The History of the Viking Axe
Maybe it’s just that feral, berserker reputation, but there is an intrinsic link between the Vikings and low-tech weapons like axes and hammers. The Viking axe occupies a dominant space in pop culture. In the heads of most moviegoers, it’s a brutal two-handed cleaver, easily the size of a man.
Anybody who has read my previous articles knows that I’m going to tell you it’s more complicated than that (most things in history are), but it’s even more true with Vikings and axes. The development of the Viking axe mirrors Viking society itself. The two are intrinsically linked because the axe was so widely used for an array of different purposes.
The Vikings were a tremendously pragmatic people. Adaptability and resourcefulness were of vital importance to any empire that expanded with the speed that theirs did. The elegant simplicity and versatility of the axe became an iconic part of the Viking image because of how well it satisfied both requirements.
It would later develop into more extravagant and specialised forms, but if we’re going to look at the history of the Viking axe, then we have to start at the beginning. The axe began as the cornerstone of civilisation.
Humble Beginnings (Early History)
If you’ve ever looked at the history of weaponry before, you’ll know that finding a singular moment where a type of weapon is ‘invented’ is nigh on impossible before the era of patent pending (and not 100% reliable after that). You’ll also know that definitions of weaponry are an absolute minefield. Try looking up a consistent historical definition for ‘longsword’ if you don’t believe me.
This is particularly problematic with the term ‘Viking axe’, as it can mean several different things depending on who you ask. The Vikings did have a specific weapon, known as a ‘Dane axe’, which I’ll be covering later in this article. However, this is a very specific battlefield weapon with significant differences from what most people think of when you say ‘Viking axe’.
Firstly, let's get the big Hollywood myth out of the way. At no point in history is there any evidence that Vikings used double-bladed axes. None whatsoever. Nil. Zip. Put your horned helmet away and join the back of the class. Outside of looking cool, there’s practically no reason for this to exist. Putting a double head on an axe is largely impractical. You’ve literally doubled its weight for an advantage you’ll only get to use on every other swing.
Likewise, put any idea of the huge battle axes you see in modern fantasy media out of your heads. Weight is a killer in battle, by which I mean it mostly gets you killed. The more effort it takes to swing your weapon, the slower you are and the more tired you get. Historically, battles were as much tests of endurance as they were skill or strength. Tiring out halfway through a fight was a one-way ticket to Valhalla.
The axes the Vikings used were developed from tools. As such, they were light, practical and unadorned. The only reason to create an embellished axe would have been for a ceremonial purpose, like a burial.
The use of axes as a primary weapon probably came about for three reasons. Firstly, cost. Metal was exorbitantly expensive, so any weapon that was mostly wooden offered a huge advantage for the prospective raider looking to save a little on equipping themselves. Secondly, versatility. An axe could be used for far more tasks than a sword or spear could. Combined with a Saex (long knife), you had a ready-made survival kit that doubled as a weapon. Finally, space. Axes were compact and easy to carry. Vitally important on a seafaring voyage.
These were so useful that they became the signature weapon of most Viking raiders, far more common than spears or swords. Although it could be argued this ubiquity made them victims of their own success.
Mythology
A culture’s mythology is a window into how they think. The way they portray the heroes of their sagas and legends shows us the qualities they most value. The same is true for weapons as they’re often used for storytelling symbolism. Swords are the weapons of kings, bows are used by clever warriors, poison by villains, etc. Viking mythology views axe wielders as warriors of great strength, courage and honour.
Perhaps the best example of this is the depiction of the god Thor carrying an axe before he lays his hands on Mjölnir. He has a reputation for being amongst the strongest of the gods, but he’s definitely not a great thinker or cunning strategist like Odin or Loki. Likewise, Tyr, the god of war, is often depicted carrying an axe. Whilst more level-headed than Thor, he’s depicted more as a man of action than a thinker.
Whilst both Tyr and Thor are depicted as having axes, they aren’t their primary weapons. Axes were far too normal for that. Enchanted weapons were more prestigious, like Odin’s Gungnir, Mjölnir or one of the litany of named swords in the sagas. The view of the axe as the working man’s weapon meant that its place in mythology was constantly in the background. There are very few exceptions, with the coolest I could find being King Magnus of Norway’s battleaxe, named ‘Hel’ after the goddess of the underworld, which might be the most metal thing to come out of Norway until their Eurovision entries!
So, we know that Viking axes developed from tools, probably gained popularity as weapons due to their cheapness and versatility, and were viewed as being mundane instruments of war by the Vikings. But how did they become famous for being the iconic Viking weapon? The answer to that lies on a boat.
Going Viking
The expansion of the Viking kingdoms from 600AD onwards was vast. The development of the longboat technology and their subsequent raiding campaigns meant that the Vikings spread throughout the globe at an unprecedented pace. Viking invasions were popping up like extremely bloodthirsty bunnies and the Christian world was gripped by fear of seeing those stripy bedsheet sails on the horizon.
The church didn’t help this by creating propaganda that labelled the Vikings as devil worshippers and ruthless barbarians. More than one Viking expedition turned from a trading party to a raiding party due to the inhabitants immediately taking up arms when they saw the ships coming. Helmets and armour were rare amongst the Viking sailors, so the most recognisable thing about them would have been their weaponry, and their most common weapon was the axe.
As I said before, it was the perfect mix of practical and portable for an onboard weapon. Most people confronting the Vikings would have seen that silhouette hopping off the ship. The Vikings later started to play into this by creating more and more specialised axes. Their normal hand axes became slimmer and lighter, which made them more manoeuvrable for combat. They even developed combat specialised axes like the Skeggox, or bearded axe, with an extended cutting edge for more efficient slicing, throwing axes or Francisca for combat at range, and the mighty Dane axe.
If one had to pick one as the most iconic ‘Viking axe’, then it would have to be the Dane axe, it even technically has the same name. These massive double-handed axes sported a curved blade attached to a 1.5-metre handle and were primarily the weapons of elite warriors. Their distinctive design and reputation as a bodyguard weapon is probably what led to Tyr being depicted with the weapon.
They would eventually take their place as the traditional weapons of the bodyguards of kings. They were popular amongst huscarls (a Jarl’s bodyguard), but were probably most famous as the ceremonial weapons of the Varangian Guard of the Holy Roman Emperors of Constantinople.
I’ve covered the creation of the Varangian Guard in a previous article, but these were a group of elite Viking mercenaries hired as bodyguards by the Byzantine Emperors. The arrangement originally came about because a group of Vikings rocked up in Constantinople and bullied the Emperor into hiring them so they wouldn’t raid shipping routes in the area.
However they started, their weaponry soon became the stuff of legend and tales of the mighty Dane axe spread throughout the world. One of the most famous occurred just up the road from where I live. Just beside a little landmark called Stamford Bridge.
One Man Army
The craziest thing about this story is that it comes from a Viking defeat, yet the Vikings still come out of it looking badass.
In the year 1066 AD, there were three competitors for the throne of England: William the Conqueror, Harold Godwinson and Harald Hardrada. The first two would settle their differences at the Battle of Hastings, famously immortalised in the Bayeux Tapestry between all the penises that the nuns who made it put in the margins (I’m not joking, look it up).
To take on William, the Saxon King Harold Godwinson, who I’m going to call Godwinson from now on to make this easier, had to face off against the Viking King Harald Hardrada, who we’ll use the surname for too. Hardrada ruled the Viking territory of the Danelaw, also known as Northumbria, from the city of York.
The two would meet in battle on the banks of the River Ouse at a place called Stamford Bridge. Due to some clever manoeuvring by Godwinson, he managed to catch Hardrada by surprise, separating Hardrada’s men from their armour, which they’d foolishly left in their baggage camp on the other side of the river from their sleeping camp.
They hadn’t left their weapons though, and Hardrada’s huscarls readied themselves with their mighty Dane axes. It was one of these men who would immortalise the Viking axe in legend by taking up position on the bridge itself.
The story goes that, during the battle, a lone Viking strode onto the bridge to confront the Saxon forces, challenging all comers. It was a smart move tactically, the bridge is larger today than it was in 1066 AD, and the original was narrow enough that the Viking could cover the entire thing in a single sweep of his Dane axe.
Saxon after Saxon attempted to cross the bridge, each being cut down in turn. The lack of space meant there was no way to surround the huscarl, and the reach and power advantage granted by the Dane axe, combined with the elite warrior’s experience and skill, was too much for them. A lone Viking single-handedly fought off an entire army for hours, slicing and whirling his axe like a hurricane. It was only through treachery that the Saxons were able to prevail.
The legend says that a lone Saxon managed to use a barrel as a floatation device and get underneath the bridge. There he thrust his spear up through the slats of the bridge, wounding the Viking from below. He finally succumbed to the sheer weight of numbers, as did Hardrada’s army.
The real victory was what the story did for the Dane axe. From that moment on it was a weapon of legend, and the image of the lone Viking, holding the line with axe in hand, secured the weapon a place in history, inextricably linking Vikings with axes for the rest of time.
Conclusion
As with any historical account, you have to take the story with a pinch of salt, but it is a fitting end to the Viking era of Britain and cemented the Viking axe in history. Especially as axes began to fall out of favour as weapons after this.
The battleaxe was still used, but advancing technology made the creation of swords, maces and particularly poleaxes both easier and cheaper. The double-handed Dane axes would give way to polearms and most medieval militaries would take to using more specialised weaponry as their signature arms, with axes primarily falling back to their use as tools.
The design philosophy of the Dane axe as a space denying breach weapon would fall to great swords like the Montante in later medieval militaries. A last nod to the military tactics of the Vikings before the advent of guns and the gradual slide of the Viking axe into mythology and fiction.
It stands as a testament to the weapon’s adaptability and iconic nature that we still think of axes when we think of Vikings, though not double-headed axes. Stop doing that, Hollywood!
