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What if the Vikings Never Invaded England

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===Impact of Viking Invasions===
[[File:Oseberg_ship_-_IMG_9129.jpg|thumbail|250px|Oseberg ship, Kulturhistorisk museum (Viking Ship Museum), Oslo, Norway.]]
By 865, the Danes and Norse had seen the British Isles as a region to settle rather than simply raid (Figure 1). At that point, climate conditions in Denmark and Scandinavia may have forced many populations out of the region because it became difficult to farm. This likely encouraged many Danes to take to raiding and then later into settling new areas, where a more stable economy could be established for them. The British Isles, fed by the warmer waters from the Gulf stream, were attractive and fertile land. After landing in 865, eventually the Danes had defeated three of the four kingdoms of England, including Northumbria, Mercia, and East Anglia, with only Wessex having survived this onslaught. The conflict with Wessex occupied much of the late 860s and early 870s. Alfred, later known as Alfred the Great, took up the throne of Wessex and confronted the Danes. For a while, the conflict swung back and forth.<ref>For more on the background on the conflict between the Vikings and Anglo-Saxons, see: Baillie, Benjamin James. 2015. <i>The Great Heathen Army: Ivar "the Boneless" and the Viking invasion of Britain</i>. Benjamin James Baillie.</ref>

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