Page 18 - All About History - Issue 59-17

the Byzantine empiRe

conical helmet
tHe heaVy Is the head
Anatomy Varangians wore conical helmets with a
While there may have been some
variation, it seems likely that most
of nose guard chinstrap in a Western style.
This may have also included a mail
hood or curtain for added protection.
Varangian

Varangian bra
guardsman heaVy armour support

Varangians famously wore a full-length
chain mail tunic that would cover them
Constantinople, 988-1400 from their head to their knees. However,
the metal hauberk could weigh 12
kilograms or more, so the soldiers would
wear a special leather harness — known
as a Varangian bra — to take the weight
off their shoulders.
elite warriors

VIkIngs for hIre
Basil II formed the Varangian Guard in 988 to
put down a rebellion. The force was made up
of Rus warriors, the descendents of Vikings lamellar scale Vest
who had settled in modern-day Russia and
Ukraine. Some straight-up Vikings also rIVetIng dIsplay
served in the Byzantine force, such as Harald On top of the chain mail, the Varangians
Hardrada, who was a Varangian commander sported an extra layer of protection in
before reigning as king of Norway from 1046- the more stylish lamellar scale vest.
66. Over time, the guards evolved from a band While other lamellar vests were made
of unruly mercenaries to a loyal elite. from the rows of leather or metal
scales laced together, the plates of the
Byzantine designs were riveted onto a
backing for extra sturdiness.
bodyguards undergarments

the emperor’s shIeld
A lot more than a palace guard, the Varangians’ dyed In the wool
worth was fully utilised as a strike force in While Byzantine military
conflicts throughout the Byzantine Empire. manuals don’t mention any
Whether at the vanguard, protecting the emperor colours, many mosaics show
or baggage train, on the sea or the battlements the guards wearing purple
during Constantinople’s many sieges, the Guard cloaks and undergarments.
put their weapons, including their round shields, However, this expensive
to the test. colour was the preserve of
the emperor in Byzantine
society. Instead, it is far more
likely that the Varangians
joined the rest of the
emperors’ entourage in
wearing red cloaks.
standardised uniform

ImperIal Issue
While the Varangian Guard would have been battleaxe
drawn from all over the world — many other
mercenaries joined their ranks beyond the Rus,
Scandinavians and Anglo-Saxons — their uniform axe to grInd
was standardised and issued by the imperial After the Norman invasion of Britain
armoury. In part, this was possibly because many in 1066, the Varangians saw an
of the exiles that joined the Guard arrived with influx of displaced Anglo-Saxon
soldiers join their ranks. Hence the
nothing, so required the empire to clothe them. double-handed axe, so popular with
© Kevin McGivern Anglo-Saxon warriors at the Battle
of Hastings, became a prominent
symbol and weapon of the Guard.
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