My mother probably thought I was mad when I asked for it but I was delighted with a present my parents bought me this Xmas.  It is a replica of the Beagnoth Seax which is in the British Museum.

Here is a picture of it:

The Seax of Beagnoth was found in the river Thames in 1857 and dates to 9th century. Inscribed upon it is a complete 28 character set of the FUTHORC or old English runic alphabet. It also contains a name. This might either be the blades owner or its maker. This is an image of the original:

The Beagnoth Seax in the British Museum

I sometimes do talks at schools and Historical Societies on Life in AD 600 and use many such artefacts to illustrate points. In the case of the Beagnoth Seax  I can show my audience some of the evidence for how we know the Anglo-Saxons used the Germanic-Norse style runic alphabet.

Furthermore the  Beagnoth Seax is evidence that the Saxons were following traditions for inscribing blades to make them more powerful and invincible.  Such an activity is mentioned in the Beowulf Saga:

On its bright gold facings there were also runes 
set down in order, engraved, inlaid, 
which told for whom the sword was first worked, 
its hair-keen edges, twisted gold 
scrolled in the hilt, the woven snake-blade.
In pure gold inlay on the sword-guards
there were rune-markings correctly incised.

In Norse poetry of the Edda there are clear instructions about inscribing victory runes on a blade:

Winning-runes learn,if thou longest to win,And the runes on thy sword-hilt write;Some on the furrow,and some on the flat,And twice shalt thou call on Tyr.

What this is saying is to write the runes on the blade and in particular to use the Tyr rune. Tyr is the one handed god of Warriors and courage.

The great thing about being able to share with an audience a physical object like a blade is to show that our ancestors did this kind of thing in real life.

Who Beagnoth was we do not know (although  the name appears twice in documents from Kent in the 9th/10th centuries) but it is thanks to his seax being dropped in the river Thames that we have this evidence today,

I recently wrote an article about the Anglo-Saxon Gods of Old England – those that our ancestors worshipped before England became Christian. Just as Christianity is linked to the powerful symbol of the Cross and Judaism to that of the Star of David or the Menora, these gods had their own symbols that would be used on pottery, weapons and on pendants worn by the faithful. Here are some of the main Saxon gods and their symbols.

Woden (Odin)

Woden is the chief god of the Anglo-Norse Pantheon. He is seen as being often a grumpy old man, or a warrior and sometimes a shadowy cloaked figure sneaking around watching men. He was a god of life and death, of of war. In Saxon and in Norse mythology, Woden/Odin was the highest ranking god and the leader of the Wild Hunt. He was often imagined galloping across the sky  in a chariot pulled by white horses. It is thought that he is the original inspiration for Santa Claus. There are a  number of symbols associated with him. Both the Raven and the Wolf are animals linked to Woden. He is often depicted with a spear.

This is another symbol linked to Woden. It is not  a cross but is meant to be a wheel representing the circle of life and death over which woden held power. This symbol might well be on pendants, clothing and weapons.

Frige/Frigga

Frige was the wife of Woden and so queen of the gods. She was the goddess of Marriage, Child-birth, the Home and the Harvest. The stork is associated with her as is the spinning wheel. The constellation ‘Orion’s Belt’ was called ‘Frige’s Distaff’. Friday is named after her. Her Festival was harvest time.

Thunor (Thor)

Thunor (Thor) is famously see as a hammer-wielding god with power over thunder and lightning  as well as storms. He also has a role as the protector of mankind. Saxons also believed he had a gentler side involving healing, and fertility.

The most famous  symbol of Thunor ( often worn around the neck) is the hammer symbol.

Tiw (Tyr)

Tiw is the Anglo-Saxon god of War and Combat. His sacred animal was the wolf. He is often depicted as having only one hand as he lost one to the giant wolf Fenris. Our day Tuesday is named after Tiw. This rune is associated with him and may represent a spear:

Ingui-Freyr

Ingui- Freya (Norse Freya) was the male God of Fertility. His symbol was the boar.

Freya/Freo

Freo, brother of Ingui-Freya was the Saxon Love goddess. Her sacred animals are like her brother the boar but also  the cat. Cats pulled her chariot, and she sometimes rode a boar. She had a magic cloak of falcon feathers.

Eostre

Eostre  is a fairly obscure goddess of which we know far less than the others.  She seems to be a  goddess of purity, youth, beauty and of rebirth. Her festival became the later Christian Easter and the rabbit was the sacred animal to Eostre, and a  symbol of fertility. The egg also symbolised fertility and rebirth of spring. The whiteness of the egg and the rabbit also indicated purity. Cakes or buns (later the hot cross buns) may even date to her festival and indeed the Cross MIGHT be the sun wheel (which is the same as Woden’s symbol) representing the turning of the year and the coming of light.

Loki

Loki is a bit of a puzzle. He is strongly mentioned in Norse Mythology BUT not much in Anglo-Saxon literature. So was he part of Saxon mythology? Probably he was because he is mentioned in SOME stories for example Beowulf. Many other Saxon gods are NOT mentioned much but enough echoes in tradition and symbology are about to suggest they were worshipped. Loki is the God of Cunning and Deceit. Later, in the Christian era he became associated with the idea of  the Devil.

Loki is the trickster god. He manipulates and plots. BUT he is also the catalyst that makes things happen and moves things forward. It has been suggsted that the snake might be associated with him – interesting that it is also the form that Satan took in the Garden of Eden. Another example of how mythologies and religions borrow and share elements.

In my Dark Ages Historical fiction, The Amber Treasure and its sequel, Child of Loki these beliefs and the new Christian ones appear and have influences on the characters and their world.

One of the more well known battles between the Saxons and Vikings was the Battle of Maldon. This is due in part to the existence of a poem from soon after the battle that tells us about who took part and what happened. It is also one of the few battles from the time where we are reasonably certain where it took place.

The Battle of Maldon  was fought on the 10th of  August in 991 near the small town of Maldon beside the River Blackwater in Essex. It took place during the reign of the weak king, Aethelred the Unready. What is interesting is that this battle and its aftermath show the two main approaches to dealing with the Vikings. Some leaders would fight them and if successful this approach would often force the Vikings to come to terms and make peace for a while. The other approach was to bribe them with money or land. This might work and save lives in the short term BUT it could mean the danes felt that since threats had worked before why not try again. The Saxon leader at the battle favoured resistance and we shall see what happened.

The battle occurred during the years of Viking raids and invasions that raged on during the 8th to 10th centuries. Maldon was a coastal town and so vulnerable to attack. It had been fortified but its wealth still made it a target for the Vikings who had moved on there after attacking Ipswich. These raids on the east coast were costly and it seems that the local Saxon lord was Earl Byrhtnoth determined to try and engage the Vkings in a pitched battle in an attempt to destroy the host.

The Battlefield

Earl Byrhtnoth having heard of the Viking raids called out the local Fyrd (the militia which would defend the local area ) and along with his huscarls (personal troops) his thegns (lords) led the English against the Viking invasion.

Initial deployment

It is thought that the armies had perhaps 2000 men each (really we don’t know for certain).

The Vikings had chosen not to directly assault Maldon (which would mean attacking the fortified port) but had landed in the safe anchorages and various channels of the estuary and then assembling on Northey Island had move towards the causeway which connected it to the main land via a causeway. The Saxons moved to the end of the causeway At the start of the battle the causeway was flooded and so what occured was a stand off with the two armies hurling abuses and challenges.

The Battle starts

Initially a few Saxon warriors held the causeway and denied the Vikings passage but then Byrhtnoth ordered the army to pull back and permit the enemy to cross. This is unlikely to have been good sportsmanship or a sense of honour. Byrhtnoth wanted to destroy the Vikings and so, possibly fearful they would just get in their ships and leave, he allowed them onto the main lands.

The battle then proceeded in a fairly standard manner with an exchange of arrows, slingstones and javelins. Then the main bodies closed and the push and shove of the shield wall ensued. It may be that the Saxons were doing OK until something unexpected happened. Byrhtnoth seems to have believed that an enemy leader was challenging him and stepped forward to engage in one to one combat. The Vikings fell upon him and cut him to pieces.

Once the leader was dead the Saxon Fyrd turned and fled. Byrhtnoth’s household troops and retainers fought over the body of their lord until slain but after his death the battle was over in moments.

The Aftermath.

The battle having ended in an Anglo-Saxon defeat, the Vikings went on to pillage Maldon. After the battle the Archbishop of Canterbury advised King Aethelred to follow the other policy and to try and buy off the Vikings rather than fight them. The King agreed and as a result a payment of 10,000 pounds of silver was handed over as Danegeld. The idea was that the Vikings would not come back but year after year return they did. Ultimately, despite English resistance, a Viking king would sit on the throne – Canute and the Vikings would rule England for 25 years.

A statue of Byrhtnoth in Maldon

The Poem

Fragments of an account of the battle probably written soon afterwards still survive today. The poem is embellished by proud boasts and accounts of the bravelry of the Saxons in much the same way that the poem Y Goddodin tells of the attributes and abilities of the defeated British at the earlier battle of Catreath in c597. So what we have is a piece of propaganda. Yet it does give us something of an outline of the battle as well as include references to some snapshots of the action that help us understand the weapons used.

My own historical fiction, The Amber Treasure, is set during the late 6th century and includes an account of the battle of Catreath.

The defeat that shook the Victorian World

The Anglo-Zulu war of 1879 started with a great defeat for the British invaders. On the 22nd January 20,000 Zulu’s overwhelmed a force of 1800 British and allies on the plain beneath the mountain of Isandlwana and destroyed it. An entire battalion of British Infantry was wiped out to the last man. It was a defeat that stunned a Victorian Britain which was used to victory and conquest.

This battle, along with the stubborn and heroic defence of Rorke’s Drift the following night by the British garrison there, has always been of interest to me as it seems to exemplify the heights of human heroism (exhibited by both sides) coupled with the depths of folly and horrors that only war can bring.

Background

The origins of the conflict with the Zulus in 1879 have strange parallels with the conflicts in the gulf and the Middle East. In fairly recent times the US and allies’ interventions in the gulf have been seen by some as spurred on by a concern about access to oil. Whether that is true or not the British government in Cape Town back then did not take much interest in the interior of South Africa and much less Zululand until diamonds and other resources were discovered there. Suddenly in the 1870s efforts and policies were introduced aimed towards confederation of the various colonies under a strong British rule.

Amongst the territories brought under the British Crown was Natal and the Boer’s homeland of Transvaal. The Boer’s main enemy and rival was the strong and powerful independent nation that had arisen under Shaka Zulu in the 1830’s. A nation that could put 25,000 warriors in the field was a threat to the security of Transvaal and so ultimately all of South Africa. Or at least THAT is the way that Sir Henry Frere – the British governor – looked at it.

Frere sent Cetshwayo – the Zulu King a series of demands and ultimatums insisting that he disband his army and allow a British governor into his capital Ulundi. Frere knew that Cetshwayo would never agree to that and when the Zulu King declined his demands, the British general Chelmsford was ordered to invade.

Chelmsford’s original plan envisaged splitting his army into 5 columns which would invade and converge on Ulundi. Chelmsford himself accompanied the central columns (II and III). They marched to the mission station at Rorke’s Drift and on 11th January began the invasion. It would have been better to have waited a few weeks as in January there was heavy rain and as a result moving a large army with baggage and artillery would take a long time. However Frere was eager to have the matter resolved and so the British went in. The result was that it took many days for the central column to assemble fully inside Zululand at a base Chelmsford has established beneath an odd shaped mountain called Isandlwana.

What Happened

Cetshwayo heard of the invasion soon after it had begun and on 17th January ordered 24,000 men to move towards Isandlwana, although some 4000 splitt off to move towards Column I. On 21st January the Zulu Impi had arrived near the British camp. Chelmsford’s scouts had seen it approach but could not fix its location precisely so on the 22nd Chelmsford decided to take half his force away on a march to try and locate the enemy.

This left Major Pulliene – a staff officer and administrator in the base with his 1700 men. Chelmsford had refused to order the camp to form into a laager – a reinforced camp with wagons around the outside, trenches and thorn bushes pulled into impede attack. He did not feel it was neccesary and was scathing of threat posed by the Impi.

This mistake would prove to be costly for the Zulu commander had out maneouvered Chelmsford and whilst the British general was chasing around trying to locate him, the Impi moved forward in redinness to fall on Pulleine.

The crunch happened when a patrol of Natal mounted trops attached to the British command moved out of the camp to scout some valleys to the north east. There in a valley within a couple of miles of the camp was the entire Zulu army. As one the zulus rose up and attacked the fleeing horsemen and followed them up and out onto the plain.

Pulleine formed the 24th Foot up into firing lines and the British Infantry began puring volleys from their Martini Henry Rifles into the enemy ranks. The zulus fell in droves but still came on- massing and waiting to charge. Actually the redcoats held the vast numbers away for a long time but then something went wrong.

Around 1.15 pm that day the Natal irregular companies out on the British right wing were outflanked and fell back. More or less at that moment Pulleine was ordering the Regular companies to pull back to shorten their line. There was also a shortage of ammunition reaching the forward companies. There was a vast supply in the camp but for some reason these were not being handed out quickly enough. A combination of these factors meant that the previously pinned Zulu Impi was able to charge the British line.

Gaps appeared in the companies, then the gaps widened as the warriors surged through them. In a matter of fifteen minutes the Zulu army overwhelmed the British and the wings of the Impi swung into deny escape to all save a lucky 80 or so men. The colour party with the regimental and the Queen’s flag wrapped the flags around the chests of two officers who made a bid to reach the Buffalo river. Their bodies were later found in the river, where they had fallen.

It was all over in a flash and the British had suffered a huge defeat.

Aftermath

Cetshwayo had ordered that the Impi should NOT invade Natal and should stop on his side of the border. However a few thousand Zulus who had not fought at Isandlwana decided to attack the British base at the mission station of Rorke’s Drift. Throughout the night of the 22nd to 23rd January they led repeated attacked against a single company of British that fortified it. 11 Victoria crosses would be handed out for the bravery of officers and men on the 24th Foot stationed there. The Zulus broke of the attack in the morning.

Cetshwayo had missed two opportunities to inflict a decisive defeat. His Impi had not attacked the column under Chelmsford, nor captured Rorke’s Drift. As a result, the war was not yet over.

News of the defeat at Isandlwana reached London on 11th February and caused an uproar. It literally stunned the nation and even the Queen demanded to know why her soldiers were fighting the Zulus.  It  is small wonder then that the subsequent news of Rorke’s drift arriving hot on the heels of the disaster was greeted with enthusiasm.

Nevertheless the defeat lead to a calling off of the of the January invasion. It would be June before the British army would be in a state to resume the war and July before the Impi was defeated at the battle of Ulundi. Cetshwayo was captured by the British in August but, perhaps in recognition of the bravery of his army, was treated pretty well, became something of a celebrity in London and was allowed to live on a pension for the rest of his life. His Kingdom, however, was absorbed into the British Territory of South Africa.

So then, a terrible battle and a tragic outcome for a brave warrior people. It remains a dramatic moment in history.

In Tomorrow’s Guardian, Edward Dyson – a officer in the 24th, is believed perished in the battle. Tom and his companion Septimus travel back in time to rescue him and bring him to the present day.

Find out more about Tomorrow’s Guardian as well as listen to an account of the battle and the rescue of Edward here:

http://www.richarddenning.co.uk/tomguard.html

An Anglo Saxon archer.

Continuing my discussion of arms and armour used in Anglo Saxon times I am looking  at missiles. This material is adapted from Richard Underwood’s book Anglo Saxon Weapons and Warfare which I refered to when writing The Amber Treasure.  It is recommended for those wishing detail on this subject.

a)Javelin. Although spears could be used as a missile weapon, their bulk and weight would make them of limited value and certainly very restricted range. Lighter and shorter, the javelin was much more adapted for this purpose. From the account of the Battle of Maldon in 991 it appears that an exchange of javelins was a prelude to the main melee. Javelins had a range of perhaps 50 feet.  Angons were a sub class of javelin with barbs on the head which would be difficult to pull out of a wound.  One drawback to the javelin is the problem that your enemy could pick it up and throw it back at you. The Romans got round this problem in the construction of their pilums so that the heads would bend and buckle and be no use (but could be repaired after a battle). There is some suggestion in the Grettir’s Saga that the Anglo Saxons tried experiments with loosening the screws that held the head to the shaft but this was not very successful.

Angon

 b) The Bow. Finding of bows in the graves of the period is rare. Does this suggest they were not widely used? Probably not. It is more likely that wood and sinews that were used in the construction of bows would not survive well in the soil of England into today. Sometimes grave goods including bows do survive well enough for us to see what type of bows were constructed. Furthermore the sagas record the use of bows and in particular the Bayeux tapestry shows no less than 29 images of archers suggesting bows were is use.  Most men would use bows in hunting and so the  use of the weapon would have been familiar. That said, a man encumbered with armour and shield does not make a good archer and so the bulk of an Anglo Saxon warband would not be bow armed for this practical reason.

The arrow heads that survive show a variety of shapes suggesting the Anglo Saxons attempted to make them for different purposes just as later 100 years wars archers did. Thus we can identify broad lead shaped arrow heads, narrow points good for armour piercing and barbed arrows. Bows at this time period would have  range of about 500 feet.

 c)The Francisca or throwing axe. The 6th century chronicler Gregory of Tours records the use of small, curved headed throwing axes by the Franks (after whom they are named, becoming in time the French). Very limited in range (about 40 feet), these weapons were used at close range to shatter shields and disrupt the shield wall before the final charge.

 d)Sling. There is very little evidence of the use of the sling in warfare although one image in the Bayeux tapestry does show a man hunting with a sling.  It is likely that men would carry a sling and stones for hunting and so it might on occasion be used in battle.

In The Amber Treasure, Cuthbert is a superb archer and I give accounts of his and other skirmishers activities in battle.

We know a considerable amount about the arms and armour used by the Anglo Saxons because firstly there is much mention of them in the sagas and chronicles such as The Battle of Maldon. Secondly weapons often survive well in archaeological finds being made, at least in part, of metal such as iron and steel. So then what weapons and armour were common at the time?

Firstly I will consider weapons.

Hand to Hand Weapons

a) The Spear

Possession of a spear defined a freeman. A slave caught with one could expect a beating at the very least. Cheaper and simpler to make than a sword, they were therefore much more numerous. Commonly made of ash, hazel or oak with iron points and caps (ferules) these would be about 6 to 10 feet in length. A man using a spear would also hold a shield and typically fight in a shield wall with shields overlapping with his neighbours. As such a spear was used one handed.

Reconstructions of fighting techniques suggested by Richard Underwood in his book Anglo Saxon Weapons and Warfare suggest two primary methods of using a spear. You can use it over arm – held up high with the arm extended and the spear pointing downwards. Used this way you could try and attack over the enemy shield against head and neck. Or you could use it underarm with the spear braced along the forearm. This was more defensive and was good for parrying the enemy spear and pushing against his shield to keep him away but was not much use offensively.

 

b) The Sword

Just as possession of a spear defines a freeman, owning a sword suggests a man had wealth or nobility. This is because swords take much longer to make and are much more expensive. Most Saxons swords are pattern welded. This involved starting with two to five rods of steel or iron which are formed into bars, welded together, twisted and then hammered flat. This process created strength in the final weapon. Then an upper guard, grip and pommel were attached made of wood, metal or bone. A number of swords were found with runes and markings usually identifying an owner.

The balance of these weapons suggests that swords would be used to hack and chop at the foe rather than say a Roman gladius which was shorter and better used for stabbing and thrusting. Given the typical use with a shield this would be at the head, face and neck or right arm or the lower leg – all of which were not so well protected by the shield.  

c) The Seax

This was actually the weapon from which the Saxons derived their name. It was a short one edged blade – really a long knife about the size of a modern large kitchen knife. This was not designed as a primary combat weapon but it seemed likely that every man and most women would carry one as it is a useful tool.  There are images and mentions in sagas suggesting use in hunting such as dispatching a wounded animal. In battle it would be a last ditch weapon to be used in desperation.

d) The Axe

Long shafted and short shafted axes were tools used mainly for felling trees and working timber. Their use in battle was limited because of several draw backs. The shaft being made of wood was vulnerable to enemy swords. A man might seize the shaft and pull it out of an enemy’s hand in the way that you could not with a sword. Finally the cutting edge was much shorter than that of a sword which meant it could not cut as deep or as long. The head of an axe was however heavy and in the hands of a strong man would make a brutal weapon as evidenced by tales of a single Viking axeman at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066 holding up an entire army as he stood on the narrow bridge.

Next time I will look at missile weapons and go onto armour and shields. Most of the material in this blog is drawn from material in Anglo Saxon Weapons and Warfare by Richard Underwood.

The use of weapons and battles features highly in The Amber Treasure my story of Dark Age Northumbria.

The Way of the Warrior - a central role in the Anglo Saxon period.

In an age when the role of the warrior was key to protecting  one’s family as well as to carving your own path in the world, the process of becoming a warrior was a central part of a youth’s life. Certainly this was so for boys and even (although to a far lesser extent) to some girls, as we shall see.

Learning to be warriors

It appears that the Anglo Saxons saw the age of 7 or 8 as the beginnings of the journey to adulthood. One piece of evidence for this is the writing of Bede who, when talking about the future St Cuthbert, noted that his calling to God’s service happened at this time when he was engaged in childhood games with his friends. Furthermore in the Anglo Saxon saga ‘Beowulf’ the future great warrior is taken from his father to the service of his lord at the age of seven.

Training
For boys then military training would began at around the age of 8. They would train using mock wooden weapons and wicker shields. We know this because sometimes there are references to youths training with them in writings and occasionally small wooden weapons survive in the graves of children.

Some of the skills which were needed for battle would have to be specifically taught. Some would come naturally through other activities such as wrestling (a widely reported childhood activity by Bede and others) and hunting animals such as boar. There is some evidence that hunting was at times ritualistic and became part of the initiation of youths into manhood. Caesar records that Germanic youths would hunt down aurochs (huge wild cattle native to the forests of Germania) and try to slay them single handily.

Training is hinted at in numerous writings such as the account of the Battle of Maldon where a leader passes through the ranks instructing men where to stand and reminding them of how to hold shields and wield weapons. There were many skills to learn. Forming and reforming a shield wall would take practice, as would advancing as one body in such a way that the  shieldwall would not fall apart or gaps appear between the shields. The correct use and roles of swords, spears, axes and missile weapons is not something that would just be known – men would teach youths and pass on the knowledge.

By about the age of 14 a choice would be made if the boy wanted to be a warrior and at this age he would probably be given the family sword if there was one. Certainly youths of this age fought (and died) in battle as evidenced by mass graves and by the chronicles recording the early years of Anglo Saxon Saints.

Warrior bands and associations

There is some evidence of what amounted to something approximating to clubs/bands/associations of warrior youths. Certainly some writings of the Norse period had groups of youths who would forgo armour and hunt wolves or bears and cloth themselves in their fur and go around in groups with others wearing the same garb. These warrior bands may have also existed in the Anglo Saxon period as well, although there is less evidence. Given the natural appeal of ‘belonging’ to a tribe that applies to teenagers today one can readily imagine the attraction of being one of the band.

Shield Maidens and Women as warriors

Whilst military pursuits were predominantly male there is evidence of a small number of women who took part. Firstly there are legends and stories such as those of the Valkyries – female warrior servants of the gods who rode into battle armed and armoured and then chose who lived and died and took the slain back to the halls of the gods. In the circa 7th century saga of Judith there is a reference to a woman carrying a sharp sword. In the early German tales of Nibelungenlied we read of  Princess Kreimhild taking vengeance with an axe for the death of her husband.

So much for legend, what about archaeology? Well there have been cases of graves of women containing both weapons and female items (like spinning equipment). Were these the graves of fallen shield maidens?

So then learning to be warriors was time consuming but critical part of a youth’s life and central to their culture and world view. IN future blogs I will look at Weapons and Armour and also Military Organisation in the Anglo Saxon time.

Much of the material here is taken from The English Warrior by Stephen Pollington  or Warriors of the Dark Ages by Jennifer Laing.

This coming of age and learning to be a warrior is a central theme in The Amber Treasure, my Dark Age historical Fiction novel which follows Cerdic and his friends as they learn about and then experience war first hand.

The preparation for warfare, the rituals surrounding it and the actual conduct of battle were central to the world view of the Anglo-Saxons. Even if a man never fought a battle or the land was at peace it was expected that men would train to be ready. Just like today, reputation very important to men at this time. Reputation was gained by prowess in battle, by recalling the deeds of one’s ancestors and kin and by the creation of and the attitude of hereditary allies and enemies

Some concepts:
All warriors must be freemen. The right to bear arms was central to the status of a freeman in the way that one aspect of slavery was that they were banned from carrying weapons.

The Anglo-Saxons believed that a warrior or leader had secret knowledge he used to protect his men. The leader kept a band of men around him – his hearth company. They would eat with him, sleep in his halls, go where he went and fight for him. They were called thanes and they had a duty to protect and serve him

Some words:
Geoguo: a youth – the young warriors
Duguo: older veterans
In battle, older veterans stood at the rear – trying to bolster the men, the youths were in the middle whilst the seasoned warriors stood at the front.

Rituals

Gifts:
Another word: Gift stool (Grefstol) – Lord sat on it to dispense gifts
The kings gave out gifts to reward his followers and maintain their loyalty. Leaders might hold special gift days. Maybe these were celebrated on days linked to his to his predecessor’s triumphs to remind his followers of his inheritance.

Followers would promise duty and loyalty and leaders would give gifts: weapons, armour, rings, drinking vessels or land.

The value of an object was much more than just wealth: there would be sentimental value. The history of the object was critical i.e. who owned it before, when and for what was it used.

Ale Ritual
This was very symbolic and carried out in a defined manner.
The leader would hold feasts and provide ale and mead. The followers would drink from horns, goblets and beakers. Warriors would stand up individually and would be greeted by the leader. Then their valour and deeds would be celebrated.

The warriors would boast (Beot). This would involved committing themselves to perform a deed. This might be promising to serve their lord, never flinch in battle, slay a foe or die in attempt etc. They NEVER promised success – that was considered up to fate.

The Warrior and his king might embrace or kiss. The warrior might lay his head or hands on the lord’s knee

Ritual Combat
In the case of perceived insult or loss of honour, a challenge to single combat could be refused but would lead to loss of face and public ridicule. The Anglo – Saxons had a item called a scorn pole which could be put up outside their house.
They could expect to be shamed and excluded from society.
Some Words:
Einvigi: single combat – this was a less formal duel probably just outside a hall.
Holmgangi  “going to an island”. One method was to go to secluded spot. Often this was a ritual site used many times in the past.Often they would peg out area of ground to fight inside using hazel sticks. These duels would continue until the death of one or their incapacity. The combatants would take alternate strokes – which they could attempt to deflect with their sword or shield.

Sword Rituals
The sword was a potent symbol to the Anglo Saxons. A promise made on a sword was taken very seriously. Swearing of oaths was often done on a bare blade. The family sword was put in hands of new born sons to show their inheritance and by so doing, the luck of the family was passed on. The marriage oath might be made in front of naked sword.
Often a mother passed on the sword to a son: ie a father would give sword to a daughter to hand on to her son

Beasts of Battle/ Gods of war
Warriors would carry the motif of a god or an associated beast on their equipment. This is particularly so in the case of Kings and leaders and is mentioned in poems.
Here are some of the gods their symbols:
Raven: Cult of Woden (also sometimes a wolf)
Boars: Freyr
Spear: Odin – Tiw. He was the god worshipped by leaders.
Hammer: Thor. He was the god of the rank and file.

In researching the traditions and rituals of warfare for this blog as well as my novel  The Amber Treasure I consulted these books about Warfare:

The English Warrior: Stephen Pollington – Anglo Saxon Books
Warriors of the Dark Ages: Jenniffer Laing – Sutton
Anglo Saxon Weapons and Warfare: Richard Underwood – Tempus