The Smithsonian Adventure  The Smithsonian presents... 

WELCOME TO THE VIKINGS!!!

The Vikings in America The Vikings in America

Objectives  Identify the reasons for Viking movement westward.  Name the prominent Viking explorers and describe their contributions.  Summarize the Viking experience in North America.  Using websites provided, understand the Viking culture.  Compare and contrast the Viking explorations with your previous understanding of Columbus’s voyages.  Be prepared to debate the question: Who really discovered America?

Who were the Vikings?  Germanic tribe that lived in Scandinavia –Denmark –Norway –Sweden  Called “Norsemen”.  They were –Farmers –Hunters –Herders –skilled seamen.

Who Were The Vikings?  The name Viking originated with a pirate center located in southern Norway.  They used an expression “go a-Viking” whenever they referred to exploits in other lands that equated to fighting as a pirate or warrior.

the years 700 to 1100 A.D.  A vast population explosion in Scandinavia  Needed land  Needed food  Established themselves on the Faeroe Islands, north of Scotland.  Soon exploration westward uncovered Iceland.  Greenland followed

Viking warships

Lindisfarne Monastery Raid June 8, 793 A.D

Vikings and the Early Dark Ages of Europe

Invaded northern England & France.

Invaded Russia

They were everywhere

 During this period they explored the North Atlantic Ocean and North America The Vikings venture westward

Viking Settlements  The Vikings settled Iceland in 872 A.D.  They remained in Greenland for almost 500 years until the climate changed.  Recent evidence proves that they actually established settlements in North America in the year 1000 A.D. almost 500 years before Columbus set sail from Spain.

Viking Explorers and Exploration

Gunnbjorn Olfsson  The international 'gold standard' in trading was ivory  By the end of the 900s, Walrus stocks around Iceland were dangerously low.  Hunters had to range further and further out to sea. –Ivory could be traded to anyone in Europe for any goods  The value went up the further you went inside the continent.  Narwhal ivory probably more valuable because of it's resemblance to a unicorn's horn.  (The word 'narwhal' comes from the Old Norse náhvalr meaning 'corpse whale' since its white color resembles that of a floating corpse!)  (The word 'narwhal' comes from the Old Norse náhvalr meaning 'corpse whale' since its white color resembles that of a floating corpse!)  But!!!! –Walrus was the real prey and driving force in trade.  Gunnbjorn Olfsson was the one who told Eric the Red of some islands that lay west of Iceland. He found them while looking for better hunting grounds for Walrus!

Eric the Red Born in Norway around 950 A.D. Born in Norway around 950 A.D.  When he was about ten years old, his father, Thorvald Asvaldsson, killed a man and was banished.  Eric’s family settled in western Iceland and this is where he grew up.  In 982 A.D., Eric followed in his father’s footsteps and killed a man while at the Thingvellir (The Thing), the lawmaking body of the Vikings.  He had quarreled with the man before.  Leif was with him.  He was asked to appear at the council for another reason. another reason.

Eric the Red  Since Eric was a renowned warrior and sailor, it was decided that he be banished from Iceland for three years.  Eric really did not know where to go.  heard about some lands that lay to the west from Gunnbjorn Olfsson.  Eric decided to hire a crew and set sail west with his family.  landed on the eastern coast of Greenland  found it very harsh and unappealing, calling it Midjokull, which means “Middle Glacier.”  He continued, sailed around the southern tip of Greenland, and landed on the southwestern shore.  He explored this area for the next three years until his banishment was over.

The Greenland Settlement  Eric returned to Iceland, but he really wasn’t interested in staying because he had too many enemies to deal with.  He called the new land “Greenland” to make it sound nicer and talked about 750 people into returning there with him the following year.  Of the twenty-five ships that set sail from Iceland, only fourteen ships and about 450 people made it, but it was enough to begin a new life.  For Eric, it meant a chance to be in charge and to make the rules.

Life in Greenland  Two settlements were developed  South: Eastern Settlement  North: Western Settlement.  Years later, this caused much confusion when explorers tried to retrace Eric’s voyages.  The settlements continued to thrive until the climate changed around 1438 A.D.

Bjarni Herjolfsson  A merchant from Iceland.  Around 985 A.D., sailed from Norway to Iceland to visit father.  When he got there, he was told that his dad had taken off for Greenland with Eric.  Unsure exactly where Greenland was, Bjarni used the landmarks provided and headed west.  On his way, he was pulled off course by either a storm or bad seas and came upon the coast of present-day Canada.

Bjarni Herjolfsson  Bjarni wasn’t an explorer  Didn’t land.  Wanted to find his father.  When he finally found Greenland and landed, he told of three different landmasses he had seen.

The new lands  One of these lands was barren and rocky, which Leif later called Helluland (Slabland). Today we know it as Baffin Island.

New Lands  A second area was full of trees, and Leif named it Markland (Forestland) which we believe to be present-day Labrador.

The new lands  The third area went unnamed but was an island south of Markland. Today, we know this region as Newfoundland. Leif called it “Vinland”.

Leif Eriksson  Leif the Lucky was the son of Eric the Red.  While living on Greenland with his father, brothers and sister, Leif heard of Bjarni’s voyage and was determined to see for himself.  He set sail in 1000 A.D. with a crew of thirty-five and traveled Bjarni’s course in reverse.  After coming upon both Baffin Island and Labrador, Leif landed in Newfoundland, called it Vinland (possibly because of the abundance of grapes there at the time) and established a small settlement.

L’Anse Aux Meadows Site  The settlement only lasted about one year under Leif.  It was a very harsh climate and the Vikings had a lot of trouble with the natives, which they called “skraelings” (wretched ones).  The remains of this settlement were found in 1961 at L’Anse aux Meadows and have been reconstructed.

L’ Anse Aux Meadows Site

Settlement

Fencing around compound

The settlement in Vinland

Living quarters

Communal fireplace

Viking Pin Ship’s tool

Viking Whorl Lamp Tools

The Vinland Map parchment dates to approximately 1434 A.D. Many consider it a fraud, designed to prove the Viking claims!

Smithy Uncovered

Smithy Reconstructed

Interesting Tidbits  Before I turn you loose on some great sites for individual study, a couple of little known facts should be shared.  Eric the Red was supposed to go on the journey with Leif; however, on the way to the dock his horse threw him. He felt it was a bad omen so he stayed behind.  After the first journey failed, Leif stayed in Greenland to live out his days. He became the chieftain of the settlement after his father died. Christianity was introduced around 1000 A.D. and many churches were built replicating the Norse style.

More neat stuff  The remains of one of the most prominent churches, built around 1300 A.D., can be seen today at Hvalsey.  Leif’s sister, Freydis, led another expedition along with her husband. She was intent on exploring deeper into the region. She was also pretty bloodthirsty. She convinced her husband to kill two Icelandic brothers who had accompanied them on the voyage while she killed all the women single- handedly.  It is believed they made their way into the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Even more spiffy stuff  Torfinn Karlsamne, related to Leif through marriage to his sister-in-law, Gudrid, attempted to colonize the settlement in 1009 A.D. He brought cattle and farming equipment along with his wife, sixty men, and five women.  They stayed for two years but they couldn’t get along with the skraelings or each other. However, his wife gave birth to a son, Snorre, the first European born in America.  The first European to die in the New World is reported to have been Leif’s brother Thorwald, killed by the skraelings in A.D.

And Finally...  The Vikings final left Greenland around 1458 A.D. because of a sudden shift in the climate. It is not known whether they left voluntarily, but there is some evidence in the Eastern Settlement that they were killed by the Inuit (present-day Eskimos) based on the remains of unburied inhabitants.  The settlements in North America never survived, again because of difficulty getting along with the skraelings. However, evidence has been found in the remains of Viking ships uncovered in Iceland, Greenland, and Denmark that indicates that the Vikings continued to visit the Labrador coast well into the early 1400’s for timber to build ships. This is based on a study of tree rings. PRETTY NEAT HUH?

Web Site Web Site  Another story of Leif and Snorri Another story of Leif and Snorri Another story of Leif and Snorri

Viking Runes and Quizzes  heritage/eruner.htm heritage/eruner.htm heritage/eruner.htm

Nova Link to the Vikings  While here, learn how to write your name in Runes (Norse alphabet). You’ll see the link on the lower right side of the shield.  bh/nova/vikings/ bh/nova/vikings/ bh/nova/vikings/

Questions????????

Homework  For homework, answer the questions you will find at this link: ndianmillsmemorial/rud man/response3.stm ndianmillsmemorial/rud man/response3.stm HAVE A GREAT MILZ DAY!