Viking Empires - Softcover

'... this bold new history of the Vikings.' Scotland on Sunday

'The evocative 'empires' of this book's title draws attention to the Scandinavians' exceptional range of operations and should raise interesting questions about the nature of political power in the Viking Age.' The Times Literary Supplement

'This is an important book and will force many to look again at their understanding of British and European history in this formative period.' Contemporary Review

'... a great deal of information ... well worth the attention of readers ...' The Mariner's Mirror

Viking Empires, first published in 2005, is a definitive new history of five hundred years of Viking civilisation and the first study of the global implications of the expansion, integration, and reorientation of the Viking World. Offering an assessment of Scandinavian society before the 790s, the book traces the political, military, cultural and religious history of the Viking Age from Iceland to the Baltic States. The authors show that it is not possible to understand the history of the Norman Conquest, the successes of David I of Scotland or the relationship between the Holy Roman Empire and the Papacy without considering the impact of the history of Scandinavia. The book concludes with a new account of the end of the Viking era, arguing that there was no sudden decline but the gradual absorption of the Scandinavian kingdoms into the project of the crusades and a refocusing of imperial ambitions on the Baltic and Eastern Europe.