An account in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle from the year 878 – that is from the historical part of the chronicle – suggests that the Scandinavian ships were comparatively small. It is worthy of note that the largest Scandinavian ships that we know from the time around 900 – the Norwegian Gokstadship and the Ladby ship from Denmark – both have 32 oars and are hence only half as big as king Alfred’s 60-oar ships. It can therefore be said with a certain degree of truth that king Alfred’s new ships did not differ greatly from the big longships of the tenth and eleventh centuries. They were made like neither the Frisian ships nor the Danish ones, but as he considered they would be best”.Īnglo-Saxon shipbuilding belonged, just like its Danish counterpart, in the clinker-building tradition. Some had 60 oars, other more than these and they were both swifter and steadier than the others. “build long ships against the ashes, as they were almost twice as long as the others. From the year 897 there is an indirect description, however, for king Alfred gave orders to: The sizes of the Viking fleets are often named, as well as the routes they took, but there are practically no concrete descriptions of what the ships looked like. Attacks by the fleets are frequently mentioned, as are also the establishment of winter-quarters, payment of the Danegeld, and the shifting political alliances. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is one of the most important sources for Viking activities in Western Europe, and naturally particularly in England. As the years pass by, the various versions of the chronicle become more and more independent, until they come to an end in the 11th or the 12th century. From about 892 the annals consist of short notes and descriptions of events and records of deaths that have taken place in the course of the preceding year, sometimes combined with more circumstantial accounts of political and military events. Down to 890 the chronicle is based on historical works, older annals, works in praise of princes, and saga literature. It pays particular attention to describing the genealogy of the kings and is therefore a tool to legitimise king Alfred’s right to the throne.

The Chronicle begins with a brief account of the tribes living in England and then goes on to describe the history of the British Isles from the time of Julius Caesar and on.

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is known today in nine different versions that differ considerably from each other. They all go back to a set of annals that was probably compiled at the court of king Alfred of Wessex in about 890 and the annals were continued until 1154. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals that have been compiled at various English monasteries.

The Anglo Saxon Chronicle by Various