
Ravensthorpe in 873 AD
Ravensthorpe is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England, located midway between Northampton and Rugby. It was founded in 873 AD by three dozen Norwegian settlers from Rogaland, led by Jarl Sigurd Styrbjornson and his adoptive brother Eivor Styrbjornsson, in 873 AD. The site of the settlement had previously served as a campsite for the Great Heathen Army during the Viking invasions of England (during which time it was considered part of the then much larger Cambridgeshire), and it had been overrun by a gang of Anglo-Saxon bandits before the invading Vikings took over the abandoned camp and converted it into the new home of their Raven Clan, from which the town derived its name. With the help of local merchants, Norwegian and Saxon settlers, and plunder gathered from Viking raids, Ravensthorpe expanded in size and increased in quality over the next several years. By 2011, Ravensthorpe had 646 residents.