The Viking Invasion of the Loire Valley and the Sack of Nantes (842)

In 842, Norse warriors sail into the Loire Valley with a fleet of sixty-seven ships, marking a significant escalation in Viking activity in West Francia. Their primary target is Nantes, one of the most important Frankish cities and religious centers on the Atlantic coast.

The Sack of Nantes

• The Viking fleet, likely composed of Danish or Norwegian raiders, sails upriver from the Bay of Biscay, exploiting the navigability of the Loire to penetrate deep into Frankish territory.
• They storm the city of Nantes, pillaging its churches and monasteries, including the Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, where clergy and citizens had taken refuge.
• Hundreds of captives are enslaved and taken away, demonstrating the growing Viking involvement in the European slave trade.
• Bishop Gohard of Nantes is reportedly killed during the attack, further emphasizing the brutality and sacrilegious nature of the raid.