Viking Journey Trivia Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The great Viking adventurer Harald Hardraade was the son of a Norwegian chieftain, born in 1015. Which of the following lands had already been explored or colonized by the Vikings by then?

Answer: All three of them

The Vikings discovered Iceland around 800 A.D. The colonization of the island mainly took place between 870 and 930. The Althing (general assembly) was rapidly instituted and by 1000 the country had been converted to Christianity. Greenland is bound with the name of Erik the Red, who established two settlements on the shores of the unfriendly island in 985.

The Viking contacts with the Northern coast of America, beginning around 1000, were brief and a real colonization never took place. There were still several attempts, including that of Thorfinn Karlsefni, but they all failed and the Vikings eventually abandoned Vinland around 1015 - just when Harald was born.

2. In 1030 Harald Hardraade took part in the battle of Stiklestad against the Danes, who were very influential at the time. The Danes - Vikings originating from Denmark - had established several powerful centers both in England and in their homeland peninsula of Jutland. Which of the following was one of them?

Answer: Hedeby

Hedeby was an active commercial center and a vital, strategic point for the Danes. Situated at the bottom of the Jutland peninsula, the town was separated from the mainland (and thus protected by the Frankish expansion intentions) by a strong system of connected earthworks known as the Danevirke. However this didn't stop it from becoming an important link in the trade route between the Frankish Empire and the East. Hedeby was burned down by Harold Hardraade in 1050 and finally destroyed by the Slavs in 1066.
Birka and Kiev were Swedish centers while Kaupang was an Norwegian settlement.

3. Having lost the battle and with the king of Norway dead, Harald fled his country. As a young warrior, he was keen in searching new adventures. So he went to Kiev, hoping to change his fortune raiding the eastern regions. In Harald's time Kiev was no longer under the strict control of the Swedish Vikings, who had been assimilated by the Slavs. Yet, Kiev had been at some point the capital of the Rus state, after being conquered in 882 by...

Answer: Oleg, prince of Novgorod

While Rurik was the one to gain control over Novgorod around 862, establishing the Varangian (Rus) dynasty, his successor Oleg conquered Kiev. The Kiev-Rus state founded the basis for the future Russian state. Oleg (873/879 - 912) was followed by Igor (912 - 945), Svyatoslav (945 - 973, the first in the Rurikid Dynasty to use a Slavic name) and Jaropolk (973 - 978). And then came Vladimir the Great, who converted to Orthodox Christianity in 989. Vladimir died in 1015, just when Harald Hardraade was born.

4. Harald's adventures were still far from over. While in Kiev, Harald fell in love with the princess. But he was still a poor wanderer who had to prove himself as a worthy warrior before aiming so high. This made him enrol in the Byzantine army, which had developed a special corps consisting of Viking soldiers, called...

Answer: Varangian Guard

Ironically, just a few years after their attack on Constantinople (860), the Vikings would be hired as mercenaries to defend the capital city of the Byzantine Empire. The Rus Vikings and later their Scandinavian relatives (like Harald Hardraade) formed what was further known as the Varangian Guard - a loyal corps of axe-bearing mercenaries so well paid that they could return extremely wealthy to their homelands after their years of service. With Harald Hardraade in command, the Varangian Guard won battles in Italy, Sicily and North Africa, reaching even Jerusalem.

5. Returning from Constantinople a rich man, Harald convinced the Kievan princess to marry him. He then set sail for his native Norway. He claimed the throne of the country and he even won it in 1047, after defeating all the other claimants. As king of Norway, Harald had proud and glorious predecessors. However, which of the following didn't see the honor of occupying the throne of Norway before him?

Answer: Erik the Red

Harald Haarfagre or Fairhair (872 - 931) is traditionally regarded as the first king of Norway. Although he claimed sovereignty over the whole country, his authority was just nominal in some regions. Erik I's (931 - 933) reign is stained by his cold blooded executions of his 18 brothers.

He got the well deserved name of 'Blodoks' or 'Blood Axe'. Olav Trygvason, king of Sweden, conquered Norway in 995 and ruled it till 1000, imposing Christianity upon his subjects. Erik the Red wasn't to be king of Norway but instead he discovered Greenland in 981 and settled there in 985, turning it into a kind of kingdom of his own (of course, it couldn't survive without import shipments from Iceland and Scandinavia).

6. One of Harald Hardraade's significant achievements during his reign was the founding of an important Norwegian city. What was this city dating back to 1050?

Answer: Oslo

Recent excavations show that Kaupang may have been the first Norwegian town. Trondheim was founded in 997 by king Olav Trygvason and was the first capital of Norway while Bergen was founded in 1070 by king Olav Kyrre.

7. Finding himself on the throne of Norway Harald Hardraade tried on several occasions to wrest the throne of Denmark from Svein Estridsen. None of his attempts succeeded though, so he turned his attention towards the islands of Shetland, Orkney and Hebrides, which he easily conquered. These islands had been previously colonized by the Vikings in the IXth century and have been regarded by historians as bases for further expansion towards Ireland and the North Atlantic. Since the mid IXth century, Ireland had witnessed many raids from the Vikings, the islands mentioned before holding a strategic position between Ireland and Scandinavia. However, just one year before Harald's birth, the Celts halted the Viking expansion in Ireland. Which legendary hero lead the Irish in the battle of Clontarf (1014)?

Answer: Brian Boru

Although the Vikings, led by Sihtric, had raised a powerful army whose ranks included warriors coming from the Hebrides and the Orkneys, the island of Man, Normandy and even Scandinavia they were no match for the Irish. In spite of Brian Boru being killed in the battle his forces claimed a glorious victory in that spring of 1014.

However, this didn't strip the Vikings of all their power. They gradually disappeared from the Irish scene in the course of two centuries, conversions and mixed marriages being the main agents of their assimilation. The other three choices, Alfred I, Charles the Bald and Abd-er Rahman were also exponents of the resistance against the Viking expansion in Wessex, the Frankish empire and Muslim Spain.

8. Facing Svein's stubborn resistance, Harald finally made peace with him in 1064. On the other 'front' Harald was now holding strategic positions around Britain, so he decided to take over the highly coveted island, claiming sovereignty as the successor of Harthacanute (king of England between 1040 - 1042). But there were yet other contestants for this 'prize'; like the Duchy of Normandy, which was growing more and more influential. Back then Normandy was also under Viking rule, since it was given away by king Charles the Simple of France in an attempt to soothe the fury of the Norsemen's raids. When exactly was the territory ceded and to whom?

Answer: in 911 to Rollo

After sacking Paris and Charters in 910, the heathen pirate Rollo reached to an agreement with Charles the Simple, signing the treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte. Whether he was a Norwegian, a Dane or a Swede it is certain that in 911 the Viking pirate Rollo accepted to be baptized and received from the Frankish king a territory on the northern coast of France, territory hence known as Normandy.

9. 1066 was an year to be remembered in the history England. Both Harald Hardraade and William of Normandy landed in England as claimants for the throne. But the sway was still in the hands of the Saxon king Harold Godwinson and he would not give it away without a fight. Harald Hardraade allied with the very brother of Harold, Tosting. Backed up by a large army, reinforced from Scotland, Ireland and the Orkney Islands, they invaded Yorkshire and won the battle of Fulford, conquering York on 24th September. The next day Harald faced Harold, but what an unfortunate day it proved to be for the brave Norwegian adventurer. At the age of fifty, after having faced and bested so many different adversaries, he finally met his match. The clash with Harold's forces was fatal for Harald as he was killed on the battlefield. Where did the battle take place?

Answer: Stamford Bridge

After winning at Stamford Bridge, Harold rushed to intercept William's forces. The two armies met at Hastings on 14th October 1066. Tired after the long march from Northumbria, Harold's troops had lost some of their vigor and although they fought bravely and were even about to win at some point, they were eventually defeated and routed. Harold was slain; struck in the eye by an arrow, according to tradition.

10. One should definitely agree that Harald Hardraade's life is most exceptional and his story is worth coming to the fore. In fact, the reason because we know so much about this heroic Viking figure is that his saga has been immortalized in the "Heimskringla" - "The Circle of the World", a history of the kings of Norway. Who compiled this valuable work?

Answer: Snorri Sturluson

Snorri Struluson (1179-1241) was an Icelandic poet, scholar and thinker but also an active and controversial leader of his country. His main works are the "Snorra Edda" and "Heimskringla". "Snorra Edda" is a mythological and poetic treatise divided in three parts, beginning with a prologue. "Heimskringla" contains the sagas of the Norwegian kings, covering the period between 850 and 1177.

Although its historical accuracy is still contested by some, it is by far the most important source of information for the Viking Age.

Source: Author Mr5

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Jim_in_Oz before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

Follow the steps of a legendary Norse adventurer as he will take you through the captivating Viking history. You'll be amazed by his unusual life story.

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