The Vikings constitute a group of people that lived in the northern region of Europe during the Medieval Era (800 until 1066 CE). Initially, they settled in the Scandinavian countries of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. They practiced raiding, colonization, conquering and trading across Europe and North America. The Vikings often boarded their longships and sailed across the seas, raiding settlements along Europe’s northern shore and reaching islands like Great Britain. The Vikings originally arrived in England in 788 CE to attack monasteries and small communities. They, however, rapidly expanded and conquered the British Isles enabling them to expand to Europe, North America, and Asia. The introduction of Christianity and defeat by king William of Denmark in 1066 CE signified their fall.
Initial Raids of the Vikings
The Viking Age began in 788 AD after the Norwegian group raided the Lindisfarne abbey on the Northumberland coastline in modern northern England. Although the raid did not destroy the monastery, it symbolized the new group’s cruelty (Vikings). The Viking intruders, unlike earlier cultures, showed no regard for religious organizations like monasteries, which were frequently left unattended and defenseless along the shoreline (Andrew McDonald and Somerville, The Viking Age: A Reader). Shortly afterward, Viking assaults intensified as they attacked the poorly defended island monasteries in the Hebrides and Rathlin. In 799, the Vikings attacked and raided the monastery at the shoreline of St Philibert’s in Noirmoutier, which overlooks the estuary on the Loire River. The monastery became the site of the first officially recorded raid orchestrated by the Vikings in Europe.
For many proceeding decades, the Vikings exercised their raids on small regions at a time which involved looting goods from the coastal strip of the British Isles. From 830 AD, the European commerce center of Dorestad, which lies 80 kilometers from the North Sea, became a frequent target. The Vikings then used internal European disputes to expand their operations further inland (Ellis). Lothar, the heir and son of Louis the pious, a former ruler of Frankia, sought the aid of a Vikings army in a fight for domination on the isles. This fostered other Vikings’ greedy concerns toward Frankish monarchs as they aimed at amassing wealth from the current conflicts. Therefore, the monarchs were easily raided and conquered due to their divisions.
Conquests in the British Isles
Following the divisions among the British Isles, such as Ireland and Scotland, the Vikings intensified their attacks on them to subdue and colonize them. The attacks commenced during the 1850s AD, with Scotland and Hebrides becoming the first isles to be subdued in the Northern region. After a successful takeover of all kingdoms, the Vikings established the first commercial centers in Dublin, Wicklow, and Waterford (Ellis). They used the existing bases on the Irish coastline to launch raids inside Ireland, the Irish Sea, and England.
Following the threat of imminent attacks, king Charles the Bald of Wessex stepped up his defense of West Frankia. He implemented various reinforcements on cities, abbeys, waterways, and coastal locations. After 851, Wessex became the only kingdom in England to successfully repel Viking raids (Andrew McDonald and Somerville, The Viking Age: A Reader). English forces headed by successors of king Alfred commenced recapturing the Scandinavian territories of England during the first quarter of the tenth century. In 952 AD, the final Scandinavian ruler, Erik Bloodaxe, was expelled and killed, irrevocably unifying the English as one kingdom.
Vikings’ Settlements in Europe and Beyond
The Vikings began full-scale attacks and war in the 800s, aiming at dominating and colonizing the existing kingdoms and monarchs. In 842AD, they stormed Nantes and assaulted cities as far as France, Bordeaux, Orleans, Strasbourg, and Nimes. Vikings attacked Seville in 844 and Pisa in 859, plundering both cities (Ellis). In 911AD, the West Frankish ruler ceded Rouen and the immediate surroundings to Rollo, a Viking chief, to prevent other raids from crossing into the Seine. The Seine included the area encompassing western France and is currently referred to as Normandy. Historians believe that Leif Eriksson-a Viking legend was the first European to uncover and travel to North America. Upon reaching America, Eriksson erected a temporary structure in Vinland town at L’Anse aux Meadows, near-contemporary Newfoundland.
Danish Dominance
Harald Bluetooth’s tenure as the ruler of a newly united, strong, and protestant Denmark in the mid-tenth century signaled the onset of the second Viking period. The Vikings commenced their attacks by aiming at Europe’s ports, particularly England. The attacks were timely as the current rulers, the descendants of Alfred the Great, were weakening (Ellis). Sven Forkbeard, Harald’s disobedient son, began assaults on London in 991AD. The war ended in 1013AD after king Ethelred was captured and killed. The following year, Sven died, delegating his son Knut in charge of a Scandinavian kingdom comprised of England, Denmark, and Norway.
Fall of the Viking Age
In England, the defeat of the Vikings by Denmark in 1066 marked the culmination of the Viking Age. Additionally, Scandinavians’ introduction and acceptance of Christianity resulted in the disregard of Viking culture across Europe. The Scandinavian geographical roots and some English terminologies currently exist in regions where the Vikings settled. Northern Britain, Scotland, and the Soviet Union, particularly Russia, contain rich examples of the Scandinavian culture. The Vikings left a vast extensive literature in Iceland, representing the most notable triumphs of their glorious history.
Works Cited
Andrew McDonald, R., and Angus A. Somerville. The Viking Age: A Reader. 2020.
Ellis, Caitlin. “Remembering the Vikings: Ancestry, Cultural Memory and Geographical Variation.” History Compass, vol. 19, no. 4, 2021.