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So far, on 'Blood of the Vikings',
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I've traced the first 200 years of
the Viking Age in Britain and Ireland.
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From raids and invasions
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to peaceful settlement.
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This time I discover how a new generation
of Danes conquer the whole of England
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and put a Viking on the throne.
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But why was rule in
England short-lived,
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while on the Isle of Man today
they still have a Viking parliament?
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It's 991.
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93 Viking longships are advancing
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up the Blackwater Estuary
on the Essex coast.
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This is the biggest raid England
has seen for almost 40 years.
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But these Vikings are no
motley collection of pirates.
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They've raised a
powerful organised fleet
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to threaten the shores
of England once again.
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The terror has returned.
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In the previous years of peace
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England has become rich.
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But now it's ruled by
Æthelred the Unready,
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a young and militarily
inexperienced king,
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and the Vikings can
sense an opportunity.
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They sail towards Maldon and land on
Northey Island to prepare their attack.
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But on the mainland the
English are waiting for them.
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Under the command of Byrhtnoth,
a veteran military leader.
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This much is accepted as fact,
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but what followed became the
subject of an epic old-English poem,
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'The Battle of Maldon'.
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The Viking herald steps
forward and makes demands.
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Not for land but for tribute.
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Money to go away and
leave the English in peace.
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The Vikings have turned to extortion.
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The Poem has been studied closely
by historian Dr Sam Newton.
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He takes up the story as Byrhtnoth
responds to the Vikings' demands.
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"Gehyrst þu, sælida,
hwæt þis folc segeð?
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"Hi willað eow to gafole
garas syllan
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"ættrynne ord
and ealde swurd..."
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Which loosely translated, he says,
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"Do you hear, sailor,
what this folk says?
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"We will give you spears as tribute,
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"deadly points and time-tested swords.
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"War gear from which you
in battle will not profit."
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It is the most immortal note
of English defiance
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which has echoed in various ways
right down to the 20th century.
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But the high tide means that
so far it's just a war of words.
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The two armies have to wait
until low water to fight it out.
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Then Byrhtnoth makes a tactical error.
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He and his men stand back and allow
the Vikings to cross the causeway.
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He wanted to bring this lot to battle.
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If not, they could sail
away, up the estuary
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and strike at will up and down the
coast and it could be weeks, or months,
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before the English army had
a chance to get at them again.
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And so, the Battle of
Maldon begins in earnest.
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The poem becomes very dramatic
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centring on the heroism of the English
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and their loyalty to
their leader Byrhtnoth.
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At one point he is struck by a spear,
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his shield companion beside him draws
out the spear from Byrhtnoth's body
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and throws it back at
the Viking who'd hurled it
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and kills that Viking
with the same spear.
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But after all this heroism,
who were the eventual winners?
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Well, of course, in military terms,
the Vikings were the winners.
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But the Poem makes the resistance
and defence of the English
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such heroic a deed in itself that
it becomes a kind of moral victory.
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And a great rallying call
for further resistance.
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It's a bit like the Dunkirk spirit
in that sense.
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But there was no denying
the English had lost.
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In the end, King Æthelred had no choice
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but to give the victorious
Vikings exactly what they wanted.
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He handed over £10,000 in silver,
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a huge amount of money in those days,
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in the hope that they'd
go away and stay away.
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It was a vain hope.
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Because once the English paid up
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it was inevitable that the
Vikings would be back again.
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With each fresh attack the
Vikings demanded more and more,
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and the English meekly paid up.
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The payments became known as
'Danegeld', money for the Danes.
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And in today's prices would eventually
total hundreds of millions of pounds.
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The Anglo-Saxon Chronicles
tell of the rocketing extortion racket
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which lasted for 20 years.
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"994. And all the raiding
army came to Southampton.
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"And they were paid £16,000.
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"997. The raiding army brought
indescribable war booty...
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"1002. Here in this year
they were paid £24,000.
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"1007. The tax to the hostile
raiding army was £30,000.
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"1012. £48,000."
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Only a few were brave
enough to defy the Danes.
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This London church of St
Alfege commemorates one,
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a bishop who refused to pay and
who suffered the consequences.
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"Then, on the Saturday, the raiding army
became much stirred up against the Bishop
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"because he did not want
to offer them any money.
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"Also they were very drunk because
there was wine brought from the south.
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"Then they seized the bishop and
then pelted him there with bones.
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"And one of them struck him on
the head with the butt of an axe.
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"So that with he blow, he sank down
and his holy blood fell on the earth."
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But such resistance was rare
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and the Danes grew richer and richer.
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So where did all that money go?
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Back here to the Viking homeland?
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More Anglo-Saxon coins have been
found in Scandinavia than in England.
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And I'd like to know if they were
earned through legitimate trading
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or off the proceeds of a highly
successful extortion racket.
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In 1997, a hoard of 120 English coins
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was discovered in a
remote part of Denmark.
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Is this 'danegeld'?
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All these coins are '990ers'.
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It's a coin type that was struck from
about 991 to 997 all over England.
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- So who's reign is that?
- That's Æthelred II.
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- So that's Æthelred the Unready.
- Yes, it is.
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And this is a coin with
Æthelred's portrait, his name
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and the inscription
'Æthelred Rex Anglorum'
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'Æthelred king of the English'.
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And it might be 'danegeld' payment
because a usual hoard in Scandinavia
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would be all mixed up... English
coins, German coins, a few Arabic coins.
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There'd be all kind of dates.
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But this is a very, very pure hoard.
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It seems unlikely that these coins
had been in general circulation.
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So, surely, this points
to their being 'danegeld'.
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Perhaps the share given
to an individual Viking.
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Jens, a lot of them look like
perfect coins, don't they?
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But some of them are bent,
why is that?
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Yes. The Danes at that period were
interested in the quality of the metal.
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And one way of checking the quality
is to take the coin and bend it.
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If it's soft and you can bend
it easily it's good silver.
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If it cracks it's bad silver.
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But how, in just 40 years, had
the Vikings become so powerful?
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What had changed here in Denmark
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to turn the Vikings into such
an organised fighting force?
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One clue lies here, in Jelling
in the west of Denmark.
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Today it's a small, quiet town
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but in the 900's it was
the capital of royal dynasty
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and would become the birthplace
of the modern Danish state.
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The king first of a united Denmark
was Harald Bluetooth.
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He was probably given his colourful
name on account of his rotten teeth.
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But despite his dental afflictions
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he was a ruler who changed
the course of Danish history.
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And here, carved in
this massive boulder,
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is the record of his
greatest achievements.
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One side is completely covered in runes,
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an early form of writing
used by the Vikings.
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On another side is a strange
carving of a mythical monster.
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But this third side is
the most astonishing,
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because there's what appears
to be the figure of Christ.
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You can make out the face,
outstretched arms and hands,
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right down to the feet.
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Now, surely, at this time the
Vikings in Scandinavia were pagans.
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So what are they doing
carving images of Christ?
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The runic inscription
ought to provide the answer.
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Pr. Else Roesdahl, a
leading Viking archaeologist,
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has come to translate it for me.
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Now, what does this say?
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It starts with the name of
the king, Harald Bluetooth,
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who raised the stone.
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Harald King ordered these monuments
to be made for Gorm, his father.
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And in memory of Thyra, his mother.
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'That Harald who won for himself
Denmark and Norway.'
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And then, the last deed,
'And made the Danes Christian.'
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So his third great deed was to make Danes
Christian, to christianize the Danes.
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00:11:35,856 --> 00:11:39,852
So that explains why you've got
the figure of Christ on this side?
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Yes. And it's the oldest great picture
of Christ in Scandinavia.
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So what made Harald become a
Christian and convert an entire nation?
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Could it have more than
just his religious belief?
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A very practical political
reason may have been
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that the great country
to the south, Germany,
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the German Emperor liked
to convert pagan peoples.
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He went on crusades and it's
much better to do it yourself
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than to be conquered by a foreign power.
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Harald Bluetooth's
conversion to Christianity
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not only ensured that the
Danes were left in peace.
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It also helped to
enhance his own status.
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As a Christian king, he was acknowledged
to be Christ's representative on Earth.
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A position which brought almost
universal loyalty and allegiance.
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For the Danes becoming Christian
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wasn't just a matter of exchanging
a collection of Norse gods
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for one Christian god.
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It also brought them
into the European fold,
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into a culture that was
centred on books and learning,
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laws and taxes.
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But perhaps more significantly
a Christian king had divine authority,
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which gave him huge power
and the means of showing it.
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Like this, the massive
fort at Trelleborg.
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When it was excavated in the 1930's
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archaeologists found that its interior
was laid out with perfect symmetry.
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Divided by roads, each quadrant
contained identical boat-shaped barracks,
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sixteen in all.
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This regimented design is very similar
to that of Roman military forts
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built nearly a thousand years earlier.
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Archaeologist Dr Lars Jørgensen
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has made a detailed study of
Viking military architecture.
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This is a huge amount effort
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to put into constructing
something like this, isn't it?
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- I mean, enormous amount of resources?
- Yes.
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Were they always built of
timber, these buildings?
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00:14:08,125 --> 00:14:11,633
Yes. In Viking-period Denmark,
all houses were timber-built
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and actually archaeologists
have tried to calculate
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how much timber has been used here?
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00:14:18,210 --> 00:14:21,594
And they have calculated
8,000 trees were cut down
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00:14:21,629 --> 00:14:24,885
in order to build this
military installation.
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So, how many soldiers would
a fort like this contain?
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00:14:27,519 --> 00:14:32,972
Well, I would say around 1,000
would have been possible.
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So, if you've got a fort like this,
with 1,000 professional soldiers
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and all the effort that's gone into
this, why is the king building it?
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00:14:44,914 --> 00:14:47,523
There are different
theories about that.
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00:14:47,558 --> 00:14:50,970
One is that they were
constructed in order to control
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internal troubles in his kingdom.
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00:14:54,117 --> 00:14:58,382
A second one says that they were
defence against the German Empire.
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00:14:58,417 --> 00:15:02,430
And the third one says that
they were for training soldiers
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00:15:02,465 --> 00:15:07,400
who were going to participate
in the attacks on England.
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Which of those theories
do you like best?
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I like the last one best, actually.
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Because we have three of
these fortresses like this size
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00:15:20,097 --> 00:15:23,944
and we have a fourth in northern
Jutland which is much larger,
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00:15:23,979 --> 00:15:27,021
and it's quite clear that the large
fortress in northern Jutland
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00:15:27,056 --> 00:15:29,154
is facing the English area.
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So I think actually that, at that time
they were planning to attack England.
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Harald Bluetooth seems to have had a
large well-trained and disciplined army.
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And England, made rich through
trade with a wealthy Church,
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must have been a tempting target.
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Although it wouldn't be until
Harald was succeeded by his son
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that the attacks on England would start.
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Not only did the Danes
have a new military machine,
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but they developed
new military technology.
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00:16:05,931 --> 00:16:10,856
Warships capable of delivering more
troops and faster than ever before.
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In 1956, amateur divers in
the Roskilde Fjord at Skuldelev
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discovered the frame of a Viking ship.
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00:16:22,410 --> 00:16:24,814
Of a type that hadn't
been seen before.
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00:16:24,849 --> 00:16:26,543
And as more ships emerged,
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00:16:26,578 --> 00:16:30,973
this became one the most important
marine excavations of the 20th century.
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00:16:39,129 --> 00:16:43,737
Under the stinking sludge, they
found the remains of five Viking ships
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broken into hundreds of thousands
of soggy fragments.
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00:16:51,443 --> 00:16:53,682
Re-assembling this
archaeological treasure
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00:16:53,717 --> 00:16:57,883
was a painstaking process
and took 20 years to complete.
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00:16:59,169 --> 00:17:03,322
But the results present a catalogue
of Viking ship design.
234
00:17:09,441 --> 00:17:13,069
Of the five ships, three
were short and wide,
235
00:17:13,104 --> 00:17:16,121
designed for carrying large cargoes.
236
00:17:21,079 --> 00:17:23,900
The other two were warships.
237
00:17:23,935 --> 00:17:28,270
They were long and narrow,
designed specifically for battle.
238
00:17:40,123 --> 00:17:42,083
This is the biggest.
239
00:17:42,118 --> 00:17:44,715
A warship 30 meters long.
240
00:17:44,750 --> 00:17:48,428
This ship may well have played
a key role in Viking attacks,
241
00:17:48,463 --> 00:17:54,342
transporting 100 warriors at a time
to battles in Norway, France or England.
242
00:17:55,999 --> 00:17:58,535
That ship, Skuldelev 2,
243
00:17:58,570 --> 00:18:02,478
is now being reconstructed at the
Viking Ship Museum at Roskilde.
244
00:18:06,860 --> 00:18:10,199
It's being built in exactly
the same way as the original.
245
00:18:11,986 --> 00:18:14,909
They've been using
replicas of Viking tools.
246
00:18:14,944 --> 00:18:19,709
And this has revealed why their ships
were so well adapted to sea voyages.
247
00:18:19,744 --> 00:18:23,424
The secret lies in their flexibility.
248
00:18:23,459 --> 00:18:26,056
Here you can see one of the
planks which is nearly finished.
249
00:18:26,091 --> 00:18:28,968
And you can feel how
smooth the surface is,
250
00:18:29,003 --> 00:18:30,544
how very delicate it is.
251
00:18:30,579 --> 00:18:33,839
And since we have made this plank
in the way we have
252
00:18:33,874 --> 00:18:38,853
where we have kind of followed the grain
in the wood from top to end,
253
00:18:38,888 --> 00:18:41,914
we get this very strong
and very flexible plank.
254
00:18:41,958 --> 00:18:45,093
- Please, try to step on it.
- It won't break?
255
00:18:45,128 --> 00:18:47,025
Please.
256
00:18:48,964 --> 00:18:50,513
See how flexible it is?
257
00:18:51,654 --> 00:18:53,838
It is really a strong plank.
258
00:18:54,594 --> 00:18:56,500
I'll try to stand up.
259
00:18:58,408 --> 00:19:01,186
- That's fantastic!
- It even comes to the ground.
260
00:19:01,221 --> 00:19:04,548
You can imagine when planks
like this are built into ships
261
00:19:04,583 --> 00:19:09,624
how these ships will move and bend
in the heavy seas and stormy weather.
262
00:19:17,229 --> 00:19:19,692
I want to find out what it's really like
263
00:19:19,727 --> 00:19:22,564
to be part of the crew
of a Viking warship.
264
00:19:22,599 --> 00:19:26,126
But Skuldelev 2 is going to take
another three years to build.
265
00:19:26,161 --> 00:19:31,632
So I'm joining the crew of Number 5,
the replica of the smaller warship.
266
00:19:44,599 --> 00:19:47,923
It gets at an incredible
speed very quickly, doesn't it?
267
00:19:54,027 --> 00:19:57,526
I feel a bit of a fraud, actually,
an Englishman rowing a Viking boat,
268
00:19:57,561 --> 00:20:00,059
- is this allowed?
- Yeah, it is allowed.
269
00:20:08,955 --> 00:20:13,889
Even on a calm sea, I an feel the
ship flexing as we pulled on the oars.
270
00:20:13,924 --> 00:20:15,573
But it was exhausting.
271
00:20:15,608 --> 00:20:18,297
The Vikings must have
been incredibly fit.
272
00:20:18,332 --> 00:20:22,665
Personally I was quite relieved
when the sail was hoisted.
273
00:20:37,232 --> 00:20:40,361
Harald Bluetooth's son, Sweyn Forkbeard,
274
00:20:40,396 --> 00:20:43,234
could command a fleet of
warships capable of transporting
275
00:20:43,269 --> 00:20:46,188
thousands of soldiers
across the North Sea.
276
00:20:46,223 --> 00:20:50,522
And following the battle at Maldon,
he led the Vikings in a series of attacks
277
00:20:50,557 --> 00:20:53,885
on towns along the English
coast and up rivers.
278
00:20:59,471 --> 00:21:04,815
But one place in particular was
considered to be the greatest prize.
279
00:21:04,850 --> 00:21:07,464
The city of London.
280
00:21:08,063 --> 00:21:11,841
Here, a quarter of all
English coins were minted.
281
00:21:12,765 --> 00:21:15,291
The city was repeatedly attacked
282
00:21:15,326 --> 00:21:18,780
but again and again the
Vikings were beaten off.
283
00:21:28,023 --> 00:21:32,182
To get to their prize, the Vikings
would have to take London Bridge,
284
00:21:32,217 --> 00:21:35,158
which stood on the same
site as the present one.
285
00:21:35,892 --> 00:21:38,627
Today the Thames is
crossed by many bridges
286
00:21:38,662 --> 00:21:41,266
but 1,000 years ago
there was only one,
287
00:21:41,301 --> 00:21:45,783
connecting the walled city of London
with the trading centre of Southwark.
288
00:21:45,818 --> 00:21:48,816
It was made entirely of wood
and was said to be so wide,
289
00:21:48,851 --> 00:21:51,389
that two wagons could
cross at the same time.
290
00:21:54,463 --> 00:21:57,396
The bridge was fought over many times.
291
00:21:57,431 --> 00:22:01,335
And lying in the Thames mud
is the evidence of these battles.
292
00:22:03,430 --> 00:22:05,415
John, what exactly are these?
293
00:22:05,450 --> 00:22:07,823
I mean, they're axes, but
what were they used for?
294
00:22:07,858 --> 00:22:11,115
Well, they're battle axes
of the Viking time.
295
00:22:11,150 --> 00:22:13,626
And they were found very close
to where we're standing now.
296
00:22:13,661 --> 00:22:15,844
Just behind us here,
the building there,
297
00:22:15,879 --> 00:22:18,647
was built in the 1920's,
298
00:22:18,682 --> 00:22:22,898
and a workman on the site found
six of these plus six spears.
299
00:22:22,933 --> 00:22:24,555
How do you know that these are Viking?
300
00:22:24,590 --> 00:22:28,237
It's the shape. It's this
very elegant broad blade,
301
00:22:28,272 --> 00:22:30,865
beautifully curved,
and they're a very handy weapon.
302
00:22:30,900 --> 00:22:34,739
There is this old story
that a skilled axeman
303
00:22:34,774 --> 00:22:37,595
could shave somebody's moustache
off in the middle of a battle
304
00:22:37,630 --> 00:22:39,933
simply by using his axe.
305
00:22:39,968 --> 00:22:43,031
Now, these are weapons but,
what's that?
306
00:22:43,066 --> 00:22:44,669
That's surely not a weapon, is it?
307
00:22:44,704 --> 00:22:49,402
It's a grappling hook found with the
axes and the spears in the 1920's.
308
00:22:49,437 --> 00:22:51,303
It's the sort of thing
you use on a ship board
309
00:22:51,338 --> 00:22:54,502
perhaps for just pulling
the ship into the side.
310
00:22:54,537 --> 00:22:59,926
But also to link two
vessels together for battle.
311
00:23:01,503 --> 00:23:04,930
Hooks like these are mentioned
in one of the Norse sagas
312
00:23:04,965 --> 00:23:08,012
which tells of a daring
attack on London Bridge.
313
00:23:13,161 --> 00:23:17,469
It describes how the Vikings attached
grappling hooks to its supports
314
00:23:17,504 --> 00:23:20,007
and rowed off hard downstream.
315
00:23:20,042 --> 00:23:23,681
Pulling the bridge, and all
those on it, down behind them.
316
00:23:28,006 --> 00:23:34,245
# London Bridge is falling down,
falling down, falling down
317
00:23:34,280 --> 00:23:40,103
# London Bridge is falling down
my fair lady
318
00:23:41,658 --> 00:23:43,902
At this time the English were burdened
319
00:23:43,937 --> 00:23:46,464
with crippling taxes
to pay the 'danegeld',
320
00:23:46,499 --> 00:23:49,420
and lived under the constant
threat of Viking attack.
321
00:23:49,455 --> 00:23:52,217
They grew to loath their tormentors.
322
00:23:52,252 --> 00:23:55,836
And there are stories of how
they fought back and took revenge.
323
00:23:57,132 --> 00:23:59,505
Here in the village
of Hadstock, in Essex,
324
00:23:59,540 --> 00:24:04,009
there's a grisly tale of the punishment
inflicted on a captured Viking.
325
00:24:06,058 --> 00:24:10,623
Local legend has it that, for centuries,
nailed to the door of the church
326
00:24:10,658 --> 00:24:13,647
was a piece of human skin.
327
00:24:15,503 --> 00:24:19,828
It said that it came from a marauding
Dane who was caught by the locals
328
00:24:19,863 --> 00:24:22,161
and flayed alive.
329
00:24:23,805 --> 00:24:27,533
Surprisingly, some of
that skin still survives
330
00:24:27,568 --> 00:24:30,529
in the museum at nearby Saffron Walden.
331
00:24:30,564 --> 00:24:33,157
But is it really what
it's claimed to be?
332
00:24:33,856 --> 00:24:36,409
This is it.
333
00:24:36,444 --> 00:24:38,422
A little, tiny fragment
that was preserved
334
00:24:38,457 --> 00:24:40,777
underneath one of the door hinges.
335
00:24:40,812 --> 00:24:45,891
Now, I've never seen preserved,
thousand-year-old human skin before
336
00:24:45,926 --> 00:24:49,242
so I'm not really qualified
to say that that's what it is.
337
00:24:49,277 --> 00:24:52,299
But it's a horrible thought that this
might really be something that's been
338
00:24:52,334 --> 00:24:55,105
ripped from the back
of a living Viking.
339
00:24:55,140 --> 00:24:57,553
But according to the museum records
340
00:24:57,588 --> 00:25:00,560
there's absolutely no doubt
about what it is.
341
00:25:00,595 --> 00:25:03,957
When it first came to the museum in 1847
342
00:25:03,992 --> 00:25:09,728
it's described as, "a piece of human
skin from the church door at Hadstock".
343
00:25:09,763 --> 00:25:13,832
And a year later, in 1848,
it was examined by Mr. Quekett,
344
00:25:13,867 --> 00:25:16,684
of the Royal College of Surgeons,
who states,
345
00:25:16,719 --> 00:25:19,589
"I've been fortunate in making
out the specimen of skin
346
00:25:19,624 --> 00:25:21,709
"you last sent me to be human.
347
00:25:21,744 --> 00:25:24,801
"I found on it three
hairs which I preserved."
348
00:25:24,836 --> 00:25:26,376
And he goes on further to say,
349
00:25:26,411 --> 00:25:28,741
"I should state that the
skin was in all probability
350
00:25:28,776 --> 00:25:33,544
"removed from the back of the Dane,
and that he was a fair haired person."
351
00:25:33,579 --> 00:25:37,494
And in 1974, another
test at Leeds University,
352
00:25:37,529 --> 00:25:42,036
concluded that "the grain pattern
corresponds closely to human skin.
353
00:25:42,071 --> 00:25:45,866
"And it was from a person
with fair of greying hair".
354
00:25:45,901 --> 00:25:48,994
So there doesn't seem to be any doubt.
355
00:25:49,029 --> 00:25:53,078
But now for the first time,
we can take it a stage further,
356
00:25:53,113 --> 00:25:56,807
and we can use modern genetic science
to answer the question,
357
00:25:56,842 --> 00:26:00,999
is this really a relic of
some terrible grisly event?
358
00:26:01,034 --> 00:26:03,755
Or is it just simply another legend?
359
00:26:06,595 --> 00:26:07,899
We asked a team
360
00:26:07,934 --> 00:26:11,539
from the Ancient Biomolecules
Centre in Oxford to find out.
361
00:26:11,574 --> 00:26:14,555
They were given permission
to slice up a tiny piece
362
00:26:14,590 --> 00:26:16,633
and analyse its DNA.
363
00:26:18,653 --> 00:26:21,371
The team leader is Dr. Alan Cooper.
364
00:26:23,311 --> 00:26:26,704
Alan, did you actually manage to
get any DNA out of that bit of skin?
365
00:26:26,739 --> 00:26:29,226
Well, we did. We're very
pleased because we thought that
366
00:26:29,261 --> 00:26:31,893
the amount of degradation
that the skin was showing
367
00:26:31,928 --> 00:26:33,648
would mean that there was no DNA left.
368
00:26:33,683 --> 00:26:38,481
But we were able to get quite a bit of
DNA from the material inside the specimen
369
00:26:38,516 --> 00:26:41,264
once we'd taken off the
outer, withered layer.
370
00:26:41,299 --> 00:26:42,909
So what was it?
371
00:26:42,944 --> 00:26:46,611
Well, we tried a
variety of human primers
372
00:26:46,646 --> 00:26:49,467
to see if we could pick up
human DNA from the material
373
00:26:49,502 --> 00:26:51,758
and got a complete blank
374
00:26:51,793 --> 00:26:53,970
and zero combinations.
375
00:26:54,005 --> 00:26:56,735
Then we thought we should try cow,
376
00:26:56,770 --> 00:27:00,915
and that came back a
roaringly strong signal.
377
00:27:00,950 --> 00:27:04,454
So we're pretty sure
it's cow, unfortunately.
378
00:27:04,489 --> 00:27:09,382
So, how come all these scientists in
the past have been so wrong about it?
379
00:27:09,417 --> 00:27:12,501
Well, I think it was a very
difficult bit of diagnosis
380
00:27:12,517 --> 00:27:15,454
because it had been sitting on the
door exposed to the elements
381
00:27:15,489 --> 00:27:18,253
for some considerable period of
time, so it was quite withered.
382
00:27:18,288 --> 00:27:20,343
I think, also, we
might be underestimating
383
00:27:20,378 --> 00:27:24,117
some of the powers of forgery
of some of these early artisans.
384
00:27:24,152 --> 00:27:26,384
Because what we did notice
was the skin was very thin,
385
00:27:26,419 --> 00:27:28,988
much thinner that you'd
normally expect for a cow skin,
386
00:27:29,023 --> 00:27:32,754
so I suspect it was taken from
the underbelly or some other area,
387
00:27:32,789 --> 00:27:36,150
and it looked therefore,
a lot more like human skin.
388
00:27:36,185 --> 00:27:39,539
So they might have been disguising
it, perhaps, a little bit.
389
00:27:42,198 --> 00:27:45,196
So perhaps it's just
an ancient forgery.
390
00:27:45,231 --> 00:27:47,499
But it's one that
obviously hit the mark.
391
00:27:47,534 --> 00:27:50,375
Take a piece of cow hide,
add imagination,
392
00:27:50,410 --> 00:27:54,579
and by the 18th century
you've got a gruesome legend.
393
00:27:58,137 --> 00:28:00,913
Although the skin has
turned out not to be human,
394
00:28:00,948 --> 00:28:04,173
this small story still seems
to illustrate a bigger picture
395
00:28:04,208 --> 00:28:06,477
of the fear and hatred
that must have existed
396
00:28:06,512 --> 00:28:08,508
between the English and the Danes.
397
00:28:08,543 --> 00:28:10,502
And this hatred finally boiled over
398
00:28:10,537 --> 00:28:14,996
into what can only be described as
'state-sponsored ethnic cleansing'.
399
00:28:19,860 --> 00:28:24,369
Not all the Vikings in England
were marauders bent on extortion.
400
00:28:24,870 --> 00:28:28,921
Danish settlers had been living
peacefully here for over 100 years.
401
00:28:32,414 --> 00:28:37,441
But in 1002, on St. Brice's
Day, the 13th of November,
402
00:28:37,476 --> 00:28:42,691
King Æthelred commanded that all Danes
living in the country should be killed.
403
00:28:45,034 --> 00:28:49,183
"This day was Saturday, on which the
Danes are in the habit of bathing,
404
00:28:49,218 --> 00:28:54,989
"and accordingly, at the set time,
they were destroyed most ruthlessly.
405
00:28:58,374 --> 00:29:04,764
"From the least even to the greatest,
they spared neither age nor sex."
406
00:29:13,629 --> 00:29:17,807
The massacre on St. Brice's Day
provoked the wrath of the Vikings.
407
00:29:17,842 --> 00:29:20,351
Especially, as one of the
victims was said to be the sister
408
00:29:20,386 --> 00:29:23,467
of Sweyn Forkbeard, the Danish king.
409
00:29:23,502 --> 00:29:24,823
Over the coming years,
410
00:29:24,858 --> 00:29:29,333
bitter hatred between the English and
the Vikings would continue to intensify.
411
00:29:32,498 --> 00:29:35,374
Soon it was a new
generation at the top.
412
00:29:35,409 --> 00:29:38,187
In a tangle of invasion,
exile and death,
413
00:29:38,222 --> 00:29:41,314
the English and Danish kings
Æthelred and Sweyn Forkbeard
414
00:29:41,349 --> 00:29:44,007
passed on the fighting to their sons.
415
00:29:44,042 --> 00:29:47,332
Edmund Ironside and his young
Viking adversary, Canute,
416
00:29:47,367 --> 00:29:48,972
were head to head.
417
00:29:49,007 --> 00:29:50,908
Canute was still a teenager
418
00:29:50,943 --> 00:29:54,081
but he was about to trigger
the most dramatic shift in power
419
00:29:54,116 --> 00:29:57,698
in the history of Viking
influence in these islands.
420
00:30:00,977 --> 00:30:04,564
And in 1016, after a
summer of skirmishes,
421
00:30:04,599 --> 00:30:07,646
a confrontation in
Essex proved decisive.
422
00:30:07,681 --> 00:30:11,456
At the Battle of Assandun, heavy losses
were recorded on the English side,
423
00:30:11,491 --> 00:30:14,129
especially amongst the nobles.
424
00:30:16,223 --> 00:30:22,899
"There was then killed Eadnoth,
Abbot Wulfsige, Ealdorman Ælfric,
425
00:30:22,934 --> 00:30:27,598
"Ealdorman Godwine,
Ulfcetel and Æthelweard.
426
00:30:28,153 --> 00:30:31,796
"The flower of all
England was cut down."
427
00:30:33,014 --> 00:30:35,261
With such an outcome the English king
428
00:30:35,296 --> 00:30:38,434
was forced to give Canute
northern and central England.
429
00:30:38,469 --> 00:30:42,042
And then, only a few months later,
Edmund died,
430
00:30:42,077 --> 00:30:45,073
maybe from the wounds he'd
suffered on the battlefield.
431
00:30:45,108 --> 00:30:49,564
The rest of the country had little
choice but to turn to Canute.
432
00:30:52,653 --> 00:30:57,162
In an ancient ceremony,
Canute was crowned king.
433
00:31:00,102 --> 00:31:02,385
The unthinkable had happened.
434
00:31:02,420 --> 00:31:04,458
The invaders had become rulers.
435
00:31:04,493 --> 00:31:08,058
And there was a Viking
on the throne of England.
436
00:31:19,414 --> 00:31:24,010
But today people only remember
one story about Canute.
437
00:31:26,350 --> 00:31:28,667
King Canute tried to
stop the tide coming in.
438
00:31:28,702 --> 00:31:32,082
The tide?
Trying to send it back?
439
00:31:32,117 --> 00:31:34,223
Everyone thought he
could do everything,
440
00:31:34,258 --> 00:31:36,803
but then, he got his throne,
he sat beside the sea
441
00:31:36,838 --> 00:31:39,117
and he commanded it
not to come in. And it did.
442
00:31:39,152 --> 00:31:40,685
So that proved that he
couldn't do everything.
443
00:31:40,720 --> 00:31:43,363
And he got his feet rather wet,
as I remember.
444
00:31:43,955 --> 00:31:47,511
We all know the story,
but where did it come from?
445
00:31:49,435 --> 00:31:52,601
It's first mentioned in
the 'Historia Anglorum',
446
00:31:52,636 --> 00:31:56,454
a 12th century mixture of
history and moral fables.
447
00:31:56,489 --> 00:31:59,088
This tells us that Canute gave orders
448
00:31:59,123 --> 00:32:01,184
for his throne to be
placed on the sea shore
449
00:32:01,219 --> 00:32:03,110
as the tide was coming in.
450
00:32:03,145 --> 00:32:08,616
And that the King commanded the water
not to rise and wet his clothes or feet.
451
00:32:21,878 --> 00:32:25,267
The tide obviously
ignored the King's commands.
452
00:32:25,302 --> 00:32:28,819
But what came next in the
story isn't often mentioned.
453
00:32:28,854 --> 00:32:31,305
Canute is actually making a point,
454
00:32:31,340 --> 00:32:33,779
that no matter what
his courtiers may think,
455
00:32:33,814 --> 00:32:36,026
he is just a man.
456
00:32:36,061 --> 00:32:40,300
"Let all men know how empty and
worthless is the power of kings.
457
00:32:40,335 --> 00:32:43,295
"For there is none worthy
of the name but God,
458
00:32:43,330 --> 00:32:46,867
"whom heaven and earth and sea obey."
459
00:32:50,296 --> 00:32:53,959
The full story, then, puts
rather a different slant on it.
460
00:32:53,994 --> 00:32:56,373
Perhaps we had it
wrong all these years,
461
00:32:56,408 --> 00:33:00,327
and it was really written to show
how pious a Christian Canute was.
462
00:33:00,362 --> 00:33:03,013
We've no way of knowing
whether this happened.
463
00:33:03,048 --> 00:33:06,557
It may simply be a moral tale,
but it's interesting to note
464
00:33:06,592 --> 00:33:09,501
how we'd sooner believe in
the arrogance of our kings
465
00:33:09,536 --> 00:33:11,606
than in their piety.
466
00:33:22,321 --> 00:33:25,154
But having seized the
English crown by force,
467
00:33:25,189 --> 00:33:28,021
would Canute be able to hang on to it?
468
00:33:30,457 --> 00:33:32,752
Very little is known about his reign
469
00:33:32,787 --> 00:33:34,958
but there's one priceless manuscript
470
00:33:34,993 --> 00:33:39,439
that contains a drawing of Canute that
shows how he himself wanted to be seen.
471
00:33:41,770 --> 00:33:46,630
It was made at the time he donated a gold
cross to the New Minster at Winchester.
472
00:33:46,665 --> 00:33:50,439
As a Christian king, his power
ultimately comes from Christ
473
00:33:50,474 --> 00:33:52,138
seated well above him.
474
00:33:52,173 --> 00:33:53,797
But the hand on the hilt of his sword
475
00:33:53,832 --> 00:33:57,072
suggests a strong ruler who
should not be challenged.
476
00:33:57,107 --> 00:34:00,370
And the monks are
firmly in their place.
477
00:34:01,156 --> 00:34:04,990
Dr Ken Lawson is a leading
authority on Canute.
478
00:34:05,025 --> 00:34:07,959
In a sense, it's political propaganda.
479
00:34:07,994 --> 00:34:10,324
And this is important to Canute
480
00:34:10,359 --> 00:34:13,760
because he has no real
claim to the English throne.
481
00:34:13,795 --> 00:34:18,709
When the Church crowns and anoints him,
this gives him a legitimacy
482
00:34:18,744 --> 00:34:20,910
which he hasn't otherwise have.
483
00:34:20,945 --> 00:34:26,339
So this is 'Canute Rex', the King,
and I presume this is the Queen.
484
00:34:26,374 --> 00:34:28,933
That is Canute's Queen, Emma.
485
00:34:28,968 --> 00:34:31,992
She'd previously, of course,
been queen of King Æthelred.
486
00:34:32,027 --> 00:34:37,459
So is this quite an astute
move on Canute's part, then,
487
00:34:37,494 --> 00:34:40,627
to marry the widow
of the previous king?
488
00:34:40,662 --> 00:34:42,029
Yes. It almost certainly is, I mean,
489
00:34:42,064 --> 00:34:44,458
she was probably quite
a bit older than he was.
490
00:34:44,493 --> 00:34:46,861
I don't think it was a
love match of any kind.
491
00:34:46,896 --> 00:34:50,791
Because Emma knows the
English political system,
492
00:34:50,826 --> 00:34:53,879
she can give Canute
advise on personalities,
493
00:34:53,914 --> 00:34:57,348
and in particular on
how to treat the Church.
494
00:34:59,409 --> 00:35:01,546
The giving of the great gold cross
495
00:35:01,581 --> 00:35:05,062
is meant to show his piety
and generosity to the Church.
496
00:35:05,097 --> 00:35:08,694
But although Canute could be generous
to those who were important to him,
497
00:35:08,729 --> 00:35:12,265
there was also a ruthless
side to his character.
498
00:35:16,183 --> 00:35:20,786
The shady part of him is partly,
probably, very heavy taxation.
499
00:35:20,821 --> 00:35:27,087
Taxation which is enforced by people
unable to pay taxes forfeiting the land.
500
00:35:27,122 --> 00:35:30,573
And the coercive power behind all that
501
00:35:30,608 --> 00:35:34,398
are the professional
soldiers known as 'housecarls'
502
00:35:34,433 --> 00:35:37,205
who Canute may have employed
in considerable numbers.
503
00:35:37,240 --> 00:35:40,460
It's possible there were garrisons
of housecarls in certain cities.
504
00:35:40,495 --> 00:35:44,008
And they are the people
who, in the last analysis,
505
00:35:44,043 --> 00:35:46,598
will come and persuade you
to do what the King wants.
506
00:35:46,633 --> 00:35:49,166
So these are Canute's
heavy 'heavy mob', are they?
507
00:35:49,201 --> 00:35:51,598
Yes, they are probably very heavy.
508
00:35:55,204 --> 00:35:57,457
Such was Canute's ruthlessness
509
00:35:57,492 --> 00:36:00,554
that he was able to build
a huge North Sea empire.
510
00:36:00,589 --> 00:36:03,186
Three years after he
seized the English throne
511
00:36:03,221 --> 00:36:06,021
he succeeded his brother
as king of Denmark.
512
00:36:06,056 --> 00:36:09,796
Then, using money from English
taxes, he conquered Norway
513
00:36:09,831 --> 00:36:12,240
and then part of southern Sweden.
514
00:36:12,275 --> 00:36:15,458
Even the Scots accepted
him as their overlord.
515
00:36:15,493 --> 00:36:20,231
Canute's Empire stretched from
the English Channel to the Baltic.
516
00:36:26,463 --> 00:36:31,413
It was the most dramatic rise to power
of any Viking ruler in history.
517
00:36:31,448 --> 00:36:34,897
By 1030, a large proportion
of the British Isles
518
00:36:34,932 --> 00:36:37,088
were under Scandinavian control.
519
00:36:37,123 --> 00:36:39,238
But not all under the Danes.
520
00:36:39,273 --> 00:36:43,080
Earlier, Norwegian Vikings had
captured the islands of the sea road
521
00:36:43,115 --> 00:36:45,020
from Shetland to the Irish Sea.
522
00:36:45,055 --> 00:36:49,483
And here, the picture of
Viking rule was quite different.
523
00:36:54,788 --> 00:36:57,623
On the Isle of Man it
appears to be a story
524
00:36:57,658 --> 00:37:00,621
of integration more than domination.
525
00:37:02,893 --> 00:37:06,480
A view that's championed by
archaeologist Andrew Johnson
526
00:37:06,515 --> 00:37:09,163
from Manx National Heritage.
527
00:37:11,945 --> 00:37:18,469
The Viking involvement with the
island is not so much one of invasion
528
00:37:18,504 --> 00:37:21,089
and of driving out the local population,
529
00:37:21,124 --> 00:37:24,497
seizing the best land,
all this kind of thing.
530
00:37:24,532 --> 00:37:26,408
I think, instead, what you've got
531
00:37:26,443 --> 00:37:29,570
is a relatively small
number of people coming
532
00:37:29,605 --> 00:37:34,897
and being absorbed by
the existing population.
533
00:37:34,932 --> 00:37:41,175
But making a very, very considerable
imprint on that population.
534
00:37:42,745 --> 00:37:46,632
Evidence to support this theory
came to light in the 1980's
535
00:37:46,667 --> 00:37:50,554
during the excavation of an ancient
graveyard under Peel Castle.
536
00:37:50,589 --> 00:37:55,195
Andrew was on site when the team
stumbled on an intriguing grave.
537
00:37:56,509 --> 00:38:01,080
In a Christian cemetery, a woman
had been buried with grave goods
538
00:38:01,115 --> 00:38:03,697
in the pagan tradition.
539
00:38:05,796 --> 00:38:09,461
The first thing that was apparent
were her leg bones
540
00:38:09,496 --> 00:38:13,913
and, oddly enough, it looked as if
apparently she had a third leg
541
00:38:13,931 --> 00:38:16,840
and obviously that couldn't
possible be the case.
542
00:38:16,875 --> 00:38:18,637
And the closer we looked at this
543
00:38:18,672 --> 00:38:22,550
we realised that this bar-shaped
thing on her right side
544
00:38:22,585 --> 00:38:25,923
was actually iron, a piece of iron.
545
00:38:26,618 --> 00:38:29,045
The object must have been important
546
00:38:29,080 --> 00:38:31,821
but no one on the team
could tell what it was.
547
00:38:31,856 --> 00:38:34,153
It was like nothing they'd seen before.
548
00:38:34,188 --> 00:38:38,380
Then, you know, a few phone
calls to various archaeologists
549
00:38:38,415 --> 00:38:44,285
and the suggestion came back:
what if it's a cooking spit.
550
00:38:46,761 --> 00:38:50,315
And that's exactly what
it turned out to be.
551
00:38:50,350 --> 00:38:52,374
A symbol of domestic power,
552
00:38:52,409 --> 00:38:55,168
part of a wealthy female burial.
553
00:38:58,272 --> 00:39:01,716
Along with the spit there
were other domestic objects -
554
00:39:01,751 --> 00:39:06,667
a knife, a pair of shears into
which was rested a bone comb,
555
00:39:06,702 --> 00:39:12,245
and a necklace of multi-coloured
beads of glass, jet and amber.
556
00:39:16,275 --> 00:39:20,214
These objects suggested
that this woman was a Viking,
557
00:39:20,249 --> 00:39:23,058
but strangely there was
no sign of the broaches
558
00:39:23,093 --> 00:39:26,968
that were a characteristic
part of everyday Viking dress.
559
00:39:28,050 --> 00:39:30,147
So who was she?
560
00:39:31,079 --> 00:39:34,983
I think that she was a local Celt,
561
00:39:35,018 --> 00:39:40,903
someone who was married to
one of these new arrivals.
562
00:39:40,938 --> 00:39:43,830
And probably this was
an arranged marriage
563
00:39:43,865 --> 00:39:49,021
and this would be a perfect way
for Scandinavian who didn't want
564
00:39:49,056 --> 00:39:55,407
to get into the whole risky business
of fighting to take over land with swords
565
00:39:55,442 --> 00:39:58,537
but to gain land through marriage.
566
00:40:00,751 --> 00:40:05,462
So, is there any more evidence for
inter-marriage elsewhere on the island?
567
00:40:06,534 --> 00:40:09,865
Viking runic inscriptions
on Christian crosses
568
00:40:09,900 --> 00:40:12,556
give the names of
people they commemorated.
569
00:40:12,591 --> 00:40:15,186
And those who had them made.
570
00:40:19,428 --> 00:40:23,899
This one declares that it
was raised by Þorleifr Hnakki
571
00:40:23,934 --> 00:40:26,411
to the memory of his son Fiak.
572
00:40:26,446 --> 00:40:31,226
Now, this is fascinating because
Þorleifr Hnakki is a Viking name
573
00:40:31,261 --> 00:40:33,846
but his son's name is Celtic.
574
00:40:33,854 --> 00:40:37,748
Now, the most likely explanation
is tat Fiak's mother was a Celt
575
00:40:37,783 --> 00:40:39,507
who, despite being married to a Viking,
576
00:40:39,542 --> 00:40:42,594
had chosen to name her
son in her own language.
577
00:40:42,629 --> 00:40:45,073
This seems like more
evidence of inter-marriage,
578
00:40:45,108 --> 00:40:48,482
of the mingling of two
very distinct cultures.
579
00:40:57,440 --> 00:41:00,160
And the result of
this integrated society
580
00:41:00,195 --> 00:41:05,959
is the extraordinary survival of a
remnant of Viking rule: Tynwald Day.
581
00:41:05,994 --> 00:41:09,055
Each year, the island's parliament
meets on this grassy mound
582
00:41:09,090 --> 00:41:10,826
to conduct its business.
583
00:41:10,861 --> 00:41:15,739
Open to all, almost exactly as
they did a thousand years ago.
584
00:41:15,774 --> 00:41:17,682
"Learned deemsters,
585
00:41:17,717 --> 00:41:23,358
"I exhort you to proclaim
to the people in ancient form
586
00:41:23,393 --> 00:41:27,393
"such laws as have been
enacted during the past year
587
00:41:27,428 --> 00:41:32,797
"and which have received Her
Gracious Majesty's Royal Assent."
588
00:41:32,832 --> 00:41:36,028
"Electronic Transactions Act
589
00:41:36,063 --> 00:41:40,378
"which facilitates
electronic transactions.
590
00:41:40,413 --> 00:41:42,581
The origins or the Tynwald ceremony
591
00:41:42,616 --> 00:41:44,983
certainly go back well
into our Viking period.
592
00:41:45,018 --> 00:41:47,743
But they established their form of
government here in the island
593
00:41:47,778 --> 00:41:52,100
and promulgated, read out the
laws which they were suggesting
594
00:41:52,135 --> 00:41:54,861
that the public of the Isle
of Man should under annually.
595
00:41:54,896 --> 00:41:58,614
And that is really a tradition
which we, today, centuries later,
596
00:41:58,649 --> 00:42:00,242
have been carrying out.
597
00:42:05,602 --> 00:42:09,068
The Viking rulers have handed
down their political traditions,
598
00:42:09,103 --> 00:42:12,554
but has their genetic legacy
also been handed down?
599
00:42:12,589 --> 00:42:17,693
What proportion of today's Manxmen
are direct descendants of the Vikings?
600
00:42:17,728 --> 00:42:21,639
The answer may be revealed by the
genetic survey of the British Isles
601
00:42:21,674 --> 00:42:25,831
being carried out by the BBC
and University College London.
602
00:42:27,736 --> 00:42:31,176
What you have to do is to
scrape inside the mouth ten times
603
00:42:31,211 --> 00:42:33,331
and I'll have this tube of preservative
604
00:42:33,366 --> 00:42:36,014
which just preserves
the cells that are captured
605
00:42:36,049 --> 00:42:37,761
when you're doing the swabbing.
606
00:42:37,796 --> 00:42:40,990
They're sampling males
because it's the Y chromosome,
607
00:42:41,025 --> 00:42:45,366
which only males have, that will
clearly show Norwegian genetic markers.
608
00:42:45,401 --> 00:42:49,576
Back in the lab, analysis of
the samples is just beginning.
609
00:42:50,227 --> 00:42:53,327
When we carry out just the
first preliminary analysis
610
00:42:53,362 --> 00:42:57,200
we see that about 15% of
chromosomes in the Isle of Man
611
00:42:57,235 --> 00:42:58,616
are only found in Norway.
612
00:42:58,651 --> 00:43:01,877
So it looks like those
have a Norwegian origin.
613
00:43:01,912 --> 00:43:05,921
So there are indications of
a strong Viking presence here
614
00:43:05,956 --> 00:43:08,725
confirming the evidence
from archaeology.
615
00:43:09,428 --> 00:43:13,419
The genetics does indicate that
there is Viking genetic input
616
00:43:13,454 --> 00:43:18,532
and that could be precisely
through the kind of inter-marriages
617
00:43:18,567 --> 00:43:20,816
that are documented in
the archaeological record,
618
00:43:20,851 --> 00:43:23,883
with Viking men joining the society.
619
00:43:23,918 --> 00:43:28,205
Residents Act, which provides for
the registration of residents...
620
00:43:28,240 --> 00:43:31,690
The enduring nature of
Viking rule in the Isle of Man
621
00:43:31,725 --> 00:43:35,906
contrasts sharply with the short-lived
experience of Viking rule in England
622
00:43:35,941 --> 00:43:39,603
where it would last for only 26 years.
623
00:43:42,434 --> 00:43:45,061
King Canute died in 1035.
624
00:43:45,096 --> 00:43:49,050
His sons were unable to hold on
to their father's gains for long
625
00:43:49,085 --> 00:43:53,002
and within seven years, the impressive
North Sea Empire that he'd built
626
00:43:53,037 --> 00:43:55,279
had collapsed.
627
00:43:55,314 --> 00:43:58,368
Canute had been king of all England
628
00:43:58,403 --> 00:44:00,693
and he was buried like one,
629
00:44:00,728 --> 00:44:04,485
alongside the Saxon kings in
Winchester's ancient Minster.
630
00:44:04,520 --> 00:44:07,384
But he wasn't allowed to rest in peace.
631
00:44:07,419 --> 00:44:10,511
When this new cathedral was built
his bones were moved
632
00:44:10,546 --> 00:44:12,824
along with those of
other kings and bishops
633
00:44:12,859 --> 00:44:15,395
into wooden caskets.
634
00:44:15,430 --> 00:44:18,803
And here there is an
ignominious post-script.
635
00:44:18,838 --> 00:44:22,810
Centuries later they became
the target of Roundhead aggression
636
00:44:22,845 --> 00:44:25,085
during the English civil war.
637
00:44:29,540 --> 00:44:33,411
Cromwell's troops effectively
looted the cathedral.
638
00:44:33,446 --> 00:44:36,766
They rode up the aisle,
some of them on horseback,
639
00:44:36,801 --> 00:44:38,259
running more or less amok.
640
00:44:38,294 --> 00:44:39,581
When they got here, of course,
641
00:44:39,616 --> 00:44:41,327
looking up to right and left,
642
00:44:41,362 --> 00:44:44,358
what did they see were these
boxes with crowns on the top.
643
00:44:44,393 --> 00:44:47,571
Well, if you can imagine,
symbol of royal authority
644
00:44:47,606 --> 00:44:51,218
was precisely the sort of thing
that they had it in for.
645
00:44:51,253 --> 00:44:54,768
So they pulled down
the boxes from on top.
646
00:44:54,803 --> 00:44:57,045
Smash! Out came the contents,
647
00:44:57,080 --> 00:45:00,028
and then they picked up the bones
and used them as missiles
648
00:45:00,063 --> 00:45:06,047
with which to break the windows which
had idolatrous, biblical imagery on them.
649
00:45:09,307 --> 00:45:12,477
The surviving bones were
later re-placed in the chests,
650
00:45:12,512 --> 00:45:14,569
but they'd been jumbled up.
651
00:45:15,088 --> 00:45:18,461
So where exactly are Canute's remains?
652
00:45:18,496 --> 00:45:21,529
Is it impossible to have
a look in the chests?
653
00:45:21,564 --> 00:45:24,281
Well, the current feeling is that
654
00:45:24,316 --> 00:45:27,847
one should leave these human
remains to lie in peace.
655
00:45:27,882 --> 00:45:30,040
So, the simple answer to that is 'no',
656
00:45:30,075 --> 00:45:35,641
but I was allowed to check the
conservation state of the remains
657
00:45:35,676 --> 00:45:38,860
about 10 years ago, I suppose it was,
and also to take some photographs
658
00:45:38,895 --> 00:45:40,678
which I've got here.
659
00:45:40,713 --> 00:45:44,862
So this is the chest that we've
been looking at on the side there.
660
00:45:44,895 --> 00:45:49,480
What this looks like is just a collection
of long bones, a few bits of pelvis
661
00:45:49,515 --> 00:45:52,604
and some arm bones. There's no
complete skeletons in there, are there?
662
00:45:52,639 --> 00:45:55,497
Exactly so. And what seems
to have happened is that,
663
00:45:55,532 --> 00:45:59,340
during one of the re-sortings, they
sorted out these bones osteologically
664
00:45:59,375 --> 00:46:03,075
and decided they ought to put the
long bones into these two new chests.
665
00:46:03,110 --> 00:46:05,956
The result then is that
some of the other chests,
666
00:46:05,991 --> 00:46:08,649
for example one which only
bears the name of one monarch,
667
00:46:08,684 --> 00:46:10,836
- and yet, as you can see...
- Five skulls!
668
00:46:10,871 --> 00:46:12,291
We've got five skulls in there.
669
00:46:12,326 --> 00:46:14,039
So, a complete jumble.
670
00:46:14,074 --> 00:46:18,179
But Canute is somewhere in amongst
one of these chests, you think?
671
00:46:18,214 --> 00:46:20,948
I don't think there's
any reason to suppose
672
00:46:20,983 --> 00:46:25,129
that Canute's bones aren't somewhere
amongst these lot, even jumbled up.
673
00:46:28,093 --> 00:46:31,144
This remarkable episode
of Viking rule in England
674
00:46:31,179 --> 00:46:34,008
finished when the Anglo-Saxon
dynasty was restored
675
00:46:34,043 --> 00:46:37,673
almost three decades
after it had been overthrown.
676
00:46:39,206 --> 00:46:44,377
In 1042, Edward the Confessor
took back the English throne.
677
00:46:49,696 --> 00:46:53,117
It so happened that Denmark
was too busy fighting Norway
678
00:46:53,152 --> 00:46:55,801
to launch an more contenders
for the English throne.
679
00:46:55,836 --> 00:46:58,633
And so, it looked as if
the Viking Age in England
680
00:46:58,668 --> 00:47:00,723
had finally come to an end.
681
00:47:00,758 --> 00:47:02,877
But the death of Edward the Confessor
682
00:47:02,912 --> 00:47:05,800
meant that the crown was
once again up for grabs,
683
00:47:05,835 --> 00:47:08,855
and this time the
Norwegians were ready.
684
00:47:08,890 --> 00:47:13,118
The extraordinary tale of
what really happened of 1066
685
00:47:13,153 --> 00:47:17,797
is in the next and final episode
of 'Blood of the Vikings'.
686
00:47:18,298 --> 00:47:22,298
Transcription by Fry.