Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE SECRETS OF VIKING DOMINATION
The main god who provided strength to the Viking cause was Odin (Oðinn), the 'All-Fath-
er' who was married to Frigg. Together they gave birth to a son, Thor (Þór), the God of
Thunder. The Vikings believed that if they died on the battlefield, the all-powerful Odin
would take them to a paradise by the name of Valhalla, where Viking men could fight all
day and then be served by beautiful women.
Not surprisingly, it was considered far better for a Viking to die on the battlefield than in
bed of old age and Vikings brought a reckless abandon to their battles that was extremely
difficult for enemies to overcome - to die or to come away with loot, the Vikings seemed
to say, was more or less the same. Equally unsurprising was the fact that the essential
Viking values that emerged from their unique world view embodied strength, skill in
weapons, heroic courage, personal sacrifice and a disregard for death.
But the Vikings were as much the sophisticates of the ancient world as they were its
fearless warriors. Viking ships were revolutionary, fast, manoeuvrable vessels capable of
withstanding torrid and often long ocean journeys. Longboats were over 30m long, had a
solid keel, flexible hull, large, square sails and could travel up to 12 knots (22km) per hour;
they enabled the Vikings to launch and maintain a conquest that would go largely unchal-
lenged for 200 years.
Perhaps the most curious aspect of Viking voyages, however, was the navigational tool
they employed to travel through uncharted territory. Norse sagas mention a mysterious
device known as asolarsteinn(sunstone), which allowed navigation even when the sky
was overcast or the sun was below the horizon and celestial navigation was impossible.
It is now generally agreed that thesolarsteinnwas a crystal of cordierite, which is found
around Scandinavia and has natural polarising qualities. When observed from below and
rotated, light passing through the crystal is polarised blue when the long axis is pointed
towards the source of the sunlight. Even today, jet planes flying over polar regions, where
magnetic compasses are unsuitable, use a sky compass that determines the position of
the sun by filtering sunlight through an artificial polarising lens.
Harald Fair-Hair
Harald Hårfagre (Harald Fair-Hair), son of Hvaldan Svarte (Halvdan the Black), was more
than the latest in a long line of great Viking names. While most Viking chieftains made
their name in foreign conquest, Harald Fair-Hair was doing something that no other leader
had managed before - he united the disparate warring tribes of the Viking nation.
