ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THESE VILE WARRIORS! VIKINGS ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THESE VILE WARRIORS!

Who are the Vikings? The Vikings were vicious warriors who fought for land and were very well known for their experienced fighters. They were great travellers and sailed to other parts of Europe as well as Britain on their longboats. Longboats were advanced so they could sneak up close to the shore. This meant Vikings could easily reach land and gain the upper hand in battle. Vikings were more than warriors. They were farmers, fisherman and traders. Viking women were skilled weavers. They made beautiful things out of wood, bone and textiles. Viking is an Old Norse word meaning ‘pirate raid’.

Where did they come from? Vikings came from Sweden, Norway and Denmark and were also called Norsemen. These countries are now known as Scandinavia. Some Vikings settled in northern France, in a place called Normandy. Vikings homelands were cold and not suitable for farming. Norway was very hilly, Sweden had lots of forests and Denmark had sandy soil. England had mild weather and good soil for growing crops and keeping animals.

Why did Vikings raid and steal? Vikings were traders so they needed money to swap for the things they wanted. They could steal gold and jewels from the monasteries in England and bring people back as servants. Monasteries grew their own food and made their own wine, so the Vikings could take this back with them. Vikings also stole Bibles and other important books. They didn’t want to keep them but knew they could sell them back to the monks, which would make them more money. Most of the places the Vikings raided were not defended by an army, so they could take all their stolen things back to their longboats.

When did Vikings arrive? Vikings first invaded Britain in AD793 at a monastery on Holy Island called Lindisfarne. Today it is very famous because of what happened there and you can go and visit the ruins. The Vikings were surprised to see the monks didn’t fight back, so they killed them, took all their gold and burnt the monastery down. Over the following years they attacked villages, cities and monasteries near the sea and stole whatever they could. In AD866 the Vikings turned their attention to York (Jorvik), capturing this and making it the second biggest city in the country. Eric Bloodaxe was King of Jorvik and coins have been found with his name on.

Danelaw The Vikings started to invade and settle in areas of Britain, whilst other areas were still under the rule of Anglo-Saxons. The Vikings tried to invade Wessex and this battle went on for 23 years. Finally King Alfred had had enough. He made a peace treaty with the Vikings, ensuring that they could keep a third of Britain but they must convert to Christianity, promise to stay in their land and not invade further. Viking areas in the east and northern England became known as Danelaw. Place names show where Viking’s settled. Places ending in –by mean a farm or village. Places ending in –thorpe mean a small farm or hamlet. Examples are Derby, Whitby and Grimsby and Scunthorpe.

Viking beliefs Thursday is a Viking word, meaning ‘Thor’s day’, one of their gods. Vikings were fierce warriors and some of the words we use today come from Old Norse, like ransack, club and berserk. Vikings were Pagans who had many gods but the most important were Odin, Thor and Freyr. They also believed in Valhalla, which was their heaven. Vikings thought it was a great hall where warriors feasted with the gods. They thought you could get to Valhalla by being brave and dying in battle.

Famous Vikings in English history Sven Forkbeard was the King of Denmark who invaded Britain and forced the Anglo-Saxon King Ethelred to run away, leaving his wife and son called Edward in England. Sven had a son called Canute who married Ethelred’s wife. King Canute became the first Viking to rule over all of England. His son ruled next as King Harthnacnut Ethelred’s son, Edward was King next but he died with no children in AD1065, so England had no King. Duke William of Normandy invaded and won the Battle of Hastings in AD1066 to become King William I (The Conqueror). William the Conqueror’s great-great-great-grandfather was Rollo. He was a Viking raider who was given Normandy in France if he promised not to steal and raid anymore.