Early christianization of Scandinavia

WI Christianity gets an early hold of Scandinavia. Similar to the way Armenians and Goths converted.

My idea for the POD would be a more succesful roman campaigns in Germany, going further north and even putting bases into south norway and sweden. Then later on they lose Germany but keep these small bases for a 100 years longer but abandon them eventually.

A more cultural contact between Rome and Scandinavia leads to influences on the culture and missionaries.

So how would things turn if instead of being pagans the Vikings would´ve been gnostics or arians?
 
INteresting. I'm not sure Roman bases are the way to go - Roman Christianity didn't prove terribly resilient once deprived of its government support. But you could take the Irish route, with conversion through itinerant missionaries and the emergence of monastic communities as parts of the local power structure.

A monastic, Arian, idiosyncratically Scandinavian Christianity... sounds like fun. Take out the Saxon Wars (Scandinavian missionaries convert them earlier) and maybe earlier conquests against the Western Slavs (heathens, the lot of them) and you could direct the energy of the Vikings elsewhere. I'm not sure I see a Synod-of-Whitby equivalent, but the reform papacy would certainly try to coopt them.

Very interesting idea you got there.
 
Actually the perception of today.
Early christianization took on from around 200, Aryan, Eastern Orthodox and Catholic plus Celtic Church!

To get a general conversion I would opt for earlier Kingdoms (oh we did this some time ago) to make the Kings realize the potential of state religion and the following package of administration!
And then on towards christening the Saxons and other peoples of the Baltic shores - in good accord with the Franks!
 
Actually the perception of today.
Early christianization took on from around 200, Aryan, Eastern Orthodox and Catholic plus Celtic Church!

To get a general conversion I would opt for earlier Kingdoms (oh we did this some time ago) to make the Kings realize the potential of state religion and the following package of administration!
And then on towards christening the Saxons and other peoples of the Baltic shores - in good accord with the Franks!

I like the idea of earlier kingdoms. (Although we don´t know for sure, maybe Gorm wasn´t the first king of Denmark, I´m pretty sure that there were kings on the scale of the viking period before the viking period).

So, you have a point Carlton and Arctic.

I´d like some christening process out of Scandinavia but I´d like to keep the conflict with the Franks in the picture.
 
I like the idea of earlier kingdoms. (Although we don´t know for sure, maybe Gorm wasn´t the first king of Denmark, I´m pretty sure that there were kings on the scale of the viking period before the viking period).

He wasn't - probably his father Hardacnut ruled most of Denmark and sometime during early medival age - term going to replace Viking age - Denmark was indeed a united Kingdom. Only Harold Bluetooth was the first to boast of uniting!
Before that time - ugh. You'd never going to get anybody with a degree to claim that! But than some runic stone just might pop out of the ground some day. :D

I´d like some christening process out of Scandinavia but I´d like to keep the conflict with the Franks in the picture.

Why not have Willibrord being successful in the early 730's and gain a foothold for christianity in Denmark.
Let Willibrord tell King Angantyr of the administration the church can provide counting for better taxation and counting numbers for a better military system than just relying on the nobility chieftains.
Angantyr did let Willibrord take 30 boys with him for being taught the christian ways, why not let Willibrord be less of a martyrseeker and more of a realist advancing the Celtic/British church!

With an early christian Danish Kingdom you could still have the conflict with the Franks as both would like to have the Saxons pay them fealty.
 
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