the vikings

The Vikings
Rob Haarstad
2/3/09
Daniels 4th Period

The Vikings
The modern day countries of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark have a history of barbarianism during the medieval time period. The Vikings were born through an inhabitable environment which was too cold to grow enough food and violence between different Viking clans. As this situation became desperate, these people looked for new ways to find food and wealth. Using their famous long boats which were controlled by sails and oars, the Vikings started raiding Christian monasteries on the coast of England. The long boats were very effective in shallow water. This allowed the Vikings to be able to land on the beach and start raiding in an instantaneous manner. This also gave Vikings the ability to travel on rivers, allowing them to raid cities and monasteries that were miles from the coast. While the Vikings are most known for their raids, they were also brilliant explorers. Leif Erickson discovered Newfoundland and the Americas five hundred year before Christopher Columbus.