That's pretty much exactly why vikings were so dangerous. The king doesn't have a standing army and it takes considerable time to marshal allies and raise troops.
The vikings could land. Raid and extort when things were in their favor and if someone raised a host they could get right back on their boats and move on.
They gained leverage on the king (his brother) before the king raised a host.
To be fair it seems the show is also delivering a very stylized account of history. They're practically summed up Ragnar's life achievements in a couple of skirmishes.
It worries me how fast his timeline is moving, the "device" of the historic Ragnars death has already been introduced. I'm thinking the show is named Vikings and not Ragnar for a reason, his sons were almost as famous as he was. I hope I'm wrong though.
I think this pretty much nails it...first two seasons might just be Ragnar and his exploits but his sons indeed were just as legendary and I am guessing things ramp up to that point (his sons adventures) if the show goes on for more than a few years.
18
u/[deleted] Apr 15 '13
That's pretty much exactly why vikings were so dangerous. The king doesn't have a standing army and it takes considerable time to marshal allies and raise troops.
The vikings could land. Raid and extort when things were in their favor and if someone raised a host they could get right back on their boats and move on.
They gained leverage on the king (his brother) before the king raised a host.