How cruel were the Vikings?

They took cattle, money and food. It's likely they carried off women, too, he says. "They'd burn down settlements and leave a trail of destruction." It was unprovoked aggression. And unlike most armies, they came by sea, their narrow-bottomed longships allowing them to travel up rivers and take settlements by surprise.

How brutal are the Vikings?

The Brutal Nature of the Vikings

Vikings murdered slaves and prisoners at will and historians say that they did not even regard non-vikings as humans. Every male was also expected to prove themselves on the battlefield and so entire wars were started just so leaders could demonstrate their worth.

What made the Vikings so brutal?

The purpose of the Vikings' violence was to acquire wealth, which fed into the political economy of northern Europe, notably in the form of gift-giving. Viking warriors were motivated by a warrior ideology of violence that praised bravery, toughness, and loyalty.

How did Vikings treat their wives?

For this point in history, however, Viking women enjoyed a high degree of social freedom. They could own property, ask for a divorce if not treated properly, and they shared responsibility for running farms and homesteads with their menfolk. They were also protected by law from a range of unwanted male attention.

Why were the Vikings so terrifying?

Archaeological findings show that the Vikings had everything required of a terrible foe. Their axes, swords, spears, bows and arrows, shields, and armour were equal to the weapons and armours of continental Europe and Britain – and often of the highest quality available at the time.

Top 10 HORRIFYING Facts About VIKINGS

What was the average age of death of a Viking?

Adult life-span

As this chart shows, 50% of adult men died between 21 and 30 years of age and this may be because of warfare and the generally turbulent times. For women, the risks were in pregnancy and childbirth and 35% of them did not survive beyond 30 years.

Who was the craziest Viking?

Perhaps the epitome of the archetypal bloodthirsty Viking, Erik the Red violently murdered his way through life. Born in Norway, Erik gained his nickname most likely due to the colour of his hair and beard but it could also reflect upon his violent nature.

How did Vikings treat female slaves?

Ahmad Ibn Fadlan, an Arab lawyer and diplomat from Baghdad who encountered the men of Scandinavia in his travels, wrote that Vikings treated their female chattel as sex slaves. If a slave died, he added, “they leave him there as food for the dogs and the birds.”

What did Vikings do with babies?

In the Viking Age children's lives were not differentiated from those of adults like they are today. Children were also put to work from a young age. They were part of the family and had to help with the daily tasks. Children helped their parents with indoor tasks, such as looking after the fireplace or making food.

Did Vikings share their wife?

There is no record of Vikings sharing their wives.

If anything, the available evidence suggests that Viking men of high status often had several female partners apart from their wives. This left low-ranking Viking men at a disadvantage when securing partners for themselves.

Who were the Vikings afraid of?

The Viking reputation as bloodthirsty conquerors has endured for more than a millennium but new research shows that some Norsemen approached the British islands with more than a little trepidation.

Who was the meanest Viking in history?

Erik the Red's reputation is probably one of the most bloodthirsty among all of the Vikings. The son of Thorvald, Erik is chiefly remembered for being the Viking who founded the first settlement in Greenland. His father Thorvald left Norway with his young son Erik, around 10 years old, because of 'some killings'.

How tall was the average Viking?

"The examination of skeletons from different localities in Scandinavia reveals that the average height of the Vikings was a little less than that of today: men were about 5 ft 7-3/4 in. tall and women 5 ft 2-1/2 in.

Who were worse than the Vikings?

That title goes to the Anglo-Saxons, 400 years earlier! The Viking's did not irradiate Old English -- a sign of their limited impact compared to the earlier Anglo Saxon invasion.

Did the Vikings actually do the blood eagle?

The answer, according to an interdisciplinary team of medical doctors, anatomists and a historian, is a resounding yes. Study co-authors Monte Gates and Heidi Fuller, both medical scientists at Keele University in England, were spurred to investigate the blood eagle by the “Vikings” series.

What were Viking killing methods?

The Vikings employed other torture methods aside from the blood eagle. One was known as Hung meat, which was just as nasty as it sounds. Vikings pierced the heels of victims, threaded ropes through the holes, and then strung them upside-down.

Could Vikings have two wives?

Sagas and runic inscriptions show that families were formed by monogamous marriages. A man may have had relationships, and children, with several women, but when he died, only one wife was acknowledged.

What age did Vikings marry?

Viking women married young—as early as 12 years old. By the age of 20, virtually all men and women were married.

Did Vikings allow divorce?

They could own property, request a divorce and reclaim their dowries if their marriages ended. Women tended to marry between the ages of 12 and 15, and families negotiated to arrange those marriages, but the woman usually had a say in the arrangement.

How big were Viking men?

The average Viking was 8-10 cm (3-4 inches) shorter than we are today. The skeletons that the archaeologists have found, reveals, that a man was around 172 cm tall (5.6 ft), and a woman had an average height of 158 cm (5,1 ft).

What finally stopped the Vikings?

The defeat of the king of Norway, Harald III Sigurdsson, at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066 is considered the end of the age of Viking raids.

What do Vikings sacrifice every 9 years?

Every ninth year there is a blót of nine days, a common feast for everyone in Sweden. Then they sacrifice nine males of each species, even men, and the bodies are hung from the branches of a grove near the temple. No one is exempt from this blót and everyone sends gifts to the shrine, even the kings.

What was the Vikings biggest fear?

Vikings were afraid of their gods and failure to live up to Norse norms of conduct. They followed a code of honor that preferred an honorable death to cowardice.

Did Vikings have STDS?

A damaged skull believed to be that of a Viking indicates the ancient Nordic seafarers and plunderers carried the sexually transmitted disease syphilis as they raped and pillaged Europe, authorities say.

How tall would a Viking be today?

Would the Vikings Be Considered Tall Today? With the average Viking male being about 5'6”, this is slightly below today's average and even lower than the average for Scandinavian men today.