Preventing the Viking Age and the Consequences Thereof

How easy is it to contrive a set of circumstances where the great invasions, migrations and raids of the Vikings do not occur?

What if the male population of Scandinavia were continually fighting in Scandinavia? Internal wars could have an effect upon the population pressures.

Could earlier conversions to Christianity come into play?

What could happen where Russia isn't, and in England, er, not-Normandy, and south Italy? Or is that getting ahead of myself? If I were to talk about the spread of Islam to the Slavs via the Volga trade route, now then I really would be doing that...
 
Easiest way is to not have the Franks destroy the Frisians, who were the dominant sea power in the North Sea before the vikings. If you can add some decent feudal armies in Frankish/French and British territory, the vikings will be limited to small raids and acts of piracy rather than large invasions.

One butterfly might be more vikings going east to Rus and Constantinople and/or more vikings going west to Iceland, Greenland and perhaps even America.
 
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