Editing Yorkshire (section)

====800s–900s: Jórvík====
{{Main|Jórvík|l1=Kingdom of Jórvík}}'''Scandinavian York''' (also referred to as '''Jórvík''') or '''Danish/Norwegian York''' is a term used by historians for the south of [[Northumbria]] (modern-day Yorkshire) during the late 9th century and first half of the 10th century, when it was dominated by Norse warrior-kings; in particular, used to refer to [[York]], the city controlled by these kings.

Norse monarchy controlled varying amounts of Northumbria from 875 to 954, however the area was invaded and conquered for short periods by [[England]] between 927 and 954 before eventually being annexed into England in 954. It was closely associated with the much longer-lived [[Kingdom of Dublin]] throughout this period.[[File:EricBloodaxeCoin.png|thumb|right|Coin from Eric Bloodaxe's reign]]
An army of [[Danes (Germanic tribe)|Danish]] [[Vikings]], the [[Great Heathen Army]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk/vikings4.htm|publisher=Jorvik-Viking-Centre.co.uk|title=What Happened to Them?|access-date=25 October 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071012204846/http://www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk/vikings4.htm |archive-date = 12 October 2007}}</ref> as its enemies often referred to it, invaded Northumbrian territory in 866&nbsp;AD. The Danes conquered and assumed what is now York and renamed it [[Jórvík]], making it the capital city of a new Danish kingdom under the same name. The area which this kingdom covered included most of Southern Northumbria, roughly equivalent to the borders of Yorkshire extending further West.<ref name="jorvikking">{{cite web|url=http://www.viking.no/e/england/york/kingdom_of_york_m.html|publisher=Viking.no|title=The Viking Kingdom of York|date=15 April 2000|access-date=24 October 2007|archive-date=25 December 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071225081026/http://www.viking.no/e/england/york/kingdom_of_york_m.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Danes went on to conquer an even larger area of England that afterwards became known as the [[Danelaw]]; but whereas most of the Danelaw was still English land, albeit in submission to Viking overlords, it was in the [[Jórvík|Kingdom of Jórvík]] that the only truly Viking territory on mainland Britain was ever established. The Kingdom prospered, taking advantage of the vast [[Trade during the Viking Age|trading network of the Viking nations]], and established commercial ties with the [[British Isles]], North-West Europe, the [[Mediterranean]] and the Middle East.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britannia.com/history/york/yorkhist4.html|publisher=Britannia.com|title=Narrative History of York: Viking Times|access-date=25 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170818202555/http://www.britannia.com/history/york/yorkhist4.html|archive-date=18 August 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Founded by the Dane [[Halfdan Ragnarsson]] in 875,<ref name="vikingnorth">{{cite web|url=http://www.northeastengland.talktalk.net/VikingNorthumbria.htm|publisher=NorthEastEngland.net|title=Part Two – Jorvik and the Viking Age (866&nbsp;AD – 1066&nbsp;AD)|access-date=25 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071029182047/http://www.northeastengland.talktalk.net/VikingNorthumbria.htm|archive-date=29 October 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> ruled for the great part by Danish kings, and populated by the families and subsequent descendants of Danish Vikings, the leadership of the kingdom nonetheless passed into Norwegian hands during its twilight years.<ref name="vikingnorth" /> [[Eric Bloodaxe]], an ex-king of Norway who was the last independent Viking king of Jórvík, is a particularly noted figure in history,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.historyfiles.co.uk/FeaturesBritain/BritishElmet.htm|publisher=HistoryFiles.co.uk|title=Eric Bloodaxe|access-date=25 October 2007|archive-date=1 October 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091001181311/http://www.historyfiles.co.uk/FeaturesBritain/BritishElmet.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> and his bloodthirsty approach towards leadership may have been at least partly responsible for convincing the Danish inhabitants of the region to accept English sovereignty so readily in the years that followed.