All language subtitles for The.Last.Journey.Of.The.Vikings.S01E02_English

This is a story about the people who
came sailing across the ocean.

It's a story about a long and
perilous journey of upheaval,

which came to change populations
and influence politics, trade,

culture, religion
and entire societies.

It's a story about the Vikings,

and how they transformed the world!

For most people, the Vikings are seen
only as plunderers and pirates.

But is that the whole truth?

The process of converting Scandinavia
to Christianity is a long story.

They were skilled tradesmen, in part
because of their ability to travel.

They're going abroad
to take what they seek.

In this series we will dig deeper
and gain more insight into

who the Vikings really were.

And the truth turns out
to be surprising.

THE LAST JOURNEY OF THE VIKINGS

In the late 700s, the Scandinavians
set sail across the seas,

searching for a better life,
looting and pillaging

and eventually becoming
what we know as the Vikings.

Using their long ships,
the Vikings began wreaking havoc

along the coasts of
the Frankish Empire,

sacking villages as well
as monasteries.

But even though the Vikings
quickly became notorious

for their violent raids abroad,
their first attacks

on the Franks were not
very successful.

The Frankish defenses,
built by Charlemagne,

were simply too effective

and the Franks were able
to prevent the Vikings

from sailing up the great rivers,

and advance further inland.

So how were the pagan Vikings able to
push into Christian Francia?

In order to answer that, we have to
find out more about Charlemagne

and what happened during the
very first Viking attacks on Francia.

100 DAYS IN PARIS

Charlemagne is a key figure
in medieval European history

and one of the most influential
rulers the continent has ever known.

His empire consisted of not only
what is today France but also

present-day western Germany, northern
Italy, Switzerland and Austria.

So the emperor Charlemagne was
an incredibly powerful ruler

and during his reign he greatly
expanded the borders of his empire

into the north towards the area of
southern Scandinavia

what we now refer to as Denmark.

Charlemagne sought to spread
Christianity and unite the kingdom.

This was not well received by all
Vikings. They had their own beliefs.

They didn't want to be
subjected to Christianity

simply because he was king.

Which Gods they worshipped was
a very personal affair.

It didn't concern the ruling powers.

And it's been suggested
that the way in which he did this,

not only undertaking military
conquest, but also

in seeking to convert large numbers
of people to Christianity

at the point of a sword...

which is even suggested to have
resulted in large scale massacres.

And it has been suggested that this
somehow generated the perception

that there was a need for a strike on
the Christian world from Scandinavia.

And in this the early Viking raids
have sometimes been presented

almost, for want of a better term,
as a pagan crusade

and I certainly don't feel that this
was such an important factor

in that sense.

What we have happening this
time in Scandinavia is that

society is changing greatly and there
is a number of social and political,

economic and ideological
factors at play here.

But I'm not sure that Charlemagne's
actions in expanding his empire

really did provide the primary
impetus for these raids.

Charlemagne was known for his
strong Christian faith,

and he wouldn't tolerate any pagans
in the Frankish Empire.

In fact,

he repeatedly tried to convert other
nations to Christianity by force,

including the pagan Saxons,
whose religion

had strong similarities with
the beliefs of the Vikings.

For example, the most important
religious symbol of the Saxons

was the sacred tree Irminsul, which
can be likened to the tree Yggdrasil,

an important symbol in the Norse
religion of Scandinavia.

The Friesland already was very
close to Denmark at the time,

especially through trade exchange.

They were very close to
South Scandinavia.

Throughout the eighth century
and until the early ninth century,

Saxony also gets captured and
included to the Frankish realm.

Regarding those two cases,
Friesland and Saxony,

there were non-Christian
territories and which became

Frankish territories and thus
Christianised.

For a long time, the Frankish empire
had suffered constant raids

from the Saxons,
but around the year 772,

Charlemagne decides to strike
back and attacks Saxony.

This time,
he doesn't only want revenge;

he wants to force the Saxons to
convert from their pagan beliefs

to Christianity, once and for all.

Charlemagne's servant, a scholar
and monk by the name Einhard,

wrote the Francian
emperor's biography -

The Vita Karoli Magni -
"Life of Charlemagne".

In this biography Einhard writes "the
last war that Charles undertook

was against those Northmen
who are called Danes,

who first came as pirates and
then ravaged the coasts of Gaul

and Germany with
a greater naval force."

He was, of course,
talking about the Vikings.

When the Vikings arrived in France,

they weren't very successful in
the eighth century

and early ninth.

I believe it to be mostly due to the
existence of strong political

power at the time, lead by
Charlemagne.

Thus, military control
was well-established.

He instituted a system of coastal
defense on the Frankish coast.

He put in place not only orders
to construct ships

to deter seaborne pirates,

but he also installed a
coast guard system.

A system of armed groups who
would watch for threats

coming from the sea and their
job was primarily to stop

those forces on the beach,
as it were.

At the beginning of the ninth
century, the system seemed to work

quite well. In 820 we have
a fairly small Viking raid

on the Frankish coast.

The Vikings make several attempts to
enter Frankish waterways

to plunder and each time
they are thrown out, essentially,

by this Frankish coast guard.

And when the Vikings now
start attacking Francia,

Charlemagne, who has fought
extended wars against people

belonging to other religions,

is determined not to let plundering
pagans into his country.

The setbacks of the first attacks
lead some Viking chiefs

to simply leave the Frankish Empire
and focus on easier targets.

The Danish king Gudfred is one
of these powerful men,

who give up on Francia
and heads for other destinations.

Other Vikings decide to go
a different route.

Gudfred's younger brother Halvdan,
for instance, chooses not to follow

his brother's example, and instead
allies himself with Charlemagne,

becoming the Danish envoy
to the Frankish emperor.

For a while, it almost seems like the
violent Viking attacks on Francia

have ceased for good.

During this time, the Vikings quickly
become known in Europe

as bloodthirsty pirates, pillaging
and looting whenever they're able to.

Their far-flung journeys
outside Scandinavia

also lead to an increase in trade.

Near estuaries or where

the land met the sea or
along common travel routes,

people gathered to trade.

Eventually these places
became trading posts.

In the North Sea,
we saw centres of production

and trade exchanges emerge.

We often call them "wics"
in the context of Britain,

so they would maintain
trade links with each other.

And these, collectively, provided a
hub in north western Europe

for the exchange of goods
across long distances.

They were also centres for
handmade productions where

different types of objects were made.

Objects made out of bones and
deer antlers, such as combs.

But also metallic objects

and jewellery in copper alloy,
so in bronze.

Scandinavian goods were
highly prized in Europe.

It would have been
skins, pelts, pickled fish.

From the north, it would have
been walrus tusks,

items made out of antlers or bone,
honey and possibly mead,

even if it was considered
somewhat exotic.

We can assume there were skilled
artisans who

crafted and sold items on site.

Jewellery crafting would
have been common.

They created combs and various
other items out of antlers.

Carpenters, barrel makers...
They made ceramic pots.

Both to sell the pots themselves, but
also for the transportation of goods

in ceramic pots or barrels.

Cloth makers... An assortment of
craftsmen met at these trading posts.

So it became a melting pot with a
diverse gathering of people

from all over Europe.

There would have been inns,
entertainment,

singers and bards there.

We can assume there
were brothels as well.

There would also have been
common folk, living there

with their families.
People involved with trading.

In relation to those handmade
productions, there was a need

to access and produce raw materials

which were necessary for
those productions.

That implies the exchange networks
were not only trade networks,

but also distribution networks
for those resources.

It's something that emerged in
Scandinavia as early as during

the eighth century where raw
materials were brought from

Norway to Denmark for the production
of some objects.

It also implies the appearance of a
new way to exploit raw materials

beyond agriculture.

So it also attracted political
interests from the elites

who saw in the possibility to control
the extraction and distribution

of raw materials a way to
increase their wealth.

Raiding also gives the Vikings
access to another product,

one that they buy and sell
at various markets.

The slave trade was an
important market...

where they could buy skilled
craftsmen, beautiful women,

men who possessed useful knowledge
such as literate priests or monks

that could assist a king
or a chieftain

to become learned or gain
a better reputation.

And to learn things that ordinary
people didn't know.

To possess knowledge that isn't
generally known is a source of power.

They could learn these things by
acquiring the right slaves

with the right knowledge.

These trading posts were
important sites,

both for the exchange
of goods as well as ideas,

and it was essential for rulers
to maintain control over them.

It is likely that traders
had to pay taxes

to those who controlled these posts.

In order to conduct trade,
you had to pay taxes if you wanted

to set up a booth.

This was also a good source of income
for the local chieftain or king:

A steady flow of income
from the site.

Visitors to these trading posts are
mainly engaged in peaceful trade,

and as the buying and selling of
various goods increases,

the trading posts grow rapidly, as
does their political significance.

They soon become centres
of political power

and important strategic
points to control.

As a result, the conflicts between
the Vikings and the Franks

flare up once again.

In the year 808,
the great trading post of Rerik

is suddenly attacked by
the Danish king Gudfred.

Rerik was located in a region that,
during the eighth century

and early ninth century, belonged to
a Slavic people, the Obotrites.

In the context of the wars between
the Carolingian Franks and the Saxons

the Obotrites were allies of
the Carolingians.

On the opposite side, in Denmark,
was King Gudfred.

And he stood with the Saxons.

What we have in Denmark at this time
during the reign of Gudfred

is an attempt by the King to
consolidate his power

which is at least to some
extent in relation

to the increasing and
antagonistic contacts between

the Danes and the Carolingians.

We know from the Frankish

written sources that
in the year 808

King Gudfred ordered the destruction
of the Rerik emporium.

The destruction of Rerik was the
result of Frankish expansion

towards the northern and eastern
parts of Europe in general.

Rerik generated incomes that were
rather significant through taxes.

I believe it was a reason, or at
least a motivation, for Gudfred

to order the destruction
of the city.

Because if that city was well
controlled by the Obotrites,

it was a way to prevent
those enemies from getting

a significant financial income.

He took with him many traders
and craftsmen,

because many craftsmen gathered
at these trading posts,

and brought them to the border of
modern day Denmark and Germany

near Sliestorp and introduced them

to the large, emerging
trading post there.

And there he basically had control
over these individuals,

and these are craft specialists,
specialists in trade.

They can bring in a lot of income,
this income can be taxed

and this directly has consequences
for Gudfred's power.

It also sends a strong message to
the Carolingians that Gudfred,

the Danish King, is a force
to be reckoned with

and that he now has the influence
and the power to bring elements of

this North sea, Atlantic and Baltic
trade under his direct control.

He also is recorded as establishing
a large linear earthwork

in southern Jutland.
It's called the Danevirke.

There was a long palisade,
30 kilometres long,

most likely consisting of
wooden posts and trenches

designed to make it difficult
to attack the site.

In all likelihood according to the
archaeological evidence,

this monument was already in
existence during Gudfred's reign,

so what he probably did
was refortify it.

But nonetheless that indicates that
he must have extensive control,

not only over a significant pool of
resources, but also a pool of labour.

So from this we can infer
that certainly

within Gudfred's sphere of power,

there was certainly a degree of
centralised political power

allowing him to draw on his various
subordinates and likely large numbers

of the general population as well.

In the early ninth century,
under Gudfred's reign,

Denmark isn't a unified territory.

It isn't the same Kingdom of Denmark
as it is today or as it was

during the Middle Ages with
delineated borders and a single king

ruling over the territory.

This was more like regional political

entities in the eastern and western
parts of Denmark,

which most likely were
repeatedly fighting with one another

even if we don't have any
clear reference to those.

What is mostly documented is
conflicts around Gudfred

and rivals to the throne
which were mostly centered

in the western part of
the territory in Jutland.

Naturally, the sacking
and destruction of Rerik

was a clear provocation of
Charlemagne

on the part of the Danish king.

Peace negotiations were held
between the two sides,

but in the end they came to nothing.

After this, Charlemagne
created a permanent garrison

north of the river Elbe.

He planned to retaliate, and when
the Danish king brought

hundreds of ships to raid
the Frisian coastline...

Charlemagne gathered his
forces to strike back.

Just before the Frankish attack,
something happens.

Charlemagne is reached
by a messenger.

Gudfred is dead -
killed by one of his own bodyguards.

When Gudfred dies in 810,

Denmark is torn by
severe internal strife,

as the Danish elites are drawn into a
power struggle for the Danish crown.

But the Danish conflicts are nothing
compared to what happens

when the great Frankish emperor dies,
just four years later, in 814.

He had ruled France for 46 years,
and during his reign,

he created a strong Christian empire,

well equipped to deal
with the Viking threat.

What would happen now
when he was gone?

Following Charlemagne's death,
Louis the Pious was crowned.

He had four sons. And he wanted
them to inherit their share

of the kingdom's lands.

So he attempted to split the
kingdom between his sons.

It's easy to see how this would cause
trouble. So when he died,

civil war broke out between the
brothers who all wanted the throne

and as much of the land as possible.

This meant Francia's resources were
spent on killing each other

instead of defending themselves
from foreign Viking raids.

The instability that developed on the
continent regarding the succession

of Louis the Pious, opened a
breach in that defense system

which used to be effective
beforehand.

After Charlemagne's death,
they didn't keep that defense system.

With Louis the Pious's death and the
fragmentation of the Frankish Empire

came a period of instability with a
reorganisation of the territories.

Which means that the military
coordination which was a trait

of the Frankish kingdoms in the past,

especially under the reign of
Charlemagne became

far less effective.

It also meant that the elites in the
three Frankish kingdoms at the time

also had to set new positions
in those territories.

And their focus shifted towards
the inside and negotiations

within
Frankish kingdoms.

And so what we have here is really a
perfect set of circumstances

for Viking raiding groups to start
not only raiding the coast,

but penetrate much further inland
and to really start to cause havoc

and that's exactly what we see
in the historical records.

The Carolingians did have a
well-developed defensive system

in place which in theory was
supposed to counter these attacks,

the kings had the ability to muster
large armies often at short notice.

But at the same time, they're often
hampered in their ability to do so,

simply because they cannot
always count on the support

of their magnates.

Local rulers could ally themselves
with the Vikings and receive

their assistance during the civil war
in exchange for providing the Vikings

with shelter during the winter

or letting them freely
use local resources.

The Vikings were flexible and
could take on the role of ambassadors

and collaborators in
many different ways.

If they had the opportunity to gain
resources, they took it.

They weren't bound by rules governing
what they could or couldn't do

when they were in a foreign land.

But they quickly learned that they
had much to gain in Francia.

There were wealthy cities,
sites for commerce,

churches and monasteries.

While the Franks are occupied
with the civil war,

the Vikings finally manage to push
past their defenses

and sail up the great rivers.

In search of gold, glory and
ultimately land as well,

they advance deeper into the Frankish
Empire than ever before.

The Vikings were fierce warriors.

If they didn't capture slaves,
kill, or plunder,

they often demanded payment in order
to leave towns unscathed.

Demands of large quantities of silver
or gold in order to leave a town

or a stretch of the coastline
in peace.

This was an even better
way to plunder.

They didn't even have to fight.

They didn't have to do more than say:

"Give us money and we'll
leave you alone."

The larger payments were
called "geld".

One of example would be the danegeld
when the English paid a

large sum of silver and gold in order
to stop the Viking raids,

and they did stop, for a while.

The gelds may have kept the peace
for a few years...

But they would inevitably return.

"They paid,
so we'll sail there again."

It was a clever move by the Vikings,

not so much by the people
who paid the geld.

What we're looking at here is no kind
of concerted attempt

to extort money or land out of the
Carolingians or any other societies

that these groups are
coming into violent contact with.

But rather these are small
groups operating very much

within their own interests.

I think that we need to look at these
groups as having their own

individual objectives and goals and
pursuing them in their own ways,

rather than conforming to a general
strategy that may not

have actually existed within
their own minds.

In March of 845, a large Danish
Viking fleet consisting of 120 ships

sails up the river Seine to Paris.

The new king, Charles the Bald,
had tried fighting the Vikings off

with his army but failed.

Paris had a high city wall dating
back to Roman times,

and the city had several churches,
inside the wall as well as outside,

on the beaches of Seine.

Two bridges led to the city,
and on the mainland,

these bridges were guarded
by tall stone towers.

The Vikings organised
a siege on the city,

and the Francian king,
Charles the Bald, was eventually

forced to pay a large amount of gold
and silver as ransom for his city.

When the Vikings sailed along the
rivers into Francia and

formed alliances with local rulers,
they were given the opportunity

to establish themselves on land,
at least for a time.

They didn't have to return home
over winter.

Previously they would have
left home for spring,

plundered and traded during summer,
sailed back by autumn,

and spent their winters at home.

But because they could spend
the winters in Francia,

the situation suddenly changed.

They began their warring and
trading earlier in the year.

And they established relationships
with the local residents.

This was the beginning of Viking
relocation to other places.

After the events in Denmark, more and
more people travel from Scandinavia

and across the seas
to other countries.

It's not only armed men in search of
gold and glory who make the voyage;

there are also families,
with women and children.

And sometimes the journey
can be very long.

The Vikings emigrated and relocated
to many different parts of Europe.

Especially northward;
the Faroe Islands,

Iceland and eventually Greenland.

Large areas of land are taken over or
are re-populated by the Vikings.

They also came to Scotland,
Ireland and England.

The Frankish civil war
gives the Vikings

an opportunity to stay in Francia for
considerably longer periods of time.

They manage to exploit the unrest
for their own gain

and are able to remain over the
winter in several places in England

as well as in the Frankish Empire.

But life in exile at a winter camp
is not easy...

The majority of the information we
have from the continent at the moment

is limited to the historical sources.

We know the locations
where they were

setting up temporary encampments.

But archaeologically at least it's
quite difficult

to identify these sites.

Where we have had some really good
archaeological research done recently

is in England - and what
we found in England are,

at least two now, winter camps.

Essentially when these Viking
forces were operating in the field

for long periods of time,
they would often spend the winter

ensconced in some kind of
temporary encampment.

Regarding the continent, for
instance, there are Viking camps

on Noirmoutier island, but also
on some islands on the Seine,

Jeufosse, for instance,
downstream of Paris.

What we are seeing here are groups
that are very different to

the early Viking raiding fleets.

These aren't just a few crews of

individuals operating
opportunistically,

but rather they're very large,

comprising perhaps of
thousands of people,

moving along the landscape
for long periods of time.

Unlike the early raiders
who would raid seasonally,

these groups were staying out in
what is now France, in England,

for years and even
over decades of time.

What we're not really sure about at
this time is what these camps

physically looked like.

What we do see evidence for though is
their occupation of the site itself

largely through evidence
of metal production

and manufacturing and trade.

And the thing about these sites is
that they're often detected through

through the work of metal
detectorists.

So we actually have a preponderance
of fragments of jewellery,

of fragmented coins, bits of silver
bullion, which attest to

quite a large amount of loot
being processed at these sites,

and also to substantial trade.

Everyday life in these camps

is quite simple.

Those are temporary shelters.
There's no solid building,

there aren't any
well-built buildings.

Those are mainly, as the name
suggests, camps, basic shelter.

It was cold and damp all the time.

Even if they wore several layers of
wool, which they were likely to do,

and filled their shoes with straw,
they were constantly cold.

When they lived in a camp during
winter, their clothes never dried.

The blankets they draped over
themselves at night never dried.

Their tents never dried.

If they brought animals with them,
such as horses,

the horses needed
fresh water as well.

They probably didn't have
much land for grazing,

even if it was better than
Scandinavian winters.

It's likely that many died in these
camps due to the harsh conditions.

What's interesting in what has been
referenced is that we learn

that there were women and children
living in those Viking camps as well.

Who were they? Did they
also come from Scandinavia?

Were they part of the moving army?

Or were they captives

imprisoned during raids
and destined to be

traded as slaves or to be kept as
concubines or have they

become partners in their own rights?

We don't really know.

Among the camps that were
studied in England,

archaeological material
gives the feeling of a moving army.

We found material culture

corresponding to a small
military community

that keeps moving.

For instance, in Torksey there is a
big site of several hectares

with plenty of archaeological
material, mostly metallic objects,

since the study was based on objects
found thanks to metal detectors.

Those suggest manufacturing
objects,

but, and most importantly,
trading activities.

Torksey site is dated to the 870s,

a time when the great army
was going around

the Anglo-Saxon territories.

One of the things I find really
interesting about these sites is

what they mean for our perceptions
of the later settlement

of the landscape in both England and
in the Carolingian Empire.

If we're to accept that
these large Viking forces were

comprised of numerous
autonomous groups

coming together and acting together
for a short period of time,

then what we essentially have
here is the creation of,

although we call them often armies,
they're actually kind of

mobile societies or
polities in their own rights.

And the conditions in which they're
living in these camps might actually

provide a kind of precursor to the
later settlement of the landscape,

both in England and within the
Carolingian Empire

because it might have been the first
time that many of these groups

were coming together and inhabiting a
single area in such a way.

After the death of Charlemagne,
civil war raged in Francia

and the coastal defenses
couldn't be maintained.

The area lay open to
Scandinavians searching for gold,

glory and eventually land.

Meanwhile, there was
also unrest in Denmark,

and along with usual adventurers,

there were now also
other people in exile,

looking for new opportunities abroad.

During the 800s,

as the Vikings managed to
push deeper into Christian Francia,

their tactics changed.

They went from pillaging small
monasteries to attacking large cities

like Paris.

A common Viking strategy
was to hold a city hostage,

forcing them to pay a ransom,
usually gold and silver.

Despite the turbulence that plagued
Francia during this period,

the Vikings would not
be able to remain.

The resistance soon
becomes stronger again.

And a new Frankish emperor
manages to rebuild his defenses,

including those along
the river Seine,

preventing further attacks on Paris.

During the years that follow,

the Vikings will instead turn
towards the British Isles.

This, however, is only temporary;

the Vikings haven't finished
with Francia.

When they return, they do so
with a new goal - to become

an integrated part of
Frankish society.

And in order to reach this,

the Vikings are willing
to go to any lengths.

Subtitles: Lily Ray
www.plint.com