   #copyright

Longship

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Air & Sea transport;
British History 1500 and before (including Roman Britain)

   The Oseberg longship (Viking Ship Museum, Norway)
   The Oseberg longship (Viking Ship Museum, Norway)
   Oseberg longship from the front, one of the most stunning expressions
   of Norse art and craftsmanship
   Oseberg longship from the front, one of the most stunning expressions
   of Norse art and craftsmanship
   A longship tacking in the wind
   A longship tacking in the wind

   Longships were ships primarily used by the Scandinavian Vikings and the
   Saxons to raid coastal and inland settlements during the European
   Middle Ages. They are often called " longboats", but "longship" is more
   accurate. The vessels were also used for long distance trade and
   commerce, and for exploratory voyages to Iceland, Greenland, and
   beyond. Longship design evolved over several centuries and was fully
   developed by about the 9th century. In Norway traditional longships
   were used until the 13th century, and the character and appearance of
   these ships were reflected in western Norwegian boat-building
   traditions until the early 20th century.

   The longship was characterized as a graceful, long, narrow, light
   wooden boat with a shallow draft designed for speed. The ship's shallow
   draft allowed navigation in waters only one metre deep and permitted
   rapid beach landings, while its light weight enabled it to be carried
   over portages. Longships were also symmetrical, allowing the ship to
   reverse direction quickly. Longships were fitted with oars along almost
   the entire length of the boat itself. Later versions sported a
   rectangular sail on a single mast which was used to augment the effort
   of the rowers, particularly during long journeys.

   Longships were the epitome of Scandinavian naval power at the time, and
   were highly valued possessions. They were often owned by coastal
   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 for infantry warfare.They were called dragonships by
   enemies such as the English.

Development history

   The famous Viking longships did not suddenly spring into being, but
   developed over hundreds of years. Archaeologists have uncovered a
   number of ships and boats showing this development, and rock carvings
   and runestones which predate the longships also indicate a long
   shipbuilding tradition in Scandinavia.

Early ships

The Hjortspring ship

   One of the early precursors of the longship was the Hjortspring boat.
   This 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 five limewood planks. The boat has been interpreted as an
   early war canoe that was lowered into a pool as a sacrifice. Its design
   already shows some of the features of later longships, such as clinker
   construction. The boards for the hull were cut into wedge-shaped pieces
   or "cleats", and hazelwood ribs were fastened inside. The method of
   attaching the boards and gunwales was later adapted to longships to
   make them flexible for ocean voyages. The boat was propelled by
   paddles.

The 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 built from oak. 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 were composed of a 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. Apart from the lack of rigging, the
   Kvalsund ship already had most of the characteristics of a true
   longship.
   Detail from the Oseberg ship
   Detail from the Oseberg ship

The Oseberg ship

   The continuing evolution of the Scandinavian sailing ships is evident
   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 has a length of 21.5 meters, a width of 5 meters and a
   total weight of 11 tons.

   The Vikings were excellent sailors their boats were called longships.
   Longships were light, sleek, stable, strong and easy to manoeuvre.
   Being long and thin they made great warships. The hull cut through the
   water fast. The boat was also flexible, so it moved with the action of
   the waves. The longship has a flat bottom with a shallow draught which
   allowed the Viking to sail into shallow waters bays and even the shore
   line. Longships are around 28 – 30 meters long in size and built to
   hold more than 100 men. The boats speed can get up to 30 – 35
   kilometres per hour because the Vikings had both oars and sails so they
   could keep going in any weather condition.

   They were constructed out of raw timber. The kneel (the bottom of the
   boat) was made out of a single trunk, planks were made from split
   timber, sternposts are cut from large curved logs, angled sections were
   cut from strong branches and curved sections were cut from curved
   branches.

   In building a longship you would use up to 10 or more tools.

Types of longship

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

Snekke (snekkja)

   The snekke was the smallest vessel 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 –
   they could simply 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.

Dragon ships

   Dragon ships are known from historical sources, such as the 13th
   century Göngu-Hrólfs Saga (the Saga of Rollo). Here, the ships are
   described as elegant and ornately decorated, and used by those who went
   í Viking (raiding and plundering). According to the historical sources
   the ships' prows carried carvings of menacing beasts, such as dragons
   and snakes, allegedly to protect the ship and crew, and to ward off the
   terrible sea monsters of Norse mythology. It is however likely that the
   carvings, like those on the Oseberg ship, might have had a ritual
   purpose, or that the purported effect was to frighten enemies and
   townspeople. No true dragon ship, as defined by the sagas, has been
   found by archaeological excavation. Therefore, their existence is only
   supported by the historical sources.

Roskilde ships

   The largest longships so far found, were discovered by Danish
   archaeologists in Roskilde during development in the harbour-area in
   1962 and 1996/7. The ship discovered in 1962, Skuldelev 2 is an
   oak-built vessel possibly of the skeid type. It was built in the Dublin
   area around 1042. Skuldelev 2 could carry a crew of some 70-80 and
   measures just under 100 feet (30 m) in length. In 1996/7 archaeologists
   discovered the remains of another ship in the harbour. This ship,
   called the Roskilde 6, has not yet been fully investigated and full
   details are not available. It is however thought to be around 36m long,
   and has been dated to the mid-11th century.

   The discovery of these ships overturned the skepticism of some
   historians that longships of this size had ever been constructed. The
   Roskilde longships may have been a specialized type of cargo ship that
   the Vikings used for trade.

Construction

   The Gokstad ship, on display at the Viking ship museum in Oslo, Norway.
   The Gokstad ship, on display at the Viking ship museum in Oslo, Norway.

   After several centuries of evolution, the fully developed longship
   emerged some time in the middle of the ninth century. Its long,
   graceful, menacing head figure carved in the stern echoed the designs
   of its predecessors. The mast was now squared and located toward the
   middle of the ship, and could be lowered and raised. The hull’s sides
   were fastened together to allow it to flex with the waves, ensuring
   stability and integrity. The ships were large enough to carry cargo and
   passengers on long ocean voyages but still maintained speed and
   agility, making the longship a versatile warship and cargo carrier.

Selection of wood

   Wood was the fundamental material of the longship: it was used in every
   part of the ship, from the planks for the hull to the mast and oars.
   The Vikings had developed the selection and cutting of wood to a fine
   science. They made planks by splitting huge oak trees. The trunks were
   cut radially from tall 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 such a way that they did
   not shrink or warp as they dried. Shipbuilders used fresh-cut trees
   rather than seasoned timber because it was easier to work. Curved
   pieces were made from trees that had grown naturally in that shape.
   This allowed the part to be made from a single piece of wood, cutting
   down the weight of the ship. About 100 oak trees were used to build a
   longship.

Keel, stems and hull

   The Viking shipbuilders had no written diagrams or standard written
   design plan. The shipbuilder pictured the longship before its
   construction, and the ship was then built from the ground up. The keel
   and stems were made first. The shape of the stem was based on segments
   of circles of varying sizes. The next step was building the strakes –
   the lines of planks joined endwise from stern to stern. Nearly all
   longships were clinker built, meaning that each hull plank overlapped
   the next.

   As the strakes reached the desired height, the interior frame and cross
   beams were added. The parts were held together with iron rivets, as
   well as spruce strips that were fastened to the ribs inside of the
   keel. Longships had about five rivets for each yard of plank.

   The longships’ wider hulls provided strength beneath the waterline
   which gave more stability, making the longship less likely to tip or
   bring in water. The hull was waterproofed with moss drenched in tar. In
   the autumn the ships would be tarred and then left in a boathouse over
   the winter to allow time for the tar to dry. To keep the sea out,
   wooden disks were put into the oar holes. These could be shut from the
   inside when the oars were not in use.

Sail and mast

   Even though no longship sail has been found, accounts verify that
   longships had square sails. Sails measured perhaps 35 to 40 feet
   across, and were made of wadmill (rough wool) which was woven by looms.
   Unlike the knarrs, the longship sail was not stitched.

   The sail was held in place by the mast. The mast was supported by a
   large block of wood called "kerling" ("Old Woman" in Old Norse).
   (Trent) The kerling was made of oak, and was as tall as a Viking man.
   The kerling lay across the two ribs and ran width-wise along the keel.
   The kerling also had a companion: the "mast fish", a wooden piece above
   the kerling that provided extra help in keeping the mast erect.
   (information need for how long boat construction and sail creation
   needed.)

Navigation and propulsion

Navigation

   A replica of the Gokstad ship, named Viking was sailed across the
   Atlantic to the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893
   A replica of the Gokstad ship, named Viking was sailed across the
   Atlantic to the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893

   The Vikings were experts in judging speed and wind direction, and in
   knowing the current and when to expect high and low tides. Viking
   navigational techniques are not well understood, but historians
   postulate that the Vikings probably had some sort of primitive
   astrolabe and used the stars to plot their course.

   A Viking named Stjerner Oddi compiled a chart showing the direction of
   dawn and twilight, which enabled navigators to sail longships from
   place to place with ease. Almgren, an earlier Viking, told of another
   method: "All the measurements of angles were made with what was called
   a 'half wheel' (a kind of half sun-diameter which corresponds to about
   sixteen seconds of arc). This was something that was known to every
   skipper at that time, or to 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 latitude did not cause any
   problems either." (Algrem)

   Birds provided a helpful guide to finding land. A Viking legend states
   that Vikings used to take caged crows aboard ships and let them loose
   if they got lost. The crows would instinctively find land, giving the
   Viking navigators their direction. Little is known of Viking compasses,
   though Viking legends do tell of small magnetic stones floating on a
   piece of wood in water to provide a point of navigational reference.

Propulsion

   The longship had two methods of propulsion: oars and sail. At sea, the
   sail enabled longships to travel faster than by oar and to cover long
   distances. Sails could be raised or lowered quickly. Oars were used
   when land was spotted, to gain speed quickly (when there was no wind),
   and to get the boat started. In combat, the variability of wind power
   made rowing the chief means of propulsion.

   Longships were not fitted with benches. When rowing, the crew sat on
   sea chests (chests containing their personal possessions) 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.

Legacy

   The 'Lancha Poveira', a boat from Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal.
   The 'Lancha Poveira', a boat from Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal.

   The Vikings were major contributors to the shipbuilding technology of
   their day. Their shipbuilding methods spread through extensive contact
   with other cultures, and ships from the 11th and 12th centuries are
   known to borrow many of the longships’ design features, despite the
   passing of many centuries. The 'Lancha Poveira', a boat from Póvoa de
   Varzim, Portugal, originates from the longship, but without a long
   stern and bow, and with a Mediterranean sail. It was used until the
   1950s. Today there is just one boat: Fé em Deus.

   Many historians, archaeologists and adventurers have reconstructed
   longships in an attempt to understand how they worked. These
   re-creators have been able to identify many of the advances that the
   Vikings implemented in order to make the longship a superior vessel.
   One replica longship covered 223 nautical miles in a single day, and
   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 these qualities combined in one ship,
   the longship was unrivaled for centuries, until the arrival of the
   great gunboats and galleons.

Famous longships

     * The Oseberg ship and the Gokstad ship of Oslo.
     * The Ormen Lange ("The Long Serpent") was the most famous longship
       of Norwegian king Olaf Tryggvason.
     * The Mora was the ship given to William the Conqueror by his wife,
       Matilda, and used as the flagship in the conquest of England.
     * The Sea Stallion, the largest Viking ship replica ever made, is a
       new 30 meter replica of the skuldelev 2, and is going to be sailed
       from Roskilde, Denmark to Dublin in 2007 to commemorate the voyage
       of the original.

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longship"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
