Understanding Pagan Beliefs in Northern Europe

Christianity came to dominate Europe in the Middle Ages. However, some parts of Europe remained pagan until very recently. So how did non-Christian peoples survive, and prosper, in parts of Europe for centuries after most of the continent had adopted the Church? Francis Young, folklorist and historian of religion and belief, explains all to David Musgrove.

(Ad) Francis Young is the author of Silence of the Gods: The Untold History of Europe's Last Pagan Peoples (Cambridge University Press, 2025). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Silence-Gods-History-Europes-Peoples/dp/1009586572/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty.

The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.

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