Vikings - Exploration The mid-10th-century reign of Harald Bluetooth as king of a newly unified, powerful and Christianized Denmark marked the beginning of a second Viking age. Large-scale raids, often organized by royal leaders, hit the coasts of Europe and especially England, where the line of kings descended from Alfred the Great was faltering. Harald’s rebellious son, Sven Forkbeard, led Viking raids on England beginning in 991 and conquered the entire kingdom in 1013, sending King Ethelred into exile. Sven died the following year, leaving his son Knut (or Canute) to rule a Scandinavian empire (comprising England, Denmark, and Norway) on the North Sea. After Knut’s death, his two sons succeeded him, but both were dead by 1042 and Edward the Confessor, son of the previous (non-Danish) king, returned from exile and regained the English throne from the Danes.
Primary History - Vikings - Who were the Vikings Games and Animations Welcome to the Best of History Web Sites Games and Animations section. Below you will find an annotated list of fun history games and animations organized around broad historical periods. Most of these games and animation are aimed at students ages 10-16. We hope you enjoy these selections and encourage you to submit a recommended history game or animation to us via the contact form. Many thanks to Joshua Dale for his help in organizing and developing this section. – Tom Daccord Ancient History Games and Animations Gladiator: Dressed to Kill This game has the player choose the correct armor for three different types of Roman gladiators within a time limit. Housesteads Fort This is a 3D tour of a reconstruction of a Roman fort along Hadrian’s Wall in Ancient Britain. Mt. The Mummy Maker Test your knowledge of history with an interactive challenge. Roman Villa This is an interactive reconstruction of a Roman villa viewed in Google Earth. Medieval History Games and Animations Pirates! U.S.
The Amazing Vikings Ravagers, despoilers, pagans, heathens--such epithets pretty well summed up the Vikings for those who lived in the British Isles during medieval times. For hundreds of years after their bloody appearance at the end of the 8th century A.D., these ruthless raiders would periodically sweep in from the sea to kill, plunder and destroy, essentially at will. "From the fury of the Northmen, deliver us, O Lord" was a prayer uttered frequently and fervently at the close of the first millennium. Small wonder that the ancient Anglo-Saxons--and their cultural descendants in England, the U.S. and Canada--think of these seafaring Scandinavians as little more than violent brutes. But that view is wildly skewed. The broad outlines of Viking culture and achievement have been known to experts for decades, but a spate of new scholarship, based largely on archaeological excavations in Europe, Iceland, Greenland and Canada, has begun to fill in the elusive details.
Boy finds treasure linked to Viking king 'Harald Bluetooth' on Baltic island Updated Tue at 2:47amTue 17 Apr 2018, 2:47am Hundreds of 1,000-year-old silver coins, rings, pearls and bracelets linked to the era of Danish King Harald Gormsson have been found on the northern German island of Ruegen in the Baltic Sea. A single silver coin was first found in January by two amateur archaeologists, one of them a 13-year-old boy, in a field near the village of Schaprode. The state archaeology office then became involved and the entire treasure was uncovered by experts over the weekend, the Mecklenburg-West Pomerania state archaeology office said. "It's the biggest trove of such coins in the south-eastern Baltic region," the statement said. The office said the two amateur archaeologists were asked to keep quiet about their discovery to give professionals time to plan the dig and were then invited to participate in the recovery. "This was the [biggest] discovery of my life," hobby archaeologist Rene Schoen told the German news agency dpa. Topics: archaeology, history, germany
Girl, 8, pulls 1,500-year-old sword from lake in Sweden By Lara Lauth Updated Fri at 12:01pmFri 5 Oct 2018, 12:01pm An eight-year-old girl went for a dip in a Swedish lake and returned wielding an Iron Age sword. A local museum described the find as "spectacular"Experts said the weapon was up to 1,500 years oldIt was found complete with a scabbard made of wood and leather Young Saga Vanecek was swimming with her family in southern Sweden's Lake Vidosten when she stumbled upon a long metal object. The Jonkopings Lans Museum said in a statement this week that the discovery was "spectacular". "The sword is in total 85cm long and exceptionally well-preserved, including a scabbard made of wood and leather," it said. "It has tentatively been considered from the Iron Age, that is at least 1,000 years, perhaps even 1,500 years old." The museum said Saga found the relic in about half a metre of water. They were not sure how or why the weapon ended up in the lake, but the Jonkoping County Museum and other organisations plan to investigate the area soon.
Missing Lewis Chessman piece, a Viking relic found in a drawer, sells for $1.3 million Updated about 3 hours agoTue 2 Jul 2019, 10:44pm A medieval chess piece found in a Scottish antique dealer's drawer has been sold at auction for 735,000 pounds ($1.3 million). Key points: The Lewis Chessmen were first discovered in 1831The piece belonging to the set was stored in a drawer for yearsOther pieces are held in the British Museum in London and the National Museum of Scotland The 900-year-old Lewis Chessmen piece was considered among the greatest artefacts of the Viking era, and was initially expected to bring between 600,000 pounds and 1 million pounds ($1.8 million) at Sotheby's auction house. The piece was bought for just five pounds in 1964. The Lewis Chessmen are a hoard of 93 pieces in the form of Norse warriors, including shield-chewing berserkers, carved from walrus ivory in the 12th century. They were discovered in 1831, buried in a sand dune on Scotland's remote Isle of Lewis. The newly discovered piece is 8.8 centimetres tall and the equivalent of a rook.
Remains of Viking ship found in Norwegian paddock under lost burial mound Posted about 10 hours agoWed 27 Nov 2019, 11:33am Researchers have discovered what they believe to be a 1,000-year-old Viking funeral ship buried under Norwegian farmland. The ship-like structure was detected under the surface of a Norwegian paddockIt is believed the ship originally stretched between 16 to 17 metres, but parts were destroyed by ploughingResearchers will use non-invasive techniques to survey the area further Archaeologists from the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) used a georadar vehicle to scan paddocks in Edoy, in More and Romsdal County, while investigating a possible settlement located nearby. Analysis of the radar-mapped paddock revealed the outline of a boat thought to have been used in a Viking burial. It is thought the ship, the remains of which measure about 13 metres long, was once buried under a large mound, which was probably lost after being worn down by ploughs. The vessel lies just underneath the topsoil.
Sport set to reckon with impacts of climate change, and encouraged to act now Sports globally are reckoning with the impacts of climate change, no longer seen as an issue far off in the distance but one that is being felt today. Key points: At present, the Federal Government's National Sports Plan does not address climate changeA new report suggests Australia's summer leagues and codes are particularly threatened by the impacts of climate changeThe Brisbane 2032 Olympics would have to adhere to strict sustainability measures should it go ahead Sports from grassroots to elite have had to delay, move, or cancel events because of unsuitable conditions while clubs in extreme climate-affected areas are now struggling to pay hugely increased insurance premiums to guard against flood or fire. Snow and ice sports are suffering from less snow, more rain and shorter winters. Summer sports have been impacted by increasing heat for longer periods, as well as worsening air quality and smoke hazard from bushfires. "They [the organisers] sat back and said what do we need to do?
Cartographer discovers Sweden's 'most spectacular' trove of Bronze Age jewellery on forest floor A Swedish orienteering enthusiast working on a map earlier in April has stumbled across a stash of some 50 Bronze Age relics dating back over 2,500 years. Mainly consisting of ancient jewelry, the find outside the small town of Alingsas in western Sweden represents one of "the most spectacular and largest cache finds" from the Bronze Age ever in the country, the County Administrative Board said. Among the find are some "very well preserved necklaces, chains and needles" made out of bronze, the board said. The pieces are believed to be from the period between 750 and 500 BC. Treasure lay waiting in the forest They were lying out in the open in front of a group of boulders in the forest. Tomas Karlsson, the cartographer who made the discovery when he was out updating a map, at first thought it was just junk. "It looked like metal garbage... He then hunched over and saw a spiral and a necklace. "But it all looked so new," he said. "I thought they were fake." ABC with AFP "I thought they were fake."
BOM forecasts destructive winds, low-lying snow, rain and freezing temperatures as cold blast hits east coast It might be just one more sleep away, but winter is certainly going to start with a vengeance. If you haven't caved and reached for the warm blankets yet, now is the time. Key points: Temperatures are expected to be 3-6C below average as cold air surges up the east coastSnow is expected down to 600m from Tasmania up to the NSW Central TablelandsTrees and powerlines could fall as damaging to destructive winds lash regions after months of flooding rains A strong cold front and associated low are bringing damaging to destructive winds, low-lying snow, rain and freezing temperatures onto the south-east of the continent. After ravaging South Australia overnight into Monday, complete with record-tumbling rainfall and even a tornado in Adelaide's northern suburbs, the system continued west yesterday. But even with the main front slinking off the coast, there was plenty of weather left in its wake. Loading People were advised to take care and follow the instructions of local emergency services.