The Vikings had many able chieftains. One of the most famous was
Rollo the Walker, so called because he was such a giant that no
horse strong enough to carry him could be found, and therefore
he always had to walk. However, he did on foot what few could do
on horseback.
In 885 seven hundred ships, commanded by Rollo and other Viking
chiefs, left the harbors of Norway, sailed to the mouth of the Seine
(_san_), and started up the river to capture the city of Paris.
Rollo and his men stopped on the way at Rouen (_rö-on'_), which
also was on the Seine, but nearer its mouth. The citizens had heard
of the giant, and when they saw the river covered by his fleet they
were dismayed. However, the bishop of Rouen told them that Rollo
could be as noble and generous as he was fierce; and he advised them
to open their gates and trust to the mercy of the Viking chief.
This was done, and Rollo marched into Rouen and took possession
of it. The bishop had given good advice, for Rollo treated the
people very kindly.
Soon after capturing Rouen he left the place, sailed up the river
to Paris, and joined the other Viking chiefs. And now for six long
miles the beautiful Seine was covered with Viking vessels, which
carried an army of thirty thousand men.
A noted warrior named Eudes (_ude_) was Count of Paris, and he
had advised the Parisians to fortify the city. So not long before
the arrival of Rollo and his companions, two walls with strong
gates had been built round Paris.
It was no easy task for even Vikings to capture a strongly walled
city. We are told that Rollo and his men built a high tower and
rolled it on wheels up to the walls. At its top was a floor well
manned with soldiers. But the people within the city shot hundreds
of arrows at the besiegers, and threw down rocks, or poured boiling
oil and pitch upon them.
The Vikings thought to starve the Parisians, and for thirteen months
they encamped round the city. At length food became very scarce,
and Count Eudes determined to go for help. He went out through one
of the gates on a dark, stormy night, and rode post-haste to the
king. He told him that something must be done to save the people
of Paris.
[Illustration: A VIKING SHIP]
So the king gathered an army and marched to the city. No battle
was fought--the Vikings seemed to have been afraid to risk one.
They gave up the siege, and Paris was relieved.
Rollo and his men went to the Duchy of Burgundy, where, as now,
the finest crops were raised and the best of wines were made.