Who were the
Vikings
Aim
• I can explain when and where the Vikings came from and say why they
raided Britain.
Success Criteria
• I can order events from the time of the Vikings.
• I can create a poster containing details about who the Vikings were and what they did.
• I can act in role to ask or answer questions.
The Vikings
Questions
Discuss these questions with the
other children in your group and
then be ready to feedback to the
rest of the class.
• Who were the Vikings?
• Where did they come from?
• What did they do?
• When did they come to Britain
and why?
• What else do we know about
them?
AD 787
First Viking raid in
England occurred.
AD 793
The Vikings attack
from Norway. They
attack the Monastery
of Lindisfarne in
Northumbria. The
following year they
attack northern
Britain, in what we
now call Scotland.
AD 866
The Vikings capture
the city of York.
AD 870
Wessex is the last
Anglo-Saxon
kingdom.
AD 871
Alfred the Great
becomes King of
Wessex. He drives
the invading
Vikings from the
south but they stay
in the north and the
east.
AD 878
By this time, the
Vikings had settled
permanently in
England, overran
Wessex and forced
King Alfred into
hiding.
AD 886
King Alfred agrees
to a treaty with the
Vikings. Alfred
keeps the west and
the Vikings are given
the east which is
later known as
‘Danelaw’.
AD 900
The Vikings
establish rule over
northern Scotland
AD 954
The last Viking King
of Jorvick (York),
Eric Bloodaxe, is
forced out of York.
AD 1013
King Sven of
Denmark and his son
Cnut sail up the
rivers Humber and
Trent to claim the
throne in Danelaw
and Ethelred, the
Saxon King, flees
abroad.
AD 1014
King Sven dies and
Ethelred returns to
rule England again.
AD 1016
King Ethelred dies.
His son, Edmund
Ironside, becomes
king for a few
months until he also
dies.
Cnut becomes King
of the Danes and
King of England.
AD 1035
King Cnut dies. His
sons Harold Harefoot
and Hardicanute share
the ruling of England.
Harold dies in 1040
and Hardicanute
becomes the sole
ruler of England.
AD 1042
Ethelred’s second son,
Edward is invited to
return from
Normandy to become
the King of England.
Edward was better
known as ‘Edward the
Confessor’ due to his
extreme piety.
AD 1066
The last Anglo-Saxon
king, King Harold, is
defeated by William
the Conqueror at the
Battle of Hastings and
Norman Britain
begins.
Viking Timeline Activity
Your challenge is to create your own Viking Timeline to help you
remember and order the important facts about the Vikings.
Look at the Viking Timeline Posters to help you if you get stuck.
Aim
• I can explain when and where the Vikings came from and say why they
raided Britain.
Success Criteria
• I can order events from the time of the Vikings.
• I can create a poster containing details about who the Vikings were and what they did.
• I can act in role to ask or answer questions.
