Original subtitles

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] We are surrounded

by extraordinary feats of engineering.

Constantly pushing the boundaries

of what's possible.

- Without engineering, there'd be no modern world.

- [Narrator] Gigantic cities, amazing infrastructure.

And ingenious inventions.

- Engineering is the key to turn dreams into reality.

- [Narrator] To reach these dizzying heights,

today's technology relies on breakthroughs made

by ancient engineers.

- It's mind boggling how they did this.

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] How did early civilizations build

on such a scale?

- They raised the bar for construction in a way

that no one thought possible.

- The sheer engineering ability is in itself impressive.

- [Narrator] By defying the known laws of physics.

And daring to dream big.

They constructed wonders of the world.

From gigantic pyramids

to awe-inspiring temples

and mighty fortresses.

All with the simplest of tools.

[chisels clinking]

- Cannot imagine the skills people would have needed

to build like this.

- [Narrator] Now it's possible to unearth the secrets

of the first engineers. [dramatic music]

- They managed to construct edifices

that have survived the ravages of time.

- [Narrator] And reveal how their genius laid

the foundations for everything we build today.

[dramatic music]

[dramatic music]

There's one form of ancient engineering

that took humanity to a whole new level,

allowing people to spread to every corner of the earth.

[dramatic music]

This ingenious invention erased the boundary

between land and sea.

Connecting civilizations oceans apart

and this ancient invention still forms the backbone

of all global trade.

- Ships are fundamental to the operation

of the modern world.

- [Narrator] Even in the age of air travel, every year,

over a billion tons of cargo are moved by ship.

- Maritime trade is so important.

90% of trade is actually at sea.

- Ships can carry far greater weights

than anything you can do on land.

- [Narrator] Fishing boats catch

over 100 million tons of seafood.

Gigantic ferries deliver billions of passengers.

And the largest cruise ships carry more people

than the population of some small towns.

- Compared to modern cruise ships,

the Titanic was actually relatively modest in size.

- [Narrator] Enormous warships patrol the world's hotspots.

Bristling with high-tech weaponry.

- We still see the super powers of today

are building massive navies

to enforce their status and position in the world.

- [Narrator] In all, as many as 100,000 merchant ships

traverse the world's oceans.

Alongside over 10,000 naval vessels.

Ships and the global networks that support them

are a true technological wonder of our age.

[dramatic music]

Today's large-scale marine engineering is the result

of centuries of human endeavor and ingenuity.

[water whooshing] But until the introduction

of iron ships in the 1800s,

there was only one material available to maritime engineers.

It was used for over 10,000 years.

[wind whooshing] [dramatic music]

Early boat builders relied exclusively on wood.

And, from this simple raw ingredient,

constructed an astonishing array of vessels.

- We see that throughout maritime history,

the way that people use the wood, the timber.

Following the grain of the timber,

using the shape of the timber itself,

is really highly skilled. [suspenseful music]

- [Narrator] Wood is a substance

with some crucial properties.

[suspenseful music]

- First of all, wood is readily available.

Relatively easy to use.

You can carve it into the shapes that you need to.

And also they provide a natural buoyancy.

- [Narrator] Buoyancy is the result

of two forces acting on an object when in water.

Its weight pulls it down

while the opposing force of the water pushes up.

If the weight is equal to or less than this upthrust,

then the object is buoyant and will float.

[suspenseful music]

Typically, wood has a lower density than water

and will float, regardless of size.

But there is a downside.

Wood doesn't last forever.

Tragically, the majority of ancient ships

have disappeared over time,

rotted away over the millennia.

- It's incredibly rare to find an intact war ship

because the sea is full of microorganisms that eat timber.

[suspenseful music]

- [Narrator] But there are clues

to some of the world's earliest vessels.

Dugout canoes are the oldest boat type archeologists

have ever found.

Dating back as far as 8,000 years to the Stone Age.

These hollowed out logs were ideal for inland waterways.

- The very first boats were intended just

for lakes and rivers.

For just pottering along, quite close to shore.

- [Narrator] But when early humans wanted to travel further,

across seas, they needed something bigger.

One place where vessels evolved

to the next level was Polynesia.

Over 1000 small islands spread across the South Pacific.

Dugout canoes lacked the stability

to cross these seas. [waves whooshing]

To pull off humanity's first great feat of seafaring,

early engineers invented the multi-hull.

Boats with two or three hulls, lashed side by side.

A monumental feat of engineering at this point

in human history. [adventurous music]

- These early boats are really quite complicated to build.

They would have required a loss of technology

and a lot of effort and a lot of time

would have been involved.

- It's quite complex technology.

You only really understand it

if you just try and make yourself a raft or a boat.

It's very, very difficult to do.

- [Narrator] Building a multi-hull required new tools,

the ability to measure,

and an understanding of the environment.

Polynesians tied equally-sized canoes together with vines

or palm fibers.

While a central platform was laid over crossbeams,

providing space for supplies and equipment.

Multiple hulls gave this craft stability

and the capacity to carry heavy loads.

It was ideally suited to long journeys

across the seas, [waves whooshing]

bringing distant lands within reach

- Around the Pacific Island nations,

using small craft was incredibly important

for expanding and exploration.

- [Narrator] Polynesian boat builders constructed

these vessels using nothing more

than the limited building materials at hand.

Enabling their people to spread across the region.

By 900 BC, they reached some of the most remote islands

within the vast Polynesian triangle,

across an area of 800,000 square miles.

But oar power alone would never have been enough

to achieve such a feat.

Long before the Industrial Revolution,

a technological breakthrough was needed.

[adventurous music]

One made not at sea,

but on one of the world's great rivers.

[adventurous music]

Ancient Egyptian civilization was established in 3100 BC.

[chisels clicking]

Taking root along the rich fertile banks of the Nile River.

- In a period in which road travel is extremely difficult

and arduous, rivers aren't barriers.

Rivers are, in fact, the super highways of their age.

- [Narrator] To this day,

the river remains a vital artery.

Plied by tourist craft and dhows.

But despite the Nile running the length of the country,

the Egyptians' boats struggled when traveling

against the current.

Paddles and poles weren't enough

to move efficiently river.

So an engineering solution was needed.

[wind whooshing]

Around 3000 BC, the Egyptians were among the first

to invent a device that would utterly transform the ship.

[suspenseful music] It would prove its worth

over the subsequent 5,000 years of seafaring,

driving travel, commerce, and warfare.

The sail. [adventurous music]

- This is one of the major developments

in seafaring history.

That's for sure.

It makes economic sense,

because you have less people on board.

You can travel faster and further.

So it really is groundbreaking.

- [Narrator] The sail is essentially

a large piece of fabric,

positioned almost perpendicular to the wind.

A vessel is driven forward

as the breeze pushes against it,

traveling faster, further,

and more efficiently than ever before.

This breakthrough engineering harnessed natural forces

to expand the possibilities of shipping.

- We don't know exactly where the sail originated,

but we do know that Egypt was an early adopter.

And some of the earliest evidence we have

of sails comes from Egypt.

[adventurous music]

- [Narrator] Most of these revolutionary Egyptian vessels

have been lost.

But scraps of evidence survive.

- We have tomb inscriptions and ancient texts showing

that they were building ships as early as the Bronze Age.

- [Narrator] And one spectacular discovery reveals

the true genius of these ancient marvels.

[wind whooshing]

[suspenseful music]

In 1954, archeologists opened a sealed chamber

close to the Great Pyramid.

Inside, they found the remains

of a four-and-a-half-thousand-year-old vessel.

They named it after the Pharaoh

who ruled Egypt at this time.

The Khufu Ship.

- The discovery of the Khufu Ship was significant

for a number of reasons.

First of all, nobody had ever quite believed

that the Egyptians could build something

as sophisticated as that so early.

It's an amazing piece of engineering.

- [Narrator] The vessel revealed

how newly-developed metal tools enabled a quantum leap

in boat building.

[peaceful music]

In place of crude logs, precision-cut planking.

Wooden planks are both strong and flexible.

They can be bent or twisted

to fit the curvature of a ship's hull.

This new construction technique

made far larger ships possible

for both commerce and war. [awe-inspiring music]

And Khufu's vessel is a prime example.

- The quality of the construction

and the technology behind it blew everyone's mind.

- [Narrator] Its hull was built from single planks

of Lebanese cedar, a hard and durable wood.

[awe-inspiring music]

It used logs measuring up to 76 feet.

Sculpted by the pharaoh's craftsmen,

they follow the shape of the hull

and are carved to slot neatly together like a jigsaw puzzle.

- These were lashed together,

but then as the ship then goes in the water,

these lashings swell up.

So you really get that nice waterproofed external shell.

- [Narrator] The lashed hull

and thick planks running the length of Khufu's Ship

made it a far stronger and more durable vessel

than the Egyptians' traditional papyrus rafts.

It's been described as a masterpiece of carpentry.

[awe-inspiring music]

Now fully reassembled,

the ship's housed in a specially-built museum,

just outside the pyramid.

[awe-inspiring music]

In theory, it could still sail today

if launched back onto the Nile.

[wind whooshing]

But vessels like this

weren't only fit to sail up and down rivers.

[suspenseful music]

- The Egyptians were able to build very strong

and very seaworthy boats that would utilize the Nile,

but also the oceans as well.

[waves whooshing]

- [Narrator] Thanks to their shipbuilding prowess,

the Ancient Egyptians dominated the Mediterranean Sea

for 3000 years. [waves whooshing]

Naval power brought them great wealth,

allowing them to secure their territory

and control trade routes. [waves whooshing]

Throughout history, naval dominance has remained central

to empire building.

And nations with an engineering edge

still command the seas today. [peaceful music]

[waves whooshing] [dramatic music]

No modern force rivals the sheer scale

and might of the U.S. Navy.

Estimated to have more tonnage

than the next eight navies combined.

It consists of 11 aircraft carriers,

over 290 deployable combat vessels,

and roughly 3,700 operational aircraft.

[planes whooshing]

- Not only is the American Navy enormous,

but they're constantly pushing the boundaries

of what can be achieved by ships at sea.

There's constant innovation happening.

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Leading the pack

is the world's most technologically advanced surface ship.

[suspenseful music]

Completed in 2020,

the stealth destroyer USS Zumwalt.

600 feet long, [dramatic music]

this vast, next-generation warship is engineered

to go unnoticed.

[intense music]

- The way radar works is it pings out a signal

and then that reflects off something which it can detect.

So a big ship that has a lot of surface area

would provide a big signal back

on the radar and be very easy to detect.

- [Narrator] Yet despite being 40% larger

than a standard destroyer,

its sharp angles and smooth surface ensure

that the Zumwalt is around 50 times harder

to spot on radar than its smaller predecessors.

Its radar signature is equivalent to a small fishing boat.

[intense music]

Such advanced engineering helps

the U.S. Navy remain a true powerhouse.

Uncontested ruler of the waves.

[explosion booms]

But there's a new rival emerging.

- What's really interesting is the way that China,

who has global ambitions as a trading nation now,

is also massively investing in its navy

in order to protect its shipping interests.

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] China's fleet is growing in power.

Expanding the nation's sphere of influence.

[waves whooshing] [dramatic music]

Naval engineering remains as important today

as in the time of the Ancient Egyptians.

[wind whooshing]

[peaceful music] And while Egypt

was one of the first civilizations

to dominate the Mediterranean Sea,

other powers ultimately succeeded them.

Among them, the Phoenicians. [awe-inspiring music]

Believed to have been driven to the coast

by aggressive neighbors,

the Phoenicians took advantage of their location

to become master seafarers and traders.

Creating a sprawling network right

across the Mediterranean Sea. [awe-inspiring music]

- For centuries, they ruled the waves,

trading with everybody around the Mediterranean.

Even heading out into the Atlantic.

[awe-inspiring music]

- [Narrator] Their advanced vessels were known

for their speed and ability to maneuver stormy seas.

- Phoenicians use the technique using mortises and tenons.

So each individual plank was literally plugged together

with small bits of timber.

And these vessels were incredibly sturdy, sea worthy,

and were capable of carrying very large cargoes.

[awe-inspiring music]

- [Narrator] These expert sailors were so successful

that both Persian and Assyrian royalty

used Phoenician ships to sail.

[awe-inspiring music]

- The Phoenicians had two different kinds of ships.

They have merchant ships and they're deeply connected

to the development of naval warfare as well.

- [Narrator] The first to build galleys for combat.

Fighting ships designed for speed,

with ample space for soldiers. [suspenseful music]

Often featuring sails, but mainly propelled

by large teams of rowers.

Allowing them to navigate independently

of winds and currents. [suspenseful music]

It's also believed these galleys featured projections

from the bow, lowering their resistance

as they moved through the water.

Making them more hydrodynamic.

- The Phoenicians are able to expand, essentially,

a sea-based empire that extends all the way

along the North African coast.

And all this is connected through maritime trade

and naval power that they establish

within the Mediterranean region.

- [Narrator] The Phoenicians' long and narrow ships

became the new standard for naval warfare.

[waves whooshing] [suspenseful music]

Then, around 250 BC, the Mediterranean saw the rise

of Roman military might. [dramatic music]

Roman galleys, with as many as five tiers of oarsmen,

eventually swept all rivals from the seas.

[dramatic music] - After the 1st century BC,

they really don't even need that much naval power

because they've conquered all around the Mediterranean.

So they put their effort into merchant ships.

- [Narrator] But as the Roman Empire grew,

so did demand for cargo. [dramatic music]

- They were able to develop these massive trading vessels

that were feeding the developing urban populations

of places like Rome. [dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Vast fleets of merchant ships transported grain

from Egypt to Rome. [dramatic music]

The largest carrying more than 500 tons at a time.

Over subsequent centuries,

cargo ships have continued to grow.

[wind whooshing]

[waves whooshing] [upbeat music]

Today, vessels are built on a scale unimaginable

to the Ancient Romans.

Monsters.

Up to 1300 feet long.

The largest transporting

over 20,000 individual shipping containers.

- The vast majority of world trade goes by sea.

The cargo ship remains the building block

of the world's economy. [upbeat music]

- [Narrator] New container ships are, on average,

three times the size of those built 20 years ago.

But the introduction of larger vessels

hasn't come without engineering challenges.

- The ships need to constantly be improved and redesigned.

You've got issues like ship design, stability,

controlling pollution,

and all of these change as ships are getting bigger.

As more cargo is carried all over the world.

[waves whooshing] [upbeat music]

- [Narrator] A ship at sea is subject

to a number of forces and these can distort its structure

if a load is unevenly distributed.

The vessel may experience hogging or sagging.

These longitudinal bending stresses

can even cause a ship to break apart.

And that's not all that can go wrong.

[waves whooshing]

Over the years, many large oil tankers

have run aground or sank. [melancholy music]

And the consequences have been disastrous.

Spilling toxic petroleum products into the oceans.

Devastating entire ecosystems.

The effects are often felt decades

after such tragedies. [melancholy music]

- One of the important things

that we need to do in the shipping industry is to learn

from previous disaster to make sure

that they never happen again.

- [Narrator] One solution lies in the design

of these gigantic cargo ships.

Vessels of this scale are manufactured

at vast and cutting-edge shipyards.

- The scale of these shipyards has grown over the years.

From relatively small docks that we had back

in ancient times,

right through to the mega yards of today.

[suspenseful music] [waves whooshing]

- [Narrator] The largest stretches

for over two and a half miles.

An extensive network

of equipment, buildings, and technologies.

- Shipyards around the world can be huge.

And the facilities needed

to be able to construct these ships are also of equal scale.

- [Narrator] Giant cranes called Goliaths tower overhead,

lifting individual pieces of ships.

Some weighing over 1500 tons.

Specialist steel makes these enormous ships

less prone to fracturing.

Engineered to have far greater tensile strength

than their predecessors without becoming too brittle.

Enabling ships to sail further

and endure rougher conditions.

But growing demand for ships has led

to a rise in pollution from shipyard workshops.

Huge amounts of dust, harmful gases,

and noise pollution [welding gun hissing]

are emitted during the shipbuilding process.

And ship yards are often located

in environmentally sensitive areas along coasts.

[intense music]

Shipbuilding needs to become

more efficient and eco-friendly.

[suspenseful music] But in the meantime,

over 50 million tons of vessels are built each year.

Including gigantic container ships.

Among the biggest vessels in the world,

reaching up to three football fields in length.

And, despite the environmental concerns,

year by year, ships keep on getting bigger.

For one simple reason.

The more they carry, the lower the transport cost.

[wind whooshing]

[suspenseful music]

And one find from the Dark Ages has helped reveal

that there were ships capable

of covering enormous distances many centuries ago.

In 1939, the discovery of a lifetime

was made beneath the Suffolk soil in England.

The richest intact early medieval grave in Europe.

- Some of the greatest archeological finds in Britain

is the Sutton Hoo,

which is the burial of an Anglo-Saxon king

in the early part of the 7th century.

- [Narrator] Hidden for over 13 centuries

in the mysterious Sutton Hoo Royal Burial Ground.

[suspenseful music] - Within the burial chamber,

we see all sorts of wonderful treasures.

So you know it's a really wealthy individual.

- [Narrator] finds included Byzantine silverware,

sumptuous gold jewelry, luxurious textiles,

and an iconic decorated helmet.

[suspenseful music]

- The artifacts were incredible

because they showed an interconnected North Sea and Channel.

Which allowed for trade by ships,

connecting the Saxons to the rest of Europe.

[suspenseful music]

- [Narrator] Sutton Hoo revealed the wealth

of Anglo-Saxon England.

But also offered insights

into the maritime engineering of its day.

[peaceful music]

- Not only does it have the most extraordinary collection

of royal treasure, but also it has this ship

in which the king was laid to rest.

- [Narrator] Although only rows

of rusted rivets survived intact,

along with an imprint of the ships decayed timbers,

it was clear the vessel was 88 feet long.

Archeologists also confirmed the ship used

a sophisticated engineering technique

still practiced today.

[awe-inspiring music]

This technology explains how the Anglo-Saxons

established far-flung trade networks

with the European mainland. [waves whooshing]

It's known as clinker construction.

- The vessel is being built up,

literally plank by plank. [awe-inspiring music]

And each plank overlaps the previous plank.

- [Narrator] Planks were fastened together

using copper rivets.

The technique appears deceptively simple.

But, in fact, clinker construction transformed

the shape and speed of ships.

Planks used in the hull could be thinner, as they overlapped

along their edges. [hammer tapping]

The strength of the overlapping hull

meant less internal framing was required

in a clinker design.

Resulting in a lighter vessel.

Sitting higher in the water. [awe-inspiring music]

Less force was needed to move these ships through the waves.

Enabling them to reach much higher speeds.

- Clinker vessels were supposed to stay light and flexible.

And that was the thing about them that made them so good.

[awe-inspiring music]

- [Narrator] sealing the overlapping planks

with animal hair and resin

helped make their clinker-built ships watertight.

[awe-inspiring music]

And their hulls

could be constructed quickly and efficiently.

[waves whooshing] [bird shrieks]

[dramatic music]

The ceremonial burial at Sutton Hoo has proved

that Anglo-Saxon tales of great halls, glittering treasures,

and formidable ships were no myth.

[dramatic music]

But while this ancient vessel had been engineered

and kitted out to signify the wealth of its owners,

other historic ships have become famous

for the role they played in plundering

the wealth of others. [men shouting]

[wind whooshing]

[dramatic music] [waves whooshing]

By the 8th century, a new and deadly breed

of seaborne warriors began to appear.

[men shouting] [dramatic music]

Vicious, powerful, and merciless.

A force that would ravage Northern Europe,

dominating these waters for over 200 years.

[dramatic music]

The Vikings.

- The Vikings, without doubt,

were the most effective and deadly fighting force

of their day.

They were incredibly efficient.

[men shouting] [dramatic music]

- [Narrator] How did small bands

of Scandinavian invaders lay waste to swaths of Europe?

- They were incredibly fast

and they were incredibly violent.

They could come out of nowhere.

Everyone was afraid.

[suspenseful music]

- [Narrator] Key to the Viking's success

was their advanced maritime technology.

- In the Viking ships,

we actually see it's a development

of the Sutton Hoo ship design.

But they've added important elements.

So while it's built on earlier ideas of engineering,

it's something that's unique

and develops around the Viking culture.

[water whooshing]

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Watercraft had always

been essential in Scandinavia.

- Vikings' desire to find more fertile lands,

to help their population grow.

Scandinavia is a very beautiful,

but also very mountainous, place

and not ideal for growing certain types of crops.

- [Narrator] In order to expand,

the Vikings needed better seagoing vessels.

[dramatic music] [waves whooshing]

- The Vikings developed their craftsmanship

to a level which had never been seen before.

They made the most beautiful ships

that could sail incredibly fast

and they could carry their armies wherever they wanted.

- [Narrator] A series of discoveries

have helped archeologists uncover

the Vikings' ingenious engineering solutions.

[dramatic music]

The Oseberg ship, found in 1904,

and the Tune ship, now housed

in the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo.

And 2019 saw the unearthing of the Gjellestad.

The first Viking ship found in Norway for over a century.

[hammer tapping]

The Vikings perfected the technology

of clinker boat building.

And their longships lightweight, economic construction

was key to their success. [suspenseful music]

- They're light, they're flexible, and they're fast.

So they're really good as raiding ships.

And the word Viking comes from the Norse word to raid.

So they were going raiding.

That's what they were for. [dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Their overlapping planks

meant clinker built vessels were sturdy and agile.

With long, thin hulls that cut through the water with ease.

[dramatic music] Under sail and oar power,

these were the fastest ships of their day.

Modern replicas have achieved speeds

of up to 19 and a half miles per hour.

[wind whooshing]

But longships also had to be stable.

And another key engineering secret explains

their effectiveness as raiding vessels.

A simple, yet essential, feature known as the keel.

- The keel is the main structural element on a ship.

Almost like the spine that goes down it.

And it provides the main structural strength

for the design of a hull. [dramatic music]

- [Narrator] By running a single, sturdy beam of oak

along the bottom, Viking longships

were made strong and stable.

Less prone to capsizing.

This technology also made them highly maneuverable.

[oars whooshing]

- They could sail in the most shallow of waters.

No more than a meter

would be able to take a big Viking boat full of soldiers.

[dramatic music]

- This keel also means that they could come in anywhere

on the shore.

And that made it very hard

for people living along the coasts

to know where to expect a raid to come from.

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Viking masts were also engineered

to be quickly dismantled,

making their longships easier to hide.

[suspenseful music]

And allowing them to sail under low bridges.

Thanks to this brilliant engineering,

the Viking ships could easily penetrate onto beaches

and up river estuaries. [water whooshing]

At first, raiding parties targeted Celtic monasteries

around the British and Irish coasts.

Rich pickings were theirs for the taking.

[men shouting]

- This is an age before any coastal shore fortifications

of any significant size. [dramatic music]

There was very little that could be done

to stop an aggressive force

from coming ashore and taking what they wanted.

[men shouting]

- [Narrator] Nobody could defend against

these fast-moving, bloodthirsty warriors.

[dramatic music]

A ruthless attack force.

Carried by longships they'd engineered to perfection.

[fire crackling] [men shouting]

[suspenseful music]

But the Viking seafaring prowess didn't stop there.

Pillaging their neighbors wasn't enough.

Their refined construction enabled raiding ships

to venture further and for longer.

- Viking longships traveled enormous distances.

And that's another incredible factor of their design.

- [Narrator] Viking raids reached

as far as North Africa, [awe-inspiring music]

up the rivers of Russia, and deep into the Mediterranean.

In search of land and riches.

But as time went on, the Vikings became settlers

as well as conquerors. [awe-inspiring music]

Developing complex trade routes,

using their vessels to island hop their way

across Iceland and Greenland.

As far as North America. [awe-inspiring music]

- Vikings were looking for land and that's where

these greater, long-distance voyages fit in.

- We know that they reached the tip of Newfoundland

because a Viking settlement has been discovered there.

- [Narrator] A spectacular feat of seafaring,

thanks to their technologically sound ships,

exceptionally sturdy in heavy seas.

[awe-inspiring music]

- What the Vikings achieved

was really an extraordinary leap of faith.

But it was only possible because the trust,

the belief they had in the ships that they had built.

[awe-inspiring music] [water whooshing]

[suspenseful music]

- [Narrator] But in order to navigate

such unfamiliar waters,

the Vikings needed another piece of technology.

Centuries before the first compass

and sextant were invented,

the Vikings ventured thousands of miles

by reading the position of the sun and stars.

[awe-inspiring music]

But across the Atlantic Ocean,

the sun could be obscured for days at a time.

Researchers now believe

that Vikings used transparent calcite crystals

to locate the sun through dense clouds or in low light.

[awe-inspiring music]

- There's some evidence

that they developed a particular artifact

known as a sunstone.

Which polarizes light and allows you

to work out where the sun might be,

even though you're covered with clouds.

And this technology might've been a way

in which the Vikings were able

to navigate across these northern waters.

[awe-inspiring music]

- [Narrator] Experiments have shown

that sunstones really can fix the bearing of the sun

to within a single degree of accuracy.

A revolutionary navigational tool.

[awe-inspiring music]

These were the first in a series

of navigational breakthroughs made by engineers.

[awe-inspiring music]

In the following centuries,

compasses, sextants, and sea charts helped sailors

find their way across oceans.

[suspenseful music] [computer beeping]

Until, in modern times,

GPS satellites allow a vessel to pinpoint its position

anywhere on earth.

[awe-inspiring music] But for the Vikings,

simple navigational tools were all that was needed

to reach distant lands.

[wind whooshing]

[suspenseful music]

The Vikings dared to explore far beyond their homelands.

Among the greatest trailblazers of the ancient world.

But these expeditions

would have taken Viking longships weeks,

if not months, to complete.

Today, the Atlantic can be crossed

in just a matter of days.

With vessels traveling ever faster.

But the record for the quickest ever Atlantic crossing

by a passenger ship was set back in 1952.

The SS United States on its maiden voyage.

An extraordinary 990-foot-long vessel.

Over 100 feet longer than the Titanic.

[awe-inspiring music]

The SS United States steamed from New York

to the Isles of Scilly in less than four days.

- Even though it was retired in 70s,

the SS United States still holds

that record to this day.

Which is incredible.

- [Narrator] The vessel's low

and graceful superstructure was built entirely of aluminum.

Significantly lighter than similarly sized vessels.

Allowing it to take full advantage

of the astonishing 248,000 horsepower produced

by its turbines. [awe-inspiring music]

[wind whooshing]

[suspenseful music] But for ancient seafarers

seeking to explore the wider world,

the Atlantic remained a daunting barrier.

Seen then as the world's most dangerous ocean.

[birds shrieking]

- All of the long voyages had essentially been hopping

from one island to another island.

But here was a thousands of miles

of ocean that needed to be crossed in one go.

- [Narrator] Up to 3000 miles across,

battered by extreme winds. [suspenseful music]

To truly conquer the Atlantic,

engineers had to make great progress in ship design.

- In the 15th century, you have the development

of shipbuilding that's incredibly important

and it launches Europe into this Age of Sail.

- [Narrator] A new breed of ship was on the horizon.

One that would radically reshape the world.

[suspenseful music]

To cope with the extreme forces of the open ocean,

the structure of these ships would need to be much stronger

than ever before.

The breakthrough lay in a technique known

as carvel construction,

it involved building the frame,

or ribs of the ship, first

before adding planks to the outside.

Placed flush and smooth. [awe-inspiring music]

- And they were constructed

with huge internal timbers as well.

And that allows you to build a stronger hull.

A stronger hull means you can build a bigger ship

and a bigger ship means you can travel further.

[suspenseful music] [birds chirping]

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] But the greatest breakthrough

was a stroke of engineering genius.

A way of overcoming the limitations of single-masted ships.

- People wanted larger boats,

especially as they were beginning to trade.

But if you just increase the size of the mast,

increase the size of the sail,

it becomes incredibly heavy and cumbersome to maneuver.

Also, most importantly, a single mast

put enormous strain on the vessel.

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] A single mast concentrates huge forces

on one point on the ship, where the mast joins the keel.

So engineers couldn't simply keep building

ever bigger, single masted ships.

They'd fail in high winds. [dramatic music]

The answer?

If you can't build bigger, built more.

- If you have three masts,

you're distributing that weight over a greater area.

Instead of one, which creates a point of weakness.

- [Narrator] Together, these changes made

for a stronger, more balanced ship.

[dramatic music]

- Multiple masts enabled you to sail

in all sorts of conditions

and to maximize your speed and your maneuverability.

- You could have different types of sails

that you could deploy in different ways.

So this was a huge advantage, especially in naval battles.

- [Narrator] These ships were game changers.

Nothing came close [dramatic music]

to the speed, strength, and size

of such state-of-the-art vessels.

The most seaworthy ships of their time.

Ships that completely reshaped the world.

[dramatic music] With this technology,

Columbus would reach the Americas.

Magellan's expedition would be the first

to circumnavigate the globe in 1522,

and European powers would dominate the oceans

for the next four centuries. [dramatic music]

- The three-masted ship

is a huge technological breakthrough.

One of the most important in the history of the world.

[sails whooshing] [dramatic music]

- [Narrator] These were the tools

that let European sailors explore distant lands

and conquer the oceans.

[suspenseful music]

Launching an era of global commerce,

multi-masted ships created a web of maritime trade

that tied the Atlantic world together.

Nations were able to manage their empires

and profit from the far-flung lands they controlled.

[suspenseful music]

Vessels returned to Europe carrying valuable goods,

such as gold, sugar, and tobacco.

While thousands of ships took explorers,

merchants, and migrants from Europe to the Americas.

But they also [chains clinking]

transported millions of enslaved men and women from Africa.

Ships carried hundreds of slaves at a time,

traveling thousands of miles across the Atlantic.

A brutal slave trade that wouldn't have been possible

without the sinister engineering of the slave ship.

Among the biggest vessels of their day.

[wind whooshing]

[dramatic music]

But engineering in the 15th century was moving fast

and saw the rise of a host of other kinds of ships.

In particular, fighting ships. [cannons booming]

These vessels were growing ever larger,

as monarchs demanded cutting-edge war ships

on a massive scale.

- Building bigger warships wasn't just about showing off.

There was a specific function. [dramatic music]

- [Narrator] What engineering developments

could deliver more effective fighting vessels?

- In the course of the 16th century,

firearms moved from essentially showpieces

to genuine items of naval warfare.

[waves whooshing]

- [Narrator] But effectively engineering

ship-borne firepower meant overcoming several obstacles.

- Cannon posed a really big problem for ship designers,

because they're incredibly heavy.

And heavy things on ships are very dangerous indeed.

- [Narrator] Cannon had to be tied down,

to prevent them moving with the motion of the ship.

And mounting too many high on the deck

would cause the ship to become unstable.

- What they needed to do was to put the cannons

in the hull, [dramatic music]

but that didn't work because the cannons then couldn't fire.

- [Narrator] Could a new type of warship solve the problem?

[dramatic music]

This was the inspiration behind what was hoped

to be the greatest warship of all.

The Mary Rose. [wind whooshing]

[dramatic music]

One of the mightiest, most heavily armed vessels of its day.

- The Mary Rose was a purpose-built battleship,

constructed to express power,

to protect trade, and to protect the country.

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Built for Tudor king, Henry VIII.

[dramatic music]

It was a successful warship for 34 years.

- Mary Rose was the pride of Henry VII's fleet.

It was a battleship of its day

and one of the most powerful ships afloat.

- [Narrator] A leviathan weighing over 600 tons.

Capable of carrying the most powerful guns.

With as many as 10 sails,

the warship was unusually fast and maneuverable

for a ship of its size. [waves whooshing]

Redesigned in the 1530s, the Mary Rose was fitted out

with the latest maritime technology,

including a simple, but effective, new piece of engineering.

[cannons roaring]

Gun ports.

- Gun ports solve an important problem.

It allows you to put the guns lower down,

closer to the center of gravity,

making them a much more stable platform.

[dramatic music] [cannons roaring]

- [Narrator] Gun ports made the warship more deadly

than ever before.

- For the very first time,

you've got people arming ships,

not with four or five cannons,

but with 20, with 30, even 100.

[cannons roaring] - [Narrator] The new technique

of carvel-style construction made it easier

to punch through the ship's hull.

Placed between two frames,

gun ports wouldn't impact structural integrity.

And, crucially, hinged port lids meant they could be closed

in rough seas. [waves whooshing]

- The development of the gun port

was a key technological advance

in essentially creating modern naval warfare.

[dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Warships, such as the Mary Rose,

were engineered to fight and destroy enemy vessels.

Relying primarily on cannon.

Yet, despite all the new technology, in 1545,

as the Mary Rose sailed out of Portsmouth Harbor

to do battle with French galleys,

the gun ports would prove the vessel's undoing.

While coming under heavy fire,

King Henry's mighty warship made a sharp turn.

Disaster struck. [dramatic music]

- [Narrator] Undoubtedly the gun ports played

an important part in why she sank.

As she'd heeled over, that's when the water poured in

and she plummeted down to the seabed.

[dramatic music] [waves whooshing]

- It would have been catastrophic for the king.

This is his flagship.

And to see it capsize and sink before his very eyes

would have been truly disastrous.

[water whooshing]

[suspenseful music]

- [Narrator] The Mary Rose remained

on the seabed for over four centuries.

But in 1971, divers made a discovery.

Wooden frames, soon proven to be part of the ships hull.

And as the team kept exploring, they found more and more.

[suspenseful music]

- They realized pretty quickly

that it was almost structurally in one piece,

protected under the sand.

- [Narrator] In 1982, they decided to raise these remains

as a whole.

Could modern engineering pull off this feat?

- The process of taking this ship,

which had lain, more or less undisturbed,

at the bottom of the sea for hundreds of years,

was fraught with danger.

- No one had ever raised a Tudor warship

from a muddy grave ever before.

And the idea to actually bring it to the surface.

Now that is an extraordinary thing to even contemplate,

let alone achieve.

- [Narrator] Over 27,000 dives were made to the Mary Rose

during the reclamation project.

Equating to 22,710 hours on the seabed.

[suspenseful music]

Engineers constructed giant steel frames

and trusses around the wreck.

The whole structure was jacked up

and maneuvered onto a cradle.

Which was then lifted.

This was the moment of truth. [suspenseful music]

- I remember watching it at the time

and everybody was holding their breaths.

- [Narrator] Failure would have destroyed

the fragile remains. [suspenseful music]

But after 437 years under the sea,

the Mary Rose finally resurfaced.

- The whole nation was galvanized

as the vessel came up to the surface.

- Raising the ship off the sea floor is half the battle.

Anything that's been under water

for any length of time starts to corrode

as soon as it comes in contact with oxygen.

- [Narrator] Once returned safely to shore,

the ship underwent many years

of intensive conservation work.

- They were able to preserve it

by just spraying it constantly with water.

So, in fact, it never gets to dry out.

You continue to perfuse it with water

so that it retains the environment that had kept it safe

for those hundreds of years.

- [Narrator] Today, the preservation process is complete

and the Mary Rose is the only 16th-century warship

on display anywhere in the world.

- Now the ship is housed with all its contents, together,

in this fantastic modern museum.

Where it's preserved for future generations to study

and to see.

- Being able to see the Mary Rose

in the museum today is incredibly important.

Because it shows us the peak of Tudor engineering.

- [Narrator] One of the most intimidating war ships

of its time. [dramatic music]

Throughout their 6,000-year history,

ships have driven the growth of civilization.

Providing the framework for globalization.

And their importance today can not be overstated.

[dramatic music] They have been fundamental

to exploration, trade, and conquest.

Ancient engineers perfected the vessels,

letting them reach further, faster, endure longer journeys.

Playing a vital role throughout history.

From the Ancient Egyptian sail

to the swift Viking longships

and the imposing three-masted ships.

Ancient engineering innovations

that changed the world forever.

[dramatic music]