Sticking with Vikings here for our theme of the month for February!   Hey!  Let's find out some more about the Vikings!

Viking Religion:

The Vikings were polytheistic. They believed in a variety of Gods (e.g Thor, Loki, Odin, Grimnir etc) who lived in Asgard. These God’s controlled everything, and people would often carry the hammer, symbol of Thor, for luck.

If you died in battle, you would be promised entry into Valhalla. Here, it was said that the hunt was good and that you would drink sweet mead (an alcoholic drink made from honey) from the souls of your enemies. (Apparently this was a pretty attractive prospect to Viking warriors!) The equivalent of Viking Hell, however, wasn’t quite so good. You would be forced to drink goats urine, you were eternally two cold and blood would always drip down on you from above. (Disgusting!)

The Vikings also believed some other things too! Odin, had two ravens, Huginn and Munnin (thought and mind) who would watch over the world. Another common belief was that the sky was held up by four giants, North, South, East and West. (They sound familiar?)

Many Viking’s believed that the world would end with the battle of Ragnarok. On this day, the seas were destined to fill with blood and brother would turn on brother. It was something many Viking’s feared.

A portion of Viking’s were converted to Christianity when King Alfred became ruler in Wessex.  

THE VIKINGS

THEME OF THE MONTH: JANUARY 2018

Ah!  The Vikings!  Our first theme of the month here at the Loreto Balbriggan History Blog!   So, who were they?

Well, the Vikings (also referred to as Danes or Norsemen {North men} came from Scandinavia.  They were feared warriors and respected traders.  The Vikings conquered most of Northern Europe.  Ireland, England (The majority of Wales and Scotland managed to keep a lot of their Gaelic Heritage.) Spain and Northern France were all under Viking rule.   

They set up trading posts across Europe (including our very own Dubhlinn and Veðrafjǫrðr- to you and me that’s Dublin and Waterford!)  Most notably, Vikings were even known to have been trading at the heart of the Byzantine Empire!  Scandinavian furs and skins were prized in the Far East!  Interesting, isn’t it?

Okay! That's all for now! Over and out!

History of Santa Competition

History of Santa

Read the following article and answer the question to enter the competition and win a fantastic prize.
Put your name, class, and answer in the box in the atrium before Thursday 21st.

• Just like the season of Christmas, the history of the origins of Santa Claus is influenced by the customs and cultures of many countries around the world. This national treasure began in modern day Turkey, sometime around the 4th century AD. It was here that Bishop Nicholas became renowned for his exceptional generosity, especially to the very young. Many years later he became known as Saint Nicholas, the patron saint of children.

• As time went on, adults began to dress in memory of Saint Nicholas, dressed in Bishops vestments and carrying a staff, to re-enact the kindness of the saint. They went from house to house, asking if the children who lived there had been well behaved. In response to these visits, the children left their shoes outside the doors of their houses so that next morning they might find them filled with sweets and trinkets.

• The modern representation of the character of Father Christmas was greatly influenced by Thomas Nast, a cartoonist with Harper’s Weekly, who published the first drawing of Santa Claus in 1860. He was a rather pot-bellied figure with white hair and a long beard, dressed in a red robe and wearing a crown of holly.

• Perhaps the most common version of Santa Claus today was brought about by publicity from the Coca Cola Company. They launched an advertising campaign in the 1930's with Santa Claus as the central character. This conception of Santa Claus was produced for them by Haddon Sundblom, who built on the character and costume created by Thomas Nast to produce a cheery, chubby fellow that is still a familiar perception of the mythical Christmas character to millions of people throughout the western world.

In what year did the Coca Cola Company launch their Christmas advertising campaign with Santa Claus as the central character, and have been doing so ever since?

Mock Exam Tool-Kit

Dear Students,

We have devised a Mock Exam Tool-Kit to aid you with time management and preparation during the History Mock Exam.

Feel free to download the history revision templates which include MindMaps, Event Maps, People in History Checklist etc.

You can locate the revision aids under Third Year hand-outs.

Finally we wish you all the very best of luck as you approach your History Mock Exam.

Study Skills

Note to all students

The History Department has devised a Study Skills PowerPoint which is available under First Year Handouts.

We wish all students the very best of luck in their Christmas Exams!  

Caption Competition Winner

Well done to all who entered the "Caption Competition".
The winner is Caoimhe Barker from 1D ! Congratulations Caoimhe !

Caption Competition

To launch our new History Blog we would like you enter our 'Caption Competition'. To enter simply comment on this post with a funny caption. You can enter as many times as you like. The winner will receive a history hamper. Don't forget to comment with your name or initials and class. The illustration shows Bill Norton the bathing policeman measuring distance between knee and bathing suit on women, Washington D.C. Women in the 1920's were issued an order that bathing suits at the Washington bathing beach must not be over six inches above the knee.

Welcome

Welcome to Loreto Balbriggan’s history blog! This blog is run by the History Department in Loreto Balbriggan. It is intended to bring History to life for the students in the school and to aid them in their study of history. Here you will find handouts, links to useful websites as well as information on history events in the school. Stay tuned for updates as we begin our virtual exploration of history through this blog.


Please feel free to comment, ask questions or contribute to the blog!


History Department contact email: loretobalbriggan.history@gmail.com