[Info] The Settlement

Ravensthorpe was originally a military camp established and abandoned by Halfdan Ragnarsson consisting of a longhouse with a few shacks and tents along the Nene River in Leicestershire. This led it to be the first stop when Haakon and the Raven Clan arrived after travelling across the North Sea from Norway. However, when they arrived, the camp had been abandoned by the Great Heathen Army and was occupied by Anglo-Saxon bandits. After a brief failed attempt at diplomacy, the Raven Clan cleared out the bandits and rescued their prisoners. The Vikings chose to reclaim the settlement as their new home, naming it "Ravensthorpe."

In time the settlement was completely redone, the Saxon longhouse stripped and refurbished to accommodate the new jarl and his household as well as a great feasting hall. A forge and armory were setup to allow for the creation and storage of new weaponry, as well as barracks upon the newly rebuilt docks for the Vikings to sleep and train. There was also a seer's hut, brewery, bakery, fishing hut, hunters post, and general goods trading post. Along the outskirts of the village were farms to raise chickens, goats, cattle, and grain. 

As Ravensthorpe became more established, it attracted Saxons, but also a growing group of peoples from as far away as the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. With its diverse population, the inhabitants of Ravensthorpe felt a need to have buildings devoted to their specialized intelligences that were atypical of Viking style. Statuary of the Norse gods and other religious icons were dotted about the settlement, places of worship as well as for protection and prosperity.