Viking raid warfare and tactics

Culture of war

Vikings, according to Clare Downham in Viking Kings of Britain in Ireland, are, "people of Scandinavian culture who were active outside Scandinavia… Danes, Norwegians, Swedes, Hiberno-Scandinavians, Anglo-Scandinavians, or the inhabitants of any Scandinavian colony who affiliated themselves more strongly with the culture of the coloniser than with that of the indigenous population."

Parts of the tactics and warfare of the Vikings were driven by their cultural beliefs, itself rooted in Norse culture and religion, and vividly recalled in the later Icelandic sagas. In the early Viking Age, during the late 8th century and most of the 9th, Vikings consisted of smaller tribal bands with a lack of any clear central authority, governance being rooted in tribal assemblies. Rooted in honour - a vital concept in Nordic pagan tradition - violence was used as a measure to moderate disputes with other tribal groups. This emphasis on violence as a decisive tool regarding disputes was not limited to a man, but extended to a man's kin. Violence was seen as a measure to defend honor. Honor was extremely important to Norsemen, and the sense of shaming one's honor extended beyond physical and material injuries. Honor could be shamed from mere insults, where Norsemen were expected to react with violence often resulting in death. Thus, with this prevalence of violence came the expectation of fearlessness.

Norsemen believed that the time of death for any individual is predetermined, however nothing else in life was. Considering this, Norsemen believed there to be two possibilities in life: "success with its attendant fame; or death." The necessity of defending honor with violence, along with the belief that time of death was preordained, adventure and fearlessness were core values to the Viking Age. These principle values and convictions were displayed in the tactics of Viking raids and warfare.

Raids

The Vikings liked to attack coastal regions because these regions were impossible to block off from the enemies stand point. The Vikings from Scandinavia were born into a seafaring culture. With the Atlantic Ocean to the West, as well as the Baltic and North Sea bordering the southern borders of Scandinavia, seafaring proved to be the means of communication for Scandinavians. In Northern Europe at the start of the 8th Century Vikings began raiding coasts of the British Isles across the sea from Scandinavia, particularly monasteries. These monasteries carried a great deal of valuable treasures. The first known raid was on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne off the English coast in 793. These raids continued for the entirety of the Viking Age. These initial raids had a religious implication to them. Vikings would target monasteries along the coast, raid the towns for their booty, and destroy what was left. This caused mass fear amongst such monks, as they felt that it was punishment from God.

Viking raids in the late 8th century through to the early 10th century consisted of "hit-and-run" style raids that would bring riches back to their respective lands. However, due to the technical success of their shipbuilding, they were able to transform such raids into settlements. Viking ships made possible traversing rivers such as the Thames in England, The Volga in Russian territory, and The Loire in Frankish territory. In the years 814-820, Danish Vikings repeatedly sacked the regions of Northwestern France via the Seine River, and also repeatedly sacked monasteries in the Bay of Biscay via the Loire River. Eventually, the Vikings settled into these areas and lived off agrarian production. This was mainly due to Rollo The Pirate, a Viking leader who seized what is now Normandy in 879, and formally in 911 when Charles III of Western Francia granted him Lower Seine. This became a precursor to the Viking expansion that established important trade posts and agrarian settlements deep into Frankish territory, English territory, and much of what is now European Russian territory. The Vikings were also able to establish an extended period of economic and political rule of much of Ireland, England, and Scotland during the Norse Ivarr Dynasty that started in the late 9th century and lasting until 1094. In Ireland, coastal fortifications known as longphorts were established in many places after initial raidings, and they developed into trading posts and settlements over time. Quite a few modern towns in Ireland were founded in this way, including Dublin.

Warships

Expansion of Viking settlements in the 9th and 10th centuries was due to exploration of rivers. The ships used by these Norsemen were essential to this exploration and allowed expansion and colonization. The traditional Viking ship is believed to be a Gokstad ship. It was close to twenty-eight meters long and five meters wide. These long narrow ships could accommodate 50-60 seamen who powered the ship by rowing. They were built from strong oak, and split with axes so the grain in between the ships planks meshed together. There was a relatively short mast that was used for gathering speed rather than steering, this was instead accomplished with a single rudder in the stern. These boats are known to draft close to a meter of water. Adaptations of these long ships were built with a deeper hull for transporting goods, but what they added in hull depth and durability they sacrificed in speed and mobility.

Drakkar

Their battleship which was called the Drakkar . The Drakkar was supposed to be sturdy and easy to maneuver, it also had to be able to handle the open ocean and smaller rivers the Vikings would travel through. The Drakkar could either be sailed or rowed and had the capacity to hold up to 50-60 men inside of it. Some of the ships had the capacity to hold an extra set of rowers, this meant that the Vikings did not need to rest at night and could just continue sailing or rowing with the extra set of hands.

Knörr

The Knörr on the other hand was not as big but had a lot of room on board for storage for items to trade with. Unlike the Drakkar the trading ship was only to be sailed. Both boats had the potential to sail very fast, up to 12-14 knots (about 16-17 MPH) The reason the Vikings were able to create such incredible ships was because of their access to excellent resources. The Vikings would trade with many of the places around the British Isles and surrounding territories

The design of these ships proved to be extremely fast. Their build was not designed for battle at sea, as they would be no match for slower, but more powerful English vessels. Due to the low-lying hull, Viking ships could land directly on sandy beaches rather than docking in well-fortified harbors. The low mast, built for speed when the winds were favorable, could easily pass under bridges often erected in rivers. These masts were designed to maneuver under the fortified bridges that Charles the Bald of West Francia created from 848-877.

Seafaring military strategies

The fast design of Viking ships was essential to their hit-and-run raids. For instance, in the sacking of Frisia in the early 9th Century, Charlemagne mobilized his troops the instant he heard of the raid, but completely missed the Vikings when he arrived. The Viking's ships gave them an element of surprise. Often traveling in small packs, or bands, they could easily go undetected, swiftly enter a village or monastery, pillage and collect booty, and leave before reinforcements arrived. Vikings understood the advantages of the long ships’ mobility, and used them to a great extent. Viking fleets would often sail past the horizon of a bay they planned to raid as they traveled up a coast from one town to the next. This allowed them to stay out of sight in their small bands. They would often lower the mast in these occasions to avoid detection.

Viking fleets of over a hundred ships did occur, but often these fleets had little to no cohesion, being composed of smaller fleets led by numerous chieftains or different Norse band. This was most often seen in the Francia raids between 841 and 892. They can be attributed to the fact that it was during this time that the Frankish aristocracy began paying off Vikings and buying mercenaries in return for protection from Viking raids. Thus, there appeared rudimentary structures of Viking armies. Viking raids often lacked formation. They have been described as "bees swarming." However, what they lacked in formation they made up with communication. This naturalistic sense of unconventional warfare is rooted in their lack of organized leadership. These small fleets communicated effectively and made it difficult for English and Frankish territories to counter these foreign tactics. Sprague compares these tactics to those of contemporary western Special Forces soldiers who, "attack in small units with specific objectives."

While naval Viking battles are not as common as battles on land, they did occur. Viking ships would often try and ram ships in the open sea. They would propel the boats by rowing fast directly at defending ships that were vulnerable and isolated from their fleet. To combat this, defending fleets would raft up with the bows of their boats facing the attacking Vikings. Depending on the size of the defending fleet, The Viking ships allowed them to maneuver their boats by rowing around such ships to flank them. When they got close enough, Vikings would throw spears and use their longbows. Archers would be positioned in the back of the ships protected by a shield wall formation constructed in the front of the ship. If the Vikings were attacked while in the water they would wait until they were in fighting distance then group together to create one long line of boats, this made it easier to move between boats and made their formation more compact

Vikings attacked ships, not with the intent to destroy them, but rather to board them and take control. This is because Vikings originally based their battles around economic gains rather than political or territorial gains. Most of these battles took place with other Viking fleets, as they had little to fear from European countries invading the inhospitable regions of Scandinavia. Rather, many naval battles were fought amongst Vikings, "Dane against Norwegian, Swede against Norwegian, Swede against Dane."

If during a seafaring battle a Viking happened to get thrown overboard they were told to put their shield over their head to protect themselves from arrows or other shrapnel that could kill them.

Battle tactics on land

Sagas of Viking Age often mention berserkers. These fabled Viking warriors are said to have spiritual magical powers from the god of war Odin that allowed them to become impervious to injuries on the battlefield. While these stories are exaggerated, the term berserks is rooted in truths about Viking warriors who were able to enter an intense, trance-like state whereupon they would "engage in reckless fighting." These warriors were greatly feared by Christians in Frankish and English regions who viewed such men as satanic. The reason for these raids is unknown, but some have suggested that with the increase in trade it created a growth in piracy.

Vikings would beach their ships on land, where their battle tactics contained elements of surprise. "Vikings were notorious for laying ambushes and using woods to lay in await for armies approaching along established roads." If confronted by legitimate forces in raids, Vikings would create a wedge formation, with their best men, or berserkers, at the front of this wedge. They would throw spears, and rush this wedge through enemy lines where they could engage in hand-to-hand combat, which was their forte. Some survivors of sea battles were often pressed into guarding the ships during land skirmishes.

Viking military tactics succeeded mainly because they disregarded conventional battlefield tactics, methods, and customs of the time. They ignored the unspoken rules of leaving holy sites untouched, and they never arranged battle times. Deceit, stealth, and ruthlessness were not seen as cowardly. During raids the Vikings would target religious sites because of their vulnerability, often butchering the clergy at these sites in honor of a Pagan god.

Warriors could be as young as 12 years old. Various basic physical tests were required to join the Viking forces, but these tests were considered easy to pass.

Battle axe

The battle axe was popular amongst Norsemen in the Viking Age, however its popularity is often misunderstood in modern culture, the battle axe was not seen as a superior weapon to the spear and its use was rather limited from historical evidence. It was commonly used for agricultural purposes, as well as shipbuilding, and eventually adapted for use in Viking raids. Axes varied in size from small handheld axes called broadaxes that could be used both for raids and in farming, to Danish Axes that were well over a meter in length. These axes had a wooden shaft, with a large, curved iron blade. They required less swinging power than expected, as the large bladed heads allowed gravity and momentum to do most of the work. The axe had points on each tip of the blade where the curve tapered off. This allowed the axe to be used to hook an opponent, while also doubling as a thrusting weapon.

The axe was psychologically intimidating to the people of Christian territories the Vikings sacked. King Magnus of Norway, inherited his axe from his patron saint father, Olav Haraldsson. He named this axe Hel, the name of the Norse goddess of death. Christians associated this name to the word Hell. The axe of Magnus is still portrayed in the Norwegian Coat of Arms.

Sword

Swords had to be simple yet functional, there was little to no design on them; however once you were given a sword a strong bond was formed between both the weapon and its owner. It is believed that the sword was about 90 cm and had a blade of 80 cm and a handle of 10 cm. Almost every sword was double edged which allowed the Vikings to switch hands during battle, it also meant that they could slash different directions without having to worry about which side was the sharp side. Viking Age swords were common in battles and raids. They were used as a secondary weapon for when fighting had fallen out of formation or their primary weapon was damaged. While there were many variations of swords, the Vikings used double-edged swords, often with blades 90 centimeters in length and 15 centimeters in width. These swords were designed for slashing and cutting, rather than thrusting, so the blades were carefully sharpened while the tip was often left relatively dull.

A sword was considered a personal object amongst Vikings. Warriors would name their swords, as they felt such objects guarding their lives deserved identities. A Sword, depending on the make, often was associated with prestige and value due to the importance of honor in the Viking Age. No real method has been discovered about how the Vikings made their weapons but it is believed that individual pieces would have been welded together. Weapons often served more than one purpose, if two people were in disagreement then they would often challenge the offender to a duel of honor that were supposed to resolve the issue. This challenge would take place either on a small island or marked off area. A square with sides length between 9–12 ft would be marked off with an animal hide placed inside the square. Each man was allowed three shields and a shield bearer who would carry the shield during battle. The helper could replace or carry shields for the combatant. The person who had been challenged was entitled to the first blow at the shields. The opponent could parry the blow and counter with his own strike; only one strike at a time was allowed. Once all of someones shields had been destroyed they could continue to defend himself as best he could with a sword. This would continue until someone was injured; if blood fell on the animal hide then that person was required to pay three marks of silver to be set free and have his honor restored.

Spear

The most common weapon in the Viking arsenal and principle weapon of the Viking the spears were commonly used in the Viking Age. These spears were inexpensive and effective. The length of the wooden handle of such spears was between two and three meters. There were two types of spears; one was made for throwing while the other was generally used for thrusting. The handles of these were the same, but the tips of throwing spears were roughly thirty centimeters while the thrusting spears were close to sixty. Sometimes, spears were used as projectile weapons, in the occasional naval fight, as well as during raids on shore and in battle. This was in part due to the Norsemen’s natural height and build, being much taller and bigger than Frankish and English men at the time. The popularity of the spear came from its inexpensiveness and advantage over the sword due to its reach, making it the most common battlefield weapon all over the world despite popular belief.

Defensive Equipment

While it is widely believed that the Vikings all had helmets with horns on the end it is false. Only the wealthiest Vikings could afford helmets and this was because of how expensive a helmet was. The one piece of defensive equipment that every warrior had was a shield. The shield itself was round and not oval shaped which made it easier to carry and move with, however it would leave their legs and some of their lower body exposed. Shields would have been made out of hard wood and would have hand holds on the inside so the soldiers could hold them from the inside. Shields would have been about 1 m in diameter (about 3 ft).