Did the Vikings help create Civilization during the Dark Ages?
Well, aside from the most obvious and direct causes of rape and pillage, one may say that the Vikings did very little to help create civilization. Looking past the obvious, it may be perceived that while the Vikings didn’t contribute too much to European civilization, their effects did. If it weren’t for the Viking invasions of Britain, the English may not have rallied around Alfred the Great and put the nation another step towards a united monarchy under the King of Wessex. Up until the Viking invasions, England was best characterized as the Heptarchy with loose alliances and little unity. If it weren’t for a common threat, unification would have been delayed or not have happened at all. Taking that instance into account, we can see that the Vikings can’t be attributed too much as civilization builders (An exception to this are the Normans in France who were originally Vikings) but rather a force that contributed to the consolidation of native civilizations.
