Charlemagne conquers Denmark

Maybe the more interesting question to ask then is:

Could Denmark really be a threat to the Carolingians? It doesn´t sound plausible to me. They seem OTL to have been a minor nuisance, and heathens conquering christians sounds a bit... difficult.

But to make an interesting AH challenge: A danish invasion into the Frankish empire, so successful the empire crumbles down.

Can anyone give a plausible pod for this? (Remember the Danes don´t have to conquer and occupy, just defeat).

Charlemagne did consider it so! The murder of Godfrey is attributed to being instigated by Charlemagne.

Saxony rebelling following the 782 Frank quenching of unrest saw the expulsion of the Church from the duchy. Have a succesfull heathen Danish King help the Saxons get rid of the Church then. I think it could be possible even if the objective of the Danes would not be the Church per se but the Frankish rulers.

Did a TL once on Godfrey not being murdered in 810 - that could be the thing to destabilize the Frankish Empire.
 
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For Charlemagne the road to Denmark was blocked by the Wendish tribes. Without conquering them, there was no access to Jutland, the more so that the Vikings ruled the seas. Not that an attempt coming from the sea would have been successful anyway. In the long run the Roman Empire, if one can call it Roman Empire succeeded in partial conquest, bringing Christianity to Scandinavia. I don’t see how things would have been different if the events that occurred later, a few hundred years after Charlemagne, had happened during Charlemagne reign, with the exception of a shorter timeline.

Several Wendish tribes were the allies of Charlemagne. Godfreys expedition 808 to wend lands were to destroy their markets/economic infrastructure and move it to Hedeby.

The Wendish tribes were settled in eastern Holstein the Saxons in the western part.
 
Yes. The 792 assassination attempt on Charlemagne succeeds and Pepin the Hunchback takes the throne. If any of his half-brothers survive (and with trying simultaneously kill 3 or 4 people a few them might) you're going to see a massive struggle, Pepin while not the puppet I painted of him in Raptor of Spain was far from Charlemagne and since it's before the crowning of the "emperor" there's less of a religious imperative for a united empire.

In such a situation a united Scandinavia+revenge minded but not yet broken Saxons would probably be able to do quite a number of them. Bonus points: the Byzzies might send money or something if they feared he was getting to powerful. Not sure about that, I don't think they cared much about it until he was crowned as a Roman Emperor but it's possible.


Yes, but that´s not a danish invasion unsettling the empire. That´s just no empire...;) close but no cookie.

Anyway, what I´m really wondering about, what would be interesting PODS that involve Denmark/Scandinavia and the Carolingians in the early 9th century.
 
Several Wendish tribes were the allies of Charlemagne. Godfreys expedition 808 to wend lands were to destroy their markets/economic infrastructure and move it to Hedeby.

The Wendish tribes were settled in eastern Holstein the Saxons in the western part.

Your TL sounds interesting, what was it called?
 
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