| 800 |
King Alrik, son of King Eirik of Uppsala,
rules over Vastergotland in Sweden. |
| 806 |
Hedeby begins to be mentioned as a great portus or
center of trade. |
| 810 |
King Godfred of Denmark is murdered while
trying to conquer Charlemagne's Frisian coastal holdings. |
| 810-11 |
Hemming, Godfred's nephew, becomes ruler
in Denmark but lives only a year. Hemming managed to
negotiate a peace treaty with Charlemagne before he
dies. |
| 811 |
King Horik Godfredsson takes over the
rule of Denmark, including Hedeby. Harald Haraldson,
called Klak also claims the title of King of Denmark. |
| 814 |
Charlemagne dies. |
| 815 |
Charlemagne's son, Louis the Pious, begins
a campaign into Danish Jutland. |
| 826 |
Harald Klak adopts Christianity to gain
the support of Charlemagne. In the words of the Vita
Hludovici, he and 400 of his followers were "drenched
in the wave of holy baptism." Harald is accompanied
by the Benedictine missionary, Ansgar as he returns
to Denmark with the emperor's blessing. |
| 827 |
Harald Klak driven out of Denmark for
good, given a fief in Frisia by the Franks. |
| 829 |
The first Christian missionary arrives
in Sweden, the Benedictine brother, Ansgar, accompanied
by a helper, Witmar. They are attacked by vikings,
lost their holy books, and finally arrive in Birka
on foot and penniless. Birka is mentioned as an urbus or
great city in the Vita Anskari (The
Life of Ansgar). King Horik of Denmark, although
himself a pagan, was instrumental in arranging Ansgar's
mission as a diplomatic maneuver to ensure trade with
his Christian neighbors. King Bjorn is the ruler of
Sweden at this time, living in Old Uppsala, and makes
Ansgar welcome if only to avoid antagonizing Louis
the Pious. |
| 829-31 |
King Bjorn allows Ansgar to build a church
in Birka, where he was the minister. Ansgar converts
Hergeir, the prefect of Birka. Hergeir donates the
land for the church and becomes a staunch Christian. |
| 831 |
Ansgar was made bishop of Hamburg, with
ecclesiastical jurisdiction over Birka. Pope Gregory
IV names him, jointly with Ebo of Rheims, papal legate
to all the Northern Peoples, including the Swedes,
Danes, and Slavs. Little or no impact was made on
the pagan belief in Birka at this time. |
| late 800's |
Gautbert is appointed as missionary to
Birka. His mission is moderately successful for a
while, until suddenly the pagans become angry and kill
Gautbert's companion Nithard and expel Gautbert from
Birka. |
| 840 |
Louis the Pious dies, marking the beginning
of political, economic and social upheaval in the Frankish
Empire. |
| 843 |
The Frankish Empire is divided among Louis's
three sons, the east going to Louis the German, the
West to Charles the Bald, and the center to Lothar. |
| 845 |
The Danes sack Hamburg with a fleet of
600 ships. |
| 849 |
Ansgar appointed Archbishop of Hamburg
and Bremen |
| 850 |
Ansgar's second visit to Birka. The fierce
Swedish king Olaf rules in Sweden during his second
visit. The converted prefect, Hergeir, dies. Ansgar
leaves the missionary Erimbert in Birka when he leaves. King
Horik of Denmark gives Ansgar permission to build a
church at Hedeby. |
| 850 |
Ansgar sends a new mission to Birka. He
sends the hermit Ardgar to meet with Hergeir, the converted
Christian prefect of Birka. |
| 850's |
Scandinavian coins are produced in imitation
of Charlemagne's Dorestad coinage. The coins have
the following inscription:
| Front |
Back |
| CARO |
DOR |
| LUS |
STAT |
It is uncertain where these coins were produced. Some
say Birka, others name Jumne in Wendland or Hedeby
in Denmark. Hedeby seems most likely, being closest
to Dorestad. |
| 853 |
King Horik of Denmark is killed with all
his family, except his youngest son, also named Horik. Horik
the Younger is under pressure to close the church in
Hedeby, which he does. |
| 854 |
Political and economic considerations
lead Horik the Younger to order the Hedeby church reopened. In
a scandalous move, the church is allowed a bell and
further allowed to ring the bell, which had hitherto
been scandalous to the pagans living there. |
| 854 |
The Viking Rurik gains a stronghold at
the neck of the Jutland peninsula, in effect becoming
a "robber baron" able to exact "taxes" on all trade
moving from Frisia towards Hedeby and Birka. This
Rurik is probably a brother of Harald Klak. |
| 873 |
Denmark has two kings, the brothers Sigfred
and Halfdan. |
| 880 |
Rimbert writes the Vita Anskari |
| 888 |
Rimbert dies. |
| 891 |
Two Danish kings, Sigfred and Godfred,
are killed. |
| 930 |
A mission to Birka is dispatched from
Hamburg under Archbishop Unni. Again, Christianity
fails to make any impact and pagan belief prevails. |
| 936 |
Gorm the Old is King of Denmark |
| 950 |
Birkan trade with Russia drops off sharply. No
Samanid silver minted later than 960 is found anywhere
in the Baltic. |
| ca 950 |
The Arab merchant Al-Tartushi gives his
account of a visit to Hedeby. |
| 960 |
Lake Mälar's water level begins to drop,
making the waterway that communicates with Birka more
and more shallow. |
| 970 |
Gotland has grown up from a seasonal trade
fair to a thriving center of trade, and begins to capture
trade formerly belonging to Birka due to its better
location on the Baltic trade route. |
| 975 |
Birka suddenly ceases to exist. No reason
has been discovered for its abrubt demise, though the
changes from 950 on probably all contributed. The
trade which formerly went through Birka moves to Sigtuna,
somewhat nearer to the capital at Uppsala. |
| 994-1022 |
Reign of the Swedish King Olaf Skotkonung. During
his reign, Olaf minted native Swedish coinage based
on Anglo-Saxon coins. |
| 1022-1050 |
Reign of the Swedish King Onund Jacob. King
Onund also minted his own coins, again based on Anglo-Saxon
examples. |
| 1050 |
Hedeby perishes in a conflict between
King Harald Hardrada and King Swein Estridsson of Denmark. The
town was raided by Harald and burned to the ground. |
| 1075 |
Adam of Bremen describes the geography
and peoples of Scandinavia, the town of Birka, and
the temple at Old Uppsala in his Gesta Hammaburgensis
Ecclesiae Pontificum. |
