Abstract
The aim of this paper is to discuss peace agreements and rituals from the perspective of the history of religions. Hostages, fosterages, intermarriages, and other ritual activities were associated with peacemaking during the Viking Age. These ritual activities will be discussed in relation to a proposed conflict and consensus model on the macro and micro levels, with examples from England and Iceland. The examples include the treaties between the Viking ruler Guthrum and Alfred the Great in the 880s as well as conflicts and agreements in the Landnámabók and the Íslendingabók, in addition to iconography (some archaeological objects) and place names. Through these examples I will present an analysis of peace agreements, or peacemakings, as mutual understandings, as well as power relations within a ritual framework. The agreements in the examples are also seen in relation to other societal activities and forces such as economy, politics, and law. The paper brings together a synthesis of previous research and new readings and interpretations of primary sources.
Highlights
The aim of this paper is to discuss peace agreements and rituals from the perspective of the history of religions
In my investigation I will focus on how counterparts, i.e. rulers and their subordinates, and on how people at other societal levels communicated across territorial boundaries during peace processes
I have given examples from the peace processes between rulers of Wessex and the Danelaw, where the swearing of oaths and other rituals was essential to the regulating of areas of confrontation beyond law and economy
Summary
Sigurðsson 1999; Althoff 2004; Hermanson 2009; Kershaw 2011). These studies describe the bonds that maintained a society from within, i.e. vertical bonds of friendship. Österberg describes conflicts within border societies in the 16th and 17th centuries controlled by a feudal state, she emphasises the mutual agreements in certain communicative spaces. She is influenced by the Marxist consensus concept, but uses it at the microlevel. I will present a model as a tool for understanding the relationships between society, areas of confrontation, and communicative spaces. The first step was the establishing of social relations through ceremonies involving rituals like oaths, gift-giving, banquets and perhaps a decision to exchange hostages and tributes (ON geld), and to intermarry These ritual performances often (but not always) occurred in communicative spaces such as things and halls. These include conflicts at both the macro and micro levels
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