In one saga, a berserker refused to engage in single combat unless the fight was postponed by three days so he could observe the Yule. The berserkers were known to be observant followers of the gods, particularly Odin. For a warrior, however, Odin’s religious frenzy made them almost unstoppable fighters. He was also a god of magic who, it was believed, could inspire his followers to raptured states of religious ecstasy.įor a seer, such a state might be a trance in which they could peer into other worlds and decipher the threads of fate. They were devoted followers of Odin and believed that their skills came from him. In Norse culture, the berserkers did not take credit for the frenzy that inspired them to feats of strength. However, they had other attributes that earned them praise on and off the battlefield.
The berserkers did not have the honor that distinguished the great heroes and kings of legends. They were said to be masters of stealth who used disguises and knowledge of the terrain to escape danger and infiltrate enemy camps. Turks, Mongols, and some Native American tribes had similar warriors who took on the persona of a wolf in battle.įinally, the svinfylking fought at the head of the army in a formation that mimicked a boar’s snout and tusks. The ulfhednar, or wolf warriors, were known in many cultures besides the Norse. In addition to their ferocity, they were also known to be exceptionally observant of religious rituals and rites. The most famous, and probably the most common, were the bear berserkers. It was said that they used claws and fangs to rip apart their enemies when they lost their conventional weapons.Īccounts from the Norse berserkers and other ancient cultures identified three primary animals that these fighters allied themselves with. Legends claimed that some berserkers literally transformed into an animal in the heat of battle. The word comes from the Old Norse for “bear shirted.” Their distinctive appearance also helped their comrades to avoid straying too close to their battle frenzy.īerserkers typically dressed in animal furs. The sight of a made dressed as one of the crazed fighters was sometimes enough to frighten an enemy into backing down or forgetting their training.īerserkers were easy to spot on the battlefield for this very reason. Some historians believe that many warriors adopted the symbols of a berserker to increase their own notoriety, even if they did not enter the frenzied state that made a true berserker. While such single-minded violence may have been dangerous, it also made them highly effective.
Their frenzy gave them strength beyond any other man and, according to some, made them impervious to iron and fire.īerserkers were said to plow through enemy troops with no regard for their own safety and no thought other than destruction. The berserkers were sad to lose all thought and reason in this state, to the extent that they would attack their own comrades.ĭespite this, however, the berserkers are said in sagas and historical accounts to have been elite soldiers who often served as royal bodyguards and champions of the kings.Īlthough they were unpredictable and uncontrollable, the berserkers were also said to have been incredible warriors. They would shake, howl, and foam at the mouth as they gave in to absolute bloodlust. What made them so terrifying was that they completely abandoned training, strategy, and forethought in the heat of battle.ĭuring a fight, the berserkers entered a state of absolute frenzy. While many men in the Norse world trained for battle and prided themselves on their skills, the berserkers stood apart as the most fearsome fighters known. The berserkers were the shock troops of a Viking Age raiding party. So who were these fur-clad warriors of the Viking Age? The Fury of the Berserkers If a Viking raider could frighten the average person in medieval Europe, a berserker was almost unbelievably terrifying to face. Crediting the gods for their strength, their fury made them identify more with wild animals than the men they served alongside. The berserkers entered such a state of bloodthirsty frenzy that they risked attacking their own men in the heat of battle. Among them, however, were a few warriors who terrified even their companions. With their swift boats and ruthlessness, these raiders became the most feared men in all of Europe. Viking raiders made their way as far west as Canada and ventured into the Mediterranean and North Africa. For nearly two hundred years in the Middle Ages, Norse raiding parties struck terror into villages and monasteries from Ireland to Eastern Europe.
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