HistoryExtra
type: channel
link: https://www.historyextra.com
description: Home of Britain’s bestselling history magazine and award-winning podcast
date: 2026-05-01T08:26:03.000Z
update period: hourly
update frequency: 1
update base: 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00
items: What was it like to be a Viking in the Great Heathen Army?
items: It was an "extravaganza of brutality": how the Vikings menaced the Mediterranean
items: War and military history podcast episodes
items: Vikings quiz - week two
items: Viking raiders, with Professor Ryan Lavelle
items: The battle of Brunanburh: the forgotten fight that changed British history
items: Return of the Viking raiders
items: The secrets of the Viking Great Army
items: Viking warrior women & the ethics of excavating the dead
items: Cnut: the great Dane

What was it like to be a Viking in the Great Heathen Army?
type: item
date: 2026-05-01T08:25:29.000Z
creator: James Osborne
subject: Membership
subject: Period
subject: Viking
subject: Viking Britain
subject: Viking warfare
description: When a Viking force unlike any before it landed in England in the 9th century, it changed everything. HistoryExtra’s James Osborne explores how this formidable army was formed…
encoded: Known to contemporaries as the Great Heathen Army, this was no ordinary raid. It was a coordinated invasion, bringing together warriors from across Scandinavia with a clear aim: conquest. HistoryExtra’s James Osborne explores how this formidable army was formed, and how it swept through Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, toppling rulers, seizing territory, and reshaping the political landscape of England. From the fall of Northumbria to the struggles of Wessex, it's the story of a turning point in British history. How did the army come together, and what was it like to travel and camp with them? Who were the leaders behind the army? Why did they come? And how did Anglo-Saxon kings respond to this new kind of threat? You'll hear expertise from historian and broadcaster Dr Eleanor Barraclough, who takes us inside life in the camps. Drawing on historical sources and archaeological evidence, we reveal how the Great Heathen Army transformed England and paved the way for the Viking age in Britain. View Green Video on the source website

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It was an "extravaganza of brutality": how the Vikings menaced the Mediterranean
type: item
date: 2026-01-19T15:30:53.000Z
subject: Membership
subject: Period
subject: Viking
subject: Historical events
subject: Historical people
subject: viking
subject: Viking life and culture
subject: Viking warfare
description: Killing, burning, pillaging, enslaving. Even when heading to sunnier climes, Viking raiders deployed the same tactics that they had used along the shores of northern and western Europe, reveals Thomas Williams
encoded: The poor citizens of Al-Jazira al-Khadra never knew what hit them. In 859, an unfamiliar fleet sailed into the bay separating this Muslim settlement – which later evolved into the city of Algeciras, now in southern Spain – from Gibraltar. Making landfall nearby, the alien ships disgorged their fearsome crews: Vikings. In a sequence of events terrifyingly familiar to victims in more northerly parts of Europe, these formidable marauders wreaked havoc. They occupied the city, burned the mosque, ravaged the countryside – and then moved on to the next target, and the next. The campaign later known as the ‘Great Raid’ was well and truly underway – part of a chapter in Norse history that’s less known today, but no less bloody. Stone cold killers The Vikings of our imagination are emphatically creatures of the north – avatars of cold climes and bleak weather, manifestations of ice and snow made flesh and steel. Dragon-prowed ships slice through the frigid waters of steep-sided fjords swathed in midnight-green pine forests. Fur-clad adventurers hunt walrus amid the crashing icebergs of the northernmost seas. Giants haunt the ice-capped mountains in an unreal world of midnight sun and northern lights. We are used to reading tales of Viking rampages through lands both near and far from home: around the Baltic coastline, in Britain and Ireland, in what’s now northern France, Russia, even Canada. But none of these places seem so different from Scandinavia, in climate at least; indeed, some boast similar extremes of latitude. Even in the most temperate of these places, a sharp north-easterly or a rare winter snowstorm may come and go without raising an eyebrow. Likewise Vikings in times past. But, like the ice, it can feel jarring to find Vikings in places where we feel instinctively they don’t quite belong. Like Mallorca, southern France, even Egypt. <img src="https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/7/2026/01/CreditCopyright--Museo-San-Isidoro-de-Leon-Derechos-r…

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War and military history podcast episodes
type: item
subject: General History
subject: Period
subject: Hundred Years War
subject: Second World War battles
subject: The Crimean War
subject: Viking warfare
subject: Wartime Britain
description: Browse our archive of HistoryExtra podcasts on war and military history, from Nelson’s demise at Trafalgar to the role of Indian soldiers in World War One...

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Vikings quiz - week two
type: item
date: 2024-02-12T12:04:20.000Z
subject: Membership
subject: Period
subject: Quiz
subject: Viking
subject: HistoryExtra Academy
subject: HistoryExtra Academy Vikings Course
subject: Viking Britain
subject: Viking life and culture
subject: Viking warfare
description: How much have you learned about the Vikings so far? Test your knowledge of your learnings in week two with our HistoryExtra quiz
encoded: View Riddle on the source website

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Viking raiders, with Professor Ryan Lavelle
type: item
date: 2024-02-01T16:43:58.000Z
creator: Professor Ryan Lavelle
subject: Membership
subject: Period
subject: Viking
subject: Viking Britain
subject: Viking warfare
description: In the first mini-lecture of the HistoryExtra Academy Vikings course, Professor Ryan Lavelle introduces us to the Viking age, and explores the Vikings' reputation as fearsome raiders
encoded: In the first mini-lecture of the HistoryExtra Academy Vikings course, Professor Ryan Lavelle introduces us to the Viking Age, and explores the Vikings' reputation as fearsome raiders View Green Video on the source website More content from week one of the HistoryExtra Academy Vikings course: Fighting the Vikings – read time 13 mins History explorer: Alfred and the Vikings – read time 13 mins Your guide to the Viking raid of Lindisfarne – read time 3 mins The great Viking terror: how Norse warriors conquered the Anglo-Saxons – read time 12 mins Slaves in the Viking Age: how prevalent were enslaved people in Viking societies – read time 3 mins Why did the Vikings' violent raids begin? – read time 12 mins Viking ships: 5 lesser-known facts – read time 6 mins

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The battle of Brunanburh: the forgotten fight that changed British history
type: item
date: 2023-04-14T15:48:39.000Z
creator: Julian Humphrys
subject: Anglo-Saxon
subject: Period
subject: Seven Kings Must Die
subject: The Last Kingdom
subject: TV interest
subject: Viking warfare
description: King Æthelstan’s victory at Brunanburh in AD 937 may just be one of the most important battles ever fought on British soil, yet today it is virtually unknown. Julian Humphrys explores what happened over an entire day of hard and bloody fighting, and why the events on that long-lost battlefield echoed through the centuries
encoded: Half a century after Brunanburh – the victory of the men of Wessex and Mercia over an alliance of Scots, Strathclyde Britons and Norsemen from Ireland – it was still being called “the great battle”. Indeed, it has been described as one of the most defining battles in British history. It helped the Anglo-Saxon king Æthelstan consolidate his hold over his Wessex kingdom and create a more unified England, while it has also been argued that the strong resistance put up by his enemies prevented the whole of Britain from being forcefully united into one imperial power. Despite its significance, few today have heard of the battle of Brunanburh in AD 937, and even fewer think they know where it was fought. The battle of Brunanburh: quick facts When was it fought? AD 937 Where? Great Britain (precise location disputed) Why? Allied invasion of northern England Who was involved? Kingdom of England, led by Æthelstan Kingdom of Scotland, led by Constantine II Kingdom of Strathclyde, led by Owain I Viking kingdom of Dublin, led by Olaf Guthfrithson Who won? After a day of fighting, according to some accounts, it was an English victory What led to the battle of Brunanburh? Ever since he’d been crowned king of the Anglo-Saxons in AD 925, Æthelstan had been steadily extending his authority. After his grandfather, Alfred the Great, had halted the Danish conquest of England, his father, Edward the Elder, recaptured the East Midlands and East Anglia from the Danes in AD 917. Building on these solid foundations, Athelstan pushed north. Two years after becoming king, he took over the last remaining Viking kingdom at York, extending his rule up to the Scottish border. In AD 934, he invaded Scotland, possibly because its king, Constantine, had broken a peace treaty. Read more | Aelfweard and Aethelstan: were they rivals for the throne of Wessex? After gathering his forces at Winchester, he marched north, picking up reinforcements on the way and paying a visit to the shrine of St Cuthbert a…

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Return of the Viking raiders
type: item
date: 2022-08-31T11:25:34.000Z
creator: Dr David Musgrove, FSA
subject: Membership
subject: Period
subject: Viking
subject: Viking warfare
description: Dr Caitlin Ellis reveals how a second wave of Viking attacks on Britain and Ireland caused havoc in the 11th century
encoded: Across the eighth and ninth centuries, Britain and Ireland were targeted by a series of brutal Vikings raids. But that wasn’t the end of the story. In the 11th century, they were in the firing line once again – as further Viking naval expeditions were launched from Scandinavia. Medieval historian Dr Caitlin Ellis speaks to David Musgrove about this second wave of attacks.

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The secrets of the Viking Great Army
type: item
date: 2021-11-17T06:40:59.000Z
creator: Emily Briffett
subject: Period
subject: Viking
subject: Viking warfare
description: The Viking Great Army caused chaos amongst the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England between AD 865-878. But how much do we really know about its structure, motivation and impact? Professor Julian Richards of the University of York investigates why the Great Army was unlike any previously known Viking force
encoded: We know about the Vikings' Great Army from very brief references in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. It says that a ‘mycel hæþen’ – which is Old English for ‘great army’ – landed in East Anglia in AD 865. It then recounts a series of yearly records detailing where the Great Army moved and what battles it fought, and specifically where it spent its winters. From this, we know it carried on fighting with different Anglo-Saxon kingdoms around the country until the year AD 878, when it was famously defeated by Alfred the Great at the battle of Edington in the south-west of England. Speaking on the HistoryExtra podcast, Professor Julian Richards of the University of York explained what the Great Army really was and revealed what recent discoveries can tell us about this warring hoard. Listen | Julian Richards discusses the Viking Great Army, which wreaked havoc on the kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England from 865-878 The Great Army was unlike any previous Viking force… What was special about it was that they didn’t follow the same strategy as prior Viking armies. Previous attacks had tended to be hit-and-run affairs, raiding quite isolated and undefended coastal monasteries, particularly on the eastern coast of the British Isles – grabbing slaves and treasure and then going away again. But the Great Army overwintered in England and clearly had strategic plans to stay for longer. Ultimately, it transformed its activities from raiding, and seizing slaves and silver, to seizing land, which led to permanent settlement. It was a point of marked change in Viking strategy, and subsequent armies generally came for political conquest rather than just arriving as temporary raiding forces. The Vikings seized upon chances in hope of finding success… I think what caused this change was that they saw opportunities. Parts of the army had been raiding in Ireland and in continental Europe during the AD 850s and 860s, and likely heard that there was a lot of infighting between the four main Anglo-Sa…

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Viking warrior women & the ethics of excavating the dead
type: item
date: 2020-11-14T12:13:49.000Z
subject: Membership
subject: Viking
subject: Period
subject: Viking warfare
description: Howard Williams delivers a lecture on some of the most intriguing and contentious debates in archaeology today
encoded: In a lecture he delivered at BBC History Magazine’s 2019 Chester History Weekend, archaeologist Howard Williams discusses some of the most intriguing and contentious debates in archaeology today. How should we treat ancient human remains? And has evidence of a Viking warrior woman really been discovered in Sweden?

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Cnut: the great Dane
type: item
date: 2020-11-12T11:59:47.000Z
subject: Anglo-Saxon
subject: Membership
subject: Period
subject: Viking
subject: HistoryExtra Academy
subject: HistoryExtra Academy Vikings Course
subject: Viking Britain
subject: Viking warfare
description: In 1016, after more than two centuries of Viking raids and expulsions, a Norseman was crowned king of all England. Eleanor Parker explains how Cnut succeeded where his forebears failed, securing his place on the throne and in history
encoded: Only two kings in English history are known as ‘the Great’ – and one of them was Danish. When the young Viking Cnut seized the throne of England in 1016, few could have predicted that he would become one of the most successful kings of the early medieval period, ruling a Scandinavian empire that stretched across the North Sea world. “There was no justice in his succession to the throne,” the 12th-century historian William of Malmesbury wrote of Cnut, “but he arranged his life with great statesmanship and courage.” Later historians have agreed, judging King Cnut to be a remarkably effective king, though his reign in England began with a violent conquest. Born probably in the 990s, Cnut was the son of Swein Forkbeard, king of Denmark, and a Polish princess whose name is not recorded. Throughout Cnut’s childhood Swein carried out devastating raids on England that increasingly undermined the rule of the English king Æthelred. In 1013, when Cnut was in his teens, Swein launched a full-scale invasion, landing a fleet of ships and forcing Æthelred to flee to Normandy. Cnut accompanied his father to England, and was left in charge of the fleet as Swein campaigned in the south. Around this time Swein, who had forged alliances with Æthelred’s enemies among the English nobility, married his teenage son to an Englishwoman. Ælfgifu of Northampton belonged to a powerful family in the Midlands, and her relatives were important allies for Swein and Cnut. From the raid on Lindisfarne to Harald Hardrada's defeat: 8 Viking dates you need to know By Christmas 1013 Swein was king of England, but his reign was short-lived. He died suddenly on 3 February 1014, after just a few weeks as king. Cnut was chosen to lead the Danish army in England, but he was young and inexperienced, and unable to hold on to his father’s conquered lands. The English nobles invited Æthelred to return from Normandy – on condition that he promised to be a better ruler than before – and Cnut was forced to flee back…

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