Sailing over from Scandinavia, the Vikings terrorised European kingdoms in the 8th-11th centuries and repeatedly raided Paris.
Around 850 AD a fleet of 120 Viking ships sailed up the Seine.
They raided the city, laid waste to fields, and only left when bought off with over 2,000kg of gold!
30 years later, they returned with the largest Viking fleet ever recorded - some say over 700 ships and 30,000 men.
They lay siege to Paris for over a year, before being finally routed by the arrival of Carolingian imperial troops.
Fun fact : one way to placate the Vikings was to grant one of their leaders, Rollo, the territory of Normandy - in exchange for him promising to defend Paris against further Vikings incursions.
This is how Normandy got its name - Nortmanni = Norsemen!
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