While the English called the Vikings a vile people, the Vikings themselves would disagree.
To them, their fearsome and bloody raids made complete sense according to the Norse mythology
that their Viking society was based on.
It was about bravery and going to battle against dangerous enemies.
It was also about winning the fight and enjoying the spoils that came with it.
There were various principles and ethics involved, just not Christian ones.
In fact, Christianity helped bring about the end of the Viking way of life.
Let’s learn more about why the era of raids ground to a halt in this episode of The Infographics
Show, What Happened to the Vikings?
The Vikings age was a long one, ranging from the year 793 to 1066.
Those who lived the Viking life could be found in the North Atlantic and Scandinavian regions
of the world.
Now it is important to recognize that not everyone from these areas was a Viking.
The word itself is defined as either raider or pirate, and only a minority of the population
actually participated in raiding.
Further, of the ones who did, they would only do so when the timing was right.
Before they went raiding, the land of their farms would need tending first.
In other words, they were farmers before anything else and a type of businessmen second.
Raids were what they thought of as an opportunity to make money or gain possessions that could
then be used to further their entrepreneurial ambitions, nothing more and nothing less.
Profits could improve their farms or could help them maintain their ships.
Raiding was also only a pastime of the young; older men were expected to stay behind and
care for their families.
It was also understood that while Vikings could raid, they could not steal.
To steal was dishonorable, whereas there was much glory in winning a fight.
Only upon conquering the enemy was it right to take the valuables they owned.
Examples of this belief are found in an old Norse saga from 1240 AD.
In this saga, a raiding party is captured but escapes during the night and takes off
with their captors’ possessions.
Yet they stop before heading on home.
What gives them pause is that they believe what they have done is wrong and a form of
thievery.
They set about making things right by returning to the home of their captors to kill them
all.
Only then can they take their goods since they fought for them first.
Though this is a tale, it is based on truth.
The concepts that the Vikings lived by were bravery, honor, and courage, and they believed
in a pagan religion in which there were many gods of several talents that tied in to the
world around them in observable ways.
They could not understand or appreciate the Christian way of life or those who supported
Christian views of one all-knowing God of whom there was, to them, little evidence of
existing.
They therefore had little tolerance for the Christians they came across while on their
raids.
This is how the Vikings earned their less than flattering reputation; because, while
it would normally be frowned upon to kill the unarmed and loot their belongs, this only
applied to those who were Norse.
Therefore, from the year 793 to 1100, as they terrorized coastal Europe, the Vikings would
kill any person they encountered who got in their way, including monks.
They figured that if Christian religious leaders could be killed in a church, then their God
was not a strong or powerful one after all.
And plunder, from a church or not, was all theirs for the taking.
Unfortunately, monasteries were often key targets for the raiders, as they often held
a lot of readily available money.
Though the Vikings would take not just take silver and gold.
They often snatched up anything and everything of value that they could, including things
such as iron tools, clothing, food, and even people for use as slaves.
Now, eventually all of this changed.
Many agree that by the year 1066 the raids had pretty much stopped.
This was due to many reasons.
One of these is changes that took place within Norse society.
Previously, many men were free and owned their own land.
For these reasons they had both the time and resources to contribute to the raiding effort.
However, later on, Norse society no longer had such a wide distribution of wealth.
Instead, there were just a few with both land and money.
The majority were now much poorer and didn’t own the land that they worked.
They could not afford to leave it to pursue any wayfaring adventures.
In addition to this, the coastal lands that they raided could put up a better defense.
At first, these areas had been largely free from central control.
With only local authority figures in charge, it was relatively easy to mount an attack
and have the upper hand in the battle that would ensue.
However, these lands eventually came under the rule of various kings.
This meant that now there were armies trained in war that could defend against a Viking
attack.
The Vikings knew how to use weapons but relied on their advantage of surprise for their success.
This was no longer as much of an advantage against trained guards.
Further, key targets were shifted from offshore locations to areas more inland and beyond
the reach of Viking parties.
Structures were also changed and strengthened in ways that made them less vulnerable.
This tilted the odds in favor of those they were raiding and against the raiders themselves.
With less to gain and more to lose, this was likely quite a deterrent.
In addition to all of this, Christianity found its way into the Norse culture.
Missionaries succeeded in converting much of the Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish populations.
Some rulers in the Scandinavian region forced conversion of their subjects as well.
Unsurprisingly, many raiding practices were at odds with Christian beliefs and so their
support began to decline.
Further, by the 11th century, the Catholic Church upheld two edicts banning violence
by Christians against other Christians with the threat of excommunication for those who
did not obey.
Most of those in the surrounding lands had by this time become Christian as well, so
fighting them to take their spoils was no longer an option.
One of the final events that brought an end to the Viking way of life was the Battle of
Stamford Bridge.
This began when the last Viking king, who was also the King of Norway, attempted to
reconquer English lands.
With this goal in mind, he brought 300 ships and 11,000 of his men to England’s shores.
Only this time, it was the English who launched an attack.
King Hardrada died during the conflict when an arrow pierced his throat.
This brought a stop to the last significant raid and also ended the age of the Vikings.
Now that we have covered the lives of the Vikings from their days of glory to their
end, what do you think, were the English right in calling them a vile people or were they
misunderstood?
Let us know in the comments!
Also, be sure to check out our other video called What Was Life of a Viking Warrior Like?
Thanks for watching, and, as always, don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe.
See you next time!