Welcome to the book of Vikings. The legend of the Vikings is one that is shrouded in mystery. Their stories and myths have embedded themselves in popular culture, and those are the Vikings we see in films, books and TV shows. But the real Vikings - the Norse seafarers - led an existence that was often more incredible than any fictional tale. In this book, we tell that story, from their origins in Scandinavia to their expeditions across the seas. Known to be ruthless raiders and fearless fighters, discover how the Vikings expanded their empire and conquered new lands.
Welcome to BOOK OF VIKINGS
Blood and Sea • Traders, raiders, explorers, and conquerors: Vikings changed the world
Before the North • A key record of Norse myth claims that the Vikings weren’t endemic to Scandinavia, but is this archaeological truth or just a good story?
Family trees • Could a common motif in Proto-Indo-European myth make Snorri Sturluson’s origin theory credible after all?
Kingdom of the Northmen • How the Vikings turned a small duchy into a great Medieval power
‘La Merveille’
Independent Normandy
Vinland the Good • Hundreds of years before Columbus, the Norse were the first Europeans in North America
New World Explorers • The people who set out in search of the new western lands
The only record of the voyage • There’s just one source for this saga
Early Viking Raids on Britain • From Lindisfarne to the Great Heathen Army
What’s in a name? • It’s time to uncover why we call them ‘Vikings’
The Danelaw • What happened when the Vikings settled in England?
Erik Bloodaxe • The last Viking king of York?
The Vikings Return • Sweyn Forkbeard and the conquest of Anglo-Saxon England
The Battle of Maldon • A spectacular reminder of a Viking triumph
Emperor of the North • 1,000 years ago, a young Viking warrior became king of England. No one at the time can have expected how remarkable his reign would be
Murder in the cathedral • Cnut’s involvement in the elimination of his brother-in-law Ulf
Turning back the tide • The most-remembered event of Cnut’s reign
England’s Viking overlords • Discover the lineage of England’s Viking rulers
The Last Viking King • With the Viking Age setting in the west, one man set out to reclaim the lands, power and culture of his forefathers. His name was Harald Hardrada, and this is his story
Viking weapons
War of words
Prince of plunder • The lands that felt Hardrada’s wrath first hand
Three ruthless victories
Hardrada’s last hurrah • Follow the events of the last Viking king’s final battle at Stamford Bridge on 25 September 1066
Life after Harald
Hardrada’s lineage
Viking Justice • Though they have a reputation for being bloodthirsty pirates abroad, the Vikings were governed by the rule of law at home
Divine judgement • The saga of Tyr and Fenrir helped engrain a sense of justice into Norse culture
Open-air trial • Viking disputes would be settled at assemblies known as Things
Vicious Viking punishments
Fight for your rights • Holmgang – a ritual duel – was the most effective way of settling disputes in the Viking Age
The law of the land • Where Vikings went, Things followed
DO YOU KNOW WHAT’S UNDER YOUR BED? • They come from all over the world: from the deserts of Africa to the forests of Europe; from the highest mountains of Asia to the bottom of the cold northern seas. Discover the lore and legends of monsters and mythical beasts.
How to Survive Trial by Combat • Stack the odds in your favor
How not to… become labeled a coward
4 FAMOUS… TYPES OF...
