The formal conversion to Christianity in 1387 of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania seemingly marked
the end of Europe's last 'pagan' peoples. But the reality was different. At the margins often
under the radar around the dusky edgelands pre-Christian religions endured and indeed
continued to flourish for an astonishing five centuries. Silence of the Gods tells for the
first time the remarkable story of these forgotten peoples: belated adopters of Christian
belief on the outer periphery of Christendom from the Sámi of the frozen north to the
Estonians Latvians and Lithuanians around the Baltic as well as the Finno-Ugric peoples of
Russia's Volga-Ural Plain. These communities Dr Young reveals responded creatively to
Christianity's challenge but for centuries stopped short of embracing it. His book addresses
why this was so uncovering stories of fierce resistance unlikely survival and considerable
ingenuity. He revolutionises understandings of the lost religions of the last pagans.
