Sæl! We are Draugar Vinlands, a historical reenactment and living history group based out of Exeter, New Hampshire. We are dedicated to the immersive and accurate portrayal of culture and combat from viking-age Scandinavia.
Our mission is to bring to life an immersive portrayal of traditional Old Norse men and women, which we achieve by studying various historical sources (scholarly texts, new research, museums, grave goods, archaeological discoveries, sagas, etc) and brought to life by combining with our pursuit of experimental archaeology; that is, by equipping ourselves solely with the clothing, tools, weapons, and technology of the people of dark-age Scandinavia. By limiting ourselves in these ways, we recreate a climate that truly puts us in the shoes of those that we portray, allowing for an immersive and realistic environment for us as reenactors to grow and develop skillsets, a more realistic learning experients for our patrons and spectators, and an intimate cultural appreciation for the people of the age of Vikings!
We integrate academia alongside living history and experimental archaeology to imbue ourselves and our spectators with a visual and hands-on learning experience that provides deeper layers of analysis. This fundamentally improves our understanding in certain fields where sources fall short, chief among them combat. As no documents exist to demonstrate how vikings conducted battle, we reverse-engineer the weapons and armor found in viking burials in order to recreate an accurate fighting system that highlights and compliements the strengths and weaknesses of such military tools. We fight with swords, axes, spears, shields, and bows, dressed for battle with gleaming helms and chainmail shirts. We develop our proficiencies in the same manner as the vikings; trial and error, effort, and experimentation. By putting these weapons to use regularly, we build an intimate understanding of these weapons of war, and how best to use them to maximum effect.
But we are far from just a band of raiders. By studying the many sources available to us, we learn and develop our own understanding of the viking age world of the distant past. We consume the knowledge presented to us by scholarly theories and analyses, delving into realms that speak to us on an individual basis. Each and every member of Draugar Vinlands brings with them a deep fascination and appreciation of different facets of the viking past, and in this group are guided through scholarly research and driven to develop their learning and interests to become skillfull and proficiencient. Be it woodworking, cooking, weaving and textile spinning, black smithing, fletching, wire weaving, or brewing, we come equipped and function as a tightly-knit community in a viking settlement.
Thank you for joining us on our journey to bring history back to life. Please support us by visiting our events page to see when we’ll be raiding your area, and contact us to host us at your events!