Today In History March 29, 2025

Viking Siege of Paris

845 Paris is sacked by Viking raiders, probably under Ragnar Lodbrok, who collects a huge ransom in exchange for leaving

A 5,000 strong fleet of Danish Vikings invaded Frankish lands in 845 and only retreated after besieging Paris and securing a ransom from the Frankish King Charles the Bald. They were part of a series of devastating raids begun by the Vikings from the 790s.

The Vikings were led by a man named “Reginherus” or Ragnar, sometimes linked to the legendary saga figure Ragnar Lodbrok. The Vikings easily overcame defences set in place by Charlemagne and are known to have attacked the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés just outside the city.

Although struck by an outbreak of plague the Vikings overcame this to return home with their ransom of 7,000 French livres of gold and silver.

Terracotta Army Discovered

1974 Chinese farmers discover the Terracotta Army near Xi’an, 8,000 clay warrior statues buried to guard the tomb of China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang

In 1974 local farmers digging a well near the Chinese city of Xian came across one of the greatest archaeological discoveries ever made. The discovery of a clay warrior figure soon revealed many more by state archaeologists. In fact there may be 8,000 terracotta figures in total, each individually modelled and purposely arranged in three pits to guard the tomb of the Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang Di (246-210 B.C.)

Contemporary court documents indicate the mausoleum was started soon after Emperor Qin took the throne in 246 B.C and continued until unrest in 209 B.C. Remote sensing and ground-penetrating radar has revealed the whole tomb complex to be almost 38 square miles (98 square kilometers) with the unexcavated Emperor’s tomb at the centre.

If you can see the Terracotta Army, go without hesitation; it’s mind-blowing.