THE NORMANS
The term Norman derives from old French Normant, which in turn finds its origins in several Scandinavian languages, and translates to Northman. Nordic peoples, hailing mainly from Denmark, Norway and Sweden eventually became better known as Vikings.
As from the late 8th century agricultural and economic difficulties in Scandinavia, combined with an innate sense of discovery and dare, led these peoples to become expert sailors and navigators. Their long voyages across many seas in sturdy longboats becoming very consequential to history, in a truly epic sense.
Just like the able Phoenician seafaring traders before them, they sailed from one land to another bartering and selling goods, while establishing settlements and outposts extending from Vinland to the Ukraine and beyond. However the Northmen did not limit their ventures to peaceful trade, soon gaining notoriety as savage heathen pirates and plunderers. Their effectiveness in combat and attributed ruthlessness did indeed generate a sense of alarm and terror in Medieval culture.
One must bear in mind that most primary sources were written by monks and others who had been threatened or afflicted in some way, and hence certainly not free of bias. This trait persisted through modern times with many novels and movies / serials highlighting the brutality of the Vikings, which was certainly real, but only tells one side of the story.
Unlike the Romans before them, who converted occupied territory and subjugated peoples to their laws, culture, religion, the Vikings did not have a fixed centre-point as was Rome, and often acted independently from other factions.
Following the establishment of several coastal colonies the Vikings turned their attention inland. From their settlements on the Northern French Coast, they sailed into the heart of France through the Seine river. Such attacks began in 820 AD and would go on for the next 90 years, during which Paris itself was threatened several times and besieged twice.
Then in 911 AD, a frustrated King Charles III of West Francia sought to end this situation by means of a peace treaty with Viking leader Rollo. This came in the form of territorial concession and rights to areas that had already been under Viking control, eventually becoming known as the Duchy of Normandy. And hence the term Norman eventually became applicable specifically to the Vikings in France.
Despite the initial carnage and destruction, they soon realised that it was certainly more profitable to re-establish trade with their reluctant hosts than to kill them, gradually developing an interest in the culture and social norms of the lands they had invaded.
This eventually led them to integrate and assimilate, rather than regulate and dominate, to the point of embracing Christianity over time. The Duchy prospered but the Viking's innate thirst for adventure remained resulting in the invasion of England in 1066, successfully extending their realm.
So how does Malta fit into all this? In another page on this website, we have described how our Islands were taken over by the Arabs in 870 AD. A mere ten years earlier, a large Viking force invaded Sicily, but does not seemed to have settled there for any length of time. Sicily was then being contested between Byzantines and Muslims, pitting the Vikings against both. The Arabs prevailed over all their adversaries gaining full control of Sicily by 902 AD. Other sporadic Viking raids have been recorded in the Mediterranean, but it was after the establishment of the Duchy of Normandy that their eyes were turned on the Mediterranean.
The ongoing conflict in Italy between Byzantines and Arabs was an attractive opportunity to those who preferred sticking to their warrior tradition rather than turning their swords to ploughshares. This led to large numbers of Vikings enrolling themselves as mercenaries for the Christian cause to the extent that the Byzantine Emperor raised the Varangian Guard mainly from Norsemen. This elite unit was first committed to Southern Italy in 936 AD. Norman interest gradually escalated and in by the end of the century, Norman Knights had made their presence in the region. This led to a rather messy situation as Papal Forces, Byzantines, Lombards and Arabs all struggled for control, with Normans allying themselves to an array of the above and often finding themselves on both sides of the same battlefield. In around 1018, the Varangian Guard was sent to Italy to fight the Normans, then an odd 20 years later they were fighting side-by-side when and Sicily was retaken from the Arabs between 1038-1040 AD. After the successful conquest of England in 1066, even larger contingents of Norman mercenaries headed to the Mediterranean to become the most dominant force in Southern Italy. It was at this point that two brothers, Robert Guiscard and Roger entered the fray swearing allegiance to the Pope, with the former being conferred as Duke of Sicily. This led to the invasion of Sicily by the Normans in May 1061 and several battles spanning until 1091, when the last Muslim outpost at Noto yielded to their control.
Another thirty years would go by before Roger would turn his attention to Malta, which was still under Arab administration. Despite vanquishing the Arabs on the battlefield, both in Sicily and Malta, the Muslims were still allowed to carry on with their social, civic and religious duties, albeit having to pay tax and keeping in order. An uprising in Malta in 1122 led to Roger II, bearing the title of King of Sicily and Africa, to re-invade our Islands and regain control, consequently abolishing Arab rule in both Malta and Sicily in 1127. As the Normans established themselves further in Sicily, a growing influx of people emigrated to Malta, which according to some accounts was barely populated by the end of the Arab period. Christianity was re-introduced along with a gradual infusion of Romance diction to the local predominantly Arabic dialect spoken here at the time. A series of expulsions of Maltese Muslims eventually followed. Several scholars agree that the roots of most families living in Malta today are the descendants of Norman and consecutive immigrants combined with whatever was left of the original Arabic inhabitants, with the potential inclusion of a very confined number of people who in turn descend from the original Maltese population from the pre-Arabic period. This could have included slaves brought to Malta in service of their Arabic masters during the applicable timeframe. It certainly includes Arabs who were not expelled after opting or being forced to convert to Christianity. Clear traces of Arabic culture may still be discerned both in Malta and Sicily, with the overlap noticeable by the array of differing external appearance of the people living in this part of the World.
In 1244, Malta was again under attack when the Byzantines attempted to re-capture the Islands. The Normans managed to retain control and the Maltese Islands, along with Sicily would remain under their administration until 1294, when their ruling queen Constance I of Sicily married Frederick I, the Germanic Swabian.
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