The Viking's rocked.
The Viking Parliament [ Tynwald ] set up here in the Island over 1000yrs ago, is the reason the Isle of Man has the oldest continuous Government in the World.
Bit of trivia for ye.
Tynwald - Parliament of the Isle of Man -
History
Tynwald In History
"Our little nation is the only Norse nation now on earth that can shake hands with the days of the Sagas, and the Sea-Kings. Then let him who will laugh at our primitive ceremonial. It is the badge of our ancient liberty, and we need not envy the man who can look on it unmoved".
The observer at St. John's on 5th July, the Manx National Day, watches a ceremony which has continued unchanged, except in detail, for more than 1,000 years. The annual outdoor sittings of Tynwald, the Manx Parliament, date back to the Viking settlements which began in the eighth century of the first millennium AD. No other parliament in the world has such a long unbroken record.
This place lies not only at the geographical heart of the Isle of Man, but also at the heart of the Island's sense of nationhood, and its configuration has remained unchanged since Viking times. For well over 1,000 years the inhabitants of the Isle of Man have gathered here at midsummer to hear the laws of their land proclaimed, to seek justice and to air their grievances.
Tynwald, the Manx Parliament, which meets regularly throughout the year but most notably outdoors at St. John's on 5th July, is a direct legacy from our Viking ancestors. Norsemen first came to Mann around the year 800AD, and ruled the Island for four-and-a-half centuries
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