The Long Ships

This page is about a novel by Frans Gunnar Bengtsson. For the Viking ships, see Longship.

For the 1963 film, see The Long Ships (film).

The Long Ships or Red Orm (original Swedish Röde Orm) is a best-selling Swedish novel written by Frans Gunnar Bengtsson 1894-1954. The novel is divided into two parts, published in 1941 and 1945, with two books each.

It is one of the most widely read books in Sweden, topping the charts of most loaned books at Swedish libraries for many years. The first part was translated to English by Barrows Mussey as Red Orm in 1943, but later editions and newer translations by Michael Meyer use the title The Long Ships.

The book has been translated into at least 22 languages: Afrikaans, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Faroese, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Slovenian, Vietnamese.

The language of the novel is modeled on the Norse sagas, making the best of its faculties for wisecracks and comic understatements, and historic names, people and events are woven into the fiction. Bengtsson might also have had some influence from Eric Linklater's The Men of Ness, which book he had translated into Swedish in 1933. The 1963 Anglo-Yugoslavian movie The Long Ships is loosely based on the book.

The Swedish writer Sven Stolpe reports that somebody asked author Bengtsson "what intentions he had with The Long Ships." To which Bengtsson responded that he had no particular intentions. "I just wanted to write a story that people could enjoy to read, like the Three Musketeers or the Odyssey."

Setting

The book is set in the late 10th century and follows the adventures of Orm ("serpent"), called "Red" for his hair (and his temper), a native of Scania. The story portrays the political situation of Europe in the later Viking Age, Andalusia under Al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir, Denmark under Harold Bluetooth, followed by the struggle between Eric the Victorious and Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark, Ireland under Brian Boru, England under Ethelred the Unready, the Battle of Maldon, all before the backdrop of the gradual Christianisation of Scandinavia, contrasting the pragmatic Norse pagan outlook with the narrow-mindedness of Islam and Christianity.

Plot summary

Book 1

The first book covers the years 982 to 990. While still a youth, Orm is taken captive by a Viking party raiding the sheepfold of his father's farm in Skåne after an unprofitable campaign among the Wends. The party consists of three ships, some 180 men, led by Krok. Orm is accepted as a crew member and makes a lifelong friend of Toke Greygullson. They sail south, along the coast of the Frankish Empire. During an encounter with a party of Danes from Jutland, they collect an escaped prisoner, Salaman, an Andalusian Jew. Salaman guides them to the castle of the Castilian Margrave who had betrayed him. The Vikings sack the castle and take the spoils to the ships, Salaman returning to his own land. As they sail off, they are attacked and defeated by an Andalusian fleet, and Orm together with Krok and seven others are captured and made slaves.

They serve as galley slaves for more than two years, during which time Orm becomes left-handed (due to his position on the rowing bench), and Krok dies killing their hated supervisor. Thanks to the intervention of Salaman, the surviving eight Norsemen are made members of the slave-bodyguard of Al-Mansur. They nominally convert to Islam and take part in Al-Mansur's campaigns in the Marca Hispanica for four years. Raiding Iria Flavia, the burial place of St. James, Al-Mansur charges the Norsemen with shipping the captured bell of the Christian church back to Cordova. On their way back, they encounter and slay the killers of Krok, and are forced to flee Andalusia, taking the bell with them. They cross to Ireland, and learning that Brian Boru had gained the upper hand over the Norse there, continue directly to the court of Harold Bluetooth.

Harald had recently converted to Christianity, and they present him with the bell of St. James, upon which Harold invites them to celebrate Yule with him. Both Orm and Toke are wounded in duels during Yule. After reconvalescence, during which he meets Ylva, daughter of Harold, and presents her with a golden necklace given to him by Al-Mansur, Orm returns to Skåne. Toke runs off with an Andalusian slave-concubine of Harald's and continues back home to Blekinge. The one-eyed Rapp, another of Orm's companions from Andalusia, stays with him, being an outlaw in his home district.

Book 2

After King Harald dies in exile, and Styrbjörn the Strong in the Battle of the Fýrisvellir (moved to 991 in the book, historically probably taking place a few years before), Orm and Rapp join a Viking party raiding England under Thorkell the High, participating in the Battle of Maldon. The Norsemen set siege to the church of Maldon, and after negotiation with two English bishops agree to accept payment of Danegeld. The chieftains agree to be baptized, and travel to London for the occasion. Orm, having learned that Harald's daughter Ylva is staying in London, agrees to be baptised, and Poppo, former bishop of Harald, joins them in Christian matrimony. Orm, Ylva, Rapp and the priest Willibald leave London for Denmark, and collect the necklace Ylva had hidden in Jellinge, now Sweyn's stronghold. Sweyn's men discover them, and fleeing, Willibald wounds Sweyn with a stone throw.

Book 3

Fearing Sweyn's revenge, Orm moves to a neglected farm, his mother's inheritance in Göinge, northern Skåne, near the border with Småland. During the following years (992 to 995), Orm prospers , and Ylva gives birth to twin girls (Oddny and Ludmilla), a son, Harald, and later to another son, Svarthöfde (Blackhair in the Michael Meyer translation). Orm beats off a treacherous attack sponsored by Sweyn, and Willibald advises against killing the surviving attackers, forcing them to be baptised instead. At the thing between the men of Göinge, Värend and Finnveden, Orm renews his friendship with Toke who has gained wealth as a fur trader in Värend. Rainald, a Christian priest who had come to the thing with Orm to be exchanged for a priest enslaved by the Värenders, disrupts a fertility ceremony, causing the death of a priest of Frey. He is given to the women of Värend as recompense.

Book 4

The year 1000 passes without Christ returning. In 1007, with Orm now forty-two, Orm's brother Are returns from the east, blind, mute and mutilated. He succeeds in telling of his fate with the help of runes: He had left Skåne in 978 and served in the Varangian guard of Basil II. Are participated in raid on a Bulgar castle at the mouths of the Danube with the aim of capturing the gold treasure of the Bulgar king. The emperor's treasurer made away with the gold, heading for Kiev, and Are pursued him. He succeeded to recapture the gold and hide it in the Dniepr, at the cataracts south of Kiev, but was later caught and mutilated, and with much luck made his way home to Denmark. Orm decides to travel to the Kievan Rus for the gold, and together with Toke and the Värend chieftain Olof (who is promised Orm's daughter Ludmilla upon their return) mans a ship. They travel by way of Visby, reaching the Dniepr via the Daugava and Beresina. They find the treasure, but are attacked by Pechenegs, and Orm's son Svarthöfde is captured. Orm pays a high ransom, but enough of the treasure remains to liberally reward his entire crew. They return to Skåne safely, just four days after Orm's farm had been attacked by outlaws led by the former priest Rainald who have abducted Ludmilla and other women. Orm heads a punitive expedition, the women are freed and Olof slays Rainald. From then on, Orm and Toke live in peace and plenty as good neighbours, and Svarthöfde Ormsson becomes a famous Viking, fighting for Canute the Great. The story ends with the statement that Orm and Toke in their old age "did never tire of telling of the years when they had rowed the Caliph's ship and served my lord Al-Mansur."

Characters

Orm and his family

Orm (Orm is the Swedish word for Snake) is the protagonist of the book, the youngest son of a rich and high-born freeholder. He is a descendant of King Ivar Vidfamne, a fact that he is very proud of. Orm is called "red" for his hair color. At the beginning of book one, he is still in his teens but already strong and dangerous to wrestle with. From the beginning, he shows prowess in battle, and even in his middle age, at the age of 45, he kills two berserks with the handle of a broomstick. He is also clever and resourceful, though a bit of a hypochondriac. His martial prowess is shown in many fight scenes, his astuteness when negotiating for the hand of Ylva in London and also when he participates as one of the judges at the thing in Göinge. His ability to make friends is demonstrated by the fact that the raiders who take him prisoner at the beginning of the book soon forget that he is a captive and begin to regard him as a comrade. Orm has a sharp mind and adapts easily, even in difficult situations. As a slave on a Moorish galley, he soon learns Arabic, which proves very useful and is one reason why his comrades begin to regard him as their chief after Krok's death. Orm thinks before acting, but when angered he is very dangerous. He has a dry sense of humor and is gifted in poetry.

Odd is Orm's older brother. Odd is squat, tough and deliberate in speech. He loves sailing and pillaging, and during the winters, he pines for the summer, when it will once more be time to go a-viking. Accordingly, he is in a bad mood during that time of year and often bickers with his mother. When Orm comes back home from Spain, he learns that Odd has died on one of his journeys.

Are is Orm's other brother. In his youth, he made two women pregnant while their husbands were away, which caused a great to-do in the neighbourhood and forced his father to pay out sizeable reparations. Many people laughed at him because of that, which made him moody, and finally he killed one man who had jested too much about his dexterity, after which he fled from home and joined men travelling east. He and Orm meet in Book 4, when Are comes back from Constantinople, blind, tongueless and without his right hand. Despite this obstacle, Orm devises a way for them to communicate and Are tells him the secret of Bulgarian Gold.

Orm's two other brothers, who remain unnamed have suffered tragic fates. One died when he tried to ride a bull after having drunk a surfeit of beer and the other was washed overboard during his first Viking voyage.

Toste is Orm's father. He is a rather wealthy man and a fine sailor, who would rather die fighting, than "die on straw like a dog". He makes regular summer raids to Ireland. Like Odd, he dies before Orm comes back home from Spain.

Åsa is Orm's mother. She is a strong woman and a diligent husekeeper, but has a fierce temper when crossed. Orm is the apple of her eye, and she spoils him, always ensuring that he gets the best food.

Ylva, King Harald Bluetooth's daughter, is a beautiful young woman, merry but also temperamental and argumentative. She falls in love with Orm, and after many complications they get married.

Ludmilla Ormsdotter is one of Orm's twin daughters, both of whom are redhaired like he. Like her mother, she is playful and adventurous.

Oddny Ormsdotter, the other of Orm's twin daughters. She is, unlike her sister, gentle and calm.

Harald, Orm's son, is named after Ylva's father, Harald Bluetooth. He is a quiet, well-behaved boy, more interested in farming than in adventures abroad.

Svarthöfde (Blackhair) is Orm's second son. He goes with Orm to find the Bulgarian Gold. In Book 3 it is implied that Ylva has slept with the renegade Christian priest Rainald, who like Svarthöfde (and Ylva) has black hair, further implying (though never spelled out) that Rainald is the father of Svarthöfde. He is also described as "his parents' most beloved child". (Two additional children are born to Orm and Ylva after him.) When Orm and Olof get their revenge on Rainald, Svarthöfde assists Olof in killing Rainald. We are told that as a grown man, he entered the service of his cousin King Canute and took part in the battle of Holy River.

Orm's friends

Toke Greygullson is Orm's best friend. He is not only a fearsome fighter but also has a vivid sense of humor. He is a skilled poet. He is very cheerful and never loses his good spirits; even when enslaved on a galley he composes and sings humorous songs. Occasionally he gets into trouble because he has a weak head for drink. Toke is impulsive and sometimes acts without thinking about the consequences, for example when he elopes with one of King Harald Bluetooth's women, an Andalusian girl named Mirah.

One-eyed Rapp is also a good friend of Orm, who lives with him in Göinge after their adventures in Spain. Rapp is a skilled craftsman and a good fighter. In battle he is skilful with an axe.

Krok is the leader of Vikings that sail out in the beginning of Book One, and he is the one who during the sheep-stealing raid in Skåne knocks Orm unconscious and takes him captive, as a replacement for a member of Krok's crew whom Orm has slain. Krok is killed by guards in Malaga while successfully drowning a brutal overseer in a cauldron of boiling tar. Krok's strength is matched by few. When the need arises, he is good at holding speeches to soothe or encourage his crew.

Olof Summerbird is a young chieftain who joins Orm on his quest for Bulgarian Gold. He is very rich, having spent much time in the East among the Byzantines. Clever, bold and strong, he falls deeply in love with Orm's daughter, Ludmilla. He eventually marries her after first having rescued her from brigands and subsequently converting to Christianity.

Salaman is a Jewish silversmith from Andalusia. He also prides himself on being a skilled poet. Krok's men rescue him during their voyage, and later he helps them by getting them out of galley enslavement.

Kings, Princes and Rulers

Harald Bluetooth, King of the Danes.

Sweyn Forkbeard, the son of Bluetooth, who starts a rebellion in which he ultimately defeats his father.

Eric the Victorious, King of the Swedes.

Styrbjörn the Strong is Eric's nephew, who tried to battle his uncle, but was defeated and killed.

Al-Mansur, the Victorious, de facto ruler of Moorish Iberia, featured in Book 1.

Ethelred the Unready, King of England, featured in Book 2.

Politics

For a book written in Sweden during the Second World War — when Sweden's neighbors Denmark and Norway were occupied and quite a few Swedes tended to accommodate themselves to Nazi Germany in various ways — there was an obvious political significance to depicting a Jew as the ally and comrade in arms of Vikings, who moreover persuades the Vikings to help him get his revenge on the Gentile who had wronged him, and who later is instrumental in seeing to it that they become members of the Caliph's guard instead of galley slaves. When Salaman is first introduced to the reader, the Viking who interrogates him and then reports his story to the other Vikings stresses that Christians often persecute Jews and break their word to them because they claim that the Jews killed the Christian god.

Although Skåneland has been Swedish since 1658, it was firmly Danish for many centuries prior to that year. Acccordingly, Orm and his comrades regard themselves as Danes, and are perceived as Danes by everyone else.

The book is written in a strong spirit of tolerance to all religions - pagan, Jewish, Muslim or Christian. Although Orm becomes a Christian, he remains on the best of terms with Toke - a stubborn pagan married to a Muslim wife.

See also

• Trade route from the Varangians to the Greeks (taken by Orm in book 4)

Editions

• Norstedts (1983), ISBN 91-1-791702-6.

English translations

• Red Orm, Barrows Mussey (trans.), C. Scribner's sons (1943).
• The Long Ships : A Saga of the Viking Age, Random House (1954).
• The Long Ships, Michael Meyer (trans.), Collins (1954), HarperCollins (1984), ISBN 0-00-612609-X.