Back in Medieval England , life was hard . Even if you lucked into the better possible context , your living was doomed to beboth curt and vehement – and god forbid you stick sick , because you were more likely to be prescribedsalty owl marrow or puppy fatthan a simple Advil for your aches and pain .
On top of that , there were theVikings . Between the tardy eighth and ninth one C , the British Isles see repeated foray from Viking legion , mostly on the monasteries that dust the islands such asLindisfarneandIona .
Immediately , the invaders ’ savagery became the hooey of legend – which is n’t totally surprising , since monks werepretty much the only peoplewho knew how to write at the clip . However , new evidence out of one such ransacked monastery at Lyminge , in Kent , has archeologists questioning whether those Brother were n’t overdo their woe just a diminutive bite – and if , in fact , they did n’t do a bit better than they originally arrogate .
Excavations took place at Lyminge, Kent. Image credit: Dr Gabor Thomas, 2023
“ The image of ruthless Viking raiders slaughtering helpless monks and nun is base on write records , but a re - exam of the evidence show[s ] the monasteries had more resilience than we might carry , ” said Gabor Thomas , associate professor from the Department of Archaeology at the University of Reading , in astatement .
It ’s not that Lyminge was peculiarly spare from the Viking raider – track record hold at nearby Canterbury Cathedral show that after a raid in 804 CE , the fleeing Thelonious Monk were granted mental institution within the walled city of Canterbury . But archaeologic finds – including dateable artefacts such as silver coins – show that Lyminge continued to be inhabited by the brethren and their dependents for decades after the approach .
“ This inquiry paints a more complex picture of the experience of monastery during these riotous time , ” Thomas said . “ They were more resilient than the ‘ seat duck’s egg ’ figure portrayed in popular accounts of Viking raid based on read historic events such as the iconic Viking raid on the island monastery of Lindisfarne in advertizement 793 . ”
A silver coin discovered at Lyminge, Kent. Image credit: Dr Gabor Thomas, 2023
However , the resilience of the Lyminge monastery could n’t last , and by the close of the ninth C it had been completely abandoned – “ most likely due to suffer long - term pressure from Viking USA who are known to have been dynamic in Dixieland - eastern Kent in the 880s and 890s , ” Thomas explained .
By this period , most of England had come under Viking normal , with only the Anglo - Saxon King Alfred the Great of Wessex holding out against the so - call “ Heathen Army . ”
“ Settled liveliness was only eventually reinstate in Lyminge during the 10th one C , ” Thomas added , “ but under the authority of the Archbishops of Canterbury who had acquired the lands formerly belonging to the monastery . ”
The research is published in the Society of Antiquaries online open access journalArchaeologia .
