• Vikings believed that death marked the beginning of a journey to another world and their burial practices reflected this. The dead were buried with the things the Vikings believed they would need in the next life or had enjoyed in this one, with archaeological finds of burial mounds providing evidence of this. • Over time the Vikings became more and more exposed to Christianity through their travels and trade with other countries, as well as from contact with missionaries. • Eventually, most Viking leaders adopted Christianity as their sole religion and imposed it on their subjects. 7.6 What was the impact of the developments in longboat technology? • In the eighth century CE, developments in Viking boat design technology, such as innovations in the keel, the rudder and the sail, enabled them to make longer ocean voyages. • The remains of several ships have been found and replicas have been built that demonstrate how quickly the ships were able to sail across the seas, which is also quite remarkable considering that they only had the sun and stars for navigation. • Viking ships were large but quite narrow and shallow, which enabled them to be pulled up close to shore during raids. • There is evidence that the ships were carried overland from one waterway to another. • At times Viking ships were known as dragon ships because a carved head of the mythical monster was sometimes mounted on the prow of the ship. 7.7 How did Viking craftwork protect the warriors in battle? • Viking weapons and armour were extremely well-constructed and effective. • For protection, the Vikings wore body armour usually made of leather and chain mail, as well as a conical iron helmet. • They carried timber shields to protect their bodies. • They used an array of weapons such as bows and arrows, spears, axes and swords. 7.8 Who did the Vikings attack and raid? • Around the eighth century CE, the Vikings began their expansion into other lands. • Monastery records from England, Scotland and Ireland show that the Viking raids started as hit-and- run raids; they attacked and took with them the monastery’s precious artefacts and money, killing and maiming monks and others as they attacked. 7.9 Where did the Vikings begin to settle beyond their homelands? • As time went on and the Vikings travelled further from their homelands, they set up winter camps in some of these places because it was too far to get home for the winter. Eventually some of these became permanent settlements, such as Dublin in Ireland. • The Vikings settled much of England, dividing the country between them and the Anglo-Saxons. The northern part of the country, known as the Danelaw, was ruled by the Vikings until it was conquered by Edward, the son of Alfred the Great. 7.10 Where did the Vikings develop trade routes? • As well as longships, Vikings had trading ships called knarrs. • The Vikings also founded trading posts and settlements, including one called Hedeby that was on the crossroads of the East and West and settlements in modern-day Russia and Ireland. Many goods were exchanged including slaves, wine, bronze, iron and glassware. 7.11 What are some of the extraordinary achievements of the Vikings? • In their search for new lands, the Vikings colonised Iceland and Greenland. Erik the Red is remembered as the Viking who settled Greenland. • His son, the explorer Leif Eriksson, made it as far as North America in about 1000 CE. He established a settlement there, which he called Vinland.
200 Jacaranda Humanities Alive 8 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
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