How my Viking Ancestors Survived the Blood-Soaked Harrying of the North

Tuckey Coat of Arms

A family story my dad passed down to me was that of the Viking tribe Toki, our ancestors, and from whom the Tuckey name originates. ('Tuckey' comes from the Norse name Thorketill, meaning 'Thor's metal cauldron.') So how did this Viking name, and bloodline, sustain to the current day? A theory states that the tribe landed in Toxteth in Liverpool, founding that town. The Vikings founded many towns across the country, and their dominance lasted over a century. But the Toki tribe were one of the few Vikings to convert to Christianity. I asked my dad his take. There's a few gaps in our family knowledge, so if anyone wants to enlighten us, please get in touch.

“We doubt that they decided to 'give it a shot.' There was a continuous battle between King Alfred the Great and Vikings in various parts of England. Once or twice King Alfred managed to beat them and they surrendered. He gave them a deal: If you submit to the king and convert to Christianity, we'll let you live and farm here. Otherwise you'll be killed. So they converted. We don't know if history records that they stayed converted.

“Before you (this writer) were born, we (writer's parents) went to an exhibition in York – not Yorvick Viking Centre, but something similar. There was a mention that there was a teaspoon in one of the major churches in London, maybe St Paul's or Westminster, that was given to the church when Toki converted to Christianity. I've not managed to find anything else. I'll write to both, and ask which king they subscribed to (Alfred the Great, of Britain, or Guthrum, leader of Danelaw, the Viking-held area of Britain).

“During or after William the Conqueror's time, They murdered a particular character.” (This was probably Copsig, AKA Gospatric, Earl of Northumbria. This assassination is regarded as the turning point and inciting incident for the end of the Viking era.) “WtC got absolutely fed up with Vikings starting petty wars all over the place so he ordered The Harrying of the North, 'harrying' as in the harrier bird which attacks other birds. He sent an army northwards just to wipe out the Viking race. It was ethnic cleansing. But he let those around Rugby off; the Toki tribe survived. Is that because they'd become good Christian people? It's possible. In the Harrying WtC wiped out the populations of 5 towns, including Huddersfield and Wakefield. He didn't just kill the inhabiting Vikings, but salted the land so they couldn't grow crops, and slaughtered the livestock. There wasn't a chance of the Vikings' survival.”

The Christian monk and Anglo-Norman chronicler Orderic Vitalis (1075-1142) was horrified at what WtC's men had done. His diary entries survived for historians to read.

'The King stopped at nothing to hunt his enemies. He cut down many people and destroyed homes and land. Nowhere else had he shown such cruelty. This made a real change. To his shame, William made no effort to control his fury, punishing the innocent with the guilty. He ordered that crops and herds, tools and food be burned to ashes. More than 100,000 people perished of starvation. I have often praised William in this book, but I can say nothing good about this brutal slaughter. God will punish him.'

Dad went on to explain, “It was a very effective wipeout, but the Tokis survived. There are still loads loads of Tuckeys in the Rugby area, around 20km (12m) east of Birmingham.” (Take a look at Tuckey's Farm, Warwickshire.)

We don't have any immediate family there, but their ancestors would undoubtedly have stepped off the same longboats as ours. I'd be interested in hearing from you if you know anything about the above- or are perhaps a distant relative! Tweet me.