Viking Invasions

iking invasions started in around 790 AD and in 793 the monastery at Lindisfarne was attacked, while the monastery of Iona on the west coast of Scotland was attacked in 802 AD.Churches were an easy target for the Vikings as they were built in remote locations and were poorly protected. Most importantly they contained ornaments made of silver and gold. The Vikings took everything of value, burnt the buildings and either killed the monks or took them as slaves. The number of attacks steadily grew and became an annual occurrence. At first the Vikings attacked in the summer and returned to their homelands for the winter.

The homeland of the Vikings was Scandinavia, the present-day countries of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. As the Vikings were pagans they did not share the same values as Christians towards churches and their inhabitants, and because these rich sources of gold and silver were often unprotected they were an easy target. The Viking invasions lasted for around 300 years and this time is also known as the Viking Age.

Map of early Viking invasions

he years after 835 saw a change in Viking tactics. Much larger numbers of Viking ships and men started arriving on Britain's shores and soon the Vikings began to set-up permanent camps and stay in Britain over the winter months. In 844 the king of Northumbria was killed while defending his homeland against the invaders and in 865 the 'Great Army' landed in East Anglia, establishing a permanent foothold in Britain. The Anglo-Saxons on the east of the country were not strong enough to evict the invaders and within ten years the Vikings had control of East Anglia, the east of Mercia and parts of southern Northumbria. In Wessex, Alfred the Great, was an Anglo-Saxon ruler who was able to resist the Viking advances.

York became a centre of Viking occupation known as the kingdom of Jorvik and the wider area that the Vikings controlled was known as the Danelaw. In this area the customs of the Scandinavians were the norm. Edward the Elder, Alfred's successor, and his sister Aethelflaed, the Lady of the Mercians, were able to turn the tide of the Viking advance and win some land back from them. In 910 Edward won the important battle of Tettenhall where many Vikings were killed. Edward's success was repeated by his son Athelstan who defeated the Danes in the north and took control of Northumbria.

When the eleven year old Athelred II became the king of England in 978, the Vikings took advantage of his inability to rule the country to start raiding again. Unable to deal effectively with the invaders the English king was forced to pay the Viking money or Danegeld for them to leave. Things became so serious for Athelred that in 1013 Swein Fork-Beard and his son Canute sailed from Denmark to attack England. The Londoners defended themselves and the Vikings moved elsewhere, taking Wessex, Mercia and Northumbria. But when Athelred and his family fled from the country, Swein was chosen as the new king of England.

Swein died shortly after becoming king and Athelred was restored when Canute returned to Denmark. Athelred's reign was short and he was succeeded by his son Edmund Ironside, who unlike his father, was a fierce warrior. Edmund was able to defend England against an invasion by Canute, but after a series of inconclusive battles a peace agreement was reached whereby the county was divided between the two and when one of them should die, the other would rule the country. Edmund died shortly after the agreement and Canute became king of England.

The Scandinavian rulers controlled England until 1042 when Harthacanute died without leaving a heir and Edward the Confessor, the son of Athelred was chosen to become the new king of England. Although the Norweigian king Harald Hardrada attempted to take the English throne after the death of Edward in 1066, he failed to do so after being defeated at the battle of Stamford. This was followed by the conquest of England by William the Conqueror and the era of Viking invasions was more or less over.

Viking Shields (Click shields to launch the TimeRef shield editor)

he Vinland map was found in the late 1950s and was reported to have been drawn in the late medieval period. It is supposed to show the areas visited by Europeans in the 11th century. Scientific analysis of the map and inks used are not 100% conclusive but the general opinion is that the map is a fake. Because the map was published without a copyright notice it is shown here. (Image on wikimedia)