The Normans are rightly regarded as one of the peoples that significantly shaped medieval history. The Norman conquest of England in 1066 was an epochal event. The Northmen raided the coasts of the Frankish Empire and the British Isles in the 9th century before settling in Normandy. After a phase of consolidation, the Norman expansion began from here, spreading across large parts of Europe, reaching from Southern Italy to Ireland. By the 13th century, the Normans had completely merged with the conquered peoples. Only the myth of the Normans as a militarily highly successful, ambitious, but also ruthless people remained, a group that profoundly influenced the history of Europe. The fate of the Normans was shaped by their piratical activities until the loss of Normandy to the French.