Viking Knarr Ship Information Last week we learned about longships. You know that Vikings used longships for raiding and sea battles. Their shape made them go fast and all the crew could row using the oars. We think the crew sat on chests or boxes. They could go right up rivers and land on beaches because they were shallow boats.

The Knarr was a different kind of ship. Because they were so good at building ships, Vikings were able to travel a long way to trade for goods. They were very good at making things and travelled to other countries to swap or trade the things they made for things they wanted but couldn’t make or grow. This meant the Knarr ship was used for carrying large heavy things. These were carried in the space or hold in the middle of the boat. If it was stormy, a big cloth or tarpaulin was used to cover up the cargo. Cargo is the name given to the things a ship is carrying. There was also some space under the deck to store things. A knarr ship did not need as many oar holes as a longship. There were not so many sailors because they needed more room for the cargo. Also, the sail was much more important for moving the ship as it was very heavy once all the cargo was inside and would be too hard to row. Another name for a trading ship is a merchant ship. Knarr ships did not need to travel fast like a longship because they were not used for surprising enemies in a raid. Knarr ships were used for exploring and helping people when they settled in new countries too. They were a kind of Viking removal van. Vikings were such good sailors they explored and settled in Scotland and other parts of Britain, as well as Greenland, Iceland and Newfoundland. The ships had to be well built because the North Atlantic Sea could be very stormy and they did not want to sink and lose the cargo (and the sailors). Like a longship, a knarr ship had a shallow hull. The hull is the main part of a ship. This shallow hull allowed the ship to travel up rivers and land on beaches. Would you have liked to be a member of the crew on a Knarr ship? I think I would like to travel to new places but it would not have been fun in stormy weather.