Ivy G.’s Reviews > The Wolf Age: The Vikings, the Anglo-Saxons and the Battle for the North Sea Empire > Status Update

Olaf is unable to maintain his power because he doesn’t know how to politically rule, instead he treated his subjects like he was still a viking. Meanwhile, Cnut thrived because he learned to consolidate his power through marriage and being politically savy.

I think it’s just interesting to observe because it means that brute force and bribery isn’t enough to make a king anymore.

I didn’t think about how skalds have immunity from death in battles since they are considered very important members as witnesses of history. They carry a viking’s legacy and although the period was archaic, the fact that they knew how to preserve their legacy through skalds is such a brilliant and impressive method because it clearly worked.

Christianity’s fortune and rich demeanor appealed to the Norse people (especially vikings) that they ambition of fame, fortune and power gives them the easy will to ditch their old Norse gods to convert to Christianity. To them, they value how Christianity is able to provide a showmanship of how their religion physically thrives and that is enough of a reason to convert.