Vikings
Vikings
When the term Viking is brought up an immediate image of bloodthirsty men with long beards and horned helmets is planted in our minds. This is the image the historical sources have given us, and it is partly true. Vikings were merciless when raiding, but they were peaceful when they traded. Their navigational technology was exceptional, and the ones who settled in foreign lands contributed greatly to the lands’ culture.
The way we view Vikings has come mainly from sources in Western Europe who had bad experiences with the invaders, so we are presented with the worst side of the Vikings. However there is evidence of homesteads, farms, and marketplaces, which tell of a common everyday life. As the Viking period progressed, society changed; leaving families with land and power to form the basis for kingdoms, and the first towns were founded (187). Their victims’ records of the events may have exaggerated details of the Vikings’ raiding, but there is no doubt some truth in the records. The Vikings were cruel in their nature.
The Vikings are famous for their violent ways when they pillaged and plundered villages. Their first raid began on Lindisfarne Monastery and was followed by a chain of attacks all over the coast during the next 200 years. As the years went on the occurrence of Viking attacks went up as they became stronger and larger. They were very intelligent, they raided villages when they were weak or off guard, and traded when they were powerful. The Vikings had long ships which gave them speed and a strategic advantage. This allowed them to sneak up on villages and quickly get out before the village can get together an army. Shortly after, the camps that they raided became their settlements and this is when Vikings control started to grow (188-189).
Trade, however, was still of great importance, even in periods when Viking raids were occurring all the time, trade was conducted between the Vikings and local villages all the time. The expansion
When the term Viking is brought up an immediate image of bloodthirsty men with long beards and horned helmets is planted in our minds. This is the image the historical sources have given us, and it is partly true. Vikings were merciless when raiding, but they were peaceful when they traded. Their navigational technology was exceptional, and the ones who settled in foreign lands contributed greatly to the lands’ culture.
The way we view Vikings has come mainly from sources in Western Europe who had bad experiences with the invaders, so we are presented with the worst side of the Vikings. However there is evidence of homesteads, farms, and marketplaces, which tell of a common everyday life. As the Viking period progressed, society changed; leaving families with land and power to form the basis for kingdoms, and the first towns were founded (187). Their victims’ records of the events may have exaggerated details of the Vikings’ raiding, but there is no doubt some truth in the records. The Vikings were cruel in their nature.
The Vikings are famous for their violent ways when they pillaged and plundered villages. Their first raid began on Lindisfarne Monastery and was followed by a chain of attacks all over the coast during the next 200 years. As the years went on the occurrence of Viking attacks went up as they became stronger and larger. They were very intelligent, they raided villages when they were weak or off guard, and traded when they were powerful. The Vikings had long ships which gave them speed and a strategic advantage. This allowed them to sneak up on villages and quickly get out before the village can get together an army. Shortly after, the camps that they raided became their settlements and this is when Vikings control started to grow (188-189).
Trade, however, was still of great importance, even in periods when Viking raids were occurring all the time, trade was conducted between the Vikings and local villages all the time. The expansion