650 Vikings maraud in longships
The Vikings develop the fast and narrow longships with which they raid across the North Sea

793 Vikings raid Lindisfarne
The monks of Lindisfarne become the first known overseas victims of a Viking raid

825 Vikings trade as Russians
Viking tribes known as the Rus are established as traders in the region of Novgorod

838 Vikings capture Dublin
Vikings from Norway capture Dublin and establish a Norse kingdom in Ireland

850 Vikings have northern Scotland
Vikings are by now securely established in the Orkneys, Shetlands and Hebrides, and in much of the Scottish mainlaid down to Loch Ness

874 Vikings reach Iceland
Vikings arrive in Iceland and form a settlement on the site of modern Rejkjavik

911 Vikings become Normans
The Vikings settle in France, as Normans, when Rollo the Ganger is granted feudal rights over the region round Rouen

920 Vikings capture Limerick
After years of raiding up the Shannon, the Vikings capture Limerick

960 Harald Bluetooth unites Denmark
Harald Bluetooth is baptized a Christian and unites the whole of Denmark as a single kingdom.

976 Brian Boru
Brian Boru becomes king of Munster and leader of the Irish campaign against the Vikings

1014 Brian Boru beats Vikings
Brian Boru, aged 73, achieves a major victory over the Vikings at Clontarf but is killed in his tent after the battle

1066 Normans invade England in longships
The Normans, as seen in the Bayeux tapestry, invade England in Viking longships with fortified platforms for archers

1240 Haakon IV rules Norway
Haakon IV is the first ruler to build up a strong Norway, some two centuries after the region becomes a single kingdom

1248 Sweden united by Birger Jarl
Birger Jarl establishes a dynasty which brings all Sweden under a single rule

1262 Norway annexes Iceland
The Norwegian king, Haakon IV, annexes Iceland as his personal fief, bringing to an end the commonwealth established in AD 930

1389 Margaret rules Scandinavia
With a victory near Falköping, Margaret becomes regent of Sweden as well as Denmark and Norway

1397 Scandinavian kingdoms united
With the coronation of the 16-year-old Eric of Pomerania, the crowns of Denmark, Norway and Sweden are formally united for the first time

1410 Last ship leaves Greenland
The Viking settlement in Greenland ends, after 400 years, when the last ship leaves the colony and sails for Norway

1523 Gustavus begins Vasa dynasty
The Vasa dynasty in Sweden begins with the seizing of the throne by Gustavus I

1527 Swedish king plunders monasteries
Gustavus I of Sweden fills his coffers by appropriating the property of Catholic churches and monasteries

1536 Danish king plunders monasteries
Christian III seizes the wealth of Danish churches and monasteries, before turning his attention to those of Norway

1632 Swedish king dies in cavalry charge
The Swedish army wins another convincing victory at Lützen, but Gustavus II dies leading a cavalry charge

1654 Christina abandons Sweden for Rome
Queen Christina, a secret convert to Catholicism, abdicates in Sweden and travels to Rome

1665 Danish king granted absolute power
A new Danish constitution (the Kongeloven or King's Law) makes the monarchy hereditary and grants the king absolute power

1772 Swedish coup d'état
Gustavus III achieves a coup d'état which brings executive power in Sweden back into royal hands

1809 Russia acquires Finland
In the Treaty of Hamina (or Fredrikshamn), Sweden cedes Finland to Russia as an autonomous grand duchy

1810 French marshal becomes Swedish prince
A French marshal, Jean Bernadotte, is offered the position of crown prince and heir to the Swedish throne

1814 Denmark cedes Norway to Sweden
Denmark cedes Norway to Sweden, in the Treaty of Kiel, following Bernadotte's successful Danish campaign