The Vikings in England
From the first raid in 793 to the death of Cnut in 1035, Norse people from Denmark and Norway changed England for good.
1. Living in Viking England
What was it like?
Most Vikings in England were farmers, traders and craftsmen, not just raiders. They lived in longhouses made of wood, wattle and daub, with a fire in the middle of the room. In towns like Jorvik (York), people lived close together and worked as comb makers, smiths and jewellers.
After 865 many Danes settled in the area called the Danelaw, in the north and east of England, and mixed with the Anglo-Saxons.
Source:
- The Vikings and Jorvik, JORVIK Viking Centre, 16 October 2026
2. Clothes
What did the people wear?
Clothes were made from wool and linen. Men wore a tunic, trousers and a cloak held together with a brooch. Women wore a long dress with a strap dress over it, fastened with two oval brooches, often with a string of beads between them.
Vikings did not wear horned helmets. That idea comes from 19th-century paintings and operas.
Source:
- Viking Clothing: Warm and Durable, History on the Net, 16 October 2026
3. Food
What did the people eat?
Daily food was bread, porridge, fish, pork, mutton, cheese and butter. Fish and meat were salted, smoked or dried for winter. People also ate apples, berries, nuts and honey.
They drank ale and mead, often from cups or horns at big feasts.
Source:
- What Did the Vikings Eat?, History Hit, 16 October 2026
4. Activities, wars and threats
What was happening in this time?
In 793 Vikings attacked the monastery of Lindisfarne. In 865 the Great Heathen Army landed in East Anglia and took York in 866. King Alfred of Wessex stopped them at Edington in 878 and later agreed a border with the Danish leader Guthrum.
Later, King Æthelred paid the Danegeld to buy peace. In 1016 the Dane Cnut became king of all England.
Sources:
- When the Vikings ruled in Britain: A brief history of Danelaw, History (history.co.uk), 16 October 2026
- Ethelred II 'The Unready' (r. 978-1013 and 1014-1016), The Royal Family (royal.uk), 16 October 2026
5. Culture and language
What was special about this time?
Vikings spoke Old Norse and wrote with runes. They told stories about gods such as Odin, Thor and Freya, and Thursday is named after Thor. Over time many Vikings became Christian.
Many English words come from Old Norse, such as sky, egg, knife, window and they. Place names ending in -by or -thorpe, like Whitby and Grimsby, are Norse too.
Sources:
- How Old Norse of the Vikings Influenced the English Language, oldnorse.org, 16 October 2026
- The gods of the old Nordic religion, National Museum of Denmark, 16 October 2026
6. How it changed the future
How did it affect Great Britain?
The Vikings changed English language, law, place names and towns. The fight against them helped unite the English kingdoms into one country under Alfred's family.
The Normans who conquered England in 1066 were also descended from Vikings, so Viking history leads straight to the Norman Conquest.
Source:
- Danelaw, Wikipedia, 16 October 2026