Author: Boadicea

Danegeld in the 21st Century?

I’m sure most here have heard of Danegeld:  money, raised by taxation, given as a ‘bribe’ to the Vikings in the 10th and 11th Century to stop them raiding, raping and pillaging. It wasn’t just England who levied Danegeld – several other European countries did much the same.

In 991, Aethelred the Unready  King of England gave the Vikings about 3,300 kilograms of silver. The bribe worked – well for a while. But, as anyone could have told Aethelred (whose name means noble counsel) the Vikings stayed away for a bit and then turned up, fully armed of course, and expected to be paid another large sum of money. No wonder Aethelred rapidly acquired the tag Unready (ill counsel). Continue reading “Danegeld in the 21st Century?”

A Rant From A Red-Head

I have tried to run a site which:

provides a meeting place where multiple authors can publish articles on any subject that takes their fancy, and engage in civilised discussion on their posts. *

It seemed obvious, to me at least, that what might be civilised to some might not be civilised to others. However, I assumed that people who had known each other for some time would accept that some would express themselves a little more forcefully than others. Alas! It seems I was wrong.

I am beginning to wonder whether it is worthwhile continuing with the site. Continue reading “A Rant From A Red-Head”