Contents INTRODUCTION 6 Chapter 1 VIKINGS AT HOME 10 Chapter 2 A WARRIOR PEOPLE 17 Chapter 3 INVASIONS OF ENGLAND 25 Chapter 4 MARAUDERS ON THE MOVE 32 Chapter 5 THE LEGACY OF THE VIKINGS 38 GLOSSARY 44 FOR FURTHER READING 46 INDEX 47
INTRODUCTION Vikings were seafaring warriors who raided and colonized wide areas of Europe from the ninth to the eleventh centuries burning plundering and killing as they went These marauders came from Scandinavia what is now Denmark Norway and Sweden The Vikings were made up of landowning chieftains and clan heads their followers freemen and any ener getic young clan members who sought adventure and booty over seas Some were part-time raiders and pillagers spending part of the year farming or fishing at home Vikings were never a unified group Rather the Viking trait of seeking riches outside their homeland was one shared by many peoples who dwelt in Scandinavia The exact ethnic composition of the Viking armies is unknown in particular cases but the Vi kings expansion in the Baltic lands and in Russia can probably be attributed to the Swedes However the nonmilitary colonization of the Orkney Islands Faroe Islands and Iceland was clearly accom plished by the Norwegians The Vikings disruptive influence profoundly affected European history Their name was given to the era that dated from about 740 CE to about 1050 the Viking Age During that time the Scandi navian countries seem to have possessed a practically inexhaust ible surplus of manpower Leaders of ability who could organize groups of warriors into conquering bands and armies were seldom 6
This tenth-century illustration depicts Vikings leaving their ships to explore their fortunes in England The image was created on vellum which is parchment made from calfskin 7
