Viking Two Handed Swords History vs. Fantasy

The first 1000 people to use this link will get a free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership: The idea of a burly Nordic warrior, barbarian angrily swinging a large weapon in both hands is popular in fantasy and historical fiction, and people sometimes commission blade smiths to make a twohanded version of a Viking sword. Every now and then someone speculates about whether longswords or handandahalf swords might have existed in the Viking Age. There is a particular archaeological find and two interesting pieces in a museum that fuel such speculation. In this video I talk about whether there is real evidence for them and why in depictions of battles (like on the Bayeux tapestry) you see a few twohanded axes but otherwise only spears and singlehanded swords used with shields. There are some practical reasons that I find plausible as potential explanations. Support the channel Help fund future videos, get bonus content and other rewards: