From Greenland to Vinland: Leif Erikson & Viking Voyages to the New World
The History of Vikings
Noah Tetzner
4.7 • 537 Ratings
🗓️ 30 March 2026
⏱️ 38 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It’s been more than a thousand years since medieval Scandinavians left their homelands in search of plunder and glory, becoming the scourge of Christian monasteries and coastal cities—raiding and trading far and wide, from Anglo-Saxon England to modern-day Russia, Constantinople, and the Islamic Emirate of Cordoba in Spain.
The Vikings traversed so much of the world, exploring and settling Iceland, Greenland, and, for the topic of this episode, North America.
Medieval Icelandic sagas claim the Vikings reached North America around the year 1000.
But what is the story of the Norse in this ‘’new world’’? What are our sources? Were there interactions with indigenous peoples? Who were the key characters? And what could have led to the demise of the Vikings in North America?
Today's guest is British historian Martyn Whittock, a historical consultant to the BBC, whose books have sold over 1 million copies. Martyn is the author of American Vikings: How the Norse Sailed into the Lands and Imaginations of America.
Resources Mentioned:
Martyn's Books:
American Vikings: How the Norse Sailed into the Lands and Imaginations of America: http://pegasusbooks.com/books/american-vikings-9781639365357-hardcover
Vikings in the East. From Vladimir the Great to Vladimir Putin - The Origins of a Contested Legacy in Russia and Ukraine: https://www.bitebackpublishing.com/books/vikings-in-the-east
Tales of Valhalla: Norse Myths and Legends: http://pegasusbooks.com/books/tales-of-valhalla-9781681778464-hardcover
The Vikings. From Odin to Christ: https://spckpublishing.co.uk/the-vikings
1016 and 1066: Why the Vikings Caused the Norman Conquest: https://www.crowood.com/book/1016-and-1066
The Viking Blitzkrieg, AD 789–1098: https://thehistorypress.co.uk/publication/the-viking-blitzkrieg
Connect with The History of Vikings & Support the Show By:
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The |
| 0:07.0 | The Hello and welcome to the history of Vikings. |
| 0:41.1 | It's been more than a thousand years since medieval Scandinavians left their homelands in |
| 0:46.3 | search of plunder and glory, becoming the scourge of Christian monasteries and coastal cities, |
| 0:52.8 | raiding and trading far and wide from Anglo-Saxon |
| 0:56.2 | England to modern-day Russia, Constantinople, and the Islamic Emirate of Cordoba in Spain. |
| 1:03.6 | The Vikings traversed so much of the world exploring and settling Iceland, Greenland, |
| 1:09.8 | and for the topic of today's episode, North America. |
| 1:14.5 | Medieval Icelandic sagas claim the Vikings reached North America around the year 1,000. |
| 1:21.2 | But what is the story of the Norse in this new world? |
| 1:25.9 | What are our sources? |
| 1:30.3 | Were there interactions with indigenous peoples? Who were the key characters? |
| 1:32.3 | And what could have led to the demise of the Vikings in North America? |
| 1:37.3 | With me to discuss this is British historian Martin Whittick, |
| 1:41.3 | a historical consultant to the BBC whose books have sold over one |
| 1:46.5 | million copies. Martin is the author of American Vikings, how the Norse sailed into the lands |
| 1:53.5 | and imaginations of America. Martin, thank you so much for joining me again on the history of |
| 1:59.8 | Vikings. Thank you very much for having me on. |
| 2:03.0 | Well, we're long overdue for a conversation, Martin. |
| 2:05.7 | Our last interview on your other book on Vikings, Tales of Valhalla was so widely received. |
| 2:12.9 | And I got some requests to get you back on the show. |
| 2:15.7 | And so very excited to have you here today. |
... |
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