4/11/2023 0 Comments Movies like the raidHowever, the emphasis on the preceding omens highlights the significance of the raid from the Anglo-Saxon perspective.Īlcuin termed the event an “unprecedented calamity,” as he described the church as “spattered with the blood of the priests of God, despoiled of all its ornaments.” He went on to say the pagans “trampled on the bodies of saints in the temple of God, like dung in the street.” The legacy of Lindisfarne The written description of the attack itself is very brief.Īll we know is that the church was destroyed, goods were stolen and blood was shed. It's interesting to note that despite the January date given in the Chronicle, the real date is commonly believed to have been June. Given the earlier raids elsewhere in the British Isles, the sight of an approaching longship would surely have caused panic and instigated preparations. Recent experiments have shown that an approaching longship could have been sighted from Lindisfarne with one-hour's warning, but those at the monastery were taken completely by surprise. It is certainly believed that the Viking longships arrived during stormy weather, or at least not on a clear day. A great famine immediately followed these signs, and a little after that in the same year on 8 January the raiding of heathen men miserably devastated God’s church in Lindisfarne island by looting and slaughter.” Here terrible portents came about over the land of Northumbria, and miserably frightened the people: these were period flashes of lightning, and fiery dragons were seen flying in the air. That's because in Alcuin’s letter to Higbald, he writes that the raid was a product of, “a voyage not thought possible.” We know that people from Denmark had already been to the British Isles, so the implication is that the Lindisfarne crews travelled from much farther away. It it believed that earlier raids may have been made from what we know today as Denmark, but the raid on Lindisdarne could have been conducted by raiders from what we know of today as Norway, or Denmark. Wait, didn't the Chronicle reference Danish people? As told by a Viking researcher on the Life in Norway Show, Danes or Danish was a catch-call term and not necessarily used to refer to people from what we now know as Denmark. Lindisfarne, also known as the “Holy Island” was described by the monk Alcuin as “a place more sacred than any in Britain.” Lindisfarne priory Where did the Lindisfarne Vikings come from? One of the reasons the Lindisfarne raid is considered the start of the Viking Age is the major impact it had upon the Christian world in Britain and beyond. Gifts were given from royal figures and at the time of the raid, Lindisfarne likely held many riches including precious liturgical objects. With this increasing importance came increasing wealth and power. Following the death of the healer Cuthbert, many miracles were reported at his shrine. Cuthbert, appointed bishop of Lindisfarne in 685, it soon became a place of pilgrimage for believers. These were the first ships of the Danish men that sought the land of the English nation.” The importance of LindisfarneĮstablished in the mid-7th century, the monastery and bishopric at Lindisfarne grew to become the became the centre of a highly successful conversion mission.Īs the monastery held the relics of St. Reve then rode thereto and would drive them to the king’s town for he knew not what they were, and there was he slain. And in his days came first three ships of the Northmen from the land of robbers. This year King Bertric took Edburga the daughter of Offa to wife. In fact, England was targeted six years before, as recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle: Before the raidĪs mentioned before, the Lindisfarne raid was not the first time people in the British Isles encountered the seafaring Northmen. With that mind, read on for the full, fascinating story about the Viking raid on Lindisfarne. This was a reply to the original letter from Higbald to Alcuin, which likely contained many details of the raid. Two leading historical sources include excerpts from the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, and a letter from the monk Alcuin to Bishop Higbald. This is why we are able to talk with greater confidence about Lindisfarne than many other elements of the Viking Age. However, we do have written historical records from the Lindisfarne, from the perspective of the Northumbrians.
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