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The Great Viking Army or Great Danish Army, known by the Anglo-Saxons as the Great Heathen Army (OE: ''mycel heathen here''), was a coalition of Norse warriors, originating from Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, who came together under a unified command to invade the four Anglo-Saxon kingdoms that constituted England in AD 865. Since the late 8th century, the Vikings had settled for mainly "hit-and-run" raids on centres of wealth, such as monasteries. However, the intent of the Great Army was different. It was much larger than the usual raiding party and its purpose was to conquer. The name Great Heathen Army is derived from the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' of 865. Legend has it that the force was led by the sons of Ragnar Lodbrok. The campaign of invasion and conquest against the four remaining Anglo-Saxon kingdoms lasted 14 years. Unlike many of the Scandinavian raiding armies of the period, surviving sources give no firm indication of its numbers, but it was clearly amongst the largest forces of its kind. The invaders initially landed in East Anglia, where the king provided them with horses for their campaign in return for peace. They spent the winter of 865–66 at Thetford, before marching north to capture York in November 866. York had been founded as the Roman legionary fortress of Eboracum and revived as the Anglo-Saxon trading port of Eoforwic. During 868, the army marched deep into Mercia and wintered in Nottingham, where it was besieged by a joint force from the kingdoms of Mercia and Wessex. With no progress being made, the Mercians agreed to terms with the Viking army, which moved back to York for the winter of 869–70. In 870, the Great Army returned to East Anglia, conquering it and killing its king. The army moved to winter quarters in Thetford. In 871, the Vikings moved on to Wessex, where Alfred the Great was content to pay them to leave. The army then marched to London to overwinter in 872 before moving back to Northumbria in 873. It again returned to Mercia, conquering it in 874 and overwintering at Repton on the River Trent. By this time, only the kingdom of Wessex had not been conquered by the invading Vikings. It was towards the end of 875 when the army started their second invasion of Wessex. After a few setbacks, Alfred the Great defeated the Vikings at the Battle of Edington, and a treaty was agreed upon, whereby the Vikings were able to remain in control of much of northern and eastern England. ==Background== Viking raids began in England in the late 8th century, primarily on monasteries.〔Sawyer. ''The Oxford Illustrated History of Vikings''. pp. 2–3〕 The first monastery to be raided was in 793 at Lindisfarne, off the northeast coast; the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' described the Vikings as "heathen men".〔''ASC'' 793 – English translation at (Project Gutenberg ). Retrieved 16 January 2013〕 Monasteries and minster churches were popular targets as they were wealthy and had valuable objects that were portable.〔Starkey. ''The Monarchy of England'', Vol. 1. p. 51〕 The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' for the year 840 says that Æthelwulf of Wessex was defeated at Carhampton, Somerset, after 35 Viking ships had landed in the area.〔''ASC'' 840 – English translation at (Project Gutenberg ). Retrieved 18 January 2013〕 The Annals of St. Bertin also reported the incident, stating:
Despite this setback, Æthelwulf did have some success against the Vikings. The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' has repeated references during his reign of victories won by ''ealdormen'' with the men of their shires.〔Janet L. Nelson, ‘Æthelwulf (d. 858)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 (accessed 18 Jan 2013 )〕 However, the raiding of England continued on and off until the 860s, when instead of raiding, the Vikings changed their tactics and sent a great army to invade England. This army was described by the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' as a "Great Heathen Army" (OE: ''mycel hæþen here'' or ''mycel heathen here'').〔''ASC'' 865 – English translation at (Project Gutenberg ). Retrieved 16 January 2013〕〔Oliver. ''Vikings: A History''. p. 169 – in 865 the ''Anglo Saxon Chronicle'' made mention of it ... Great Army ''mycel here''..Great Heathen Army ''mycel heathen here''〕〔〔(The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Manuscript B: Cotton Tiberius A.vi ). Retrieved 20 August 2013. The entry for 867 refers to the Great Heathen Army as ''mycel hæþen here''.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Great Heathen Army」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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