The Vikings

1
The Vikings

• By Trine Moen
• Fosen Videregående Skole
• Norway
• 2008

2
History

• Have you ever heard about the barbarian people
  called the Vikings?
• From the last part of the 700-century to the
  middle of 1000. The Vikings lived in Norway,
  Sweden and Denmark.
• Most people know the Vikings only as barbarian
  people, and of course thats the most exiting
  part of the story, but the Vikings were also very
  good farmers.

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The beginning

• It all started with the attack at the monastery
  at Lindisfarne in 793 AD.
• They killed everyone who didnt do as they said.
  And they who didnt resist, were brought back to
  Norway as slaves or treller.
• But it was not to get slaves they came to
  Lindisfarne. They came to get gold and other
  valuable goods.
• They robbed the monasteries because they had bad
  defense systems, and the Vikings didnt fear
  their God.

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Why?

• Of course many people ask why the Vikings went on
  their robbery voyages. Here Ive found some of
  the reasons, at least we think this is some of
  the reasons.

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The inventing of iron

• Because of the inventing of iron, the farmers
  could clear new land and there were built many
  new farms. This resulted in a great increase of
  people.
• But when all the land was in use, the people kept
  expanding. Therefore many people started to move
  to other places with lower population density.
  E.g. to the Orkney Islands and to Shetland
  Islands.

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Their boats

• The Vikings had great boats. This is probably
  also one reason for their many voyages.
• The boats had a solid keel, an elastic hull and
  effective sails, so they could cross open sea in
  bad weather.
• Even though the ships were low in the middle,
  they could carry a lot of weight.
• The ships were shallow, so they could be taken up
  shallow rivers and they could be pulled short
  distances on land.
• They had different types of food that didnt go
  bad.
• The Vikings were also very fine navigators.

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Religion

• The Vikings believed that if they were killed in
  a battle, they came to a great place called
  Valhall. Therefore they didnt fear the death,
  and joined willingly the robbery voyages. This is
  another reason why so many Vikings went on
  robbery voyages.

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Easy access

• The last reason Im going to mention, but maybe
  the most important reason for the robbery
  voyages, was the easy access of gold and other
  valuable goods.
• Because of inner conflicts in several countries
  in Europe, and war between many countries, many
  countries had a terrible defense.
• Since churches and monasteries lay often close to
  the sea, it was easy for the Vikings to reach
  assets. And because of the lousy defense, nobody
  could stop them, at least not in the beginning.

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Scandinavian settlements

• I think the map on the last page spoke for it
  selves. What if no one had stopped the Vikings,
  maybe Scandinavia today had been a third
  superpower
• Actually many researchers say that it was the
  Norwegian Viking, Leiv Eriksson, who discovered
  America. He called it Vinland (Wine land)

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Sources

• home.no.net/asoiland/hvordan_begynte_det_hele.htm
  
• www.norskeopplevelser.no/gallery_popup.asp?pi...
• www.stud.hiof.no/studentarbeid/06halm/ikt-pra...
• sagasverden.sprayblogg.no/081006171920_viking
• ciaralira.wordpress.com/.../
• www.oppvekst.nesodden.kommune.no/Nesoddtangen...
• www.greenlandphotos.net/Events.html
• www.nrk.no/.../radio/norgesglasset/1.895637
• norsknettskole.no/.../vikingtokter.htm
• home.online.no/o-reim/
• www.baatinfo.no/
• http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viking