Why the Vikings came to Britain

The Vikings attacked Britain's holy places, slaughtered the monks who lived there and carried away countless treasures. Well designed boats and convenient winds helped these raiders to come and go as they pleased. Britain 

Terror from the sea

A short entry in the 'Anglo-Saxon Chronicle' describes how in 789 three Viking ships arrived on Britain's Wessex shore. The local reeve was sent to greet them, but he was killed on the spot. Unfortunately for the British, this was an indication of worse things to come.

Four years later, Lindisfarne (Holy Island), a monastery on an island just off the Northumbrian coast, was sacked. The monastery was revered for its link with St Cuthbert more than a century earlier, and was one of Britain's most sacred sites.

The first Viking raids were hit-and-run affairs. There was no co-ordination and no long-term plan behind them. Raids were not even a new hazard in a society well-used to warfare on every scale - from local skirmishes to great battles. The Vikings' great sin in this case, however, was to attack and pillage one of the most sacred places of the Christian world.

Answer:
In two words, what was the real reason the vikings went to Britain?

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