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The Viking Age (about 800–1050 CE) was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonising, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America.
- The Early Days
- Far and Wide
- Control and Establishment
- Vikings in Southern Europe
- Battles in Britain
- Even Farther, Even Wider
- Growing Influence of Christianity
- The Last Days
Late-700s: Viking Raids Begin. By the late 8th century, Norse society had evolved into a formidable seafaring culture of raiders, traders, and explorers. Norsemen targeted vulnerable Christian monasteries and settlements, particularly on small, isolated islands. These early raids were swift and brutal, capitalising on the lack of protection in thes...
844: Muslims repel a Viking raid in Spain. Viking raiders ventured far beyond their traditional northern territories, sailing into the Iberian Peninsula. sailed up the Guadalquivir River and sacked the wealthy city of Seville within the Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba. However, Emir Abd al-Rahman II swiftly organised a counterattack, defeating the Vikin...
872: Harald I gains control of Norway. According to medieval Icelandic historians, Harald Fairhair (Harald hårfagre) became the first King of Norway and would rule to 930. He was regarded to have unified Norway after the the Battle of Hafrsfjord. The famous swords sculpture in Stavanger (Sverd i fjell) commemorates this moment. 878-890: Danelaw beg...
900s: Trade with the Byzantine Empire: Viking traders, known as the Varangians, established important trade routes along the rivers of Eastern Europe, eventually reaching Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul). The Varangian Guard, composed of Viking warriors, became an elite unit of the Byzantine Emperor’s forces. 911: Rollo founds Normandy in Franc...
910: Battle of Tettenhall / Wednesfield. A major turning point in the fight between the English kingdoms and the Danish Vikings. Allied forces from Mercia and Wessex, led by King Edward the Elder and his sister, Æthelflæd, Lady of Mercia, decisively defeated the Northumbrian Vikings. The Viking forces had been raiding deep into Mercian and Wessex t...
930: Icelandic Parliament. Norse settlers in Iceland formed the Althing, one of the world’s oldest parliaments. This firmed up the settlement of Iceland and spurred further Viking exploration, leading to the discovery of Greenland and North America. 941: Rus Vikings attack Constantinople. The Rus and their allies took advantage of the Byzantine fle...
995: Norway's Viking King builds a Christian church. The founder of Trondheim, Olav Tryggvassonbuilt the first Christian church in Norway. He had spent time on the Scilly Isles, where a seer is said to have foreseen a battle in which Tryggvason would suffer great wounds and then convert. Shortly after the meeting he survived a vicious attack, and d...
1015: The North American settlement is abandoned. The Viking settlement in Vinland (modern-day Newfoundland, Canada) was abandoned, likely due to hostile encounters with indigenous peoples, limited supplies, and the challenges posed by the long, hazardous journey required to trade with Scandinavia. 1030: The Battle of Stiklestad. Norway's Christian...
Mar 29, 2011 · The last Viking king of York, Eric Bloodaxe, was only expelled from Northumbria in 954 AD, after Æthelstan's rule. In that same year the Scots took Edinburgh from the English.
When Did the Viking Age End? The widespread consensus is that the Viking Age came to a close in 1066, marked by the Norman Conquest of England.
During the Viking Age, the Norse homelands were gradually consolidated from smaller kingdoms into three larger kingdoms: Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. The Vikings spoke Old Norse and made inscriptions in runes. For most of the period, they followed the Old Norse religion, but later became Christians.
Nov 4, 2009 · The events of 1066 in England effectively marked the end of the Viking Age. By that time, all of the Scandinavian kingdoms were Christian, and what remained of Viking “culture” was being ...
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Apr 3, 2023 · The Viking Age ends. It's the same with the end of the Viking Age. Numerous battles can be said to be the final event of the Viking Age; the most commonly mentioned ones are the Battle of Stiklestad in the year 1030 or the Battle of Stamford Bridge in England in the year 1066.
