The Vikings played a role in Britain from the 8th to the 11th centuries, conducting raids, as well as settling and trading there. There impacts were large and played a significant role in Britain over centuries. Caleb M. Brown explains.
The Vikings at sea - Folio 9v of from the Miscellany on the Life of St. Edmund.
In June of 793 AD, a notable Viking raid occurred at a monastery on the Northumbrian island of Lindisfarne. While this was not the first raid on the British Isles, it was the most important up to that time. The monastery was home to numerous monks and a vast array of sacred items. Monasteries across the British Isles were inadequately defended, making them easy targets for Viking attacks. The raid on Lindisfarne was dramatic and instilled fear in the people of Britain to such an extent that many believed God was punishing them. This marked only the beginning of what would come to be known as the Viking Age. The Vikings established trade routes and even settlements in the British Isles, referred to as Danelaw. What began as Viking expeditions in search of treasure and fame ultimately led to the conquest of new lands for settlement and farming. The kingdoms of Northumbria, Mercia, Wessex, and East Anglia would forever be changed as a result of the Scandinavian invaders.
The historiographical material we have today about the raid at Lindisfarne primarily relies on the written records of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, particularly the accounts by Alcuin, who documented the attack at the time through letters to the bishops and the king himself. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles also serve as a primary source for recording the battles between the kingdoms and the Vikings in the subsequent century. Additionally, we can examine art from the period of the Lindisfarne raid. The Viking Doomsday Stone depicts warriors wielding traditional Viking weapons. While the Norse Icelandic sagas are narratives shared by the Nordic people, they can also provide information based on similar material found in various written sagas, enhancing their credibility as evidence. Next, we can look at secondary sources, which are essential because further examination of the primary sources has supplied us with more detailed information. In the time following the Lindisfarne raid, we begin to see increased written evidence of the Viking attacks and the battles fought between the kingdoms and the Norse people. These sources delve deeper into the battles and the individuals involved on both sides. Secondary sources also provide a wealth of books on the subject of the Vikings that have been produced by scholars in the field.
Transformation
The Vikings profoundly transformed the British Isles. They conquered three of the four kingdoms before being halted by the King of Wessex. Even then, they continued to influence the British Isles through the Treaty of Wedmore, which granted them lands to settle. This area became known as the Danelaw, established near York. The sagas provided by the Vikings give us tales of heroes and bravery but also savagery. The impact of the Vikings was one of great influence upon the world at the time. The Nordic people integrated into the fabric of what would become Great Britain, and the lineage of the Vikings can still be observed today, not only in England but throughout Europe. Eventually, history witnessed the conversion of most of the Nordic people to Christianity, allowing for deeper integration.
The research process for the raid on Lindisfarne was challenging due to the scarcity of primary sources. This impacted my thesis, as I needed to find additional sources, which ultimately led me to examine the overall impact of the Vikings on Britain’s history. Initially, this report was intended to focus solely on the raid at Lindisfarne; however, due to the lack of sources, I had to broaden my research, leading me to consider the Vikings' overall influence. The volume of research and reading required to complete this proposal was considerable. Historical research and evidence to support a thesis can be difficult to locate when navigating the vast array of available sources. I often found myself returning to the same materials, merely presented through different studies. The study of the Nordic people and their global influence is an even larger field, and I encountered new information being discovered daily that is reshaping history as we know it.
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References
Accounts of the Raid on Lindisfarne. (n.d.). https://www.sjsu.edu/people/cynthia.rostankowski/courses/HUM1BS17/Lecture_10%20Medieval%20Universities%20Readings.pdf
Cambell, J. G., Hall, R., Jesch, J., & Parsons, D. N. (2016). Vikings and the Danelaw. Oxbow Books, Limited.
Ellis, C. (2018). Alfred Versus the Great Viking Army . Liberty University
Firth, A. (2023, April 24). The Viking Attack at Lindisfarne - The Primary Sources MancHistorian. MancHistorian. https://manchistorian.com/the-viking-attack-at-lindisfarne-the-primary-sources/
Giles, J. A. (1914). Anglo Saxon Chronicles. London G. Bell and Sons, LTD. https://ia801601.us.archive.org/25/items/anglosaxonchroni00gile/anglosaxonchroni00gile.pdf
Hadley, D. M., Richards, J. D., Craig-Atkins, E., & Perry, G. (2023). TORKSEY AFTER THE VIKINGS: URBAN ORIGINS IN ENGLAND. The Antiquaries Journal, 1–33. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0003581522000269
Haywood, J. (2016). Northmen. Macmillan.
Lindisfarne. (2024). Uchicago.edu. https://penelope.uchicago.edu/encyclopaedia_romana/britannia/anglo-saxon/lindisfarne/lindisfarne.html
Nordeide, S., & Edwards, K. (2019, June 30). The Vikings. Arc Humanities Press. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/liberty/reader.action?docID=5841981&query=&ppg=59
Story, J. (2019). The Viking Raid on Lindisfarne. English Heritage. https://www.englishheritage.org.uk/visit/places/lindisfarne-priory/History/viking-raid/
