Vikings Establish the Althing in Iceland
At a glance:
- Series: Chronology of European History
- Categories: Government and Politics
- Subcategories: Laws, Acts, Legislation, Barbarians, Nomads
- Curriculum: Medieval History/Middle Ages, Scandinavian History
- Geographical Location: Iceland
- Date: 930
Article abstract: The Vikings establish the Althing in Iceland, a legislative assembly that is generally considered to be the oldest in Europe.
Summary of Event
The events preceding the establishment of the Althing are of great interest in themselves. The story begins in 864, when the blood brothers Ingolf Arnarson and Leif Hrodmarsson, later called Hjörleif, or Leif the Sword, left Norway with families, warriors, and Irish slaves to settle in Iceland. Their ships got separated in the mist along Iceland’s southern coast, and Hjörleif came to anchor...
[The entire page is 1498 words long]
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