Welcome
Think of the Vikings, and the image that generally springs to mind is of hoards of barbarians in horned helmets ransacking, pillaging and destroying everything in sight. But they were also probably the greatest explorers in history, expanding from their native Scandinavia as far as Africa and America, centuries before Columbus. And, what’s more, they did all this without maps, navigating by watching the waves and whales. Their story sets sail on page 33. (Spoiler alert: they didn’t wear horned helmets!)
We also remember a couple of big anniversaries this issue. First up, we celebrate the 400th anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare (p51) by looking at how his historical plays have shaped our view of history. We also mark 100 years since the Easter Rising in Dublin (p27).

The Vikings island-hopped their way from Scandinavia to North America, 500 years before Christopher Columbus went there