Who Was Leif Erikson's Journey To The New World?

Christopher Columbus was not the first European to discover the New World! This commonly held belief is wrong. Columbus didn't reach the New World until 1492, 500 years after Leif Erikson's arrival in 1001 AD.

Leif Erikson was the first European to set foot in the New World, opening a new land rich with resources for the Vikings to explore. But for some unknown reason, the Vikings only made a few voyages to the New World after Leif. Unfortunately, this caused his discovery to remain unknown to nearly all of Europe, which was in the midst of the Crusades.

Here will be discussed Leif's life before his voyage, growing up in Iceland, living in Greenland, and his first voyage. His voyage to the New World and his stay there will also be discussed.
As was tradition with the Vikings, Leif did not grow up with his family. Instead, when he was eight he moved in with a man named Thyrker. Thyrker was from Germany where Eric the Red had captured him, had taken him to Iceland, but had not enslaved him. Thyrker taught Leif everything he needed to know, including reading and writing runes, the Celtic and Russian tongue, and the ways of trade. Leif was also taught the old sagas, plant studies, and the use of weapons. When Leif was not learning he and his friends would watch the ships come into the harbor; then he would listen to the tales of the sailors.

At 12, Leif was considered a man and traveled back to his father's house. Eric's house had grown since Leif had left. The herds had multiplied and there were new houses and more slaves. The spring after Leif arrived, Eric was summoned to a Thingvellir or lawmaking assembly. Eric took Leif along with him to the Thing. The next day, among the crowds, Eric met a man with whom he was feuding. They started to fight and Eric killed the other man.

Because of this, the Thing council banished Eric from Iceland for three
They kept sailing and found another land. This one was flat and forest covered, but they did not land there either. They had to get back to Greenland.

First Voyage

At the age of 24, Leif was asked to captain his first voyage. This was to bring gifts to King Olaf in Norway. Many preparations were made and Leif was very excited. Leif took along a crew of 14 and Thyrker.

The wind Leif was sailing on was fair at the beginning, but after their first day it slowed only to a gentle breeze. It was five days before they sighted Iceland. Most voyages make it in two.

The crew wanted to go ashore but Leif would not let them, so they kept sailing. They sailed for many days and Leif thought they would run out of food. Finally they sighted some small islands, the Hebrides, they realized they had sailed farther south than they had intended.

The day they arrived, a storm came in and didn't allow them to leave for a month. During this time Leif stayed in the house of the lord of the island. There lived the lord's daughter who was named Thorgunna. She was known to embroider tapestries and was believed to be learned in