# What was so special about Viking ships?

- Institution: TED
- Department: TED-Ed
- Speaker: Jan Bill
- Year: 2020
- Level: For everyone
- Language: English
- Subjects: History, Art, architecture and design, Teaching and learning
- Source: [TED](https://www.ted.com/talks/jan_bill_what_was_so_special_about_viking_ships)
- Licence: [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) (Non-commercial use only, and no changed versions.)
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (sources give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the source's own words)

As the Roman Empire flourished, Scandinavians had small settlements and no central government. Yet by the 11th century, they had spread far from Scandinavia, gaining control of trade routes throughout Europe, conquering kingdoms as far as Africa, and building outposts in North America. What was the secret to their success? Jan Bill dives into the history of the formidable Viking longship. \[Directed by TOTEM Studio, narrated by Addison Anderson, music by Julián André and Blas Cernicchiaro\].

## Lectures

1. [What was so special about Viking ships?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/ted/jan_bill_what_was_so_special_about_viking_ships/793b6474e1ee), 5 min (TED's player)