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The Vikings

Discover the fascinating world of the Vikings, fierce raiders from Scandinavia who also excelled in trading and exploration. Learn about their voyages to new lands, their settlements, and their impressive longships. Explore their motivations for raiding and how their legacy is preserved through archaeological finds and ancient texts.

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The Vikings

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  1. The Vikings

  2. Who were the Vikings? • The Vikings were raiders from Scandinavia (Norway, Denmark and Sweden). • Only when they were raiding were they "vikings": They were basically farmers who raised livestock and fishermen, some of whom went "a-viking" in the summer. • The Vikings were also known as the Norse or Northmen.

  3. When did the Vikings live? • The Viking Age began about 750 AD • Theend of the Viking Age is usually given as 1066 when the Norwegian King Harald Haraade lost a battle to the English King Harold.

  4. Where did the Vikings go?

  5. Where did they go? • WEST: The Vikings sailed west and discovered Iceland, Greenland, and Vinland, which today is know as New Foundland, Canada.  • EAST: They sailed east to Estonia, and from there sailed and down rivers to get further into the land. By sailing on rivers, the Vikings got as far as the Black Sea! • SOUTH: Most frequently they traveled to the British Isles, Ireland or France. Isolated towns and churches were easy targets for the Vikings.   • COLONIES: In Northern England the Norsemen settled and established a large colony. A great number of Vikings settled on Iceland in the 9th century, and some went further west, to Greenland. Some Vikings also settled in Eastern Europe. 

  6. What did they do? • Raiding and Pillaging • They traveled by sea or up rivers in their fast and beautiful longships to attack and seize treasures from monasteries, towns, and churches. • Trading • The Norse were traders and skilled craftspeople in wood, jewelry, stone, and ivory. • In Asia, they traded goods, often slaves, with Arabic merchants and brought back home exotic goods like glass and spices.  • Exploring • They created trade networks and settlements throughout Europe and across the North Atlantic Ocean to Iceland, Greenland, and the North American Mainland. • Ship Building

  7. Why did they raid? • Increased wealth and trading within Europe • Fine treasures available in monasteries and churches • Political instability in Scandinavia • Improved technology of the longships • Political unrest and frequent war in Europe • Over-population and limited farmland in Scandinavia.

  8. How did they travel? • There were two distinct classes of Viking ships: the longship and the knarr. • The longship was used for warfare and exploration. • designed for speed and agility • equipped with oars and a sail • Long, narrow hull allowed it to travel in shallow water • The knarr was a slower merchant ship with a larger cargo capacity.

  9. How do we know about Vikings? • Norse rune- and picture stones and grave monuments • Chronicles written by European monks • Norse literature (The Sagas) written 200-300 years after the end of the Viking Age • Archeology and excavations

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