Why the Vikings didn't colonize America?

Christopher Columbus is widely considered the discoverer of America, and his voyages are well-known. Similarly, the journeys of Vasco da Gama and Ferdinand Magellan, along with their discoveries and achievements, are commonly recognized. However, it’s worth noting that neither Columbus, da Gama, nor Magellan embarked on their renowned expeditions with the intent to make discoveries. They were driven by a far more pragmatic reason.

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29 december 2024   |   06:32   |   Source: Gazeta Morska   |   Prepared by: Tadeusz Hatalski   |   Print

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Shortly before their voyages, the fall of Byzantium to the Turks had cut off the Silk Road, the overland trade route to the East, for Europeans. This created an urgent need to find alternative routes to continue trade with the Far East and to import goods that were highly sought after in Europe, offering lucrative profits. For example, Elcano, who took command of Magellan’s expedition after his death in the Philippines, returned with 29 tons of pepper on the sole surviving ship from their circumnavigation. The sale of this cargo made him a wealthy man.

After Vasco da Gama's successful journey to India, the Portuguese secured the route around Africa and the Cape of Good Hope. Columbus, on the other hand, hoped to find a western route to India. Before embarking on the voyage that would bring him fame as the discoverer of America, Columbus traveled to Iceland in 1477. This arduous journey was undertaken to gather reliable information about lands said to lie across the ocean. Such a challenging expedition suggests he was convinced that the Icelandic people, descendants of the Vikings, had credible knowledge on the subject.

When sailing out of Lisbon, in the district of Belém along the Tagus River, one can see the monumental statue of Prince Henry the Navigator, who founded the first maritime academy in Sagres. This institution secured Portugal’s maritime dominance for decades. Once, when passing by this monument, I mentioned Spanish discoveries to a Portuguese pilot accompanying me on the bridge. He indignantly retorted that the Spanish discovered nothing. To be accurate, neither Vasco da Gama, Christopher Columbus, nor Ferdinand Magellan were Spanish. Columbus was from Genoa, and both da Gama and Magellan were Portuguese. However, both Columbus and Magellan made their discoveries while working for the King of Spain. Consequently, it was Spain, rather than Venice or Portugal, that reaped the benefits of their discoveries.

There are, however, forgotten discoveries that neither brought fame to their discoverers nor benefits to their rulers. Who today knows the names Bjarni, Leif, Thorvald, Thorstein, or Thorfinn, celebrated in Scandinavian sagas? And what did they achieve?

These Vikings reached America five hundred years before Columbus. Where didn’t the Vikings go during that time? They ventured far and wide—Sicily, Byzantium (which they conquered and plundered), North Africa, Portugal, Ireland, Britain, and Rus. Some evidence suggests they may even have reached Poland. There are even unconfirmed hypotheses suggesting that the Piast dynasty (like the Rurik dynasty in Rus) might trace its origins to the Vikings.

But let us return to the North Atlantic, Iceland, and Greenland. In the 10th century, the Vikings reached Iceland. On the barren, inhospitable rocks of this island in the middle of the North Atlantic, they not only survived but thrived. They managed to cultivate and settle this harsh land, and their descendants still live there today, prospering. Iceland’s success is reflected, for instance, in their impressive performance during recent European Championship qualifiers.

The Vikings also settled in Greenland, where their presence was not fleeting but enduring. They established lasting settlements on both the southeastern and western coasts of Greenland. Evidence includes the papal establishment of a bishopric in Greenland in 1124. The first bishop, Arriald, had his seat in Gardar, where a cathedral was built. The last bishop to actively serve in Greenland was Anders, who arrived in 1406 (around the time King Jagiełło of Poland prepared for the Battle of Grunwald). Although later popes continued to appoint bishops for Greenland, none ever reached the island again.

Looking at a map of the North Atlantic, one can see that the distance from Iceland to Greenland is shorter than from Norway to Iceland. The distance from Greenland to America is even less—approximately 250 nautical miles compared to the 1,500 miles from Norway to Greenland. If the Vikings could sail from Norway to Iceland and from Iceland to Greenland, they certainly could reach America from Greenland. And they did. Unlike their enduring settlement in Iceland and their 500-year presence in Greenland, the Vikings did not establish a lasting colony in America, despite their documented visits there. This is confirmed by both written records and archaeological findings.

At L’Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland (modern-day Canada), archaeological excavations have confirmed Viking settlements from the 11th century. Written records in Europe also mention these voyages. The earliest is the History of the Archdiocese of Hamburg by Adam of Bremen. In his work, he describes northern lands such as Denmark, Sweden, the Orkney Islands, Iceland, Greenland, and … Vinland: “an island discovered by many in that part of the ocean, named Vinland because wild grapes grow there and yield excellent wine.”

Adam of Bremen, contrary to popular beliefs about the Middle Ages being a time of ignorance, was a learned man familiar with the works of ancient and early Christian philosophers. He also knew that the Earth was a sphere. A canon in Bremen (northern Germany), Adam hailed from southern Germany—a fact relevant to a misunderstanding about Vinland’s name.

Vinland referred to the land west of Greenland, essentially modern-day North America, as named by the Vikings. Adam of Bremen wrote his History in 1075, just decades after the Vikings reached Vinland. He likely learned about their travels from the first bishop of Iceland, Isleif (1005–1080), who studied theology in Westphalia, where he was ordained. Adam mentions Isleif twice in his work.

However, Adam’s credibility regarding Vinland is undermined by his claim about wild grapes growing there and producing excellent wine. This is improbable, especially in Newfoundland, where archaeological evidence confirms the Vikings' presence. Helge Ingstad, in his book The Viking Discovery of America, offers an explanation for this misunderstanding. In Old Norse, the word vin means “pastures” or “meadows,” not wine (vijn). Many places in modern Norway incorporate vin in their names (e.g., Bjorvin, Granvin, Vinnan). Thus, Vinland, as named by the Vikings, meant the “land of meadows and pastures.” Adam, unfamiliar with this meaning and hailing from southern Germany—where grapes and wine are prominent—mistakenly interpreted vin as “wine.” Likely, he embellished his account with details about grapes and wine to make his story more compelling, unintentionally achieving the opposite effect.

The Viking colonization of Iceland and Greenland began in the 10th century. Analysis of various sources by the author of The Viking Discovery of America suggests that Vikings reached America in the 11th century (around 1020). While Vikings survived on Iceland to this day and thrived on Greenland for over 500 years, they did not colonize America—a far more hospitable land. Why not?

Scandinavian sagas mention conflicts with indigenous peoples (Skraelings). However, it seems unlikely that the Vikings, who sacked Byzantium, were deterred by primitive Native American tribes. The sagas also hint at internal conflicts and disputes among the settlers. Could these factors have contributed to the failure of their Vinland colony?

Unfortunately, this question remains unanswered. The American Vikings took the answer with them, and we may never know what ultimately defeated them in the New World.

tadeusz hatalski wikingowie vasco da gama krzysztof kolumb gazeta morska

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