As the title says, what would be a realistic way for the Vikings to colonize North America? How would this shape the history of the Americas?
As the title says, what would be a realistic way for the Vikings to colonize North America? How would this shape the history of the Americas?
Or the easiest way. Finding a little yellow rock. The same little yellow rock that made Columbus a success instead of being hanged by the King of Spain as a thief -- the rock is called "Gold" and being told there was more over the next valley. The finding of gold and being told there was more changed everything and would change the Vikings to the Spanish model.
I would say religion would be a good "push" from Europe to "pull" of the rich, self sustaining lands of Vinland.
To get at what I mean, in the 980's Norway, and the Atlantic outposts were overwhelmingly Pagan (first Church in Norway was built in 995). In fact, even though there were British Christians among the settlers in Iceland in the late 800's the faith had died out (my suspicion is that the lass who would marry a pagan Viking was not the most loyal daughter of the Church and free from the institutions of Christianity in Iceland, the kids grew up Pagan). Yet by 1010 all of these places were nominally and increasingly Christian.
Vinland was discovered around 1000.
That change probably would not have been possible without one man, Olaf Tryggvason.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olaf_Tryggvason
He basically used violence to convert Norway, enforced a trade embargo with Iceland unless they didn't change religion, and sponsored the forced conversion of the Shetlands and Faroes. Among other things he accepted one Lief Ericcison as his Hirdman, and when his father Eric the Red died Lief enforced Christianity in Greenland (his mother converted to support her Son after he returned a convert).
Get rid of Olaf and this rather quick and relatively peaceful conversion falls apart. Replace it with a Danish/HRE/English/whomever war of conquest with lots of protracted violence starting say in the 1020s and going into the 1030's and 40's, long enough for knowledge of Vinland to spread. Have Iceland rather than Greenland back the settlement in order to be independent in raw materials. Have tens of thousands of Norweigans who had no reason to flee otl run for their lives as radicalized war refugees atl.
Men who cannot return home make very determined colonists, very different from the Vinlanders of otl who came but who could return to Greenland with few negative consequences the moment things got too hard. Increase their numbers ten or twenty fold, in the first wave.
This is the only type of circumstance I could see that would produce the right type of determined colonists to make Vinland succeed that might exist with a reasonable chance of happening.
If someone could come up with another good reason, I'd be interested to hear it.
Alternate History: What if the Hispaniola natives never said that there was more gold over in the next valley? Leaving out that one sentence changes the entirety of the last 525 years.Nor did the Indians on Hispaniola have much gold, but it was found nonetheless and they made the horrid mistake of saying that there was more over in the next valley. Then came the flood of explorers and conquistadors looking to cash in. First it was the Caribbean, then it was Mexico, and then beyond always searching for the gold over the next mountain. The Vikings would have done the same if there was gold up north and prospect of more over the next mountain, which as you pointed out there was none.
The known landing sites was too far north for useful / sustainable farming practices - the only things that could grow there are sheep and cattle, these items would not support a colony long.
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It is true that it would be a long-shot for a long-ship to reach Mexico, but it could in theory be done.
1. Native Americans would both be more immune to old world disease and more technologically advanced.I allways liked the Idea of a Norse settlements in Morth America with early arival of European animals (horse pig cow sheep cat etc)and fruit and vegetables after a few generations contact with Norway ends and the Vikings asssimilate with the native americans.How long would it take to have those new animals and vegetables being spread over the Continent
I like... but they also won't have succor or new colonists arriving from the mother country, nor access to trade to bring in tools/European technology and trade goods. That leaves the colony no real margin for error; every norseman lost is one home for good, and their advantage in tech is going to erode quickly. Can they establish a sekf-sufficent polity in the face of native competition?