Also known as Norsemen, or Northmen, the Vikings were warriors who sailed on the seas. They invaded and occupied kingdoms along the coasts of Europe between the 9th and 11th centuries. They attacked, killed and looted the people they conquered. This earned them the name Viking, which means “pirate” in the early Scandinavian languages. Viking lifeVikings came from the region of Scandinavia, which is present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. When in their homes in Scandinavia, Vikings were farmers. The children of Vikings were trained to be warriors and were taught the use of the sword, battle-axe, and spear from a young age. They had very little education and were instead coached in sports like running, rowing, and swimming. Vikings were skilled sailors and used the position of the sun and the stars to find their way on the sea. They sailed in long ships made from the wood of oak trees. These ships were rowed by 40 to 60 oarsmen and had a single mast with a brightly colored square-shaped sail. They also had a tall and curved prow, or projecting front part, usually in the shape of a dragon. Viking raiders were made up of chiefs who owned land and heads of families and clans. Besides these, there were their employees, freemen, and energetic young clan members who sought adventure and loot overseas. These bands would sail the seas in their long ships and mount raids on cities and towns. They worshipped gods who were warriors too. Their main god, Odin, ruled over Valhalla, the heaven of the warriors. Vikings welcomed death in battle because it was only by dying while fighting that they hoped to enter this heaven. This also made them fearless in battle. SagasVikings liked story telling, music, dance, and poetry. They described their history through stories and songs about adventure, war heroes, and gods. These tales were told and sung at weddings, funerals, and feasts. These stories came to be called sagas, which comes from the Icelandic word for story. They also played the fidla, or fiddle, a musical instrument made from an animal horn. During the 12th and 13th centuries, the learned people of Iceland wrote down the sagas. They were written down in the same way that the storytellers recited them. There were two important sagas, The Elder Edda (in poetry) and The Younger Edda (in prose). Today these are a good source of information about their religion, philosophy, and mythology. FuneralsA Viking chief was buried with everything he might need to get to Valhalla. The goods buried in his grave included money, tools, clothing, weapons, horses, chariots, boats, and even ships. The graves of women contained things like needles and thread, spinning looms, kitchen utensils, and cooking vessels. Sometimes a dead warrior was placed aboard his ship that was set afire and allowed to float into the sea. They were also buried in boat-shaped coffins. After the sagas the burial sites have been the greatest source of information about the Vikings. History of conquestsEnglandThe Vikings attacked England in the late 8th century. In 865 a force of Danes, or the inhabitants of Denmark, conquered the ancient English kingdoms of East Anglia, Northumbria, and Mercia. With these conquests, the Danes controlled most of England. The Danes could not, however, subdue the kingdom of Wessex ruled by Alfred the Great. In 878 they made peace with him, followed by a treaty around 886. Viking armies attacked Alfred between 892 and 899. Alfred finally defeated them. The Vikings were finally driven out of England in 954. The Danes made fresh attacks on England in 980. England was made part of the Viking empire ruled by the Danish king, Canute I (1016–35). Viking rule in England ended with his death. England went back to its old line of English rulers in 1042. The western seas and IrelandThe Vikings began to live in Iceland from about 900. They also spread to Greenland. In addition, they inhabited the Orkneys, the Faroe Islands, the Shetland Islands, the Hebrides, and the Isle of Man. Vikings invaded Ireland from 795 onwards. Viking kingdoms were founded in Dublin, Limerick, and Waterford. The Irish defeated them in 1014 in the Battle of Clontarf. Some Vikings continued to dominate in parts of Ireland even in the 12th century. Eastern EuropeThe Vikings also attacked and looted the inhabitants living on the coasts of the Baltic Sea. They invaded Russia and controlled the cities of Novgorod and Kiev. They soon settled down in these cities and became part of Russia. Viking warriors also served as mercenaries, or soldiers who worked for money, in Constantinople, which is present-day Istanbul in Turkey. Olaf II Haraldsson (995–1030), the King of Norway, was the last Viking chief in the old tradition. |