In 793, armed raiders attacked a monastery on the Northumbria coast. The terrified, stunned monks were captured by the attackers who tied their hands and feet with chains and took them away. This is the first recorded Viking attack.
The Vikings were the pirates of the Scandinavian region, Denmark, Norway, and present-day Sweden, who for more than two centuries brought any disaster they wanted on any region they could reach. As a result, they became known as violent and ruthless warriors.
Who were the Vikings and where did they come from?
The Vikings were seafaring people who lived in southern Scandinavia, namely Denmark, Norway and Sweden. From the end of the 8th century to the end of the 11th century, they traveled from Europe to the Caspian Sea and Russia.
They formed part of a complex Norse culture that was both warrior, raider and trader. In the history of the Vikings, poems and writings were left, which show that they were great storytellers and poets.
However, they are so known for being violent and predatory that it is hard to believe that they were also good artists, storytellers and traders.
The Vikings' way of life was very rural, with almost no cities among their societies. The vast majority made a meager living through agriculture, or along the coast, through fishing.
In the 7th and 8th centuries, they realized that boats were powered by sails instead of just using oars. Little by little, small boats became big ships.
These ships were designed so that they can move easily and quickly in any depth of water and can be easily beached.
Exactly when, how, and how many Vikings decided to unite and appoint a chieftain to raid other places is unclear. Maybe they were at war with themselves, and whoever had more power and family would become the boss.
Perhaps those who had seen other areas came and told of the riches beyond the waters, and the Vikings, who barely lived by farming and fishing, decided to raid other areas.
Maybe both of these things made them become warriors to get wealth. But what is recorded from their first attack and mentioned above starts from 793. After that, in 795 in Ireland and 799 in France, the first Viking raids were recorded.
Those who fell victim to these savage warriors were not called Vikings. The name came later, becoming popular in the 11th century, and is probably derived from the word vik, which means "bay" or "inlet" in the Old Norse language spoken by the Vikings.
Instead of Vikings, they were called "Dani" meaning Danes. Of course, the Denmark we know today is different from the Denmark they said then. They meant the Danes, the northerners without religion and faith! Of course, living in present-day Denmark, you see the influence of Viking culture everywhere.
When and where did the Viking attack start?
Vikings first attacked different areas with only a few boats. After looting some provisions and being resisted, they would return home.
But in the 850s larger raids began into southern England, Ireland and along the Seine in France, establishing bases from which to begin to dominate the hinterland.
These attacks reached a crescendo in the second half of the 9th century. The Vikings built long and fortified ports in Ireland, such as Dublin Port, from where they dominated the eastern part of the island.
In France in 885, a Viking army besieged and nearly captured Paris after their king was politically defeated.
In Scotland, they dominated Shetland and the Hebrides and entered England in 865. They defeated Northumbria and in 866 their southern capital, York, fell. In the same way, they took over other parts of England.
The Vikings ruled the Wessex region of England for many years until their last king, Eric Bidaleks, was expelled and killed in 954.
However, the customs of the Vikings, and especially the Danes, continued there for a long time, and traces of Scandinavian DNA can still be found in the area known for centuries as the Danelaw.
In the middle of the 11th century, a united kingdom appeared in Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and finally the intensity of the Viking attack was reduced.
In the early 11th century, when royally-sponsored expeditions succeeded in re-conquering England and enthroning Danish kings, the Vikings' last activity was in fact in the early 11th century.
Where did the Vikings settle and live?
The Vikings had many parts of Scotland, especially Orkney, the area around Dublin and Normandy in France and a large part of Ukraine and Russia under their control for many years.
But this was not the extent of the territories conquered by the Vikings. These adventurous sailors, whose power in shipbuilding made them dare to travel to other lands, went to the west of the Atlantic Ocean to find lands and, as a result, more spoils.
The Vikings probably arrived in the Faroe Islands in the 8th century and used it as a stepping stone to cross the Atlantic Ocean to the west.
In the middle of the 9th century, the Vikings came to Iceland in search of new lands, and in 872 colonists led by Ingólf Arnarsson settled on the island; and created a unique society, fiercely independent and without any formal allegiance to the Norwegian kings.
Since 930, an assembly of Iceland's leaders met every summer on a plain in the center of the island. It is claimed that the oldest parliament in the world was this assembly.
Who was the most famous viking?
Ivarr the Boneless, the son of Ragnar Lodbrok, a famous warrior and one of the leaders of the "Great Heathen Army" attacked England in 865.
The reason why he was called boneless is not known, but some speculate that maybe there was a defect in his leg or bone structure that made him known as Ivar the boneless.
Anyway, he was famous for his shrewdness and strategic vision. Boneless Aivar was so brutal and hard-hearted that when he killed others in the war, he seemed to go into a trance and lost himself. He fought more ferociously than anyone else and in short, he had defeated all the Vikings.
When did the Viking Age end?
Viking raids and raids, which began in England with the attack on Lindisfarne in AD 793, ended with the defeat of Harald Hardrada (King of Norway) in 1066.
However, the Vikings' influence extended from the Middle East to North America and was not something that could be destroyed overnight by just losing a single battle.
At the same time that Hardrada was at the end of his kingdom due to a neck injury, at Stamford Bridge, the Norman conquest of the Vikings took place. Its leader, and the future King of England, Rollo's great-grandson William, was a Viking!
