The accepted history of the Vikings is of a band of blood-thirsty pirates raiding the peaceful monasteries of Christendom - and all of it is completely true. The Vikings took no prisoners, relished cruel retribution, and prided themselves as warriors. But their prowess in battle is only a small part of the story. The Vikings did not document their history themselves so we have had to discover it, and that discovery - of the Vikings from their point of view - reveals an extraordinary story of a people who, from the brink of destruction, in the course of 200 years reached around a quarter of the globe, and built an empire.