Mo! This one was hard!!! M, Mille, 1000, 10×10x10, Millennium…
Yes - got it! A Thousand Years Ago…
The VIKINGS lived around these parts around 1000 AD. Their reputation is quite frayed, as their communication skills were limited, and they had a very straight forward approach towards their fellow men… and women. Their antics in the British Isles, for example, included raping and pillaging - activities that greatly affected the locals. It may be argued though, that the British learned some techniques from the Vikings, that they later used with great success when they were done fighting amongst themselves and set out to build the British Empire. But I digress.
They also left marks in France (Normandy is named after them - the percentage of blonde people is far greater there than in other regions of France…)
Anyway. Around 1000 AD, an intrepid Viking named Leiv Eriksson set off from the shores of Norway to see if there was more to find beyond the horizon.
Maybe he was bored with British waifs and was looking for more exotic venues, I don’t know, but it seems to be a recognized fact that he eventually (very eventually, have a look at the type of ships the guy used…) reached the shores of Newfoundland. Vinland, he called it - it’s been said that he found vines there…
The Vikings built a settlement at L’Anse Aux Meadows in Newfoundland. (This photo is from the reconstruction of the settlement) The remains of this was discovered in 1968, proving once and for all that the Vikings discovered America 500 years before Columbus…
Meanwhile, at home…: Around 1000 years ago, the Christening of Norway was well under way, with typical Viking methods. Efficient, but some might say questionable… “You swear allegiance to Christ, or I drive this sword through you” was a powerful incentive in those days, and Norway was officially Christened around 1030 AD.
(The Viking methods are used in all parts of the world to this day, albeit slightly modernized, to persuade reluctant locals to embrace such modern notions as Democracy and Human Rights, as well as countless less noble causes, but that’s another story…)
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