Varangian Guard Viking Helmet

£120.00

Beautiful Varangian Guard viking warrior's spectacle helmet with chainmail. Also supplied with free display stand!! The Viking Varangian Guard Helmet is based on an original that was discovered in Byzantine. A Helmet that was designed to look quiet fierce and would be worn by a high status warrior !!!
It is constructed from 16 gauge blued steel with the fittings made of bronze, all helmets in the John Barnett range are made from, metal, leather and wood. The internal dimensions are approximately 18x18 cm and are designed to be worn.The Varangian Guard were a large group of mercenary Vikings and Saxons that fought in Byzantine. Composed primarily of ScandinavianVikings for the first 100 years, the guard began to see increased inclusion of Anglo-Saxons after the successful invasion of England by the Normans. In 1088 a large number of Anglo-Saxons and Danes emigrated to the Byzantine Empire by way of the Mediterranean. One source has more than 5,000 of them arriving in 235 ships. Those who did not enter imperial service settled on the Black Sea coast, but those who did became so vital to the Varangians that the Guard was commonly called the Englinbarrangoi (Anglo-Varangians) from that point. The Varangians relied on a long axe as their main weapon, although they were often skilled swordsmen or archers as well. They were prominent in the defence of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade. Of the role of the guard, then composed of the English and Danes, it is said that "the fighting was very violent and there was hand to hand fight with axes and swords". The Varangian guard was still operating at least as late as the mid-fourteenth century, and people identified as Varangians were to be found in Constantinople around 1400 !!!