Every Genius Detail That Made Viking Longships Remarkable

Vikings were expert shipbuilders, and the longships that survived from the era are a testament to their ingenuity, as well as the strength and durability of their preferred wood type: oak.
From the Series: Combat Ships: Viking Longships bitly.com/2NcenjI

[@fratercontenduntocculta8161]

I'm always pleased to see ancient traditions being upheld. Truly a genius way of building a vessel!

[@carolwilliams7052]

How fortunate that there are craftsfolk willing and able to carry this on these highly specialized techniques, else they would be doomed to be lost forever...

[@LookBackHistory]

Indeed. It's a shame when stuff like this gets lost to history.

[@bluemarshall6180]

@@LookBackHistory Watch history channel. 😆

[@anunentitledmotivatedmille7731]

@@LookBackHistory remember when that huge library burned down?

[@OlavSchneider]

A shame there are no books on how to build these ships.

[@boathemian7694]

I’ve stood there looking at these ships. Worth the trip.

[@johngeverett]

Seems like it just ended with the story half-told.

[@wildman2012]

I was just going to say the same thing. Where's part 2?

[@MCFishNuggets]

Welcome to the smithsonian channel

[@DennisMook-ky6lx]

Because they dont give there secrets up

[@nicolamullings7993]

They should make a whole video with those boat builders, fascinating from a woodworking point of view.

[@flfun2no]

This was not every genius detail that made viking longships remarkable.

[@Pauly421]

Yeah that was barely any detail... CHILDHOOD RUINED!

[@JohnJohansen2]

Guy's! This was only a 3½ minutes advertisement for the channel. There are lots of serious KZbin channels that handle the Viking world a lot more seriously!

[@8jurg8]

finally I can remember which side "starboard" refers to!

[@jackwinemiller8358]

Port and left of h

[@jackwinemiller8358]

Port and left both have four letters it’s that easy

[@DavidSmith-ss1cg]

@@jackwinemiller8358 - Good call; that's how I remember it. I just think of the number of letters in the words "red," "left," and "port." The right words, nautical terms and marker light colors, all easy to remember.

[@Gawddayng]

The easiest way to remember is that Left and Port are 4 letters so they go together

[@welshpete12]

@Hubert Cumberdale larboard , is Anglo Saxon for ladder side . The side against the quay .Where presumably a ladder would be used to get on board . Of course this could be confusing in a storm , when there would be a lot of noise . So they changed it . I have read the Royal Navy changed it to port hand side in 1738 .

[@amirbinomar]

I came from Terengganu, there’s an ancient boatman village. Only handful still alive making remarkable boats using traditional method. During our prime, we made big boats for the Chinese and Japanese too. Traditional way, is the only way.

[@sharcc2511]

Before watching. Alright, ready for the entire video to be vaguely related to the title without actually answering the question! Here we go! Edit after watching: Went over material choice and basic wood working. Not really any of the "Genius details" that they said they'd explain.

[@sammoore9689]

Vikings also did a lot of metal extraction from earth. Many viking sites were next to marches, where they mined the bottom layer to get iron.

[@darth_yoda]

Funny enough it's called Bog Iron :P

[@raccoonsparkle]

True, but the iron we have (and had) in Denmark are of poor quality, so we had to trade us to better iron.

[@raccoonsparkle]

@@darth_yoda mainly because it is found and extracted from bogs :)

[@aidanstewart909]

So proud of my ancestors!

[@detroitandclevelandfan5503]

Bless you, for so many do not have pride in their ancestry.

[@smartcookie11]

Lucifer became prideful and rebeled against the most high.

[@KermitOfWar]

Viking ship designs are bizarre looking, yet their design were built with purpose. To be durable, swift, & fast. Boat builders are one of a kind. Every cut, measurement, & hammer strike has to be just right or else the boat turns into a sinking canoe.👍

[@paoloviti6156]

What makes me annoyed is that this video has ended abruptly! Great carpenter that is building a Viking ship👍👍👍

[@xvdd1]

They were called "clinker" from the clinking of iron rivets.

[@castortroymidranda]

nice video, thanks for this, from Brazil

[@cuhurun]

Good video, but please make them longer so more detail and facts can be aired.

[@betkay1018]

This old world technology so wonderful to know about. Proud of my Viking heritage and that tradition is kept alive ... these days it may be a time of deja vu !!

[@AmazingNatureRelaxation]

🌺 Love looking back at these ancient weapons and technology. So fascinating to see how advanced they were given their lack of precision machinery and education. - H

[@jamilam1980]

Now I'm gonna build a paddle board, inspired by this guy. A little mini viking ship with an oak steering board

[@gallowglass3764]

Progress?

[@ericthered9655]

I'm interested in how these small vessels survived the monster waves they must have seen.

[@aaronbarlow4376]

Floki's engineering sorted that out.

[@cherylhannon8673]

Spectacular. Good ship making.

[@MRYEMAN]

Watching this cuz of Valheim

[@greglaroche1753]

Doesn’t seem like the whole video is there. Very abruptly ended.

[@almostfancyconnoisseur8929]

Just gave the 1k like for this video 😎

[@markwillies4330]

Amazing craftsmanship both in the past and present. Incredible how brave humans are.Crossing oceans in a vessel like that with very little protection against the sea. Lastly I hope that guy swinging that axe has made good use of his sausage and beans coz that looks a bit scary.

[@ryancarter4418]

How does it look scary? He is on the other side of the plank.

[@devgabriel6898]

When i saw the Vikings show in Netflix, i always asked how they build those boats. How Floki (the character) is able to do so wonderfull piece of woods with no tools

[@thedwightguy]

wedging planks is easier in extremely cold weather and first growth wood; no knots, straight splitting at minus 40 below. My grandfather did this making beams in northwest Ontario, homesteading.

[@ScooterFXRS]

Smithsonian Channel: bait and switch teasers, as usual.

[@Black-Panther94]

1:32 how did the vikings make their hull waterproof?

[@derekclinton9438]

I think they coated the planks with tar.

[@robodell7]

Where can I find the rest.

[@erikmorrissette6749]

The viking ship used phantom rudder, narrow with a spoiler to cut the turbulence behind the rudder. You show a traditional rudder.

[@johnwattdotca]

Is this narrator going to say the basic logic of the design of these ships was sailing forward and backward?

[@NisseOhlsen]

We were the greatest then. We are the greatest now. Look up which countries have the highest quality of life.

[@knivesinmediaog]

So cool

[@ns7353]

2:42 24 cell phone theme

[@richardmoss5934]

0:48 the narrator says that planks were built up on either side yet the animation shows both sides so which is it?

[@ulistadler832]

are you joking or just bad at english? either side means every side which in this case are both

[@Brubarov]

How did they carry and drag them across land??

[@warvex]

Amazing

[@OzMan9989]

Impressive.

[@garychynne1377]

thank yew

[@PotatoeJoe69]

It really is quite surprising they managed to cross some of the most treacherous seas on the planet in these. Not what one would think could handle rough seas.

[@rogersmith8339]

The boats flexed which allows them to ride through huge waves. Look for videos of Draken.

[@namesomega3694]

Was it possible to lower the mast like in the video game?

[@FlyTyer1948]

Were the iron nails a weak point? I expect they would rust out fairly quickly after a few voyages. Did they replace them frequently?

[@motordude67]

They used, as you say, iron nails. Iron nails with very low, almost zero carbon. That would make them easy to deform when they hammered the nails. Another very important aspect of low carbon iron besides its malleability, is that the less carbon, the more corrosion resistant it is. If you look at modern stainless steels that is an alloy of iron, nickel and chrome, you will find very little carbon, as it infact decreases corrosion resistance. The ship itself was also covered in tar so that would also protect the nails. In most vikingship burials, the oak is long gone but the nails are still there, but of course corroded. The vikings knew how to make iron and steel from bog iron, which is available everywhere so replacing and repairing nails would have been straight forward. I would imagine that they carrier some spareparts as well.

[@FlyTyer1948]

@@motordude67 Thank you for your reply & explanation. I’ve wondered about the nails issue for quite awhile. I used to help a friend maintain his wooden sailboat & observed how much work went into caulking, oiling, painting & metal maintenance was required.

[@megatron8490]

What documentary is this?

[@theenigma7685]

amazing... though i always wondered how the vikings managed to navigate what tools did they use

[@swatimurmu3583]

All hail Floki!!!

[@paapiajahan8431]

💛 Ha Ha Ha Ha 💛

[@swatimurmu3583]

@@paapiajahan8431 finally someone got the reference lol

[@tammcd]

The narrator sounds like the fellow in the psychedelic TV commercials that put me off Heinz for life.

[@walkertongdee]

Hey, Smith, you got it wrong its called lapstrake

[@carmstrong3254]

Pretty. Neat

[@hotsauce294]

Me watching this while playing AC VALHALLA .

[@rasaecnai]

this channel is frustrating because they make me want to watch more and the videos just end

[@iampizzaman9955]

so true

[@markbeale7390]

No wonder they became experts with axes as a weapon.

[@LookBackHistory]

I don't know if "dominant force in Europe for over 200 years" is necessarily an accurate characterization of the Vikings. For one, they were hardly a unified "force" as different raids/conquests occurred under different leaders at different times with different amounts of success and for another, while they did reach much of Europe they were only able to really establish themselves in England and Normandy and to some extent, Russia. Besides Scandinavia itself, obviously.

[@timothykissinger4883]

Would the Vikings cut down one large tree or several to build the ships?

[@FedoReds88]

Several, at last 5

[@nirestrunk4923]

These ships are gorgeous but I'd honestly rather have the 200+ year old tree still alive. 😭

[@livingadreamlife1428]

Don’t know for sure, although many times they are using timber that has already been felled by storms, fire or other reason.

[@justsomefbiagentwithbigfoo8977]

I was told vikings were savages, and frankly I'm not buying it.. murderers yes, but not savages

[@seanriopel3132]

Don't bother explaining what the clinker part is.

[@foundsainpalaceentertainme8943]

it was plank wood on each other

[@timhaakenson916]

JUST A LITTLE HOBBY.. CALM DOWN LITTLE GIRL

[@BamBamBigelow..]

I prefer my Viking ship built by Lego Inc.

[@abortedorphan8259]

Bruh I've been pissing for 2 minutes, is it a new world record?

[@rasheedhadi3600]

الفايكنج محاربين اشداء وسفنهم سريعة

[@phuglee]

valheim sent me

[@TEKKKNO]

Hey i found a new way to sailing to the west lol

[@cosmaprismo]

Wow i am the 4th comment. Never been so early on this channel.

[@pauloamw]

Why did they cut down a 200 year old oak tree?

[@P602-d2x]

I guess I'm in that side of the internet again

[@nasigorengpecelesteh1506]

Viking boat come to indo pasific ocean..meet with java lung . Borneo long ship n others

[@willsimpkins7278]

Remind me how complete this is well I guess it's just like everything else that's the Smithsonian famous for to incomplete and controversial

[@michaelfisher7170]

its only a segment from a full documentary.

[@pototskyjhonpaul1599]

Jaime...

[@davidprocter3578]

Why put up a teaser,? About time that history started to credit vikings did not invent this type of boat or construction. Don't believe me, then take a look at the Sutton Ho ship. Saxons were raiding the east Anglian coast before the Romans left the British Isles in very similar ships.

[@Northman1963]

I doubt the ancient shipwrights split massive oaks with simple wedges. It takes too long with too much effort and men involved. They needed thousands of boards and built large fleets. Ever watch how long it takes modern men to get one board from an oak using wedges? It's ridiculous. I think the ancients had other techniques and tools that were lost to history.

[@Evan_Bell]

Never underestimate the tenacity of the ancients. Do you find it more credible that the pyramids were built with sonic levitation and laser cutters, than a large number of people using massive amounts of labour and time? What's your metric for what constitutes "too much" time and effort? It is demonstrably doable. The fact that it's difficult alone isn't reason to think that's not how it's done, unless there's a plausible and well-substantiated alternative.

[@kirstylakin1572]

uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ya

[@leod2408]

asberg ship?? lol

[@Weesel71]

Every genius detail in less than 4 minutes. All of them. Yep. Four minutes not even. Thumb down.

[@melelconquistador]

Haha valheim tide

[@nationalkalaamtv]

Eow viedeo

[@QuantumMechanic_88]

It's amusing the movies and depictions of horses leaping off of these ships . The predecessor to the Portuguese Man of War could carry horses during the same historical time frame as the Vikings . It's no wonder why the Vikings stayed away from the areas of Portugal .

[@AmandaFromWisconsin]

(sigh) Here we go again.

[@MUCKFOOT399]

arrrrrrrrr☠️

[@cv507]

Gvtz in tränceeggschön För dna and ship täch ^?^

[@FortoFight]

Was it really justified to use a 200 year-old tree just to make a historically accurate longboat?

[@FedoReds88]

Yes

[@BillFromTheHill100]

Yea fool. Trees grow.

[@Tim_G_Bennett]

So much drama!

[@SwiftyJet7145]

Ex

[@philipvernejules9926]

The Vikings didn't build ships. Their slaves built the ships . The expertise for shipbuilding was with their slaves .

[@AmandaFromWisconsin]

Even if that's true, I don't think the slaves designed them.

[@Mondo762]

How did the Vikings travel to get their slaves? On long boats. The tools, the design and the skill needed to build these boats took years to acquire. The knowledge was then passed down through the generations. Not possible for captured slaves to make the tools, come up with the design and then actually build a long boat.

[@SwiftyJet7145]

Ez : me I’m dead

[@jay-sk7bl]

Incomplete

[@danielbarnes8694]

I hate it hen American talks about history

[@AmandaFromWisconsin]

TROLL