History Of Sailing: How The Vikings Sailed The World
The history of sailing is filled with account of Vikings and their sailing ships. In olden times, these people were the undisputed lords of the seas. According to the history of sailing, the Vikings designed two very famous ships, the longship that was commonly called drakkar or dragon ship and cargo ships that which are known as the knars sometimes spelled as knorrs.
The Drakkar
According to the history of sailing, the drakkar is actually a warship. This ship was used by the Vikings to protect their territories, to attack enemies or simply keep out intruders from crossing their territorial boundaries. The long, sleek and lightweight design of the drakkar makes it idea for traveling fast. The presence of the large dragon head that adorns the prow of the drakkar is an open declaration that it is a battle ship.
Usually, a long ship is about 28 meters long. However, evidence shows that some longships are actually quite large. Based in the history of sailing in the Europe, the largest excavated longship is about 70 meters long. Aside from using it sail this longship has enough space for about 60 oarsmen. This seventy meter longship was capable of carrying up to 400 warriors in various parts of Europe. A very powerful king was said to be the owner of this longship. In the olden times, only kings can afford to build ships of this size. Note that building a ship this size by hand and without the use of modern technology can take hundreds of men several months and even years to complete.
The Knarr
The knarr was actually a merchant ship. It was constructed using the clinker method using pine as planks and sturdy oak for its keel. Like most other types of Viking ships, the knar has one mast made up of one square linen or wool. However, unlike the drakkar where the crew of the ship can take down its mast and store it safely while the warriors head into battle, the mast of the knarr is stationary.
This is understandable because the knarr was a merchant ship and it did not always need to engage in battle and protect itself from its enemies. According to the history of sailing in Europe, the knarr does not have any decorative prow like the drakkar. Merchants were more inclined to keep their ships as plain as possible so as not to scare people away or invite some other ships to attack them at sea.
