WI Alfred fails to stop the Vikings

A simple What If about English history.

What If Alfred The Great is unable to stop the Vikings from fully conquering Wessex?
 
He had to hide in the Somerset Marshes for a long time so the Vikings did conquer Wessex. OTL they couldn't hold it.

Now if they did both defeat and kill Alfred thats a different ball game. You get a system of Norwegian and Danish kingdoms that someone will unite into one Kingdom by the 11th Century so you get an England analogue.

As mentioned above the language is a bit different and probably no OTL Norman Invasion but at some point someone will invade from Europe. Whom is subject to too many knockons and butterflies to predict as is how successful and long lasting it turns out to be.
 

PhilippeO

Banned
Uh, didn't Canute and his father succeed at capturing London and conquer Wessex ? they rule isn't permanent, even if Viking kill Alfred, they rule will also temporary. English wouldn't just disappear because of two or three Viking king rule for a time.
 
I think England remains a patchwork web of petty kingdoms, obviously the ascedency of Wessex is cut short ITTL. The Danelaw would probably remain, but the Vikings would become integrated into the balance of power on the island. I suppose at some point one of the petty kingdoms or the Viking states could receive an especially able King who is able to forge a strong state, but that would be luck of the draw.
 
Uh, didn't Canute and his father succeed at capturing London and conquer Wessex ? they rule isn't permanent, even if Viking kill Alfred, they rule will also temporary. English wouldn't just disappear because of two or three Viking king rule for a time.

I'm pretty sure Canute was born nearly a hundred years after Alfred and his father Sweyn was born 61 years after the death of Alfred.
 
Suppose Gudrum wins the battle of Etandum 878 defeating Alfreds army and killing the king. Instead of becoming a ruler of just East Anglia Gudrum might get much more though other viking-ruled kingdoms would be present too. York/Northumbria being one ruled by Halfdan.
Some of Gudrum and Halfdan's retinue may decide to lend the continental viking horde a helping hand wrecking the Frankish Empires.

The real threat if any to the Viking-ruled kingdoms of England may once again emerge from home - Denmark - once the king feel strong enough to have a go at it or perhaps one of the English kings likes to try it the opposite way.

Either way the following centuries is still assured to see Viking activity and you could have either a Norman or Frisian go at England at some time with the occasional Danish or Norwegian one too!

What happens post these centuries is up to someone writing the TL. :D
 
Since the Vikings would also be Christians, the effects on a national language wouldn't be so great, but without Norman French a lot of words might be different. If the Vikings ended up ruling from Wessex, it is possible that the verb "to be" would become more regularised:

Present: I be, thou be, he be
Future: I will be etc
Past: I been
Negative: I baint
 
Since the Vikings would also be Christians, the effects on a national language wouldn't be so great, but without Norman French a lot of words might be different. If the Vikings ended up ruling from Wessex, it is possible that the verb "to be" would become more regularised:

Present: I be, thou be, he be
Future: I will be etc
Past: I been
Negative: I baint

Hunh?

Given that "are" as in "you are" is from Norse, why would they suddenly switch to 'be'.
 
Since the Vikings would also be Christians, the effects on a national language wouldn't be so great, but without Norman French a lot of words might be different. If the Vikings ended up ruling from Wessex, it is possible that the verb "to be" would become more regularised:

Present: I be, thou be, he be
Future: I will be etc
Past: I been
Negative: I baint

Hunh?

Given that "are" as in "you are" is from Norse, why would they suddenly switch to 'be'.

I'll come back to this later when I have more time to post but in short it's unlikely "be" will replace native "am", and "are" is native to Old English


EDIT:
Basically "beon" tended to be used to indicate general truths (eg snakes are legless), some senses of become, and the participle. Elsewise "eom/eart/is" were used as single present with "earon" competing with "sindon" in the plural (and reinforced by Old Norse); and the preterite of "wesan" (to stay. remain) used as the preterite - "waes, waere, waes, pl waeron"
 
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PhilippeO

Banned
I'm pretty sure Canute was born nearly a hundred years after Alfred and his father Sweyn was born 61 years after the death of Alfred.
What I mean is Sweyn and Canute rule didn't change much in English language, so a Viking kill an English king and rule Wessex/England 60-100 years earlier wouldn't have much effect on English language or society. eventually Vikings dynasty will be overthrow or anglicized.
 
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