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Vikings in Dorset – talk by Dr Wayne Bartlett
As part of Wareham Town Museum’s 50th Anniversary celebration Dr Wayne Bartlett will be hosting the following event in the Corn Market.
Vikings in Dorset
The first documented Viking attack anywhere in Britain or indeed Europe took place at Portland in 789. Over the course of the next two and a half centuries Dorset was subject to frequent incursions from Viking raiders and warriors. Yet by the end of the Viking period Danish landowners were establishing Christian monasteries in Dorset. It is a remarkable story of contrast involving major attacks on Dorset settlements such as Wareham, vast Viking fleets in Poole Harbour and attempted coups against the Anglo-Saxon dynasty in Wimborne and Christchurch, not to mention atrocities and the death of kings. This talk will cover these epic events and put them into context, as they played a crucial part in not just local history but also in the formation of England.
Wayne Bartlett
Wayne has spent much of the past three decades researching and writing on history, focusing mainly on the Viking period and the history of the crusades. He has over twenty books published and has also worked with well-known figures and institutions such as Dan Snow and the BBC. He has lived all his life in Dorset though in recent years has worked and travelled extensively in over 80 countries around the world as well as living for some of the year on the Isle of Skye.
Entry by donation, all proceeds will go to helping support Wareham Town Museum.
