88 Norway and the Norwegians 



Scandinavian race at this time to allow of their uniting 

 into one vast confederacy, what might they not have 

 effected ! For one thing which is so interesting in this 

 Greater Scandinavia is that its inhabitants, its wliole 

 manner of life had, within its limits, such a wonderful 

 uniformity, and differed so markedly from the people 

 and the life of Central Europe which it enclosed, of 

 which unity of belief and of culture was gradually 

 forming the Europe of the Middle Ages. Tlie Northern 

 People had not enough political genius, however, to 

 combine together against Christian Europe. On the 

 contrary, it is just when, at the beginning of the tenth 

 century, the area of their conquests is nearly complete, 

 that they begin to split up once more into separate and 

 hostile fragments. Directly they ceased to win great 

 territory from Christendom, they began to dispute among 

 themselves for the possession of that which they had 

 won. This change in the warlike bent of the Scandi- 

 navian peoples inaugurates a new era in their history ; 

 a saving change it was for the inhabitants of Christ- 

 endom, a very fatal change it was for themselves. 

 Viking expeditions still continued. But they were not, 

 like the old ones, voyages of distant adventure directed 

 against peoples with whom the plunderers had nothing 

 in common. They were now more frequently directed 

 by Danes against Norsemen, by Icelanders or Orkney- 

 men against either, than by Scandinavians against the 

 Christians of England or France. 



As for the Northmen of Normandy — changing from 

 being Northmen to being Normans — they almost from 

 the first moment of their settlement began to separate 

 themselves in ideas and habits (and very soon in speech) 



