Longship

Introduction

Longships were ships primarily used by the Scandinavian Vikings and the Saxons to raid coastal and inland settlements during the European Middle ages. The longships were also used for long distance trade and commerce and were used for exploratory voyages to Iceland, Greenland, and beyond.

The name longship originates from the Insular Celtic word for "ship", Old Irish long, and Welsh llong is commonly assumed to be an adaptation to the longships as they appeared to the British population (McCone).

Longships were the epitome of Scandinavian naval power at the time, and they were highly valued as material possessions. They were often owned by seaside farmers and commissioned by the king in times of conflict, in order to build a powerful naval force. While longships were used by the Vikings in warfare, they were troop transports, not warships. In the tenth century, these boats would sometimes be tied together in battle to form a steady platform so that infantry warfare could occur.

The longship is characterized as a long, narrow, light boat with shallow draft designed for speed. They were fitted with oars along almost the entire length of the boat. Later versions sported a rectangular sail on a single mast which was used to augment the efforts of rowers, particularly during long journeys. In combat, the variability of wind power made rowers the chief means of propulsion. Nearly all longships were clinker built, meaning each hull plank overlaps the next, and waterproofed by moss drenched in tar. In the autumn these ships would be tarred and would then be left in a boathouse over the winter allow time for the tar to dry and to protect the ship. The ship's low shallow draft allowed navigation in waters only one metre deep, and permitted rapid beach landings. Its light weight allowed it to be carried over portages. Longships were also symmetrical, allowing the ship to reverse direction quickly. Norway was still using traditional longships up until the 1400s.

Development History

The famous Viking longships did not suddenly spring into being, but developed over time. Archaeology has uncovered a number of ships and boats showing this development. Also, rock carvings and runestones which predate the longships indicate a long ship-building tradition in this part of the world.

Early Ships

Hjortspring

One of the early precursors of the longship was the Hjortspring boat. The 13 m (40 feet) boat was found on the Hjortspring farm on the Danish island of Als. It was probably built between 200 B.C and 350 B.C., of 5 limewood planks. The boat has been interpreted as an early war canoe that was lowered into a pool as a sacrifice. Its construction already shows some of the features of later longships, such as clinker construction. Also the method of attaching the boards and gunwales was later adapted to longships to make them flexible for ocean voyages. The boards for the hull were cut into wedge-shaped pieces or cleats, and hazelwood ribs were fastened inside. The boat was propelled by paddles.

Nydam Ship

The Nydam ship (or Nydam Oak Boat) had a much improved design compared to the Hjortspring boat. It was one of three ships found in a series of excavations in the middle of the 19th century 8km from Sønderborg near Schleswig on the German-Danish border. The ship was dated to about 315 A.D using dendochronology. The Nydam ship was both larger and much more technologically advanced than the Hjortspring boat. The ship measured 23 m (75 feet) in length and was build from oak wood. It was originally believed that its planks (technically "strakes") were of a single piece running the full length of the hull. However, while sampling the wood for dating, it was discovered that they where composed of few long pieces carefully connected by invisible joints. The planks were held together by iron rivets and formed a curved prow and stern. The Nydam ship is the first known ship in Northern Europe to use oars rather than paddles for propulsion. The oars were held in place by bent branches secured to the rail. This allowed greater speed and easier rowing for the crew. The ship had a narrow, V-shaped hull giving it superior speed and agility. However, this also made it to rather unstable, and unable to support mast and sail.

The Kvalsund ship

Two ships dated to the 7th century were found in Kvalsund, Norway. Both were of similar design. Despite the shorter length of about 18m (61 feet), the larger Kvalsund ship was far wider than the older vessels mentioned above, with a width of about 3.5 m (10 feet). It had a clearly defined, strong keel. These key improvements allowed it to maintain a course even under adverse weather conditions. The Kvalsund ship had oars that were fastened to the rails with wooden pegs or trenails. No sailing rig has been found, although the ship certainly could have carried mast and sail. Appart from the lack of rigging, the Kvalsund ship already had most of the characteristics of a true longship.

Oseberg

The evolution of the Scandinavian sailing ships is emphasized in the Oseberg ship, which has been dated to c. 815-820 A.D. and was found in a burial mound in Vestfold south of Oslo, Norway. The Oseberg can be considered one of the first true longships. It features a built-in mast and mast partner. Compared to later ships, the Oseberg is a rather frail vessel, and it is thought that it was only used in coastal waters, or built especially for the funeral.

By this period, the distance between the ship’s ribs was a standard length and the ribs were stronger. The hulls had more of a V shape and the length expanded from gunwale to gunwale. These new hulls had poor lateral stability but made up for it in speed. It had wood fastened together instead of single pieces which allowed greater stability and agility. The Oseberg echoed in the Vikings primary vessel, the longship.

Types of Ships

Longships can be classified into a number of different subclasses, depending on size, build details, and prestige.

Snekke (snekkja)

The snekke was the smallest type that would still be considered a longship. A typical snekke might have a length of 17 m, a width of 2.5 m, and a draught of only 0.5 m. It would carry a crew of about 25 men.

Snekkes were one of the most common types of ship. According to historical lore, Canute the Great used 1400 in Norway in 1028, and William the Conqueror used about 600 for the invasion of Britain in 1066.

The Norwegian snekkes, designed for deep fjords and Atlantic weather, typically had more draft than the Danish model designed for low coasts and beaches. Snekkes were so light that they had no need of ports because they could be beached and potentially even carried across a portage.

The snekke continued to evolve after the end of the Viking age, with later Norwegian examples becoming larger and heavier than Viking age ships.

Roskilde

Danish archaeologists uncovered a longship in Roskilde harbor. This was the largest longship ever found and historians may have to rethink their estimates of the size of Viking longships. The Roskilde was 115 feet in length. The Roskilde might have been a specialized type of cargo ship that the Vikings used for trade.

Dragon Ships

While longships were graceful, some were more ornate and elegant than others. The dragon ships were used by those Vikings who went i-viking. A Viking myth was that terrible monsters lurked in the oceans, and that ships that sank had been attacked by sea serpents rather than sunk by storms. To protect their longships and crew the prows carried carvings of menacing beasts and frightening dragons to ward off the monsters of the sea. These carved beasts not only frightened off the mythical sea creatures but also scared the Vikings' enemies and the townspeople.

Construction

Through the development of several centuries the longship finally developed. The fully developed longship emerged sometime in the middle of the ninth century. Its long, graceful, menacing head figure carved in the stern echoed in its predecessor. The mast was now squared and located toward the middle of the ship and had the option of being lowered or raised. If not being propelled by the wind, longships could be rowed by oars in oarlocks (removable oar covers) on the side of the hull. The hull’s sides were fastened together to allow the hull to flex with the waves to ensure stability and integrity. The ships were big enough to carry cargo and passengers on long ocean voyages, but still maintained fast speed and agility. This made the longship a versatile ship, warship and cargo carrier.

Wood

Wood was the fundamental material of the longship. Longships used wood for every part of the ship from the planks for the hull, the mast and oars. The Vikings had picking and cutting wood to a fine science. The Vikings made planks from splitting huge oak trees usually from southern Scandinavia. The trunks were cut radially from long trees, which contained few knots. The planks had exceptional strength, due to the fact that they were cut following the grain of the wood. The planks also were cut in a way that did not shrink or warp as they dried. Shipbuilders used fresh cut trees rather than seasoned timber because it was easier to work. The curved pieces were made from naturally grown trees in that shape. This method allowed that the piece could be made from a single piece of wood, which cut down the weight of the ship.About 100 Oak trees were used to build a longship.

Building

The Viking shipbuilder pictured the long boat before its construction. They had no written diagrams or even a universal standard written design plan. The ships were built from the ground up than framing the whole ship and fitting it with various parts. The keel and stems were made first. The shape of the stem was based on segments of circles of varying sizes. The arc sizes determined the length of the keel. The next step was building the strake, or the line of planks joined endwise from stern to stern. As the strake reached its desired height, the interior was build. The frames were completed as the bottom was finished; this required that the sides were high enough and cross beams were added. Iron rivets were then used to hold the parts together. Longships had about five rivets in each yard of its plank. The longship had to be held together or they would inflexible and break. The longships were held together with spruce strips that were fastened to the ribs inside of the keel.

Maintaining Integrity and Strength

Any boat has to fight water from getting in. To keep the sea out, wooden disks were put into the oar holes and could be shut from the inside when oars were not used. The longships’ wider hulls provided strength beneath the waterline which gave more stability. This made the longship less likely to tip or bring in water.

Navigation and Propulsion

Navigation

The Vikings were a major seafaring people. They were experts in knowing the current, judging speed and wind direction, and when to expect high and low tides. The way in which the Vikings were able to navigate the seas is still an unknown however; Historians postulate that the Vikings probable had some sort of primitive astrolabe, which was able to use astronomy for navigation. At night the Vikings used the stars to plot their course. A Viking named StjernerOddi compiled a chart showing the direction of dawn and twilight. This chart enabled navigators to sail longships from place to place with ease. Almgren, an earlier Viking, had another method that could have been used by the Vikings. “All the measurement of angles were made in what was called a “half wheel”, a kind of half sun-diameter, which corresponds to about sixteen seconds of an arc. This was something which was known to every skipper at that time, or by the long-voyage pilot” or kendtmand (man who knows "the way") who sometimes went along on voyages… When the sun was in the sky, it was not, therefore, difficult to find the four points of the compass, and determining of latitude did not cause any problems either”(Algrem)

Of course there were others ways of navigation. Birds provided a helpful guide to find land. A Viking legend stated that Vikings used to bring crows in cages abroad and let them loose if they got lost or needed direction. The crows instinctively would find land and that this directed Viking navigators toward the mainland. Even though not much is know of Viking compasses, Viking legends do tell accounts of small magnetic stones floating on a piece of wood in water to provide a point of navigational reference. The process, how it was read, and what happened was never told, however it was a possible way of navigation.

Propulsion

The longship had two main ways of propulsion, by rowing and sail. Oars were used when land was spotted, to gain quick acceleration (when there was no wind) and to get the boat started. The crew sat on sea chests to row. No Viking shipbuilder made benches, therefore Vikings made use of chests that would otherwise take up space. The chests were made the same size and were the perfect height for a Viking to sit on and row. Longships had hooks for oars to fit into, but smaller oars were also used with crooks or bends to be used as oarlocks. If there were no holes, then a loop of rope kept the oars in place.

Sail and mast

At sea, the wind made longships faster than by oar. Even though no longship sail has been found, accounts verify that longships had square sails. Sails possibly measured 35 ½ to 40 feet wide and could be raised or lowered quickly. Sails were made of WadmilI, rough wool, which was woven by looms.

The sail was an important element that made the Viking longship faster and be able to cover long distances. The sail was held in place by the mast. The mast was then supported by a large block of wood called the Kjerring or “Old Woman” or “Carling” in Old Norse. (Trent) The kjerring was made of oak, and was tall as a Viking man. The kjerring lay across the two ribs and ran width wise along the keel. The kjerring also had a companion. The mast fish, a wooden object above the kjerring, provided extra help in keeping the mast erect. With the mast fish and the kjerring, the mast would remain strong and erect. Unlike the knarrs the sail wasn't stiched.

Life Onboard

Before longship went on their long ocean voyages, the entire family and village made preparations for the all those who were going. Weapons had to be made and sharpened, ships were repaired and brought up to standard, and other chores were done to make sure the ships were ready.

What They Ate

Nothing is truly certain what was eaten along their long sea voyages. But whatever it was, it must have been preserved. Salt was a main ingredient to preserve food. Domestic animals, fish, and other animals were killed, skinned and buried in salt. This would allow meat and fish to be preserved for over a season and did not make the meat bad. Smoking was also another way to preserve food. Holes were poked in the meat or fish and hung on pegs that were later put in a smokehouse. These preserved goods were taken aboard the boat and eaten when needed. Fishing was also a way to get food. Vikings not only ate fish but also sea mammals that they were able to kill and capture. Walrus were considered a favorite food among the sailing Viking. For drinks they usually drank water, but milk and beer was also brought along. They were stored in skin bags which took up a lot of space on the longship. The Viking could not really cook food, but cauldrons were brought along for storage, making soups and boiling things.

Entertainment

When not sailing, fishing or doing other chores, Vikings had many pastimes. Chess was a popular game as well as backgammon. Many pieces were carved from sticks, bones, and whatever they could find. The Vikings also played music and wrote poems. Whistles were quite popular as well as other instruments. The major pastime along the longship was storytelling. Great legends were told, stories of Ymir, Odin, Thor and other Viking gods.

Legacy

The Vikings were major contributors to ship building at that time. The Vikings had extensive contact with other cultures which spread their methods of shipbuilding. Ships in the 11th and 12th centuries were known to borrow many of the longships’ elements and add those techniques to their shipbuilding, despite many centuries that have passed. Many historians, archaeologists, and adventure hunters, have re-created longships in order to try and understand how they worked. Re-creators have been able to find the advances that the Vikings implemented into the longships to make them superior vessels. One reconstructed longship covered 223 nautical miles in a single day. Another re-creator was able to go faster than 8 knots in his longship. The longship was a master of all trades; it was wide and stable, yet light, fast and nimble. With all of these design features combined in one ship, the longship was unrivaled for centuries until the great gunboats and galleons appeared.

Famous longships

the Ormen Lange ("The Long Serpent") was the most famous longship of Olaf Tryggvason.
the Mora was the ship given to William the Conqueror by his wife, Matilda, and used as the flag ship in the conquest of England.

External links

References

W. Fitzhugh and E. Ward, Vikings: The North Atlantic Saga. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press. 2000.
A.W. Brøgger, The Viking ships, their ancestry and evolution. Oslo, Dreyer. 1951.
K. McCone, 'Zisalpinisch-gallisch uenia und lokan' in Festschrift Untermann, ed Heidermans et al., Innsbruck, 1993.1.
L. Trent, The Viking Longship. 1st ed. San Diego: Lucent Books, 1999.

A. Forte, R. Oram, and F. Pederson. Viking Empires. 1st. ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.

D. Dersin, ed., What Life Was Like When Longships Sailed. 1st ed. Richmond: Time Life Books, 1998.

A. W. Brøgger and H. Shetelig, The Viking Ships. Twayne Publishers, New York, 1971, and C. Hurst, London, 1971.

J. R. Hale, 'The Viking Longship'. Scientific American February 1998: 58-66.

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