Chronicles of the Vikings: Records, Memorials and Myths

by R.I. Page

The Vikings are not known for their literate legacy. Little of what they once inscribed in runes on wood, bone, and stone has survived. However these runic inscriptions are a valuable primary source of information on the Viking Age. They alow us to see the Vikings from their own point of view, unlike the records of prejudiced observers who saw the Vikings only as savage invaders. Chronicles of the Vikings attempts to show the Vikings through their own runic inscriptions left behind, poems of their official skalds, literary works that entertained them, the few prose historical accounts that derive direct from Vikings, and eyewitness reports of how the northern peoples lived.Chronicles of the Vikings defines the social values of the Viking Age, their heroic view of life which sometimes contrasts with their more prosaic way of looking at things. It looks at the problems they encountered in discovering, populating, and cultivating new lands, the diffic

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Medieval, Mythology, Scandinavian Literature

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Raymond Ian Page (1924–2012) was a British historian of Anglo-Saxon England and the Viking Age. As a renowned runologist, he specialised in the study of Anglo-Saxon runes.

[From Wikipedia]

Reviews

[Basicallyrun · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first bit of preparatory reading for ASNC! Very informative and very interesting (which I guess shows I'm applying for the right course). I love how much of it is done by quotation from contemporary sources - the rune stones in particular are really interesting - as it really gives an idea of *how* modern historians have gone about reconstructing the past. Page is an entertaining narrator - I particularly like it when he refers to Auden's translation of the Poetic Edda with a sniffy, 'Yes, Auden has certainly used some poetic licence here'. Because in fairness, having read Auden's translation and his notes on same, it *is* a very loose translation, Watson.

Chronicles is a pretty damn good introduction to the topic, as far as I can see. It's fairly detailed, but doesn't jump straight into the minutiae, and it's completely possible for a layperson (me!) to keep their head above water if they concentrate.

[Ashkenaz · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's kind of an academic read at times, so it did take a while to get through. Essentially a collection of various Norse poems and texts, with each chapter focussing around a specific aspect of Viking life at the time.
On the whole this book is a solid introduction to Norse history, and some chapters will captivate readers more than others, depending on what interests you.
At its best, this book will inspire the reader to delve more into a specific part of Viking history, and fortunately, there are plenty of references to help you on your exploration.
At its worst, you'll read this book like a university academic text you're reading for your dissertation, wondering why you picked it up in the first place. But that's probably because I was less keen about the content in those specific chapters.

[Thomas Margot · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took me a while to get through. A lot more inserted source material than I expected, the book is pretty much a collection of translated poems and rune-inscriptions with background and explanatory notes from the author. Which was interesting, but for me quite hard to get through as I didn't expect the book would be like that.

Either way, it has a lot of useful information based on the available historical texts. But, know what you are about to read and adjust expectations: this is not a normal popular textbook, but a scholarly work discussing viking-age poetry and inscriptions.

[Paul Ford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Currently reading - I like it. I find primary sources really hard to get into so it's good to have a curated selection. This said, like some of the other reviewers have noted, it's also not the most riveting reading at times. It'll probably take me a bit of time to get through it (if I do get through it).

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4.5

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm only on the first chapter so far, so this review will probably change. I bought this book thinking that it might be easier going than it actually is.

That said, it's very informative. There's explanatory text interspersed with large chunks from various Viking poems and runic inscriptions. Not that I have taken much of it in, but sttempting to understand poetry (well, blank verse I suppose) from an alien culture is often like that. Things seep in slowly.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really interesting if old book that carefully goes explores nearly every aspect of Viking culture and history from geographical aspects through to their customs and beliefs. All through the words of the Vikings themselves, from runestones, sagas and other historical documents. Definitely recommend for anyone with a strong interest in Vikings.

[Vyvyan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots of quotes; not a huge amount of context.

[Kathryn Bullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thorough, interesting and insightful delve into the world of the Vikings as seen from their perspective - through writings, runes and sagas.