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What was Staraya Ladoga?
An important trading town founded in 750 by the local Slav population. It was a meeting point for many different traders
What evidence has been found of Vikings at Staraya Ladoga and what does this suggest?
Evidence of Viking metalwork, jewellery and boat building as well as hundreds of burial mounds dotted around the landscape
This suggests permanent residents
Why did vikings venture on from Staraya Ladoga?
Because people talked of Baghdad and Constantinople and how rich they were and the lure of sliver.
How did the Vikings get down to Baghdad?
They headed south, down the Volga river and the crossed the Caspian Sea
How did Vikings get down to Constantinople?
They travelled south, down the Volkhov and Dniper rivers and across the Black sea
Why could Viking journeys south be dangerous?
Because they had to protect themselves from robbers, especially over long stretches of land.
What were some Scandanavian trade goods and what were they used for?
Walrus ivory- carved into beads and jewellery
Swords- High quality swords from Vikings and some obtained from Franks, high price
Falcons- Fastest bird in the sky commands a high price
Honey- sweetener
Furs- useful for winters, white fur of arctic wolves
Slaves- for labour (Obviously)
Amber- carved and polished into pendants
What did the Vikings establish along the river systems of Western Russia?
Settlements where they would repair ships, collect food supplies and hear news of river trade.
What did the people in the east called the Vikings?
The âRusâ a version of the Finnish name for Swedes.
What happened as the Rus population increased?
The settlements became small towns
What did Viking establishment along the river routes mean?
They were able to control the town and fortify them
What evidence of Viking presence are there in the Slavic region?
400 archaelogical sites where neck rings, beads, swords and ship burials were found.
What gradually happened to the Vikings as they ruled over the Slavs?
They became more like the Slavs, they married Slav women and had children who had Slavic names and adopted their way of living.
Which Rus towns became important to the Vikings and why?
Novgorod and Kiev- Allowed them to control river routes from north and south
What did the Vikings build by 860 at Novgorod and who ruled it?
A major fortified centre ruled by a Viking named Riurik
What did Riurikâs heir, Oleg do by 882?
He joined the towns on the Dniper to make an important trading town.
What did Kiev become?
The foundation of the state of Russia which Olegâs heirs ruled for 100 years.
How did Vladmir bring change to Kiev in 988?
He became Christian and cemented his alliance with Byzantium, marrying the Byzantium emperorâs sister.
What happened as a consequence of Vladmir becoming Christian and marrying the Byzantium emperorâs sister?
The Orthodox Christian church took hold in Rus territory and with it came Byzantine culture and law.
What did Yaroslav the Wise (Vladmirâs son) do?
Ruled Kiev 1019-1045 increasing its power and wealth
Built the Golden Gate of Kiev- completed in 1024, rebuilt by Russians in 1982 after it was dismantled
When did the Vikings develop a strong trade like with the Arab world?
In the 9th Century
What did an Arab writer describe Rus merchants as?
âa sort of European, bringing beaver skins and black fox fur and swordsâ
What was the population of Baghdad in the 10th century?
Over a million
Why were Vikings eager to trade with those from Baghdad?
Luxury goods could fetch a high price in Scandanavia
Was the relationship between the Vikings and the Arabs always peaceful?
No- raids in 912 and 943
Where did the Vikings invade in 912?
They crossed the Caspian sea and attacked the city of Baku
Where did the Vikings invade in 943?
Vikings captured and held the the Abbasid city of Berda for several months
Evidence of Viking raids in the Arab world?
30 runestones in Sweden made in memory of Vikings who died in Serkland
What fabric did the Vikings want from Baghdad?
Silk
Where did silk come from?
It was transported thousands of miles along the silk road from China
Evidence of Viking trade with Arabs? (To do with slik)
Fragments of silk found in the Oseberg ship burial
Why would silk fetch a high price in Scandanavia?
Because of its gorgeous feel and look compared to the Vikingâs rough woollen clothes
What did Vikings want the most from their trades?
Sliver
Why were Vikings so eager to bring Sliver to Scandanavia?
Because there were no silver mines there
How did Arab coins (Dihrams) get to Scandanavia?
Abbasid caliphs minted huge quantities of silver coins called dihrams which found their way to Scandanavia through Viking traders
Evidence for Viking trade with the Arab world? (coins)
1000 hoards of dihrams found in Scandanavia including 228,000 coins
Most date from tenth century
30% dated between 940-960 suggest that they were peak times of viking trading
Where were 470 coins found?
Stockholm
When did Vikings start minting their own coins?
The 10th century
What did Vikings use Arab Dihrams for?
Viking merchants used it as a currency
Arab silver and Dihrams melted down to make wearable items like arm rings and neck rings
Evidence of Viking trade with the Arab world? (Ring)
Silver ring with Arabic design found at Birka in a womanâs grave dating from about 850
Evidence of Viking interaction with the Arab world? (Arab texts)
More than twenty Arabic texts from the period 830-1050 contain descriptions of the Volga Vikings
Who wrote a text in 921 which gives insights into the Vikings?
An Arab lawyer called Ibn Fadhlan
What do Ibn Fadhlanâs texts say about vikings?
âThey come from their country in the North, anchor their ships in the Volga Riverâ
âI was told that when their chiefs die, they consume them with fire.â -Viking burial
âHis family asks his girls and servants, 'Which one of you will die with him?â- Viking burial
What did the Vikings simply know Constantinople as?
Miklagard- the Great City
What attracted the Vikings the most to Constantinople?
The city's bazaars, which were packed with exotic goods.
What products found in Constantinople were unknown to Vikings?
wine, olive oil, silk, embroidered cloth, fruit, spices and semi- precious stones, such as carnelian and quartz
When did the first Vikings visit Baghdad?
839
What did Rus Envoys do in 839 at Constantinople?
Rus envoys visited Emperor Theophilus and seem to have established friendly relations
What happened in 860? (Constantinople)
The Vikings attacked Constantinople with a fleet said to be 200 ships strong but they failed
What did violence enable the Vikings to do in Constantinople?
violence enabled them to negotiate a favourable trade agreement with the Byzantine emperor
What happened in 907? (Constantinople)
Oleg, the founder of Kiev, launched another attack on Constantinople, from the sea. He was driven off, and was happy to negotiate a trade treaty in 911
What was the trade treaty in 911 and how long did it last for?
laid out careful rules for the behaviour of Viking Rus merchants in Constantinople
provision for free baths for the Viking merchants as well as places to repair their ships
Olegâs treaty lasted for 30 years
What happened in the 940s? (Constantinople)
Igor began to attack Constantinople again in the 940s
How was Igors army defeated?
By the Byzantine secret weapon called 'Greek fire',
Many Vikings were burned to death in their ships.
Those who jumped into the sea to escape the flames often drowned in their heavy armour.
Evidence of Greek fire?
A twelfth century manuscript showing Greek fire in action
When did Igor negotiate a trade treaty and what did it state?
945
the Rus could only enter Constantinople in groups of fewer than 50 and without any weapons.
free accommodation for the Rus in the suburbs of Constantinople
limited the quantities of silk they could buy each year
Rus would fight for the Byzantines
In what years did Vikings dominate trade in Constantinople?
950s
What did the emperor of Constantinople form in the late tenth cetury?
A new lite bodyguard. It was known as the Varangian Guard because it included a large number of Vikings
Evidence of the Varangian guard?
An illustration from the Skylitzes Chronicle, late eleventh century showing Vikings protecting the emperor
What is the Spillings Hoard?
The worldâs largest Viking hoard of silver
Where was the Spillings hoard found?
At Spillings Farm near Bogeviken
What did the three separate chests of the Spillings Hoard consist of?
Two containing silver and a third containing bronze
What did the largest chest of the Spillings Hoard hold?
40 kg of silver: 312 bangles, 20 bars, 30 arm-rings, 20 finger-rings and over 10,000 coins.
Out of all the coins found in the Spillings Hoard how many were Arab Dihrams?
Of the total 14,295 coins found at Spillings, 14,200 were Arab dirhams
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