Robert Low 03: Viking shield

Robert Low, author of the acclaimed Oathsworn series of Viking adventures, describes authentic Viking weaponry. Number 3 in a series.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• robert
• low
• oathsworn
• viking
• re-enactment
• shield

[ThePitofSidLord]

@manons641 That's not how shields work. If you hit a planked shield with enough force to penetrate it, the shield oft shatters along the incision: /watch?v=0HY28pIHEhk

The swords a slashing weapon. You'd be more likely to deflect a sword that you would an axe, which is a chopping weapon. And you aim for mass in a fight.

[mastercrowly]

@manons641 but destroying someones defense allows you to aim for the head or body without any barriers. so why would they not try to take out the shield? when attacking a city, they would take down the gates first, and then proceed to attack the city- the 'heart or body' of the enemy. you don't just go straight for the final target right away. that gets you nowhere if they have a defense..

[manons641]

I would rather want the enemy to hit the shield into the grain. A sword will stick in a well-made shield. Whilst he's trying to get his sword out of the shield you're free to kill him. In a real fight you don't present your shield as a static target for an axe. You deflect the axe off the shield at an angle. The swordsman or axeman does not aim for the shield in a real fight. He aims for the head or body. You don't win wars by beating shields to death.

[steleona1]

If you enjoyed the Oathsworn series, try Sigurd's Saga on YouTube.

[templarsoul]

Why use Hessian? Linen is period and does a decent job of holding the shield together. Also, many shield v. sword/axe tests have shown that lime wood does not fare well; actually no wood of 6-8 mm avg. thickness does! Though deflecting blows (v. absorbing them) was the norm, there is a growing belief that shields were meant to split. Think sword catcher/upswept quillons ala main gauche in Renaissance- both were meant to catch & trap opponent's blade to give opportunity for a riposte!

[wolfman19892]

@blow56 I judge the guy below you to have average social skills , did you go to hastings this year ? I was with the milites the bec fighting for dear normandy :)

[captainwungf]

The Oathsworn series are by far some of the best books I have ever read. Anyone interested in Viking history and historical fiction should check them out.

[condorlegion89]

is there a "how to make" shield video?

[ShivSilverhawk]

\You know? I actually used the doggy chew and leather. and doggy chew is really good because after you soften it and than form it gets hard again yet verry elastic so it doesnt get damaged and after many fights your shield isnt chipped to shreads:)

[blow56]

It is, in fact, doggy chew, which is cheap and easily rendered on to a REENACTMENT shield to look like leather. Hessian, likewise, is not authentic - is is a 19th century fabric used by REENACTORS to try and add strength and a paint surface, which is why I don't talk about it. Genuine 10th century Viking shields might have had leather, but since only one has been found extant and that too recently for definitive study, I thought it best to avoid making statements I could not prove.

Robert Low

[konradlackspear]

Thats not a leather rim as you said. Its rawhide. Nice comment on the paint though. You missed out the point of the hessian face on the front, and didn't say what the strap was for. Overall I judge this to be average.