When most people think of Vikings, they picture northern raids—longships, monasteries, and fire. But the most successful Vikings in history did something different. They stopped raiding and started ruling. By the 10th and 11th centuries, Norse descendants settled in northern France became known as Normans. They were baptized, spoke French, and wore mail—but they never lost the Viking instinct for violence, ambition, and opportunism. Southern Italy became their proving ground. The region was frac