k the Red was famed Viking colonizer, explorer, and chief. Born to a family of modest means, Erik was exiled for his involvement in a violent dispute He rose in status as he explored Greenland and founded the first Norse settlement there. Headstrong and quick to lose his temper, he set his mind to improving his fortune and influence. He used his failure in the Icelandic court of law as an opportunity to gain fame and authority by settling and developing a vast land unknown to Europeans, a land that still carries the name he gave it. His son Leif continued his legacy of exploration by leading some of the first Norse voyages to North America, including Baffin Island, Labrador, Newfoundland and the Maritimes.
