Scotland in the Middle Ages concerns the history of the region that is now Scotland, from the departure of the Romans (from Britannia) in the early fifth century, to the adoption of major aspects of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century. From the fifth century North Britain was divided into a series of petty kingdoms. Of these the four most important to emerge were the Picts, the Scots of Dál Riata, the Britons of Strathclyde and the Anglian kingdom of Bernicia. After the arrival of the Vikings in the late eighth century, Scandinavian rulers and colonies were established along parts of the coasts and in the islands. In the ninth century the Scots and Picts combined under the House of Alpin to form a single Kingdom of Alba, with a Pictish base and dominated by Gaelic culture. After