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The Greatest Viking
£16.99
The Greatest Viking—The Life of Olav Haraldsson
The life and legend of a Norse king who shaped Scandinavia
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About the Ebook
Raider. Conqueror. King. Saint.
This is the story of Olav Haraldsson, the greatest Viking who ever lived.
A ruthless Viking warrior who named his most prized battle weapon after the Norse goddess of death, Olav Haraldsson and his mercenaries wrought terror and destruction from the Baltic to Galicia in the early eleventh century. Thousands were put to the sword, enslaved or ransomed. In England, Canterbury was sacked, its archbishop murdered and London Bridge pulled down. The loot amassed from years of plunder helped Olav win the throne of Norway, and a century after his death he was proclaimed 'Eternal King' and has been a national hero there ever since.
Despite his bloodthirsty beginnings, Olav converted to Christianity and, in a personal vendetta against the old Norse gods, made Norway Christian too, thereby changing irrevocably the Viking world he was born into. Told with reference to Norse sagas, early chronicles and the work of modern scholars, Desmond Seward paints an intensely vivid and colourful portrait of the life and times of arguably the greatest Viking of them all.
Why You'll Love This Ebook
- Follow the epic journey of a medieval king and his quest for power
- Discover how one man's ambition changed the course of Norse history
- Explore the turbulent world of Viking age politics and warfare
- Read another celebrated title from Birlinn Ltd - Independent Scottish Publisher
About the Author
Desmond Seward was educated at Ampleforth and St Catharine’s College, Cambridge. Among the most highly regarded popular historians of his generation, he was the author of some thirty books, including biographies of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry V, Richard III, Marie Antoinette and Metternich. He died in 2022.
Publication Details
Publisher: Birlinn Ltd
Publication Date: 03 November 2022
Print Length: 272 pages (Ebook edition)
ISBN (Ebook): 9781788855679
Format: Ebook
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