Longship
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Longships were ships primarily used by the Scandinavian Vikings and the Saxon people to raid coastal and inland settlements during the European Middle Ages. 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. The character and appearance of these ships have been reflected in Scandinavian boat-building traditions until today.
The longship was characterized as a graceful, long, narrow, light wooden boat with a shallow draft hull designed for speed. The ship's shallow draft allowed navigation in waters only one meter deep and permitted beach landings, while its light weight enabled it to be carried over portages. Longships were also double-ended, the symmetrical bow and stern allowing the ship to reverse direction quickly, without having to turn around. 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 replace or 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 Norse 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. The Norse had a strong sense of naval architecture, and during the 8th–11th centuries, they were advanced for their time, compared to other European nations.
