North Sea Empire: A History from Beginning to End

The Norman invasion of England in 1066 and the subsequent rule of William the Conqueror are among the best-remembered and often-documented events in European history. What is much less well known is that less than fifty years before the Norman invasion, England was invaded, conquered, and ruled by Scandinavian kings to become part of a North Sea Empire.

The creation of this empire, which would grow to include the kingdoms of England, Denmark, and Norway, was the work of two Scandinavian kings: Sweyn Forkbeard and his son Cnut the Great. These bold Viking warriors created their empire by conquest and held it by cunning and guile. It is entirely possible that the subsequent history of England might have been a story of Scandinavian domination, but instead, the North Sea Empire disintegrated, leaving the way open for the Norman conquest in England and the separation of Norway and Denmark.