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The Vikings' ship-building craft reached a high point in the 7th century when they invented the keel, a structural beam that runs from the bow to the stern and sits lower than the main body of the ship.

But no matter the size, most of the ships were designed to be narrow in shape with short drafts (vertical distance between waterline and bottom of ship), features that gave them high adaptability for use in the ocean and rivers.

Honed for more than 10 centuries, the ship-building skills of the Norse led to a variety of vessels - from small fishing boats and big-bellied cargo vessels to the famous lightning-fast longships used for raiding. These extraordinary vessels - longships in particular - shaped the lives of the sea-faring Norse and changed the course of European history. The Viking shipĪt the heart of the Viking culture lies the Viking ship. Yet, despite how unforgiving their homeland may have been, most Vikings still returned to their homeland at the end of each season with treasure, slaves and goods to survive yet another winter. Many more documented reasons might have prompted these people to leave their cold and harsh homes to seek out the means to survive elsewhere. The reason behind these attacks is a topic of debate among academics, though the reasons often stem from such things as the Christian persecution and forced baptism of pagans to reduced agricultural outputs in the Scandinavian region. Due to the frequency of sea attacks, many developments were made in developing fortifications in the forms of walled-in harbors and sea-facing stone walls, defenses that proved to be quite effective at deterring raids. In the years that followed the initial raid, coastal villages, monasteries and even cities found themselves besieged by these sea-based foreign intruders.