God’s Hammer: A History of the Viking Crusades with Thomas Williams

Hear from Thomas Williams as he reveals how the Vikings transformed medieval Christendom.

About the event

When we look back at the Crusades and the Vikings, we often look at them in isolation. For the Crusades we think of knights, castles and cathedrals. An age of violence, certainly, but one glossed with faith, chivalry and Christian belief. With the Vikings we think of paganism, great travellers and traders as well as brutal warriors. Yet this is an oversimplification of a much broader story.

In this insightful talk Thomas Williams will showcase how the Vikings had a profound effect on the medieval world. Examining how the Western medieval world imbibed the values and attitudes of the Vikings’ northern home and utilised the Vikings who took up arms and the cross for Christianity.

This event is eligible for our 20% ticket bundle discount.

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About the speaker

Thomas Williams was a curator of the major international exhibition Vikings: Life and Legend in 2014 and is now Curator of Early Medieval Coins at the British Museum. He undertook doctoral research at University College London and has taught and lectured in history and archaeology at the University of Cambridge.