The Vikings in the City of York

The Conquest of York

York was the largest town in Britain north of the Thames.
It was the center of Anglo-Saxon government, trade, and the church in the North.
York Minster was one of the largest churches in the country.
York had the only mint in the North of England.
York was built at the meeting point of the rivers Foss and Ouse.
The River Ouse flows out of the Humber and the North Sea.
The town was at the center of a large network of Roman roads.

Viking raids often targeted Northumbria due to its wealth.
866: Vikings conquered most of Northumbria, capturing York.
Northumbria became the Viking Kingdom of York, or Jorvik.
York's roads and rivers made it easier for the Vikings to move quickly around Northumbria and control the region.
York was connected to much of the known world and became an important trading city.
Rivers provided rich, fertile soil for farming.

York grew under Viking rule.
An estimated 10,000 to 15,000 people may have migrated to York between August and September.
Before the Vikings, York's population was around 1,000.
York became a multicultural city.
- Northumbrians, Vikings, migrants, and merchants from Germany, Holland, Ireland, and Scotland lived there.
Vikings built small homes and workshops with thatch roofs and mortar walls.
Later buildings were made from timber.

Street names in York reflect the range of trades during Viking times.
Main Viking streets indicate the types of trades that were common.
Archaeological discoveries reveal skilled craftwork in York.
- This increased York's trading power in England and across the world.
York attracted workers from across the country, such as potters from Lincolnshire.
Hunting and farming were carried out on the rich lands of York.
The city allowed Vikings to build up land and wealth for their families.

The Vikings were skilled sailors who transformed York into a rich trading port.
Viking traders traveled to the Black Sea, Caspian Sea, Iceland, Greenland, and Newfoundland.
Imports to York included walrus ivory, amber, German wine, and Arabian spices, oils, and perfumes.
Furs from Russia and fine silks from Byzantium were imported to create clothing.
York had strong road connections to the rest of England, especially Viking-controlled areas in the Pennines, Chester, and the West Coast.

The church was an important landowner in York.
The extent of the church's influence is hard to determine due to limited written records.

Viking coins have been found across England, suggesting trade between York and the rest of the country.
There was frequent fighting between the Viking kings of York and the Anglo-Saxon rulers in the South.

927: Athelstan, grandson of Alfred the Great, conquered large parts of the Viking kingdom of York, including the city itself.
The city was ruled by the Anglo-Saxons until September.
Life in Viking York didn't change significantly.
- Athelstan was willing to work with Viking landowners and traders.
939: After Athelstan's death, the Northumbrians wanted a northern leader.
- After nearly 60 years in the Danelaw, many felt the Vikings were more "northern" than Athelstan's heirs.
939: An agreement set a border between Viking and Anglo-Saxon lands.
Wars continued for 15 years until the last Viking king of York was driven out by the Anglo-Saxons.
After this point, York continued to have a strong Danish influence, even under Anglo-Saxon law.