An Article by: Aiden Edwards
Viking raids on Europe
Viking raids started off very small in the beginning and went on to be one of the biggest empires. They slowly began growing through the 10th century and expanded. Some know the Vikings as savages and ravagers that pondered everywhere they could in search of gold, killing everything they could. Vikings were fearless, wise, ruthless, greedy, and were not scared or afraid to explore the new lands of Europe and Northern Africa. Their mission was to get rich and get everything they could. The earliest Viking raid recorded was in 7899 AD. Vikings were after many different things. The Vikings lived in longhouses which were owned by chiefs and everyone in the house had to help out and provide. The Vikings were also good with metals and crafts.
The Begenning
To start off, Vikings were men that came from Denmark, Sweden and Norway. The Viking were explorers and raiders across the land and region. Although that is what many know and think of them, they also started up trade and were also good fisherman, farmers and craft workers. One of the biggest impact the Vikings held on Europe was their start of mass trade, they traded throughout Europe. They traded many things from swords, to fur and ivory. In exchange they bought silks, many different special stones and wood crafting. They also always had a special eye for beautiful objects such as paintings and gold things. Which is why many people referred to the Vikings as pirates. The Vikings did not only go after goods, slaves were also a target for power to work back home in the towns.
Where it all started and ended
The Vikings began in and around Scandinavia. They did not have enough land for themselves because of their greed, so around 790 many of the Vikings started up their exploring,and fierce attacks along the coastal regions. They started up in small groups trying to gain land and valuables. They even went along to sail out for more land. Then up to the 9th century the Vikings began to explore and expand which was the startup of their terror throughout small local areas and towns such as Paris and were not as much of a threat or terror to big lands and kingdoms . They first started on smaller targets then moved on to bigger ones. Then into the 10th century the Vikings started to move into Russia, western Europe and then to France. In the 10th century or second age, The son of Harold named Sven Fork Berad led Viking raids on England in 991 and finally conquered the entire kingdom in 1013. The fighting went on for many years.
The European terror
They had a big impact on Europe as to raiding their villages and taking over. Many European kingdoms started to build defenses such as castles and fortresses. Europe got targeted more by the vikings than the north African and Mediterranean area. The Vikings started attacking villages then to going after bigger targets such as monks, christian temples and churches. It was all because of money and goods. The Vikings were ruthless and greedy people. When they first started getting more power and causing destruction through areas many English would try to pay them off for their safety but it was never enough for them and they continued to raid and come back.
Big Raiders
What the Vikings were really known for was their raiding. For around 300 years the Vikings terrorized the people of Europe and destroyed areas and towns. They were swift and vicious people. They would go town to town pillaging and robbing whatever they wanted. The reason they were so good is because of there tactics and how swift they were. They used these boats called longboats or long ships which was used for quick transport and swift attacks. The other reason they were so good is because of their plan. They went by a 5 step tactic. It started off with preparation which consisted of looking for the weak point and load there ships for a point of attack. Next was gathering horses for the quick attack and travel. After that they had to have their surprise attack. The Vikings were well armed trained men who would be there swift and suddenly. Then they would loot anything they could get there hands on that held value for trade then burn down everything. Finally they would escape and take all their goods back to the ships and leave. The Vikings were very strategic people and it sure showed.
Conclusion
All in all, the Vikings were smart killers who took over Europe and terrorized through the land for around 300 years. They traded and did many bad things in there time. Vikings were fearless, wise, ruthless, greedy, and were not scared or afraid to explore the new lands of Europe and Northern Africa their mission was to get rich and get everything they could.
Sources
History.com Editors. “Vikings.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 4 Nov. 2009, https://www.history.com/topics/exploration/vikings-history.
Macleod, Robert. History Book of Vikings.
“History.” Enotes.com, Enotes.com, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-vikings-impact-world-history-how-shape-589620.
“History.” Enotes.com, Enotes.com, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-vikings-impact-world-history-how-shape-589620.
“373 Free Images of Vikings.” Pixabay, https://pixabay.com/images/search/vikings/.
Article was very informative and you could tell a lot of research was done. The formatting looks very neat although it could use some indentions. Cool topic though, got to learn more about vikings, like the boats they used and how they are very smart fighters.
Really good explanations about ur topic. Enjoy to read
there are typos . it was very interesting though .
Your article was excellent and your information was on point. I like how you included that the vikings were not only well known for being savages but they were also involved in a lot of trading.