Vikings Invasion on Europe
During the Viking Age, which lasted till 1066 CE from 800 CE, the Vikings played an essential role in Northern Europe. Firstly, in military armament, before a truce came to be between the Vikings and Europe, Vikings had the most potent and most lethal of arsenal compared to the Europeans. These Vikings’ boat and ships were durable and well architectured; they moved 200 kilometers per day and 18.5 kilometers per hour, which was an extraordinary thing and also built ships that were able to maneuver the river thus their lethal and fierce nature. This led to the advancement of European marine arsenal through weapon forging and embellishment to fight back and much up the arsenal of the enemy both on land and in the water front (Lamoureux).
Secondly, the Vikings impacted Europe’s religion, in that they massacred Christians; Vikings attacked Saint Cuthbert killing the monks and stealing the valuables of the monastery. These persecutions later toned down, and correlation and coexistence became possible, moreover the conversion of Guthrum and a few other Vikings into Christianity. This was due to the Treaty of Wedmore, which made the coexistence of Vikings and Christians possible, trading between the two communities, moreover, intermarriage. Some rituals and cultures of the Vikings were famous and robust such that they did not fade out even with the change of religion into Christianity, for example, the Christmas tree tradition is a borrowed cultural practice from the Vikings (Lamoureux).
Thirdly, some of the Vikings were soldiers and raiders, but the mainstream ones were traders and explorers. Modern Europe, as it is presently, is the work of these Vikings who undertook extensive trade and establishing trade networks and, during this period, transformed the economy of Northern Europe into a mercantile economy from a sound prestige system of exchange. The Viking subjugation of England entailed raids for metals, but most importantly, these Vikings in this era built and developed market towns turning mint wealth into money. Through this, the formation of international markets and trading across the different contemporary countries was founded by the Vikings; their exploration in pursuit of power and conquering discovered new lands setting up new relationships amongst these nations (Lamoureux).
Preservation of Christians and Romans
The preservation of Christians in this era occurred due to a treaty named the Treaty of Wedmore in 878, whereby the treaty bound Guthrum, the Viking leader, to convert into Christianity and have Alfred of Wessex be his godfather. This treaty came to be as a result of King Alfred defeating a Viking army at a battle in Edington, whereby the Viking king retreated to his stronghold. King Alfred did not stop at pursuing peace for his people, thus besieging the Viking leader for 14 days until the Vikings could no longer handle the starvations, fear, and cold, thus surrendering and signing the truce treaty (Williams).
Conclusion
The Vikings are an integral part of European history and the relationship between these different states. These Vikings from a past unified region of three countries, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway, had it in their heart to conquer all states with iron steel the nations and were proud barbarians full of strength in which they put all their trust in. Their unified formation and army power made them dominant colonizers in Europe for a time, not only conquering these Nations but also influencing their civilization, culture, rituals, and building towns and cities and trade routes. The Vikings with better strategy and less greed and haste would have conquered Europe region by region.