Germanic People: Clothing In The Viking Age

Neanderthals were hunter-gatherers who moved across Europe with the advance and retreat of the Ice Age glaciers. Their total population probably never exceeded 100,000. From 180,000 to 130,000years ago large glaciers covered much of Europe and Neanderthal remains are scarce. After 130,000years ago, tool technology developed rapidly to become the classic Neanderthal technology called the

Have you ever wondered what people in the Elizabethan Era wore? Fashion was just as important in those days as it is to some people today. What people were wearing mattered to others, and even the government. During the Elizabethan Era clothing, accessories, and cosmetics were all a part of daily life.

The Vikings were Norse seafarers, who mainly spoke the Old Norse language. They raided and traded from their Northern European homelands across wide areas of northern, central and eastern Europe, during the 9th to 11th century. The Vikings originated from Scandinavia, and the beginning of the Vikings expansion often originates from the raid of the Lindisfarne Monetary on 8 June 793. The Vikings were the first Westerners to sail to Iceland, Greenland, and over to the New World. However, the story of the Vikings is also an important story for the development of the Christian world in the West. Throughout this essay, I will explain the importance of Viking religion, Viking trade, and how the Viking age had an impact on the way Western and

The title "Viking" includes a wide description of Nordic people; Danes, Swedes, and Norwegians, who lived during a period of

It was fashionable to wear high double horn headdresses. Only wealthy people could hire tailors. Silk was worn to be seen just as much to be felt. “Looms wove the cloth in grid fashion, enabling them to stretch more effectively at certain angles than at others” (http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/medieval/clothing/) Popele sometimes wore loose linen or wool tunics like big baggy t shirts. Clothing became more complicated in the middle ages. In the 1300s, to make sure wealthy merchants were not confused with nobles, and craftsmen were not confused with wealthy merchants, laws were passed in towns and villages about what kind of clothes each group could wear. Wearing pants was originally a Germanic idea, and the Romans disapproved of it. But it gradually caught on anyway, especially among men who rode horses and in colder areas. Other men, especially noblemen, wore tights under their tunics. Outside, if it was cold, men wore wool cloaks. (http://www.historyforkids.org/learn/medieval/clothing/) Women mainly wore long sleeved linen dresses called chemises as underwear. Over the top they wore wool tunics with sleeves. Men wore long shirts and tunics, with stocking or

Laces usually fastened corsets at the back and were drawn tightly to alter the silhouette. The product was a “wasp waist” effect, or as some have expressed, the “hour glass figure”.

To the north of the Rhine and Danube rivers, lived a group of people known as the German tribes. They were herders and farmers who had migrated from Scandinavia. As their population grew, they began to look for new land. They decided that moving into the Roman Empire was a good idea. The Roman army was spread thin and could barely cope with the Germans. In the fourth century, the Huns, a nomadic people from central

Before the Romans invaded, Celts lived in Britain. There were no towns so most people lived in villages and were farmers. People were separated into tribes ruled by kings or chiefs. Chiefs were the leaders in battle; they would lead warriors into battle in

The Germanic tribe, the Vandals, were known for behaving like “barbarians”. Supposedly they migrated south to the point where they made contact with the Roman Empire. The Vandals attacked Rome although Rome had bigger problems to handle. They later established a kingdom in North Africa.

In most tribes, Native American men wore a long rectangular piece of hide or cloth tucked over a belt, so that the flaps fell down in front and behind, sometimes with leather attached in colder climates. In some tribes Indian clothing for men was a short kilt or fur trousers instead of a breechcloth. Most American Indian men did not use shirts, but Plains Indian warriors did wear special buckskin war shirts decorated with ermine tails, hair, and intricate quillwork and beadwork. Native American clothing for

The Paleo-Indian Tradition was considered the first humans to come to Wisconsin. Through the Bering Land Bridge, these people came into North America. They inhabited Wisconsin from 10,000-8,500 BC according to the Milwaukee Public Museum website.

There was a very clear line in between the wealthy and the poor. Peasants during the era wore layers of belted tunics, cloaks, hats, and boots or clogs for warmth. These types of clothing would never be seen on the wealthier class of people. Many fashion trends from the renaissance time period carried on from time period to time period and are very prevalent still today.

Viking history and culture have been depicted in many movies, television series, and stories. Vikings are commonly known as barbarians that raid villages and intimidate others with huge ships with dragon heads, and horned helmets. This information is based on facts, but has been distorted and exaggerated over many years and tales. Viking history spans from the years 780 until 1100, which is the time span of the Viking raids. Not every Scandinavian was a Viking; Vikings were known as the men that conducted raids and bloody battles. The old definition of Viking was synonymous with the term pirate. The modern definition is relevant to the Scandinavian medieval culture, to include farming, crafting and trading.

Clothing expression in medieval Europe, like all other forms of artistic expression at this time, found it's biggest outlet in the ecclesiastical field, as this was where all the money was to be found. The churches employed all the best builders and craftsmen in creating their great cathedrals, and art works. In clothing, the church dictated what sorts of materials were made, and brought into the area, what colors were in use, and what styles were used, influencing the secular as well as ecclesiastical dress. In the feudal system only great Barons and their families wore fine cloths, as clothing was a symbol of rank and importance. Each family made their own clothes, so fashion was very individualistic in style, and each family had their own characteristics. With an increase of wealth in the area, and the beginning of the crusades, new elaborate styles were introduced into the scene. Fashions became strange, and grotesque in nature reflecting the constant struggles and wars of the time, as fantasy and the grotesque generally influence social costumes accompanying times of war. Women in their headgear actually wore huge horns, like an ox, that towered above them and supported a veil, and men's shoes were peaked and extended six inches in front of them for common men, and a foot for gentlemen, and two feet for noblemen.

In Ancient Rome men generally dressed in two garments, the tunic and the toga. The tunic consists of a short woolen undergarment with short sleeves. In contrast, to wear a long tunic with long sleeves was considered feminine and avoided by the society as a whole. The tunic worn by wealthy men was made from white wool or expensive linen, while the poor would wear any fabric they could get. Like the tunic, the toga was worn to signify one’s title. Women would wear a belt around the waist to hold the waist of the garment snug. A woman’s wardrobe was much like a man but with a long tunica. The more common tunic worn by women was similar to the Greek chiton. Married women were required