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Oh lord, deliver us from the NorthmenThe first thing that seems to come up with Vikings is the name itself. One should note that the term Viking is actually a Nordic term for the act of going on a raid and was never used to name a particular people. It referred to all Scandinavians and what they did, not who they were. But regardless of what country they were from, if you were from England (one of the easiest places to get to for raiders) they we...

Who doesn't think of a sword (500262) when talking about these brutal warriors? In fact it was so preferred and highly valued that a sword would be named and treated with reverence. Often it was passed down from father to son and then again until broken or buried with great honor with a chieftain. In the cases where the sword did pass to the afterlife with its owner it was also ritually killed. The reason this was done is not entirely clear, but...

The Norse fearless nature may have arisen from their belief that a glorious death which involved battle with sword in hand would ensure their place in paradise. But this was not all the Norse went Viking for. They settled in the new lands they explored. More accurate they employed a raid & trade philosophy, for they settled many areas with little fighting and created great business relationships. In fact Dublin, Ireland was first established as a...