I originally had included this together with “Viking Warfare,” but, upon writing up that lesson, I realized that they should be split. So, next week we will begin out prelude into the raids. For now, we will bridge our way from art to war with the art of their weapons. Although we will not be covering every weapon available to them, we will be discussing the “average” Viking.That is, what weapons did they use? What did they prefer? Depictions are pretty common, but that does not make them all precise. This lesson utilizes both literary and archaeological evidence to give use the “best” understanding we can gather. In the end, the archeological evidence is far more reliable.
Remember, I will be rather brief about a lot of these weapons. I don’t personally focus on weapon and military history, but this is also a crash course, not a full, in-depth coverage. Nonetheless, I have provided some areas for further reading where I am able.
Contents:
1. Swords
2. Axes
3. Spears
4. Bows
5. Shields
SWORDS
By far the most preferable weapon they could get their hands on. If you were an important Viking chieftain or war band leader, you had a sword. Swords appear quite often in the literature. All the greatest of kings and warriors have them, and, if they are particularly outstanding people, that sword has magical properties as well. Of course, it is unlikely that their swords actually had magical properties, but this demonstrates, if anything, the cultural significance that was place on the sword.
Realistically:
Before a fantastic image becomes ingrained, let’s go over the basic description of a “Viking” sword:
– Double-edged
– Central grove
– Around 90cm in length
– Highly decorated
– Longer, lower grip
Interestedly enough, these sword were often not made by Vikings themselves. This one, picture above, was actually likely made in Francia. The blade says “Ingleriī me fecit,” which, in Latin, means “Ingleri made me.” Thus, obtaining a sword often meant have connections and wealth.
Literature and the Sword as a Symbol:
In literature, swords are the main weapon for a warrior. Our image of Vikings typically involves a brute with axes, but the “best” or Vikings held a sword. The most famous of swords were often passed down, falling into the hands of many warriors, some worthy, some not. Without straying to far in analysis, here are examples of the language used when speaking of warriors and their swords:
King Hrolf Kraki and Skofnung:
“’…Now King Hjorvard [a legendary Danish king] can see that Skofnung bites, and that it clangs against their skulls, for it is Skofnung’s nature to sing aloud whenever it tastes bone.’ The battle grow so hot that nothing could stand against King Hrolf and his champions. It was wonderful to see how King Hrolf wielded Skofnung; they wrought such havoc on King Hjolvard’s army that his soldiers fell in heaps…”1
Kormak and Skofnung, who was not compatible with the sword:
“I bring back to you,
Skeggi, this sword
broken-edged, blunt-toothed;
truly, their might outdid mine;
no fault falls to me
who fought fiercely
for the girl guarded
by the singing of swords.”2
Bersi’s sword Hvitning (Kormak’s Saga):
“Berti’s sword was called Hvitning, a sharp sword with a healing stone in the hilt; he had carried it in many life-threatening fights.”3
Sigurd and Gram, the sword in the tree:
“The man who draws this sword from the tree will receive it as a gift from me and he will find truly that he has never had a better sword than this in his hand.”4
AXES
Although everyone preferred a sword, the axe was a popular choice for Vikings, so the image we have of them is not entirely off-base. Axes were multi-functional, both a tool and a weapon. Many Vikings raided because they were poor. If this was the case for a Viking, they would have used an axe, especially if not hailing from a wealthy family. In the end, those who raided could be quite diverse. Some were wealthy men, with swords and prestigious families, while other were normal farmers seeking additional funds. Both fame and fortune were the goals for raiding abroad.
There are actually multiple types of axes, some specifically designed for combat (such as the Dane axe). There was, then, a difference in design between an axe meant for farming and and axe meant for killing. I am no weapons expert, but I have heard that Hurstwic has a page decimated specifically to Viking axes, if you are curious. There are just too many possible variations of axes to possibly include them in this lesson. I highly recommend going to the link I provided above if you really want an in-depth introduction to Viking axes.
SPEARS
I don’t have much to say about spears, but, before anyone shouts, Odin is said to have a spear called Gungnir, made for him by dwarves. This is not a lesson on mythology, so I do want to avoid exploring that too far right now, though I can at a future date or upon request. The spear was, however, the most common weapon of the Viking Age. It was cheap, using very little metal. Since most Vikings were broken and were only raiding to get wealthy, they would have to settle for these cheap weapons, if they did not have an axe at their disposal. Again, you can read much more about spears with Hurstwic.
BOWS
Bows had plenty of uses (such as hunting, of course), but they show up quite often when discussing naval battles, at least up until they began to board each other’s ship. Yet, they do not only appear in this way. One must never view the bow as a less honorable weapon for Vikings, because they did not portray it as such. There is also a case in a saga where the distance in which a bow could fire an arrow was used as a measurement of distance.5
Mythological examples:
The God Ullr actually is said to wield a bow and ride skis:
“Ull is the name of one. The son of Sif, he is the stepson of Thor. He is so skillful a bowman and skier that no one can compete with him. He is beautiful to look at, and is an accomplished warrior. He is also a good person to pray to when in single combat.”6
Skadi, the wife of Njord, is also described similarly:
“She travels much on skis, carries a bow and who’s wild animals. She is called the ski god or the ski lady…”7
Literary examples:
Ulf the Red and King Olaf during a naval battle:
King Olaf: “I didn’t know that I had a man in the bows as yellow as he is red.”
Ulf the Red: “Just make sure to defend the stern, as well as I will defend the bow.”
The king laid an arrow to his bow and aimed at Ulf.
Ulf the Red: “Shoot it somewhere else where it will do more good. What I do, I do for you, king.”8
Gunnar in Njal’s Saga:
“Gunnar shot arrows at them and defended himself, and they could do nothing. Some men then climbed up on the buildings and planned to attack from there. Gunnar could still reach them with his arrows and they could do nothing, and it went on like this for awhile.”9
SHIELDS
They may not be considered weapons, but shields were often used as such. Their shields are a very iconic aspect of their image, and, in general, this hold true. I cannot attest for the reality behind their formations, but their shield was an important part of their equipment. Ship burials often feature many shields to demonstrate a warrior’s worldly status. The Gokstad burial, for example, contained 64 shields. These were lined along the rim of the ship, as is popularly shown.
A (Violent) Literary excerpt:
“A quick kick
shoved the shield
straight into Snaekoll’s
menacing mouth;
the iron-bound buckler
tore the tooth-wall in two;
the jaw’s broken bones
dropped down to his breast.”10
CONCLUSION
I would include armor in this discussion, but the lesson is already a bit too long. I will leave that additional information to a separate post, or a side-course after this crash course is complete. Just know one thing about their armor: no horns and not much for protection. Chain mail was the best they would have, but usually not even that. Usually leather armor at best. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this lesson. It was difficult for me to write, so I am not very confident that I did it justice. As long as you managed to learn something interesting, that is what matters.
Media Sources
- [Fig.1] I actually took this image myself at the Chicago’s Art Insitute Museum of Fine Arts.
- [Fig.2] Dane Axeman by SpeculumHistoriae on DeviantART. (link)
- [Fig.3] Advance by stuart anthony on Flickr. (link)
- [Fig.4] Ullr with his skis and his bow. From the 18th century Icelandic manuscript (a copy of the Prose Edda). (link)
- [Fig.5] Jorvik Vikingr in the shield wall. (link)
Footnotes
- Angus A. Somerville and R. Andrew McDonald ed., The Viking Age: A Reader (Second Edition). (Toronto University Press, 2014), 129. ↩︎
- Ibid., 133. (Ibid means the same source as mentioned above.) ↩︎
- Ibid., 130. ↩︎
- Ibid., 136. ↩︎
- I cannot recall which saga or where this comes up, but I could research it further if needed. All I can remember is that it was mentioned in class and preserved in my notes. ↩︎
- Jesse L. Byock trans., The Prose Edda. (Penguin Classics, 2005), 38. ↩︎
- Ibid., 34. ↩︎
- Angus A. Somerville and R. Andrew McDonald ed., The Viking Age: A Reader (Second Edition). (Toronto University Press, 2014), 164. ↩︎
- Robert Cook trans., Njal’s Saga. (Penguin Classics, 2001), 127. ↩︎
- Angus A. Somerville and R. Andrew McDonald ed., The Viking Age: A Reader (Second Edition). (Toronto University Press, 2014), 127. ↩︎
Leave a Reply