Viking invasions
Scandinavian medieval attacks
The Viking invasions were a series of raids, conquests, and settlements by Scandinavian seafarers across Europe, the British Isles, and beyond from roughly the late 8th to 11th centuries.
Beginning with the attack on Lindisfarne monastery in 793, these incursions reshaped the political and cultural landscape of medieval Europe.
The Vikings established settlements from Normandy to Russia and reached as far as North America.
The Viking invasions left lasting influences on English language and law.
- Anglo-Saxon ChronicleMedieval English historical annals
- British IslesNorthwest European archipelago
- Alfred the GreatNinth-century Wessex monarch
- IrelandNorth Atlantic island republic
- Norse godsViking-era Scandinavian deities
Scandinavia · Harald Hardrada · Normandy · Wessex · coastal raids · hit and run · Old English · longships · sea wolves · berserkers · blood eagle · shield wall · Mercia · Norman Conquest · Dark Ages · King Alfred · monasteries · Norsemen
- NormandyRouen, Cherbourg, Dieppe, Bayeux Tapestry, Mont Saint-Michel
- WarsWorld War I, WWI, civil war, cold war, Korean War
- Gaelic HistoryGaels, Celtic tribes, Brehon laws, clans, chieftains
- Insular ChristianityIona, St. Patrick, Lindisfarne Gospels, illuminated manuscripts, monasticism
- Pictish ScotlandPicts, serpent, boar, carved stones, matrilineal
Viking invasionsdiplomatic missions
Official foreign state offices
cultural exchange · peaceful settlement · missionary journeys · pilgrimage
Viking invasionstrade agreements
Formal accords on commerce
cultural exchange · peaceful settlement · commerce · treaty-making · intermarriage