Who were the Vikings? | History for Year 6 PDF Download

When was the Viking Age?

• The Viking Age spanned roughly from AD 700 to 1100. During this period, many Vikings left Scandinavia, traveling by longboat to places like Britain and Ireland.
• The Anglo-Saxons referred to these invaders as 'Danes,' though they hailed from Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. Vikings navigated the seas, trading goods such as silver, silks, spices, wine, jewellery, glass, and pottery, which they brought back to their homelands.

What kind of people were the Vikings?

• The term 'Viking' derives from Old Norse, meaning ‘a pirate raid,’ and those who went raiding were said to be 'going Viking.' However, not all Vikings were ruthless warriors. While some were fierce fighters, others settled peacefully as farmers, raising animals and growing crops. They were also skilled artisans, creating intricate metalwork and wooden carvings. Viking warriors wielded long swords and axes in battle.
• The first recorded Viking raid in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle occurred around AD 787, marking the beginning of intense conflicts between the Anglo-Saxons and Vikings. 
• Unlike the predominantly Christian population of Britain, the Vikings were pagans and had no qualms about attacking monasteries. These Christian sites were vulnerable, as monks were unarmed, and the monasteries held valuable treasures like gold, jewels, books, food, drink, cattle, and clothing.

What was the Viking invasion?

In AD 865, a Viking army crossed the North Sea with the intent to conquer, not just raid, land in Britain. They overwintered in Britain for the first time in AD 866. Over the following years, this army conquered the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Northumbria, East Anglia, and most of Mercia. By AD 878, nearly all Anglo-Saxon kingdoms had fallen to the Vikings, except for Wessex, led by King Alfred the Great. Alfred defeated the Viking army in battle but could not expel them from Britain entirely.

Where did the Vikings settle?

Vikings from Scandinavia primarily settled in the Danelaw, a region covering northern and eastern England. Norwegian Vikings, or 'Norse,' established settlements in northern Scotland, as well as the Shetland and Orkney Islands. They also settled on the Isle of Man and frequently raided Wales, though few made permanent homes there. In Ireland, the Vikings founded the city of Dublin.

What was the Danelaw like?

• The Danelaw encompassed the area east of a line connecting London and Chester, under Viking control. Key regions included Northumbria (including modern-day Yorkshire), East Anglia, and the Five Boroughs (Leicester, Nottingham, Derby, Stamford, and Lincoln). Viking families settled these lands, seeking better farmland than was available in Scandinavia. 
• The city of York, known as ‘Jorvik’ to the Vikings, was the most significant settlement, housing over 10,000 people and serving as a major trading hub. Many British towns with names ending in -by, -thorpe, or -ay were likely founded by Vikings.

How do we know about the Vikings?

Most written accounts of the Viking invasions and settlements in Britain come from English sources, primarily the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles and later medieval texts, such as histories and poems. These sources often depict the Vikings as brutal invaders and the people of Wessex, particularly its kings, as heroic defenders of ‘England.’ The Vikings left no written records during the Viking Age (AD 700–1100), though later 13th-century writings preserve oral traditions. They did use runes for writing. Archaeological evidence, including longships, grave goods, and coins, provides significant insights into Viking life and activities.