From Danelaw to Denmark: A Viking Journey // Vikings Anglo-Saxons Documentary

London, home to some 20 million people. Land of craft beer, business, modernity, still growing every day. It's hard to imagine this place before the skyscrapers, the underground, before the urban sprawl kicked in. Yet, long ago, there was a time before all of this took hold. There's been a settlement here for as long as permanent settlements have existed in Britain. A strategically important crossroads on the River Thames, the great waterway which cuts a swathe through southern Britain. These same waters that still bring people into the city today have done so since at least Neolithic times. Perhaps some of the relatives of those who built Stonehenge, not too far away. Later, this was a home to Bronze Age pastoralists, a fortress of the Celts, and finally, the Romans. Their special talent always being to build on the foundations of those who came before. Though the city was sacked by the Iceni warrior queen, Boudicca, in 60 AD, for two centuries after the Roman conquest of Britain, Londinium thrived as the greatest metropolis of Britannia. Home to some 60,000 people at its height. The city wall here was the second largest construction project ever undertaken in Roman Britain. Home to legionaries, merchants, and mercenaries, hailing from as far away as the deserts of Africa and the mountains of the Black Sea. It was under Roman direction that London first became a thriving international city akin to the one we see today. By the time the Western Roman Empire collapsed in the 5th century AD, most centrally planned cities in Britain, such as Londinium, so reliant on foreign trade and imports to survive, had already fallen into disrepair. Within a century, many would be abandoned entirely. Their once mighty colonnades and pillars left to rot and crumble away. For a time, the surviving citizens of Londinium and its outlying settlements and surrounding villas may have attempted to go on living some kind of Roman way of life. But this would ultimately be short-lived, for a new lifestyle had arrived from across the sea. Perhaps originating as swords for hire, in time, as centuries-old Roman trade networks completely fell apart, it was to the North Sea that people looked for material goods, and in time, culture. By the latter 6th century, the huge Roman buildings at Londinium had already fallen into ruin so much, and the culture shifted away from the classical world so completely, that only the most learned in society recalled the histories of those who had built them. For the majority of people living in close proximity to the ruins, those mighty buildings could only have been built by giants. Such was the loss in technological capacity. It was the same all over Britain. For by this time, a new people had come to dominate the southeastern lowland portions of the island. A people originating in the Federati of the latter Roman Empire, as much as the boggy woodlands of northern Germany. We know them as the Anglo-Saxons. And though they possessed a rich culture, steeped in the world of the migration period, these early Anglo-Saxons had no knowledge nor expertise of building in stone. Of course, the London area would soon be populated once more. Though these Saxon newcomers built their settlement, Londonwick, outside the walls of Roman Londinium, fearful of the ghosts and spirits who stalked that ancient place. This situation, the same as at York and at villas all over the land, is perhaps best described by the later Anglo-Saxon poem, The Ruin. Wondrous is this stone wall, wrecked by fate. The city buildings crumble, the works of the giants decay. Roofs have caved in, towers collapsed, barred gates are broken, hoar frost clings to mortar. Houses are gaping, tottering and fallen, undermined by age. The earth's embrace, its fierce grip, holds the mighty craftsmen. They are perished and gone. A hundred generations have passed away since then. This wall, grey with lichen and red of hue, outlives kingdom after kingdom. The world's first streaming service dedicated entirely to learning, with categories including history, science, nature, technology, society and lifestyle. Just like other streaming services, you can watch CuriosityStream on all of your devices. And best of all, you can get access to all of it for just $2.99 a month, with your first 30 days completely free of charge, if you sign up using my link. There's so much to watch on this service, that I've honestly been spoiled for choice. Recently, I've been watching Storm over Europe, a four-part series charting the history of the Germanic peoples who inherited Europe from the Roman Empire, as well as loads of other great history documentaries on Rome, ancient history and more. Head on over to curiositystream.com forward slash history time, for unlimited access to the world's top documentaries and non-fiction titles, and get 30 days free. There are links to everything in the description below. Now, back to the post-Roman twilight. By the year 600, the first saplings of complex societies began to arise once more. As all over Britain, strong kingdoms began to form. The state that eventually centred itself on London was that of the East Saxons, eventually becoming known as Essex. Part of the reason we know anything at all about early London is its significance for early Christianity, for in 597, a Roman churchman named Augustine travelled to Britain to begin the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons. Rome, now little more than a city-state again after losing its empire, could not reconquer its lost lands, but it could bring the hearts and minds of Europe under its control. Augustine found himself a patron in the form of King Ethelbert of Kent, perhaps already sympathetic to Christianity because of his Frankish wife, Bertha. Augustine would become the first Archbishop of Canterbury, primarily because Ethelbert wished for his trading wick, an Anglo-Saxon term meaning port or trading town, to remain the most important. It would be for Meletus, Augustine's companion, to convert the pagan Londoners. At the time, under Ethelbert's influence, he being the most powerful military ruler of the South. According to Bede, the original St Paul's was constructed in 604, though we know nothing of the building. By 617 however, both Ethelbert and his sub-king Seybert of Essex were dead, and Meletus found himself booted out of the city by a resurgent pagan populace. Egged on by the new kings of Essex, Seybert's three sons, Seward, Saxred and Saxbold, who found an ally in the new pagan king of Kent, Eardbold. Meletus would be back, perhaps as Eardbold realised the profits that could be made by converting and fostering links with Merovingian Francia, and London would become Christian in time, though just like it has always conducted affairs, it did so on its own terms. By 670, Londonwick came under the control of the next powerhouse to arise, Mercia, and a generation later we have the first description of the city by the English historian Bede. The city of London, which stands on the banks of the Thames and is a trading centre for many nations who visit it by land and sea. Archaeology too suggests a thriving town during this time, with an Anglo-Saxon embankment along the shore discovered in 1987 being just one discovery amongst many. By the mid-8th century, any East Saxon claims on the city had long since dissipated, along with any idea of an independent East Saxon kingdom. The new power, one which to most observers would have seemed a solid bet to become the eventual unifier of all the kingdoms, came into permanent possession of the capital, now once more one of the most important trading cities of Northern Europe. The Kingdom of Mercia held onto London for a century or more to come, though in truth all of the kingdoms had some stake in the city. By this time, similar international trading centres had also developed on the continent, at Quentovitch in Francia, Dorastad in Frisia, Riebe in Denmark, Kaupang in Norway, Birka in Sweden, and Hedeby in Denmark, bringing in items from as far away as Italy and Constantinople, producing glass, leather, wood, and textiles, often in the form of fine cloaks, such as those mentioned in an early 9th century letter between the Great King Charlemagne and Offa of Mercia. The city of London, called a famous place and a royal town by King Conewulf of Mercia in 811, existed alongside a number of similar wicks, at Hamwich, Gippswitch, and Eoffawitch, all serving traders and manufacturing goods. Yet, though the new city of Londonwick existed in full view of the old ruins of Londinium, the city walls, abandoned for close to 400 years, had still not been reclaimed. Saxon wicks stood almost entirely undefended. By the 9th century, as Mercian power entered a new period of decline, soon to be eclipsed by the power of Wessex in the southwest, more and more traders and visitors from beyond the established Christian world could be found in English ports. By the time of the Great Heathen Army in 865, Scandinavians were no strangers to English ports. They'd probably been visiting wicks first as traders and sailors since the mid-8th century, maybe for much longer. After all, the Anglo-Saxons had first sprung from Denmark and northern Germany just a few centuries earlier, and still spoke a mutually intelligible tongue. For centuries in fact, after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the material culture of Britain's eastern seaboard remains near indiscernible at times from that of southern Scandinavia and the German coastline, with helmets such as that found at Sutton Hoo being extremely reminiscent of similar ones at Vendel in Sweden from the same time. It was in fact Christianity and the reluctance of Christians to deal with pagans that had driven these people apart, driving a wedge between them in the form of the very worldview of early Christianity, depicted as a struggle between believer and heathen. A struggle which demanded the old pagan ways be pushed into oblivion. Yet, in truth, it wouldn't be very long before the old pagan ways were back. Eventually, by the 8th century, the shipping technology within Scandinavia improved, allowing for longer trade missions, Scandinavian familiarity with English ports, or at least the second-hand stories heard from relatives or acquaintances would have spurred on raids. Perhaps some potential Vikings even travelled as traders themselves first, on reconnaissance missions before wide-scale attacks. But why barter when you can simply take what you want? The first large-scale attack on London is recorded in 842, when the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle describes a great slaughter in London, Quentovitch and Rochester. The Frankish Annals of Saint-Bertin give these attackers a name, describing them as Northmen. They attacked London directly, driving the Mercian king Brightwolf into retreat, and ultimately death in the next year, significantly impacting the Mercian economy in the process. Though archaeology suggests that London may have already been in a state of decline by this point, eclipsed by other trading centres, there was still sufficient wealth in the place for a horde of 250 coins to be hidden in the ground around this time, presumably by a London resident wishing to return to reclaim them at a later date. He never did, though the city survived. By 851, another attack is recorded, with this one being singled out as different. In that year, 350 ships are said to have sailed up the Thames to attack London, overwintering for the first time on the island. Interestingly, this attack was directed not against Lundenwick, but Lundenburr, another Saxon term meaning fortification, suggesting that the Londoners may have finally set aside their old superstitions to live amongst the ghosts of the old world, primarily for protection if not for anything else. By the winter of 871, as Mercia found itself overrun with Scandinavian invaders, a Viking army is thought to have camped within the Roman walls at Londinium, seeing the city fall under Danish occupation for the first time in its history. During the later 870s and early 880s, technically the city was under the control of King Chilwolf of Mercia, though he was a puppet king, and in reality the city was probably ruled by Danes. In 878, the West Saxon King Alfred won a stunning victory against the Viking warlord Guthrum's Great Army at Eddington in Wiltshire, with the balance of power shifting ever so slightly in the favour of Wessex. In the aftermath of the battle, Guthrum was recognised as king in East Anglia, in return for agreeing never to fight Alfred again, with the border between English lands and Danish settled along the old Roman road of Watling Street. London, of course, as it had always been, was right in the middle of it all. We get just brief snippets of information from the written record during this time, with only a few brief mentions of London. In 883, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that Alfred's forces encamped against the hordes at London, perhaps suggesting a siege, though the details remain lost. By 886, a formal ceremony undertaken by Alfred restored the city of Londonburgh, and the old Roman city, rather than the Saxon wick, became the main site of population. The city now becoming known as Londonburgh, marking the beginning of the City of London. Perhaps this was simply formally putting in place a pre-existing situation, though archaeology does suggest that the old Roman walls were repaired and the defensive ditch was recut around this time. In the years that followed, London would become extremely prosperous once more. The reason for its success was its forward-thinking nature. If you can't beat them, join them. This was the place where Kentishmen, East Saxon, West Saxon, Mercian and East Anglian met, not to mention Northumbrian, Scandinavian, Frisian, Britain, Frank, German and Irishmen, a true melting pot. Rather than being referred to by their ethnic origins, Londoners increasingly began to be known as stronghold dwellers. Every few years, when urban development happens, there is a chance to take a glimpse into this lost world. At excavated sites such as Bull Wharf, the evidence thickens during the end of the 9th century and the beginning of the 10th. A large collection of brooches, mounts and other items are found in increasingly large numbers, many of them of foreign design, most often originating in Frisia and Francia. But a large number of Scandinavian items have been found too, originating in Hedeby, the Irish Sea and beyond, all over the Viking world. Belt buckles, combs and perhaps most tellingly, components from a balance scale, used to weigh hack silver and coins. Scandinavians were setting up their businesses in London, integrating into this new world. As a group of items, this is the largest collection of finds in Britain for this period outside of Jorvik. Archaeology suggests that the waterfront continued to develop, with the gangplanks of the 9th century replaced by increasingly sturdy timber embankments on the shore. Maritime salvage from the early 10th century includes a massive Frisian trading vessel and many fragments of Scandinavian ships. Though these may have been the spoils of war, equally they might have been used by Scandinavians passing through the town. The Viking world was spilling into London. In the last decades of his life, Alfred the Great not only set about fortifying many of his towns throughout his country, but also in translating a number of Latin works into English, intending for a basic level of education to become the norm for his civil servants. Chief amongst these works was a history of the Spanish 5th century historian, Orosius. Alfred took it upon himself to record information missing from Orosius' work, specifically information on Northern Europe, a world he was now increasingly exposed to. It is in this work that we get a glimpse into this Scandinavian trade network, burgeoning at the end of the 9th century, that Alfred's subjects now found themselves exposed to at places such as Jorvik and above all else, London. Alfred leaves us with two accounts as told to him at his court by merchant captains of the North Sea. The first of these two figures is a Norseman, Otir of Helogaland, or as he puts it, Perhaps a point of pride amongst his people, perhaps part of a sales pitch. After all, it was often said during this time that the further north you go, the better the animal furs you find. And of course, for Otir, a man who claimed to measure wealth based on how many animals one owns, everything was for sale. Otir described to Alfred an expedition far beyond the Arctic Circle to the frosted White Sea of modern day Russia, lands probably never before heard of by any West Saxon, as well as all manner of reindeer hunting natives of the region, hostile to Norway. Otir primarily seems to have come to the West Saxon court to sell exotic goods, fine furs from subarctic animals like bears and beavers, but also walrus ivory, which could be used to make luxury croziers, reliquaries, and even chess pieces. Judging by the questions clearly posed to Otir, and judging by what else we know about Alfred as a ruler, the geography, customs, and societies of these lands were of great interest to his court. These men were not enemies. They were as much benefit to the West Saxons as the West Saxons were to them, the beginnings of a new order. A second trader is also questioned, this one operating on the other great Scandinavian sea, the Baltic, known to them as the Eastern Lake, with his answers being of equal importance to the king. Interestingly, he is called Wulfstan, a typically Anglo-Saxon name, though unfortunately his origins aren't specified. His journey took him all the way from London to Hedeby to Trousseau on the far shores of the mysterious Baltic Sea, lands probably unheard of in Wessex until just a few decades before. Yet the Anglo-Saxons hadn't always been so averse to the sea. From as early as the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, the ancestors of those Anglo-Saxon migrants who eventually formed the elites of the early English kingdoms, had regularly travelled over the North Sea from their original homelands on the northern coastline of modern-day Germany. At first to raid the rich coastal regions of the Roman Empire, becoming feared pirates alongside their Frankish cousins, whose Merovingian descendants claimed descent from a sea god. Perhaps a half-remembered nod to this seaborne heritage. Likewise, the exploits of those early Jutish, Saxon and Anglian raiders can be seen in written and archaeological evidence, in late Roman records and finally in the Nidum boat and the Sutton Hoo ship burial. By the 9th century however, this seaborne heritage had almost entirely been forgotten, with Christian gods replacing water deities. No navy or even significant boat-building tradition can be seen in archaeology or in writing once Christianity takes hold in the 7th century. Instead, the sea is seen as a fearful, dangerous place, spoken of in hushed tones in epic poetry such as the Seafarer. Interestingly, we can also see this progression from seafaring people to inland farmers in the early settlers of the Danelaw. By the early 11th century, after several generations living in England, for the most part they'd forgotten how to make the boats of their ancestors, simply not being necessary anymore. It is only with the arrival of those Danes in the 9th century that we see evidence of Anglo-Saxons once more looking to the sea, with Alfred having a fleet of warships constructed, with mixed results. At first because they had no other choice, but later because of opportunity. Though we can't know for certain, Wulfstan and Otyr probably didn't travel on longships, not as we typically know them anyway. The ships they travelled on, often called canars, were custom built for carrying cargo, not soldiers. It was on vessels like these that soon enough a new, integrated trading system on the North Sea would be built, with not just Scandinavians invited. Many ships of this type have been found from all over the Scandinavian world. One such reconstruction of the Skaldalev III, known as the Roar's Edge, proved it would be a good vessel for the Straits of Kattegat and the Baltic, the path trodden by Wulfstan and merchants before him from the Bronze Age to the Migration Period. Only needing a very small crew, these ships weren't made for rowing, being powered by sail alone, with maximum space allowed for cargo, the heaviest of them being able to carry 60 tons or more. Of course, a merchant's job could pay extremely well. Luxury items such as those sold by Otyr were especially prized by the Anglo-Saxon nobility. But as we know, the job came with huge risks too, for these were pirate seas. Many must have been the trader who ended up oarsman on a slaving vessel. It's not too much of a stretch to imagine the orphaned son of a Danish warrior, born and raised in London during the 870s, returning back to his homeland for the first time as an oarsman on a trading vessel such as Wulfstan's. Let us follow one such journey into the North Sea. Heading out into the waves with little protection besides woollen cloaks and garments, was a true battle against the elements. Though it took only around 36 hours, sailing in optimum conditions to make the crossing from the Danelaw to Denmark, success was far from guaranteed, with an icy grave at the bottom of the sea, never too far away. Being a North Sea trader was not a career for the faint of heart, but it could pay extremely well, and on a good enough vessel with a skilled navigator following the current and prevailing winds at their back, excellent speed could be made. We know that fine cloaks and garments were regularly exported out of Britain during this time, likely along with all manner of other goods. It was on the return journey however, where the real money could be made, with the import of exotic goods from lands far away. The crossing from Kent to Francia for example, could be made in less than a day. If they were lucky, a trade ship could find goods there from the exotic Mediterranean, recently ferried up for export on the coast. The best swords were said to come from Francia too, made by master blacksmiths, and of course, human cargo, for both Anglo-Saxon England and Scandinavia were slave societies. Just a little further north along the coast could be met some of the first potential dangers of the The marshlands of Frisia, a winding maze of waterways that had once been a lucrative part of Charlemagne's Carolingian empire, though since then, pirates had moved in. The best case scenario would be the demanding of a toll to pass through their waters, and perhaps uneasy bartering for some Frisian wool in the process. Further north along the coast, we finally come to the ancestral homeland of the Anglian people, and perhaps some of the warriors of the great heathen army. We know it as Jutland, said by the later writer Adam of Bremen to be a salt land, a marshy desert, largely devoid of agriculture, before the land was drained in later centuries, and of course, a den for pirates. Only a few towns existed here, most people living isolated existences between swamp and hill. It was a hard life that bred hard people, but there were a few towns, Reeb being one of them, a prosperous trading hub in its day. Finally, we reach the northern shores of Jutland, the Straits of Kattegat, storied realm of Danish kings of old, with the mountains of Norway far off to the north, and the forests and lakes of the Swedes beyond. Past the Straits, we finally reach the Danish Islands, a place on the whole more suitable for farming than the mainland, where most people probably lived. This had been the homeland of kings for millennia, a land of prestige, perhaps where much of the leadership of the great heathen army said to be Danes, men like Halfdan and Guthrum had originated, and the homeland of our protagonist. Perhaps more tolls would be paid here to pass through the lands of local kings, some no doubt claiming descent from storied heroes of the migration period and before. Yet, if our protagonist thinks he's reached the end of his journey, he has another thing coming. Wolfstan can't afford to lose a crew member, not before finishing the journey at any rate. Moving further southwards, we pull into the place where the real journey will begin. Hedeby, metropolis of the north, situated on the impressive Daneverker fortifications along Jutland's southern edge, the place where wealth pours in from as far away as Central Asia and Northern Africa. Coins were even minted here from around this time, the first in Scandinavia, perhaps inspired by contacts with Francia and Britain, yet with their own twist too, containing pagan symbolism, ships and references to the Norse gods. Huge canars from the North Atlantic colonies can be seen unloading here on jetties, hardy Norwegians and Icelanders aboard, along with Baltic merchants wearing brightly coloured tunics and a dizzying array of sights and smells. Wolfstan explains that this is the last friendly port for at least a week to come. If all goes to plan, the coming journey will almost entirely be made in sight of land. The voyage itself should be relatively easy, yet Wolfstan insists on travelling for seven days and seven nights without a break, taking it in turns to sail. By comparison, Ottir made landfall every night, crawling along the coast day by day down from northern Norway, but he was a respected nobleman from Helogaland, sailing through friendly waters. The Baltic, by comparison, known to Scandinavians as Austmar, the Eastern Lake, was no man's land, and Wolfstan's plan was to make a mad dash across it. Entering the Baltic, a forested land of haunting beauty stretches out to the north. Today, this is Sweden, but back then it had always been a part of Denmark. Scania, it is a rich land, in the archaeological record, abundant in crops and settlements. In the written record, a celebrated homeland of warriors, and it needed to be, for many enemies existed to the north. Out there, in dense primordial woodland, lived the Geats, homeland of Beowulf, and beyond them, far to the north, on the shores of Lake Maloran, the realm of the Swedes. The wars once fought between these two peoples were many, though today, they remain almost entirely unrecorded, lost to myth and legend. Though, of course, few people would have seriously considered journeying over land through that unforgiving terrain. Instead, the preferred mode of transport was always by boat, and the Swedes were masters of this form of transport. Remote the core of Swedish lands may seem, yet as wary travellers pass further into the Baltic, they find many islands, almost all of them populated by Swedes, in one form or another. The southern shore of the sea is arguably even more of a mystery, mostly populated by Slavic peoples such as Wends and Poles, many seeming to have more in common with Scandinavia than the European world to the south, evidence of similar shipbuilding traditions and material culture having been found all along these coasts. Since the Bronze Age, traders had bartered their wares on this sea, ferrying up salt from Poland, along with lumber, wood tar, flax, hemp and furs, traffic that would carry on for centuries to come. Further still at the far end of the Baltic existed an even more mysterious group of peoples, the Balts, and curiously a trading centre that Wulfstan names Truso. Apparently just one settlement amongst many, each with its own king, this is a curious place. The customs and lifestyles of people here, whilst unusual to an Anglo-Saxon, might have not been all that strange to a Swede or a Wend. It is near unheard of that we have any account at all of this region at this time, Wulfstan's story being one pinprick of light in an extremely sparse written record. He describes to Alfred elaborate funerary traditions and other customs not too dissimilar to those held by other peoples around the shores of the Baltic, but distinct enough to be worthy of note. Such as the curious tradition of keeping bodies above ground for quite some time after death, sounding rather similar to traditions held by pre-Bronze Age Neolithic peoples of Europe. These were Slavic and Baltic pre-literate people, followers of pagan gods of old, and as such, just like Scandinavia when they converted to Christianity, they lost their stories and much of their history. Unfortunately, Wulfstan tells us little else about Truso. Perhaps he simply did not know, it being just one likely fairly cosmopolitan trade centre on the coast, far away from the hinterlands. Before long, it's time to journey back to Hedeby. On one morning, one of the men spots a sail on the horizon, getting closer and closer, dragon head at the prow. Thor's amulets grasped around necks, clenched swords in scabbards, the crew prepares for battle. Hello, and thank you for watching. History Time is a one-man team, run by me, Pete Kelly. If you want to see me visiting ancient cities, medieval citadels, megalithic monuments, Iron Age hillforts, and so much more, then subscribe to my other channel by that same name. I'll also be making book reviews, video essays, and anything else that doesn't quite fit in to History Time. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you on the next one.