PAST EVENTS
Dr Gerry Brereton-Stiles broke new ground and introduced a refreshing change into the range of our normal mili tary history topics. While his lecture had been announced as 'The Battles of the Middle-Ages', and as the middle ages covered a period of more than 1 000 years, Dr Stiles had to be more specific and chose to speak of the period represented in our current newspaper cartoons by the horrible, yet lovable character - Hägar, that is the Viking Age. This term is a convenient designation of the phase of Scandinavian history which produced the incessant raiding expeditions by the norsemen or northmen, characteristic of the 9th and 10th centuries, into Great Britain, Central Europe, Russia, and even into the Mediterranean. The main objective of these raids was to obtain loot rather than to make territorial conquests, although some settlement and colonisation did eventually take place. Sailing in their distinctive Viking 'longships', shallow and narrow in the beam, pointed at both ends, propelled by oars and one large square sail, and so eminently suitable for manoeuvring in rivermouths and bays, they set out during the summer months, returning home in win ter. Armed with axes, daggers, spears and swords, carrying round, painted shields and wearing leather doublets and conical, leather-covered helmets, they would rely for success on surprise attacks, even feigning retreat before a final onslaught. Adopting hit and run tactics, Vikings would attack and plunder the weak, keeping on the move and avoiding stationary or defensive battles.
Our speaker then dealt more specifically with the Viking attacks and invasion of Great Britain and their subsequent settlement in England. The Viking age is generally accepted as having begun in 793 with the raid on the English cloister at Lindisfarne, on Holy Island, off northern Britain. Monasteries - isolated, wealthy and inadequately defended - provided an attractive target for the early Vikings, who were interested in easily won bounty and travelled singly or in small groups of ships. After several decades, however, the raiders found it convenient to establish semi-permanent and eventually permanent colonies. In England desultory raiding occurred in the late 8th century but began more earnestly in 865 when Viking forces conquered the ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of East Anglia, Northumbria and Mercia. Unable to subdue the Wessex of Alfred the Great a truce was made with him in 878 followed by which he ceded the territory north and east of a line from London to the northern edge of Wales (about three-fourths of England) to the invaders. The Vikings, while establishing themselves in almost all cases as masters and overlords in the regions in which they settled, failed to retain their own identities and merged with the native populations on whom, however, they left an indelible mark and imprint of the norseman character and culture.
The well researched and illustrated lecture was well received and earned a warm word of appreciation from fellow-member Dr. Graham Fuller.
FUTURE EVENTS
Programme of Monthly Meetings:
SEPTEMBER 8TH Fellow-member KEN GILLINGS will present an illustrated talk on the Bambata Rebellion of 1906 entitled "THE BATTLE OF MOME GORGE (A FASCINATING BLEND OF CONVENTIONAL AND GUERRILLA WARFARE)".
October 13th Fellow-member Ian Sutherland - "The Escape of HMS Amethyst" (Yangtse River, China).
November 10th Major Keith Archibald will deliver a short history of the Natal Carbineers followed by a video film of the regiment serving on the border.
December In recess.
The venue for meetings will be the 'Bourq Inn' on the lower ground floor, 'SB' Bourquin Building (Department of Community Services, NPA), on the corner of Jan Smuts Highway and Buro Crescent, Mayville, commencing at 19h30. Ice and water jugs will be provided, but please bring your own glass and bottled or canned refreshments. Friends and interested persons are welcome to come along.
(Mrs) Tania van der Watt,
Secretary, Durban Branch,
S.A. Military History Society,
Box 870, HILLCREST, 3650.
Tel. (031) vvvvvv