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Menu – for all parts of the presentation

Key questions Part one

Who were the Irish Vikings?

The first Viking attack

The first phase – raiding, 795 – c. 830

Ireland – an easy target 1? - rich monasteries

Ireland – an easy target 2? - political divisions

Pagans versus Christians

The second phase – settlement This part

Viking Dublin

The first Dublin

The second Dublin

Linking British & Irish history

The end of Viking power in Ireland ? Part 3

Notes, etc.

Timeline Part one

Historical novels Part one

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After 840 the Vikings began to settle in Ireland.

At first, they occupied winter bases.

Then they settled permanently,

establishing towns at Dublin, Wexford, Waterford, Cork and Limerick

joining in the life of the country

taking part in internal Irish wars

making Ireland a centre of European trade

introducing the use of money

influencing art, language, folklore and placenames.

The second phase – settlement

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Viking Dublin

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The Vikings established Dublin twice.

In 841 they set up a permanent trading cum pirate based, called longphort by the native Irish writers.

This lasted until about 902, when the Irish kings formed an alliance and expelled the Viking inhabitants.

The exiles went to the North-West and North-East of England and to Scotland.

The first Dublin

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In or about 917 the descendants of the earlier Dublin established are real town.

It was described as dún according to native writers.

Dublin became an enclosed town, with streets, plots, pathways, houses and trades.

We know a lot about this second Dublin because of a series of archaeological excavations.

The second Dublin

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Foundation remains of house, Fishamble Street

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Drawing of foundation remains of house, Fishamble Street

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Wattle walls

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Reconstruction of house, Fishamble Street

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Five different types of buildings

The houses had, however, some characteristics in common:

rectangular in plan (all)

post-and-wattle walls (nearly all)

hipped rather than gabled endwalls (most)

thatched with straw (nearly all).

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Model houses

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How Viking Age Dubliners looked note the shoes and personal ornaments

Man’s gold finger ring

Child’s leather boot

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Fragments

Fragments of finely woven

woollen garments,

possibly made in Dublin

Fragment of an edging consisting of gold thread on a silk backing imported from the

East

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The heads of three ringed-pins (top) and a miniature kite-shaped brooch, all in bronze.

Both types of dress fasteners are examples of native Irish fashions which became very popular in Viking Dublin.

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Trial bone piece

Sketch of ship scratched on plank in 11th century context

Model or toy wooden boat

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Trades & crafts

Sketch showing the variety of crafts archaeologically documented in Viking Dublin:

Wood-workers – builders, carpenters, coopers, turners

Workers in antler and bone

Blacksmiths

Non-ferrous metalsmiths

Spinners and weavers

Amber-workers

Stone-workers

Leather workers.

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Weapons & tools

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This selection of objects was found in Dublin in the 1850s.

It includes bronze and bone pins, iron knives, pieces of cut bone and antler and a portion of a decorated bone plaque.

The circumstances of the find were meticulously recorded on labels attached to the objects.

The label on the wooden seat in the top right-hand corner reads:

‘Found in Bog stuff 12ft below present surface of Werburgh St Dublin on sinking for Main Sewer.

May 1856’

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Burials

The burials in the Viking cemetery at Islandbridge-Kilmainham included those of warriors, distinguished by the weapons which accompanied them - right.

Women were sometimes buried with bronze oval brooches - below.

These brooches were worn in pairs and connected by silver chains or strings of glass or amber beads.

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Viking mummy

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Trading 1 – with the rest of Ireland

This picture shows how Dublin depended on the hinterland for foodstuffs and the supply of its building and industrial needs.

Imports

Cattle, sheep, cereals, fruits, berries, nuts

Shed antler – the inset shows a range of antler waste in the comb-making area of the town

Lead, copper

Exports

Silver, combs, brooches

Exotic foodstuffs, wine and beer

Clothes, shoes

Weapons and other implements.

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Lead weights used to weight silver and coins

which are themselves units of silver weight.

Commercial tools

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Trading 2 - centre of international trade

‘Filled with the wealth of barbarians’

‘The richest port in the whole Irish Sea area’

‘One of the richest in Western Europe’

When a Dublin woman arrived in Iceland, she had fine bed linen, English sheets, a silk blanket, drapery and other items ‘so costly that nothing like it had been seen before’.

Bracelets made from imported lignite

Silver brooches

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Imports & exports

Artic – walrus ivory

Baltic – amber

Central Europe - cornelian

Near East – silver, silk

Normandy - walnuts

NW Europe – weapons, glass

Rome – pilgrims’ souvenirs

Rhineland – walnuts

Chester – pottery, salt,

Cornwall – tin

London – weapons, disc brooches

Norwich - pottery

South-east - plums

South-west - pottery

Yorkshire – lignite

Scotland – soapstone vessels

Wales - horses

Grain, other provisions

Hire of ships

Jewellery

Leather, hides, pelts

Slaves

Woollens, cloth

Imports Exports Britain Europe

Rejects of imported amber

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Linking British & Irish history

The histories of Vikings Ireland and Viking Britain are very closely linked.

First, there are the trade links.

Secondly, there was the movement of people.

Vikings moved regularly between Ireland and Britain.

In the early 10th century Viking settlers who had been living in Dublin crossed the Irish Sea and settled in Wirral.

The same Viking leaders crop up sometimes ruling parts of Ireland and at other times ruling parts of Britain.

Imports from Britain

Chester – pottery, salt,

Cornwall – tin

London – weapons, disc brooches

Norwich - pottery

South-east - plums

South-west - pottery

Yorkshire – lignite

Scotland – soapstone vessels

Wales - horses

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One of the most famous these roving kings was Olaf Curran, ‘Olaf of the Shoes’.

He was very fond of leather goods of the highest quality.

Beautifully tanned Irish leathers were an important part of Dublin’s export business.

A Christian, he was at one time King of both Dublin and Northumbria.

He was twice expelled from Northumbria and lost Dublin in 980 at the Battle of Tara.

He died a penitent at the monastery of Iona in 981.

Olaf of the Shoes