Vikings

The Scandinavian peoples declared themselves on the European arena between 800 and 1050 years of our century. Their unexpected military raids sowed fear in prosperous countries, which, in general, were accustomed to wars. Contacts between the Nordic countries and the rest of Europe are rooted in the distant past, as evidenced by archaeological excavations. Trade and cultural exchange began many millennia BC. Nevertheless, Scandinavia remained a remote corner of Europe, of little political or economic importance.

Arne Emil Christensen

Shortly before 800 AD, the picture changed. In 793, foreigners from the sea sacked the monastery of Lindisfarne on the east coast of England. At the same time, the first reports of raids in other parts of Europe came. In the historical annals of the next 200 years, we will find many frightening descriptions. Large and small groups of robbers on ships appear on the entire coast of Europe. They go up the rivers of France and Spain, conquer almost all of Ireland and most of England, set up their settlements along the Russian rivers and along the coast of the Baltic Sea. There are reports of robber raids on the Mediterranean Sea, as well as far to the east, near the Caspian Sea. The northerners who settled in Kyiv were so reckless that they even tried to attack the capital of the Roman Empire, Constantinople.

Gradually, robber raids were replaced by colonization. The names of the settlements prove the presence of a large proportion of the descendants of the Vikings in the population of Northern England, with the center in York. In the south of England we will find an area called Danelagen, which can be translated as "the place where Danish laws are in force." The French king gave Normandy a fief to one of the Viking leaders in order to protect the country from the raids of others. The islands north of Scotland developed a mixed Celtic-Scandinavian population. A similar situation was observed in Iceland and Greenland.

The failed attempt to gain a foothold in North America was the latest in a series of campaigns to the west. Around 1000 AD, there is information that the Vikings of Iceland or Greenland discovered a new land far to the west. The sagas tell of numerous campaigns in order to settle in that land. The colonialists met with resistance from either the Indians or the Eskimos and abandoned these attempts.

Depending on the interpretation of the texts of the sagas, the area of ​​​​the alleged landing of the Vikings in America may stretch from Labrador to Manhattan. Researchers Anne-Stine and Helge Ingstad found traces of an ancient settlement in the north of Newfoundland. Excavations have shown that the structures were similar to those found in Iceland and Greenland. Viking items dating back to around 1000 were also found. It is difficult to say whether these finds are traces of those campaigns that the sagas tell about, or other events about which history is silent. One thing is clear. The Scandinavians visited the North American continent in the period around the year 1000, as the sagas tell about this.

Population growth and lack of resources

What was the reason for this unprecedented expansion in just a few generations? Stable state formations in France and England clearly could not resist the raids. The picture of that era, which we draw on the basis of written sources, confirms what has been said, because. Vikings are described as terrible brigands and bandits. Clearly they were. But they probably had other properties as well. Their leaders, most likely, were talented organizers. Effective military tactics ensured the Vikings victory on the battlefield, but they also managed to create stable state formations in the conquered areas. Some of these entities were short-lived (such as the kingdoms of Dublin and York), others, such as Iceland, are still viable. The Viking kingdom in Kyiv was the basis of Russian statehood, and traces of the organizational talent of the Viking leaders can still be seen on the Isle of Man and in Normandy. In Denmark, the ruins of a fortress from the end of the Viking Age, designed for a large number of troops, were found. The fortress looks like a ring divided into four sectors, each of which housed residential buildings. The layout of the fortress is so precise that it confirms the tendency of the leaders to systematic and order, as well as the fact that among the Vikings there were connoisseurs of geometry and surveyors.

In addition to the information sources of Western Europe, the Vikings are mentioned in written documents from the Arab world and Byzantium. In the homeland of the Vikings, we find short writing on stone and wood. The sagas of the twelfth century tell a lot about the times of the Vikings, despite the fact that they were written several generations after the events they tell about.

The homeland of the Vikings was the territory that now belongs to Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The society from which they emerged was a society of peasants, where agriculture and animal husbandry were supplemented by hunting, fishing, and the manufacture of primitive utensils from metal and stone. Although the peasants could provide for themselves with almost everything they needed, they were forced to buy some products, such as salt, which was needed by both people and livestock. Salt, which was an everyday product, was purchased from neighbors, and "delicacy" and special goods were supplied from the south of Europe.

Metal and stone utensils were imported goods that led to the flourishing of trade in Viking times. Even in those periods when the Viking raids were most frequent, there was trade between the Scandinavians and Western Europe. One of the few descriptions of the situation in Norway at that time, we find in a letter from the North Norwegian leader Ottar. He visited King Alfred of Wessex as a peaceful merchant at a time when the king was at war with other Viking chieftains.

There is a theory that the lack of vital resources against the backdrop of population growth was the reason for the expansion of the Vikings. Archaeological materials testify to the organization of new settlements in previously deserted places with a simultaneous increase in interest in foreign resources. This confirms the theory of population growth. Another explanation may be the mining and processing of metal. A lot of metal - a lot of weapons and an undeniable advantage for those who go on a military campaign.

Viking ships - their military advantage

Shipbuilding in the Nordic countries seems to be another factor that gave the Vikings an advantage in combat. A well-known Swedish archaeologist wrote that the Viking ships were the only sea-going, close-to-shore navigational facilities ever at the disposal of an invading force.

Despite some categoricalness of this statement, it largely explains the secret of the military success of the Vikings. This thesis is confirmed by many historical documents describing Viking raids. The surprise factor played important role. The tactic was to attack swiftly from the sea, in light ships that did not need mooring facilities and could come ashore where they were least expected, and withdraw just as quickly before the enemy had time to recover.

Much suggests that between the Norwegian, Danish and Swedish Vikings there was a division of spheres of influence, despite the joint participation in major campaigns led by influential leaders. The Swedes mainly moved to the east, where they established control over the river arteries deep into Russia and, thus, over the eastern trade routes. The Danes moved south to what is today Germany, France and Southern England, while the Norwegians moved west and northwest to Northern England, Scotland, Ireland and the Atlantic Islands.

The ships served not only for battles and trade, but were also vehicles during the process of colonization. Entire families, having collected all their belongings, loaded onto ships and set off on their way to settle in new lands. Viking campaigns across the North Atlantic to Iceland and Greenland prove that they were able to build not only fast ships for combat operations in the North Sea, but also ships with very good seaworthiness. The process of colonization began after the navigators discovered new lands, and after receiving information about new places from merchants and warriors who returned from campaigns.

There are indications that the indigenous population was expelled in many cases. In some areas - for example, in Northern England - the Vikings preferred pastoralism and used a different landscape than the local population, who had previously cultivated cereals.

Those who reached Iceland and Greenland were met by virgin nature. In Iceland, one could probably meet a few Irish monks who had left the world of "godless", but Greenland before the arrival of the Vikings was practically deserted.

historical documents about the Vikings were mostly written in Western Europe people who were negative towards them. Therefore, you can be sure that only the negative aspects of the Scandinavians are presented there. The picture is greatly complemented by archaeological finds, both in the homeland of the Vikings and in the areas of their campaigns. On the sites of former settlements, traces of outbuildings and bazaars were found, where things lost or broken and abandoned at that time tell about the very simple life of the Vikings. The remains of tools for iron mining were found in mountainous regions, where the presence of swamp ore and forests created a good basis for the development of handicrafts. Quarries have also been found where people collected soapstone to make frying pans or a very fine whetstone. If you are very lucky, you can find old arable land in those areas that were not used at a later time. There you can see heaps of stones, carefully removed from the field, and with careful excavations, even furrows from the plow of a Viking farmer come to light.

Cities and state entities

During the Viking times, there were noticeable changes in society. Powerful clans appropriated more and more land and power, which created the basis for the emergence of state formations and the first cities. We have the opportunity to trace city life from Staraya Ladoga and Kyiv to York and Dublin in the British Isles. Life in the cities was built on trade and handicrafts. Despite the fact that the Viking townspeople had plenty of livestock, agricultural products and fisheries, the cities were dependent on supplies from the villages in the district. Near the southern Norwegian city of Larvik, the ancient Kaupang market square was found, which is mentioned in a letter from the Viking leader Ottar to King Alfred. Kaupang has remained a bazaar, but the town of Birka near the city of Mälaren in Sweden and Hegeby, which is near the Danish-German border, can be called cities. Both of these cities were abandoned by the inhabitants by the end of the Viking Age, while Ribe, in the Danish province of West Jylland, exists to this day, like York and Dublin. In cities, we see signs of planning with clear boundaries of land, roads and defensive structures on the outskirts. It is clear that some cities were deliberately planned. Many were probably founded by royal command, with people close to the court involved in the planning and division of the land.

It is noticeable that the sewage system and garbage collection were not as well planned as the division of the territory. The sewage lies in such a thick layer that we can imagine how much dirt and stench was in the cities. Here you can find everything - from the waste of artisans to fleas - and get a picture of the life of the townspeople. Sometimes there are objects that came to these parts from afar, such as Arab silver coins and the remains of silk fabric from Byzantium, as well as products of local craftsmen - blacksmiths, shoemakers, comb makers.

Viking religion

Christianity was recognized in the Nordic countries by the end of the Viking Age. It replaced paganism, where many gods and goddesses patronized each of their spheres. human existence. God of Gods was old and wise - Odin. Tur was the god of war, and Frey was the god of agriculture and cattle breeding. The god Loke was famous for his sorcery, but he was frivolous and did not enjoy the trust of other gods. The blood enemies of the gods were giants, personifying the forces of darkness and evil.

The available descriptions of the pagan gods were created already in the times of Christianity and in many respects bear the stamp of the new faith. Such geographical names as Turshov, Freuskhov and Unsaker retained the names of pagan gods. The ending “hov” in the name of the place means that there used to be a pagan temple. The gods have human features, like the Greek gods on Olympus, live a stormy life. They fight, eat and drink. Warriors who fell in battle fell directly to the plentiful table of the gods. The customs of burial clearly tell that the dead needed the same utensils as during life on earth. In Viking times, the dead were either cremated or buried as is, but the funeral ritual was the same. The number of utensils in the grave spoke of some differences in rituals and the social status of the deceased. Norway was famous for the most magnificent funerals. Thanks to this, ancient graves are an invaluable source of knowledge about Everyday life Vikings. All the household items that followed the deceased to be used in the life after death allow us to penetrate the world of the Vikings, despite the fact that we often manage to find only the remains of what was put in the grave, destroyed by time. Grave finds complement the archaeological material from the settlement site. There you can find lost and broken things, the ruins of houses, leftover food and waste of artisans, and in the graves - the best that a person had during his lifetime. According to the texts of the laws, one can assume that what we today call the means of production (land, livestock) remained with the family members, and personal items went to the grave with the deceased.

Society of Violence

The violence that prevailed in that society is evidenced by the fact that almost all men were buried with weapons. A well-equipped warrior must have a sword, a wooden shield with a metal plate in the center to protect the hand, a spear, an ax and a bow with up to 24 arrows. The helmet and chain mail, in which the Vikings are depicted by modern artists, are actually very rare during excavations. Helmets with horns, which are an indispensable attribute of the Vikings in the paintings, in fact, have never been found among the real things of the Vikings.

But even in the graves of warriors, military equipment, we find peaceful objects - sickles, scythes and hoes. The blacksmith is buried with his hammer, anvil, tongs and file. Next to the peasant from the coastal areas, we can see fishing tackle. Fishermen were often buried in their boats. In the graves of women, one can find their personal jewelry, kitchen utensils and tools for making yarn. Women were also often buried in boats. Wooden, textile and leather things are rarely preserved to this day, which leaves many unclear questions in the study of that time. Only in a few graves does the earth retain a little more than usual. Off the coast of the Oslo Fjord, just under the peat layer, there is a clay layer that prevents the penetration of water and air. Some graves would have been, as it were, conserved for many thousands of years and, thereby, retained all the objects that were in them. In this regard, mention should be made of the burials of Oseberg, Thune and Gokstad, the treasures of which are exhibited in the Viking Ship Museum on the island of Bygdey in Oslo.

These are examples of how favorable ground conditions make it possible to preserve traces of antiquity. We do not know who were buried there, but judging by the pomp of the burials, they most likely belonged to the top of society. Perhaps they were related to that royal dynasty, which, several generations later, united Norway into a single state.

Recently, by counting the annual rings on wooden items, it was possible to establish the age of the burials of Oseberg, Tyune and Gokstad. The ship from the Oseberg burial was built in 815-820 AD, and the burial itself took place in 834. Ships from the burials of Tyune and Gokstad date back to about 890, and were buried immediately after 900. In these three graves, the ships were used as coffins. From the ship from the Tyune burial, one bottom was preserved, and the grave itself was looted. Nevertheless, it is clear that this ship was of the same excellent quality as the other two. The ships from the Tyune, Oseberg and Gokstad burials were 20, 22 and 24 meters long, respectively.

In the process of burial, the ship was pulled ashore and lowered into a deep pit. A wooden crypt was built at the mast, in which the dead were placed in their best clothes. Then the ship was filled with the necessary utensils and sacrificed horses and dogs. Above all this, a high burial mound was being built. An Arab passing through Russia in the 800s met a Viking funeral procession burying their leader. Ibn Fadlan described what he saw, and this document has survived to our time. The chief's ship was pulled ashore, and many valuables were loaded into it. The deceased was dressed in his best attire and placed on a bed in the ship. One of the slaves, who wished to go to another world with her master, his horse and hunting dog were sacrificed, then the ship with all its contents was burned, and a barrow was erected over the ashes. Many burials with burned ships have been found in Scandinavia and Western Europe, but the largest ones in the Oslo Fjord area were untouched. The remains of a man were found in the ship from the Gokstad burial, which can also be said about the ship from Tyune. But in the ship from Oseberg, two women were buried. Based on the skeletons, it was possible to determine that one of them was 50-60 years old, and the other 20-30. Who was the main person, and who was the companion, we will never know.

The burials of Oseberg and Gokstad were looted, and decorations and the best weapons disappeared without a trace. Products made of wood, leather and textiles were not of interest to the robbers and therefore have survived to this day. Traces of similar burials are also found in other places. Much confirms the correctness of the assumption about the existence of a custom to put sacrificed dogs and horses, weapons, ship equipment (oars, ladders, scoops, cauldrons for food, tents and often overseas bronze vats) into the grave. The vats must have originally contained food and drink for the deceased.

The Oseberg burial does not have traces of weapons, which is typical for the graves of women, but, otherwise, there was a usual set of things. In addition to this, the deceased had objects next to her, confirming her status as the head of a large household. It can be assumed that women were responsible for housekeeping while the men were on the march. The woman from Oseberg, like many of her compatriots, was certainly a mature and respected lady, regardless of her occupation - whether it was making yarn with other women, directing field work, or milking cows, making cheese and butter. In addition to the ship, there was a cart and a sleigh in her grave. The path to the kingdom of the dead could pass both by water and by land, and the deceased had to have all the necessary equipment. Horses were sacrificed, enough to harness both the sledge and the cart. In addition, a tent and pots, tailor's accessories, chests and caskets, a trough, milk vessels and ladles, a knife and a frying pan, shovels and hoes, a saddle, a dog harness and much more were found in the grave. The supply of provisions for the road to the kingdom of the dead consisted of a couple of slaughtered bulls, a whole trough of dough for baking bread, and for dessert there was a bucket of wild apples.

Many wooden things are decorated with carvings. It can be seen that many people in the household were engaged in artistic crafts. Even the simplest everyday items, such as sleigh shafts, are studded with carved ornaments. If you do not take into account the Oseberg finds, the Vikings were mainly famous for their small format metal jewelry. Woodcarving contains similar motifs, where the figures of fairy-tale animals intertwined in a dense, chaotic pattern predominate. The carving technique is excellent and shows that the people of the Oseberg queen handled cutters as skillfully as they did weapons.

The man buried in Gokstad also had an excellent wood carver, despite the fact that his grave does not have as many carvings as in Oseberg. The ship from Oseberg had low sides and did not have as good seaworthiness as the ships from Gokstad and Tune. Nevertheless, the ship would have coped well with sailing through the North Sea. This design is typical of Viking ships of the 800s. The copy ship built in our time was fast, but difficult to control. The ships from Oseberg, Gokstad and Tune were most likely used as private ships for sea voyages of the nobility, and not for transporting warriors. The Gokstad ship has better seaworthiness than the ship from Oseberg. This was confirmed by his copies that sailed through Atlantic Ocean, both under sail and with 32 rowers. Even when fully loaded, the ship sinks only 1 meter, which makes it possible to land fast landings on enemy shores. Probably, intensive navigation in the 800s gave the Vikings experience, which was then applied in the construction of ships with a more perfect hull shape. If such assumptions are correct, then the difference between the ships from Oseberg and Gokstad is the result of the accumulated experience of three generations from voyages in the North Sea, as well as lengthy discussions between shipbuilders who wanted to create something new.

1000 year development

The shipbuilding technique used by the Vikings is called clinker. The ships built were the result of more than 1,000 years of shipbuilding development in Scandinavia. The goal of shipbuilders has always been to create lightweight and flexible structures that would adapt to the wind and waves, and would work with them, and not fight against them. The hull of the Viking ships is built on a powerful keel, which, together with a gracefully curved stem, was the basis of the structure. Plank after plank was fitted to the keel and stem and overlapped with metal rivets. This design gave the case elegance and strength. After the hull took the desired shape, the frames were installed in it. Additional design flexibility was given by the fact that the frames and side skin were interconnected. Cross beams at the waterline level increased the resistance to transverse loads, and thick logs supported the mast. The ships sailed under a square sail raised on a mast in the middle of the hull. During a calm or with a light wind, the ships sailed at oars.

By the end of the Viking Age, the construction of purely warships, which were distinguished by speed and increased capacity, as well as purely commercial ships, where speed was not as important as carrying capacity, was developed. Merchant ships had a small crew and were mainly designed for sailing.

Arrival of Christianity

Around the year 1000, Christianity came to the land of the Vikings. The change of religion was undoubtedly one of the reasons for the cessation of the bandit raids. Denmark, Sweden and Norway became independent kingdoms. Life was not always peaceful, even in the Christian kingdoms, but feuds were settled by the rapidly changing alliances of kings. Often, countries were on the brink of war, but the conflict between the rulers ceased, and the need to cross weapons disappeared. Trade ties established back in the time of the Vikings continued, but already in the situation when the northern countries became part of Christian Europe.

The author of the article, Arne Emil Christensen, is a doctor philosophical sciences, Professor at the Archaeological Museum of the University of Oslo. He is a specialist in the history of shipbuilding and crafts in the Iron Age and the Viking Age.

Invasion

The Vikings most actively colonized Europe from the 8th to the 12th century. To a greater extent, the island territories - Britain, Ireland, Iceland, Faroe Islands - were invaded, to a lesser extent - the lands of continental Europe: the Normans invaded deep into the mainland as far as the river network connected with the deltas of the North and Baltic seas allowed them. Viking detachments were usually led by representatives of the top of the Norman society - hövdings or kings. The purpose of the wars of conquest waged by the Vikings was to gain wealth and position. These were not ordinary devastating raids, but a well-thought-out expansive policy, the result of which was the economic and political use of subordinate territories. It was thanks to the Vikings that trade began to develop actively in northern Europe and the growth of cities began. Feature The colonial policy of the Vikings was that many inhabitants of Scandinavia - farmers, cattle breeders or artisans - forever left their homes and settled in foreign countries. So, eastern England was chosen mainly by immigrants from Denmark, and the inhabitants of Norway settled on the Shetland Islands. The same Norwegians made it to Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and probably North America. In parallel, the Scandinavians penetrated deep into the Eastern European territories, paving the famous path "from the Varangians to the Greeks." Judging by the medieval chronicles, in this way the Normans reached the Volga Bulgaria, the Khazar Khaganate, the Arab Caliphate and Byzantium. Some of them remained on the expanses of the Eurasian continent forever.

Historians have established that the first Viking ships arrived in Britain in 793 AD. e. Until the famous Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066, the Normans ruled most of the British Isles. According to genetics scientist Jim Wilson, despite the fact that almost 1,000 years have passed since the expulsion of the Vikings, their legacy in Britain and Ireland is still strong. More recently, Britains DNA conducted a genetic study comparing Y-chromosome-DNA markers (inherited from father to son) in more than 3,500 native English men with DNA samples from Norman burials. The purpose of the experiment is to find out how many descendants of the Vikings live in the UK today. As a result of the study, scientists have found that today at least 930,000 men live in the British Isles, in whose veins the blood of warlike Vikings flows. “Research shows that Norwegian blood concentration is quite variable, but since the Y chromosome is only in the male population and only one ancestral line for each person, there is a very real chance that many of us are related to the Vikings,” Britains report says. DNA. Michael Hirst, writer of the TV show Vikings, noted that Britain is still influenced by Viking culture. “To realize that many of us may still have the blood of these fearsome and famous warriors is an incredible and profound thought,” he said. Most of all, the percentage of Norman heredity among the inhabitants of the Shetland Islands is 25.2%, followed by the Orkney Islands - 25.2%, Caithness - 17.5%, the Isle of Man - 12.3%, the Western Isles - 11.3%, the North Western Scotland and the Inner Hebrides 9.9%. The closer to the south of Britain, the lower the percentage of Viking descendants.

Ireland

The genetic map of the Irish is very diverse, and it also found a place for Norman roots. It is believed that Dublin was founded by the Vikings in 841 - this is the first Norman settlement in Ireland, after which the concentration of Scandinavians on the Emerald Isle has constantly grown. Subsequently, the Normans lay Wexford, Waterford, Limerick and Cork. The situation changed dramatically after the defeat of the Vikings at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014, when their numbers began to wane. Nevertheless, this did not seriously prevent the presence of the Normans in Ireland. In 1169, the second wave of the Norman invasion of Ireland begins, after which the Vikings gradually merge with the local population. Some Irish surnames testify to the Scandinavian presence in Ireland today: McSween (son of Sven), McAuliffe (son of Olaf), Doyle (descendant of a Dane), O'Higgins (descendant of a Viking). The largest concentrations of Viking descendants are found in South and Central Leinster, Connacht and North Ulster.

For the first time, Byzantine chronicles testify to the appearance of the Scandinavians on the territory of the future Old Russian state. So, in one of them it is reported about the establishment of the Varangian Guard by the Emperor of Constantinople at the end of the 9th century, the members of which were probably sent by the Kyiv Prince Vladimir. Rulers Ancient Rus' and Scandinavia maintained a fairly close relationship until the XII century. It is known that Yaroslav the Wise and Mstislav the Great took wives from Sweden: the first married Ingegerd, the daughter of Olaf Shetkonung, the second married Christina, the daughter of King Inga the Old. However, not only Scandinavian wives went to Rus', but also soldiers and artisans. The most famous settlement of the Normans in Old Russian state considered to be the Sarskoye settlement, located on the territory of the Yaroslavl region. According to the genetic laboratory at the Institute of General Genetics. Vavilov about 18% of the population Vologda region descended from ancestors who lived in Scandinavia. In the Arkhangelsk region, there are 14.2% of such people, in the Ryazan region - 14.0%. We are talking about the owners of haplogroup I1, typical for Norway and Sweden. For example, in modern Norway, 37.3% of carriers of the I1-M253 subclade were identified, in Sweden - 38.2%, in

It turns out that to leave an indelible mark on history, it is enough to have a reliable ship and a strong axe. This statement was proved by the Vikings, who they are and where they came from, we already know, but it is very difficult to explain their phenomenon. A small group of navigators terrorized most of Europe for centuries, conquering entire principalities and kingdoms. When else was this possible?

Is Vikings realistic?

Most got to know these proud travelers through the series of the same name:

• The story is about times Ragnar- the most famous Viking.
• The series realistically depicts the life of that era and contains many scenes of violence.
• In some episodes, the viewer is shown the difference between the world of pagans and Christian morality that time.
• Each season covers a period of several decades and shows changes not only in the lives of the main characters, but also demonstrates the changes in the life of all the settlers.

During the first few seasons, Viking attacks on the English kingdoms and the siege of Paris were shown. All this really took place in real life. Not exactly as shown on the screen, but close.

A significant difference concerns the French capital, according to historical data, the ancient sailors nevertheless plundered it. But in general, the series has the right to claim for the title of historical painting.

Who are the Vikings and where did they come from?

But let's understand a little about the basic concepts:

1. The Vikings are not a separate people, tribe or nationality.
2. So called people who went on long sea voyages.
3. As a rule, sailors pursued two goals along the way - robbery and trade.
4. Sometimes the Vikings skillfully combined both of these crafts.

At modern man the concept itself is associated with the inhabitants of Scandinavia - Norwegians, Swedes and Danes. It so happened historically that it was from this region that most people went on an "adventure":

• The Scandinavian Peninsula is not the most hospitable region, there are not many arable lands, the climatic conditions are harsh.
• The increase in population inevitably led to overpopulation and the appearance of landless, but at the same time absolutely free people.
• Possessing the skills of a navigator and a good fighter, such a person could only take one path - a conqueror, raiding the nearest states in order to obtain ransom and land.

But among the Vikings, in the initial stages, there were many representatives of other northern peoples. But by the 9th-10th century the very concept firmly entrenched in the Scandinavians.

Life of the Vikings

The life of a Viking was divided into time spent at home and on campaigns:

Most of the time the Vikings spent in their native villages, preparing for the harsh winters, harvesting and fishing. Hiking is certainly good, but the family needs something to feed, and gold has never been particularly appetizing.

Scattered data have come down to us about the religious ideas of the ancient Vikings, about their social order. The whole problem is that most of the written sources - Christian manuscripts. And it is difficult to “blame” the monks for special love for guests from other shores, because it was priests and Christian shrines that most often became the target of raids.

The looting of "holy places"

The Vikings did not have any prejudice against the Christian religion:

• Anyone who did not worship Thor and Odin they considered lost fools.
• Every British village had at least one temple or church.
• As a rule, it was not particularly well fortified and could not withstand a significant onslaught, unlike castles and donjons.
• There were often more treasures in such an unprotected building than in any stronghold.
• The impoverished population carried all their belongings and jewelry to the clergy, hoping in this way to "beg" for themselves eternal life.
• It was not advisable to rob each house separately when there was such a tempting "treasure" in the center of the village.
• The clergy and the local population relied on the protection of the Lord, so that no one could even imagine that there would be such treacherous strangers who could rob God himself without a twinge of conscience.

Whether the Vikings experienced some kind of hatred for the priests, or they simply fell under the “hot hand”, we will never know. History is written by the winners and so, for reference - in 999, the Norwegians, who made up the bulk of the Vikings, converted to Christianity.

Where did the Vikings come from?

Average Viking represents:

1. An ordinary resident of Scandinavia, who could not find a place in his homeland.
2. A free and unencumbered person, ready to travel and earn fame and fortune.
3. Many such travelers remained forever lying on seabed and in coastal areas, history has conveyed to us only the names of the winners.
4. The life of a sea traveler was difficult and full of dangers, each sea passage threatened to be the last.
5. For the most part, yesterday's tillers, fishermen and hunters went to distant lands.

All Vikings came from the North, sometimes from the Eastern Territories. Mass raids on neighbors were due to the fact that in the homeland most of the coastal and suitable for plowing land was already occupied. The conquest of new territories contributed to the settlement of Norwegians in new territories, neighboring islands and even on mainland Europe.

The sailors did not have any unique combat techniques, they were equipped at the level of their opponents. Most victories are explained vast experience of battles and greater endurance of northerners.

The Vikings are still partly a mystery, who they are and where they came from, only Christian sources tell us. And these texts cannot be called objective, if only because of the centuries-old enmity between northern sailors and representatives of the clergy.

Video about the appearance of the Vikings

The medieval Viking Age refers to the period of the 8th-11th centuries, when the European seas were plied by bold robbers from Scandinavia. Their raids struck terror into the civilized inhabitants of the Old World. The Vikings were not only robbers, but also merchants, as well as pioneers. By religion they were pagans.

The advent of the Vikings

In the VIII century, the inhabitants of the territory of modern Norway, Sweden and Denmark began to build the fastest ships at that time and go on long journeys on them. The harsh nature of their native lands pushed them to these adventures. Agriculture in Scandinavia was underdeveloped due to the cold climate. A modest harvest did not allow local residents to feed their families enough. Thanks to the robberies, the Vikings became noticeably richer, which gave them the opportunity not only to buy food, but also to trade with their neighbors.

The first attack by sailors on neighboring countries occurred in 789. Then the robbers attacked Dorset in the south-west of England, killed thethen and robbed the city. Thus began the Viking Age. Another important reason for the emergence of mass piracy was the decomposition of the former system based on community and clan. The nobility, having strengthened its influence, began to create the first prototypes of states on For such jarls, robberies became a source of wealth and influence among compatriots.

Skilful sailors

The key reason for the conquests and geographical discoveries the Vikings became their ships, which were much better than any other European ones. The warships of the Scandinavians were called drakkars. Sailors often used them as their own home. Such vessels were mobile. They could be relatively easily dragged ashore. At first, the ships were oared, later they acquired sails.

Drakkars were distinguished by their elegant shape, speed, reliability and lightness. They were designed specifically for shallow rivers. Entering them, the Vikings could go deep into the devastated country. Such voyages came as a complete surprise to Europeans. As a rule, drakkars were built from ash wood. They are an important symbol left behind by early medieval history. The Viking Age is not only a period of conquest, but also a period of development of trade. For this purpose, the Scandinavians used special merchant ships - knorrs. They were wider and deeper than the Drakkars. Much more goods could be loaded on such ships.

The Viking Age in Northern Europe was marked by the development of navigation. The Scandinavians did not have any special devices (for example, a compass), but they perfectly managed the prompts of nature. These sailors knew the habits of birds thoroughly and took them with them on a voyage to determine if there was land nearby (if there was none, the birds returned to the ship). The researchers also focused on the sun, stars and moon.

Raids on Britain

The first Scandinavian raids into England were fleeting. They plundered defenseless monasteries and promptly returned to the sea. However, gradually the Vikings began to claim the lands of the Anglo-Saxons. There was no single kingdom in Britain at that time. The island was divided among several rulers. In 865, the legendary Ragnar Lodbrok went to Northumbria, but his ships ran aground and crashed. Uninvited guests were surrounded and captured. King Ella II of Northumbria executed Ragnar by ordering him to be thrown into a pit full of poisonous snakes.

The death of Lodbrok did not go unpunished. Two years later, the Great Pagan Army landed on the coast of England. This army was led by numerous sons of Ragnar. The Vikings conquered East Anglia, Northumbria and Mercia. The rulers of these kingdoms were executed. The last stronghold of the Anglo-Saxons was South Wessex. His king Alfred the Great, realizing that his forces were not enough to fight the interventionists, concluded a peace treaty with them, and then, in 886, completely recognized their possessions in Britain.

Conquest of England

It took Alfred and his son Edward the Elder four decades to clear their homeland of foreigners. Mercia and East Anglia were freed by 924. In remote northern Northumbria, Viking rule continued for another thirty years.

After some lull, the Scandinavians again began to appear frequently off the British coast. The next wave of raids began in 980, and in 1013 Sven Forkbeard completely captured the country and became its king. His son Canute the Great ruled three monarchies at once for three decades: England, Denmark and Norway. After his death, the former dynasty from Wessex regained power, and foreigners left Britain.

In the 11th century, the Scandinavians made several more attempts to conquer the island, but they all failed. The Viking Age, in short, left a noticeable imprint on the culture and government of Anglo-Saxon Britain. On the territory that the Danes owned for some time, the Danelag was established - a system of law adopted from the Scandinavians. This region was isolated from other English provinces throughout the Middle Ages.

Normans and Franks

The Viking Age is the period of the Norman attacks. Under this name, the Scandinavians were remembered by their Catholic contemporaries. If the Vikings sailed to the west mainly in order to rob England, then in the south the purpose of their campaigns was Frankish Empire. It was created in 800 by Charlemagne. As long as under him and under his son Louis the Pious a single strong state was preserved, the country was reliably protected from the pagans.

However, when the empire broke up into three kingdoms, and those in turn began to suffer from the costs of the feudal system, dizzying opportunities opened up for the Vikings. Some Scandinavians plundered the coast every year, while others were hired into the service of Catholic rulers in order to protect Christians for a generous salary. During one of their raids, the Vikings even captured Paris.

In 911, the Frankish king Charles the Simple gave the Vikings this region became known as Normandy. Its rulers were baptized. This tactic proved to be effective. More and more Vikings gradually switched to a settled way of life. But some daredevils continued their campaigns. So, in 1130, the Normans conquered southern Italy and created the Kingdom of Sicily.

Scandinavian discovery of America

Moving further west, the Vikings discovered Ireland. They often raided this island and left a significant imprint on the local Celtic culture. For more than two centuries, the Scandinavians owned Dublin. Around 860, the Vikings discovered Iceland ("Ice Country"). It was they who became the first inhabitants of this deserted island. Iceland proved to be a popular place for colonization. The inhabitants of Norway, who fled the country due to frequent civil wars, sought to go there.

In the year 900, a Viking ship, accidentally lost its way, stumbled upon Greenland. The first colonies appeared there at the end of the 10th century. This discovery inspired other Vikings to continue their search for a way to the west. They rightly hoped that there were new lands far beyond the sea. The navigator around the year 1000 reached the shores of North America and landed on the Labrador Peninsula. He called this region Vinland. Thus, the Viking Age was marked by the discovery of America five centuries before the expedition of Christopher Columbus.

Rumors about this country were fragmentary and did not leave Scandinavia. In Europe, they never learned about the western mainland. Viking settlements in Vinland lasted for several decades. Three attempts were made to colonize this land, but they all failed. Indians attacked strangers. Keeping in touch with the colonies was extremely difficult because of the vast distances. Eventually the Scandinavians left America. Much later, archaeologists found traces of their settlement in Canadian Newfoundland.

Vikings and Rus'

In the second half of the 8th century, Viking troops began to attack the lands inhabited by numerous Finno-Ugric peoples. This is evidenced by the finds of archaeologists discovered in the Russian Staraya Ladoga. If in Europe the Vikings were called Normans, then the Slavs called them Varangians. The Scandinavians controlled several trading ports along the Baltic Sea in Prussia. Here began a profitable amber route, along which amber was transported to the Mediterranean.

How did the Viking Age affect Rus'? In short, thanks to the newcomers from Scandinavia, East Slavic statehood was born. According to official version, the inhabitants of Novgorod, who often came into contact with the Vikings, turned to them for help during an internal civil strife. So the Varangian Rurik was invited to reign. A dynasty came from him, which in the near future united Rus' and began to rule in Kyiv.

Life of Scandinavian people

At home, the Vikings lived in large peasant dwellings. Under the roof of one such building fit a family that included three generations at once. Children, parents, grandparents lived together. This custom was an echo. Houses were built from wood and clay. The roofs were turf. In the central large room there was a common hearth, behind which they not only ate, but also slept.

Even when the Viking Age came, their cities in Scandinavia remained very small, inferior in size even to the settlements of the Slavs. People concentrated mainly around craft and trade centers. Cities were built in the depths of the fjords. This was done in order to get a convenient harbor and, in the event of an attack by an enemy fleet, to know in advance about its approach.

Scandinavian peasants dressed in woolen shirts and short baggy trousers. The costume of the Viking Age was quite ascetic due to the scarcity of raw materials in Scandinavia. Wealthy Representatives upper classes could wear colored clothes that distinguished them from the crowd, showing wealth and position. The women's costume of the Viking Age necessarily included accessories - metal jewelry, a brooch, pendants and belt buckles. If the girl was married, she put her hair in a bun, unmarried people picked up her hair with a ribbon.

Armor and weapons of the Vikings

In modern popular culture, the image of a Viking with a horned helmet on his head is common. In fact, such headdresses were rare and were no longer used for combat, but for rituals. The clothing of the Viking Age included the obligatory light armor for all men.

Weapons were much more diverse. The northerners often used a spear about one and a half meters long, with which they could chop and stab the enemy. But the most common was the sword. These weapons were very light compared to other types that appeared in the subsequent Middle Ages. The Viking Age sword was not necessarily made in Scandinavia itself. Warriors often acquired Frankish weapons, as they differed best quality. The Vikings also had long knives - the Saxons.

The inhabitants of Scandinavia made bows from ash or yew. Braided hair was often used as a bowstring. Axes were a common melee weapon. The Vikings preferred a wide, symmetrically diverging blade.

The last Normans

In the first half of the 11th century, the Viking Age came to an end. It was due to several factors. Firstly, in Scandinavia the former tribal system finally decomposed. It was replaced by classical medieval feudalism with overlords and vassals. Remained in the past and half Scandinavians settled in their homeland.

The end of the Viking Age also came because of the spread of Christianity among the northerners. The new faith, unlike the pagan one, opposed bloody campaigns in a foreign land. Gradually, many sacrificial rituals were forgotten, etc. The first to be baptized were the nobility, which, with the help of the new faith, legitimized in the eyes of the rest of the civilized European community. Following the rulers and the aristocracy, ordinary residents did the same.

In the changed conditions, the Vikings, who wanted to connect their lives with military affairs, went into mercenaries and served with foreign sovereigns. For example, the Byzantine emperors had their own Varangian guards. The inhabitants of the north were valued for their physical strength, unpretentiousness in everyday life and many combat skills. The last Viking in power in the classical sense of the word was King Harald III of Norway the Severe. He went to England and tried to conquer it, but died at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066. Then came the end of the Viking Age. William the Conqueror from Normandy (himself also a descendant of the Scandinavian sailors) conquered England in the same year.

Vikings

Vikings

(Normans), sea robbers, immigrants from Scandinavia, who committed in the 9th-11th centuries. hikes up to 8000 km long, maybe even longer distances. These bold and fearless people reached the borders of Persia in the east, and the New World in the west.
The word "Viking" comes from the Old Norse "Vikingr". Regarding its origin, there are a number of hypotheses, the most convincing of which raises it to "vik" - a fiord, a bay. The word "Viking" (lit. "man from the fiord") was used to refer to robbers who operated in coastal waters, hiding in secluded bays and bays. In Scandinavia they were known long before they were acquired. notoriety in Europe. The French called the Vikings Normans or various variants of this word (Norsmans, Nortmanns - lit. "people from the north"); the British called all Scandinavians indiscriminately Danes, and the Slavs, Greeks, Khazars, Arabs called the Swedish Vikings Rus or Vikings.
Wherever the Vikings went - to the British Isles, to France, Spain, Italy or North Africa - they ruthlessly plundered and seized foreign lands. In some cases, they settled in conquered countries and became their rulers. The Danish Vikings conquered England for some time, settled in Scotland and Ireland. Together they conquered a part of France known as Normandy. The Norwegian Vikings and their descendants established colonies on the North Atlantic islands of Iceland and Greenland and founded a settlement on the coast of Newfoundland in North America, however, which did not last long. The Swedish Vikings began to rule in the east of the Baltic. They spread widely throughout Rus' and, descending along the rivers to the Black and Caspian Seas, even threatened Constantinople and some regions of Persia. The Vikings were the last Germanic barbarian conquerors and the first European pioneer navigators.
There are different interpretations of the reasons for the violent outburst of Viking activity in the 9th century. There is evidence that Scandinavia was overpopulated and many Scandinavians went abroad in search of their fortune. The rich but undefended cities and monasteries of the southern and western neighbors were easy prey. It was hardly possible to get a rebuff from the scattered kingdoms in the British Isles or the weakened empire of Charlemagne, absorbed by dynastic strife. During the Viking Age, national monarchies gradually consolidated in Norway, Sweden and Denmark. Ambitious leaders and powerful clans fought for power. The defeated leaders and their supporters, as well as the younger sons of the victorious leaders, shamelessly accepted unhindered robbery as a way of life. Energetic young men from influential families usually gained authority through participation in one or more campaigns. Many Scandinavians engaged in robbery in the summer, and then turned into ordinary landowners. However, the Vikings were attracted not only by the lure of prey. The prospect of establishing trade opened the way to wealth and power. In particular, immigrants from Sweden controlled trade routes in Rus'.
The English term "Viking" is derived from the Old Norse word víkingr, which could have multiple meanings. The most acceptable, apparently, is the origin from the word vík - bay, or bay. Therefore, the word víkingr is translated as "man from the bay". This term was used to refer to robbers hiding in coastal waters long before the Vikings gained notoriety in outside world. However, not all Scandinavians were sea ​​robbers, and the terms "Viking" and "Scandinavian" cannot be considered as synonyms. The French usually called the Vikings Normans, and the British indiscriminately referred to all Scandinavians as Danes. Slavs, Khazars, Arabs and Greeks, who communicated with the Swedish Vikings, called them Russ or Varangians.
LIFESTYLE
Abroad, the Vikings acted as robbers, conquerors and traders, and at home they mainly cultivated the land, hunted, fished and raised cattle. The independent peasant, who worked alone or with relatives, formed the basis of Scandinavian society. No matter how small his allotment was, he remained free and was not tied like a serf to the land that belonged to another person. In all strata of Scandinavian society were highly developed family ties, and in important matters its members usually acted in concert with relatives. The clans jealously guarded the good names of their fellow tribesmen, and trampling on the honor of one of them often led to cruel civil strife.
Women in the family played an important role. They could own property, decide on their own about marriage and divorce from an unsuitable spouse. However, outside the family hearth, women's participation in public life remained negligible.
Food. In Viking times, most people ate two meals a day. The main products were meat, fish and grains of cereals. Meat and fish were usually boiled, rarely fried. For storage, these products were dried and salted. From cereals, rye, oats, barley and several types of wheat were used. Usually porridge was cooked from their grains, but sometimes bread was baked. Vegetables and fruits were rarely eaten. From the drinks consumed milk, beer, fermented honey drink, and in the upper classes of society - imported wine.
Cloth. Peasant clothing consisted of a long woolen shirt, short baggy trousers, stockings and a rectangular cape. Vikings from the upper classes wore long pants, socks and capes in bright colors. Woolen mittens and hats were in use, as well as fur hats and even felt hats. Women from high society usually wore long clothes, consisting of a bodice and a skirt. Thin chains hung from buckles on clothes, to which scissors and a case for needles, a knife, keys and other small items were attached. Married women put their hair in a bun and wore conical white linen caps. Unmarried girls had their hair tied up with a ribbon.
Dwelling. Peasant dwellings were usually simple one-room houses, built either from tightly fitted vertical beams, or more often from wicker wicker coated with clay. Wealthy people usually lived in a large rectangular house, which housed numerous relatives. In heavily forested Scandinavia, such houses were built of wood, often in combination with clay, while in Iceland and Greenland, in conditions of a shortage of wood, local stone was widely used. Walls 90 cm thick or more were folded there. The roofs were usually covered with peat. The central living room of the house was low and dark, with a long hearth in the middle. They cooked food, ate and slept there. Sometimes inside the house, along the walls, pillars were installed in a row to support the roof, and the side rooms fenced off in this way were used as bedrooms.
Literature and art. The Vikings valued skill in combat, but they also revered literature, history, and art.
Viking literature existed in oral form, and only some time after the end of the Viking Age did the first written works appear. The runic alphabet was then used only for inscriptions on tombstones, for magic spells and short messages. But in Iceland, a rich folklore has been preserved. It was written down at the end of the Viking Age using the Latin alphabet by scribes who wanted to perpetuate the exploits of their ancestors.
Among the treasures of Icelandic literature stand out the long prose narratives known as sagas. They are divided into three main types. In the most important, the so-called. family sagas describe real characters from the Viking Age. Several dozen family sagas have survived, five of them are comparable in volume to large novels. The other two types are the historical sagas, which deal with Norwegian kings and the settlement of Iceland, and the adventurous fictional sagas of the late Viking Age, reflecting the influence of the Byzantine Empire and India. Another big prose work, which appeared in Iceland, - Younger Edda- a collection of myths recorded by Snorri Sturluson, an Icelandic historian and politician of the 13th century.
The Vikings had a high regard for poetry. The Icelandic hero and adventurer Egil Skallagrimsson was as proud of being a poet as he was of his accomplishments in battle. Poets-improvisers (skalds) sang the virtues of jarls (leaders) and princes in complex poetic stanzas. Much simpler than the poetry of the skalds were songs about the gods and heroes of the past, preserved in a collection known as Elder Edda.
Viking art was primarily decorative. The predominant motifs - whimsical animals and energetic abstract compositions of intertwining ribbons - were used in wood carvings, fine gold and silver jewelry, and decorations on runestones and monuments that were placed to commemorate important events.
Religion. In the beginning, the Vikings worshiped pagan gods and goddesses. The most important of these were Thor, Ódin, Frey and the goddess Freya, of lesser importance were Njord, Ull, Balder and several other household gods. The gods were worshiped in temples or in sacred forests, groves and near springs. The Vikings also believed in many supernatural creatures: trolls, elves, giants, water and magical inhabitants of forests, hills and rivers.
Bloody sacrifices were often made. Sacrificial animals were usually eaten by the priest and his entourage at feasts held in temples. There were also human sacrifices, even ritual killings of kings to ensure the welfare of the country. In addition to priests and priestesses, there were sorcerers who practiced black magic.
The people of the Viking Age attached great importance to luck as a type of spiritual power inherent in any person, but especially leaders and kings. Nevertheless, that era was characterized by a pessimistic and fatalistic attitude. Fate was presented as an independent factor standing above gods and people. According to some poets and philosophers, people and gods were doomed to go through a powerful struggle and cataclysm, known as Ragnarök (Isl. - "end of the world").
Christianity slowly spread to the north and presented an attractive alternative to paganism. In Denmark and Norway, Christianity was established in the 10th century, the Icelandic leaders adopted the new religion in 1000, and Sweden in the 11th century, but in the north of this country pagan beliefs persisted until the early 12th century.
MILITARY ART
Viking expeditions. Detailed information about the campaigns of the Vikings is known mainly from the written reports of the victims, who spared no colors to describe the devastation that the Scandinavians carried with them. The first campaigns of the Vikings were made on the principle of "hit and run". They appeared without warning from the sea in light, high-speed vessels and struck at weakly guarded objects known for their riches. The Vikings cut down a few defenders with swords, and the rest of the inhabitants were enslaved, seized valuables, and everything else was set on fire. Gradually, they began to use horses in their campaigns.
Weapon. Viking weapons were bows and arrows, as well as a variety of swords, spears and battle axes. Swords and spearheads and arrowheads were usually made of iron or steel. For bows, yew or elm wood was preferred, and braided hair was usually used as a bowstring.
Viking shields were round or oval in shape. Usually, light pieces of linden wood, upholstered along the edge and across with iron stripes, went to the shields. In the center of the shield was a pointed plaque. For protection, warriors also wore metal or leather helmets, often with horns, and warriors from the nobility often wore chain mail.
Viking ships. The highest technical achievement of the Vikings was their warships. These boats, kept in exemplary order, were often described with great love in the poetry of the Vikings and were a source of their pride. The narrow frame of such a vessel was very convenient for approaching the shore and quickly passing through rivers and lakes. The lighter vessels were especially suited to surprise attacks; they could be dragged from one river to another to bypass rapids, waterfalls, dams and fortifications. The disadvantage of these ships was that they were not sufficiently adapted for long voyages on the high seas, which was compensated by the navigational skill of the Vikings.
Viking boats differed in the number of pairs of rowing oars, large ships - in the number of rowing benches. 13 pairs of oars determined the minimum size of a warship. The very first ships were designed for 40-80 people each, and a large keel ship of the 11th century. accommodated several hundred people. Such large combat units exceeded 46 m in length.
Ships were often built from boards laid in rows with overlapping and fastened with curved frames. Above the waterline, most warships were brightly painted. Carved dragon heads, sometimes gilded, adorned the prows of ships. The same decoration could be on the stern, and in some cases there was a wriggling dragon's tail. When sailing in the waters of Scandinavia, these decorations were usually removed so as not to frighten the good spirits. Often, when approaching the port, shields were hung in a row on the sides of the ships, but this was not allowed on the high seas.
Viking ships moved with the help of sails and oars. A simple square-shaped sail, made of coarse canvas, was often painted in stripes and checks. The mast could be shortened and even removed altogether. With the help of skillful devices, the captain could navigate the ship against the wind. The ships were steered by a paddle-shaped rudder mounted on the stern on the starboard side.
Several surviving Viking ships are exhibited in museums in the Scandinavian countries. One of the most famous, discovered in 1880 in Gokstad (Norway), dates back to about 900 AD. It reaches a length of 23.3 m and a width of 5.3 m. The ship had a mast and 32 oars, it had 32 shields. In places, elegant carved decorations have been preserved. The navigational capabilities of such a vessel were demonstrated in 1893, when its accurately made copy sailed from Norway to Newfoundland in four weeks. This copy is now in Lincoln Park in Chicago.
STORY
Vikings in Western Europe. Information about the first significant Viking raid dates back to 793 AD, when the monastery at Lindisfarne on Holy Island off the east coast of Scotland was sacked and burned. Nine years later, the monastery at Iona in the Hebrides was devastated. These were the pirate raids of the Norwegian Vikings.
Soon the Vikings moved on to seizing large areas. Late 9th - early 10th c. they took possession of Shetland, Orkney and the Hebrides and settled in the far north of Scotland. In the 11th century for unknown reasons, they left these lands. The Shetland Islands remained in the hands of the Norwegians until the 16th century.
Norwegian Viking raids on Ireland began in the 9th century. In 830 they established a wintering settlement in Ireland, and by 840 they had taken control of large areas of that country. The Viking positions were mostly strong in the south and east. This situation continued until 1170, when the British invaded Ireland and drove the Vikings out of there.
It was mainly the Danish Vikings who penetrated England. In 835 they made a campaign at the mouth of the Thames, in 851 they settled on the Isles of Sheppey and Thanet in the estuary of the Thames, and from 865 they began the conquest of East Anglia. King Alfred the Great of Wessex eventually halted their advance, but was forced to cede lands north of the line from London to the northeast edge of Wales. This territory, called the Danelag (Danish law area), was gradually reconquered by the British in the next century, but repeated Viking raids in the early 11th century. led to the restoration of the power of their king Cnut and his sons, this time over all of England. Ultimately, in 1042, as a result of a dynastic marriage, the throne passed to the British. However, even after that, Danish raids continued until the end of the century.
Norman raids on the coastal regions Frankish state began at the end of the 8th century. Gradually, the Scandinavians gained a foothold at the mouth of the Seine and other rivers of northern France. In 911 french king Charles III the Simple concluded a forced peace with the leader of the Normans Rollo and granted him Rouen with the adjacent lands, to which new territories were added a few years later. The Duchy of Rollo attracted a lot of immigrants from Scandinavia and soon received the name Normandy. The Normans adopted the language, religion and customs of the Franks.
In 1066, Duke William of Normandy, who went down in history as William the Conqueror, the illegitimate son of Robert I, a descendant of Rollon and the fifth Duke of Normandy, invaded England, defeated King Harold (and killed him) at the Battle of Hastings and took the English throne. The Normans undertook aggressive campaigns in Wales and Ireland, many of them settled in Scotland.
At the beginning of the 11th c. the Normans penetrated into southern Italy, where, as hired soldiers, they participated in hostilities against the Arabs in Salerno. Then new settlers began to arrive here from Scandinavia, who established themselves in small towns, taking them by force from their former employers and their neighbors. The sons of Count Tancred of Hauteville, who captured Apulia in 1042, enjoyed the loudest fame among Norman adventurers. In 1053 they defeated the army of Pope Leo IX, forcing him to make peace with them and give Apulia and Calabria as a fief. By 1071, all of southern Italy fell under the rule of the Normans. One of the sons of Tancred, Duke Robert, nicknamed Guiscard ("Sly"), supported the pope in the fight against Emperor Henry IV. Robert's brother Roger I started a war with the Arabs in Sicily. In 1061 he took Messina, but only 13 years later the island was under the rule of the Normans. Roger II united the Norman possessions in southern Italy and Sicily under his rule, and in 1130 Pope Anaclet II declared him king of Sicily, Calabria and Capua.
In Italy, as elsewhere, the Normans demonstrated their amazing ability to adapt and assimilate in a foreign cultural environment. The Normans played an important role in the crusades, in the history of the Kingdom of Jerusalem and other states formed by the crusaders in the East.
Vikings in Iceland and Greenland. Iceland was discovered by Irish monks, and then at the end of the 9th century. inhabited by Norwegian Vikings. The first settlers were the leaders with their entourage, who fled from Norway from the despotism of King Harold, nicknamed Fair-Haired. For several centuries, Iceland remained independent, it was ruled by influential leaders, who were called godar. They met annually in the summer at meetings of the Althing, which was the prototype of the first parliament. However, the Althing could not resolve the feuds between the leaders, and in 1262 Iceland submitted to the Norwegian king. It regained its independence only in 1944.
In 986, the Icelander Eric the Red led several hundred colonists to the southwestern coast of Greenland, which he had discovered several years earlier. They settled in the locality of Vesterbygden ("western settlement") at the edge of the ice cap on the banks of the Ameralik Fjord. Even for hardy Icelanders, the harsh conditions of southern Greenland proved to be a difficult test. Engaged in hunting, fishing and whaling, they lived in the area for approx. 400 years. However, around 1350 the settlements were completely abandoned. Historians have yet to figure out why the colonists, who had accumulated considerable experience of living in the North, suddenly left these places. Here, the cooling of the climate, the chronic shortage of grain, and the almost complete isolation of Greenland from Scandinavia after the plague epidemic in the middle of the 14th century could probably play a major role.
Vikings in North America. One of the most contentious issues in Scandinavian archeology and philology has to do with the study of the Greenlanders' attempts to establish a colony in North America. In two Icelandic family sagas - Eric the Red Saga And Saga of the Greenlanders– Details of a visit to the American coast c. 1000. According to these sources, North America was discovered by Byadni Herjolfsson, the son of the first settler of Greenland, but the main characters of the sagas are Leif Eriksson, the son of Erik the Red, and Thorfinn Thordarson, nicknamed Karlsabni. Leif Eriksson's base, apparently, was located in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bL "Ans-o-Meadow, located in the far north of the Newfoundland coast. Leif, along with his associates, carefully examined the more temperate region located much to the south, which he called Vinland. Karlsabni gathered a detachment to to establish a colony in Vinland in 1004 or 1005 (the location of this colony could not be established.) The newcomers met with resistance from the locals and were forced to return to Greenland three years later.
The brothers of Leif Eriksson Thorstein and Thorvald also took part in the exploration of the New World. It is known that Thorvald was killed by the natives. The Greenlanders made voyages to America for the forest after the end of the Viking Age.
End of the Viking Age. The violent activity of the Vikings ended at the end of the 11th century. A number of factors contributed to the cessation of campaigns and discoveries that lasted more than 300 years. In Scandinavia itself, monarchies were firmly established, and orderly feudal relations were established among the nobility, similar to those that existed in the rest of Europe, the opportunities for uncontrolled raids decreased, and the incentives for aggressive activity abroad waned. Political and social stabilization in countries outside of Scandinavia enabled them to resist Viking raids. The Vikings, who had already settled in France, Russia, Italy and the British Isles, were gradually assimilated by the local population. see also EDDA;ICELAND LITERATURE;SCANDINAVIAN MYTHOLOGY;
LITERATURE
Gurevich A.Ya. Viking campaigns. M., 1966
Ingstad H. In the footsteps of Leif the Happy. L., 1969
Icelandic sagas. M., 1973
Firks I. viking ships. L., 1982

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