Quick Facts: The Vikings in Sweden
- Eastern Focus: Unlike their neighbors, Swedish Vikings (the Varangians/Rus) sought their fortune mainly in the east, via the rivers of present-day Russia and Ukraine.
- The Varangian Guard: Swedish warriors were so formidable that they served as the elite personal bodyguard of the Byzantine emperor in Constantinople.
- Trading Wealth: The enormous quantities of Arabic silver coins (dirhams) found during excavations in Birka testify to their immense influence on world trade.
- Sigtuna: The city founded around 970 by Erik the Conqueror and replaced the ancient trading center Birka as the royal power center.
The Land of the Svear and Gautar
Unlike their neighbors to the west, Sweden in the 8th and 9th centuries was not a unified state. The land consisted of a mosaic of powerful tribes, with the Svear (in central Uppland) and the Gautar (in the south) taking the lead. In Old Uppsala lay the religious and political heart, where royal graves and sacred groves testified to a proud warrior aristocracy.
While the Danes and Norwegians focused mainly on the West, the Swedes sought their fortune in the East. The trading center Birka on Lake Mälaren became the hub of a network that stretched all the way to the Arab world and Byzantium.
The Varangians: Masters of the Eastern Rivers
The Swedish Vikings – known in the east as the Rus or Varangians – were unique in their orientation toward the great rivers like the Dnieper and the Volga. They were not just raiders; they were the architects of lucrative trade routes.
- Trading Empire: Via Novgorod and Kiev they reached the Black and Caspian Seas.
- Varangian Guard: Swedish warriors were so formidable and trustworthy that they formed the elite Varangian Guard, the personal bodyguard of the Byzantine emperor in Constantinople.
- Economic Flourishing: The enormous quantities of Arabic silver coins (dirhams) found in Birka form tangible evidence of the unprecedented wealth that flowed from the east to Sweden.
The 10th Century: The Birth of a Kingship
Erik the Conqueror managed to consolidate power over central Sweden in the late 10th century and founded the city of Sigtuna. He was a political strategist who sought alliances with, among others, Poland.
His son, Olof Skötkonung, took up the torch as the first king to claim (nominal) power over both the Svear and the Gautar. Under his rule, the first official conversion to Christianity also took place, a process that in Sweden, however, would encounter resistance for decades – if not centuries.
The 11th Century: A Transitional Period
The 11th century marked the final death throes of the classical Viking Age. The famous Ingvar Expedition of 1036, in which Swedish Vikings set out to the east, is often seen as one of the last great Viking raids.
Although the kings increasingly presented themselves as Christian rulers, Swedish society remained rooted in local traditions. The tings (popular assemblies) retained their power and the temple of Uppsala remained a pagan stronghold well into the 11th century. The runestones from this period tell the story of a people in transition: stones bearing both Christian crosses and old dragon motifs reflect the duality of a land standing between two worlds.
Summary: The Swedish Legacy
Swedish Vikings were the adventurers of the East. While others turned to plundering monasteries in England, the Swedes built a bridgehead between the North and the great civilizations of Constantinople and Baghdad. Their legacy is not just that of the warrior, but especially that of the merchant and explorer, whose influence laid the foundations for the early Russian state and the later Swedish monarchy.
Historical Insight:
The Swedish runestones are the 'Facebook posts' of the 11th century. They were erected in memory of family members who had perished or made their fortune in the distant east, and to this day they form the most personal source for Swedish history.
Internal Links
- The Rus Vikings: Trade, Migration and the Archaeology of River Routes
- Women in Birka: Status, International Trade and Clothing in the Swedish Viking City
- The Varangian Guard: The Axe-wielding Elite of Byzantium
Sources
- Andersson, G. (2016). Swedes in the East: The Archaeology of Viking Age Expansion. Statens Historiska Museum.
- Duczko, W. (2004). Viking Rus. Brill.
- Noonan, T. S. (1998). The Islamic World, Russia and the Vikings. Ashgate.
