The death of Louis the Pious (son of Charlemagne) caused a struggle amongst his three sons over land, and for the title of emperor. In 843 the Treaty of Verdun formally divided the kingdom and the Carolingian empire continued to dissolve. The squabbling amongst the three new rulers came at a time when Europe was being attacked by Muslims, Magyars and Vikings.

The Muslims invaded from the south, the Magyars from the east, and the Vikings from the north. The attacks were devastating, and lasted many years. Trade was disrupted and travel, even short distances, was dangerous. The Vikings were the most vicious and feared of the attackers. The powerful warriors, most looking

Surviving the attacks and pulling through political disruptions seemed to change the attitudes of these people, they now realized they had power and could make changes. A population growth, made it necessary, but easy to create and work more farmland. Agriculture was doing well, and lords encouraged their peasants to do more and cultivate more land. Everyone began to benefit from this, the lords were profiting from the agriculture and they started making different deals with the peasants. Peasants would earn a monetary income, and instead of giving up their livestock and time for land, they began to pay rent to the lord. This way peasants had more time for their own land, and lords could buy labor as they needed it.

to settle, terrorized and attacked the locals. Some even believed the Vikings were sent from God to punish them for some unknown reason:”…We pay them continually and they humiliate us daily…What else is there in all these events except God’s anger clear and visible over this people.” Sure, the villagers of Europe were fighters, but most of their battles would take place internally, against each other. Now, because of the invasions, the need for cavalries, protection, and military strength were apparent.

Money from farming and selling also allowed the people to build ships. Many of these cities were built along the Baltic Sea, where trade amongst cities was easier. The northern cities offered items like lumber, fur, and fish. The southern cities sent spices, clothes, and medicines. Trade, agriculture, and population were all on the rise. Everyone in the cities had work and opportunity, the contracts with lords were slowly going away and Europe was truly recovering from its earlier problems.

The attacks made it obvious to the people that the Carolingian rulers couldn’t protect them, and what’s more is they realized they were out matched by their faster moving and more powerful attackers. If not for these invasions, these weak points could’ve gone unnoticed for a long time. Something needed to be done, but what?

New fighting styles and

Some topics in this essay:
Fowler Germany, Magyars Vikings, Vikings Muslims, Baltic Sea, England Social, Ages European, Muslims Vikings, Treaty Verdun, King Alfred, Louis Pious, mounted warriors, exchange military service, exchange military, military service, magyars vikings, military strength, king alfred, protect lord, money trade, carolingian empire, middle ages,