The viking age – an introduction to the viking world

6 OCTOBER 2020

The first viking raid

The viking age began in the late 700's, when the first scandinavian vikings went out into the world in search of wealth, power and honor.

For the christian Europe was the attack on the monastery of Lindisfarne in 793 one of the first serious skrekkeksemplene on the viking's abilities. The viking age had possibly begun a little earlier, but now spread the rumor about the vikings themselves too seriously.

Shouting and hoiende stormed the weather-beaten vikings of the land on the british island, with the sharp sword and the great vikingøkser raised above their heads. Lightning robbed the vikings monastery, hewn into the rock down several monks, before they put to sea again and disappeared just as quickly as they came.

The viking age was started, and the next summer followed the new vikingangrep along the european coasts when vikinghøvdinger gathered their hirder of edssvorne warriors and went a-viking, as vikings even called it to go on vikingtokt.

For the åsatroende of it was associated with great honor to loot the innocent strangers, and will return victorious home to Scandinavia. They felt no shame by killing and plundering – on the contrary.

Fast viking ships ushered in the viking age

Viking age is perhaps the most important prerequisite was for the slim and fast viking ships, as, for example, were able to carry the vikings from Scandinavia to England some days with the sails up.

When the vikings went on the attack, stroke, however, the sails far from the coast in order not to be discovered, and rowed rather the last piece in towards the shore.

Vikingskipenes flat hull meant that the ships could be manoeuvred right up on the beach or in rivers that was only a meter deep.

So could the vikings perform surprise attack on a totally unprepared villages, monasteries and marketplaces, even far into the country. Just the type of attack carried the vikings again and again, especially in the beginning of the viking age.

Often took the vikings local samfunnstopper as prisoners, and demanded large løsesummer to let them release the living from it – and the majority of selected, naturally enough, to pay over to be slaughtered.

The cruise went from America to Baghdad

As the vikings became more proficient and more experienced, so bold they out in more and longer cruises. First spent the winter in camps along Europe's coasts, later, they went out and colonized the new land.

Already in the course of the 800's beat the vikings settled in the faroe islands and Iceland, and in particular the Island was home to a thriving and rough vikingsamfunn.

From the Island arraigned Eirik the Red out of the course to Greenland, and from here sailed Erik's son, Leiv Eiriksson, further to the west to North-America. Here, the settled vikings in a period of time in today's Canada, which they called Vinland.

Swedish vikings settled at Ladogasjøen in Russia and went south along the rivers to plunder, take slaves and trade. At the local sto nordic amber, furs and elaborate vikingsverd high in price.

Some vikings reached all the way to Constantinople, where they took a right as bodyguards for the emperor. Others traveled as far away as Baghdad and sold including leather to the arabs.
Before the viking age was over was some of the vikings in the east had become so integrated in today's Russia and Ukraine that it no longer made sense to call them the vikings.

The british labeled the viking era more than any other

Danish and Norwegian vikings went mostly the other way – towards the west. Harsh vikingkrigere with a name like Styrbjørn Strong and Bjorn Ironside traveled around Pyrenéhalvøya and into the Mediterranean. Here, the vikings krigskunst including beyond the town Luna in Italy.

The perhaps most significant events took however place in The british isles. In Ireland the vikings went on marauding, founded Dublin and involved in local power struggles as mercenaries. Many were driven away from the island again before the viking age was over, but in England got the vikings greater success.

In 865 left a large vikinghær for the first time in Scandinavia to conquer England, where the vikings established Danelagen. It was a large area named after the danes, and it stretched from the Thames in the south and the far north. Both Nottingham and York came under viking dominion.

Many battles against the English kings came, but York was the capital of a vikingrike which consisted almost uninterrupted until 954. And as the viking age drew to a close, returned, among others, Denmark, Knut the holy back to England as a conqueror at the head of a huge vikinghær.

Bloody power struggles dominated viking-age Scandinavia

At home in Scandinavia flourished new cities up in the course of the viking age. Birka in Sweden, Hedeby in Denmark and Kaupang in Norway bugnet of the riches the vikings raided and traded him to the outside world.

The viking age did the scandinavians rich, and strong vikinghøvdinger was in the course of the viking age to the mighty vikingkonger who built the great castles and fought for power over the nordic hjemlandene.

Harald Fairhair gathered most of Norway after the battle of Hafrsfjord in 872 – a by the many vikingslagene where Nordic citizens met vikingsverd against vikingsverd.

Later tørnet Denmark's Svein Tjugeskjegg, Sweden's Olof Skötkonung and the Norwegian Olaf Tryggvason together in the huge naval battle at Svolder in the year 1000, where Tryggvason went into death with his legendary ship, the Ormen Lange.

Christianity and kingship ended the viking age

When the three vikingkongene fight at Svolder, wondered the end, however, already in the horizon. The viking's voyage had begun just as the christian church expanded dramatically in Europe with klosterbygging, churches, and missionaries in ever more distant regions.

A part the vikings had allowed himself to be baptized on the long expeditions in Europe already in the course of the 800-number, and in the course of the viking age reached christianity also to the Nordic countries.

Denmark's king Harald Blåtann was the first vikingkongen who introduced christianity as the official religion in his kingdom, in 965. Slowly, but surely, took Jesus and Mary on the viking's mind, where in the course of the viking displaced åsagudene Odin, Tor, Freya and Tyr.

At the same time, it became increasingly harder to be a viking during the viking age. Not least the strong France did after each vikingtokt markedly more risky than they had been at the beginning of the viking age.

And at home in Scandinavia forbade the christian kings, who had allies among Europe's rulers, their subjects to go out on vikingtokt. When the 1000's went to hell, was the viking age after the most historikeres assessment.The first vikingtokt

The viking age began in the late 700's, when the first scandinavian vikings went out into the world in search of wealth, power and honor.

For the christian Europe was the attack on the monastery of Lindisfarne in 793 one of the first serious skrekkeksemplene on the viking's abilities. The viking age had possibly begun a little earlier, but now spread the rumor about the vikings themselves too seriously.

Shouting and hoiende stormed the weather-beaten vikings of the land on the british island, with the sharp sword and the great vikingøkser raised above their heads. Lightning robbed the vikings monastery, hewn into the rock down several monks, before they put to sea again and disappeared just as quickly as they came.

The viking age was started, and the next summer followed the new vikingangrep along the european coasts when vikinghøvdinger gathered their hirder of edssvorne warriors and went a-viking, as vikings even called it to go on vikingtokt.

For the åsatroende of it was associated with great honor to loot the innocent strangers, and will return victorious home to Scandinavia. They felt no shame by killing and plundering – on the contrary.

Fast viking ships ushered in the viking age

Viking age is perhaps the most important prerequisite was for the slim and fast viking ships, as, for example, were able to carry the vikings from Scandinavia to England some days with the sails up.

When the vikings went on the attack, stroke, however, the sails far from the coast in order not to be discovered, and rowed rather the last piece in towards the shore.

Vikingskipenes flat hull meant that the ships could be manoeuvred right up on the beach or in rivers that was only a meter deep.

So could the vikings perform surprise attack on a totally unprepared villages, monasteries and marketplaces, even far into the country. Just the type of attack carried the vikings again and again, especially in the beginning of the viking age.

Often took the vikings local samfunnstopper as prisoners, and demanded large løsesummer to let them release the living from it – and the majority of selected, naturally enough, to pay over to be slaughtered.

The cruise went from America to Baghdad

As the vikings became more proficient and more experienced, so bold they out in more and longer cruises. First spent the winter in camps along Europe's coasts, later, they went out and colonized the new land.

Already in the course of the 800's beat the vikings settled in the faroe islands and Iceland, and in particular the Island was home to a thriving and rough vikingsamfunn.

From the Island arraigned Eirik the Red out of the course to Greenland, and from here sailed Erik's son, Leiv Eiriksson, further to the west to North-America. Here, the settled vikings in a period of time in today's Canada, which they called Vinland.

Swedish vikings settled at Ladogasjøen in Russia and went south along the rivers to plunder, take slaves and trade. At the local sto nordic amber, furs and elaborate vikingsverd high in price.

Some vikings reached all the way to Constantinople, where they took a right as bodyguards for the emperor. Others traveled as far away as Baghdad and sold including leather to the arabs.
Before the viking age was over was some of the vikings in the east had become so integrated in today's Russia and Ukraine that it no longer made sense to call them the vikings.

The british labeled the viking era more than any other

Danish and Norwegian vikings went mostly the other way – towards the west. Harsh vikingkrigere with a name like Styrbjørn Strong and Bjorn Ironside traveled around Pyrenéhalvøya and into the Mediterranean. Here, the vikings krigskunst including beyond the town Luna in Italy.

The perhaps most significant events took however place in The british isles. In Ireland the vikings went on marauding, founded Dublin and involved in local power struggles as mercenaries. Many were driven away from the island again before the viking age was over, but in England got the vikings greater success.

In 865 left a large vikinghær for the first time in Scandinavia to conquer England, where the vikings established Danelagen. It was a large area named after the danes, and it stretched from the Thames in the south and the far north. Both Nottingham and York came under viking dominion.

Many battles against the English kings came, but York was the capital of a vikingrike which consisted almost uninterrupted until 954. And as the viking age drew to a close, returned, among others, Denmark, Knut the holy back to England as a conqueror at the head of a huge vikinghær.

Bloody power struggles dominated viking-age Scandinavia

At home in Scandinavia flourished new cities up in the course of the viking age. Birka in Sweden, Hedeby in Denmark and Kaupang in Norway bugnet of the riches the vikings raided and traded him to the outside world.

The viking age did the scandinavians rich, and strong vikinghøvdinger was in the course of the viking age to the mighty vikingkonger who built the great castles and fought for power over the nordic hjemlandene.

Harald Fairhair gathered most of Norway after the battle of Hafrsfjord in 872 – a by the many vikingslagene where Nordic citizens met vikingsverd against vikingsverd.

Later tørnet Denmark's Svein Tjugeskjegg, Sweden's Olof Skötkonung and the Norwegian Olaf Tryggvason together in the huge naval battle at Svolder in the year 1000, where Tryggvason went into death with his legendary ship, the Ormen Lange.

Christianity and kingship ended the viking age

When the three vikingkongene fight at Svolder, wondered the end, however, already in the horizon. The viking's voyage had begun just as the christian church expanded dramatically in Europe with klosterbygging, churches, and missionaries in ever more distant regions.

A part the vikings had allowed himself to be baptized on the long expeditions in Europe already in the course of the 800-number, and in the course of the viking age reached christianity also to the Nordic countries.

Denmark's king Harald Blåtann was the first vikingkongen who introduced christianity as the official religion in his kingdom, in 965. Slowly, but surely, took Jesus and Mary on the viking's mind, where in the course of the viking displaced åsagudene Odin, Tor, Freya and Tyr.

At the same time, it became increasingly harder to be a viking during the viking age. Not least the strong France did after each vikingtokt markedly more risky than they had been at the beginning of the viking age.

And at home in Scandinavia forbade the christian kings, who had allies among Europe's rulers, their subjects to go out on vikingtokt. When the 1000's went to hell, was the viking age after the most historikeres assessment.