War at Sea in the Middle Ages
In this series of articles, we will nevertheless attempt to bring the phenomenon of medieval maritime warfare to light, drawing on the relatively sparse literature that does exist to paint a picture of naval warfighting during the period from the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476 to the onset of the Protestant Reformation in 1513.
Researchers present new finds from Gribshunden shipwreck
The researchers are now releasing a report that describes the new finds and discoveries made during this excavation, as well as a summary of previous knowledge and a new interpretive discussion of the large carvel vessel’s European origin and context.
Sustainable and Innovative: The Medieval Art of Fishing
How did people catch fish in the Middle Ages, and what efforts were made to keep this resource sustainable?
A 525-year old fish story
There are tales of the ‘big fish’ that got away. Now, researchers from Lund University have revealed that a two-metre long Atlantic Sturgeon was able to escape a royal feast, by remaining in a barrel of a sunken ship for the last 525 years.
Alfred the Great did not create the Royal Navy, study finds
There has been a common belief that King Alfred the Great established the Royal Navy during his reign. However, this is not true – his predecessors were creating naval fleets at least 20 years before he came to throne.
At the threshold of the Viking Age: New dendrochronological dates for the Kvalsund ship and boat bog offerings (Norway)
This article presents the site, the finds, and a new dendrochronological date for the Kvalsud vessels.
Pirates, Merchants, and a Small Battle on the Island of Kythira in the Later Middle Ages
Incidents of maritime violence such as this were common in the Mediterranean during the later Middle Ages.
Spectacular discoveries made during excavation of 15th century warship
The wreck of a fifteenth century warship has been excavated on the seabed of the Baltic Sea off the coast of southern Sweden. Among the items found has been an early firearm and a beautifully formed drinking tankard, with a crown-like engraving.
The Earliest Wave of Viking Activity? The Norwegian Evidence Revisited
It is argued that the first recorded Viking attacks were only possible after a phase in which Norse seafarers had acquired the necessarily level of a priori environmental knowledge needed to move in new seascapes and coastal environments.
The Naval Power of Norse Dublin
In the ninth to twelfth centuries the Dublin fleet was one of the most formidable war machines in the Irish Sea area.
Join the Navy! The Medieval version
How do you convince men to take a job on a medieval warship?
Piracy and reprisal in Byzantine waters: resolving a maritime conflict between Byzantines and Genoese at the end of the twelfth century
In 1192, Genoese and Pisan pirates under the command of a Genoese corsair pillaged Venetian ships carrying merchandise and valuable gifts for the Byzantine emperor from the Sultan of Egypt.
16th century ship discovered off the coast of The Netherlands
Researchers have found a shipwreck off the coast of the Netherlands from the early 16th century – the oldest find of a seafaring ship in Dutch waters ever.
Vasco da Gama’s astrolabe discovered
Guinness World Records have independently certified an astrolabe excavated from the wreck site of a Portuguese Armada Ship that was part of Vasco da Gama’s second voyage to India in 1502-1503 as the oldest in the world.
Historian discovers earliest evidence of a Scottish ship sailing to North America
An entry in a late sixteenth-century register has revealed that a ship known as “William” of Aberdeen made a voyage to “the new fund land” (Newfoundland) in 1596
The Official Capital Ship of Yuan Dynasty and Yang Shu: Chinese Navigation in the Indian Ocean before Zheng He
In short, the Official Capital Ship policy is implemented from 1284‐1285 (6 months), 1298‐1303 (6 years),
and 1314‐1320 (7 years). It lasted 14 years in total over three periods with intervals in between.
Linking Seas and Lands in Medieval Geographic Thinking during the Crusades and the Discovery of the Atlantic World
If medieval writers understood the interplay between land and sea similar to modern research, what role did the complementary character of land and sea routes actually play in medieval geographic thinking?
The Newport Medieval Ship: The Construction and Sailing of a 15th Century Merchant Vessel in Western Europe
The remains of the medieval ship that was discovered during development work in Newport in South Wales in the United Kingdom in the summer of 2002.
Tudor Shipwreck Discovered in Southeastern England
Archaeologists are now excavating a recently-discovered shipwreck found in southeastern England, which is believed to date from the Tudor-era.
Voyagers in the Vault of Heaven: The Phenomenon of Ships in the Sky in Medieval Ireland and Beyond
This paper explores the phenomenon of ships voyaging in the sky. Such fantastical sightings are considered primarily in an early medieval Irish context, but evidence from places as widely separated in time and place as thirteenth-century England and eighteenth-century Canada is also addressed.
What we are learning about the Newport Medieval Ship
A team of maritime historians and archaeologists, led by academics at the University of Bristol, has published compelling new evidence about the remains of the largest and best-preserved late medieval ship ever discovered.
Large-scale whaling in northern Scandinavia may date back to 6th century
The intensive whaling that has pushed many species to the brink of extinction today may be several centuries older than previously assumed. This view is held by archaeologists from Uppsala and York whose findings are presented in the European Journal of Archaeology.
The Vasa: Gustav II Adolf’s Glorious and Doomed Warship
On the 10th of August 1628, the Vasa sank in Stockholm harbour, thus ending the career of the most powerful warship that Sweden had ever seen.
When the Atlantic Ocean had many islands: The mythical and miraculous places west of medieval Europe
Why medieval people did not accept that the vast space in the Atlantic Ocean between the Old World and the New could truly be an empty one.