Just Finished Reading: The Northmen’s Fury – A History of the Viking World by Philip Parker (FP: 2014)

It was as if they came from nowhere emerging fully formed as the leapt on to the pages of European and then world history – The Vikings! In AD 793 they launched their infamous raid on the off-shore island of Lindisfarne sacking the monastery built there. Having little respect for either the works or men (and women) of God there was little to stop them and much to plunder – just like banks centuries later in the 8th century onwards the Churches’ held the money and other valuables and where often located in isolated areas away from major towns. Along with the emerging trading centres across Europe – again handily located near water or rivers to facilitate transport made difficult inland by forests and banditry – these were like magnets drawing the Northmen from their sparse farmland into the very lucrative endeavour of raiding. For decade after decade they raided along every European coast and even deep inland using the many navigable rivers throughout the continent. Seemingly arriving almost anywhere at almost any time they were almost impossible to defeat or even bring to battle by the time they had been detected, the local militia or nearby army units alerted and brought to action and battle joined (and hopefully won). Bribing the leaders to go elsewhere was less than useless, although it was tried again and again, as it only helped to develop a well-oiled extortion racket. Only organisation, fortified ‘burghs’ or encouraging Viking bands to settle in border areas and, thereby, aid in the protecting of the hinterland by protecting their own (the classic example being Normandy) worked in the long run to stem the time – at least for a time. But 300 long and bloody years after the first raids terrified a continent the Viking menace disappeared almost as quickly as it arrived. This is the story developed in some details between these covers.

I actually found this book a little difficult to get into – despite my long interest in all things Viking. Part of it I think was the authors writing style and part the way the book was constructed. He seemed to start things in what I call a ‘list book’ – this happened, then this happened then this happened… and on and on. It’s historical fact without a connecting narrative, without a story to pin things on or locate things, places and people within. He also seemed to be quoting significant chunks of old texts simply translated into modern English with little interpretation which made everything rather dull. Finally the structure of the book inevitably led to a degree of repetition. The early chapters consisted of an overview of Viking history and culture – followed by sections dedicated to individual geographical areas, Iceland, York, Russia and so on during specific time periods. But as the Viking chieftains tended to move around quite a bit we find the same characters popping up time and again and being consistently cross referenced throughout the book.

OK, so that was the ‘bad’ part. Now the good bit. First there’s the fact of the Vikings themselves. In the world they inhabited they were certainly a larger than life bunch of people. You most certainly knew when the Vikings had arrived in your locality! Then there’s the sheer adventure of what they did and where they went – mot only all around the North Sea but to Iceland, Greenland and even North America. They travelled and settled in Russia, raided into the Mediterranean, attacked Constantinople and ended up as a highly regarded mercenary force personally loyal to the Eastern Emperor. They left artefacts, place names and genes across huge tracts of land and influenced the history of just about every country in Europe. So, the author had LOTS of good stuff to work with and, after a rather rocky start, he definitely managed to get across just how amazing this civilisation was. Not the best book I’ve read on the subject but far, far from the worst too. If you’re new to the Vikings or even if you’re familiar with them you’ll pick up some interesting facts and some unforgettable historical characters to mull over. More than reasonable (if you persevere).