Index IntroductionViking life before the capture of YorkVikings after the invasion of YorkCultural changeDevelopment of governmentDevelopment of tradeConclusionIntroductionVikings have long had a reputation as fearsome warriors and savages. Evidence found at archaeological sites in York, England challenges the stereotypes that have been associated with them for years. The general assumption made about the Vikings has remained the same throughout much of human history. For a long time, stereotypes about Vikings were true. By the year 866 BC, Viking raiders had earned a solid reputation for their conquests on the coast of England. The Vikings targeted wealthy monasteries for their treasures, took people from the villages to become slaves, and then returned to their home in Scandinavia (Ross, 2019). This season of savagery and domination changed for the better in the 9th century with the invasion of York, England. This invasion triggered a change in the Vikings' behavior and attitude towards their traditions and culture. Some historians believe that York was just another conquest to add to the Vikings' resume, but there are some archaeological and historical contexts that disagree. Researchers have studied and collected data from sites that have changed the perspective on who the Vikings were as a people. The Vikings did not raid York, England for military gain or blind conquest, but to find a starting point to cultivate culture and establish a permanent, progressive society. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayThe Life of the Vikings Before the Capture of YorkTo better understand the Vikings and the drastic change in their way of life, we must look at what the life of the Vikings was like before the capture of York, England. Although the Vikings are known as fearsome warriors, most began by exploring, trading, and living peacefully in different parts of Europe. Most Vikings were skilled fishermen and farmers, being self-sufficient and able to take advantage of what nature offered them (Ross, 2019). With the increase of men and advances in boat building, many Vikings were able to leave their farms and travel to newer lands farther from home. These groups began making small raids on towns near their home in Scandinavia. With this increase in travel, word about the cities and their growing produce and profitable ecclesiastical holdings in nearby cities reached the Vikings, which made these cities favorable targets for the Vikings (Design, 2019). By becoming accustomed to this lifestyle, the Vikings were able to undertake large-scale raids with better trained armies which led to greater successes. Their vast conquest over the cities of England led them to the discovery of York, a place that would become the center of their new civilization. The Vikings after the invasion of YorkOn 1 November in the year 866 BC, the Vikings invaded York. This date was carefully chosen by the Vikings, because in York it was All Saints' Day. On this day, most of the city's leaders would be in the cathedral, making the surprise attack more effective (Design, 2019). This led to the Vikings successfully conquering York. However, the two principal kings of York, Aelle and Osbert were not captured, which meant that the initial raid was not fully effective. But after some attacks on other kingdoms, the Vikings returned to York with revenge, taking complete control and killing the two former kings. From this point on the progress for the Vikingsit began gradually. The Vikings began attempting to settle York in later years, taking a less violent approach, attempting to trade and make treaties with the surrounding kingdoms, as well as cultivate the land they had taken control over. For a long period of time, most kingdoms wanted nothing to do with the Vikings, for fear of the Vikings viewing the treaties as weakness and an invitation of some kind to invade their cities. This changed when King Alfred of Wessex agreed to a truce with the current Viking king, Guthrum, which divided England into the Anglo-Saxon southern kingdom and the Danelaw (Ross, 2019). The Danelaw was under the control of the Vikings and included most of the northern counties of England. This was the first division between north and south for the country of England. The Vikings, after gaining this new control, changed the name of the city to Jorvik. They began to build farms in the countryside and other Vikings from other parts of Europe began to settle there. Leaders began to experiment in trade, and York ended up becoming a major market for local goods and foreign trade (Design, 2019). They built homes for their residents and streets lined with workshops and wells. The Vikings began to develop Anglo-Scandinavian culture in the city of York. Upon their arrival they worshiped their own gods, but many Vikings converted to Christianity and began marrying local people (Design, 2019). The Vikings used these later years to pursue a peaceful community based on agriculture, trade, and improving the quality of life of its residents. Cultural Change The Vikings experienced a significant change in culture in the early years they settled in York. Before the Vikings settled in Jorvik, cities did not exist. Instead, societies were organized around nomatic kings, who did not use urban environments to oversee their kingdoms (Trynoski, 2019). Only specific places in cities were important for certain rituals such as the coronation of kings or the coronation of knightly soldiers, but there were no accommodations or organized markets. After the settlement of the Vikings, the dwellings were created in the same way, but arranged differently. Good archaeological material has been recovered which shows evidence of a great level of similarity between buildings before and after the capture of York by the Vikings. The houses were arranged next to each other. The front of the house was made to be a workshop area so the homeowner could create their own product in their home. The back of the house was used as a dining room, sleeping area and warehouse for the families who lived there. The yard area was mainly used for waste and human offal (Trynoski, 2019). Development of Government Another way that Viking culture changed was the development of government. Under Viking rule, the two separate cities, York and Dublin, were part of a single kingdom, but sometimes served as two separate capitals (Trynoski, 2019). York was the site of greatest political importance, as it was the official capital of Viking territory. Evidence suggests that the governance system of the two cities was similar in nature to the government found in Scandinavia (Trynoski, 2019). A feature that distinguished Viking government from Scandinavian government was the presence of Thingmotes: a mound built as a funerary monument and as a meeting place to discuss city government (Trynoski, 2019). O'Brien in a study stated that Thingmotes in a Scandinavian society would not be found in an urban environment, so archaeologists who found these mounds in major areas of.