In the Viking Age, society had two kinds of people, free citizens, and slaves.Free and unfree people. The unfree, or slaves, or thralls (as they were called in old Norse), were acquired through Viking raids.Historical accounts reveal the role slavery played in Viking, Scandinavia. It is estimated that at least one in five people in the Viking Age were slaves. The Vikings conquered the enslaved people through raids and war. According to legend, thralls were the lowest class created by the Norse God Heimdall. The Norse term for hereditary thrall was ‘foster’ or ‘fosterling’. The Viking slaves were traded. The Viking fleets would capture and bring the enslaved to the urban centers, where buyers would pay differentially for the slaves. Slave trading in the Viking era was governed by some laws.The Viking ships would not just be restricted to finding slaves in Scandinavian countries. It was a common practice to source them from other locations as well. Many slaves would be traded across the seas in other parts of Europe, like Russia, Sweden, and so on. Thus, the slave-trading system was a source of great wealth for the Vikings. However, to the slaves, it was a life of forced exploitation.Here is a rare insight into the slaves of Norse society. Other information about the Viking Age such as Viking armor facts and Viking axes facts, can be found on Kidadl, so, check them out as well.Best Viking Slavery FactsBefore the Viking Age, slavery was already quite widespread in Scandinavia. But slavery in the Viking world took on a different meaning. Slaves became commodities for the Vikings’ trade. Keep reading to find out some of the most fascinating facts about Viking slavery.In Viking society too, there were two types of people, those who were free and those who were not free. The latter were referred to as slaves or thralls. These slaves could be acquired through any means. From military raids to their homes, Vikings would acquire slaves and then either keep them or sell them through a system of Viking slave trade. Researchers believe that at least 25% of Viking society was made up of enslaved people. The raids by the Vikings took place in Eastern Europe and Northern Europe. The captured slaves would not necessarily remain with the Vikings but would be trafficked to other parts of Europe, like Sweden. There is no evidence of mass sales. The Vikings used to sell one or two slaves at a time. However, the number of times the slaves were traded was higher.The Viking raid was not just a means of acquiring material possessions but also a means of acquiring human chattel in large numbers. However, slavery in the Viking period was quite complicated. There are cases where someone chooses to become a slave to pay off a debt. However, the male slaves or female slaves had nothing, no inheritance, no ownership. The thrall could buy back his or her freedom, but this would have been rare. Some grave inscriptions point to a special class of slaves known as bryti. The bryti were able to secure a certain high class. They could marry and be given more modest responsibilities.Interesting Viking Slavery FactsIn the Viking age, not all human beings were born free. Even if you were born free, there was no guarantee that you would stay free. As slaves were lucrative goods, Vikings raided territories with the goal of enslavement.Iron shackles have been recovered from various archeological digs near such slave trading centers. The design suggests it was meant to shackle the neck, hands, and legs of the slaves. However, some could also be meant to restrain domestic animals. Viking society was primarily divided into three classes. The first-class, or jarl, was that of noblemen. The second class, or karl, included the freeman. The last class, or thrall, was the class of slaves, or thralls. Most Viking households had at least a couple of slaves, with more affluent warriors having as many as 30 slaves. Interestingly, the Vikings could enforce temporary slavery on someone as a punishment for an offense. But they were not interested in owning slaves or taking them back to Scandinavia. Their slavery model was an economic model. The purpose was to raid, capture, and sell the enslaved population for silver and other valuable items in major trading centers. This made Viking slavery a complex trafficking model that operated across Europe. Owners could allow their slaves to keep a portion of the amount received after selling goods. In such a case, the thrall could save enough money to buy their freedom.A slave led a harsh life. The way a slave was treated by his or her master varied, but living conditions still remained poor. He would have to spend long hours doing menial tasks without getting paid. Violence against slaves was quite common. They could be subjected to punishment and violence for a variety of reasons, such as religion. In some cases, the slaves were also killed upon the death of the master. This was done to ensure that the slave would continue to serve his master after death. Vikings would also do raids to capture young female slaves. They would travel across the seas to find, capture, and bring back the female slaves to Scandinavia. An interesting find from the genetics of Icelanders showed that the first women in the country could actually have been slaves. The Norse men would have brought these female slaves along and later married them.Do you think a Viking would milk a cow? No, he would not. In fact, suggesting such a thing was highly insulting. The task of milking was degrading and menial. Hence, it was meant to be done only by slaves, particularly female slaves. As there were many slaves available in the Scandinavian countries, there was no need for any free-born to milk cows. The introduction of Christianity marked a huge change in Viking society. The Vikings were banned from taking Christian slaves. With the incentive of the slave trade dying, the Scandinavian warriors stopped raiding with the purpose of capturing slaves. They instead shifted their focus to more religiously guided warfare.Empowering Viking Slavery FactsIn the Viking way, a slave could buy his or her freedom. Slaves performed a range of hard-to-easy menial jobs. These tasks were divided according to gender as well. Slaves had specific attire, which allowed Vikings to distinguish the labor force. Check out these fascinating and shocking Viking slavery facts.In the Viking Era, there were laws that governed the relationship between the enslaved and their owners. Thralls were bonded servants, so it was possible for them to purchase their freedom by paying their current worth to the masters. Slaves could be freed by their masters, or others could also set the slaves free by paying the owners the slave price. In such a case, the freed slave would be adopted into the owners’ family with lots of pomp and ceremony. In some cases (like in Iceland), the freedman or woman would be given citizenship. Still, the freedman would exist in an unclear space in the social hierarchy. Neither would they be of equal status to free-born people, nor would they fall into the category of slaves.Another shocking Viking slavery fact is that Vikings performed a range of tasks for their Viking owners. These tasks did not require much skill. These would be any kind of farm work, such as construction, manure cleaning and spreading, herding, and so on. Female slaves used to be tasked with milking, washing, being nannies, and even being personal maids. Milking was considered not just a hard but also a demeaning task.Slaves could also not marry on their own. Slaves had no rights of their own. If they disobeyed, the masters would punish them. Some reports revealed graves where the slaves were buried along with their masters. This shows signs of human sacrifices being made by the Vikings. However, some slave females did end up with high status, and slave males who were expert craftsmen were seen in high regard. The thrall could be identified by the slave collar that the male and female slaves used to wear around their necks. Men needed to have short and cropped hair, while female slaves could not have hair longer than their kerchief. The Viking slaves would be seen wearing a simple tunic made of homespun and undyed cloth. An idea for the appearance of the thralls came from The Last Rig. It points to the sun-burnt skin, dull eyes, blistered fingers, and bare feet, all because of working extensively in manual labor.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Viking slavery facts, then why not take a look at Viking battles facts or Viking brooches facts?
In the Viking Age, society had two kinds of people, free citizens, and slaves.
