The Vikings

The Empire State Building is one of the most recognisable structures in the world, an iconic component of New York City’s skyline. Even for those who have never visited, the building is internationally famous thanks to its starring role in a litany of blockbuster films. For decad ...  Show more

On the morning of September 11th, 2001, terrorists from the Islamic extremist group Al Qaeda hijacked four commercial aircraft in a coordinated attack against targets in the United States. Two planes were intentionally crashed in New York City. A third hit the government’s milita ...  Show more

Vikings have long been depicted as that stereotype of the hairy, nameless warrior, leaping ashore from his longboat, ready to terrorise a hapless local population in a northern European country. But there were also seers, artisans, travellers, and writers, too whose stories ca ...

We know the Vikings best as brutal, seafaring, pagan raiders – and that’s an important part of their lives and histories. But it’s only one aspect: what about their love lives, experiences of travels, and attitudes to religion? Speaking with James Osborne, Eleanor Barraclough unp ...  Show more

Support this podcast on Patreon:  https://www.patreon.com/historyofvikingDuring the Middle Ages, seafaring Scandinavian marauders wrought havoc in lands both near and far—from Iceland to Finland, and Córdoba to Constantinople. These were warriors who belonged to an altogether viol ...  Show more

793 - 1035 - Glorious literature tells us that the Vikings were savage raiders who sailed the seas and plundered from others.  This episode investigates what we do know about the Vikings and their history and whether those preconceptions are completely fair.