Hack and Slash with the Varangian guard

Kyriakos

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I recently read about a very impressive battle between the middle-Comnenian Restoration period Byzantine Empire (first decades of the 12th century AD) and the Pechenegs who were raiding the thracian part of the Empire following an alliance with Kiev.
The battle which resulted, ending the campaign (and being the introduction to the larger Byzantine-Hungarian war that ended with a victory and the incorporation of Sirmium back to the Empire) was fought at Beroe (Βερόη), in 1122.

Beroe was the tombstone of the Pechenegs as independent peoples, for their utter defeat (the focal point leading to which was the Varangian guard slashing through the war-wagons and killing men and horses alike) resulted in most of them being resettled to Anatolia and used as a foreign tourma (a division of the thema, in the byzantine army of the period).

I would like to ask a few questions about that battle, fought with Emperor Ioannes II Komnenos' leading the charge of the Varangian guard.

1) What sort of axe did the guard use at that time? I read that it was the so-called "Danish axe", but that seems to be of various sizes. Mostly interested in how large the wooden part was, and also how thin the edge of the blade (i read it was as thin as 2 milimetres on its cutting edge).

2) Were the Varangian guards of the time almost entirely English? Following 1066, the conquest of England by William of Normandy, and the sail to the Byzantine Empire by the defeated soldiers and families, i read that a definite majority of the Pelekyphoros Phroura (Axe-bearing Guard) was indeed of English origin.

3) What sort of war-wagon did the pecheneg people use at the time? Any estimate on the numbers of their wagons? (or any other info about that defensive and mobile structure in the region and during the 12th century).

Thanks in advance :)
 
What a sad battle. Apparently the Emperor tricked the Pechenegs with a peace treaty just before attacking, then destroyed them as a culture. Which, coupled with the fact that it was a camp and that these were nomads, suggests that there were probably civilians there.

1) Michael Psellos apparently wrote that all Varangian guardsmen were armed with the rhomphaia. This was a long, curved blade with a handle used by the Thracians of old, sharpened on the inside of the curve. Anna Komnena claimed that they were armed with the xiphos, a classical Greek leaf-bladed sword. However, the Byzantinist Timothy Dawson wrote that these were deliberate anachronisms, which were fashionable among Byzantine writers at the time (Atticism). Which makes sense, since nobody used those ancient weapons anymore and Scandinavians and some Anglo-Saxons/Ænglisc/English/whatever used long-hafted axes.

As for the Dane axe, it tended to have a long haft and a thin, light, large head. The haft might be nearly shoulder height with the man, and the Romans/Byzantines noted that the Varangians tended to be pretty tall for their time. The haft was also oval in shape rather than round, which helps the wielder figure out which way the edge is pointing without looking. It helps keep the edge aligned, provides a secure grip, and adds strength. Ash was always a popular European wood for weapon shafts.

Spoiler :


Contrary to what fantasy games and art like to show, war axes had thin, light heads. Wood axes have thick, heavy, wedge-shaped heads for cutting down trees. But cutting down people requires something lighter and faster, since people aren't as sturdy as trees, they don't need to be cut completely in two, and in battle they're generally trying to avoid the axe and kill its wielder.

Eric McHugh made this fine reproduction of an axe in a Swedish museum. Notice how the head is generally thin, then suddenly flares and narrows to reach a point again. This gives it a sturdy, deadly edge while keeping the weight down.

Spoiler :








Axes came in a wide array of shapes and sizes. Some were broad with crescent-shaped edges (not heads), others had edges that terminated in a "horn" or point at the top of the curve, and it's a testament to Norse manliness that even their war axes had beards. I say "Norse" rather than "Viking" because "going on a viking" meant going on a raid; it was an activity, not a culture. Anyway, Jan Petersen made a typology of Norse war axes, and there were a few dozen. And that's not counting the axes of other periods and cultures. These, for example, are just some examples found in Russia and maybe Scandinavia.



2) I'm not sure on the composition of the Guard at the time. For a while there were definitely a lot of unemployed English huscarls in the Emperor's service, but I don't know for how long they kept coming. After all, this battle happened some sixty years after Hastings. There were definitely an awful lot of Scandinavians in the Guard, since Sweden and probably Norway had to pass laws to keep men from inheriting if they went to Miklagard. Too many of their warriors kept leaving home for the Emperor's service. It was a pretty nice gig, considering all the wine, the women, the warm weather, the very high wages, and the right to literally pillage the palace whenever the Emperor died.

3) A quick Google search suggests that their wagons looked like this:





Of course, these are just related to wargaming, so I really don't know if they're at all accurate. But they look vaguely like Hussite war wagons, and with their slits and high sides they seem suitable for the job.
 
So did I just waste an hour or so digging up all these sources for another hit-and-run thread?
 
Or you answered sufficiently to not require any further input.
I'm going with the latter.
 
risking the neck it might really be about a solution about "the Turkish Problem" . Avenging 1071 and all -in the way that "works" .
 
^You got me. It was all code to communicate to the Skandinavian agents that the new Byzantine Restoration plan has entered its critical phase, and they should ready themselves to descend for a new Beroe, to end all Beroes :/
 
no , ı didn't get you .
 
don't take this as a trick or trap but isn't any Turk a fool anyhow ?
 
You're welcome.
 
Props to Phrossack
 
Kyriakos:

"2) Were the Varangian guards of the time almost entirely English? Following 1066, the conquest of England by William of Normandy, and the sail to the Byzantine Empire by the defeated soldiers and families, i read that a definite majority of the Pelekyphoros Phroura (Axe-bearing Guard) was indeed of English origin."

Hardly since there were no real "England" back then. England was ruled by the Normanners=Scandinavians living in Normandie (that was given to the Scandinavians by King Charles the Simple in year of 911)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_the_Simple

The Varangian guards was primarely of Scandinavian Heritage, as correctly said in Vikipedia:

-btw; the Rus (or Russland west the Ural Mountains) was a part of Sweden = the Svea people back then.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varangian_Guard
 
Thank you :) (and to Phrossack again ;) ).

Someone mentioned the term 'Anglovaraggoi' in some other forum. Not sure if it meant an actual 'ethnic' group of people or merely those from the territory of Harold's kingdom prior to Hastings. I do now that the anglo-saxons were heavily indluenced by Skandinavians, including in their army make-up (the only professional troups were Huskarl/Housecarles, for example).
 
Thank you :) (and to Phrossack again ;) ).

Someone mentioned the term 'Anglovaraggoi' in some other forum. Not sure if it meant an actual 'ethnic' group of people or merely those from the territory of Harold's kingdom prior to Hastings. I do now that the anglo-saxons were heavily indluenced by Skandinavians, including in their army make-up (the only professional troups were Huskarl/Housecarles, for example).



Yeah, and when talking about the housecarls (from nordic: huskarl; Nor.: leiesvenn = hired guards) it is important to remember that they were either Normannic or Danish, not Anglo-Saxon.
 
How are you deriving the ethnicity of individuals from the etymology of their job-description?
 
I like the Byzantines!(more than Romans). Fascinating history, seems like they were almost constantly under attack, on all frontiers, especially in the second half of their empire's existence. I guess it's no wonder the country doesn't exist anymore.
Question: Can you name all the the enemies/rival nations/tribes the Byzantines had fought throughout their empire's existence? Did they have to fight more wars than the Romans? Did most of their wars consist of defending their empire' borders?
 
Seems like more often than not their wars involved fighting themselves, usually at the most inopportune moment.
 
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