The Viking Age begins as hordes of Vikings leap ashore from their long-ships, in a lightening raid against defenseless clerics and lay folk, only to depart as swiftly as they arrive loaded up with slaves and booty.
These hit-and-run raids are seen to have continued for decades before visitors from Scandinavia began to trade, negotiate and found settlements on English soil.
While it can’t be denied that Viking raids were violent, the established narrative of first contact seems oversimplified in the light of contemporary evidence.
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