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LiveScience
LiveScience
Margaret Osborne

Were the Vikings really that violent?

Live Science
An illustration of Viking ships attacking a city.

Vikings are often depicted as brutish, bloodthirsty warriors with battle axes and horned helmets. In popular culture, Vikings are shown raiding, pillaging and murdering anyone in their path and performing grisly executions, like the infamous "blood eagle."

But is the Vikings' ruthless reputation warranted?

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