DK Eyewitness Books - Viking

6

Who were the Vikings?

FȰȳʲʯʯȺȦȢȳȴ, from the 8th to 11th

centuries, the Vikings took the world by

storm. In search of land, slaves, gold, and

silver, these brave warriors and explorers set

sail from their homes in Norway, Sweden,

and Denmark. They raided across Europe,

traveled as far as Baghdad, in modern Iraq, and even

reached North America. The speed and daring of Viking

attacks was legendary. Christian monks wrote wit h horror

about the violent raids on monasteries and

towns. But the Vikings were more than wild

barbarians from the north. They were

shrewd traders, excellent navigators, and

superb craftsmen and shipbuilders.

They had a rich tradition of story-telling,

and lived in a society that was open and

democratic for its day.

ROMANTIC VIKINGS
There are many romantic fantasies
about Vikings. Most of them are
wrong! Many pictures show them
wearing horned helmets.
But real Vikings wore
round or pointed caps
of iron or leather
(p. 13).

CATTY BROOCH

A Swedish Viking held his

cloak in place with this

brooch. It is made of silver

coated in gold. The details

are highlighted with

niello, a black metallic

compound. The style

of decoration, with

little catlike heads,

is known as the

Borre style.

SCARY SHIP

Vikings often carved

terrifying beasts on their

ships to scare their enemies

(p. 10). This dragon head was found in a

riverbed in Holland. It dates from the 5th

century, 300 years before the Viking Age. It may

have been part of a Saxon ship sunk during a raid.

Sailing ships were known before the Vikings, but

they were less sophisticated. Viking ships were fast

and flexible, and could cruise up narrow channels

and inlets with ease.

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Labrador

Newfoundland

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Jerusalem

Constantinople

Normandy

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THE VIKING WORLD

The brown areas on this map are

Viking settlements. From late in

the 8th century, Vikings raided,

traded, and explored far and wide.

They discovered Iceland in 870 and

sailed farther west to Greenland in

about 985 (pp. 20–21). Leif the

Lucky was probably the first

European to set foot in North

America. He is thought to have

landed in Newfoundland, Canada,

in around 1001. Vikings sailed east

over the Baltic Sea and continued

up rivers into Russia. They went on

overland as far as the cities of

Constantinople (now Istanbul) and

Jerusalem. Other Vikings sailed

around the west coast of Europe

and into the Mediterranean Sea.

Thanks to their ships and seafaring

skills, they could take people

completely by surprise.

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