Sutton Hoo and Syria: Anglo-Saxons who served in the Byzantine army?
4 comments
·January 13, 2025davidw
LeftHandPath
What an interesting life to have lived.
> Evidence of his craft was seen in his tactics, which included feigned retreats, ambushes and the use of false information.
Reminds me of "Intelligence in War" by Keegan, which discussed the use of such strategies, mostly in naval battles, from antiquity to the modern era.
> In the 30 years that he served as a captain, Hawkwood's earnings ranged between 6,000 and 80,000 florins annually (in comparison, a skilled Florentine craftsman at the same time earned 30 florins a year).
Quite the pay for a soldier, even if a mercenary!
stonesthrowaway
Wouldn't be shocked. Isn't it a historical fact that the eastern and western roman empires used "barbarians" in their armies? If the vikings fought for these empires, then why not the anglo saxons and other germanic peoples?
ggm
I think it's interesting they argue for the people moving, and bringing goods back over trade. I would have said there's a case for trade. Objects move around, acrue value by distance from source. Obviously, people are valuable too and I guess "I can't pay you but the loot is rich" might apply too.
Much later, but this English guy went to Italy as a mercenary and spent much of his life there: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hawkwood
As someone who lived in Italy myself, although didn't do any stabbing or slashing during my time there, I thought it was an interesting story.