Vikings: The Most Terrifying Force in History

[@IntotheShadows]

Get a 1 year supply of immune-supporting Vitamin D3K2 & 5 travel packs FREE with your first purchase! - drinkag1.com/shadows Thank you AG1 for the sponsorship!

[@ArnovanWyk-q2j]

Ah! now I get it, was trying to understand from your ad in the video you didn't mention "with your first purchase" was going to inform you the unlock link doesn't work - never mind, my bad.

[@anexistencethatexists]

Simon did worse than usual attempting to make it seem appealing

[@isaac821]

@@anexistencethatexists lmao his face after the sip had me dying

[@birdsandthingsbeachandbush1064]

Come on tell me what does it taste like for real?

[@DeanMathieson-h4o]

WHAT IS THE SECRET OF ATHLETIC GREENS?

[@Jonas_æ]

My dad and I visited Dublin a couple years ago and one of our tourist stops was to a historical viking museum. As we entered, we were greeted by the receptionist; "Welcome, where are you from?" We told him we were visiting from Norway. "Ah, well in that case; welcome back."

[@BionicRusty]

😂 Brilliant

[@Jonas.A.Larsen]

I had more or less this exact same thing happen to me, I went on a long weekend vacation to Ireland and visited Northern Ireland as well, no matter where I traveled during my trip from Dublin to Belfast and back, whenever I said I was from Norway I was greeted with a giant smile and a "welcome back" or someone yelling to their partner or coworker "the norwegians are back again", and whenever I was at a pub or bar people would be surprisingly happy and cheerful when they found out where I was from, I`ve never gotten so many free drinks from complete strangers. One of best places I`ve been on a vacation,kind of felt like I was visiting a long lost cousin.

[@Dennan]

@@Jonas.A.Larsen thats so wierd, im swedish and norweigan, and that they welcome so happily is kinda wierd considering what our ancestors did.

[@acenuke2513]

@@Dennan what i find interesting is that we the danes, norweigans and sweds went from murderous barbarians. To peaceloving social democrats, who really enjoy helping other people even tho aint expected to. talk about turning your nature around.

[@Dennan]

@@acenuke2513

[@heikkijhautanen4576]

“Great heathen army" damn thats Heavy Metal!!!!

[@StallionStudios1234]

Probably why Norway's largest cultural export is Heavy Metal. Sweden and Finland also have a dont Heavy Meal.

[@jessiesratrods1210]

Specifically thats Black Metal and Death Metal.

[@prestonwade4619]

One of my all time favorite metal bands is Amon Amarth and I saw them live singing their song Great Heathen Army Was epic

[@StallionStudios1234]

Yeah they are awesome. True Viking metal. Seen them twice.@@prestonwade4619

[@Destroyosaur83]

Iced Earth has a song called Great Heathen Army. Its great!

[@andypodmore6721]

I watch a lot on KZbin daily, ranging from subjects such as model building, 3d printing, Astronomy and a lot of WW2 stuff, but Simon's videos have got to be my favourite. No matter what the subject, or which channel, I will always go to. His presentation and wit (where appropriate) just sucks me in. Hands down, the best KZbinr on the planet. How his brain hasn't exploded from all the knowledge it's amassed over the years, is another question.

[@xenos_n.]

I'm sure he forgets the majority of what he learns, I doubt he'd deny that 😂

[@the80hdgaming]

​@@xenos_n.He doesn't... He's said it many times in other videos... 😂

[@Vespertilionid]

Don't worry about his brain exploding from knowledge, he has said many times before that it goes in the eyes and out the ears lol

[@odacent]

I think we watch the same stuff. Haha. My KZbin is filled with the same stuff!

[@Spoodabandit]

One day hes gona be built like megamind hes already got the hair

[@johnnysinthecut3114]

Side note, Simon is literally gagging trying to hold down the AG1 🤣🤣🤣

[@ThatDogBarkz]

I came here to say exactly this 😂🤣

[@robina.jensen6114]

Just like Derrick from Vice Grip Garage! 😂😂😂

[@pielover1455]

He needs some magic spoon

[@jacksonnn1661]

This comment made me watch the advert 😂

[@phillipstrait9387]

Right

[@willdornan9929]

I’m glad you mentioned Rus Vikings. Their history is very interesting and often gets overlooked.

[@mrsh9588]

Rus- = Russian. Tucker Carlson should have mention to Putin that according to his (Putins) understanding, Russia belong to the Swedens. That would then be up to Sweden if Ukraine would be granted permission to exist.

[@TBFI_Botswana]

Slava Ukraine.

[@TERMINATOR101-b8j]

While the Rus vikings did establish what would become ukraine and russia, modern Russians think of themselves as descending from the Byzantines for some reason. Probably because of the varangians in greek service, east orthodox Christianity, and greek colonization in antiquity, but i can't recall on the fly. My Russian history class was a long time ago, but the Russian empire viewed itself as the third Roman empire.

[@sheep1ewe]

​@@TERMINATOR101-b8j Interesting, as i red in books the Ottoman empire also wanted to be the erands of the Roman empire depite the wars and it deffinitley had zero historical claims beside the wars, but they where a bit late to the party and they where not exactly popular among the actual Romans so to speak so it fell on that, but stil today large parts of the coast of modern Turkey still look like aincient Rom because of the remnants of all the old arcitecture design. For Russia it seems a bit exaggerated claims to me even in theory, but i fully understand why they want it to be that way. However, Russia did newer reach near that far southwest in reality. In north west russia however there are plenty of finds of iron age villages of nordic style which are clearly not east slavic of it's nature. It is a bit debated which language they spooke there however, but if it truly was fully east slavic the language would not had been indo-euriopean but finish-ugrian, like Finish, Eesti, līvlizt, etc (or the Magyar language) but modern russian are clearly not finish-ugri, it does instead belong to the indo european languages.

[@supposeppo8856]

It's debatable that the origin for word "Rus" might be from Old Norse word for "to row"(a boat). And at the same time Finnish word for Sweden is "Ruotsi" and for Russia it's "Venäjä" Estonian (another finnic language) word for Russia is "Venemaa", that directly translated to modern finnish would mean "boat land" and Estonian word for sweden is also "Rootsi" And as finnic tribes have lived thousands of years alongside scandinavians, ancient finns might see swedish and russians as same people. The boat people

[@abnurtharn2927]

Funny when Simon talks about England in 793 AD, and then shows a clip from Reine in Lofoten 🤣

[@Hollylivengood]

Also, Irish monks settled Iceland first after the raids in 793. Then the Vikings, fully aware of monks with cool stuff and ready made homes, raided Iceland and killed everyone and took their stuff...again.

[@ignitionfrn2223]

2:00 - Mid roll ads 3:35 - Back to the video

[@OnPlanetVenus]

Not all superheroes wear capes 🫡

[@aRealAndHumanManThing]

but it's funny seeing him suffer from the ag1 taste

[@MarsLonsen]

​@@OnPlanetVenussome wear a buttplug

[@GregMerritt-ws8tq]

Thank you.

[@StrilanGaming]

You’re a saint.

[@dylankennedy6389]

Simons face after sipping the AG1 is hilarious! so tasty XD

[@thejudgmentalcat]

He's a good capitalist...gags it down for THAT MONEY!

[@thejudgmentalcat]

@richmondyayarea dude I was being sarcastic and using his own phrase...get it?

[@slaydon3]

​@@richmondyayareaWhat are you replying to? Your comment made no sense at all

[@charliethirteen3868]

​@slaydon3 Agreed lolz

[@joschafinger126]

As for what kicked off the Viking Age, the hypothesis _I_ find most convincing is that it was precisely greater wealth coupled with primogeniture or early forms of it that lent the impulse. The idea is that improving crop yields led to population growth, while many young men were left with little to no land to inherit. What will such young men do? Well, look for opportunities elsewhere. Combine that with a long-standing shipbuilding tradition and a warrior culture, and you _will_ get a tendency to _go viking_ , a word that describes a seasonal occupation rather than an ethnicity.

[@cesaravegah3787]

Yup, that is the most probable explanation, add to that the fact that the first viking raids recorded netted them massive treasure with very little casualties and you get a rush of people volunteering to join new raids, chieftains and entire villages willing to fund the building of more and better boats, etc, etc, the perfect conditions to create a predatory culture.

[@TullaRask]

Yes, what you call Primogeniture seems very similar to the Norwegian "Odel" law, means ownership. It's still the most important way farms are inherited, through the oldest child.

[@abaddon1371]

It is only in recent modern times, that viking is being associated with an occupation rather than, not ethnicity, but hailing of homeport. For us scandinavians (I am danish) it doesn't make sense, since viking is vik-ing and not vi-king as english speakers pronounce it. Vik (or Wick from old norse) means a shallow bay or inlet found along the fjords of our home countries. -ing at the end of a word in nordic languages denotes a place of origin or occupation. Since you can't have a bay as an occupation, there is really only one option left. Modern day interpreters trying to rewrite the scandinavian language to be something else, is silly and foolish at best. Same goes for the dragon heads on the ships. There is no word for dragon in old norse. They are wyrms / worms, and the two most noteable of those worms most often depicted is Jormungandr (Midgårdsormen in danish which means "the Midgard worm) and Nidhogg (Nidhug in danish and which means Malice Striker in english)

[@TullaRask]

@@abaddon1371 You should be a bit careful talking about the pronounciation of the word viking as not being vi-king. In Norwegian we have many dialects and they can be wastly different. I've always heard the word being pronounced as vi-king though.

[@abaddon1371]

@@TullaRaskHow we speak changes over time, and can, as you said, highly depend on accent for a given area. It doesn't change the fact however, that vik means small bay or inlet, no matter what accent.

[@andreasandremyrvold]

In the Hagia Sofia there are runes ingraved: "Halfdan was here". Possibly predating Kilroy by a millenium.

[@CarlGeorgTsigakis]

As a permanent resident of Norway i can attest to that the Weather is enough to drive one crazy. Norwegians still go on ravenous trips, I think its called Charter vacations now.. :)

[@Ggggggyhg]

No raids? Lol

[@Popupkiller]

​@@GgggggyhgI think the resistance to tourism thats growing in the Mediterranean countries, shiws that they at least feel that we are raiding them in some contexts. 😂

[@georgeriddell9356]

You weren’t much use in ww2

[@thecrippledone3325]

Whenever dude takes a sip of that green goo he looks like hes about to die

[@JMusar795]

😂😂😂

[@dajay2k]

His voice sounds different

[@thereddog223]

​@dajay2k more energy but tastes horrible

[@Superdude1119]

For real 😂

[@armlegx]

Amon Amarth's title track from "The Great Heathen Army" and combined with "Saxons and Vikings" is pretty much a metal rendition of half of this video.

[@jenneyasmith]

I feel like I stumble upon an additional channel hosted by Simon each time I pop onto KZbin and I'm not mad about it. Best scavenger hunt by far.

[@mrsh9588]

Amazing that a small nation like Iceland would, not only discover North America (Lief Eriksson), but also, they wrote the Icelandic Sagas, which is the reason we know what we do today about the Vikings.

[@annicaesplund6613]

Leif.

[@mrsh9588]

@@annicaesplund6613 Leifur :)

[@annicaesplund6613]

@@mrsh9588 👍But not Lief.

[@megaflux7144]

"furs, wax, honey, and slaves" sounds so grimy yet so good.

[@asmith1711]

Unless you're the person sold, then it's unfair right

[@megaflux7144]

@@asmith1711get over it. not everybody gets to be the emperor.

[@asmith1711]

@@megaflux7144 sweet, sign up to sell yourself then. You can always just get over it, right? Then prove it.

[@GhostGreyWolf]

​@asmith1711 Sounds like everywhere around the planet around that time. Ask Africa, they loved to keep/sell slaves.

[@StallionStudios1234]

I ate at a restaurant that had a "Viking Burger". It had wild bore in it. It was tasty and had "long boat" fries. They were super long and the plate was a ship shaped design. This video remined me of that. It was a good burger. I want to go back and try the "Viking Meatloaf". Its the wild bore again wrapped with bacon, mashed potatoes and a really tasty gravy.

[@ryanbravo5941]

Where is this restaurant located? Sounds delicious!

[@xionmemoria]

... you in Japan?

[@Hooibeest2D]

Hahaha what?? That's commerce alright 😂

[@Hooibeest2D]

You do realise that a burger is just a civilian. And Hamburger is a city in saxon/frisian Germany. Ham/ haim/home meaning settlement. So it means home of people. Birmingham, bearmanhome?? Having a viking burger makes no sense at all.

[@LoneWolf_RO]

location?

[@supernoodles91]

'Peter the Simple'........Not sure he chose that particular moniker!😂

[@martinlatour9311]

Still better than Bran the Broken

[@18Hongo]

Yeah, neither did Charles the Bald, or Charles the Fat... Or William the Bastard, for that matter. People had a habit of naming important figures after their death, or just behind their back.

[@philhawley1219]

Charles the WEF stooge.

[@Jeffro5564]

@@martinlatour9311bran never existed hahahaha Vikings would destroy those peasants in game of thrones. Wait they did cos game of thrones are series of books hahahahahaha

[@moonman8450]

Simple Jack

[@Lolipop6247]

Literally just finished the last episode of Vikings yesterday! Perfect timing, thank you.

[@SulphuricGrin]

I'm rewatching the vikings myself. what a lovely coincidence lol

[@EstamosDe]

Now its time to watch Vinland Saga, be ready to cry

[@iorransilva8596]

Stay away from Vikings Valhalla, that 💩 is toxic. 🤢

[@TheCanagoose]

Gotta watch the sequel vikings vallhalla and the last kingdom if you haven't, watch the show before the movie. Norsemen is hilarious.

[@TheCanagoose]

​@@EstamosDeis it any good. I've been wanting to but the sub thing throws me off. Not because I hate sub anime but I find myself reading more than watching idk anyway worth it?

[@joesmith-t2z]

it was the Little Ice Age, starting about 1250 and really ripping by about 1350, that wiped out the Norse colonies in Greenland and very nearly in Iceland

[@tcn9939]

In the years of Vikings in Greenland the climate was 1,5 degrees warmer than it it is today. So instead of naming it Greenland as a tactic for trade/immigration, i wager it was actually quite green along the coast, and only abandoned when the little ice age came rolling at around year 1300 (Would have come sooner so far north in terms of surviving of the land farming vise).

[@AldrickExGladius]

AG1 may taste like ambrosia, but I aint drinking anything that looks like it was strained from a lawn mower bag!

[@Unclesmokey314]

Perfectly stated

[@nik07nik]

Weakness

[@morstyrannis1951]

Life is too short to drink crap like that.

[@cmpaintball131]

Gags " it's doesn't taste green it just looks green lmao this was the most honest review of the product and he didn't even intend to 😂

[@mohammedsaysrashid3587]

It was an informative and wonderful historical coverage video about vikings and vikings' effectiveness on European content... Thanks for sharing

[@supernoodles91]

Remind me not to buy that 'breakfast smoothie', Simon was almost gagging!😂

[@GrievousReborn]

Thanks for making chat read like a broken record because there's always somebody who says this

[@supernoodles91]

@@GrievousReborn I can't be arsed reading what people say so. Ain't a fuckin chat either. Jog on.

[@morstyrannis1951]

@@supernoodles91he’s the self appointed commentary Nazi. He wasn’t shrill enough for the pronoun police and couldn’t get his eyeballs to bulge out enough to join the snowflake outrage team. So here he is monitoring comments on the internet. It’s a very prestigious role considering his limited skills.

[@judithcampbell1705]

Vikings were wild people in a wild time in our history. Thank you 💛 Simon for your excellent research about them, please do more. It would be interesting if you could do another one about Ragnar, Rollo, Ivan and family, in depth.

[@patrickskramstad1485]

7:23 😂😆😂😆 my grandfather, who was mainly English, called me a heathen. I didn't know there was historical subtext.

[@paden1865able]

My grandfather on my dad's side also called me his little heathen. He was half Dane, half Norwegian. His own father was from Denmark and his mother was from Norway. My dad was so proud of the title his dad gave me.

[@jeffbudd7678]

Pronunciation time - L'anse aux Meadows - LAN-So Meadows

[@natthapong3046]

I swear I see this guy in every channel and I like all the vids he's in.

[@robina.jensen6114]

I have a bottle of Spirunila Granulate for sale. It was for the fish in the aquarium but they are dead now. It's green, healthy and dirt cheap! 🤣🤣🤣

[@goosenotmaverick1156]

Spirulina, duckweed, etc, may be a small portion of a key to unlock some nutrition potential in the future. It's basically cutting out multiple steps in the food chain, it just makes sense, once we can implement in a tastier way

[@majortwang2396]

"The fish are dead" Sounds like a great advert

[@TheGavrael]

4:05 There's a growing number of historians that say the viking 'expansion' wasn't fueled by a need for new land because of the inhospitable(sic) climate. But the Great Warming period has just occured, yeilding a much healthier crop harvest, which in turn meant easy provisioning for viking. In addition, the site of Lindisfarne was likely chosen specifically because it was a holy site in retaliation for Christian (Charlemagne) hostility towards Scandanavia. Vikings, as you pointed out, had been to England before and knew there were much wealthier places the could raid. Lindisfarne was a message. 'Our gods defeat your god'.

[@taliz1055]

And then their gods got defeated.

[@dplumtree6060]

The Christians finally defeated the Vikings by giving them AG1

[@dark_architect1644]

I can’t stop laughing 🤣 😂😂😂

[@mrbillyjackson]

Underrated comment

[@eskandare1968]

You know Vikings invented soap and simply smelled better than everyone else.

[@sophiev1900]

I don’t know how many times I’ve watched this videos but man is it fascinating!

[@JamesAnderson-dp1dt]

Great video, loved it! One tiny nitpick -- I'm pretty sure the Mongols had a better claim to the title of "most terrifying force in history". Speaking of which -- have you done an episode on the Mongols? If not, please do!

[@BouncyStickman]

Mongols? Never heard of her...

[@ehinomenoseghale7579]

I love Simon's videos. Can't get enough of them

[@Hooibeest2D]

In folklore, wodan, odin,donar,fryer,fryea and aegir. Never left the saxon or frisian culture. They've always been in peoples mind. Sinterklaas or santaclaus are a good example. Pagan rituals are still held on several occasions. The 'church' couldn't prevent that. Not that we've been very christian through out time. Romans never been here so those Catholic papals also never took root. They had some influence for less than 500 yrs. And tried on several occasions. Still there are christmas trees, bonfires, dressups and offerings done for the old gods in the present.

[@easternlights3155]

What amazes me is just how implausible Alfred's victory is. It's like, who would win? - the Great Heathen Army - one sickly 22 year old leading an army of conscripts

[@christiansebastianlauritse2404]

Side note. You mention 2 very interesting things that are actually connected: 1) The colony you mention in Normandy, founded by Viking Rollo. 2) England being united under 1 king. William the conquerer was from that viking colony, and he was the great-great-grandson of Rollo. "Normandy" literally means "Home of the Norse" (Nord=North, Mand=Man)

[@baldrian22]

was about to comment that the 793 raid at lindisfarm was not the first raid towards england, a lot of people is not aware of that. but it was the most famous because of what happend in it. also regarding to several sagas and i think some writhen sources from the byzantine empire there was acctualy some or several vikings in the viringien guard that would end up beeing kings in norway later in their life. Like harald hardråde the last "viking king" in Norway who fell at the battle of stanford bridge in 1066 in England.

[@aneshadzibulic8097]

Do something on the Comanche would be interesting

[@lajoyalobos2009]

I second this! The Comanche empire is criminally overlooked and they shaped both their neighboring tribes and the US in many ways.

[@Spoodabandit]

Wow just wow what a great video what a mind opening one the vimings definitely were around long b4 we give credit for and did much more than the standard taught rape rob and pillaging we think of today i love the vikings story and history i wish we knew more. Cover more of the vikings simon!! U seemed to genuinely be into this history a different theme than the usual romans

[@1991jwp]

Amon Amarth have entered the chat

[@nola281]

Row our viking ship! I saw them in Houston with Ghost. I'm still a not hundred percent sure what he was singing but they put on a good show.

[@raimundotorres44]

I touch the blade with my hand The sharp edge cuts the skin Blood drips to the rain wet sand My journey can begin

[@armlegx]

In Eight hundred Sixty-Five The year of our Lord They have arrived to take our lives These vicious demons of the North

[@raimundotorres44]

@@armlegx There is no peace between saxons and vikings.

[@armlegx]

@@raimundotorres44 between the two songs you pretty much have the first half of Simon's video.

[@danieldpa8484]

Vikings “gave birth” to Russia, England, France and by proxy to USA… that’s rather impressive for small band of pirates

[@robertmccardle5113]

l have the fingers to prove it. "Vicking Finger"

[@DieNibelungenliad]

England was found by Anglos hence Angle land. In French, England is called Angle Terre which means the same thing. As for France, she was found by the Franks

[@Hooibeest2D]

Wauw 😂😂 that's a long stretch. Russia okay but at the end of the 'viking' age. The rest is bs mate.

[@lostplanet1931]

Not England, but the English are similar to Scandinavians anyways

[@gak9319]

​@lostplanet1931 The eventual unification of and creation of England, is a direct result of the Viking invasions. Many Viking controlled areas would end up vassals of the house of Wessex the first ruling dynasty of England. Many English people today are decendents of the Vikings that settled there, like so many other places in Europe🙂

[@zacharytorgerson2060]

When Simon said “we’re not sure how far they spread on the continent” after showing up in Newfoundland. Well I’m from alberta Canada. Long way from Newfoundland. And my great grandfather came here after his father immigrated from Norway to Minnesota. The spread was quite large.

[@dean9261]

From the hudson bay to the Mississippi:-) lots of runestones that are being found. Davis inlet labrador, cape breton nova scotia, oak island, Rhode island. They got around

[@andersbjrnsen7203]

Greetings from the old country, but unless your family has really REALLY good genes we probably cannot count your great great grandfather a part of the viking expansion into Vinland😂

[@tcn9939]

First Norwegians to settle in the US were sailors on Holland ships in the year 1600, they were part of settling New-Amsterdam. In the years between 1820-1920 around 800.000 Norwegians immigrated to the US. Most of them settled in the farmlands around Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Dakota og Iowa. Many towns in these areas still practice some Norwegian customs. It is said that there are more Norwegian descendants in the US than Norwegians in total in Norway. In Norway we have something called "Odelsrett", that was the initial reason for the spread of Vikings. Since the oldest son inherits all the land from the parents, the youngest have to settle new land to make something for themselves and their family. I would wager that your great grandfather had an older brother, and that's why he moved north to Canada to settle land for his own.

[@andersbjrnsen7203]

@@tcn9939 a small correction here, from a lawyer working in this field: odelsretten has traditionally NOT been used to block the division of farms between siblings, far from it, in places like Jæren farms over the years became divided into narrow strips of land that were at one point in time hardly useable. the type of rule you are referring to is something else, in latin its called "primogeniture" and is the kind of "oldest son takes it all" rule you refer to. today it is, of course, limits in how you can divide up farming real estate, but thats has no connection to odel whatsoever.

[@tcn9939]

@@andersbjrnsen7203 Im not a lawyer, so i will not argue laws from before 793 or laws today with a professional. Since there really was no written laws until 1100. But Odel is mentioned many times in Skaldekvad. So it's a little "up for debate" what was the leading cause for Vikings to raid lindisfarne in 793. Up until then the priest on the island had done trade with vikings (he complained that the villagers dressed/looked like scandinavians 10 years prior). I will however mention that "arable land is a very scarce resource in Norway. According to regjeringen.no, around three percent of Norway's land area is currently being cultivated - including croplands and cultivated pastures. Of this, only 30 percent is suitable for growing food grains." And this is todays numbers, with all the cleared lands we have done over centuries. 30% of 3% is not much. Back then it would have been much less. So, division of land back in those days was not an option. X amount of land yields X amount of calories. Too many people residing in one area would lead to food scarcity. Thats not to say that division never happened, If a family "discovered" land that was uninhabited you could divide the land for many generations, but at some time it had to stop. I dont necessarily believe it was the oldest who inherits the land, maybe the strongest brother was chosen to take care of their parents. But again, i dont know what rules a society like that had back in the day, i would wager it was very much up to the parents.

[@geomod6850]

Wonderful video. I would really be interested in seeing a video from you taking a closer look at smaller segments of this era.

[@TillerMicroSkiffs]

Thank you for this. Please explore their eastern expansion more!

[@DeeReeseBeats]

One day i need a Simon drinking AG1 compilation 🤣😂

[@UnkillableMrStake]

Agh yes Vinland Saga has prepared me for this.

[@fabrice14637]

The main motivation was that farmland was passed down to the first male heir. Some families were large enough that there was not much for the younger males to do, except work their brother's land. No way to get ahead. So the idea of not-so-far off riches ripe for the plunder was probably a pretty compelling force. Especially to a people with quite ingenious ship design (the masts could be lowered and they could sneak quietly through creeks and tributaries (Vik=creek, one popular reason for their name)). Even so this amounted to what we would call a side-hustle as most of them worked the land with their families most of the time. I recommend a book of fiction called "The Long Ships" by Frans G. Bengtsson, a Swedish historian, for an incredible story and a fairly accurate account of Viking history (it uses some real historical figures in its plot). And don't buy these supplements, eat real food.

[@henriklykkejensen8225]

My ancestors Inuit. They exterminated the Vikings from Greenland. The Inuit and the Vikings (the Norsemen - Qallunaatsiaat) were friends to begin with. At one point, the Vikings attacked an Inuit village. Where they killed all the women and children and old people. While the Inuit hunters were gone to hunting. When the Inuit hunters came home and saw that their beloved ones had been killed. They revenged their beloved ones and hunted the Vikings and killed them. This is how it begun the end for the Vikings in Greenland. It happened both in Vesterbygd, where my ancestors Inuit lived in the Nuuk area of ​​West Greenland, and in Østerbygd in South Greenland. You can read it in the oral stories handed down for generations in "Aron of Kangeq".

[@norXmal]

An important addition for surviving the long treacherous trips over sea and also survival on Iceland and Greenland was mostly attributed to dried fish, which has been a practice long before the Viking age started and was an integral part for Vikings.

[@Hammer1987]

Simon: "Vikings! The most terrifying force in history." Genghis Khan: "What am I, chopped liver?"

[@Dennan]

both probly equally terrifying, like no mercy and ruthless both armies. tho if they were to face eachother in battle i think mongolia would win kinda easy, archers on horseback was crazy good back then.

[@Hammer1987]

​@@Dennan Well, that very much depends on where they fight it out. Given the fact that Mongolia is landlocked the Vikings would not be able to make use of their long ships, which was one of the main reasons the Vikings were able to do what they did. So on the steppes of Mongolia the Vikings would have a difficult time of it. Though, if the fight were to happen in Scandinavia the Mongols would not be able to effectively use their horses due to the mountainous terrain and dense forests. There is also the logistical challenge of feeding all the horses.

[@Dennan]

@@Hammer1987 aa yea you right i didnt think about that, very intressting

[@JJP8XIV]

Was a time when Native Americans launched an assault on a landing party from the sea the Vikings after suffering catastrophic loses left and never returned. Native American story could be true could be false who's to say?

[@morstyrannis1951]

@@JJP8XIVlikely had them vastly outnumbered and the home field advantage.

[@BARBARYAN.]

I am so unbelievably proud to call these men my fathers and brothers. 👌🏻⚡️

[@vitorpereira9515]

I disagree. The most terrible force in history were the Mongols. If any of you have any doubts, just ask a Tangut.

[@johndillinger4007]

LMAO - You could try to find someone with Khwarezmid empire heritage, but they were wiped off the map, literally, by Big Daddy Genghis

[@sebastienloyer9471]

😢🎉. I repeat: ,And All will have to fight. : Tell your sons and daughters that theyr kids will be fighting Skynet. If you are alive now, you are the resistance. Do your research.

[@sebastienloyer9471]

🎉. CARE NOT of Passed WAR$. . I repeat: ,And All will have to fight. : Tell your sons and daughters that theyr kids will be fighting Skynet. If you are alive now, you are the resistance. Do your research.

[@markthebldr6834]

​@@sebastienloyer9471are ya fr9m the future

[@Mark_CTN]

I disagree, there were much much worse and probably have been since

[@Adelwapen04]

Thanks for covering our history❤️🇸🇪🇳🇴🇩🇰🇮🇸

[@Jason_g_kennedy]

As much as I love my ancestors the Mongolian Empire wins hands down.

[@vitorpereira9515]

For sure! People from Poland to Japan and Egypt to Vietnam would agree with you.

[@Jameywells777]

No question about it.

[@SamD.Coffey]

May I introduce you to the British Empire?

[@FrithonaHrududu02127]

Honestly they were both impressive for their political astuteness. But I'll go with vikings because Scandinavian countries have basically the highest quality of life on Earth where's Mongolia not so much so I got to give it to the Vikings they got all their rage out in the dark ages now they're okay although I think they're going to need to tap into some of that Viking Spirit if they want to make it through the next 50 years intact

[@michaelholman8324]

@@FrithonaHrududu02127 don’t people in Scandinavian countries have the highest rate of antidepressant usage?

[@fatalfury66]

ironically I just was listening to Amon Amarth's song Saxon's and Vikings, its literally about the part where the great viking army takes over 3 of the 4 kingdoms!!

[@TheJimicus]

That description seems an absurd overstatement. Vikings were regional raiders for the most part. It's not like they challenged world powers. They rarely even assembled a significant military force.

[@ningenJMK]

They had the element of surprise and a vast coastline. They also had nimble and fast ships that could navigate rivers as well as oceans.

[@John2r1]

The French gave the vikings land that is now Normandy. The Normans were descendents of Vikings. The Normans conquered England. Ergo the Vikings conquered England.

[@BarARanchMason]

England conquered most of the world. Ergo the Vikings ruled everything. 😅

[@LukeMTB]

AG1 bro thanks for the 5 minute plug 30 seconds in. It sounds like a great vitamin at a reasonable price

[@TheNismo777]

Finland has been found being very rich of viking era items.. specially swords. Aggressive vikings had quite bad time here.

[@djvallux]

I like those tales where vikings have to flee tail between their legs 😂

[@masonbishop8575]

I have finally seen it with my own eyes, watching a simon video the same day it uploaded, I feel like I’ve caught up!

[@georgevanaken925]

Norseman here. “Viking” is not a people. “Viking” is an activity that people DO. (When they’re looking to relieve boredom.)

[@gotchu0nscope511]

😴😴😴

[@georgevanaken925]

@@gotchu0nscope511 Back ‘o the class.

[@gotchu0nscope511]

@georgevanaken925 next u will tell me no horny helmets... 😏

[@Vikingocazar]

I mean yes… but at some point the language must change because THE ENTIRE FUCKING WORLD wants it to.

[@georgevanaken925]

@@Vikingocazar Invalid argument. I’d give a more than perfect example, but it would seem way too callus, and I’m too intelligent to be goaded.

[@sculptor6167]

Great video! I enjoy that there is no mention of the Finns...I mean you'd think the Finns would be part of the "Viings', but they weren't. Actually, the Vikings were afraid of the Finns and thought that they could control the weather (look it up if you don't believe me)...So, how badass were the Finns to scare off the Vikings?

[@djvallux]

Pretty fucking badass!!

[@Larrymh07]

In 982 AD, Sven & Hans were part of a raiding party in Ireland. In the confusion of the looting, all they were able to grab was a crate of Irish Spring soap. When they got back to Sweden they set up a kiosk and tried to sell the soap. After a couple hours, Sven got tired, left and left Hans to the business. Pretty soon business picked up and soon Hans was almost sold out. This led him to cry, "oh what fun it is to ply in a one Norse soap display!"

[@joshuabruner9676]

14:53 the word majus for pagan fire worshippers was in use to refer to Zoroastrians at the time. Majus is related to magi, like the three wise men.

[@The_Diminished]

Is that right??

[@jonmcninch]

I've listened to that period of history on the British History Podcast and it's kind of interesting just how much the Vikings changed Britain after the post-Roman period.

[@supernoodles91]

Interesting fact, south of Leicestershire/Lincolnshire you don't find villages ending in 'by', as in, Oadby, Oasby etc, the 'by' is from the Norse for 'farm/farmstead'......And I have my Deputrens Syndrome/disease to thank for having Norse ancestors. Cheers for that Erik! 😂 Though, as I insisted on a large dose of vallies and local anaesthetic for hand surgery, I had a theatre nurse stroking my hair talking nicely to me rather than being knocked out! Result!

[@ClurTaylor]

As someone from Leicestershire I didn’t know that! Thank you for teaching me something extra.

[@Hooibeest2D]

What about eye/oog, ham and vik?

[@supernoodles91]

@@Hooibeest2D huh?

[@Hooibeest2D]

@@supernoodles91 ham means home, eye is an Island, by is farm it's al the same in the saxon/norse world.

[@kendrickwang]

Grew up in Leicestershire although i haven’t lived in England for over 5 years so i had to think about this comment for a minuet, seems to check out

[@rogerpenske2411]

I love the English history videos

[@kaceydillin7367]

Mongols? Hello?

[@visicircle]

Considering that a billion of the world's population speaks a germanic language and not Mongolian, I'd argue the Vikings were a very special type of brutal.

[@davidpetersen3792]

Episode idea for ITTS…SRC Space Research Corp and Gerald Bull. Space wepons, government contracts, espionage in a small town

[@knightlife22]

The Mongols have entered the chat.

[@jackylegs6668]

😂😂

[@mattiemathis9549]

OMGOSH!! The timing is perfect as always! Today I saw an advertisement for a cruise line that does river cruises in Europe. Viking Cruise Line! I saw that and just wondered about the generational trauma as a ship with “VIKING” scrawled across it meanders up a coastal river. 😂😂😂😂

[@matthewgreen6131]

Dude I get those as well. i want to go on something like that so bad but it is out of my applicable budget.

[@mattiemathis9549]

@@matthewgreen6131 Bro, nobody but a billionaire can do that stuff without planning. But planning is the key. I’ve been on two vacations in my life. One I saved for 3 years for me and my kid to go on a cruise to the Caribbean. The second vacation, we saved for 6 years to go on vacation in the Rocky Mountains for 6 weeks. The effort is worth the memories.

[@MultiGolonka]

Someone probably mentioned it already, but it's worth to repeat - "Vikings" is not the name of the people, it is more like an occupation. "Vikingr" meant "to go raiding", so "vikings" can be roughly translated as "pirates".

[@KongTheViking]

Yeah but we as Norsemen love to claim the title as our own 😂

[@unspheredwings7859]

Not true. It’s literal translation is those who sail/travel from inlets. The modern term is sailor

[@Sigurd-ue1vh]

Víkingr means a pirate.

[@unspheredwings7859]

@@Sigurd-ue1vh that’s the common modern meaning but not what the word actually means. It means one who travels from inlets….essentially the equivalent word today is sailor

[@Sigurd-ue1vh]

@@unspheredwings7859 How modern are you talking? It means pirate in Old Norse texts as well. And yes the inlet thing is the most likely etymology behind the word.

[@iamlowkeyedits]

I love Simon's unlimited vids.

[@captainspaulding5963]

HOW..... how is Simon still getting AG1 deals after the "supplements are a scam" video 😂😂😂😂 this is just amazing EDIT; As soon as I hit enter, I remembered that these are recorded sometimes months out, but funny as hell, nevertheless

[@thepax2621]

@@captainspaulding5963 Because you're braindead

[@DecanFrost]

uh, i like these new edits. chefs kiss to the editor.

[@emptycan666]

I've been playing AC Valhalla lately it's really cool learning about all this because a lot of it is in the game!

[@chillylagarto7728]

The Vikings had a massive effect on History, their emergence directly led to the emergence of Knights as warriors to defend the southern lands the Vikings raided.

[@GroovingPict]

"tastes great" he says, as he nearly barfs it back up :p

[@jacobdjurhuus300]

Visit the museums in Copenhagen and Jelling to learn more, then os at the surface, the iceberg og What the Viking was, runs very deep.

[@Whiterhabber]

3:30 you’re all I need to make my mornings tasty, Simon

[@Mpetersable]

Nice video, considering how hard it is to bring things to the table of a topic that has been over exploited on the last pair of decades. Could have included some bigger level of detail regarding different sagas and disputed historical issues between Denmark, Sweden and Norway, or what ever. Just missing the extra meat into the barbecue.

[@darrellmillett9306]

Simon whistler makes history more interesting with his story telling

[@mikereader8166]

Great Vid. The Newfoundland community where Vikings settled is Pronounced (Lance au Meadows )

[@NeonCicada]

Our ancestors were *GIANTS!!* ⚖💀

[@tim-tim-timmy6571]

I think this episode needs a follow up on one of your other channels. Raiding is the tip of the iceberg and the overwhelming majority of the society were farmers and traders. There is much more to say. It is unfortunate that they did not leave many writings. Rune stones were usually not made to tell stories.

[@dean0o0o]

Waits patiently to hear about the Berserker of Stamford bridge, in the siege that ended the viking age ~1200 AD

[@GodzillaRodeo]

I think the reason for a lot of the forgotten viking history is a combination of events. First Olav the holy, who through long and brutal wars with other norwegian tribes forcefully converted people to christianity. Following that the destruction of anything related to pagans, texts, holy sites, and people. Gradually decreasing the cultural legacy. After that you have the black death who destroyed everything. Even small communities where decimated. So a lot of people who had oral histories died with no chance of passing it down as some small villages died completly. Leaving very few people interested or incapavle of reading even. Then you have at least in norway a bunch of time being colonised by denmark and then sweden where norway lost its own language. If this hadnt happened we would have a language more like iceland. Instead we have a mix of old norse a lot of danish words, and swedish mixed in. Norway lost a lot of its old norse culture gradually over time unfortunately. Myself i am a norwegian who can trace myself as a norwegian back to the 13th century. I even have an ancestor who was written down in an old church census book as an heathen. So most likely a worshipper of odin.

[@emeryweaver3796]

Didn't shane gillis recently check rogan on this, saying they looked like hobits actually and only ever recovered one full actual set of chainmail armour? Something like that.

[@tinglemccringleberry8899]

It’s amazing what you can get done without an hr department

[@Frendh]

16:54 Or the beads were acquired through indirect trade in south eastern europe and not by going to india to trade directly.

[@TheRxNick]

Coastal Norway is relatively pleasant in the winter months, it's certainly no Siberia

[@adamgeigerjr6995]

a distant culture from the North started visiting far lands they've never been and started to settle down more & grow more dense as a society, I would take any bet on the Vikings being nearly wiped out from disease brought back from some of the voyager warrior parties

[@kultea]

Really GOOD episode!

[@jpazsoldan]

Great storyteller! And looks Viking as well ...

[@OctoberRaven]

if you think about it, William of Normandy was of viking descent, so eventually they did conquer Britain

[@ChIGuY-town22_]

A lack of farmland in a brutal society, makes for a great storyline which Hollywood loves. 😂

[@DieNibelungenliad]

There was farmland in Scandinavia. In fact, Scandinavia was warm in the Middle Ages, they got colder afterwards

[@andersbjrnsen7203]

​@@DieNibelungenliadSweden and Denmark has excellent farmland to this day, the lack of arable land is mainly a norwegian thing.