Eng 6B Hist 315

Eng 6B Hist 315

Scarf Gunwale or Gunnel (the top strake)

A strake (layer of planks)

Bulkhead

Knee Floor Timber Keelson (also called the crone) Keel

Eng 6B Hist 315

Their ships were strong,

lightweight Shaped to skim quickly through the water. Warships and raiding ships were designed to come right up on the beach so that men could jump out and start fighting straight away.
3

Eng 6B Hist 315

The ships were built of wood and made

waterproof with tar from pine trees. The square sails were made of woven wool and were often brightly coloured. When the wind was wrong for sailing, teams of oarsmen rowed them. Many ships were decorated with carvings on their curved ends

Eng 6B Hist 315

Raids in single ships were quite frequent and,

before around 850, fleets rarely comprised more than 100 ships. Much larger fleets of 200 and upwards were recorded later. An average speed of 10 to 11 knots could have been achieved, or perhaps rather more in short bursts. Crews of 25 to 60 men would have seated on benches on open decks, although the largest ships could have carried as many as 100 or more.

Eng 6B Hist 315

Eng 6B Hist 315

A warship designed to carry fearless Viking

warriors on their raids across Europe. Called a dragon ship by its enemies. Most large Drakkar, were owned by a powerful king.

Eng 6B Hist 315

Average length of a longship was 28 meters long

(91 feet). Largest ever excavated was seventy meters (227 feet) long.

Eng 6B Hist 315

Owned by a powerful king.

He was the only one who could afford to build it.

Sixty oarsmen Four hundred warriors In the last days of the Viking Age, three hundred

of this type of longship were in the Viking fleet.

Eng 6B Hist 315

Owned by an earl or nobleman

Crew of twenty to thirty oarsmen

Other crew members Helmsmen: steered the ship lookout : watched for rocks in shallow waters few spare men
Took the place a tired oarsmen Replaced one lost overboard during a storm

warriors

Eng 6B Hist 315

Clinker design Planked using two centimeter (3/4) thick oak boards
Overlapped slightly Fastened with iron nails.

spaces between the planks were caulked with tarred

wool or animal fur to make the ship watertight planks were also nailed to support-ribbing that ran from the gunwale to the keel. keel, which ran the full length of the ship
Made of one solid piece of oak. It add stability Made the ship travel straight through the water

Eng 6B Hist 315

Gunwal

Eng 6B Hist 315

Navigate in water less than a meter deep (3 feet). In shallow water, the warriors would move to one

side of the ship to tilt it so it would pass over rocks and shoals. The longships' tapered bows and sterns enabled the Vikings to row the ships forwards and backwards without first having to turn the ships around.
This was a great advantage when fleeing after a raid.

Eng 6B Hist 315

Eng 6B Hist 315

Much different from a Drakkar: Shorter Wide Better suited to carrying cargo such as cattle, wool, timber and wheat. Averages 16 meters in length (48 feet) 5 meters in width (15 feet) 2 meters +(6 feet) high from keel to top of gunwale. *Draft of 1 meter (3 feet) *Depth in water. It could not navigate the shoals as well as the lighter

longship. Under full sail, it could travel at 10 knots.

Eng 6B Hist 315

Graham-Campbell, James. The Viking World. Published by Ticknor & Fields,

1980
Cagner, Ewert. The Viking. Published by Cagner & Co., 1966
Nicolaysen, N.. The Viking-Ship from Gokstad. Republished by Gregg

International Publishers Limited.

The NAVIS project, supported by the European Commission Directorate

General X http://www2.rgzm.de/Navis/Home/NoFrames.htm
Nordic Underwater Archaeology http://www.subarch.com/ Universitetets kulturhistoriske museer: Vikingskipshuset (The Viking Ship

Museum) http://www.ukm.uio.no/vikingskipshuset/engelsk/utstillingene.shtml