The Viking Isles

Author : Paul Murton
Publisher : Birlinn Ltd
ISBN 13 : 1788852281
Total Pages : 431 pages
Book Rating : 4.89/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Viking Isles written by Paul Murton and published by Birlinn Ltd. This book was released on 2019-10-10 with total page 431 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Paul Murton has long had a love of the Viking north – the island groups of Orkney and Shetland and the old counties of Caithness and Sutherland – which, for centuries, were part of the Nordic world as depicted in the great classic the Orkneyinga Saga. Today this fascinating Scandanavian legacy can be found everywhere – in physical remains, place-names, local traditions and folklore, and much else besides. This is a personal account of Paul's travels in the Viking north. Full of observation, history, anecdote and encounters with those who live there, it also serves as a practical guide to the many places of interest. From a sing-along with the Shanty Yell Boys to fishing off Muckle Flugga, from sword dancing with the men of Papa Stour to a Norwegian pub crawl in Lerwick, Paul paints a vivid picture of these lands and their people, and explores their extraordinary rich heritage.

Author : Alexander Fenton
Publisher : John Donald
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 368 pages
Book Rating : 4.83/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Northern and Western Isles in the Viking World written by Alexander Fenton and published by John Donald. This book was released on 1984 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Om Orkney- og Shetlandsøerne, Færøerne og Island.

Author : Nigel Tranter
Publisher : Hachette UK
ISBN 13 : 1444766988
Total Pages : 352 pages
Book Rating : 4.81/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Lord of the Isles written by Nigel Tranter and published by Hachette UK. This book was released on 2012-12-20 with total page 352 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: By the power of his sword arm, his dragon fleet and his sheer personality, Somerled Norse Slayer carved an enduring name for himself in Scottish legend. Inheriting his father's shattered thanedom in Argyll in the twelfth century, he enlarged it by courage, initiative, military shrewdness and diplomacy. For decades his navy held the balance of power in the northern seas, and it was he who cleared the Vikings out of the Hebrides. Set against the romantically celebrated West Highlands and Western Isles of Scotland, the story of the conquests and courage of this hero king is a living tribute to a renowned legend. A thrilling story of the Scottish Isles in the 12th century by Nigel Tranter, master of Scottish historical fiction.By the power of his sword arm, his dragon fleet and his sheer personality, Somerled Norse Slayer carved an enduring name for himself in Scottish legend. Inheriting his father's shattered thanedom in Argyll in the twelfth century, he enlarged it by courage, initiative, military shrewdness and diplomacy. For decades his navy held the balance of power in the northern seas, and it was he who cleared the Vikings out of the Hebrides. Set against the romantically celebrated West Highlands and Western Isles of Scotland, the story of the conquests and courage of this hero king is a living tribute to a renowned legend. A thrilling story of the Scottish Isles in the 12th century by Nigel Tranter, master of Scottish historical fiction.

Author : David W. Moore
Publisher : McFarland
ISBN 13 : 0786489243
Total Pages : 287 pages
Book Rating : 4.44/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Other British Isles written by David W. Moore and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2015-06-08 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Their names bespeak a rich past. From the Norse Hjaltland comes the modern Shetland: islands nominally Scottish, steeped in Nordic culture, closer to the Arctic Circle than to London. Important Neolithic sites are at Skara Brae and Maes Howe in the Orkneys. Holy Iona, island center of Celtic Christianity, the Isle of Man, former seat of rule over the Irish Sea, and Anglesey and Islay, homes of medieval courts at Aberffraw and Loch Finlaggan, are just a few of the more than 6,000 islands that form the archipelago known as the British Isles. The offshore isles are home to half a million people. Focusing on the eight islands or chains that have long supported substantial populations, this history tells the stories of Shetland, Orkney, the Hebrides, Anglesey, the Channel Islands, the Scilly Isles, and the Isles of Man and Wight, from their Neolithic settlement, to Roman, Norse and Norman occupation, to the struggle to maintain their uniqueness in today’s world. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.

Author : Paul Murton
Publisher : Birlinn
ISBN 13 : 1788852281
Total Pages : 419 pages
Book Rating : 4.89/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Viking Isles written by Paul Murton and published by Birlinn. This book was released on 2019-12-10 with total page 419 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The BBC travel personality explores the Nordic legacy of these remote Scottish islands: “Engagingly written and superbly illustrated.” —Undiscovered Scotland Paul Murton has long had a love of the Viking north—the island groups of Orkney and Shetland and the old counties of Caithness and Sutherland—which, for centuries, were part of the Nordic world as depicted in the great classic known as the Orkneyinga Saga. Today this fascinating Scandinavian legacy can be found everywhere—in physical remains, place names, local traditions and folklore, and much else. This is a personal account of Paul Murton’s travels in the Viking north. Full of observation, history, anecdote, and encounters with those who live there, it also serves as a practical guide to the many places of interest. From a sing-along with the Shanty Yell Boys to fishing off Muckle Flugga, from sword dancing with the men of Papa Stour to a Norwegian pub crawl in Lerwick, this book paints a vivid picture of these lands and their people, and explores their extraordinary rich heritage.

Author : Norman Davies
Publisher : Pan Macmillan
ISBN 13 : 0330475703
Total Pages : 1156 pages
Book Rating : 4.09/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Isles written by Norman Davies and published by Pan Macmillan. This book was released on 2008-09-04 with total page 1156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The bestselling and controversial new history of the 'British Isles', including Ireland from the author of Europe: A History. Emphasizing our long-standing European connections and positing a possible break-up of the United Kingdom, this is agenda-setting work is destined to become a classic. 'If ever a history book were a tract for the times, it is The Isles: A History ... a masterwork.' Roy Porter, The Times 'Davies is among the few living professional historians who write English with vitality, sparkle, economy and humour. The pages fly by, not only because the pace is well judged but also because the surprises keep coming.' Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, Sunday Times 'A book which really will change the way we think about our past . marvellously rich and stimulating' Noel Malcolm, Evening Standard 'A historiographical milestone.' Niall Ferguson, Sunday Times 'The full shocking force of this book can only be appreciated by reading it.' Andrew Marr, Observer 'It is too soon to tell if [Norman Davies] will become the Macaulay or Trevelyan of our day: that depends on the reading public. He has certainly made a good try. This is narrative history on the grand scale - compulsively readable, intellectually challenging and emotionally exhilirating.' David Marquand, Literary Review

Author : R. Andrew McDonald
Publisher : Birlinn Ltd
ISBN 13 : 1788854128
Total Pages : 408 pages
Book Rating : 4.22/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Kingdom of the Isles written by R. Andrew McDonald and published by Birlinn Ltd. This book was released on 2008-08-01 with total page 408 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This study explores the history of the western seaboard of Scotland (the Hebrides, Argyll and the Isle of Man) in a formative but often neglected era: the central middle ages, from the mightly Somerled to his descendant John MacDonald, the first Lord of the Isles (c. 1336). Drawing on a variety of sources, this very readable narrative deals with three major and closely interrelated themes: first, the existence of the Isles and coastal mainland as a kingdom from c.1100 to 1266; second, the rulers of the region, Somerled and his descendants, the MacDougalls, MacDonalds and MacRuaris; and third, the often complex relations among the Isles, Scotland, Norway and England. A fully rounded history emerges, which transcends national viewpoints. While political history predominates, the changing nature of society in the isles is emphasised throughout, and separate chapters address the church and monasticism as well as the monuments – the castles, monasteries, churches and chapels that form an enduring legacy.

Author : Timothy Venning
Publisher : Amberley Publishing Limited
ISBN 13 : 144564505X
Total Pages : 402 pages
Book Rating : 4.56/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Lords of the Isles written by Timothy Venning and published by Amberley Publishing Limited. This book was released on 2015-06-15 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores the history of the Lordship of the Isles at its widest extent – the rulers of the west coast and islands of Scotland.

Author : Wendy Davies
Publisher : Oxford University Press on Demand
ISBN 13 : 9780198700517
Total Pages : 276 pages
Book Rating : 4.12/5 ( download)

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Download or read book From the Vikings to the Normans written by Wendy Davies and published by Oxford University Press on Demand. This book was released on 2003 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This readable and authoritative volume covers the history of the Britain and Ireland between 800 and 1100 A.D. Seven chapters contributed by a team of experts cover key of this period, such as the Vikings, monarchies and other political structures, relationships between lords and labourers, developments in trade and urbanization, the christianization of society, the functions and dissemination of writing and scholarship, and relationships between Britain, Ireland and the Mediterranean civilizations to the south. To create a fully-rounded overview of the period, Wendy Davies, the volume's editor, has provided an Introduction giving a geographical context to the chapter narratives and discussing the available source material, and a Conclusion which pulls together the themes and currents running through the individual chapters.

Author : Alan Macniven
Publisher : Birlinn Ltd
ISBN 13 : 1788853695
Total Pages : 519 pages
Book Rating : 4.99/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Vikings in Islay written by Alan Macniven and published by Birlinn Ltd. This book was released on 2015-11-23 with total page 519 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Hebridean island of Islay is well-known for its whisky, its wildlife and its association with the MacDonald Lords of the Isles. There would seem to be little reason to dwell on its fate at the hands of marauding Northmen during the Viking Age. Despite a pivotal location on the 'sea road' from Norway to Ireland, there are no convincing records of the Vikings ever having been there. In recent years, historians have been keen to marginalise the island's Viking experience, choosing instead to focus on the enduring stability of native Celtic culture, and tracing the island's modern Gaelic traditions back in an unbroken chain to the dawn of the Christian era. However, the foundations of this presumption are flawed. With no written accounts to go by, the real story of Islay's Viking Age has to be read from another type of source material - the silent witness of the names of local places. The Vikings in Islay presents a systematic review of around 240 of the island's farm and nature names. The conclusions drawn turn traditional assumptions on their head. The romance of Islay's names, it seems, masks a harrowing tale of invasion, apartheid and ethnic cleansing.