Mass grave belonged to Viking mercenaries

Published January 27, 2012 |

Were these death of these Vikings the result of the St. Brice’s Day massacre, where the English king Aethelred the Unready order the slaughter of all Danish men in England? The St. Brice’s Day massacre occurred on November 13 1002 throughout England. Nick Collins of the Telegraph reports on the theories behind this mass grave.

The burial site, containing the bodies of 54 young men, was unearthed at Ridgeway Hill near Weymouth in 2009 ahead of the construction of a new road, but the identity of the bodies within has mystified experts.

Because the men’s severed heads were piled up on one side of the pit, it was assumed they had been the unfortunate victims of a mass execution.

Radiocarbon dating showed that the men had been killed some time around the year 1000, and isotope testing on their teeth found that they were from Scandinavia, suggesting they may have been Viking invaders.

Now an archaeologist from Cambridge University has put forward a theory that the men were a gang of Viking mercenaries who were murdered on the order of the English king Aethelred II.

The monarch, better known as Aethelred the Unready due to his difficult reign, was known for using bands of Scandinavian mercenaries to carry out his bidding.

Chris Rivait

Chris loves history and hopes that Yesteeyear becomes a place where everyone can share their history knowledge. Chris owns an Internet Marketing company, Arrivait Marketing. He has a wonderful wife and four great children.