“A furore Normannorum libera nos, Domine” - with such a prayer in the 7th-11th centuries. many priests of Western Europe contacted, asking to protect them from the Vikings...They appeared off the European coast on their ships under red or striped sails with a frightening head of a snake or dragon on the nose. According to contemporaries, they “ravaged the sinful land of England from one seashore to another; they killed people and livestock and spared neither women nor children.” And Charlemagne once said bitterly: “I foresee how much evil these people will do to my successors and their subjects.” The Viking Age, which lasted from the 8th to the 11th centuries, is usually considered as a separate era because, although historically, it represents a natural continuation of the legendary centuries , its political results are enormous. The name of the legendary conquerors - the Vikings, who sailed the seas and carried out successful raids on the possessions of people who lived close to the coast - is on everyone's lips. Many literary and artistic works are associated with them. Centuries later, legends about the Vikings are told again and again... The new book by Sergei Zharkov for the first time tells not only about the military art of the Vikings, but also about their life and gives the answer - where did these warriors come from, who kept all of Europe in fear for three centuries.