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It took outsiders, who were far more superior in military capability, initially, that created great weakness in three of the four major English kingdoms. This provided an opportunity for Alfred the Great and his successors to not only eventually reconquer the kingdoms but the invasions served as a way to unify the English speaking population. It would be hard to imagine that England could have formed relatively easily in the 10th century without the invasions in the 9th century by the Vikings. Possibly, it would have taken longer and examples of Italy and Germany in the 19th centuries show that this process could have even taken centuries. Nevertheless, the invasions allowed the eventual creation of England and subsequent spreading and dominance of English culture and language that occurred many centuries later.

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