4 famous Vikings that changed the old world III—(Björn Ironside&Rollo)

4 most famous Vikings that changed the old world 


3.) Björn Ironside 


Björn Ironside was a strong Norse Viking chief and legendary king of Sweden. According to the Scandinavian histories, he was the son of the historically Viking Ragnar Lodbrok. He lived in the 9th century, dated between 855 and 858.

“Björn, was known for  inflicting great deal of harm on his foe without hurt to himself, it was believed that his side was as hard as an iron, These believe gave rise to his nickname —Ironside

according to Tales, Bjorn and his brothers raided across Scandinavia, France, England and the Mediterranean before
Bjorn found a dynasty that he ruled in Sweden from the 860s until 1060. It was called the House of Munso. The dynasty was named after a barrow seen on the island of Munso in the 18th century which many people claimed it belonged to Bjorn himself.

So many Frankish, Norman, Arab, Scandinavian and Irish sources mention a large Viking raid into the Mediterranean from 859–861, accompanied by a viking -Hastein, Björn Ironside and his bothers. 

After raiding the Iberian coast and fighting their way through Gibraltar, these Norsemen decided to go to the south of France, where the fleet stayed over winter, before landing in Italy where they captured the city of Pisa.
 This victory and others around the Mediterranean which includes in Sicily and North Africa.Then they finally arrived at Luna, which they thought was Rome because of it’s strong defences and toughness.

Bjorn having tried all he could for his army to gain entrance into Luna but failed badly, decided to try something else— He sent messages to the Bishops in Luna telling them that he was very ill, about to die and in need of baptism so to be converted to christianity and accept Christ finally. 

-Believing his trickery, the city gate was opened for him to come inside for his conversation to Christianity.

It was at that moment that he rose up fought his way and lead his army into the city. They raided Luna and took all the spoils home.

Nothing was said about the death of Bjorn, but it may have been peaceful, as he was succeeded to power in Sweden by his son Eirik.

Thus, Bjorn’s legacy lived on and became part of the of Swedish culture.

4.) Rollo










 

Rollo was born in Möre, western Norway sometime in the late 9th century and there is no evidence of his relations with Ragnar Lodbrok in real life like speculated in the tv series (Vikings).

After Journeying across The sea to Scotland and Ireland, Rollo and his men sailed up to the Rever Seine and took part in number of daring raids in The north-west of europe, eventually settling in the lands.

Rollo Norman -French: Rollon 860 – 930 AD was a brave Viking who became the first ruler of Normandy, a region in northern France. He is often referred to as the first Duke of Normandy.

He emerged as the outstanding warrior among the Norsemen who had secured a permanent foothold on Frankish soil in the valley of the lower Seine. After the Siege of Chartres in 911, Charles the Simple, the king of West Francia, gave them lands between the mouth of the Seine and what is now Rouen in exchange for Rollo to provide the Franks with protection against future Viking raids and marry one of his daughters and truly become a true son of France.

By that agreement, the Vikings received control of the lands at the mouth of the Seine in return for certain services to the King. Rollo himself was granted Upper Normandy (the territory between the Epte River and the sea). 

These land settlements was given so  to prevent future Viking raids. Rollo was converted to Christianity and baptized by the archbishop of Rouen and his name was changed to Robert.

he was so big, which attracted his nickname Rolf ‘the Ganger.”‘ Rollo’s name help give rise to the treaty between King Charles the Simple of France and the Seine Vikings in 911.

Rollo is first recorded as the leader of these Viking settlers and he continued to reign over the region of Normandy until 928. He was succeeded by his son William Longsword in the Duchy of Normandy that he had founded earlier.

The offspring of Rollo and his followers became known as the Normans.

After Rollo’s death, his male descendants continued to rule Normandy until 1204, when it was lost by John Lackland to the French King Philip Augustus.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *