The Sack of Hexham occurred in 793 AD when a warband of Viking raiders under Ragnarr Lodbrok attacked the Northumbrian town of Hexham during the Norse summer raiding season. Guided by the enslaved Brother Athelstan, they made their way into the town after defeating a small force of Anglo-Saxon warriors on the beach, and they sacked Hexham before returning to Kattegat with their new loot.
Background[]
Following the successful Sack of Lindisfarne in 793, Ragnarr Lodbrok was given permission by Earl Haraldson to lead a second raiding expedition to the British Isles (on the condition that he take the Earl's half-brother Knut Haraldson with him). Ragnarr's captive priest Brother Athelstan told him more about England, of its division into four kingdoms, and of the presence of more churches in Northumbria, inadvertently helping Ragnarr with selecting his next target. Ragnarr and 22 other Vikings - now including his wife Lagertha - set sail for England aboard a single longship and made landfall on the English mainland, where they were greeted by 13 Anglo-Saxon warriors on the beach.
Battle[]
The Vikings scaling the walls
The Sheriff of Hexham, who was leading them, was friendly with Ragnarr, believing that he and his "Northmen" were traders. Ragnarr agreed to be escorted to the royal villa to convince the King to let him sell his goods in Northumbria, but Rollo and Eric Marteinn did not trust the Saxons, fearing a trap. Ragnarr told the Sheriff that Rollo did not trust him, so Rollo handed over his sheriff's necklace to Rollo as a sign of trust. However, the Viking Hrafna-Floki Vilgertharson mistook this as permission to snatch a crucifix necklace from another Saxon soldier, provoking a confused fight between the two sides. One of the Saxons escaped and rode to Hexham to warn the King, so Ragnarr decided to set up camp outside of the town and attack the next day, Sunday, knowing that it would be a day of rest for the Christians. They scaled the walls while the villagers were at church, and they proceeded to enter the church, kill the few men who resisted them, and convince the priest to tell his people not to resist, as Ragnarr promised that nobody needed to be harmed. However, the Vikings proceeded to loot the town, and Floki killed the priest when he tried to stop him from stealing the golden altar cross from the church. Knut proceeded to rape a Saxon woman and attempt to rape Ragnarr's wife Lagertha when she intervened, only for Lagertha to kill him in self-defense.
The battle on the beach
When the Vikings returned to their longship, they found a Saxon force waiting for them. The Saxons sent out their archers, so Ragnar ordered his men to form a shield wall. This wall deflected the arrows, and, when the Saxons charged, the Vikings formed a standing shield wall and proceeded to push back the Saxons. Ultimately, Lord Wigea was forced to call a retreat rather than let his men be massacred, and the King of Northumbria scolded Wigea for his defeat, although he did discover Ragnarr's name from Wigea (who had the two Norsemen guarding the ships interrogated and killed). Ragnarr had his Saoxn prisoner beheaded after burying the four slain Vikings, and he then set sail for Kattegat.
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