Five episodes into its third season run, History’s hit drama Vikings has been picked up for a fourth season. For the first five episodes of Season 3, Vikings is averaging 4.3 million total viewers, 2.2 million adults 25-54 and 2.0 million adults 18-49 in Live+3, ranking as the No. 1 cable series on Thursday nights in all key demos. Production on Season 4 will begin this spring in Ireland.

“Vikings has raided the hearts of both audiences and critics, establishing itself as one of the most compelling, visually stunning dramas on television,” said History and H2 EVP and general manager Dirk Hoogstra.

Vikings remains History’s sole scripted drama series as the network has been looking to use the popular show to launch a new scripted series.

Michael Hirst, who recently signed a first-look deal with A+E Studios, created Vikings and serves as executive producer along with Morgan O’Sullivan of World 2000, Sheila Hockin, John Weber of Take 5 Productions, Sherry Marsh, Alan Gasmer and James Flynn. MGM Television serves as the worldwide distributor outside of Ireland and Canada.