an elective position with no executive authority, Decision making was a consen- sual process and though only the goéar could vote in the Althing, the need- ed to consider the wishes of their supporters as freemen could withdraw their allegiance if they wished. The peaceful adoption of Christianity as the official religion in Iceland by a vote of the Althing in 1000 was probably the greatest achievement of this form of government. While the go@ar were all of roughly similar wealth and status, the Icelandic system worked well. However, the godar were not a closed class, and though the status could be inherited, men could fall out of the class or rise into it, In time a few pre-eminent chiefly families emerged, the consensual system broke down and in the 13th century civil wars broke out as they fought each other for supremacy. In desperation the Icelanders turned to Hakon IV, King of Norway, to restore order and in 1263 the country was formally annexed to Norway. In the end, the Icelandic colony succumbed to the forces of centralization from which its founders*had believed they were escaping. A significant number of the original settlers of Iceland came from the Norse colonies in the Hebrides, Several of the leading settlers were second-genera- tion emigrants, the product of mixed Norse-Celtic marriages, and some were already Christians. The settlement of Iceland coincided with a period of strengthening Celtic resistance to the Vikings, and it is likely that this prompted this exodus of otherwise apparently well established Norse set- tlers—there was no hostile native population in Iceland to threaten the long-term survival of the settlements. Exodus to Greenland The settlement of Greenland was probably a result of population pressure in Iceland. Greenland was discovered accidently by a storm-driven seafarer around 930, but its hostile, ice-bound appearance excited little interest until Erik the Red, a man with many enemies, rounded Cape Farewell some time around 983, looking for a safe place to spend his exile from Iceland, and discovered the ice-free eastern fjords. By this time, all the good land in. Iceland had long been settled. Many latecomers, like Erik himself, were liv-Right: Traditional haymaking in the Faeroe Islands. Though bleak and treeless, the Faeroes hid goad pestureland for sheep and cattle, making them attractive to Norwegian settlers, ing on marginal land, so there was no shortage of potential settlers willing to emigrate to Greenland. Though fascinating in its own right, the Norse discovery of America c. 1000 cannot be said to have great his cal significance. True, it is a trib ute to the seafaring skills and adventurous spirit of the V gs, but it was in reality the last gasp of their westward expansion. The distances were too great, the Vikings’ numbers too few, their ships too fragile and the natives too hostile for the brief Norse attempt at settlement to have been sustain- able. The discovery was soon forgotten outside Iceland, and it made no con- tribution to the later European exploration and colonization of the Americas which began at the end of the 15th century. The Faeroes, Iceland and Greenland are bleak and inhospitable places to setle but they would not have appeared unattractive to a 9$th-century Norwegian. What the settlers were looking for primarily was good grazing land—arable farming was not important in Norway —and grass grows well in the Faeroes and Iceland. The climate was milder in the e than it is today, and it was possible even in y Middle Ages sreenland to grow a little grain. The Faeroes and Greenland were treeless, but Iceland had abundant birch woodland at the time of the settlement, though this was unsuitable for ship- building. The colonies’ lack of timber for shipbuilding was a serious disad- vantage. Once the ships used by the original settlers had dec: could be replaced only with great difficulty, and the colonies’ vital wade links passed increasingly under foreign control. Both Iceland and Greenland suffered severely from the climatic deterioration known as the “Litde Ice Age” that began around 1200. In Iceland the problem was com- pounded by serious volcanic eruptions: the wo 1104, scattered ash over half the island and forced the abandonment of many farms. Some eruptions caused glaciers to mel nding di floods hing into the lowlands with heavy loss of life. Iceland’s popula- tion, which was about 60,000 at the end of the Vi ing period, had fallen by half by the 17th century. The Greenland colony, which had never num- bered more than about 4000, was hit so severely that it had become extinct by 1500. The Greenlanders were not helped by their extreme cultural con- servatism, which prevented them learning anything from contacts with the ved, they from Mount Hekla in StrOusBratthlid, Eirik the Red's farm in the Norse Sreenland colory’s Eastern Settlement. By the late 10th century the best lard in Iceland was taken and the food grazing of the ice-free west codst of Greenland attracted many settlers. Eskimos; to the very end they struggled to continue the farming economy of their Norwegian ancestors in the shadow of the advancing glaciers. The settlements in the Faeroes and Iceland were the only permanent exten sions to the Scandinavian world to result from the Viking expansion, and in this lies their main historical significance. Elsewhere in Europe, the Scandinavian settlers were absorbed by the native population within a few generations, leaving little behind to tell of their presence beyond place- names and loan words in the local language. In the Faeroes and Iceland, however, there was no native population, and the settlers retained an identi- ty rooted in the west coast districts of Norway, from whose dialects the Facroes and Iceland languages have developed. The Icelanders showed the emigrant’s preoccupation with ori is in their mag ent saga tradition, Alone of all the Germanic peoples, they preserved the pagan mythology and ig traditions of their ancestors, and eventually recorded it after their conver- sion to Christianity. | 6 c= attThe Faeroes and Iceland { Viking settlement of the remote, mountainous Faeroe Islands led Iceland ‘ to the accidental discovery of Iceland. Pte | The Faeroes are a mountainous and windswept chain of islands about 190 € miles northwest of Shetland. According to the Faereyinga Saga, the first : 4 Viking settler was Grimur Kamban. His second name is of Irish origin, so he Be had probably spent some time in Ireland or the Hebrides. Most of the set- cf tlers, however, came directly from the Norwegian west-coast districts of Sogn, Rogaland and Agder. Setthement must have begun around 825, when the Irish monk Dicuil complained that the Vikings had scared away his brethren who had been using the islands as a retreat for over a century. I/The settlement of The climate is unsuitable for crop growing, but the islands have good graz- the Faeroes, ing and sheep and cattle rearing became the basis of the economy. To take c. 825-1100 advantage of mountain pastures, islanders moved their animals up to aergi ée? pre-Viking cultivation (shielings) for the summer months, The early history of the Faeroese settle- a? pre-Viking cross slab ments is obscure, but the land seems to have been claimed by a few aristo- Viking sevdiement cratic families who then divided it among their followers. By 895 the settle- ee eee ments had been brought under the direct control of the kings of Norway. 3 site of Thing The Vikings had probably heard of Iceland from the Irish—later settlers (island parliament) were to find croziers, books and other evicence of monastic settle- T bishopric, < 1100 ee. 825 ment— but the first Norse visitors arrived by accident traditional site of first abe rae WE z = jf ably serlonencby Grae kaniban The first Viking to reach the island was probably « Viking-age shieling ee Gardar the Swede, who was blown off course on a voyage to the Hebrides around 860. He made idfall near the Eastern Horn and spent a year circummavigating Iceland, wintering on Terkel vi the north coast at Husavik. The land looked o very promising and Gardar decided to name it : after himself, Gardarsholm, Another accidental early visitor was Naddod, who landed on Iceland's east Coast after being blown off course while sailing from Norway to the Faeroes. Vidi OE { Seatac Myhites 4d 5, Below: according to local tradition, Grimrur Kavrban, Kirkjubour the first Norse settler of the Faeroe Islands, chose this sheltered bay on Funningsfjordur as the site of his farm. The patelnwork of tiny hayfields surrounding the modern village dates from late Viking times, ° 50 kms ESS 0 30 milesRight: the forbidding sontheast coast of Iceland was he first landfall for marry of the earliest Norse explorers of Iceland, There were fet safe harbours bere and grazing was poor, so this part af Iceland never became densely populated, Most settlers followed the coast westwards fo the more favourable western fronds. [ A afterwards, Floki Vilgerdarson set o oO ogaland to explore the 2/The exploration Shortly afterwards, Floki Vilgerdarson set out from Rogala I of Iceland, c. 860-70 islaridl The expedition was not a great success. Floki spent the first wnat on Breidafjord, but because he had neglected to gather winter fodder all his a. SA ea, livestock starved to death. The sea-ice we 0 anal slow breaking up that spring the bad weather forced him to spend the next winter on Borgarfjord. Thoroughly disillusioned by his experiences, Floki decided to call the new land Iceland. Though the name stuck, other members of his party gave su’ Naddod the Viking | seu’ loki Vilgerdarson | J j | PAPos place name associated * more favourable reports, and by 870 seulers began to arrive. with Irish monks ‘ - ¢& active volcano ARCTIC rrim 5 @ Gardar’s voyoge proves that feeland is an island ¢ = | Floki’s first winter. “Sea ice Wt ford - delays his departure <> Bad weather prevents @ Fioki from leaving. He is forced to stay a second winter etreconese on , @ Naddad blown A aff course from _ Foeroes cheoe Gardar, blown oy from Hebrides, sights —— @ Floki sails fromm Rogaland via Shetland « 50: rolies the Foeroes to explore Naddod's sightingThe Settlement of Iceland Vikings chiefs settle in Iceland, dividing the good grazing land round the coasts among their followers. The first settlers of Iceland were two foster-brothers, Ingolf and Hjorleif. They made a reconnoitre of the East Fjords in the late 860s, and around 870 returned to settle. Hjorleif was killed by his Irish slaves during the first winter, but after three years exploring Ingolf made a permanent settlement at Reykjavik, More settlers soon followed; most were from western Norway, but there were also Danes, Swedes and Scandinavians from the Hebrides. By 930 nearly all the good grazing land had been claimed. Except in the south- west, most of the settlements were close to the coast: the barren mountains and lava plains of the interior were, as they still remai . uninhabited. The L2th-century Icelandic Landndmabik (The Book of the Settlements) identifies some 430 leaders of the settlement period. Mostly men of aristo- eratic background, they brought their families, personal retinues and slaves. They took personal possession of the land, farming some themselves and settling their retinues as tenants on the rest of their claim. Early settlements were lawless, and disputes often degenerated into protracted blood-feuds, The Book of Local leadership was assumed by the godar, wealthy chicftain-priests who were well placed to resolve or manipulate disputes and offer advocacy and protection to smaller landowners, They presided over the district assem- blies, or Things, which dealt with local disputes. In 930 an annual all-Iceland assembly, the Altung, was set up io deal with major disputes and establish common laws. Iceland was divided into four quartcrs which had equal vot- ing rights in the Althing, Only chieftains could vote, and the Althing remained an oligarchy, entirely under their control. In LOOO, the Althing agreed to accept Christianity as the official religion, and the first bishopric was established at Skalholt in 1056. The system provided stable government Icelanders, Mth century until the 13th century, when the concentration of power in the hands of a few chiefly families led to civil war. As a result, Iceland came under direct rule from Norway in 1263. ies in Eyjafjordor, c. 1190 be north of Iceland offers a good Viking chieftancies worked. i, would protect less powerful Lasiddowrmsers, ara presided fa the disesicr Thine: Their followers, or thingmen, were free to transfer, their loyalty from one godar to another. As a result, chieftancies were political rather than geographical units, and a godar’s thingmen could be spread over awide area, Seats of chieftains: farms of their thingmen: @ Gudmundr ® Gudmundr @ Gmundr Thorkelsson = @ Gmundr Thorkelsson W@ Thorvardr Thorgeirsson = @ Thorvardr Thorgeirsson I Jon Ketilsson @ Jon Ketilsson district Thingsite of first Thing 873 @ ingalf makes permanent settlement N c87l@ Hiorlief's slaves flee to Vestmannaeyjar 0 75 ken where Ingalf hunts them down SSS 50 miles Below: the Icelanders adopted Christianity as their official religion following a vate by the Althing in 1000. To demonstrate bis adherence to the new faith, Thorgeir, the pagan Lawspeaker, cast his idols of the pagan gods into this waterfall, This act gave the falls their name, Godafoss, the falls of the gods. 287) @c870 Ingolf’s second Hijorlief killed by winter his Irish shaves I/The Icelandic settlements, c.870-1263 sw” Ingolf and Hjorlief, late 860s | sue’ Hiorlief, < 870 ug! Ingolf. c, 870 a9" flight of Hjorlief’s slaves settlement established by 930 —= regional boundary site of Atthing, from 930 Bi bishopric, with date of foundation , area of pasture . active volcaneIcelandic Literature Medieval Iceland occupies a special place in the history of European civilization as the home of one of Europe’s oldest traditions of vernacular literature. Iceland's isolation from Europe allowed its ancient Germanic myths, leg- ends and storytelling traditions to survive, and its aristocratic social struc- ture fostered a fascination with family history and national origins. Most old Icelandic literature was written down in the 12th and 13th centuries, but it includes much orally-transmitted material that was originally composed up to 200-300 years earlier. Shortly after Iceland lost its independence to Norway in 1263, its literary tradition began to decline, and by the later Middle Ages it had died out. Such is the conservatism of the Icelandic language, however, that modern Icelanders have less difficulty reading Old Icelandic literature than modern English speakers have in reading Shakespeare. Old Icelandic literature consists of poetry and the prose works known as sagas. The poetry falls into two genres, Skaldic verse and Eddic verse, Skaldic verse is an important historical source, as these heroic poems were composed by court poets (skalds) to commemorate the achievements of their aristocratic and royal patrons, As such, they are hardly impartial accounts, but are often the most contemporary sources available for some LOth- and 11th-century events. The Eddic verses consist of a mixture of mythological and heroic poer composed du taining material which may be several centuric ng the Viking age but con- es older. The mythological poems, which describe the adventures of the Norse gods, are the most important—without them, we would know almost nothing about early Right: Egil Skallagrimsson, from a 17th-century manuscript of Egil’s Saga. Brave warrior, murderer, merchant, farmer and great poet, Egil embodies the contradictory faces of the Viking age in a single, larger- than-life character. Mary Viking-age poems attributed to him are incorporated into the saga.Right: this hate leelaneic Manuscript shows scenes from pagan Norse arytholagy. Crt the left is the wolf Fenrir, a mortal enenty of the gods, They restrained Fenrir with chains, but at Ragnarok, the end of the world, be will break bis bonds and devowr Odin, On the right is Vegdrasil, the sacred ash tree which supports the wriverse, Far right: 4 page from Harald Finebair's saga, part of Snorri Sturluson’s Heimskringla (The Circle of the World), Saori wrote this monumental history of the kings of Norway, which played an important part in forming the Norwegian national identity, around 1225. Though it contains much legendary material, itis ane of the major historical sources for Viking- age Scandinavia, This early 14th-century manuscript, known as the Codex Frisiana after one of its owners, Otta Friis, is one of the finest of all medieval Icelandic books, Above: because ifs economy was dependent on cattle, medieval Iceland had plentiful supplies of calfskin—the raw material for vellum, the main writing material of the Middle Ages. As a result, books were relatively inexpensive and widely available, Mast wtanuscripts were unilluminated and given cheap wtilitarian bindings, like the sturdy woaden covers of this 14th-century copy of Nial’s Saga. Germanic paganism. Medieval Icclanders were not ashamed of their pagan past and, alone among the Germanic peoples, they recorded their pagan myths and beliefs. The longest of the mythological poems, the Havamal, (Savings of the High One) is a body of ethical teachings attributed to Odin. Most of the sayings concern the everyday concerns of the peasant farmer, but in others the Viking love of fame and glory shines through. The heroic poems in the Edda are largely concerned with legendary characters such as Sigurd the Volsung (Siegfried of the Niebe- lungenlied), Some real figures from the Migration Period, including Attila the Hun and the great Gothic King Ermaneric, also put in an appearance, but they have been transformed into the stuff of legends and their Eddic exploits bear no relation to historical reality. The prose sagas include a wide range of genres from weighty narra- tive histories such as Snorri Sturluson’s /Heimskringla, an epic history of the kings of Norway, to myths, romances and supe! However, the most original works are the family sagas, histori novels based loosely on the personalities and events of Iceland's ’ 1ent period but mainly written in the 13th centur a time of social and political disintegration, and family sagas probably catered for an escapist desi favourite theme of these sagas is the working out of a blood feud. In Njal’s Saga, for example, bonds of kinship, personal loyalty and friendship inex- orably draw Njal, a man of peace and goodwill, into quarrels not of his mak- ing, with ultimately fatal consequences. The authors of the family sagas wer much concerned with the workings of fate. This does not mean that their characters are the pawns of blind fate, however; they control their destinies, and meet their fates as a consequence of their own weaknesses and errors. Compared to the chivalric romances then fashionable in western Europe, the family vatural tales. This was re to recreate a “golden age” of the past. A sceming works written in a com- ‘aaAs ar pellingly terse style and featuring psychologically realistic characters. The best of them—Njal’s Saga, Egil’s Saga and Laxdacla Saga—rank among the great works of European literature.The Vikings in Greenland At the edge of the known world, Norse settlers eked out a precarious existence along the sheltered fjords of western Greenland. Ice-bound Greenland owes its optimistic name to Erik the Red, who hoped it would attract settlers, The first Norsemen to sight Greenland were Gunnbjorn Ul-Krakuson and Snaebjorn Galti, around 900 and 978 nespec- tively, All tk the barren, glaciated east coast. But around 983, Erik discovered gion to the west, with sheltered fjords and good grazing. He ed to Iceland to persuade others to follow him, and in $86 set out again with 25 ships. Only 14 made it round Cape 7 Farewell, but this was cnough to found two settlements: the he Eastern and, 300 miles further north, the Western, fo Ad firs and it v sheep re the setdements flourished. The climate was milder than today 4 even possible to grow cereals in sheltered places. Cattle and ring was the basis of the economy, but the settle 1ents’ most came from g grounds to the north. Even further north, the Norse traded with the Eskimos. At its peak, the Norse population numbered around 4000. Che Eastern Settlement eventually included 190 farms, 12 parish churche cathedral, an Augustinian monastery and a Benedictine nunnery. The small- er Western Settlement had 90 farms and four churches. Between the two was the Middle Settlement of 20 farms. The settlers were probably organized on Icelandic lines, with Erik the Red taking a role akin to the Law-speaker. valuable exports—walrus ivory and hide and polar bear furs rich hunt Above: an Bie caress of The Greenlanders lost their independence in 126] when they came under s Norse (ireandaiibr, Dot Norwegian rule, Soon after 1304) the climate began to deteriorate, Stock-rear- settlers were cultterally very : 2 : i conservative and made no tng suffered and sea-ice cut the settlers off from the outside world for years at effort to learn fromthe a time, The Eskimos began to move south and there were violent clashes Eskimos’ long experience of with the Greenlanders. By 1410, the date of the last recorded contact, living in Arctic conditions. Ih the ‘Raster Setilenientwurviveds Archasnlogtenl excavant This probably contributed to 2 ¢ Eastern Settlement survived. Archaeological excavations the settlements’ decline when — have shown that some contacts continued afier this date, but a ship the climate deteriorated = reaching the Eastern Settlement in 1540 found only deserted farms after 1300. and, in one of them. ngle unburied body, 2 = Ee See | 3/Eastern ] z a rs é Sel 1 i 6 Brow --. | Settlement iS . se N ae = ¢.986—c. 1490 yi Z ; sty ar aot . : * farm ieee Y + | @ farm with church cathedral . © nunnery ® monastery 2/Western Settlement Goda c.986—c. 1341 + * farm other building | ® farm with chureh ‘ a N + other Norse building ge ill * = modem sectlement aT ae? > s 0 Pimime , Herjolfsness<.900-c. 1490 s — Gunnborn, «900-930 sug’ Erik the Red, 983 and 986 "hunting and trading voyages . Norse artifact (9) Thole Eskimos, < 1000-1 100 all” Thule Eskimo expansion, 1200-1400 dashed lines show conjectural voyages 7Voyages to Vinland Above: a spindle whorl fond at L’Anse aux Meadows. Since spinning was a female occupation in Viking societies, such finds show that there were women among the setilers, “Leif set sail when he was ready; he ran into prolonged difficulties at sea, and finally came upon lands whose existence he had EVE? suspected, There were fields of wild wheal growing there, and wines, and among the trees were maples.” Eirik’s Saga Viking expansion reached its westernmost limits as seafarers from Greenland established a foothold on the North American continent. The Icelandic sagas tell how, around 985, Bja course from € Some 15 y Herjolfsson was blown off nland, and made a chance sighting of land to the west. iter, Leif ym set out from the Eastern Settlement in Greenland to investigate Bjarni’s sight: ng to the northwest, he first came upon a land of bare rock and glaciers which he called Helluland (Slab Land). Sailing south he next reached a low, forested land. This he called Markland (Wood Land), Leif pressed on still further south and spent a win- ter in a land with a mild climate, where grapes grew wi with salmon. Leif called this Vinland (Wine Land). d and rivers teemed The locations of his discoveries will probably never be established with absolute certainty, Helluland was probably Baffin almost cert ador. Identifying Vinland i ore difficult, The only Norse setthement so far discovered in North America is at Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, but this is too far north to fit the saga descrip- tions. Vinland probably lay south of the Gulf of St Lawrence, the appro: mate northern limit of the wild grapes, but north of Cape Cod, the south- nit of the Atlantic sal and; Markland was ainly La OL, Leif's voyage was followed up by attempts to settle permanently in Vinland, occasionally voyages from treeless Greenland to collect timber from Markland continued as late as 1347, The only Norse artifact so far found south of Newfoundland is a coin of King Olaf the Peaceful of Norway (1066-93) from an Indian site at Godard Point in Maine. This is not enough to prove that the Norse were ever there: the Indians may have obtained it by trading with the Inuit of the Canadian Arctic, who were in direct contact with the Norse settlements in Greenland. = a 30m . Beet i; 2!The Vikin a nN a0 ya er ee settlement * L’Anse aux Meadows This cluster of turf houses could have accommodated about 90 people, It was occupied for no more than a few years—from around 1000-1020, according to radiocarbon dates. This settlement may have served as a base for voyages to the south; butternuts (which do not grou north of the St Lawrence River) bave been found on the site. Some fishing and Inunting went on, ut there is no evidence of farming. The main activity was carpentry and blacksmithing associated with ship repair. & foundations a iron rivers = iron slag % other Norse artefact « butternuts blacksmith’s workshop #Above: a Viking knarr of the type probably used by Leif Eriksson, It would have taken a sturdy cargo vessel of this kind to withstand the North Allantic crossing. I/The Vikings in North America at Bjarni Herjolfsson, 985 * af Leif Biriksson, ¢. 1000 A cairn of possible Norse origin regular hunting and trade voyages fmm Norse settlement wf secasional vayages far timber @ = stray Norse find dashed lines shaw conjectural voyages possible Indian artifactV: The Vikings in the East Below: Many rune stones from Sweden record exploits in the east, This inscription from Uppland is a memorial to Ragiwald who bad served as a mercenary in the Byzantine arnry. Swedish traders sailed far up Russia’s rivers to dominate the lucrative routes to the East. Their ranks were swelled by Viking mercenaries on their way to join the Byzantine emperor’s elite Varangian guard. These Scandinavians, known to their contemporaries as the Rus, gave Russia its name and its first centralized state, before adopting the language and lifestyle of their Slavic subjects and the religion and culture of the Byzantines. The Viking movement east was dominated by the Swedes. Two terms are used to describe the Swedish Vikings in the east: Rus and Veringjar, or Varangian. Rus is probably derived from Auotsi, the Finnish name for the Swedes, which itself probably derives from the Scandinavian rédy, meaning a crew of oarsmen. Rus is only ribe Scandinavians living in Russia (which gets its name from the Rus), never from the homelands, Varangian is derived from Old Norse vdrar, pledge or oath, and means “men of the pledge”. The name, which only dates from the mid-10th centu- ry, probably came into use to distinguish newly arrived Scandinavian mercenaries and traders r used to de: from the increasingly Slavicized Rus. Scandinavian expansion east of the Baltic pre- dates the outbreak of Viking raiding in the west by more than a century. From the beginning i vas dominated by trade and the close vity of tribute-gathering, Scandinavian mer- chant graves from the east Baltic trading settle- ments at Elbing and Grobin show that the earli- est phase of this expansion began around 650). A hundred years later Scandinavians were living at the Finnish market centre of Staraja Ladoga (‘Aldeigjuborg” to the Vikings), an excellent base for the exploitation of the northern fur-trap- ping grounds, Up to this point, the Scandin- avians were probably still thinking mainly in terms of supplying western markets. Staraja Ladoga also had a commanding position on the river routes that gave easy access to the heart of Russia. When, at the end of the 8th century, Arab merchants began to penetrate the Volga, they introduced fine quality silver coins into circula- tion in Russia, providing the Scandinavians with the motive to press inland to discover their source. By the 850s the Rus, as they were now known, had completed their exploration of the Russian river system and had established direct trade contacts with the Arab traders on the Volga and with the Byzantines at Constantinople, The Russian river system was an ideal highway for long distance trade. The rivers Lovat (flowing to Lake Ladoga and the Gulf of Finland), Dvina (to the Gulf of Riga and the Baltic), Dneipr (to the Black Sea) and Volga (to the Caspian) all haveRight: The Rus quickly adopted the Greek Orthodox religion of their Byzantine neighbours to the south, while maintaining trade links with their Scandinavian homelands. These Byzantine- style Christian artefacts found ng within a few miles of each other in the hill gorod. Except for short distances where ships had to ried or drawn and—from the he il Was po! aughted Viking ships all the way from the Baltic to the pian or the Black Sea. Novgorod and Kiev Though trade the main driving force behind this mov aceful. The routes through Russia were dangerous by the local Slavs or steppe nomads, especially at vuth of Kiev where boats had to be drawn m ollowed the routes the traders had pio antinople and the Islamic lands around the Caspian Sea, though without conspicuous success. It is also unlikely that theAbove: The lure of Arab silver was the driving force of Swedish expansion into east- em Europe. The thousands of Arab dirbems found in boards, such as this one from the island of Gotland, represent only a fraction of the wealth that flooded into Scandinavia from the east during the Viking age, Rus state based on Kiev and Novgorod, which developed in the second half of the 9th century, was established without subjugating the neighbouring Slavs first. According to the 12th-century Russian Primary Chronicle, the Varangian Rus first made the Slavic and Finnish tribes of Russia into tribu- taries, but were then driven out. However, disputes among the tribes per- suaded them to invite the Rus to come back to rule over them and keep order. Around 862, three brothers arrived with their kinsfolk. The eldest, Rurik, established himself at Novgorod, the second at Beloozero and the third at Izborsk. When his brothers died, Rurik became ruler of the whole of northwest Russia, Some time later, two Rus chieftains from Novgorod, Askold and Dir, sailed down the Dneipr and captured the hilltop town of Kiev. Novgorod and Kiev were rival Rus centres until Rurik’s successor Oleg captured the town and made it his capital around 882. Though the story of the Slavs’ invitation to the Varangians was no doubt invented to give the authority of the Kievan dynasty a legitimate basis, in general outline it is probably accurate. After a period of tribute gathering, independent Rus leaders took control of the trading settlements of northwest Russia, from which they subjugated the surrounding Slav population, Eventually the ruler of Novgorod (probably Rurik, though his existence is doubted by some historians) was recognized by all the Rus, but two leaders broke away and established a rival centre at Kiev which was later captured by Oleg, who made it his main residence. The importance of the Scandinavian contribution to the development of the Kievan Rus state is the most controversial issue in the history of the Viking expansion in the east. Unfortunately the subject has been bedevilled by competing national $s and, in the Soviet period, by political ideology—_ there are some Russian historians who would maintain that the Rus wereSlavs. However, the ori doubt, as the Annals of St Bertin, the earliest source to mention them, make clear in their account of an embassy which was sent to Louis the Pious from inal Scandinavian identity of the Rus is not in the Byzantine Emperor Theophilus in 859; “[Theophilus] also sent with the envoys some men who said they—meaning their whole people—were called ‘Rhos’ and had been sent to him by their king who was called Khagan for the sake of friendship, so they claimed. When the emperor [i.e. Louis] inves- tigated the reason for their coming here, he discovered that they belonged to the people of the Swedes.” (The Annals of St. Bertin, J.L. Nelson, Manchester University Press 1991). A slightly later Arab writer, Al-Ya’qubi, also identifies the Rus as being of the same race as the pirates who attacked ate—Rurik, Seville in 843-44. The names of the earliest rulers of the Rus s Oleg (Helgi) and Igor (Ingvar)—are also clearly of Scandinavian rather than Slavic origin. There can be little doubt then that the first rulers of the Kievan Russian state were Scandinavians, and that it was their initiative that led to the cre- ation of the state as a political entity. It was also largely due to the activities of Scandinavian merchants that Russia experienced rapid urban growth in the 10th century, For example, the Rus transformed Novgorod from a minor Slavic settlement on the island of Gorodisce into a major fortified market centre in the 9th century, before moving the whole settlement to a larger fortified site (the “New Fortress” from which the city gets its name) a few miles to the north in the LOth century. Because of the Scandinavian connection, early Kievan Rus also had wider ranging connections with the rest of Europe than any succeeding Ru before the 18th century. Right: The Rus travelled as far as the Black and Caspian seas, where they traded with Arab merchants of the Abbasid caliphate. Arab ves- sels of pottery, silver and bronze have been found at Viking settlements in Russia. an state would enjoy Scandinavians and Slavs It is doubtful, however, that Scandinavian influence played much part in shaping the cultural development of Kievan Rus. The Slavic peoples of eastern Europe were at a very similar level of social and technological devel- opment as the Vikings. They were skilful ironworkers and craftsmen, active traders and efficient farmers while many of their fortified setile-ments were fast approaching true urban status. They may have lacked the unity and purposeful leadership of the Rus, but they had very little to learn from them. Indeed, the limited nature of Scandinavian cultural influence on the development of early Russia is immediately obvious from the fact that there are only six or seven Scandinavian loan words in the Russian lan- guage. Neither is there any apparent Scandinavian influence on early Russian law, institutions or religion. In fact the most important cultural influence on Kievan Russia was not Scandinavian but Byzantine. Prince Vladimir’s conversion to Orthodox Christianity in 989 opened Russia to the powerful civilizing influence of the Byzantine Empire, and ensured that the country would develop a cultural identity which was quite distinct from the Latin-influenced west. Kievan Russia’s alphabet, literature, architecture, music, art, law, education system and political ideologies were all fundamentally Byzantine in origin. Though the Scandinavian presence in Russia is well attested archaeological- ly—for example, the 187 Viking oval brooches found there far exceeds the number found in western Europe—it is clear from the evidence of Viking- age cemeteries that the Rus were a minority among the Slavic population even in the towns—and there is no evidence at all of Scandinavian rural set- Uement. The Rus must have formed a warrior and merchant elite, but despite a stream of new arrivals from Scandinavia continuing into the 11th century, they became increasingly influenced by the Slavs, with whom they intermarried and allied. A sign of this is the adoption of Slavic names by the ruling dynasty. The first Rus ruler to have a Slavic name, Igor’s son Svyato- slav, came to power in 945 and his son Vladimir (978-1015) worshipped the Slavic god Perun before his conversion to Christianity. By the mid-10th cen- tury, Slavs formed an important component of Rus armies, and even num- bered among the commanders. There was still a distinction between the language of the Rus and that of the Slavs at this time, but Slavic speakers must have been the majority among the ruling classes because Slavic became the language of the church after the conversion to Christianity in 989. Certainly by the 11th century the Rus were, to all intents and purposes, Slavic in language and culture. In all the process of assimilation to the native population had taken about 150 years to complete: about the same length of time as it took for the Viking settlers in England to lose their Scandinavian identity. Dynastic links with Scandinavia remained strong in the 11th century, and Viking warriors continued to pass through on their way to join the Varangian guard at Constantinople, but the merchants were mostly gone. The exhaustion of the Islamic world’s silver mines between 965 and 1015 led to the decline and eventual abandonment of the trade routes to the east. After 1066 fewer warriors came, and the ranks of the Byzantine emper- or’s Varangian guard of “axe wielding barbarians” were increasingly filled with exiled Anglo-Saxons. Vikings in the Baltic Perhaps the area of Viking activity about which least is known is the Baltic, which in the 9th and 10th centuries must have been something of a Viking lake. The paucity of our knowledge is due to the lack of contemporary writ- ten sources for this period; the Slavs and Balts who lived on the south and east shores of the Baltic were illiterate, while the Vikings’ own runic alpha- bet was only suitable for short inscriptions. Nor were western EuropeansBelow: These Viking runes were probably carved into the polished marble of the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople by a member of the Byzantine emperor's elite Varangian guard. The inscription bas not been filly deciphered but it includes the rane Halfdan. much interested in Slav-Scandinavian relations before the late 10th century. The West Slavs or Wends had a large number of trading towns along the southern Baltic coast, and finds of large quantities of Arabic silver coins show that they were tied in in an important way with the Baltic and Russian trade routes. The Wends were warlike, and though the Danes and Swedes occasionally managed to take control of a trading town on the coast, such as the unidentified Reric in the early 9th century, they made no headway inland. Later saga accounts speak of great Vikings like Olaf Tryggvason cut- ting their teeth on raids in the Baltic against the Slavs and Balts, and there can be no doubt, even in the absence of more reliable sources, that they did suffer a great deal of Viking raiding. However, the most famous Vikings of the Baltic, the Jomsvikings are almost certainly legendary, The Jomsvikings are said to have been a sworn fellowship of elite Vikings who sold their ser- vices to the highest bidder. Somewhat improbably, judging from what more contemporary sources have to tell us about the Viki appetite for the opposite sex, women were forbidden to enter their fortress at Jomsborg— probably Wolin, at the mouth of the Oder, Excavations have shown that in the 10th century there was a fortified trading settlement and Slavic cult cen- tre there, with a population that included Scandinavians as well as Slavs. It does not quite live up to the saga description of a great fortress with an arti- ficial harbour for 360 ships, but perhaps a band of Scandinavian mercenar- ies serving a Slavic prince there might have given rise to the legend. There was a certain amount of cultural interchange between the West Slavs and the Scandinavians, The Scandinavians may have learned bridge-building techniques from the Slavs, while they learned shipbuilding from the Scandinavians. In this the Slavs had decidedly the better part of the bargain, and in the 11th century they applied their new found skills to give the Scandinavians a dose of their own medicine.The Swedes in the East “The Chuds, the Krivichians ar the. Ves then said to the people of the “Our land is preat and rich, but Rus, there is no order in at ome to rude and rei ouer Tes Russian Primary Chronicle, « 1113 Below: this manuscript illustration, from the work of the Byzantine historian Joba Seylitzes, shows a Russian attack on Constantinople being driven off by Byzantine cavalry, Heal cyl Hingy me Termeni The Sha Wat Atay Te Scala ae Km A aa om Fe snort pare Te Pagee Ho arrmeAmbe ma Oe a ita: ‘ead aes Me RTE ML * Epa Ane cay Tle Tce pee TH Ce waar ate: saenaene meervalse ci Tan wey! et a. re eae Swedish adventurers travel along the rivers of Russia to found a trading empire stretching from the Baltic to the Black Sea, While the Viking expansion westward was dominated by Danes and Norwegians, that to the east was dominated by the Swedes. Known as the “Rus”, m the Finnish word for Swede, they even ally gave their name to the Russian state. Their castward expansion was motivated primarily by the desire to control trade routes. It began well before the start of what is nor- mally regarded as the Viking Age: even before 70), Slay and Balt towns such as Elbing and Grobin had significant permanent Scandinavian populations, and by the mic-8th century, Scandinavians were living at the Finnish settle- ment at Staraja Ladoga on the River Lovat. By the early {th century, the Rus were navigating the Volga and the Lovat-Dneiper river systems to make direct trading contacts with the Abbasid Caliphate Empire ine ar to the south, During the course of the 9th century the Rus founded merchant towns such as Novgorod, or won control of existing Slav towns such Kiev and used them as bases from which to subjugate their hinterlands, By the 860s Novgorod had emerged nire unde: s common s semi-leg- garded as Around 882 the founder of the Ru Oleg. Rurik’s kinsman and or, took con- trol of Kiev and made it the capital of a state that stretched from the Gulf of Finland almost to the Black Sea. Though the Rus gave their Russia, nowhere in the vast Kiev tate w Scandinavians in a majority. Even the towns were predominantly Slavic in character, and there is no evidence of Scandinavian rural settlement. The Rus were a military and merchant elite who pat natahe gta: + Wiles Tarticlaal risa: map sbab eum mapal vom * cmap rw corer {bes Taya Tru ELE tp Ej paper Te era gee me fe TY Fae reps Saye Wee ee day iemraisuses yaige teste leadThe Swedes in the exacted tribute in furs and slaves from their Slav subjects to trade with the East, 800-913 Arabs for silver, Slavs, c. B00 | | area under Rus LS control by 912 Once established at Kiev, the Rus were within easy striking distance of the Black Sea and its rich coasts. Like the Vikings in the west, the Rus were not | inclined to trade if they thought they could take what they wanted by force, ‘ ee and in 860 and 907 savage but unsuccessful attacks were made on the population Byzantine capital Constantinople. The second attack was followed by trade main lines of Swedigh treaties in 907 and 911. Viking fleets also penetrated the Caspian Sea. The 7" penetration greatest of these raids was in 912-13, and followed an agreement by which , Askold and Dir, the Rus agreed to share half the plunder from the expedition with the c B60 - : Pr at ‘ ; : Khazar khan in return for permission to sail through Khazar territory, The a Oleg 07 Rus found the Muslim lands around the Caspian Sea virtually defenceless, “ar Rus fleet, $12-13 but news of their atrocities so outraged the Khazars that they went back on 7 portage their agreement and ambushed and destroyed the Rus fleet on its way ‘w’ battle home. os hs | 4, | Above: a Byzantine bronze | coin depicting the Emperor “Leo VI, hows as “the Wise” (r. 886-912), Having driven ofa Viking attack on __ Constantinople in 907, be recognized the fighting qualities of the Res, and included provisions for recruiting them as mercenaries in the 911 treaty. KHAZAR 912-13 KHANATE 13% 500 Rus shi ars ambush and hs aN destroy Rus fleet! ere Black Ae a ~ #07 ee 2 soos 7 t Prince Oleg of Kiew atteekes Constantinople ABB ASTD, icna cinople® with large fleet of Rus-and Slav allies CALIPHATE ot e007 k OT i ae BYZANTINE, dey de vecies EMPIRE CaN th Conatcnenopie, MeeeFrom Scandinavian to Slav “T have never seen more perfect } filiysical specimens, fetid 8 date 4 WLS blond and rudeady They wear neil her tunics nor kaftans, but each man wears a cape which co one side of has body, leawing one hand eauing one hand free, ch man luis an axe, a swore, » and and tf Py filam They st Cf keeps the al all limes... ave the filil God's creatures.” the Arab merchant [bn Fadlan meets Rus waders at Iti, 922 Like the Vikings in the west, the Rus were absorbed by the peoples they conquered, and in a few generations they adopted Slavic names and culture. The process of the a Oleg's successor Igo milation first becomes apparent in the reign of (913-45). The Rus signatories to the trade agreed between Oleg and the Byzantines in 911 had all had Scandin names; but when Igor agreed a similar treaty with Byzantium after his unsuccessful attack in 944, several of the Rus signatories had Slav names, Igor was the last Rus ruler to have a Scandinavian name (Igor is a variant of Ingvar): the me of his suce atoslay (945-72) is Slavic. Many Scandinavians still fought in Svyatoslav's armies, however, and he him was the epitome of a pagan Viking conqueror. He campaigned against the Khazars and the Volga and Danubian Bulgars, adding huge areas to the Kievan state, but these were all lost after his death. By the reign of Vladimir 1 (978-1015), Slavonic influence came to dominate the Kievan state. With the adoption of Orthodox Chris ity as the state religion in 988, Byzantium became the main external influence on Russian develop- ment. By the time Kievan Rus reached the zenith of its power in the reign of Yaroslay the Wise (1019-54), the Rus were thoroughly Slavic in character, sor Svy oa Around 965 the flow of Arab silver through Russia to Scandinavia began to dry up as the Muslim world’s silver mines became exhausted. The Scandinavians sought new sources of silver, and a new wave of Viking raids erupted in the west. This time, Swedes took part, and by 1015 they had abandoned their eastern trade routes. But the memory of the wealth of the { per- sisted for another generation, and around 1041 Ingvar the Widefarer, a Swede, made a famous attempt to re-open the trade routes with the 7 Arab east. A remarkable group of runestones in central Sweden com- memorate many of the men who died with Ingvar when his expedi- tion met with disaster in “Serkland”, probably somewhere in central Asia. Right: the Golden Gate at Kiev was built during the reign of Yaroslaw the Wise (1019-54). Although defensive ft form, its grandeur suggests that its main purpose was to advertize the wealth and power of Kiewan Rus. (The church on the second storey was added at a later date.)lm COR: this 1 tth-century fresco The growth of Kievan Rus, fom the cathedral of St Sophia 912-1054 in Kiew depicts Elizabeth, the daughter of Yaroslav the Wise. By this period the Rus bad adopted Slav ways and Byzantine religion, but ties with Scandinavia were still strong. A area under Rus contra: Kievan Rus 912 —— «4772 (including temparary gains} nil steady stream of Scandinavians Pius campalans: fought for the princes, or passed igor, 941 through on their way to join the Byzantine emperor's elite Varangian gnard in Constantinople, One of these was Harald Hardrada ( pages 124-25), who married Elizabeth, "unidentified Rus, 943 —" Svyatosiav, 971—2 “Ingvar the Widefarer, . 1041 dashed lines show conjectural voyages = area from which Ingvar 5 crews were recruited ee Is | = but his fleet is deere by wre he | Byzantines using Greek fire \ 8 1043 “— Ayzontines i in Jost attack on Congeintinaple coe e a u xa survivors attempt to return home overland but are coptured or killed at Varna - ae Biack Sea mae sack and hold Bardo for = months: “i ie een eee ge oo = “ co ©VI: The Transformation of the Vikings Below: These 12th-century walrus ivory chesspieces were found on the island of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, This group—the king and his consort, supported by the church and the warrior aristocracy—is a microcosm of the early medieval Scandinavian state. The Vikings made a dramatic impact on Europe, but in the long term the impact of Europe on the Vikings was far greater. Between 1000 and 1200, Scandinavia was integrated into Latin Christendom, but before the Vikings settled down completely, there was one last burst of raiding and conquest. This final upsurge of Viking activity sprang from two causes. The more important of them was probably the continuing centralization of authority in the Scandinavian kingdoms, a process which was now spreading to the Earldom of Orkney and the Kingdom of Man Kingship was getting more and more expensive, but royal government was not developed enough to raise regular, reliable income from taxes. Predatory expeditions were there- fore needed to raise revenue. The other major cause was the progressive exhaustion after 965 of the silver mines of the Islamic world. This led to the decline and abandonment of the stern trade routes, and ended the flow of Arabic silver which had been the main fuel of the Scandinavian economy in the 10th century. Renewed raiding in the west was a means to find a new silver supply. The decline of the trade routes and the growing power of Kievan Russia must have made freebooting in the east both less profit: and increasingly difficult, and for the first time, many Swedish Vi joined the expeditions to the west. The new wave of attacks concentrated mainly on the British Isles, and v initially old-style small scale pirate raids on vulnerable coastal communAbove: The suppression of piracy in the Baltic by the 12th-century Scandinavian kings aided trade and led to the growth of sete towns sich as Visby on Gotland. tern England. The main source of these raids was the Norse settlements in the northern and western isles of Scotland, and they would continue into the 12th and 15th cent Viking raiding elsewhere cs, long after the end of This was a region of highly fragmented and com- peting power structures: in Ireland, the many petty kingdoms and the inde- pendent Norse towns; the Welsh principalities; the Kingdom and Man and the Isles and its rival the dom of Orkney It was also an arena for compe- tition between the emerging centralized kingdoms of England, Scotland and Norway, which all had ambitions to extend their authority into the area, In such circumstances Viking freebooters like Svein Asleifarson from Orkney could prosper after they had been suppressed in more settled areas. Ape onal royal forays, such as King Magnus Barelegs's expedi- tion in 1098, these raids had no political objectives, and were merely an unpleasant nuisance. Neither in England, Wales nor Ireland did they threat- en any permanent Viking conquest: only in Scotland were any territorial gains made. The same could not be said of the raids on eastern England from Denmark and Norway. These too started out as small-scale pirate raids, but in the 990s they were escalated by Olaf Tryggvason and Svein Forkbeard into methodi- cal plundering and tribute-gathering expeditions by professional armies. Svein was the reigning king of Denmark, Olaf aspired to the kingdom of Norway, but the new style centralized monarchy was expensive to acquire and maintain, and for both men Viking raiding was a means of financing their ambitions. Olaf briefly achieved his ambition before being killed in battle in 1000, but Svein survived to become the most successful Viking leader so far. Though they probably involved rather larger armies than those of the 9th century, these attacks may not have been particularly t from ocSee speagempiucray AS a SOs KECALALS iat 7 Above: Pagan imagery survived well into the Christian era in Scandinavian nt art. This 12th-century J i} tapestry, from Skog church in ee Sweden, shows Odin (on the A left), Thor with bis banmer (centre) and the fertility god Freye bolding an ear of com (right).Above: Though actively promoted by Migs frome around 1000 onward, Scandinavia was not thoroughly Christianized snril the 13th century, when this stave church at Kanpane, Sognefford, Norwiry, was built. The stave-building method of construction was first used in the late Viking age for domestic buildings as well as churches. destructive—once they had demonstrated their superiority over the English defences, the armies were usually content to be bought off by huge Danegelds ng from 24,000 Ibs. of silver in 1002 to 48,000 Ibs. in LOL2, Lacking a revenue- 1ising machinery at home, Svein had become a parasite on the English kingdom's efficient administrative system, which raised these sums without apparent difficulty. By 1012, English morale was collapsing, and in a final campaign Svein conquered the country and was accepted as king of England in 1013. He did not live to enjoy his triumph but, after putting down a revival of English resistance, his son Cnut inherited the kingdom in 1016. The Triumph of Cnut Cnut’s conquest was essentially a political takeover. England saw the intro- duction of a new ruling class, but there was no widespread Danish settle- ment as in the 9th century. Even after over 30 years of raiding, England's resources were far greater than those of any Scandinavian kingdom, and though he went on to become King of Denmark and Norway and overlord of Sweden, Cnut's power base was always England, Cnut recognized the institutional superiority of the kingdom he had conquered: he adopted the trappings of Anglo-Saxon Christian kingship and became a generous bene- factor of the church in England and Scandina This made Cnut the f Scandinavian king to be accepted as an equal by the other Christian rulers of western Europe—an acceptance powerfully symbolized by Cnut’s atten- dance at the coronation of the Emperor Conrad in Rome in 1027, Cnut failed to give his empire any institutional coherence; it fell apart afterLeft: Viking influence persisted in England long after the Vikings had ceased to be a threat, This Norman archway at Kilpeck church, Herefordshire, is extravagantly decorated in the late-Viking Urnes style. his death, and in 1042 the native dynasty returned to power in England. However, a claim to rule England was inherited first by the Norwegian King Harald Hardrada and then the Danish Kings Svein Estrithson and Cnut IV, All three intervened unsuccessfully in England in pursuit of their claims: only after the failure of Cnut IV's expedition of 1085 even to set sail, and his subsequent murder, was the Viking age in England truly over. The Twilight of the Viking Age In the rest of the British Isles the Viking age faded away more imperceptibly as the Norse settlers gradually assimilated with the native Celts, Piracy and raiding, in ships very little different from those the Vikings used, continued to be a way of life in the isles until the 17th cent y, but as part of the Gaelic way of life, After the break-up of Cnut’s empire, Sweden recovered full independence, while Denmark passed briefly under Norwegian rule until the accession of Svein Estrithson in 1046, Svein’s claim was challenged by the new Norwegian king, Harald Hardrada. Years of destructive and ultimately futile warfare followed, but by 1064 Harald reluctantly accepted Svein as ruler of Denmark. The process of progressive centralization, which had begun before the Viking age, had finally reached a state of balance and would go no further until the Union of Kalmar in 1397. Denmark, Norway and Sweden had become stable territorial kingdoms, each lacking the resources permanently to dominate the others. To varying degrees, all three king- doms still lacked internal stability. Even Denmark, which had the longest tradition of unity, suffered long civil wars in the 12th century and was even, very briefly, divided into three parts in 1157 after a particularly inconclusive conflict. Norway too was frequently subject to civil wars, but by the mid-13th century it had emerged as the most stable of the Scandinavian monarchies after abandoning the traditional elective principle which so often led to suc- cession disputes, In its place the monarchy had adopted the theocratic prin- ciple which also formed the basis of the powerful French and English monarchies, ng by right of inheritance and divine appointment. Unity came last to Sweden: the Svear and the Gétar were not permanently united under one king until the reign of Knut Erikson in 1172. A crucial factor in the consolidation of all three Scandinavian kingdoms was the adoption of Christianity. Those kings who first created united king- doms—Harald Bluetooth in Denmark, Olaf Tryggvason and Olaf Haraldsson in Norway and Olof Skétkonung in Sweden—were all remem- bered as much for their missionary activities as for their other achievements. Christianity had many advantages for a king intent on centralizing authority in his kingdom. Christianity brought a new ideology of divinely ordained kingship which helped to raise the king above his subjects, Conversion also made relations with the Christian kingdoms of western Europe easier. The church brought with it able and literate administrators who could help in the creation of effective royal governments. The foundation of bishoprics helped not only the propagation of the faith, but also created new admin- strative centres. An efficiently administered kingdom made the raising of revenue from taxes, tolls and fines easier and more reliable, and reduced the king’s dependence on more hazardous means of acquiring wealth such as plundering expeditions. The growth of royal government also offered the ambitious a peaceful route to the acquisition of wealth and status through service to the crown: the process of centralization which had originally made Viking raiding so attractive as a means to these ends had by the lateBelow: The death of Olaf Haralesson at the Battle of Stikelstad in 1030, from a 13th-century leelandic manvscrpt, Olaf actively promoted Christianity among his sujhects; the brutality of his methods was no obstacle to his canonization soon after bis death. mytny Meetry + PE hopéu or be; 28 Flom Bofn 25h meee ge et Pre ed = i ee A Be abet shar Bean 1th century made it unneccessary. Though the church was jealous of its spiritual authority and could some- times bring unwelcome interference in internal affairs from the papacy, it was aware that a strong monarchy made its own task of conversion easier, and kings could usually rely on the church to help increase royal authority, The boundaries of bishoprics and archbishoprics helped to define the bor- ders of the Scandinavian kingdoms. For example, the archbishopric of Uppsala founded in 1164 included the bishoprics of both Svealand and Gotaland as well as the bishopric of Abo in Finland, prefiguring by some years the boundaries of the medieval Swedish kingdom, By replacing a diversity of local practices and beliefs with a uniform religion, Chi could also act as a unifying influence and help create a common identity, However, it would be the late 12th century before the Scandinavian king- doms were thoroughly Christianized. While those who were anxious for political advancement were quick to follow their kings’ examples, paganism lingered among the ordinary people, especially in Sweden where the great cult centre at Uppsala, only 18 miles (30km) from the royal Christian cen- tre at Sigtuna, was probably still in use as late as 1110. unity That Kv einen Bhevbr. ‘F Wen cet & 38h bs ‘tp ¢ Ranma B's | pa % fignning Bp 2 daubett ms p BB f y DARPA QE wir cvistet @ f voce es ont Gor plate afin is sbetmal ett a. pat ae live Pen open eheidmmb wena + e 28 Biolfe ee Snow eodta ot nel na ier é, jotta aarpEurope’s Last Pagans Scandinavian expansion, which had come to an end after Cnut’s triumph, began again towards the middle of the 12th century. The kingdoms of west- ern Europe were now too strong to challenge, but south and east of the Baltic were the still pagan west Slavs or Wends and the Baltic and Finnic peoples. The Wends were active and skilled pirates, and the Danes in partic- ular had suffered greatly from their Viking-style raids. At least to begin with, it was self-defence as much as religious fervour that led the Danes and the Swedes to become involved in the crusades to conquer and convert Europe's last pagans. The Norwegians too turned their energies to crusad- ing, but were more likely to go to the Holy Land. Although many of the campaigns in the Baltic were indistinguishable from Viking raids in the tac- tics employed, they were an integral part of the wider European crusading movement and a clear sign of Scandinavia’s entry into the mainstream of Europe. ote 7% | aie) i - Sal ee ss ‘ey te Pe ‘ (AS ae Mi : - J ae ‘ak . } pig of 7m Se 4 Pt [ Right: By the 12th century, Scandinavians like this knight on a gravestone from Vejerslev in Denmark were participating in crusades to the Holy Land - evidence of their entry into the political and cultural mainstream of medieval Europe. —— cll ee “t Ray : ; ~ (—— = %y = oan - fate 4 See ah Niantic ah camper ox Bete a Nea oa Pe TNS ‘hia fs ; i eae i Wi ase es ee 9 hia SeRaids on /thelrzd’s Kingdom “Then one of the Viking warriors let go a spear from his hands, let it fly from fas fist so that if went all too deeply into thelred’s noble thane.” Anglo-Saxon poem The Battle of Maldon Above: a silver pemery of Ethelrad, king of England from 978-1016, Ethelned was certainly unsuited to the role of warrior king, but his nickname “Unread” does sot mean “anready"—bis Eingdom was wealtiry, efficient and bad a fleet. The Saxom word “ill-advised”; Aethelred failed to inspire cain, ce in his subjects, provoked Danish reprisals by a massacre, and allowed bis‘defences to b Denes a va we AEthelred, the insecure Saxon ruler of England, was faced by a series of relentless Viking attacks. After the fall of the kingdom of York in 954, England enjoyed 26 y freedom from Viking attacks. But instability in Scandinavia and an interr tion of silver supplies from the Middle East prompted a new spate of in the 980s. The raiders were numerous, well organized and—in con the Anglo-Saxons—purposefully led. The mettle of the Anglo-Saxon kings had declined after the death of Edgar in 975, His successor Edward, mur- dered after an unhappy reign of three years, was replaced by his 12-year-old brother, the unwarlike #thelred, In 991 Olaf Tryggvason, a descendant of Harald Finehair, ravaged Kent and Sussex and defeated the East Anglians under the Ealdorman Byhrtnoth at Maldon, Essex. He was bought off with a massive payment of 22,000 Ibs of silver, but two years later was back for more, in alliance with the Danish King Svein Forkbeard, Olaf took his money and reputation to Norway, where he established himself as king. Svein returned to Denmark and spent E to sieve Norway from his former ally. Danish raids on England continued unabated, however, and another Danegeld, of 24,000 Ibs, was paid in 1002. Later that year Athelraed, advised of ac acy, ordered a massacre of Danes living in nd. Sve si : have been among the victims: true or not, n was back campaigning in southwest England in 1003 and in East Anglia in 1004, The following year there was a famine in England; Svein and his army, which had to live off the land, gave the country a brief respite, but he returned again in 1006-7 and was bought off with 36,000 Ibs of Danegeld. Welsh Frincipalities | at g070- Danes set up base on fsle of Wight, raiding Sussex and Hampshire far food @ 1001 Danes raid South coast, defeating Saxon armies at Pinhoe and Dean 1000 ¢ Qanes winter in Normandy2/Viking attacks on Southern England, 997-1007 ees “Ethelired's kingdom, 97 Danish campaigns, 997-1001: _ WI ~~ 999-1000 ~~" 1001 Svein Forkbeard, 1003-7: —~—" «(1003 — «1004 008-7 a. Danish victory inconclusive battle oo place sacked Danish camp North ae lb Engi D 4774 Olof leaves for Norway. Svein retums to Denmark vio Wales ond Man: E $ 980-90 & 999 widespread Viking raids from Ireland and Man lof and Svein paid 16,000 tbs F #1000 of silver int Danegold, Olof AEthelred's fleet ravages meets Ethelred ond is baptized Man in reprisal for raids 1 Viking attacks on England, 980-94, and Wales, 980-1000 A€thelned’s kingdom, 997 small-scale Wiking settlement eae” Athelred’s flee, 1000 Danish attacks, 960-2 x Danish victory Olaf Tryggvason, 991 x Anglo-Saxon victory Old hres sae a ‘a place raided, 980-990 a place attacked, 9914The Danes Conquer England ar Above: Odda’s Chapel tas part of the Saxon monastery at Deerburst, Gloucestershire. This was the burial place of St Alpbege, a monk martyred bry the Danes in 1011, King Edmund, defeated at Ashingdon im 1016, fled to Deerknerst, pursued bey Crt. The two met on nearby Alney Island in the Severn, and agreed to divide the kingdom. A @ (009 English fleet breaks up after quarrels, Danes land unopposed B # 1009 Thorkell raids Hampshire, Sussex ond Berkshire C @ Spring 1010 Thorkell repairs shibs before raiding Eost Anglia and Mercia D @ Spring 1013 Northumbrions and Five Boroughs submit to Svein E #1013 Winchester submits to Svein and gives hostages F@# lolz Londoners repulse Svein's attecks with support of Thorkell, but submit later i the year Ge 1013 West Country subvnits to Svein H @ Christmas 10/3 #Ethelraed flees to Normandy * Feb 1014 Svein dies Spring 1014 After Svein's death, Atheired retums to ravage Lindsey, forcing Vikings te retreat to Demmark K 1012-13 base of Thorkell’s fleet } enl Sometime between 1007 and 1013, the objective of Svein’s | campaigns in England changed from extortion of Danegeld to outright conquest. Unlike the 9th-centur rging royal pow Viking invasions, this was a political venture aimed at id prestige, not an invasion of settlers, The warriors | who followed Svein, and after him Cnut, were professional soldiers fighting of the Danegeld. Although many of the leaders and some hand- arriors stayed in England after the conquest, most of the Vikings took their earnings and went home to Denmark, Norway and Sweden. } After Svein’s departure in 1007, Athelred ordered a shipbuilding pro- gramme, Unfortunately his new fleet broke up in chaos in 1009 amid aceu- sations of treason, and when an exceptionally large Viking army led by Thorkell the Tall arrived at Sandwich later that year, there was no-one to oppose it, The army spent three profitable years ravaging southeast England, relatively unhindered by a defence that became more and more disorganized, After a Danegeld of 48,000 pounds was paid in 1012, however, Thorkell changed sides and entered thelrad’s service, for which he was paid a further 21,000 pounds of silver in 1014. Realizing that English morale was collapsing, Svein returned to England in the spring of 1013. At Gainsborough he was met by representatives of the |/Campaigns of Svein and Thorkell, 1009-14 | eeee= §=England. 1009 Thortell, 100% Thorkell, 1010-11 Svein, 1013 Ta Danish victory Anglo-Saxon victory Five Boroughs place sacked Viking camp2/Cnut’s conquest of England, 1015-16 division of England under the Treaty of Alney. 1016: | = ‘Cnut's portion [ i | Edmund's portion Chats campaigns: lols spring 1016 summer 1016 autumn! O16 Danish victory Anglo-Saxon victory inconclusive bare siege county ravaged paxxx( ( ( ( WELSH er PRINCES hee 101s Cas Bolis-l6 : Chut winters ==) ~ G@ summer 1016 Lapham rile Dankoh ator He (8 Get 1016 Below: the ead-alab of an early 1ith-century Viking tomb, probably of one of Crut's followers. It is decorated with a “great beast” intertwined with a serpent. Probably made in southern England by a Scandinavian craftsman and found in St Paul's churchyard, London in 1851. Northumbrians and the Five Boroughs, who recognized him as king. When he marched south, Oxford, Winchester and Bath submitted. Only London —assisted by Thorkell—held out, but when .thelraed fled to Normandy after Christmas 1013, it too surrendered. Five weeks later Svein died, Athelred returned to England and the Viking army, now led by Svein’s inexperienced son Cnut, withdrew to Denmark. Supported by Thorkell, who had changed sides again, and another great warrior, Erik of Hladir, Cnut returned in 1015. He wintered at Poole Harbour, and in spring 1016 marched north to take control of Northumbria. In April King Athelred died, and was succeeded by his able son Edmund Ironside, who rallied the English to renewed resistance. Throughout the summer and autumn, he fought Cnut across the breadth of southern England. Finally, at Ashingdon in Essex, Edmund was betrayed on the field of battle by the Ealdorman of the Mercians and crushingly defeated. Cnut pursued Edmund to Gloucestershire, where the two agreed to share the kingdom. When Edmund died a few weeks later, Cnut became master of the whole of England.The Empire of Cnut exceptionally tall and strong, and the handsomest af men except for his nose, which was thin, high-set and rather hooked. He had a fair complexion and a fine thick head of hair His eyes were dwtter than those of other men, being both more handsome and keener-sighted, Fle was a generous men, @ great marron, valiant, victorious and the happiest of men in syle and grandeur.” Kyntlinga Saga, mid-1 Sth century “Crud wets Cnut ruled England firmly and effectively, but found it harder to build a Scandinavian empire. If Crut expected to be accepted as king when he returned to Denmark in 1014 after the death of his father Svein, he was disappointed; the Danes had already chosen his brother Harald. Deprived of a kingdom at home, Cnut returned to England. By the end of 1016, he had conquered the whole country (m page 120-21). Three years later Harald died, and Cnut went to Denmark to secure his succession. Leaving a regent to rule the country, he returned to England, which he alway ognized as his most important pos- session. He consolidated his hold there by granting lands and titles to his followers, establishing a new Anglo-Danish aristocracy. Otherwise, he ruled in the Anglo-Saxon tradition and made few changes. He taxed the English heavily to support his housecarles (bodyguards) and to fund a standing fleet, but his rule was not unpopular; he was remembered as a strong king who supported the church, legislated wisely and kept the peace. One of Gnut's chief aides was Erik, earl of Hladir, the pro-Danish ruler of the Trondelag. His absence in England gave Olaf Haraldson, a Norwegian of royal blood with a successful Viking career behind him, the chance to defeat the pro-Danish forces in Norway and make himself king in 1016, When Olaf allied with the Swedes and invaded Skane in 1026, Cnut could no longer ignore him. In 1028 he took a fleet of 50 ships, picked up reinforcements in Denmark, and invaded Norway. Olaf, whose hard- line imposition of Christianity had made him unpopular, fled te Sweden. Two years later he returned, but was defeated and killed by the Norwegians at Stikelstad. Cnut appointed his English concubine Aeclfgifu as regent, but she became so unpopular that his grip on Norway began to slip. Cnut was arguably the greatest of the Viking kings, but his empire fell apart as soon as he died in 1035, His son and chosen heir Harthacnut was accepted as king in Denmark, but the English chose his brother Harald, while the Norwegians crowned Magnus the Good, the son of Cnut’s old enemy Olaf. When Harald died in 1039, Harthacnut was finally able to make good his claim to rule England. After his death in 1042, Aethelred’s son Edward returned from exile in Normandy, and the line of Wessex was restored. trish Sea =ay Kailsiin! Trondheim — : 1028 © Storsjiin Chat recognized king of Norway. Olaf flees to Sweden Sogne ad Piqrd 7, = = a = wae cf oHardatiger Sea a0 103 Pe noneg ‘and Swedes invade Skéine and defeat || Gut ot Helga (Holy River) Hornavan The growth of Cnut's empire, 1015-35 lands ruled by Cnut: C2} oc 1016 [JJ now 1018 CJ tos CJ iors —" Chut's journeys —> Wendish rads, ¢. 1020-40 bareThe Thunderbolt of the North Haratd Hardrada—the Thunderbolt of the North—journeyed from Norway to Jerusalem before dying in an attempt to seize the throne of England. Harald’s career began at the age of 15, when he fought for his half-brother King Olaf Haraldson at the battle of Stiklestad in 1030, They were defeated, and Harald fled first to Sweden and then te Russia, where he became a mer- cenary for Prince Jaroslav of Novgorod. Three ye to Constantinople to join the Byzantine emperor's elite Varangian guard. After nine years’ campaigning, Harald had won gold and fame; now he would seck a share of Magnus the Good's Danish and Norwegian kingdom, rs later, Harald moved on In 1044 Harald returned to Sweden. Exploiting his wealth and reputation, he raised an army and invaded Denmark in 146, Magnus quickly agreed to share his kingdom, and on his death the following year, Harald became sole Below: the Varangian guara, the Byzantine emperor's elite corps of Scandinavian merce- naries, This ilustration, from a maneeript of the Byzantine historian Jokn Seylitses, shows them with their Viking axes, three-potrted banners and kite-shaped shields, ee i ely Fcc #1068 / at bottle of scence:“King Harald ... fair-haired, with a Jair beard and long .. He wes brutal la his moustaches enemies and dealt ruthlessly with any opposition ... but generous to his friends.” King Harald’s Saga ruler. But his nephew Svein Estrithson seized Denmark, and years of brutal warfare followed, Harald repeatedly ravaged Denmark, but Svein’s dogged resistance finally forced Harald to acknowledge him as king of Denmark in 1064, Harald also faced frequent opposition to his rule in Norway, earning his nickname “Hardrada” (Hard Ruler) by the ruthless means he used to defend his authority. The death of England's King Edward the Confessor in 1066 led to Harald's last expedition. Edward left three claimants to his throne, Harald Hardrada, William Duke of Normandy and Harold Godwinson the Earl of Wessex. The English chose Harold Godwinson, but both Harald and William laid plans to invade England. Harald moved first. He entered the Humber with 300 ships, crushed the English at Fulford Gate and took York on 20 September. Five davs later he and most of his army lay dead on the field of Stamford Bridge: it was said that only 24 ships were needed to take the survivors home. The victor, Harold Godwinson, marched his exhausted army south to his own death at Hastings just 19 days later. Hardrada, 1030-66 Harald’s journeys; 1030-35 1035-44The Struggle for England “As a result of the Normans plundering England... such a great famine prevailed that mer... devoured human flesh, horses, dogs and cals... Hl was horrific to see human corpses rotting in the houses and the streets...” Simeon of Durham Right: in this sceme frows the Bayeux tapestry, William's fleet approaches the English coast. By 1066 the Normans had adapted the French language and culture, but the design of their ships still reflects their Scandinavian heritage. Wittiam of Normandy invaded England, but other Norsemen soon arrived from Denmark and Ireland to contest his claim and assist the English rebels. Following his victory at Hastings, William the Conqueror quickly took con- trol of the southeast, and it appeared as if the English would quietly accept him as their king. Two years later, however, his grip on the country was shaken by a series of rebellions. After his death, Harald Hardrada’s claim to the English throne had passed to the Danish king Svein Estrithson. It was to him that the rebels turned for support, offering to accept him as king. In 1069, Svein sent a fleet of 240 ships to England under his son Cnut and other nobles. The fleet landed at Dover and then sailed north, enjoying little success until it joined the rebels on the Humber. The Anglo-Danish army marched on York and wiped out the Norman garrison. William marched north, but failed to draw the rebels into battle, and headed back to the Midlands to crush a rising. Around Christmas he returned, captured York, and forced the Danes to retreat to the Humber. William spent the winter in his notorious “Harrying of the North”, a brutal campaign of ravaging intended as much to make the area unattractive to the Danes as to punish the rebels, Undeterred, Svein joined his son on the Humber in the spring of 1070. In June, part of the Danish fleet moved south to the Fenlands to join the English rebels under Hereward in sacking Peterborough, But, with English resistance almost at an end, Svein reached an agreement with William and returned home with his plunder. Five years later, Cnut returned to England with a Danish-Norwegian fleet of 200 ships at the invitation of two rebellious Norman earls, By the time he arrived the rebellion was over, and apart from sacking York he achieved nothing. The last Viking threat to England came in 1085 when Cnut, now king of Denmark, once again planned to invade. By now, though, Norman England had proven its strength and the Danes saw no profit in their king's ambitions, Disputes prevented the fleet from sailing, and in 1086 Cnut was assassinated.The Vikings and the English rebellions, 1066-71 Svein Estrithson 1069-70 areas of resistance to William |068-70 — Cut (Svein's son) 1075 ue William's campaigns 1069-70 su Harold's sons & Irish-Norse 1068 William's invasion 1066 ~~ a town sacked Harold's sons & Irish-Norse 1069 Noort ht 7) | ho |é se a C bra is i Sela English ChannelThe Kingdom of Man and the Isles Right: 5¢ Magnus’ church on Egilsay in Orkney is the sole survivor of a nurtber of fine stane churches built by the Norse in the northern isles after their conversion to Christianity. The tower was originally 12-15 ft (45m) taller and bad a conical roof, giving it the appearance of an Irish monastic round tower. As happened throughout the Viking world in the 11th century, the Scandinavian settlers in Scotland began to develop centralized governments. The process began in the Earldom of Orkney during the reign of Earl Thorfinn the Mighty (1014-64). Thorfinn was an able war leader: he defeat- ed a Scottish attempt to recover Caithness in 1035 and added Ross, She land, the Isle of Man and, possibly, lands in Galloway and Ireland to his dominions, Thorfinn's victories brought him enormous prestige and, though he acknowledged the sovereignty of the Norwegian crown, he was a considerable ruler in his own right. Thorfinn was more than just a warrior, however, and in his later ye administrative i he attempted to give his domains a unifying structure. The first Earl of Orkney to be brought up as a Christian, he actively promoted the conversion of the still largely pagan Norse settlers of Orkney, founding a bishopric at his palace at Birsay after visiting Rome in 1048. After Thorfinn's death the Orkney earldom lost control of the Isles, In L079 Godred Crovan of Islay succeded in uniting the Hebrides and the Isle of Man in a kingdom which he ruled until his death in 1095. Godred divided his kingdom up into five regions, which toge | of 32 represen- tatives to the annual assembly at Tynwald om. Thingvdlle—the meeting- place) in the Isle of Man. The modern Manx parliament is the direct descendant of this Viking assembly. sent a to The independence of the kingdom of the Isles was soon challenged by the Norwegian monarchy. In 1095 King Magnus III “Barelegs” agreed a treaty with Malcolm Canmore, king of Scotland, confirming Norway’s ancient claim to the Hebrides and Kintyre. But resistance in the Kingdom of the Isles meant that Magnus had to establish his authority by a brutal ravaging campaign in 1098. In what was to be the last major Viking campaign in the Irish Sea, he went on to capture Dublin and to exact plunder and tribute in Galloway and Anglesey. Magnus’s reign brought Norwegian power in the Isles to its peak, but his achievement had only been made possible by his prolonged absence from Norway. Af Magnus was killed in Ireland in 1104, Godred's son Olaf revived the kingdom, though he and his successors tactfully recognized Norwegian sovereignty.> “yy - 0 65 kms é aise N _ Shetland EARLDOM OF : ORKNEY o® “*¥4e (035% ° “Ea Thorfinn’s palace as £3 a Orkaey é Me SCOTLAND. ER tam Barelegs establishes his authority over Kingdom of Man and the Isles North Sea | Viking Scotland, 1014-1104 | Earidom of Orkney: maximum extent, 1035-79 after 1079 territory gained by Thorfinn the Mighty 1035 of Man and the tsles: Lewis group Skye group Mull group tslay group probable Islay group Man independent Gaelic- Norse population Magnus Barelegs, 1098 | 1093 & te Magnus Barelegs Nl G 7 >)" defeats two Norman earls a lg Bublin | a °\@ intermittently controlled by Kingdom of Man | © \p @ 1070-90 1 St David's sacked!3 times cad ‘ UTI fourThe Twilight of Viking Scotland “In 1156 during the night of Epiphany a naval battle was fought between Godred and Somerled, ane there was much slaughter on both sides, When daybreak came... they divided the Kingdom of the Isles between them...” Chronicle of the Kings of Man and the Isles The Viking age died hard in the Scottish Isles, and raids continued until the late 12th century. The slow assimilation of the Norse settlers of the Hebrides into the native Celtic population was nearing completion in the 12th century. A sign of this was the rise of Somerled, a chieftain of Argyll of mixed Scottish and Norse descent, In 1156 Somerled won control of the southern Hebrides after defeating Godred II of Man in a sea battle fought by moonlight on a mid- winter's night off Islay. From now on, the strongest influence in the Isles would be Gaelic but, preferring a distant lord to a near one, Somerled and his successors continued to acknowledge the sovereignty of the Norwegian rather than the Scottish kings. In an area where central authority was weak, there was still room for an old- fashioned Viking freebooter to make a living from piracy. Perhaps the last Viking was an Orkney Islander, § Asleifarson, who maintained a band of some 80 followers at his hall on Gairsay. According to the Orkneyinga Saga, Svein raided twice a year. His “spring-trip”, as he called it, started after sow- ing had been completed on his farm and lasted until midsummer. Then, after the harvest was safely gathered in, he set off on his “autumn-trip” which lasted until midwinter, Svein raided the Hebrides, Wales and Ireland, plundered English merchant ships in the Irish Sea and even sacked a monastery in the Scilly Isles. After 30 years of piracy, he was eventually killed on a raid on Dublin in 1171. By the 13th century, Norse dominion was fading. The Scots had recovered Ross, Caithness and Sutherland by1202, and harboured ambitions to seize control of Man and the Isles, In1263 King Hakon IV of Norway led an expe- oO dition to strengthen his authority there. His “Great Fleet”

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