They were the Northmen who changed history. Starting as heathen Viking warriors who plundered and settled in Northern France and forged the new Duchy of Normandy, becoming the most ferocious conquerors that medieval Europe had ever seen, and giving England its most famous date: 1066.

In this two part series, Dr Eleanor Janega sets off across Normandy to discover who this band of rugged warriors, settlers and rulers were.

In episode 1, Eleanor follows the route of Viking raiders along the great waterways of Northern France, investigating the destruction left in their wake. She gets up close to the single most important technological development of the period: the Viking Longboat.

Exploring the magnificent religious sites across Normandy - including spectacular Mont Saint Michel - Eleanor discovers how Rollo, the first Duke of Normandy, embraced Christianity and integrated with Frankish royalty. The Normans forged a new type of society and amassed enormous power by melding together their Scandinavian seafaring heritage with the powerful and organised violence of the Carolingians.

But Norman society was still one of fractious violence. In this perilous context, the most famous Norman of all, William the Conqueror (AKA William the Bastard), was born at mighty Falaise Castle.

In episode 2, the Norman's ferocious appetite will turn outwards, and Eleanor follows the route of conquest to investigate what happens when the Normans confront another culture, in England.

If you enjoyed this episode, you can watch part 2 straight away on History Hit TV. For en even deeper dive into Rollo, the Viking outlaw became a respected Frankish leader and founder of a conquering dynasty, check out this episode of History Hit's Gone Medieval Podcast: https://podfollow.com/gone-medieval/episode/b0b8c952f6ec96718f7771b11157f546bf204c4f/view. To expand even further into the medieval world, Eleanor spoke to Dr. Levi Roach to consider how the Normans fared in 11th century Italy, on this episode of the podcast: https://podfollow.com/gone-medieval/episode/34aa2a72f5ac6eeb53c7a2e3449b36e92242d9b1/view.