Description

Divided into five chapters covering the entire history of the Vikings, the book provides a comprehensive exploration of who these peoples were - and who they were not. For while there is no doubt that some Vikings launched bloodthirsty attacks in this period, pillaging communities and plundering treasure, many more were peaceful traders and settlers. The book looks at the Viking invasions and conquests of Anglo-Saxon lands that took place in the eighth and ninth centuries, as well as the great voyages of exploration that took these horned warriors out across the Atlantic Ocean to what are now Greenland and Canada. Going beyond the fearsome warriors, battles and adventures we associate with Vikings the book provides an insight into the everyday life of the people, to examine how and what they traded, what Viking village life was like and how they made and sailed their famous long ships. The book also looks at the rich culture of the Vikings, including the beautiful art they created, the legendary stories they told and the complex law systems they built to maintain a civilised society. The book concludes by summing up the Viking legacy and how their culture and influence lives on in the world today.

Author description

Philip Parker was born in Liverpool in 1965. He studied history at Trinity Hall, Cambridge and International Relations at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Bologna, Italy before working in the British Diplomatic Service. He has a particular interest in ancient and medieval political and military systems. He is the author of The Northmen's Fury: A History of the Viking World (2014), The Empire Stops Here: A Journey Around the Frontiers of the Roman World (2009) and the DK Eyewitness Companion Guide to World History (2010).