Viking History: Facts & Myths

..of the Norsemen were famous longship vessels, which were lightning-fast and adaptable in a variety of waters.

The Norse’s ship-building skills reached its pinnacle with ‘The Keel’ in the 7th century, a ship with a long structural beam that ran through the entire ship, making it speedy and stable, while preventing any lateral shift.

By the 9th century, the Norse came to know about Europe’s stacks of wealth and came together to build raid ships that could help them attack the French coast, along with the towns in Paris, Limoges, etc due to their ships being capable of manoeuvring up the rivers.

The longships had carved dragon heads at the bow, as it was a sign of their artistic attention to detail, and also because it was believed to keep evil spirits away.

The 10th century saw the Vikings set up colonies in the west coast of Greenland, from where they undertook a set of journeys to Baffin Island, Labrador and Vinland(or Newfoundland). Presently the only confirmed Viking site in the New World is on the northern tip of Newfoundland, the rest two being unconfirmed.

Over the centuries, many misperceptions created popular Viking myths, like their usage of the horned helmet, when in reality they went bareheaded or had a simple leather and metal-frame helmet, sometimes with a faceguard.

Another myth was they the Vikings were filthy and unkempt, something which was proven false by archaeologists who found evidence of the usage of combs, spoons and grooming utensils.