Vikings

The Vikings: A Tale of Seafaring Pioneers

Who Were the Vikings?

Vikings were seafaring people from Scandinavia who raided, traded, and settled throughout Europe and beyond from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries. They established Norse settlements and governments in various parts of Europe, Africa, Asia, and North America, leaving a profound impact on early medieval history. But what exactly did these legendary seafarers look like?

The Viking Image

Vikings spoke Old Norse, followed the Old Norse religion, and had their own laws, art, and architecture. Most Vikings were farmers, fishermen, craftsmen, and traders, but popular conceptions often differ from historical sources, perpetuating stereotypes and myths. Were they really wild-haired savages with horned helmets?

The Viking Age

The Viking Age is dated from the earliest recorded raids (793) until the Norman conquest of England (1066). Vikings used the Norwegian Sea and Baltic Sea for sea routes. Descendants of Vikings influenced northern Europe, including Normandy, and English monarchs like King Harold Godwinson had Danish ancestors.

Expansion and Settlement

The Viking Age covered Scandinavian lands, Danelaw, and territories under North Germanic dominance. Vikings established new settlements in Iceland, Greenland, Shetland, Orkney, and Faroe Islands. The Viking Rurik dynasty controlled Slavic and Finnic-dominated areas of Eastern Europe. After the end of the Viking Age, separate Scandinavian kingdoms gradually became distinct nations as they Christianized.

Motives for Expansion

Comparing DNA and archeology data from University of Cambridge and University of Copenhagen suggests that ‘Viking’ may be a job description rather than a matter of heredity for some Viking bands. The motives behind Viking expansion are debated among scholars. Historian Dudo of Saint-Quentin suggested that Vikings sought women from foreign lands due to polygynous relationships and a shortage of women in Scandinavia. However, this theory is no longer widely accepted.

Other Theories

Other theories suggest that Charlemagne’s Christianization efforts led to Viking resistance, or that the Vikings exploited weaknesses in surrounding regions, such as internal divisions in England and the decline of trade routes after the Western Roman Empire fell. Their expansion was not unprecedented, but the scale and frequency were unique.

Impact on Society

Viking society was divided into the three socio-economic classes: thralls, karls, and jarls. Thralls were the lowest ranking class, who comprised as much as a quarter of the population. Slavery was vital to Viking society, used for everyday chores and large-scale construction, trading, and economy. Women in Viking society had limited political power but appeared to have more freedom than women elsewhere.

Social Structure

The average height was estimated to be around 5 ft 7 in for men and 5 ft 1 in for women. The three classes of Viking society were easily recognizable by their appearance: Jarls (men and women) wore expensive clothes, jewelry, and had neat hairstyles; karls (commoners) expressed similar tastes but in a more relaxed and inexpensive way.

Trade and Economy

Viking trade networks extended throughout Europe. They used a system based on precious metals like silver, with traders carrying portable scales for accurate weight measurements. Many archaeological finds in Scandinavia include silk. Wine was imported from France and Germany as a drink of the wealthy.

Export Goods

Vikings exported various goods including amber, fur (from pine martens, foxes, bears, otters, and beavers), cloth and wool, down for bedding and quilted clothing, slaves, weapons, walrus ivory, wax, salt, cod, hunting birds, soapstone and whetstones were traded within the Viking world. Wool was used domestically for warm clothing and sails.

Myth and Reality

The romanticised idea of the Vikings constructed in scholarly and popular circles in northwestern Europe in the 19th and early 20th centuries was a potent one. The figure of the Viking became a familiar and malleable symbol in different contexts in the politics and political ideologies of 20th-century Europe.

Modern Perceptions

In Normandy, the Viking ship became an uncontroversial regional symbol. In Germany, awareness of Viking history in the 19th century had been stimulated by the border dispute with Denmark over Schleswig-Holstein. The idealised view of the Vikings appealed to Germanic supremacists who transformed the figure of the Viking in accordance with the ideology of a Germanic master race.

Legacy and Modern Reenactment

Vikings have served as an inspiration for numerous creative works such as novels, films, TV series like True Blood, The Vikings (History Channel series), and Thor. The character of Thor originated in comic books created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, and has since appeared in Marvel Studios films. The show also addresses the topics of gender equity in Viking society with the inclusion of shield maidens through the character Lagertha, also based on a legendary figure.

Modern Reenactment

The history of the Viking Age was largely based on Icelandic sagas, Danes’ written by Saxo Grammaticus, the Primary Chronicle, and Cogad Gáedel re Gallaib. Few scholars still accept these texts as reliable sources, as historians now rely more on archaeology and numismatics.

Conclusion

The Vikings were not just raiders but traders, settlers, and innovators who left an indelible mark on history. Their legacy continues to inspire modern culture, from video games to comic books, and their stories remind us that the past is a complex tapestry of both myth and reality.