Battlefields›Oxford Viking Sack 1010

Early Medieval

Oxford Viking Sack 1010

Q: When did Oxford Viking Sack 1010 take place?

Oxford Viking Sack 1010 took place in 1010, in Oxfordshire, England. Town burned and plundered; the raiding force took an excursion up through the Chiltern to Oxford, burned it, then plundered both banks of the Thames back to their ships. Oxford was later rebuilt and fortified with stone walls and towers (including St George's Tower) as a result of the attack.

Q: Who won Oxford Viking Sack 1010?

Danish army (under Thorkell the Tall) was victorious. The defeated side was Oxford (Anglo-Saxon town). Town burned and plundered; the raiding force took an excursion up through the Chiltern to Oxford, burned it, then plundered both banks of the Thames back to their ships. Oxford was later rebuilt and fortified with stone walls and towers (including St George's Tower) as a result of the attack.

1010

Oxfordshire, England

Era

Early Medieval

Battle Type

Raid

Location

Oxfordshire, England

Status

Unregistered

The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated

Oxford (Anglo-Saxon town)

Victor

Danish army (under Thorkell the Tall)

Outcome

Town burned and plundered; the raiding force took an excursion up through the Chiltern to Oxford, burned it, then plundered both banks of the Thames back to their ships. Oxford was later rebuilt and fortified with stone walls and towers (including St George's Tower) as a result of the attack.

The Battle

History & Significance

Oxford Viking Sack 1010 was an early medieval raid, fought at Oxfordshire, England in 1010. Danish army (under Thorkell the Tall) prevailed over Oxford (Anglo-Saxon town). Town burned and plundered; the raiding force took an excursion up through the Chiltern to Oxford, burned it, then plundered both banks of the Thames back to their ships. Oxford was later rebuilt and fortified with stone walls and towers (including St George's Tower) as a result of the attack.

Confirmed battlefield location

The ground

The ground they fought on

The site of Oxford Viking Sack 1010 lies on Kellaways Formation And Oxford Clay Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Oxfordian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.

Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

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Everything a full report reveals about Oxford Viking Sack 1010

This page covers Oxford Viking Sack 1010. A full Aubrey report for the area pulls together this battle alongside scheduled monuments and everything else the record holds within a few miles:

Overview

An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.

Monuments

The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.

Battlefields

The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.

Roman Britain

The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.

Domesday

The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.

Civil War

The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.

Geology

The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.

LiDAR

Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.

Local Names

What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.

Historical Maps

Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.

Literature

The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.

Legal

The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.

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A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.

Target Zones

For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.

Timeline

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Protected heritage nearby

Scheduled Monuments near Oxford Viking Sack 1010

Oxford Castle and earlier settlement remains

Scheduled monument · ~0.2 mi

Oxford Castle is a Norman motte-and-bailey fortress established in the late eleventh century following the conquest of England in 1066. The castle's defensive earthwork, comprising a substantial mound with surrounding ditch, remains a prominent feature within Oxford's medieval townscape. The site…

Tejvan Pettinger / CC BY 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons

Rewley Abbey

Scheduled monument · ~0.5 mi

Rewley Abbey is a Benedictine priory founded in the late twelfth century in Oxford, established as a daughter house of the Abbey of Caen in Normandy. The site lies on the banks of the Thames to the west of the medieval city, and its foundation reflected Oxford's growing importance as a centre of…

Bill Nicholls / CC BY-SA 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons

Osney Abbey (remains of)

Scheduled monument · ~0.5 mi

Osney Abbey is a ruined Augustinian priory founded in 1129 by Robert D'Oilly in Oxford, Oxfordshire. The abbey was one of the most important religious houses in medieval Oxford, serving as a centre of learning and piety until its dissolution in 1540 during Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monaster…

Public domain / Wikimedia Commons

Oxford city walls

Scheduled monument · ~0.5 mi

Oxford city walls are a scheduled ancient monument comprising the defensive fortifications that once enclosed the medieval city of Oxford. The walls were substantially constructed during the late Saxon period, with major development and reinforcement occurring in the Norman and medieval periods,…

Camboxer / CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia Commons

Swing bridge, LNWR Station

Scheduled monument · ~0.6 mi

Swing Bridge, LNWR Station is a railway bridge of the 19th century associated with the London and North Western Railway's infrastructure in Oxfordshire. The bridge is constructed to allow passage of vessels by means of a pivoting swing mechanism, a characteristic design that reflects the engineer…

Robin Webster / CC BY-SA 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons

North Hinksey conduit house

Scheduled monument · ~1.2 mi

North Hinksey conduit house is a sixteenth-century stone structure located in Berkshire, serving as part of the water supply infrastructure of the Oxford region. The conduit house functioned as a distribution point for piped water, reflecting the investment in hydraulic engineering during the Tud…

Des Blenkinsopp / CC BY-SA 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons

Section of the Grandpont causeway

Scheduled monument · ~0.3 miles

Old Abingdon Road Culverts

Scheduled monument · ~1.4 miles

Other Early Medieval Battles

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466

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Battle of Crayford (457)

Anglian Assault on Roman York (c.450-500 AD)

450

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In the same landscape

Battles near Oxford Viking Sack 1010

Siege of Oxford

1644

~0 miles away

Siege of Oxford Castle 1142

Alfred's fortification of Oxford

886

~0.2 miles away

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