Arguments Against the Norse Settlement Theory

Philip Ainsworth Means (See: Arguments Against the Arnold theory) was one of the main proponents of the Norse Settlement Theory and one of the major critics of the Arnold Theory. However, many point out that most of his facts used to disprove the Arnold Theory can be disproved just as easily.

Since Means authored his book, with the contention that Arnold lived nowhere near the Chesterton Windmill (meaning he couldn’t have been inspired by it), subsequent studies have proven that Arnold did need to traverse a main British road near the windmill. He or his contemporaries could have seen the windmill.

One of the main facts used to prove this theory is the connection between Dighton Rock and Norse settlers; however, there has been no definitive proof that Norse settlers created the inscriptions on the rock. In fact, in 1916, Professor Edmund B. Delabarre of Brown University studied the inscriptions on the rock and found that there were gross discrepancies between the inscriptions on the rock and those illustrations drawn by Rafn for his book. It appeared as though Rafn had doctored specific areas of the pictures so that they would better fit his theories.

Finally, there is no known record of Norse architecture being similar in size and shape to the Newport Tower. Ultimately, the biggest objection to the Norse Theory is that it is entirely speculative and unsupported by any archaeological or documentary evidence.