Boathouses as indicators of political organization

Remains of boathouses from the Iron Age and the Medieval Period have been studied for classifying and dating purposes. A classification based on the ratio length/breadth is compared with the height above sea level and tested by ¹⁴C‐dates, the measurements of preserved boats and ships, and archaeological finds. It is possible that we can define three groups of boathouses belonging to three different chronological periods. The distribution of large boathouses indicates a different naval organization during the Medieval Period than in the Late Roman/Migration Period. During the Medieval Period the coastal area was divided into many local districts, and each of them had to contribute to the king's fleet with a fully equipped ship. The Iron Age boathouses are found in groups, and it is suggested that the country was then divided into several chiefdoms, and the boathouses were concentrated around the chieftains’ administrative centres.