Editing Middle Ages (section)

=== New kingdoms and Byzantine revival ===
{{Main|Byzantine Empire under the Macedonian dynasty|Byzantine Empire under the Isaurian dynasty|First Bulgarian Empire|Christianisation of Bulgaria|Kingdom of Germany|Christianisation of Scandinavia|Christianisation of Kievan Rus'}}
{{See also|Byzantine–Arab wars (780–1180)|Byzantine–Bulgarian wars}}
[[File:Europe in 900 AD.png|thumb|upright=1.3|Europe in 900]]

Efforts by local kings to fight the invaders led to the formation of new political entities. In [[Anglo-Saxon England]], King [[Alfred the Great]] (r. 871–899) came to an agreement with the Viking invaders in the late 9th century, resulting in [[Danelaw|Danish settlements]] in Northumbria, Mercia, and parts of East Anglia.<ref name=Collins378>Collins ''Early Medieval Europe'' pp. 378–385</ref> By the middle of the 10th century, Alfred's successors had conquered Northumbria and restored English control over most of the southern part of Great Britain.<ref name=Collins387>Collins ''Early Medieval Europe'' p. 387</ref> In northern Britain, [[Kenneth MacAlpin]] (d. c. 860) united the Picts and the [[Scottish people|Scots]] into the [[Kingdom of Alba]].<ref name=Davies309>Davies ''Europe'' p. 309</ref> In the early 10th century, the [[Ottonian dynasty]] had established itself in [[Kingdom of Germany|Germany]], and was engaged in driving back the Magyars. Its efforts culminated in the coronation in 962 of {{nowrap|[[Otto I]]}} (r. 936–973) as [[Holy Roman Emperor]].<ref name=Collins394>Collins ''Early Medieval Europe'' pp. 394–404</ref> In 972, he secured recognition of his title by the Byzantine Empire, which he sealed with the marriage of his son [[Otto II]] (r. 967–983) to [[Theophanu]] (d. 991), daughter of an earlier Byzantine Emperor [[Romanos II]] (r. 959–963).<ref name=Davies317>Davies ''Europe'' p. 317</ref> By the late 10th century [[Kingdom of Italy (medieval)|Italy]] had been drawn into the Ottonian sphere after a period of instability;<ref name=Wickham435>Wickham ''Inheritance of Rome'' pp. 435–439</ref> [[Otto III]] (r. 996–1002) spent much of his later reign in the kingdom.<ref name=Whitton152>Whitton "Society of Northern Europe" ''Oxford Illustrated History of Medieval Europe'' p. 152</ref> The western Frankish kingdom was more fragmented, and although kings remained nominally in charge, much of the political power devolved to the local lords.<ref name=Wickham439>Wickham ''Inheritance of Rome'' pp. 439–444</ref>

[[File:Christ Magdeburg Cathedral Met 41.100.157.jpg|10th-century [[Ottonian art|Ottonian]] ivory plaque depicting Christ receiving a church from {{nowrap|[[Otto I]]}}|thumb|left|upright=0.7]]

[[Christianization of Scandinavia|Missionary efforts to Scandinavia]] during the 9th and 10th centuries helped strengthen the growth of kingdoms such as [[History of Sweden (800–1521)|Sweden]], [[History of Denmark|Denmark]], and [[History of Norway|Norway]], which gained power and territory. Some kings converted to Christianity, although not all by 1000. Scandinavians also expanded and colonised throughout Europe. Besides the settlements in Ireland, England, and Normandy, further settlement took place in what became [[Kyivan Rus'|Russia]] and [[Settlement of Iceland|Iceland]]. Swedish traders and raiders ranged down the rivers of the Russian steppe and even attempted to seize Constantinople in [[Rus'–Byzantine War (860)|860]] and [[Rus'–Byzantine War (907)|907]].<ref name=Collins385>Collins ''Early Medieval Europe'' pp. 385–389</ref> Christian Spain, initially driven into a small section of the peninsula in the north, expanded slowly south during the 9th and 10th centuries, establishing the kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Asturias|Asturias]] and [[Kingdom of León|León]].<ref name=Wickham500>Wickham ''Inheritance of Rome'' pp. 500–505</ref>

In Eastern Europe, Byzantium revived its fortunes under Emperor [[Basil I]] (r. 867–886) and his successors [[Leo VI the Wise|Leo VI]] (r. 886–912) and [[Constantine VII]] (r. 913–959), members of the [[Macedonian dynasty]]. Commerce revived, and the emperors oversaw the extension of a uniform administration to all the provinces. The military was reorganised, which allowed the emperors [[John I Tzimiskes|John I]] (r. 969–976) and [[Basil II]] (r. 976–1025) to expand the frontiers of the empire on all fronts. The imperial court was the centre of a revival of classical learning, a process known as the [[Macedonian Renaissance]]. Writers such as [[John Geometres]] ([[fl.]] early 10th century) composed new hymns, poems, and other works.<ref name=Davies318>Davies ''Europe'' pp. 318–320</ref> Missionary efforts by both Eastern and Western clergy resulted in the conversion of the [[Moravians]], [[Bulgars]], [[Bohemian (demonym)|Bohemians]], [[Poles (people)|Poles]], Magyars, and Slavic inhabitants of the [[Kievan Rus']]. These conversions contributed to the founding of political states in the lands of those peoples—the states of [[Great Moravia|Moravia]], [[First Bulgarian Empire|Bulgaria]], [[Bohemia]], [[Poland in the Early Middle Ages|Poland]], Hungary, and the Kievan Rus'.<ref name=Davies321>Davies ''Europe'' pp. 321–326</ref> Bulgaria, which was founded around 680, at its height reached from Budapest to the Black Sea and from the Dnieper River in modern Ukraine to the Adriatic Sea.<ref name=Crampton12>Crampton ''Concise History of Bulgaria'' p. 12</ref> By 1018, the last Bulgarian nobles had surrendered to the Byzantine Empire.<ref name=Curta246>Curta ''Southeastern Europe'' pp.&nbsp;246–247</ref>