"Tell me exactly how much equality those Viking women had. Do you know?"
While they did not enjoy all the rights women in the Unites States and western Europe enjoy today they were early in many rights. Viking women could divorce, own land, reclaim their dowry, were not to be beaten or physically abused by men and viking culture frowned upon displays of violence towards Viking women.
One such example and its link below:
In many places in Europe, women stayed at home, were married early, had lots of babies, and could easily be mistreated. They had no laws protecting them, and were considered property of their husbands. Viking women were the exception.
While they did get married as young as twelve and were responsible for managing their household while their husbands were off raiding, Viking women enjoyed much more freedom than other European women. They owned and inherited property, could divorce their husbands, and even reclaim their dowries if the divorce went through. They were respected in Norse society, and had a great deal of freedom, and had laws protecting them against unwanted attention ranging all the way from kissing to rape. In Norse stories, or sagas, harming women was considered extremely shameful. In fact, even playful violence against women was unacceptable.
According to some historical texts and Norse mythology, Viking women could even go into battle. This hasn’t been entirely proven by archaeology, but there’s some good evidence that says this was the case.
historythings.com
|
