Historical places
Viking places
Ships and maritime sitesBirka
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Ekerö
- Site type
- Trading town
- Chronology
- c. 750–late 10th century
Town and harbour connected to far-reaching trading networks; part of the heritage complex shared with Hovgården.
Viking History & Expansion
Viking Routes & Interactive Map
Explore the voyages, expeditions and settlements that connected Scandinavia with distant lands and civilizations.
Follow the journeys of Viking explorers, traders and settlers across Europe, the North Atlantic and Eastern Europe.
Explore historical routes, settlements, political influence and cultural encounters through an interactive atlas of the Viking Age.
MAP LEGEND & LAYERS
Historical presence
Scandinavian homelands
Historical layers
BRITISH ISLES — KINGDOMS & SETTLEMENTS
Viking Age historical overview: approximate, multi-period territories, c.900–1000. Ireland is shown separately at c.950. These layers do not represent one simultaneous political map.
Archaeological evidence
BRITISH ISLES — KINGDOMS & SETTLEMENTS
Scandinavian Viking Sites
157 historical places. Zoom in to reveal names. Site categories are independent of the historical presence layers.
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Explore historical routes
Reference map route conventions
Main trade routes
Occasional trade routes
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Occasional raiding routes
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British Isles — routes & movements
Places & historical dates
City
Trade hub
Village, monastery, etc.
Viking attack
Landfall by Norse explorers
793 Date of Norse arrival
882 Date of Norse settlement
Archaeological symbols
Archaeological Sites & Finds
Archaeological settlement
Boat-related burial evidence
A ring around a settlement square marks associated burial evidence, not a separate grave location.British Isles — settlement symbols
Viking settlements
Major Viking towns
Viking military camps
Other important towns
Royal or major strongholds
Zoom in and pan to reveal smaller towns, dates and regional names. Town colours distinguish the categories in the overview; military camps are not permanent settlements.
Scandinavian Viking Sites
Historical places
Viking places
Ships and maritime sites
Zoom in and pan around the map to reveal more cities, dates, regional names and archaeological finds.
Drag to pan, pinch or use the zoom controls. Focus the map and use arrow keys to pan, + / − to zoom, or Home to reset. Select a marker or route to open its information, or use the lists below.
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Sweden · documented catalogue of 39 places
Viking Age towns, harbours and settlements in Sweden
Traces of the Viking Age in present-day Sweden can be found in trading towns, harbours, large estates and farming villages. Birka and Sigtuna are only part of that landscape.
These 39 places include towns, harbours, villages, farms, aristocratic residences and fortresses. Some began before the Viking Age; others developed into medieval centres. They represent a documented selection rather than every settlement in Sweden.
Modern borders provide geographical orientation, rather than medieval political boundaries. Scania, in particular, belongs within the historical context of Denmark.
Historical distinctions and reading notes
- Gamla Uppsala: its great 6th-century mounds are not burials constructed during the Viking Age.
- Helgö: occupation began several centuries earlier; it is an earlier site with continuity into the beginnings of the Viking Age.
- Husby and Lunda: distinguish the dates of halls, ritual areas and deposits. Their long histories do not make all the finds contemporary.
- Aska: Askahögen is the platform of a great hall; it should not be described simply as a burial mound.
- Åhus: the Transval archaeological polygon is not the medieval town centre.
- Ströja: this site is at Kvillinge, Norrköping; places with the same name exist in other regions.
- Paviken: the reference point is the lake, not an excavated house or jetty.
- Boge and Bandlunde: these are studied exchange sites, but the markers identify their wider surroundings rather than individual harbour installations.
- Västergarn and Paviken: related but not identical; their areas should not be added together or assigned a single chronology without a sector-by-sector report.
- Visby, Lund and Skara: explain the urban transition; later medieval walls, churches and buildings must not be attributed to the Viking Age.
- Trelleborgen: the partial reconstruction is modern and stands on the site of the original fortress.
- Foteviken, Gunnes gård, Storholmen and other recreation museums have not automatically been counted as original settlements.
These filters affect this collection within the Scandinavian Viking Sites layer and its entries. Other atlas layers are independent. Enable that layer in the legend to see its points.
39 of 39 catalogue places.
Hovgården
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Ekerö
- Site type
- Royal centre
- Chronology
- Viking Age, with later continuity
A centre of royal power associated with Birka; its later remains must not be confused with the Viking Age phase.
Sigtuna
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Sigtuna
- Site type
- Royal and trading town
- Chronology
- From c. 980
A late Viking Age foundation associated with kingship, Christianisation and the earliest Swedish coinage.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Fornsigtuna / Signhildsberg
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Upplands-Bro
- Site type
- Royal residence
- Chronology
- Late Iron Age; reorganisation around AD 1000
An earlier royal site distinct from Sigtuna, illustrating the transformation of centres of power.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Gamla Uppsala
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Uppsala
- Site type
- Political and ceremonial centre
- Chronology
- Predates the Viking Age; active during the Viking Age
An elite residence and ceremonial landscape; the great 6th-century mounds predate the Viking Age.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Helgö
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Ekerö
- Site type
- Craft and exchange centre
- Chronology
- 3rd–9th centuries, according to the regional museum
A long-lived settlement that helps explain the background and beginnings of the Viking world.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Granby–Hyppinge
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Vallentuna
- Site type
- Large aristocratic estate
- Chronology
- Late Iron Age and Viking Age
A large Viking Age estate documented in the Orkesta landscape; the coordinates refer to the associated runic monument.
The marker identifies an associated monument or visitor entrance, rather than the excavated settlement itself.
Vikby / Viggbyholm
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Täby
- Site type
- Farm and rural settlement
- Chronology
- Late Iron Age; Viking Age phase and medieval reuse
An excavated farm with numerous buildings, burials and an 11th-century silver hoard.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Pollista
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Håbo
- Site type
- Village and farm complex
- Chronology
- Includes a Viking Age phase; long-term occupation
A rural settlement comprising several households, important for the study of villages in the Mälaren region.
Mälby, Tillinge
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Enköping
- Site type
- Rural settlement and elite estate
- Chronology
- Viking Age and Middle Ages
A settlement with Viking Age houses, metalworking and later development as a medieval estate.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Lingnåre
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Tierp
- Site type
- Farm and agricultural landscape
- Chronology
- Late 10th century–Middle Ages
A cultural landscape preserving traces of Viking Age and medieval dwellings, cultivation and burials.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Hjulsta
- Historical region
- Uppland
- Municipality
- Stockholm
- Site type
- Village and farms
- Chronology
- Iron Age, Viking Age and later continuity
A rural settlement in the historic Mälaren landscape, with rich burials and possible trading contacts with Birka.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Lunda, near Strängnäs
- Historical region
- Södermanland
- Municipality
- Strängnäs
- Site type
- Residential and ritual complex
- Chronology
- Long-lived site; ritual activity continued into the Viking Age
An archaeological complex with a residence, great hall and ritual area. Not all its structures belong to the Viking Age phase.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Husby, Glanshammar
- Historical region
- Närke
- Municipality
- Örebro
- Site type
- Aristocratic and metalworking centre
- Chronology
- Main phase earlier; deposits and remembrance during the Viking Age
An elite centre with metalworking and Viking Age silver finds; the chronology of the halls must be distinguished from that of the deposits.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Ströja, Kvillinge
- Historical region
- Östergötland
- Municipality
- Norrköping
- Site type
- Aristocratic residence, village and trade
- Chronology
- c. 450–1000; transformed over its history
A complex with great halls, an exchange area and ritual activity; a village comprising several farms developed later.
Borg, Norrköping
- Historical region
- Östergötland
- Municipality
- Norrköping
- Site type
- Large estate and ritual centre
- Chronology
- Late Iron Age; Viking Age phase; later medieval royal residence
An estate studied for its buildings and ritual practices, with continuity into a medieval royal centre.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Herrebro
- Historical region
- Östergötland
- Municipality
- Norrköping
- Site type
- Trading and craft settlement
- Chronology
- Vendel and Viking periods
An exchange settlement with a harbour setting near Motala ström; the rock carvings are not Viking Age.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Aska / Askahögen
- Historical region
- Östergötland
- Municipality
- Vadstena
- Site type
- Aristocratic residence with a great hall
- Chronology
- c. 650–1000
An elite centre identified by a monumental platform and a great hall; the platform should not be described simply as a burial mound.
Bona, Bredestad
- Historical region
- Småland
- Municipality
- Aneby
- Site type
- Large rural estate
- Chronology
- Mid-7th century to c. 1000 for the farm studied
An estate with a hall, ancillary buildings and craft activities, connected to land routes and the agricultural landscape.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Kata gård, Varnhem
- Historical region
- Västergötland
- Municipality
- Skara
- Site type
- Large Christian estate
- Chronology
- Late Viking Age
An elite estate with a private church and graves, illustrating Christianisation and rural power.
Skara
- Historical region
- Västergötland
- Municipality
- Skara
- Site type
- Town of the medieval transition
- Chronology
- Around AD 1000 / early 11th century
An early trading and ecclesiastical centre, best presented within the transition from the Viking Age to the Middle Ages.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Slöinge / Bergagård
- Historical region
- Halland
- Municipality
- Falkenberg
- Site type
- Aristocratic residence and workshops
- Chronology
- c. 400–1000
An elite settlement with halls and craft activity, predating the Viking Age but continuing into it.
Arnäsbacken
- Historical region
- Ångermanland
- Municipality
- Örnsköldsvik
- Site type
- Farm and associated burial complex
- Chronology
- Late Iron Age and Middle Ages
A northern settlement with continuity from the Late Iron Age, dwellings and associated burial mounds.
The marker identifies an associated monument or visitor entrance, rather than the excavated settlement itself.
Uppåkra
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Staffanstorp
- Site type
- Large settlement and centre of power
- Chronology
- c. 100 BC–AD 1000
A long-lived settlement fundamental to studying power, craftsmanship and the transition towards new urban centres.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Löddeköpinge
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Kävlinge
- Site type
- Trading site and settlement
- Chronology
- Viking Age, with later continuity
An archaeologically studied exchange centre with workshops and connections to routes along the Lödde river.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Borgeby
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Lomma
- Site type
- Fortress and centre of power
- Chronology
- Viking Age; later medieval castle
A Viking Age circular fortification is documented beneath the later castle at a strategic river crossing.
Trelleborgen
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Trelleborg
- Site type
- Ring fortress
- Chronology
- Second half of the 10th century; strengthened c. 980
A Viking Age fortification; the reconstructed quarter is modern and must be distinguished from the archaeological remains.
Åhus–Transval
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Kristianstad
- Site type
- Trading and craft settlement
- Chronology
- Includes a Viking Age phase; multi-period complex
An excavated area with longhouses, sunken-featured buildings and deposits from a Viking Age trading settlement.
Järrestad
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Simrishamn
- Site type
- Aristocratic centre
- Chronology
- Late Iron Age and medieval transition
A regional centre with a great hall and metalworking; the well-known nearby rock carvings date from the Bronze Age.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Toarp, Malmö
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Malmö
- Site type
- Farm and rural settlement
- Chronology
- Viking Age and early Middle Ages
A rural settlement with dwellings and finds illustrating changes at the end of the Viking Age.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Lund
- Historical region
- Scania
- Municipality
- Lund
- Site type
- Late Viking Age town
- Chronology
- From c. 990
An urban foundation of the late 10th century, associated with Danish kingship and the Christianisation of Scania.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Västra Vång
- Historical region
- Blekinge
- Municipality
- Ronneby
- Site type
- Settlement and centre of power
- Chronology
- Roman Iron Age–late Viking Age
A long-lived centre with dwellings, crafts and elite activity, investigated by the museum and Lund University.
The marker identifies an associated monument or visitor entrance, rather than the excavated settlement itself.
Köpingsvik
- Historical region
- Öland
- Municipality
- Borgholm
- Site type
- Harbour and trading site
- Chronology
- Viking Age and medieval phases
A coastal exchange site with an important burial landscape; not to be confused with other places named Köping.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Paviken
- Historical region
- Gotland
- Municipality
- Gotland
- Site type
- Harbour and trading settlement
- Chronology
- 8th century–approximately the 11th century
A former harbour with remains of crafts, shipbuilding and settlement, important for understanding trade on Gotland.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Fröjel / Ridanäs
- Historical region
- Gotland
- Municipality
- Gotland
- Site type
- Harbour and trading settlement
- Chronology
- Viking Age and medieval transition
An archaeologically investigated harbour with workshops and evidence of silverworking.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Västergarn
- Historical region
- Gotland
- Municipality
- Gotland
- Site type
- Harbour settlement
- Chronology
- Late Viking Age and early Middle Ages; chronology varies by sector
A harbour complex whose development should be studied alongside Paviken, distinguishing the sectors and their dates.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Visby, settlement predating the Hanseatic town
- Historical region
- Gotland
- Municipality
- Gotland
- Site type
- Harbour and trading centre
- Chronology
- Viking Age trading phase; later medieval urban development
A site included in studies of Gotland's harbours; the Hanseatic town and its surviving walls are later.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Boge / Bogeviken area
- Historical region
- Gotland
- Municipality
- Gotland
- Site type
- Harbour exchange site
- Chronology
- Late Iron Age / Viking Age; chronology varies by sector
A site highlighted by the Gotland harbour archaeology project; the church is only a geographical reference.
The marker identifies an associated monument or visitor entrance, rather than the excavated settlement itself.
Bandlunde / Bandlundviken
- Historical region
- Gotland
- Municipality
- Gotland
- Site type
- Harbour and trading site
- Chronology
- Viking Age
An exchange site known, among other finds, for its weights; the bay provides a general location.
The marker locates the wider area associated with this place, rather than an exact excavation.
Norway & North Atlantic · 20 historical places
Norwegian centres and North Atlantic settlements
Explore trading harbours, royal centres, assembly places and farming communities across Norway and the North Atlantic. Their histories span different periods: an important medieval centre was not necessarily a Viking Age town.
Kaupang / Skiringssal
- Country
- Norway
- Region
- Vestfold, Larvik
- Site type
- Early trading town
- Period
- Established around AD 800; urban activity flourished during the ninth and early tenth centuries.
Kaupang stood beside Viksfjord in Vestfold, near the entrance to the Oslofjord. Established around AD 800, it became a permanent harbour settlement where trading and craft production brought people into close contact. Archaeologists have identified an unusually rich and varied collection of objects, making the site central to our understanding of early urban life in Norway.
Merchants and craftspeople linked Kaupang with southern Scandinavia, the Baltic and the Irish Sea, while goods also reached the settlement from the interior of eastern Norway. These connections placed the harbour within a wider world of exchange rather than an isolated coastal economy. Kaupang is associated with the district of Skiringssal; the trading settlement and its surrounding landscape should not be treated as identical. Its strongest urban phase belongs to the ninth and early tenth centuries.
Tønsberg
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Early town
- Period
- 10th–11th centuries
An urban centre on the Oslofjord; the traditional foundation date is debated.
Trondheim / Nidaros
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Town
- Period
- From c. 997
A royal and trading centre at the mouth of the Nidelva.
Medieval Oslo / Gamlebyen
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Town
- Period
- c. 1000–1050
Oslo's earliest urban centre, distinct from the modern city centre.
Sarpsborg / Borg
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Town
- Period
- From c. 1016
A royal foundation traditionally associated with Olaf Haraldsson.
Skien
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Early trading centre
- Period
- 9th–11th centuries
An area of trade and craft activity in Telemark, with later urban development.
Avaldsnes
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Royal seat and settlement
- Period
- 8th–11th centuries
A centre of power on Karmøy beside the strategic Karmsundet strait.
Borg, Lofoten
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Chieftain's seat
- Period
- 7th–10th centuries
An archaeologically documented great communal house and elite centre.
Borre
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Aristocratic centre
- Period
- 7th–10th centuries
A burial-mound complex and Viking Age power landscape; not a town.
Gokstad, Sandefjord
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Aristocratic settlement
- Period
- 9th century
An elite landscape associated with the Gokstad ship burial; not a town.
Oseberg, Slagen
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Aristocratic centre
- Period
- 9th century
The surroundings of the famous ship burial; the exact settlement location remains to be verified.
Moster
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Settlement and assembly site
- Period
- 10th–11th centuries
A place associated with Christianisation and political assemblies; not a town.
Borgundkaupangen, Ålesund
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Harbour and market
- Period
- 11th century onwards
A trading centre in Sunnmøre, predominantly medieval, with origins at the end of the Viking Age.
Veøya
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Regional trading centre
- Period
- 10th–12th centuries
An island exchange centre in Romsdalsfjord, with a later ecclesiastical settlement.
Agdenes
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Maritime site
- Period
- 10th–11th centuries
A strategic point at the entrance to the Trondheimsfjord; not a town.
Mære
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Centre of power and worship
- Period
- 9th–11th centuries
An assembly and cult site associated with the elites of Trøndelag.
Huseby, Tjølling
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Regional royal centre
- Period
- 8th–10th centuries
A power landscape associated with Skiringssal and the surroundings of Kaupang.
Alstahaug
- Country
- Norway
- Site type
- Regional settlement
- Period
- 10th–11th centuries
A historic centre in Helgeland with early occupation; its specific Viking Age dating remains to be checked.
Brattahlíð / Qassiarsuk
- Country
- Greenland
- Region
- Kujalleq
- Site type
- Norse farm and manorial centre
- Period
- Late 10th century–Middle Ages
A Norse farming settlement associated with Erik the Red, founded in the late 10th century in the Tunulliarfik fjord. It formed part of Norse settlement in southern Greenland.
L’Anse aux Meadows
- Country
- Canada
- Region
- Newfoundland and Labrador
- Site type
- Settlement and expedition base
- Period
- 11th century
An excavated Norse settlement at the northern tip of Newfoundland, with turf dwellings, workshops and evidence of ironworking. It provides firm archaeological evidence of Norse presence in North America.
Zoom in and pan to reveal smaller places and archaeological sites. Sea routes use approximate water corridors; inland destinations are identified separately in their route panels. Dotted eastern connections mark land transfers between river basins; river lines follow the existing watercourse geometry.
Notes on the earlier study layers
Historical regions are approximate reconstructions and do not represent modern political boundaries. Norway, Sweden and Denmark are geographical references, not a single state or a uniform Norse population; northern hatching acknowledges Sámi and other communities. Island outlines identify regional settlement, not uniform occupation. The Danelaw treaty corridor is contextual, not one fixed frontier throughout the Viking Age. Normandy distinguishes approximate 911 settlement and political expansion by 933. Greenland polygons summarize localized samples of published centres, not all farms or a colonial frontier. Irish towns use localized evidence symbols. Danelaw, Cnut’s England and Brittany are indicative regional reconstructions from different periods, not a simultaneous Viking empire. Hatching marks political control and raids; stippling marks trade networks. Activity-corridor breadths are illustrative; local evidence symbols do not define historical boundaries. Rus connections are multiethnic trade networks, not whole-country conquest. The Nakur raid does not imply control of North Africa.
Physical geography is a modern reference, not a reconstruction of Viking Age rivers. Natural Earth detail is generalized and varies by region. Mapped waterways are not necessarily Viking routes. Site symbols locate evidence without drawing arbitrary settlement frontiers.
An atlas of connections
Modern place names help you navigate. Markers do not describe modern countries as medieval political entities or imply that every contact was a colony.
Shared corridors are drawn once. Solid lines show approximate water connections; dashed lines indicate land movements. Select a corridor to inspect its associated journeys, dates and regional endpoints. Unverified geometries remain listed for review.
Map credits
Historical vector adaptations: FlyingPC / Morningstar1814, base Eric Gaba (Sting) and andrewl, CC BY-SA 4.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right (2023).
Destinations & evidence
38 destinations shown. Filters apply to both the map and this list.
Kaupang stood beside Viksfjord in Vestfold, near the entrance to the Oslofjord. Established around AD 800, it became a permanent harbour settlement where trading and craft production brought people into close contact. Archaeologists have identified an unusually rich and varied collection of objects, making the site central to our understanding of early urban life in Norway.
Merchants and craftspeople linked Kaupang with southern Scandinavia, the Baltic and the Irish Sea, while goods also reached the settlement from the interior of eastern Norway. These connections placed the harbour within a wider world of exchange rather than an isolated coastal economy. Kaupang is associated with the district of Skiringssal; the trading settlement and its surrounding landscape should not be treated as identical. Its strongest urban phase belongs to the ninth and early tenth centuries.
Read full history →Viking Age · Trade & cultural contact · SettlementsBirka linked Scandinavian communities to Baltic and eastern exchange networks.
Late 8th–10th centuries · Trade & cultural contact · SettlementsRibe was a trading centre connecting the North Sea and Scandinavia.
Viking Age · Trade & cultural contact · SettlementsHedeby stood at the southern end of the Schlei inlet, near present-day Schleswig in Germany. Known also as Haithabu, it developed into a major Viking trading town during the ninth century. Its position near the narrow corridor between the Baltic and the North Sea connected ships, overland transport and wider commercial networks. Merchants exchanged textiles, furs, metalwork, glass and other goods, while resident craftspeople worked in densely arranged workshops and households.
The harbour, streets, buildings and finds provide exceptional evidence for Viking-Age urban life. Political authority and religious change also shaped the town, whose rampart became part of the defensive landscape associated with the Danevirke. Attacks in the eleventh century contributed to its decline, and commercial importance shifted towards nearby Schleswig. Hedeby and the Danevirke archaeological border complex became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2018.
Read full history →Viking Age · Trade & cultural contact · SettlementsScandinavian armies and settlers transformed parts of northern and eastern England. The Danelaw was not the whole of England.
Late 9th–11th centuries · Settlements · Conquest & political control · Raids & expeditions · Trade & cultural contactNorse communities and earldoms developed in the northern and western islands alongside existing populations.
9th century onward · Settlements · Conquest & political control · Trade & cultural contact · Raids & expeditionsArchaeology on Anglesey reveals Viking Age contacts. Their character and the extent of Scandinavian settlement remain debated.
9th–10th centuries · Trade & cultural contact · Raids & expeditionsDublin developed from a Scandinavian fortified base into an important town and trading centre.
841 onward · Settlements · Trade & cultural contact · Conquest & political control · Raids & expeditionsNorse fleets attacked communities along the Loire and other Frankish rivers.
9th century · Raids & expeditionsMedieval accounts describe Norse fleets reaching Lisbon and the western Iberian coast. This does not establish a permanent colony.
9th–11th centuries · Raids & expeditionsThe attack on Seville in 844 illustrates the reach of Norse fleets into al-Andalus.
844 and later expeditions · Raids & expeditionsFrankish annals describe a fleet passing between Iberia and Africa and raiding in the Rhône region.
859–860 · Raids & expeditionsNorse communities in the Faroes formed part of the North Atlantic settlement network.
Viking Age onward · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactNorse settlement created enduring communities in Iceland.
Late 9th century onward · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactNorse farming communities settled the southwest of Greenland and maintained maritime connections.
Late 10th–15th centuries · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactNorse seafarers established a short-lived base at L’Anse aux Meadows. It is not proof of every proposed Vinland location.
Around AD 1000 · SettlementsObjects from Finnish graves reveal connections with wider northern networks, including forms associated with Scandinavian and western contacts.
Viking Age · Trade & cultural contactSalme’s Scandinavian ship burials bear witness to violent maritime encounters before the conventional Viking Age.
8th century; wider Viking Age contacts · Raids & expeditions · Trade & cultural contactBurial and settlement evidence at Grobiņa records Scandinavian communities living alongside Curonian populations.
7th–9th centuries · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactTruso brought together Scandinavians, Slavs and Prussians in a trading community.
9th–10th centuries · Trade & cultural contact · SettlementsScandinavian travellers joined the multiethnic networks of the early Rus. Its medieval heritage is shared across modern Ukraine, Russia and Belarus.
9th–11th centuries · Trade & cultural contact · Settlements · Conquest & political controlKyiv formed part of the Rus world connecting northern river networks with the Black Sea and Byzantium.
9th–11th centuries · Trade & cultural contact · Conquest & political controlConstantinople attracted northern traders and warriors. Scandinavians also served in the imperial Varangian Guard; service was not conquest of Byzantium.
Viking Age; Guard from late 10th century · Trade & cultural contact · Raids & expeditionsBolghar was a meeting place for long-distance merchants within the Volga networks.
9th–10th centuries · Trade & cultural contactThe Volga connected northern travellers with markets and exchange networks toward the Caspian and Islamic world.
9th–10th centuries · Trade & cultural contactRimbert describes a Swedish attack on the Curonian stronghold of Apuolė. The community was not a Scandinavian colony.
853 · Raids & expeditions · Trade & cultural contactArnulf defeated a Viking army near Leuven in 891, within what is now Belgium.
891 · Raids & expeditionsDorestad linked Frankish and Scandinavian trading networks and suffered repeated Viking attacks.
9th century · Trade & cultural contact · Raids & expeditionsPolotsk belonged to the Rus river networks. Around 980, Vladimir attacked Rogvolod with forces that included Varangians.
Late 10th century · Trade & cultural contact · Conquest & political control · Raids & expeditionsAn agreement with Charles the Simple established Rollo’s followers around Rouen and the lower Seine. Normandy expanded in later decades.
911 onward · Settlements · Conquest & political controlLater medieval tradition associates Luni with a Norse Mediterranean raid. The story of mistaking it for Rome is uncertain. Later Norman expansion in southern Italy was a separate development.
Traditionally c. 860 · Raids & expeditionsWaterford developed among the Norse-founded towns of medieval Ireland.
10th century · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactWexford formed part of the Norse urban settlement network in Ireland.
10th century · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactLimerick grew among the towns established through Norse settlement and exchange.
10th century · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactNorse occupation at Jarlshof is documented archaeologically within the Northern Isles.
9th century onward · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactNorse and Norse-Gaelic communities and political influence developed in the western islands.
Viking Age and later medieval period · Settlements · Trade & cultural contact · Conquest & political controlThe Western Settlement occupied suitable fjord environments in the eastern part of the Nuuk region, on Greenland’s southwest coast.
Late 10th–14th centuries · Settlements · Trade & cultural contactNovgorod participated in the northern Rus networks linking Baltic journeys, rivers and portages.
Viking Age · Trade & cultural contact · Conquest & political control