Daily Life:The Viking were, first and foremost, farmers. They were also craftsmen, raiders, pagans and traders (of timbers, furs walrus ivory, amber and slaves).

Farmers: Viking winters were very cold and long. Most Vikings lived in family groups on farms. Most Vikings lived in the south as it was warmer and had more suitable climates for farming there. The Vikings grew spelt wheat, cabbages, peas and livestock (cattle, sheep, pigs and caribou).

Eating: Vikings ate fish, (as shown by the fish bones found at excavations of Viking villages), wild game –duck, hare and deer (also shown by excavations) wild berries, , meat and fish (that was preserved to last though winter via preservation (methods of such include salting, drying, and salting).

Shelter: The Vikings built longhouses, sheltering both animals and people in the early period, but later, the animals moved to outhouses. Such shelters were made of stone walls, but only when wood was not available. Some houses were covered in turf, but each house had a central fireplace. It was very smoky inside a Viking home.

Society: In Viking society, land, family and farming were very important. Position was decided by land ownership- positions were Kings, Jarls (the aristocracy), Karls (freemen) and thralls (unfree men or slaves).

Their political system was called the Thing and was the national assembly of all free men. The name was derived from the Norse word for ‘round hill’ and it was run by law speakers.

Ships:The knarr, Dreker, Karve and Faering

Knarrs-Viking ships called knarrs where used for trade because of their ability to hold up to 35 tonnes. They were short, wide and well built. They allowed the Vikings to travel far and through rough rapids.

Drekers (longships)- Used for battle, trading, commerce and exploration during the time of the Vikings. Made out of wood and had a cloth flag with many carvings and symbols on the hull. It was described as a graceful, long, light and narrow boat designed for speed. These characteristics would have helped the Vikings have an element of surprise when attacking and made exploration easier.

Karves- Karves were a type of tiny Viking ship similar to the knarr. They were used for human transport, the movement of livestock and other goods. Because they were able to navigate in very shallow water, they were also used for coasting. Karves had broad beams of approximately 17 feet (5.2 m).

Faerings- Open boats with two pairs of oars, commonly found in most boat-building traditions in Western and Northern Scandinavia and dating back to Viking era Scandinavia.

Gods and Legends: Odin was the main Viking god (sometimes called the All-Father because he was the

father of all the gods). He was worshipped by the others, even though there were powerful themselves. He was the wisest, and, according to a Viking story, he got all his knowledge as he drank from the fountain of Mimir.

The god Thor was the most powerful god and son of Odin. He used a weapon called Miolnir, which was a hammer that was the finest weapon among all living things. Along with wearing a belt that increased his strength, he wore a pair on iron gloves. Without these gloves, he could not use his hammer. When all used at once, these pieces of equipment doubled Thor’s strength.

The god Loki was said to be good looking, but very mischievous and devious. He had the ability to shape shift.

Loki became Odin’s blood brother and was accepted into the ranks of the gods. He sometimes helped them, becoming well trusted (one good example of this is when Thor lost his hammer to the Giants, and Loki helped him get his it back)- but the gods couldn’t fully trust him, as he was always switching sides.

A Valkyrie, from Norse mythology, was one of the female hosts who decided which soldiers died in battle and which ones stayed alive. The Valkyries took half of the soldiers who died in barrle to the hall of the slain, in the afterlife, which was ruled over by Odin.

The Vikings believed in some mythical things at their time. The major thing they believed in were the gods. They would sometimes sacrifice animals to them. They also believed that there were nine worlds inhabited by different creatures. All of these worlds were connected by a tree called Yggdrasil. The Vikings also belived that the world would end one day, and called the end Ragnarök in old NorseRagnarok was the doom of the gods and the humans. It was claimed to be the final battle between the Aesir and Jotuns. The battle was said take place on the plains called Vigrid. –They also believed in dwarves, giants and elves.

The Vikings in England:o The Anglo-Saxons suffered numerous Viking raids during the late 8th and early 9th

centuries. The surprise raids (conducted by no more than 3 longships at a time) focused on coastal monasteries and towns during Spring and Summer. The nature of Viking attacks changed in the 840s with more and more raids with fleets of up to 300 ships.

o 786AD- In 786AD, the Saxons were spread out all over England, until the Vikings attacked from the North-East. The Vikings significantly damaged the monasteries and monks, and then, satisfied, returned to Scandanavia.

The great army: o Ælla of Northumbria captured the Viking leader Ragnar Lodrok, and threw him in a

pit of poisonous snakes (according to the famous Viking source, “Ragnar’s Saga”. Ragnar’s 3 sons landed in Northumbria with thousands of warriors (the Great Army) and looted from and killed its people in revenge. By 874AD,Northumbria, East Anglia and Mercia had been conquered by the VIkings, only to be stopped by King Alfred of Weesex.

The Danelaw: o King Alfred signed a treaty with the Vikings giving a large portion of England to the

Danes (the area was known as the Danelaw). It was a prosperous and flourishing kingdom, but its wealth meant it was prone to Viking attacks.The Danelaw ended in 954 when Danelaw’s King Erik Bloodaxe was driven out.

Viking Kings;o Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark conquered all of England in 1013.o Sweyn’s son Canute reigned from 1016-1035,. and Canute’s sons Harald and

Harthacanute (died without heir) reigned from 1040-1042. o Edward the Confessor (an English Prince) followed, died, and was replaced in 1066

by Harald Hardrada (Norway), Harold Godwinson (earl of Essex) and William (duke of Normandy in France). The Witna gave the crown to Harold Godwinson.

o Harald Hardrada inaded England with a fleet of 300 ships and took the army North to meet GOdwinson, who killed Hardrada in battle. Meanwhile, William wanted to take the crown (as he was related to Edward the confessor’s mother, was promised to thake the crown (by Edward) and Godwinson had promised tosupport his claim after being helped by him when shipwrekcked in 1064. William set up camp in Hastings, a battle lasting all day was fought, Godwinson was killed and William was king, crowned on Christmas Day.

o Bayeux Tapestry- a long piece of embroidered cloth made by English embroiderers on the orders of the Normans. It shows the events leading up to the Norman invasion of England in 1066, and is a piece of Viking propaganda.