By Julie McLaughlin
A local group of spirited Vikings is celebrating its 30th anniversary.
The Ardglass Viking Association is a local community group that raises money for charity through a variety of Viking-themed activities.
The organisation is celebrating three decades of fun, friendship and Viking lore in 2026.
“We currently have 25 or so core members that help run the Viking boats at events,” its secretary Sean Keough said.
The origins of the group date back to the summer of 1996. At that time, a group of local people decided to respond to a request from the Peel Viking Longboats chairperson Patricia Sweeney.
The Peel group, based on the Isle of Man, had contacted the local Harbour Authority in Ardglass to see if anyone would be interested in taking part in a journey in a replica Viking longboat between the Isle of Man and County Down.
Fifteen people stepped up and completed five weeks of training to get ready for a race against the Peel team.
“During all of the preparation and hype that surrounded the challenge row, the Ardglass Vikings drew the attention of local hospital campaigner Dick Shannon, who suggested that the group nominate the Chest Heart and Stroke Association and raise money from the row,” Sean explained.
After that first race, in a borrowed longboat, against the Peel Vikings on 3 August from Peel to Ardglass, the group decided to form an elected committee and challenged the Peel group to another race the following summer.
Both races successfully raised thousands of pounds for charity.
The group members decided that they wanted to continue this endeavour with Viking longboats of their own and set about fundraising for the project. In 1998 and 1999, the group members constructed a mould from a longboat hull and built two for the use of the club.
on the Irish Sea near
Amlwch, Wales in 2006.
The two replica Viking longboats, ‘The Black Swallow’ and ‘Ellen Dubh’, are both 10.9 metres long and have been used for a variety of purposes, such as community events, charity work and TV and film productions.
Four other replica longboats have also been constructed using the Ardglass Viking Longship mould, with the assistance of the Ardglass Vikings, for cultural activities.
These are ‘The Black Eagle’, which is owned by the Arran Viking Society; ‘Ardglass’, which is owned by the Council of Catoira in Galicia, Spain; and two owned and housed by Ashford Studios in County Wicklow for use by the local film industry.
Mourne Observer Down Recorder digital edition
Viking adventures in 1997.
