The reason why the Vikings went on raids is unusual and surprising

Science Jeanette Walsh
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When it comes to the Vikings, the first thing we think about is that they roamed the seas to plunder new lands, but which were, in fact, the reasons standing behind these raids?

A new theory claims that they settled for these raids for a very simple reason: sex.

Many Vikings had several wives and their society was much more complex than it is now, with a hierarchy based on wealth. The richest and most powerful Viking had the largest number of wives and concubines.

Researchers believe that young Vikings went on these journeys looking for partners. This hypothesis is based on archaeological discoveries, such as mass graves, but also on Nordic stories and tales, called saga.

The mass graves discovered by archaeologists were filled with remains of young men buried along with their weapons and goods. Their wealth was helping to increase power which, in turn, brought the possibility of having multiple wives.

According to researchers, this practice has reduced the number of women available for marrying poor men, because the ones who held the power got the chance to marry more than one female.

This has caused many Vikings to turn to risky activities in order to conquer power.

Moreover, men who obtained the privilege of the high social status, also participated in these raids, along with other poor men, in order to acquire new spoils that could bring a further increase of their power.

Sometimes, during those raids, they were accompanied by women, but it is still unclear why they did this.