Although it’s easy to imagine the Vikings as a bunch of scruffy barbarians who murdered, raped and looted without any conscience, they actually had a complicated honour and justice system.
Punishments could be severe, but the Viking legal system was based on a legislative assembly and a court.
The Germanic Thing
"A Thing" was a governing assembly in Germanic society that was typically held in a specially designated place. The Thing made political decisions, legislated and tried murder cases, a common problem in the Viking Age. The word lives on in several Scandinavian names for Parliament, such as Norway’s Stortinget and Iceland’s Alþing, as well as in place names like Tingwall in Orkney and Shetland.
People could be sentenced to death or be made outlaws by a judgment at the Thing. Being subjected to outlawry meant that you were banished from society and anyone could kill you, with no consequences.
People commonly settled disputes among themselves by paying fines, or through the holmgang—a duel between two men, often over women or property.
So what was regarded as a crime in the Viking Age? How was it decided what kind of punishment would be meted out?
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Originally Posted by del
