The Last of the Vikings? - Page 2 - Historum

Chrysoloras · May 5th, 2011, 02:30 PM

I don't know but doubt it. When it comes to persecution the Vikings were safely on the persecuting end of the bargain.

Tuor · May 5th, 2011, 02:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by irishcrusader95

could it be possible that some vikings while appearing to now follow christianity were secretly still worshiping the old gods like the lithuanians are said to have up until even the 20th century in order to avoid persecution

Ya, that is probable, only we now have no way of knowing which were pretending and which weren't. Many Norse originally treated the christian god just as another god to appeal to.

olly · May 6th, 2011, 03:25 PM

Interesting news of late thought i'd post it here:

Investigations by marine archaeologists at Loch na h-Airde on Skye’s Rubh an Dunain peninsula by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) have uncovered the remains of a possible medieval shipyard, including boat timbers dating from the 1100s, a stone-built quay, a man-made entrance canal, and a blockage system designed to keep a constant water level in the Loch. It is now believed that the site has been a focus for maritime activity for many centuries, from the Vikings to the MacAskill and Macleod clans of Skye. The loch and canal would likely have been used for the secure wintering of boats, along with their construction and maintenance.

Viking shipyard found on Scottish island | Past Horizons

olly · May 10th, 2011, 03:06 AM

Today, 21:00 on BBC Four

Synopsis

Hundreds of years ago in faraway Iceland the Vikings began to write down dozens of stories called sagas - sweeping narratives based on real people and real events. But as Oxford University's Janina Ramirez discovers, these sagas are not just great works of art, they are also priceless historical documents which bring to life the Viking world. Dr Ramirez travels across glaciers and through the lava fields of Iceland to the far north west of the country to find out about one of the most compelling of these stories - the Laxdaela Saga.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0110gnv

Glorious_Leader · May 11th, 2011, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by irishcrusader95

could it be possible that some vikings while appearing to now follow christianity were secretly still worshiping the old gods like the lithuanians are said to have up until even the 20th century in order to avoid persecution

An interesting look at one instance of a converted Viking's perspective on the old ways and Christianity is to be found in the death of Rollo, who was the leader of what would go on to become Normandy. On his death bed, he had many Christian prisoners of war sacrificed to the old gods by decapitation. And yet right afterwards he had large donations in gold made to all of the local churches to honour the Christian God. It seems that many Vikings accepted the old ways and Christianity as a sort of duality, as opposed to two non-compatible belief systems.

However, Rollo's death predates the period in which the Pagan Viking culture was all but extinct significantly, so this information may be insignificant to the discussion at hand.

**unclefred** · May 11th, 2011, 12:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tuor

Ya, that is probable, only we now have no way of knowing which were pretending and which weren't. Many Norse originally treated the christian god just as another god to appeal to.

I would think it possible, but certainly not probable. You're speaking of a 250 period in which several generations passed. One only has to look at the Normans to see how they transformed in an even shorter period after invading France. Or the Danes etc.

johnincornwall · May 17th, 2011, 05:18 PM

Tommy - this sort of thing in history is very, very rarely a line drawn under something. Vikings aren't there on Sunday and disappeared on Monday. Things just blend, evolve etc over time. Into what we have today.

Constantine XI · May 18th, 2011, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Ancient Norway was at the far fringes of Europe, a difficult land to settle, yet the Norse people made a substantial settlement along the varied valleys and Fjords that dot the Norwegian coastline. These natural harbors proved excellent places to hide their ships, and became a base form which they were able to fan out all over the north Atlantic. Although they initially came as raiders, by the end of the first millennium they were settling lands as far west as Iceland and Greenland, eventually even reaching the shores of the new world in Newfoundland. The Norse world was a tough and brutal existence, punctuated by warfare and periods of difficult sustenance during the cold winter months. Regardless they believed the world was a magical place populated by gnomes and fairies, and where brave warriors who died on the battlefield were quickly whisked away to eternal happiness in Valhalla, the sacred hall of warriors.

Source: Ancient Norway: The Ancient Norse World

Isn't that so true? That what I believe so.

churuscan · June 1st, 2011, 03:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TommyD

Many sources quote the end of the Viking Era in England being 1066 (battle of stamford bridge), but it seems that the Viking Era persisted for quite some time in the Scottish Isles. The end of the Viking Era in these parts is generally quoted as 1266 (Treaty of Perth).

So in the late 1230's and early 1240's Harald Olafsson (son of Olaf the Black) was the Norse king of Mann and the Isles. Would the Norse people living on these islands have been real Vikings? By which I mean would there at least have been some people remaining who still fought and lived in the traditional viking ways and who may have:
a) Worshipped the norse gods and had not been converted to christianity
b) Taken part in viking raids on the longships
c) Been 'berserker' warriors or 'bear coats'

So in essence I am interested in whether there were still remnants of the traditional vikings in the scottish isles about 1240 AD, some leftover Norse people sticking to the old ways that were more typical of the viking era from the late 8th to 11th century.

Any assistance would be much appreciated, thank you!

By that time period Christianity was an official religion although Im sure the Vikings there still worshiped pagan gods along side or at least in private. I have a friend in Sweden who lives in a town with a church built in the 15th century and it has a giant mural of Thor painted on the ceiling.

Viking raids on long ships- probably would have been limited to actual pitched battles and only in Scotland and Ireland. The rest of the world would have fortified their settlements by then.

Berserkers- hard to tell if any part of the berserk tradition would have survived by then. But in large it would have disappeared as berserkers were outlawed in Norway by 1015 and sentenced to outlawry in Iceland by 1117.

As far as arms and armor I think they woudl have remained largely the same, with the exception of alot more chain-mail being worn.

**Kevinmeath** · June 1st, 2011, 03:45 AM

Would Somerled 'Lord of the Isles' count as a Viking? or did he put an end to the Vikings?

Somerled