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Escaping Lindisfarne: Investigating the first Viking Raid on a Medieval Monastery
Escaping Lindisfarne: Investigating the first Viking Raid on a Medieval Monastery
By Logan Florence, Makayla Grizzle, Erin Nable, Mary Kate Sims, Jonathan Pulliam
Summary:
Students must determine who the people were (and what they are called!) that attacked the Monastery of Lindisfarne. They will investigate various primary artifacts, cultural symbols, and even armor from the Viking age to learn about these unique traders and raiders who went as east as Russia and the river Jordan to west as Ireland and even the New World.
Standard: SSWH7 Analyze European medieval society with regard to culture, politics, society, and economics.A. Explain the manorial system and feudal relationships, include: the status of peasants and feudal monarchies and the importance of Charlemagne.B. Explain the political impact of Christianity and the role of the church in medieval society.
Introduction:
Introduction:
(Spoken word by teacher/instructor- introducing the group/class to the escape room):
(Spoken word by teacher/instructor- introducing the group/class to the escape room):
‘Hwæt!’ … ‘Hark / Listen!’
‘The year is 793 Anno Domini. Early medieval Europe is in the middle of a violent period of battle, blood-shed, and warring-kingdoms. Gone are the glorious days of the Old Roman Empire and the peace and stability it brought to the European continent. In its place, warring Germanic kingdoms seek to carve their legacies from the ashes of the old Roman world.
In the heart of Europe, Charles the Great, Charlemagne himself, seeks to unite the fragments of the forgotten empire and re-forge them in his own vision. Whilst in Spain, Visigothic princes hold out in mountain fortresses against the invading Caliphates from Arabia.
Finally, in Angeland, the four kingdoms of Mercia, East Anglia, Wessex, and Northumbria hold uneasy alliances upon four uneasy crowns…
Far to the North of Angleland, the exiled and outlawed Saxon king Æthelred I is restored to the Nothumbrian throne. But a mere three year upon the king’s restoration to the throne, the holiest of monasteries, Lindisfarne, is subjected to an attack by a mysterious foe unlike any other seen before within the realm. The humble island sanctuary is ravished, stripped of its gold, treasures, and precious glass, and the monks and clergymen slaughtered, their blood staining God’s very church in which they served…
You small, but noble band are Thegns to king Æthelred himself. Land-owning men and women who garner the privilege to serve his majesty in his Northern Court…
Your king has sent you to investigate the massacre and martyrdom which occurred upon this holy isle, discover the origin of what may have brought such destruction upon Lindisfarne, and if possible, bring them to the King’s justice….”
Step 1: Students first clue will be based on the short riddle:
- “To discover this dastardly enemy, we turn our thoughts to thee o’ lord to thee, we must face the venerated little “t”.
This riddle will lead students to the first box located under a Celtic Cross
Step 1: Students first clue will be based on the short riddle:
Step 1: Students first clue will be based on the short riddle:
“To discover this dastardly enemy, we turn our thoughts to thee o’ lord to thee, we must face the venerated little “t”.
“To discover this dastardly enemy, we turn our thoughts to thee o’ lord to thee, we must face the venerated little “t”.
This riddle will lead to the first box located under a photo of a Celtic Cross.
Box 1:
Box 1:
Upon opening the box, students will find four small stones with peculiar writing on them; the native Viking Futhark runes.
Upon opening the box, students will find four small stones with peculiar writing on them; the native Viking Futhark runes.
The students will also be given a simple de-coder/cypher to match the Runes to their familiar Latin Alphabet equivalent.
The students will also be given a simple de-coder/cypher to match the Runes to their familiar Latin Alphabet equivalent.
The symbols spell out the word ‘Odin’, which was the Norse God of Battle, Poetry, and Kings. Thanks to numerous examples of pop-culture, this is the student’s first ‘HINT’ to who or what attacked the monastery.
The symbols spell out the word ‘Odin’, which was the Norse God of Battle, Poetry, and Kings. Thanks to numerous examples of pop-culture, this is the student’s first ‘HINT’ to who or what attacked the monastery.
Step 2:
The second box will be in plain sight and have a four-digit letter lock on it which unlocks when the code word (ODIN) is put in. This second box will contain a plethora of artifacts relating to the period of interest;
Medieval arm-rings as well as a neck torc, a bag of Futhark runes, as well as a two different designs of a ‘Mjolnir’ pendant; or Thor’s hammer which Norse warriors wore around their necks for strength and protection.
Quote with Arm-Rings:
“They stretched their beloved lord in his boat,
laid out by the mast, amidships,
the great ring-giver. Far-fetched treasures
were piled upon him, and precious gear.” – Beowulf
Quote with Runes:
“Hidden Runes shalt thou seek and interpreted signs, many symbols of might and power, by the great Singer painted, by the high Powers fashioned, graved by the Utterer of gods….” – Havamal
Quote with Mjolnir/Thor’s Hammer:
“When Thor saw the hammer his heart laughed within him, and he took courage. He first slew Thrym, the lord of giants, then he crushed all the giant's kin… Instead of coins the giants got the crack of the hammer. Instead of rings they received the mark of Mjöllnir.” – Poetic Edda
Visually adequate arm rings can be easily constructed from cheap copper wiring and/or spare metal coat-hangers. Runes can be simple wooden chips or smooth river stones purchased from a craft store with the Futhark runes painted on. Simple mjolnir pendants can be carved from wood or purchased from amazon for as cheap as six dollars. These artifacts are unique, interesting, and cheap to make and/or obtain on a shoestring budget . Get creative! These will all serve as inquiry-based ‘hints’ pointing the class closer and closer to the mystery of what happened at Lindisfarne!
Visually adequate arm rings can be easily constructed from cheap copper wiring and/or spare metal coat-hangers. Runes can be simple wooden chips or smooth river stones purchased from a craft store with the Futhark runes painted on. Simple mjolnir pendants can be carved from wood or purchased from amazon for as cheap as six dollars. These artifacts are unique, interesting, and cheap to make and/or obtain on a shoestring budget . Get creative! These will all serve as inquiry-based ‘hints’ pointing the class closer and closer to the mystery of what happened at Lindisfarne!
Step 3: Box number three will possess a three-digit number lock. Each artifact within the second box (three in total between the arm rings, Thor’s hammer pendants, and bag of runes) will be have a hidden symbol and/or number either written, tapped, or glued upon the artifacts surface. This is the code to the third and final box; 793, which is the exact year being examined/studied within this lesson.
Step 3: Box number three will possess a three-digit number lock. Each artifact within the second box (three in total between the arm rings, Thor’s hammer pendants, and bag of runes) will be have a hidden symbol and/or number either written, tapped, or glued upon the artifacts surface. This is the code to the third and final box; 793, which is the exact year being examined/studied within this lesson.
Box 3
Box 3
Within Box number three the mystery is solved! A quote is given to the students who unlock the third and final box from a famous Viking Age poem known as the Battle of Maldon which explains the process of the ‘Dane-Geld’, or the ‘Dane Price’, essentially buying off the Vikings with riches to prevent another raid like the one which besieged Lindisfarne.
Within Box number three the mystery is solved! A quote is given to the students who unlock the third and final box from a famous Viking Age poem known as the Battle of Maldon which explains the process of the ‘Dane-Geld’, or the ‘Dane Price’, essentially buying off the Vikings with riches to prevent another raid like the one which besieged Lindisfarne.
(Quote from the poem The Battle of Maldon about ‘Dane-Geld’… Basically buying the Vikings off with treasure so they wouldn’t continue to raid. )
Dane-Geld; Use the gold to pay-off the Vikings to prevent further raiding!
“they (the Vikings) bid you be informed that you must quickly send
rings in exchange for protection, and it would be better
for you to buy off with tribute this storm of spears,
otherwise we should deal in such a hard battle.
We needn’t destroy ourselves if you are sufficiently rich—
we wish to establish a safeguard in exchange for gold.
If you decide this, you who are most powerful here,
and you wish to ransom your people
and give to the sea-men, according to their own discretion,
money in exchange for peace, and take a truce at our hands,
we will go back to our ships with our payment,
and sail away, holding the peace with you.”
You Have Escaped!
You Have Escaped!
The massacre and mass raid on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne was done by none other than…. THE VIKINGS! The devastating Viking attack on the church of St. Cuthbert in 793 sent a shockwave through Europe and sparked what historian traditionally call a 300-year period of Europe known as the ‘Viking Age’. The Vikings were essentially raiders and warriors from what is today modern Scandinavia; Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, etc. They raided the European continent from Spain to Russia in search of treasure to bring back home to their families, tribes, and kingdoms to make them wealthy in their frigid northern home. The Vikings were pagans, not Christians like most people living in Europe at the time! They were polytheistic and kept many gods, as reflected in the various artifacts within the escape room. They did not think twice about raiding a monastery! Christian monasteries in Britain were easy targets for the Vikings. The monks had no weapons and the buildings were filled with valuable treasures, like gold, jewels and books. There was food, drink, cattle, clothes and tools too – all very tempting to a Viking raider.
The massacre and mass raid on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne was done by none other than…. THE VIKINGS! The devastating Viking attack on the church of St. Cuthbert in 793 sent a shockwave through Europe and sparked what historian traditionally call a 300-year period of Europe known as the ‘Viking Age’. The Vikings were essentially raiders and warriors from what is today modern Scandinavia; Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, etc. They raided the European continent from Spain to Russia in search of treasure to bring back home to their families, tribes, and kingdoms to make them wealthy in their frigid northern home. The Vikings were pagans, not Christians like most people living in Europe at the time! They were polytheistic and kept many gods, as reflected in the various artifacts within the escape room. They did not think twice about raiding a monastery! Christian monasteries in Britain were easy targets for the Vikings. The monks had no weapons and the buildings were filled with valuable treasures, like gold, jewels and books. There was food, drink, cattle, clothes and tools too – all very tempting to a Viking raider.
The name 'Viking' comes from a language called 'Old Norse' and literally translates to ’a raider’. People who went off raiding in ships were said to be 'going Viking'. But not all the Vikings were bloodthirsty warriors! Some certainly did come to fight, but others came peacefully, to settle new lands and new places in Europe… From 793 AD when the first raid was recorded in England to the year 1066, the Vikings helped shape medieval society, religion, geography, politics, and culture.
The name 'Viking' comes from a language called 'Old Norse' and literally translates to ’a raider’. People who went off raiding in ships were said to be 'going Viking'. But not all the Vikings were bloodthirsty warriors! Some certainly did come to fight, but others came peacefully, to settle new lands and new places in Europe… From 793 AD when the first raid was recorded in England to the year 1066, the Vikings helped shape medieval society, religion, geography, politics, and culture.
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