by Griff Hosker
A wedge was formed by having a warrior at the front and then two and so on. Sometimes it would have a double point, boar's snout. A wedge with twenty men at the rear might have over a hundred and fifty men. It would be hard to stop. The blood eagle was performed by cutting the skin of the victim by the spine , breaking the ribs so they resembled blood-stained wings, and pulling the lungs out through the wounds in the victim's back.
I have used the word saga, even though it is generally only used for Icelandic stories. It is just to make it easier for my readers. If you are an Icelandic expert, then I apologise. I use plenty of foreign words which, I know, taxes some of my readers. As I keep saying it is about the characters and the stories.
It was more dangerous to drink the water in those times and so most people, including children drank beer or ale. The process killed the bacteria which could hurt them. It might sound as though they were on a permanent pub crawl but in reality, they were drinking the healthiest drink that was available to them. Honey was used as an antiseptic in both ancient and modern times. It was also the most commonly available sweetener. Yarrow was a widely-used herb. It had a variety of applications in ancient times. It was frequently mixed with other herbs as well as being used with honey to treat wounds. Its Latin name is Achillea millefolium. Achilles was reported to have carried the herb with him in battle to treat wounds. Its traditional names include arrowroot, bad man's plaything, bloodwort, carpenter's weed, death flower, devil's nettle, eerie, field hops, gearwe, hundred leaved grass, knight's milefoil, knyghten, milefolium, milfoil, millefoil, noble yarrow, nosebleed, old man's mustard, old man's pepper, sanguinary, seven year's love, snake's grass, soldier, soldier's woundwort, stanchweed, thousand seal, woundwort, yarroway, yew. I suspect Tolkien used it in The Lord of the Rings books as Kingsfoil, another ubiquitous and often overlooked herb in Middle Earth.
The Vikings were not sentimental about their children. A son would expect nothing from his father once he became a man. He had more chance of reward from his jarl than his father. Leaders gave gifts to their followers. It was expected. Therefore, the more successful you were as a leader the more loyal followers you might have. A warrior might be given battle rings by his jarl. Sometimes these were taken from the dead they had slain. Everything would be recycled!
The word lake is a French/Norman word. The Norse called lakes either waters or meres. They sometimes used the old English term, tarn. The Irish and the Scots call them Lough/lochs. There is only one actual lake in the Lake District. All the rest are waters, meres, or tarns. When they talk of the Water they mean Coniston Water in Cumbria.
The Bangor I refer to (there were many) was called Bangor is-y-coed by the Welsh but I assumed that the Vikings would just use the first part of the place name. From the seventeenth century, the place was known as Bangor of the Monks (Bangor Monachorum). Dolgellau was mined for gold by people as far back as the Romans and deposits have been discovered as late as the twenty first century. Having found gold in a stream at Mungrisedale in the Lake District I know how exciting it is to see the golden flecks in the black sand. The siege of the fort is not in itself remarkable. When Harlech was besieged in the middle ages two knights and fifteen men at arms held off a large army.
Anglesey was considered the bread basket of Wales even as far back as the Roman Invasion; the combination of the Gulf Stream and the soil meant that it could provide grain for many people. In the eighth to tenth centuries, grain was more valuable than gold. The Viking raids began in the early ninth century and plagued the inhabitants thereafter.
When writing about the raids I have tried to recreate those early days of the Viking raider. The Saxons had driven the native inhabitants to the extremes of Wales, Cornwall, and Scotland. The Irish were always too busy fighting amongst themselves. It must have come as a real shock to be attacked in their own settlements. By the time of King Alfred almost sixty years later they were better prepared. This was also about the time that Saxon England converted completely to Christianity. The last place to do so was the Isle of Wight. There is no reason to believe that the Vikings would have had any sympathy for their religion and would, in fact, have taken advantage of their ceremonies and rituals not to mention their riches.
There was a warrior called Ragnar Hairy-Breeches. Although he lived a little later than my book is set I could not resist using the name of such an interesting sounding character. Most of the names such as Silkbeard, Hairy-Breeches etc. are genuine Viking names. I have merely transported them all into one book. I also amended some of my names- I used Eric in the earlier books and it should have been Erik. I have now changed the later editions of the first two books in the series.
Bothvar Bjarki was a famous berserker and the Klak brothers did exist. I did not make either name up! Guthrum was also a Dane who lived in East Anglia. Seguin I Lupo was Duke of Vasconia which broke away from the Empire briefly at the start of the ninth century.
Slavery was far more common in the ancient world. When the Normans finally made England their own they showed that they understood the power of words and propaganda by making the slaves into serfs. This was a brilliant strategy as it forced their former slaves to provide their own food whilst still working for their lords and masters for nothing. Manumission was possible as Garth showed in the first book in this series. Scanlan’s training is also a sign that not all of the slaves suffered. It was a hard and cruel time- it was ruled by the strong.
The word 'testify' comes from Anglo-Saxon. A man would clutch his testicles and swear that the evidence he was giving was the truth. If it was not, then he would lose his testicles. There was more truth in the Anglo-Saxon courts than there is these days!
The Vikings did use trickery when besieging their enemies and would use any means possible. They did not have siege weapons and had to rely on guile and courage to prevail. The siege of Paris in 845 A.D. was one such example.
The Isle of Man(n) is reputed to have the earliest surviving Parliament, the Tynwald although there is evidence that there were others amongst the Viking colonies on Orkney and in Iceland. I have used this idea for Prince Buthar’s meetings of Jarls. The Isle of Man(n) was one of the first places settled by Norsemen. The names on the island reflect their long Viking history. The world's first parliament, the Tynewald was held there. The Calf of Man is a small island off the south-western coast. The three legs of Man which makes up their flag still came from an early Jarl on the island. I have used Jarl Erik as that warrior. It is, of course, fiction of my own creation.
The blue stone they treasure is aquamarine or beryl. It is found in granite. The rocks around the Mawddach are largely granite and although I have no evidence of beryl being found there, I have used the idea of a small deposit being found to tie the story together.
There was a famous witch who lived on one of the islands of Scilly. According to Norse legend Olaf Tryggvasson, who became King Olaf 1 of Norway, visited her. She told him that if he converted to Christianity then he would become king of Norway.
The early ninth century saw Britain converted to Christianity and there were many monasteries which flourished. These were often mixed. These were not the huge stone edifices such as Whitby and Fountain’s Abbey; these were wooden structures. As such their remains have disappeared, along with the bones of those early Christian priests. Hexham was a major monastery in the early Saxon period. I do not know it they had warriors to protect the priests but having given them a treasure to watch over I thought that some warriors might be useful too.
I use Roman forts in all of my books. Although we now see ruins when they were abandoned the only things which would have been damaged would have been the gates. Anything of value would have been buried in case they wished to return. By ‘of value’ I do not mean coins but things such as nails and weapons. Many of these objects have been discovered. A large number of the forts were abandoned in a hurry. Hardknott fort, for example, was built in the 120s but abandoned twenty or so years later. When the Antonine Wall was aban
doned in the 180s Hardknott was reoccupied until Roman soldiers finally withdrew from northern Britain. I think that, until the late Saxon period and early Norman period, there would have been many forts which would have looked habitable. The Vikings and the Saxons did not build in stone. It was only when the castle builders, the Normans, arrived that stone would be robbed from Roman forts and those defences destroyed by an invader who was in the minority. The Vikings also liked to move their homes every few years; this was, perhaps, only a few miles, but it explains how difficult it is to find the remains of early Viking settlements.
The place names are accurate and the mountain above Coniston is called the Old Man. The river is not navigable up to Windermere but I have allowed my warriors to carry their drekar as the Vikings did in the land of the Rus when travelling to Miklagård. The ninth century saw the beginning of the reign of the Viking. They raided Spain, the Rhone, Africa, and even Constantinople. They believed they could beat anyone!
King Egbert was a real king who did indeed triumph over King Coenwulf. He founded the power base upon which Alfred the Great built. When he defeated the Mercians he became, de facto, High King of Britain. It was also at this time that the Danes came to take over East Anglia and Yorkshire. The land became, over the next 50 years, Danelaw. Its expansion was only halted by Alfred and was finally destroyed when King Harold defeated his brother and King Harald Hadrada at Stamford Bridge in 1066. Until Alfred the Danes were used as hired swords. They fought for gold. It was a mistake for more often than not, as with the first Angles invited over, Hengist and Horsa, they stayed and conquered. So, it would prove with the Danes. Eardwulf was king of Northumbria twice: first from 796-806 and from 808-810. The king who deposed him was Elfwald II. This period was a turbulent one for the kings of Northumbria and marked a decline in their fortunes until it was taken over by the Danes in 867. This was the time of power for Mercia and East Anglia. Coenwulf ruled Mercia. Wessex had yet to rise.
I have made up Elfrida and Egbert’s marriage to her but the kings of that time had many liaisons with many women. Some kings sired up to twenty illegitimate children and many legitimate ones. The practice continued into the late middle ages. Wives were frequently taken for political reasons. The inspiration for the abduction comes from the story of the Welsh Princess Nest (Nesta) who, in the 12th century had two children by King Henry 1st and was then married to one of his friends. She was abducted by a Welsh knight who lived with her until her husband recaptured her and killed her abductor. Harald Klak became King of Denmark in 826 but I made up his brother.
The Danish raids on the east coast began in the late 700s. However, the west coast and Hibernian were raided by Norse and Rus warriors who also went on to settle Iceland. There is less recorded evidence of their raids, attacks and settlements. The records we have are the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles and they tend to focus on the south and east of what was England. The land that is now the Lake District was disputed land between Northumbria and Strathclyde however the Norse influence on the language and its proximity to the Isle of Man and Dublin make me think that the Norse there would not have been part of what would become Danelaw.
I have used the word Welsh even though it is a modern word. The words used by Vikings and Saxons to describe them were similar to each other and both originated from the Proto-Germanic word Walhaz which means foreigner. Ironic as the Danes, Saxons, Norse and Germans were all the foreigners and the Welsh or Celts were the natives of Britain.
There were many Viking raids on London in the ninth century. They increased dramatically after 825. Dragonheart's raid is one of the first. 842 and 851 saw the largest raids. One was reputed to have 350 drekar! It was in the ninth century when the Danes finally conquered what is now East Anglia, Essex and, of course, Northumbria. They were not uniquely Danes. Some were Norse from Norway while others were the Rus or Swedes. However, Denmark and the lands of the Low Countries were the closest and they had the majority of the raiders. Rising sea levels at this time meant that much of their own lands were becoming submerged. The warriors came first; made homes and then brought their families.
Carhampton was a royal hunting estate of King Egbert. The Vikings attacked it in force in 838 bringing 25 ships.
The blood ceremony was taken from Mark Harrison's book, 'Viking Hersir'. I adapted it from the clan ceremony. I also used some of the elements from the fortress of Trelleborg from the same publication.
The Vikings had two seasons: summer and winter. As with many things a Viking lived simply and his world was black or white! There was no room for grey or any shades save the dead!
I used shadow raven website for the Norse months http://shadowraven.net/calendar/norse.html.
Saint-Valery is a small port at the mouth of the Somme. The bones of the saint were buried beneath the monastery and abbey there. They were built in the seventh century. In the eighth and ninth century, they were raided and devastated by Viking raids. The policy of the French Kings was to buy off the Vikings. The Mayor of Frisia did hire Danes to stop raids by other Vikings. Eventually the Danes were hired in East Anglia too.
The coast lines were different in the eighth and ninth centuries. The land to the east of Lincoln was swamp. Indeed, there had been a port just a few miles from Lincoln in the Roman age. Now Lincoln is many miles from the sea but this was not so in the past. Similarly, many rivers have been straightened. We can thank the Victorians for that. The Tees had so many loops in it that it took as long to get from Yarm to the sea as it did to get down to London! Similarly, many place names and places have changed. Some had Saxon names which became Norse. Some had Old English names. Some even retained their Latin names. It was quite common for one place to be known by two names.
Windar’s Mere is actually Ambleside. The Romans chose its location and Dragonheart is too clever a warrior to ignore its defensive potential.
The Vikings did not have a religion in the way that we do. There was no organisation. They had no priests or mullahs. They had beliefs. The gods and the spirits were there. You did not worship them. You asked them for help, perhaps, but you could equally curse them too.
I used the following books for research
Vikings- Life and Legends -British Museum
Saxon, Norman and Viking by Terence Wise (Osprey)
The Vikings (Osprey) -Ian Heath
Byzantine Armies 668-1118 (Osprey)-Ian Heath
Romano-Byzantine Armies 4th -9th Century (Osprey) -David Nicholle
The Walls of Constantinople AD 324-1453 (Osprey) -Stephen Turnbull
Viking Longship (Osprey) - Keith Durham
The Vikings in England Anglo-Danish Project
Anglo Saxon Thegn AD 449-1066- Mark Harrison (Osprey)
Viking Hersir- 793-1066 AD - Mark Harrison (Osprey)
Hadrian's Wall- David Breeze (English Heritage)
Griff Hosker February 2017
Other books by
Griff Hosker
If you enjoyed reading this book, then why not read another one by the author?
Ancient History
The Sword of Cartimandua Series (Germania and Britannia 50A.D. – 128 A.D.)
Ulpius Felix- Roman Warrior (prequel)
Book 1 The Sword of Cartimandua
Book 2 The Horse Warriors
Book 3 Invasion Caledonia
Book 4 Roman Retreat
Book 5 Revolt of the Red Witch
Book 6 Druid’s Gold
Book 7 Trajan’s Hunters
Book 8 The Last Frontier
Book 9 Hero of Rome
Book 10 Roman Hawk
Book 11 Roman Treachery
Book 12 Roman Wall
The Wolf Warrior series (Britain in the late 6th Century)
Book 1 Saxon Dawn
Book 2 Saxon Revenge
Book 3 Saxon England
Book 4 Saxon Blood
Book 5 Saxon Slayer
Book 6 Saxon Slaughter
Book 7 Saxon Bane
Book 8 Saxon Fall: Rise
of the Warlord
Book 9 Saxon Throne
The Dragon Heart Series
Book 1 Viking Slave
Book 2 Viking Warrior
Book 3 Viking Jarl
Book 4 Viking Kingdom
Book 5 Viking Wolf
Book 6 Viking War
Book 7 Viking Sword
Book 8 Viking Wrath
Book 9 Viking Raid
Book 10 Viking Legend
Book 11 Viking Vengeance
Book 12 Viking Dragon
Book 13 Viking Treasure
Book 14 Viking Enemy
Book 15 Viking Witch
Book 16 Viking Blood
Norman Genesis Series (820-1020 A.D.)
Hrolf the Viking
Horseman
The Battle for a Home
Revenge of the Franks
The Land of the Northmen
The Aelfraed Series (Britain and Byzantium 1050 A.D. - 1085 A.D.)
Book 1 Housecarl
Book 2 Outlaw
Book 3 Varangian
The Anarchy Series (England 1120-1180)
English Knight
Knight of the Empress
Northern Knight
Baron of the North
Earl
King Henry's Champion
The King is Dead
Warlord of the North
Enemy at the Gates
Warlord's War
Kingmaker
Henry II
Modern History
The Napoleonic Horseman Series
Chasseur à Cheval