Who were the Vikings?

The Vikings lived over one thousand years ago in the lands we now call Denmark, Norway and Sweden. They were mainly farmers and shipbuilders. However, their land was not very good for farming. Norway was very hilly, Sweden was covered in forests, and Denmark had a lot of sandy, scrubby vegetation. This meant that when the population increased, there was not enough land for everyone.

So, by the end of eighth century, some Vikings began to look for other ways to make a living. At first they raided towns and monasteries in other parts of north-west Europe. They stole the treasures and took the people as slaves. Some individuals at the time wrote down accounts of these raids which were passed down through time.

For a long time, this was all that was known about the Vikings. More recently, however, archaeologists have been able to tell us more about the Vikings and their lives. We know that they travelled overseas to settle and trade, as well as to go raiding. They were skilled at metal work, as well as carving in stone and wood. They also told great stories, which we can still read today.

Answers the following questions:

1. Identify the continent shown in source 1

2. Identify the three countries that were the Vikings’ homelands.

3. According to source 2, identify the countries that the Vikings settled in.

4. Why do you think source 1 and 2 has different information?

5. List the three countries that make up Scandinavia.

6. Outline the reasons for Scandinavia’s land not being useful for farming.

7. Explain how the Vikings at the end of the 8^th Century, looked for new land.

8. What did they steal from monasteries?

9. Until recently, we have had only limited knowledge of the Vikings. Explain what we know about them today.