 cakebelly says: more: A Scot identified in the saga as Grjotgard, a kinsman of Melkolf (Malcolm II), king of Scotland, told them: 'You have two choices. You can go ashore and we will take all your property, or we'll attack you and kill every man we lay our hands on.' The chronicles have been interpreted by Gisli Sigurdsson, a historian at Reykjavik University, who believes the sagas - part fiction, part fact - reveal how the ancient Norse were far from the fearless pirates of legend. Sigurdsson said the tales were a warning to travellers that they would encounter a general foggy area, dangerous landings, hostile natives and language problems. They wrote that the people would probably attack you immediately. No mention of haggis? more: The Norsemen became particularly nervous about sailing up the west coast sea lochs which they referred to as the 'Scottish fjords'. The Icelandic sagas, written in the 13th century but based on earlier oral stories, were often used as route guides for raiders, traders, crusaders and explorers, effectively a road map of medieval Europe and the Middle East. They have proved remarkably accurate, even helping archaeologists to pinpoint the remains of a Norse village in Newfoundland. Orkney is described as a handy base camp for pillaging Scotland. But the Norse had other bases too, some of which would feature high up in a modern guide for tourists. If you are planning to raid Scotland, ... BobbyRutan:  - the mere mention of it would have surely given the Danes pause for thought the natives were dangerous, the language incomprehensible and the weather awfulCrikey, if the weather is worse than in Denmark, it must be pretty damn awful! .  |
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