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Product Description
'From the Fury of the Northmen deliver us, O Lord'. Between the eighth and eleventh centuries, the Vikings surged from their Scandinavian homeland to trade, raid and invade along the coasts of Europe. Their influence and expeditions extended from Newfoundland to Baghdad, their battles were as far-flung as Africa and the Arctic. But were they great seafarers or desperate outcasts, noble heathens or oafish pirates, the last pagans or the first of the modern Europeans? This concise study puts medieval chronicles, Norse sagas and Muslim accounts alongside more recent research into ritual magic, genetic profiling and climatology. It includes biographical sketches of some of the most famous Vikings, from Erik Bloodaxe to Saint Olaf, and King Canute to Leif the Lucky. It explains why the Danish king Harald Bluetooth lent his name to a twenty-first century wireless technology; which future saint laughed as she buried foreign ambassadors alive; why so many Icelandic settlers had Irish names; and, how the last Viking colony was destroyed by English raiders. Extending beyond the traditional 'Viking age' of most books, "A Brief History of the Vikings" places sudden Scandinavian population movement in a wider historical context. It presents a balanced appraisal of these infamous sea kings, explaining both their swift expansion and its supposed halt. Supposed because, ultimately, the Vikings didn't disappear: they turned into us.
About the Author
Jonathan Clements is the author of Pirate King, Moon in the Pines and Confucius: A Biography. He lives in London and Jyvaskyla.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Overall,
By David L "Daf" (London) - See all my reviews
This review is from: A Brief History of the Vikings (Paperback)
Good book with lots of detail on the Vikings.
One thing that I was expecting and would like to have seen something on would have been what the Vikings relations with the Welsh and Scots were like. Also, did the Saxons suddenly stop coming to Britain around the C8 and if so, why did they stop just when the Vikings (from further north) started? And in what parts of the UK were the Norweigan Vikings as opposed to ones from modern day Denmark most dominant. And finally, how similar were the languages depending on which part of Scandinavia (and N France in case of the Normans) they were from and do we know to what extent they could converse easily with the Saxons? I think these kinds of details could have been included and would have been interesting.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Let down by atrocious proof-reading,
By
This review is from: A Brief History of the Vikings (Paperback)
Clements entertainingly skims through the history of the Vikings across Europe and the North Atlantic, mainly in the 9th, 10th and 11th centuries. He draws heavily, but sceptically, on the varous sagas as well as more authentic historical records such as the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. The book untangles as well as can be expected the often confusing family relationships of the key players, but one is still left with a whole host of similar first-named characters distinguished only by nicknames ranging from the prosaic (e.g. Harald Greycloak) to the slightly more bizarre (Einar the Paunch-shaker is my favourite, but he is run close by Halli the Sarcastic). The author is inconsistent as to how well he explains these soubriquets; Harald apparently 'had a grey cloak', but it is never made clear whether Einar favoured wobbling his own gut or those of other people. It was disappointing, but probably not surprising, to discover that 'Bluetooth' is a mistranslation and that the teeth of the king in question were more likely to have been black.
Clements also explains well the gradual conversion to Christianity and the long period of its coexistence with the older, and widely tolerated paganism. He is dryly amusing on how deeply converted some of the rulers were. In any event the guiding principle of Viking royal family life seemed to be that if one's brothers or father were still alive then one fought them; if they were dead then one avenged them. It was all very clear cut. However the book is let down by some appalling typographical errors: mis-spellings, repeated phrases and just plain gibberish. The reader can, I think, always work out what is meant, but one shouldn't have to put up with this in the first place.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A very good book which covers all the basics and important parts,
This review is from: A Brief History of the Vikings (Paperback)
This book is a suprisingly pleasant read and although it says Brief History on the front it doesn't feel like it. Each chapter gives enough details, dates, key characters, key locations etc that you are left satisfied not disappointed when it's time to move onto the next one. I am paritcularly impressed by the second to final chapter he's devoted to a key character not discussed in other history books I've read, Harald Hardrada. It allows you to follow him from his childhood through his years abroad gathering glory and treasure until he finally claims the throne of Norway and is lured to England with the death of Edward the Confessor. The other goods things are it of course looks at the Norse myths and gods and the influence on the Vikings, the Vikings impact on an international scale from the various countries they raided, fought in or discovered and settled. Whether this is a passing interest or a research project, you can not fail to learn a lot and have a developed understanding after reading this if you are interested in the vikings culture and history and people in any way at all.
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