| 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. |
