Varangians - Elite Bodyguards of the Byzantine Emperors

[Music] the Vikings known to us as the intrepid explorers from the north they have left a profound impact not only in their native Scandinavia but also in lands like Russia France and the British Isles however there exists a lesser-known piece of the Viking legacy where the Norseman established themselves not as conquerors but as fiercely loyal bodyguards to the emperors of eastern Rome these elite mercenaries are regarded as some of the finest warriors in medieval history and became known across the Mediterranean world for their honor loyalty and fearlessness in this video we will talk about the Varangian guard covering its origins and evolution as well as telling the story of the Warriors who became legends in its employ the sponsor of this video raised shadow legends is a brand-new collection RPG game it has an amazing storyline awesome 3d graphics giant boss fights and more than 400 champions for you to collect and customize this stunning title will remind you of classic RPG and 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and around him in his reception hall while he addressed his aristocracy they also guarded the royal treasury and were warders in imperial presence with that said the Varangians duties often took them outside the capital as there are accounts of them fighting in byzantine military campaigns from Italy to Iraq loyalty was the core value of the Varangians once the Emperor had paid them he had won their undying allegiance an example of this occurred in 1176 when Emperor Manuel komnenos led an army into Anatolia to face the Seljuk Turks he was ambushed and his army was massacred the Emperor only managed to escape because his Varangian bodyguards held off the Turks sacrificing themselves to the last man honor was another key virtue of these mercenaries the integrity of the Varangians is displayed in a famous tale where one of the mercenaries tried to violate a Thracian woman the woman struggled and managed to kill her assailant rather than being vengeful the other Varangians praised this woman for her bravery they gave her all of the dead man's possessions and buried the assailant in an unmarked grave like a common criminal on the field of battle the Varangian guard were highly effective shock troops charging into battle ahead of the main line as a deadly Vanguard they were heavily armored adorned in male [ __ ] books van braces and iron conical helmets as well as noir style round shields for protection they were iconic for their main weapon the Dane axe in fact contemporary Byzantine writers often referred to the Varangians as pellicer for Roy Barber Roy axe wielding barbarians some sources also claimed that the varangians had red ruby set into their ear to identify themselves they had their own banner featuring dragon REI a bronze dragon head which they emblazoned upon their armor so how did the Ferengi and guard come to be to answer that we must go back 1200 years to the beginning of the Viking Age the countries of Scandinavia were cold and rugged and fertile farmland was a rare commodity towards the end of the 9th century overpopulation in these regions had become a major issue and there was not enough good land to go around a harsh climate breeds Hardy men and in response to the situation at home many adventurers set out in their long boats to search for richer lands overseas the Danes went west to England while the Suites traveled east in the year 862 ad the norse chieftain Burak reached the land of the Slavonic people's founding a settlement there that would later become the great city of Novgorod Rarick and his descendants formed the Rockit dynasty a line of Kings that ruled the region known as the Kievan Rus over the next century many more migrants would travel from Scandinavia to the ruse to serve the Uruk eight kings integrating and merging their culture with the local slavic peoples some of these Norseman travelled southward where they'd heard of a land of great riches they were awed by Constantinople and called it Mick Lagarde literally the great city by 988 ad the Kiev in ruse were prospering under the rule of Vladimir the first of Kiev however the situation in Byzantium was not so stable emperor basil ii of eastern rome was embroiled in a civil war with a rebellious general barda's focus with the Bulgarians threatening the Romans northern border and the Fatimid Caliphate to the south emperor basil was stretched thin and desperately needed foreign intervention King Vladimir saw the situation and smelled opportunity long had the Slava Viking ruler coveted Emperor Basil's daughter Anna in exchange for her hand in marriage Vladimir converted himself and his realm to Orthodox Christianity more importantly to our story he sent six thousand of his best warriors into the service of the roman emperor emperor basil took his new Rus Viking soldiers to meet the rebellious focus in battle upon seeing the host of battles army focus allegedly suffered a stroke and died in full view of everyone on the filled upon seeing this his men tried to flee this was unacceptable to the Norseman for they had come for a battle and intended to get one they chased down the fleeing rebels and cut them down with cheerful Glee the Vikings proved themselves to be merciless warriors on that day it was after this slaughter that the Varangian guard became a permanent institution in the Byzantine Empire over time more and more Norseman traveled south to enter the employ of the Roman Emperor both from Russia and Scandinavia proper these warriors would be in the service of emperor basil and his successors for the next three centuries perhaps the most famous of men to serve in the Varangian guard was Harald Sigurdsson also known as Harald Hardrada the king of Norway a man known for his role as a contestant to the English throne and for bringing about the end of the Viking Age with his defeat at Stamford Bridge in 1066 however years before his final demise at the hands of the Saxon army Harald Hardrada had earned a legendary reputation as a Varangian warrior in service to Emperor Michael 4/4 Harald was born in 1015 as the half-brother to olaf haraldson the reigning king of norway in 1028 olaf lost the throne to connote the great and two years later fought to reclaim his lost title Harald fought alongside his brother at the Battle of stickerless dad they were defeated by the forces of King Canute and their family were sent into exile Harald fled to the Kiev in ruse entering the service of yalla Slav the wise grand prince of novgorod in 1038 he made his way down to constantinople with 500 of his men seeking fame and glory as a Ferengi of Rome Harald was given a mission by Emperor Michael as soon as he arrived in Constantinople he was appointed to a fleet of byzantine galleys sent to destroy arabic pirates in the aegean sea there he gained a decisive victory destroying many pirate ships while sending their crews off to be enslaved or executed odd Radha had initially tried to keep his royal blood a secret for the Byzantines tended to look down on those of high birth becoming mercenaries but he was well known and word of who he was soon spread instead of being scorned he was appointed as the commander of the Varangians at the tender age of 21 a norse poet said this about Harada the war brave Lord reddened his sword in battle and entered the Emperor's service then every year afterwards a fight began where he wanted to have won and indeed the young norwegian warlord served on all frontiers of the byzantine empire becoming a scourge to all the enemies of eastern rome he went in land helping to push the arabs out of Anatolia he and his ferocious warriors fought as far east as Mesopotamia where the scholars claimed he captured over 80 Arabic fortresses Harada remained in imperial service until 1041 fighting against foes as diverse as the Lombards Normans and boulders he had amassed bountiful riches during his nine years of service he returned to Kiev to be welcomed heartily by his old friend Grand Prince Yaroslav seeing the fame and wealth Harald had to his name Yaroslav offered him his daughter Lisa vieta's hand in marriage Harald then returned to Norway and in 10:45 managed to seize the throne he ruled as king there for the next twenty-one years with the reputation he had earned in Byzantium affording him respect throughout his reign it should be noted that most of Harold's exploits as a Varangian were written by the Icelandic scold Snorri Sturluson over a century after his death they are considered broadly accurate accounts that should nevertheless be taken with a grain of salt either way he is widely regarded as the most successful and famous of all the Varangians of Byzantium now we must shift our attention to the west to the British Isles in the year 1066 Duke William of Normandy defeated a host of Englishmen at the Battle of Hastings killing the Saxon King Harold Godwinson England came into Norman hands and in the fall out many Saxon warriors fled from the island seeking a new beginning in foreign lands many of these men made it to Constantinople they were sturdy experienced warriors as such the Byzantine Emperor offered them wealth and opportunity in the Varangian guard over the next decade the ethnic makeup of the Varangians shifted from predominantly scandinavian to largely anglo-saxon in an ironic twist of fate these English mercenaries would find themselves once more fighting against their old foe the Normans the warlord Rehberg iskar had pushed the Byzantines out of their holdings in southern Italy and now marched his army of Norman warriors into the Balkans Emperor Alexius Komnenos the first led a force of 20,000 men and 1,000 Ferengi ins northwards to meet the invaders the two armies met outside the town of Dura qiyam here the Varangians were put in the Roman vanguard where they were most comfortable many of the Varangians were veterans of the Battle of Hastings and yearned for vengeance against the Normans the Saxons fought with more brutality than the rest of the room an army advancing faster than the Byzantines could keep up with they charged a head and cleaved into the enemy's right flank with their massive Dane axes however they soon found themselves overextended and a contingent of Norman's spearmen and crossbowmen managed to surround and isolate them from the Byzantine army the varangians sustained heavy casualties and retreated up to a church on a hill the Normans simply set this church aflame and all the surviving Varangians perished the blaze stay lit should be noted that even in this losing effort the Turkish and Serbian allies of Emperor Alexius abandoned the fight while the Saxon mercenaries remained true the varangians would regain their prestige at the Battle of burrow eeeh in 1122 against a centuries-old enemy to the Romans the pecheneg horde the Byzantine host was unable to advance upon the waves of Turkic horse archers until a contingent of 480 Varangians were deployed the mercenaries did what they did best proving their value as Shock Troopers and smashing through the pecheneg lines destroying the wagon fort they had rallied around so decisive was this battle from that point on the pageant eggs disappear almost entirely from historical records the last great Harar of the Varangians came in the year 1204 when the Latins of the Fourth Crusade laid siege to Constantinople the Norseman and Saxons were the only defenders who put up a real fight against the invaders in the initial assault they managed to repel the Venetian forces from both the city's land and sea walls however following a series of palace coos the Varangians were left with no one to serve the new emperor Mort so Floss had not the wealth to pay them so the Varangians abandoned for siege and left Constantinople to be sacked by the Latins after the sack of Constantinople historical records mentioning the varangians begin to grow thin the Byzantines eventually be conquered their capital but their northern mercenaries never fully regained the prominence they once had both on the battlefields and by the Emperor's side by 1281 the varangians role had been reduced to a largely ceremonial capacity it is safe to say that when the beleaguered empire finally fell to the ottomans in 1453 whatever remained of the once-proud mercenary order was snuffed out nevertheless the Varangian guard left an undeniable mark on byzantine history they're centuries long tenure as the most feared warriors and trusted bodyguards of the Roman Emperor cements their legacy as some of the most successful mercenaries of all time and only makes the Vikings cultural and economic reach across the world all the more or inspiring we have more stories to tell so make sure you are subscribed to our channel and have pressed the bell button we would like to express our gratitude to our patreon supporters and channel members who make the creation of our videos possible now you can also support us by buying our merchandise by the link in the description this is the kings and Generals channel and we will catch you on the next one

Channel: Kings and Generals

Views: 746,664

Keywords: varangian, varangians, rome, byzantine, emperors, guards, bodyguards, vikings, variags, norse, armies, tactics, eastern roman empire, constantinople, elite, byzantine empire, varangian guard, kievan rus, kings and generals, documentary film, history lesson, historia civilis, full documentary, animated documentary, byzantine history, roman empire, decisive battles, military history, world history, siege

Id: PRr44d-3gsg

Length: 15min 49sec (949 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 13 2019

Reddit Comments

[u/Djoko1453]

Loyal subjects/mercs to a glorious empire!