Hurstwic Newsletter Fall 2012

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Hurstwic, LLC | P. O. Box 5, Southborough, MA 01772, USA | www.hurstwic.com | [email protected] | www.hurstwic.org| 2012 Hurstwic, LLC

The newsletter of Hurstwicfall, 2012

Grappling as Taught in the Sagas

By Kevin Scott, Hurstwic studentTe sagas and other evidence suggest that some Viking-age fghts ended in grappling, in which a combatant might throw away hisweapons and run in to get a grip, resulting in a broken back, a broken neck, or a take-down.Viking-age people delighted in grappling as a sport, as well. Whenever men congregated, whether or easting, or government as-semblies, or or game estivals, grappling matches were a part o the activities.An episode rom Grettis sagagives an unusually clear description o a grappling match to the death between Grettir and Glmur.Grettir smundarson was a fghter o immense strength. He oten looked or ways to test his strength, and his uncle Jkull suggestedhe look in on the arm at rhallsstair in north Iceland to test himsel against Glmur.

Glmur had been the shepherd at the arm, but ater being killed byan evil spirit, he haunted the valley, killing the armhands and thelivestock, and riding the roo o the house. Viking-age people believedthere were many kinds o supernatural creatures, some benefcial, andsome harmul. Some dead people were not content to lie in their

graves and instead haunted and harmed the people in the district.Glmur was one o these aturgngumaur, the walking dead.Grettir arrived at rhallsstair and was warmly welcomed by thegrateul armer. During the frst night, nothing happened. On thesecond night, Grettirs horse was killed with every bone broken. Onthe third night, Grettir lay in wait in the hall o the house or thecreature to appear. When Glmur entered the hall, Grettir could seethe creature looked more like a troll than a man. Tinking Grettirwas asleep, Glmur tried to rip Grettirs cloak rom him, but Grettirsprang under Glmurs arms, gripped him about the waist, and benthis spine as hard as he could. In response Glmur gripped Grettirsarms so that he was orced to give up his grip.Te two wrestled so violently that the benches in the hall were splin-tered and broken. Glmur tried to make or the door, dragging Gret-tir with him. But Grettir knew hed be at a disadvantage outsidewhere Glmur had more room to fght. Grettir did all he could tokeep Glmur inside the house. Glmur was now putting his ullstrength into dragging Grettir towards the door.Grettir saw an opportunity. Instead o resisting, he launched himselat Glmur, pushing o on a rockburied in the ground at the door-way. Glmur tumbled backwardthrough the door, landing on his

back with Grettir on top o him.Ten something unexpected happened. Te clouds parted and moonlight lit up Glmurs evileyes, causing Grettirs strength to leave him. Glmur cursed the man, saying that his ghostlyeyes would always be in Grettirs sight, causing him to be araid to be alone.

Grettirs strength returned. He drew his sax and cut o the ghosts head. Te ghost was burned,and his ashes were buried ar rom any inhabited area where they could do no more harm. Gret-tir later said his strength had never been so thoroughly tested. But Glmurs curse caused Grettirto become araid o the dark, because he saw phantoms wherever he looked.Despite Grettirs unhappy ortune, his victory over Glmur can teach us much about Vikingunarmed combat. In the fght, at least our moves were used that we practice in our training atHurstwic. Grettir applied a frm bearhug in an eort to break his opponents spine. Glmurbroke the grip by reaching over Grettirs arms. Grettir used Glmurs strength against him byunexpectedly and orceully going in the direction Glmur was pulling. And once Glmur wasdown, Grettir drew his weapon and gave him his deathblow.It is with this emphasis on unexpected moves, seizing the opportunity, and outthinking youradversary that we routinely practice in our Viking combat practice at Hurstwic. Grappling isjust one tool we practice, and many o these same approaches can be applied to other tools.

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Improvised Weapons

By William R. Short, Hurstwic instructor

Te sagas tell us that Viking-age fghters were clever and resourceul,using whatever tools they had available at the moment to succeed intheir struggle. Teir mindset was one o improvisation, rather thanollowing a set o rules or patterns. Warriors oten improvised weap-ons on the spot, even when excellent conventional weapons were at

hand, i they thought those improvised weapons might give them anadvantage in a fght.An example o using an improvised weapon when conventionalweapons were readily at hand is the battle at rlygsstair (right),described in chapter 37 oEyrbyggja saga. Arnkell goi was workingwith two slaves, loading hay onto a sled, when Snorri goi and alarge band o men arrived to avenge an earlier killing. Arnkell senthis slaves to get help, and he ripped the runner o the sled andclimbed up the haystack to ace his attackers alone, protected by thehigh tur wall behind him.

Evolution of the Sword in the Viking Age, part 1

By Jeff Pringle, Swordsmith

Te European sword underwent signifcant change during the Viking period, with improvements in shape and material that reect ad-vances in design and iron smelting technology as well as the changing role o the warrior in society.Te Migration/Vendel period swords were parallel-sided, pattern-welded and hilted veryornately in gold. At the dawn o the Viking age there was a shit to more utilitarian hiltsmade o iron with simple inlay decoration. By the end o that era, the blades had ac-quired more taper and were made rom a single block o steel, with minimalist hilts oiron decorated with nonerrous overlay.

In this series o articles, we'll look at these changes and their signifcance.Blade geometry

Swords are designed as a compromise o many actors: the maximum energy delivered ina cut balanced against speed; maneuverability; and the resistance o the material to bend-ing or breaking. Tese actors are controlled through the specifc shape o the blade andthe material chosen or it, as well as the manner in which it is constructed.Te shape o a sword blade can be described in terms o the shape it has in profle and inthickness (called distal taper), and these combine to determine the mass distribution,center o gravity and the blade's harmonic qualities, which in turn determine the amounto orce delivered in a blow and the maneuverability or speed at which a blow can bemade or recovered rom.During the Viking period, the blade evolved rom a parallel-sided shape whose massdistribution was primarily determined by the distal taper to a blade with both profle and

distal taper, which resulted in a more eective sword. In the early Viking period, thesword maker's main option to adjust the center o gravity o the blade was to adjust thethickness o the blade, which does not allow much control over the mass distribution,especially when the need or the blade to resist bending and breaking was taken in toaccount.By increasing the profle taper, the center o gravity o the blade can move closer to thehilt, which results in a much more maneuverable blade that delivers as much or moreenergy to the target in a aster, more ecient way. As a result, the swords can becomelonger and heavier compared to earlier swords without sacrifcing speed. An additionalbeneft is that the narrower taper allows or a sharper point which is better at piercingmail, the common body armor worn to deend against swords in this period.Hilt design

While the blades were evolving, the hilts were also changing into more simple, direct orms. Te relatively expensive and ragile gold-

encrusted hilts o the migration period were replaced by tougher iron hilts made o ewer pieces. Tese were decorated in ways that usedsmaller amounts o precious metal. Instead o gold, the use o silver, copper and brass became common. By the end o the era, metal com-ponents o the hilt were reduced to a one-piece pommel and a cross guard with simple shapes. Plain, undecorated iron became a commonfnish.In the next installment, we'll look at how blade material and construction was changing along with these external eatures.

Comparison o (let to right) early, middle, and lateViking-age swords

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Using the sled runner, Arnkell was able to break many o his opponents spearshats, while he remained unhurt. Eventually, the sled run-ner broke, so Arnkell took up his sword and shield, which were leaning against the haystack. Tese weapons were less eective against thearmed men acing him. Tey crowded closer and eventually killed him.Beore the fght, Arnkell looked about him as his enemy approached, assessing the tools available. When he saw something that could beimprovised into a weapon more eective than the weapons he carried, he leapt into action, and the improvised weapon worked well untilits limits were exceeded and it ailed.

Viking-age fghters also used improvised armor. Vopnfringa sagatells o Helgiorgilsson who, at the age o 12 years, prosecuted Svartur or a killing and hadthe man outlawed. When sheep started disappearing rom the arm, Helgi sus-

pected Svartur was responsible.One night, Helgi let the arm carrying his axe and a shield, and traveled to thehighlands where Svartur was hiding. Along the way, Helgi picked up a agstoneand bound it to his chest to create improvised armor. When Helgi met the out-law, Svartur ran orward with his spear. Te shield didnt stop the attack, but thestone armor did. Helgistruck out with hisaxe, cutting o Svar-turs leg, and struckagain to give Svarturhis death blow.

Helgi looked at the tools available and ound one more suitable, improvising aneective deense rom the materials he had available to him.Many other kinds o improvised weapons and improvised deenses are described

in the sagas. We try to practice this kind o improvisation in our Viking combatpractice at Hurstwic. One drill that we do is to strew the practice oor withstu: weapons and weapon-like things that could be used as weapons, and thenlet people spar. In one variant, people are ree to pick up weapons rom theoor as they see ft, and in other cases, the instructor calls out that one studentshould immediately drop his weapon (because it has broken or worn out) andfnd something else to use without getting cut to bits by his sparring partner.Te drill helps people learn to make the most o what is immediately available.

How Francia Shaped Frankish Combat

By Chris Paolella, Hurstwic student

In the Viking age, combat was highly individualized. Warriors were part o larger raiding parties or war bands, but each fghter sought toenhance his personal honor and ame through combat. While men were capable o cooperating and could recognize the need or suchcooperation, generally each man ought in a much more singular capacity than during classical antiquity, when each warrior was closelytied to the greater whole.

Tis individualized nature o combat in the ninth and tenth centuries was not solelyattributable to the Vikings. Te nascent knightly class o Europe also ought or singularame and glory, even though they themselves were oten part o a larger orce.In Western Europe, the Franks and Vikings oten met in combat, and the Frankish war-riors, too, ollowed this approach to combat, an approach that was dictated by their en-vironment.Te Francia encountered byViking raiders was covered bydeep orests. Te ew networkso communication had deterio-rated since the decay o Rome.Rivers contributed to the com-

munications networks, but theywere o use only insoar as their courses took them. Once beyond the meanderingwaterways, the woods impeded travel.Ater Rome, Gaul splintered into petty kingdoms under the Merovingians, andthe inrastructure o Roman roads ell into disrepair. With the withering o centralauthority it became impossible to coordinate maintenance o the road networks orto police them.Tis lack o coordination had grave consequences or the Franks, whom the Vi-kings constantly raided. News o impending attacks was slow and intermittent,

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because travel and thereore communication was slow, unreliable andperilous. Te roads that remained passable were easy targets or brig-ands, and these remaining arteries became treacherous. Te breakdowno security and the transportation network caused the ocus o localcommunities to turn inwards, concentrating on sel-suciency as muchas possible.Extreme localism was the rule o the day. People tended to regard them-selves as locals frst; neighboring villages were considered outsiders andthereore air game or ransacking petty lords.

Te diculty in communication had other implications as well. Or-ganizing large scale armies was impractical. Not only was there the di-culty o spreading word o the muster, but the ability to provide or alarge army was a logistical nightmare. Since the roads were in poor con-dition, bringing in the necessary ood and equipment posed considera-ble problems. Even i an army could be raised, such large scale pitchedbattles were extremely risky ventures. Battles were chaotic events, andno amount o planning could ensure victory.Te lack o trained, disciplined soldiers harkening back to the days othe Roman legions added to the chaos. Few lords were willing to gam-ble such a concentration o blood and materiel on the whims o or-

tune. Tis is not to say pitched battles never occurred, rather they were simply very rare.Consciously or not, the individualism o a warrior on the battlefeld was a microcosm o the isolation o individual communities in Fran-cia at the time o the Viking raids. Large-scale armies o trained, disciplined troops capable o executing complex military maneuvers were

a thing o the past. Instead, small skirmishes became the norm. Tey were easier to muster, easier to maintain and easier to maneuver inthe dense woods o Francia.While smaller bands meant smaller engagements, these skirmishes were no less violent. With personal honor and ame at stake, the desireto display valor in the ace o the enemy became a driving motivation or tremendous eats o arms and also extreme brutality.Viking combat was similar to the combat practiced by their opponents and or good reason. It was ast, ecient and easy to organize andmaintain in the feld. So while the environment helped guide the fghting approach o the Franks and other opponents o the Vikings, theViking quasi-religious belies in ate, luck, and predetermination drove Vikings to seek ways to enhance their own reputation and honorin battle.

In the Footsteps of Hrafnkell Freysgoi

By Michelle Lynn Mielnik

Hrankels saga Freysgoahas been called one o the fnest shortnovels ever written in any language. It tells the story o

Hrankell, a domineering and overbearinggoi(chietain) wholived at Aalbl in Hrankelsdalur (right) in east Iceland.Smur, a weak and powerless man, prepared a case againstHrankell in response to a killing and, with the unexpectedhelp o powerul chietains rom the west, had Hrankell out-lawed. Hrankell ignored the judgment, expecting Smur to bepowerless to enorce it, but Smur and his allies rom the westcaptured Hrankell and banished him rom the district.

Hrankell moved away and re-established himsel, having modifedhis behavior as a result o his humiliat-ing and painul lesson. Smur, on theother hand, took over Hrankellsarm, his chietaincy, and many o

Hrankells bad ways. Smur clearlywas unsuited or the role o goi, having ailed to carry his vengeance to its completion, and having ailed to pre-pare adequately or possible retaliation.Years later, Hrankell made good his revenge, frst by attacking and killing Smurs brother who had been over-seas and uninvolved with any o these activities, and then by attacking Smur and driving him out o Aalbl. Re-established in his old home, Hrankell became a moderate and more well-balanced goi, while Smur, powerlessonce again, was thoroughly dissatisfed with his new situation.Te sagas are an important source o inormation in our study o Viking-age combat. Te sagas teach us thenorms and mores o Viking-age society. While the saga material has been fltered by the Christian authors, we

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Hurstwic Viking Combat Training DVD Volumes 2 and 3

By William R. Short, Hurstwic intsructor

Shooting has begun or the next two volumes in the series oHurstwic Viking combat training DVDs. While in Icelandrecently, we shot the opening and closing chapter or eachDVD at Eirksstair, the reconstructed Viking-age longhouse

o Eirkur raudi (Eirik the red). Te sagas tell us that Eirkurwas not reluctant to use his weapons, and so his home seemedlike a good place to discuss Viking combat.Te house was built a short distance rom the ruins oEirkurs 10th centuryturhouse and duplicates the layoutand urnishings o a Viking-age longhouse. Eirkur lived onlya short time here. Disputes with neighbors led to killings,resulting in Eirkurs being banished rom the district. Helater settled Greenland. While in this house, it is likely thathis son Leiur Eirksson was born, who explored Vnland(North America).We expect to shoot the remainder o the material or the newDVDs in our practice room late in 2012. We hope that thetwo new DVDs will be available early in 2013.

In volume 2, well continue the training approach begun in volume 1. Well revisit some othe same undamentals and build on them with more advanced drills and more advanced spar-ring situations. Tere is new material, too, such as drills and training with projectile weapons.Vikings threw spears, axes, knives, shields, and improvised weapons, such as rocks, and thesemoves should be a part o your training, as well. Well also introduce you to the mindset othe Viking warrior, which will help you understand how warriors approached a fght and howthey chose their moves, an understanding you can apply to your training.Volume 3 is planned to be something dierent. Rather than ocusing on martial training, wewill show you some specifc fghting moves described in the sagas. For each move, well discussthe move in the context o the saga andthen demonstrate the move at speed. Ten,well go to the practice room and showhow the move is perormed, step by step.

For those who wish to practice the fghtingmoves o the Vikings, this material can beadded to your training and your sparring.For those interested in Viking culture andhistory, this material will provide a asci-nating look into the mind and the world othe Norsemen.Look or the latest news and developmentsabout these DVDs on Hurstwics Facebooksite or on the Hurstwic website.

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believe a large dose o Viking-age societal norms remains. Te sagais clear that Hrankells overbearing and unjust behavior was not thebehavior o adrengur, o an honorable man in Viking society. AterSmur took him down a ew notches, Hrankell changed his waysand took on more o the behaviors and attributes expected o agoi. Tis kind o material and insight into the expected behavior ohonorable men and women in the Viking age guides us in our study

and practice o Viking-age combat.Each year, saga-age lie is remembered atHrankelsdagur, a celebration o thepeople and events o the saga. Te eventincludes guided visits to many o the saga sites, as well as events at Aalbl, including games, sports (above),handcrats, stories, lectures, theater (let), and ood and drink.For those who would like to walk in Hrankells ootsteps on their own, Hrankelssgulagi has published adescriptive bookcontaining both the saga text and travel inormation. Additionally the group has created appsor bothApple andAndroid mobile products to assist a traveler seeking to explore the saga sites.