VIKINGS

Viking ships, because of their shallow draft, were able to successfully navigate rivers and streams that many other vessels could not. This allowed the Vikings to raid settlements far upriver from the sea, settlements that frequently were not prepared for an attack from the water.

Typical Viking settlements were centered around the longhouse, a large barn-like building in which the family lived. Other buildings included storehouses, where grain and food supplies were kept, and workshops, where weapons and farming tools were made. Because the Vikings were skilled seafarers, many of their settlements were near water, and they used their well- constructed boats for fishing, for trade, and to raid other settlements and villages.

The Vikings were both a warrior and farming society from the region now known as Scandinavia. They were also seafaring explorers who sailed beyond their homelands not only to raid, but also to build settlements in other parts of the world. The Danish Vikings went south toward Germany, France, England, Spain, and into regions on the northwestern Mediterranean coast. Swedish Vikings went to eastern Europe, while the Norwegians sailed to Greenland and North America.

In the mythology of Scandinavia, Thor is the god of thunder and the supreme creator.

Eric the Red (lived about ), Norwegian explorer, the first European to explore Greenland and to found a colony there. His second son, Leif Ericson, is believed to have been one of the first Europeans to reach North America.

Icelandic explorer Leif Ericson is believed to have been one of the first Europeans to set foot on North America. Ericson may have reached the North Atlantic coast, naming it Vinland, around A Viking-type settlement discovered in Newfoundland matches Ericson's description of Vinland.

The Vikings terrorized the people dwelling on Europe's rivers. They rowed up the Seine and burned Rouen and Paris.

A Viking raid nearly always came as a total surprise. The Vikings were expert navigators and knew the coasts of Europe like the back of their hand. They decided on a target and planned the attack in advance. Having the fastest ships of the day they would arrive seemingly out of nowhere close to the target and storm ashore ready to attack.expert navigators

The Vikings were the international tradesmen of their time. In Constantinople (Istanbul) they traded silk and spices for slaves that they had brought from Russia. Amber they found in the Baltic area. From the north and Greenland in the west, they brought furs, skins and walrus tusk ivory to the trading towns in western Europe.