Today is the 7th anniversary of this website. I wanted to commemorate that with a favorite story of mine.
Viking berserkers would open battles by launching themselves against the enemy with no regard for their lives. The term “berserker” probably got their name from the Viking word “berserkr” which means “bear shirt”. Berserkers worshiped the bear. They wore a bear skin (or wolf skin) into battle. They may have ingested hallucinogenic mushrooms before the battle. This would explain them foaming at the mouth, howling, and biting the rim of their shields. They believed they were immune to steel and fire. They would charge the enemy in a state of insanity. If fighting against another Viking force, they would hurl themselves into the shield wall to create an opening. Naturally, this behavior was pretty suicidal. However, knowing they would die might have been an incentive rather than a drawback. Dying while going berserk (the modern definition is “furiously violent or out of control”) would be a ticket to Valhalla.
The most famous berserker took place in the Battle of Stamford Bridge. After the death of King Edward the Confessor in 1066, three men claimed the throne of England. The English nobles elected Harold Godwinson, one of their own. The two angry claimants were William of Normandy (soon to be William the Conqueror) and Harold Hardrada (King of Norway). Hardrada invaded England with a fleet of 300 ships and 11,000 Vikings. With him was Harold Godwinson’s estranged brother Tostig. The Viking army was met by a local army led by Morcar, Earl of Northumberland. In the Battle of Bulford, Morcar’s force was badly beaten and the city of York fell.
Although he was expecting an invasion of southern England by William of Normandy, Harold Godwinson rushed northward to face Hardrada and his brother. His army made a remarkable march of 185 miles in just 4 days. You would think they would have needed to rest, but instead Harold Godwinson immediately attacked. The Vikings were taken totally by surprise. Their armor was on their ships and they had no time to get fully equipped for battle. To buy time for the shield wall to get set up, one berserker stationed himself on the near end of a bridge that the English were attempting to cross. This warrior killed forty Englishmen with his battle axe without giving ground. The dude was awesome. He was literally going berserk. Finally, an enterprising English soldier got in a small boat and floated under the bridge. When he got directly under the berserker, he thrust his spear through an opening in the planks and skewered the berserker. (Don’t picture this.)
The English charged across the bridge, formed their own shield wall and crashed into the Vikings. It was a bloody battle, but the English annihilated the vaunted Vikings. It was one of the biggest upsets in military history since the Vikings were considered the best warriors of the Middle Ages. Harold Hardrada and Tostig were killed. It took only 30 ships to take the survivors home to Norway.
Harold Godwinson had little time to celebrate his amazing victory. News came of the landing of William and Harold decided to make a forced march south to meet the last challenger. The two men had a date with history at a place called Hastings.
https://www.ranker.com/list/armies-on-substances/justin-andress?fbclid=IwAR3WmFekWIPlvepLwydeOW5dVZg4b8-wAFwdvIFV9yZqK0HwkbFMWofFFdA
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berserker
https://allthatsinteresting.com/berserker
https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryMagazine/DestinationsUK/The-Battle-of-Stamford-Bridge/
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