Units of History Royal Huscarls DOCUMENTARY

The Units of History series is dedicated to highlighting the fighting forces of civilizations across the world. In this episode we turn to the medieval north and the Huscarls who stood as the best of the best of a Viking's warhost. However researching their history proves difficult due to a lack of contemporary sources. Nonetheless we seek to reconstruct the history of the Huscarls with an emphasis on the elite forces of the Anglo-Danish army of the 11th century in which they are best documented.

Sources:
D’Amato, Raffaele. "The Housecarls." Medieval Warfare 2.1 (2012): 19-22.
Geffroi Gaimar, Estoire des Engleis, trans. Ian Short (Oxford University Press, 2009)
Keen, Maurice, ed. Medieval Warfare: A History (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999)
Strickland, Matthew, ed. Anglo-Norman Warfare: Studies in Late Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Norman Military Organization and Warfare (Boydell & Brewer, 1992)
The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, trans. Swanton, Michael J. (Routledge, 1998)
William of Poitiers, Gesta Guillelmi, ed. and tr. R. H. C. Davis and Marjorie Chibnall (Clarendon Press, 1998)

Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
02:21 Disclaimer
05:33 Origins
09:23 Equipment
12:38 Training
14:23 Organization
18:05 Service History
25:00 Battle of Stamford Bridge
28:03 Battle of Hastings
32:51 Conclusion
33:45 Outro

#history
#documentary