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THE Vikings the VIKINGS THE vikings THE VIKINGS 1 TABLE DES MATI RES TABLE OF CONTENTS Artistic Direction WHO WERE THE VIKINGS? Sylvain Lapointe Who were they? .............................................................................................. 4 Where did they come from? ...................................................................... ... 5 Text Pier-Luc Lasalle When did they live? .................................................................................... ... 5 Sailors ................................................................................................................ 6 Music Explorer-pirates and bandit-tradesmen ................................................ ... 7 Enrico O. Dastous How did one turn Viking? ......................................................................... ... 7 Mode of government ..................................................................................... 8 Staging Eloi ArchamBaudoin Trade ................................................................................................................. 8 Viking currency ............................................................................................... 9 Authorship of the Pedagogical Document Agriculture ....................................................................................................... 9 Aude Le Dubé DAILY LIFE IN THE VIKING ERA Translation Gaëtan Chénier Tasks ............................................................................................................. ... 10 Housing Cover Illustration Food .................................................................................................................. 11 Ève Chabot What did Vikings look like? .................................................................... ... 12 Clothing ........................................................................................................... 13 Design and Layout Michel Bérard Nümoov communication inc. CULTURE IN THE VIKING ERA numoov.com Religion ........................................................................................................ ... 14 Language ..................................................................................................... ... 14 Sagas ............................................................................................................. ... 15 www.vikingssymphonique.com Folk tradition ............................................................................................. ... 15 Writing ......................................................................................................... ... 16 Music ................................................................................................................ 17 Art and handicrafts ................................................................................... ... 18 EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY The Viking spy .............................................................................................. 20 THE DRAGON-KILLER ............................................................................22 2 3 WHO WERE THE VIKINGS WHO WERE THE VIKINGS? WHERE DID THEY COME FROM? Though all Vikings did not (formerly Byzantium, today dinavia was very different Vikings were men. There were originate from the same place, Istanbul). The Byzantine Empire at that time. The region no Viking women, children, or they did all come from what are covered what is currently South- had developed in a sort of elderly people. Vikings were today’s Scandinavian countries, ern Italy, Greece and Turkey. isolation, since it was lo- neither farmers nor blacksmiths. namely Norway, Sweden, The other empire of the time was cated outside of the Roman Vikings were neither a people Denmark and Finland. From the that of Charlemagne (Charles Empire’s most northern nor a tribe. Vikings were pirates. most remote eras, historians of the Great), King of the Franks limits, around the modern- While the etymology of their Antiquity only ever spoke of a and Emperor of the West. It day Netherlands. Of course, name is uncertain, it may stem single people occupying this extended over all of the territo- Scandinavia’s climate was from an Old-Norse word region, which seems never to ries currently known as France, much rougher than in the meaning “sea inlet”, describing have been invaded. It should be Germany, Switzerland, Northern rest of Europe, and its their place of origin. To prove pointed out that, since part of the Italy, Belgium and the Nether- geography less suited to their strength and courage, Vikings’ ancestry consisted of lands. farming: the mountainous Vikings would carry out raids on Goths—who were feared landscape found in places as neighbouring territories. It was throughout Europe—, invaders For the most part, the peoples of well as the coastlines’ steep called going “I vikingr”, which probably thought twice before these regions had converted to profile and numerous fjords represented a kind of rite of taking up arms against them! Christianity and lived in rela- made for very little farm- passage. tive peace. They benefited from land. And while the region WHEN DID THEY LIVE? centuries of Roman influence was covered in forests that that had favoured agriculture, contributed to the isolation What is called the Viking era transport and trade, and im- of its peoples, these same begins around the year 800 and posed a system of government forests also formed vast comes to an end in 1050. The which had come to be adopted wood reserves suitable for Vikings’ most important period as normal local practice. Indeed, building boats. So the Scan- of influence therefore took place Europe in the Early Middle Ages dinavians turned to the sea between the 9th and 10th cen- was civilized, while secular arts that surrounded them and tury of our era. The influence and culture were beginning to became skilled fishermen. of Rome had ended 3 centuries flourish. Under the influence of What’s more, they had at prior to that time. The Roman Charlemagne, a single currency their disposal the iron that Empire itself had not entirely had appeared in his Empire, and was found in the bogs and disappeared but it was now writing was imposed as a means that served in making tools, known as the Byzantine Em- of spreading knowledge. weapons and armour. pire, the centre of which was no However, the situation in Scan- longer Rome, but Constantinople 4 5 EXPLORER-PIRATES AND Optimum”, which lasted from the no other means of subsistence than SAILORS BANDIT-TRADESMEN 10th to the 13th century and gave stealing and pillaging. In no time, access to regions that ice floes had exiled outlaws were teaming up The farming seafarers, now turned until then rendered impassable. with pirates to scour the seas in Vikings designed ships that were Their collapsible mast reached pirates, began launching their legions. Vikings became greedy. revolutionary for their era. These from 18 to 20 metres high (the attacks from Scandinavia, where The quality of their ships and their flat-bottom rowboats are best height of a five-story building) they would return with their loot. HOW DID ONE TURN ability to navigate facilitated the known as drakkars, a Swedish and carried a rectangular sail of Little by little, they established VIKING? attacks. They stole everything they term meaning dragon, in over 100 m2 that allowed trading posts in the countries they could carry away: money, cattle, reference to the figurehead upwind sailing. There were invaded, such as Ireland and Vikings weren’t the only ones spices, works of art and raw sculptures that decorated the many types of ships. The smaller England, which allowed them to attacking and pillaging their materials. They probably did not ships’ bow (front) and stern boats, the “bátr”, were powered launch increasingly distant attacks. neighbours, but they would do so desire these things any more than (back). The Viking ships’ main by sail and oars with up to four Vikings eventually ended up more often than others did, and other nations and could well have feature was their symmetry. benches of 10 to 12 rowers. These trading as much as they were more violently. Scandinavians acquired them by trading, but quite Since their bow and stern were were still being used in Norway pillaging. Under the name of happened to live on islands or simply, the terror which their no different, the ships could in the 19th century. Among the “Normans” (men of the North), peninsulas, which did not leave reputation inspired just made the change directions without merchant ships were the “skúta”, they settled in the French region of much room for expansion. The task that much easier. Indeed, as having to turn around. Their keel the “eptirbátr” (dinghy), the Normandy, which the King of the period of climactic warming led to Vikings approached, their victims was all in one piece and “karfi”, and the “knørr” for the Franks granted them provided they larger harvests and consequently to would often surrender without consequently required very tall high seas. As for the warships, or convert to Christianity. It wasn’t a demographic boom. The opposing any resistance and the trees, which were plentiful in “herskip”, they were divided into long before they assimilated population having increased in Vikings could just help themselves. Scandinavia. Their flat the “snekkja”, with twenty peacefully with the local number, its territory had to expand, In the meantime, written traces bottom and shallow benches of rowers, and the population. and invasions were one solution. have
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