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What is the Democratic Government?
What is the Democratic Government?
The Democratic Government, also known as the Thing, is a system of white free males who meet up every month to help settle disputes between commoners. This system was a crucial political innovation for the Vikings, as it provided the framework for laws and negotiation in the communities. It was also useful since the Vikings were brutal, and had many blood feuds and duels.
The Beginning of the Democratic Government
The Beginning of the Democratic Government
This innovation was founded in 930 AD by Scandinavian settlers from modern day Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. The Althing was the original assembly of the Thing, and they met every month from 930 AD to 1798. The Althing was spread at national levels, while the Thing was represented locally by white freemen throughout Scandinavia. The Vikings originally had no perception of gender or racial equality, so they weren't technically a fully democratic government. It is considered to be a representative democracy with excluded groups, or an oligarchy. However, they did have a King or Godi which would attend these meetings to act as an equal, these leaders had both political and religious power over the community. They were also seen as having a very high social status, but were not based on a hierarchy, they would be chosen based on wealth and reputation.
On the left hand side of this photo you can see the King or Godi watching the debate from his throne.
Crimes:
There were many instances of crime going on in the Viking era because of how brutal the Vikings were, but these were the most common crimes committed.
Kidnapping
Kidnapping
Kidnapping was a frequent crime during the Viking era, the reason being for the trade and ransom of humans. These people would be taken captive from raids or were prisoners of war, in which they would be taken for the same reason. After these people were captured, most would be forced into labor and slavery, but not everyone. Lots of them would be trafficked and transported to markets in the Viking’s communities, sometimes even farther like western Europe. As time moved on, slavery and kidnapping became a major element of trade along rivers in the Viking world.
Theft
Theft
Theft was a quite common occurrence during the Viking era. It was also considered one of the worst crimes. This happened because the Vikings had a very honorable community, so if they did something wrong they would have to confess it. This is why it was such a big deal since they would have to take responsibility for the action. Theft also typically had the worst form of punishment out of all of the crimes. One of the most common forms of punishment was death by hanging, which was quite shameful.
Murder
Murder
Murders were as common as other occurrences, but they didn't have as large of a punishment. This occurred because murder happened all the time due to cultural, social, and legal aspects. They did however honor whether or not the murder was honorable or shameful secretive murder. Since they knew that death was already bound to happen from birth, they only distinguished between good and bad murder, but most Vikings could get away with it if they were honest about what happened and could afford fines.
How these crimes were dealt with:
Since there were so many crimes, there were also many ways to deal with these crimes through punishment. Though there were many ways to handle these crimes, these were the most used.
Fines
Fines
This was the more common form of punishment, and could range from 60-200 shillings. It would be used for a wide range of crimes, from minor accidents to violent incidents. To decide the amount of money the guilty would have to pay, the Thing would decide the charges based on the severity of the crime, and occasionally the social status of the victim and accused. If the fines couldn't be paid, then their protection of the law would be taken away. Meaning that the citizens of the town would be allowed to kill or injure the 'criminal' without facing charges or consequences.
Outlawry and Death
Outlawry and Death
This punishment was used for more serious crimes like first-degree murder, rape, and serious theft or going aganist any other laws set out by the Thing. Outlawry is when someone is taken out from society and loses all legal protection. This punishment was basically a death sentence since they would have no protection whatsoever. There was also a death sentence which would happen when someone was repeating things like theft, rape, and murder. This would result in the death penalty by the Thing, typically by hanging.
Want to learn more? Take a look at these links to find out more about the Vikings!
This article expands on the general idea of thing and what it was overall. It also explains the fundamentals of the Thing.
This article focuses on the laws and parliamnets of the Vikings. It goes in to depth on how the oldest parliament was created and used.
This article goes more into depth on the theft and murder section from the Vikings. If you want to learn more about these crimes this would be a good website to check out.
This article talks about how they kept order in the Viking communities. It explains how organized their society was through the chaos.
Figure 1(title cover): This image shows an assembly of one the the Thing's meetings.
Figure 2: This image is a depiction of the Thing on columns.
Figure 3: This image shows one of the Thing's assemblies, and how they are debating about a topic.
Figure 4: This illustration shows assault and mistreatment of a person from medieval Europe.
Figure 5: This picture is an illustration of theft being done during a raid by some of the Vikings.
Figure 6: This photo is an image of murder happening by someone in a large clan compared to the man on the ground by himself.
Figure 7: This photo shows some shillings from the Viking era.
Figure 8: This is an image of Vikings standing.
Creator - Clara
Curator - Peter
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