Here is another song I wrote and performed (with my wife), this time in Old English, Old Norse and Mediaeval/Byzantine Greek. The use of Old English in conjunction with Old Norse is to illustrate the fact that at this point in history, the Varangian Guard was primarily made up of AngloSaxon warriors who fled England after the Norman Conquest, as well as Scandinavians. The Greek is adapted from Anna Komneni’s Alexiad in which she discusses the Varangians who were in her father Alexios’s service.

The song details the events of the Battle of Beroia fought by Byzantine Emperor John II Komnenos against the Pechenegs in 1122. The Emperor was forced to cut an expedition east short when the Pechenegs attacked in the north of the empire from beyond the Danube. The Pechenegs camped in a deep depression near Beroia (modern Stara Zagora), and their defence proved very hard to break down. Their horseback archers proved too effective against the Emperor’s men until he called upon the elite and heavily armed Varangian Guard, who, in a mighty push, broke down the defences and forced the Pechenegs to flee.

I hope you enjoy.

My intention is exclusively to teach history and languages through song. I do not condone, endorse or seek to glorify violence.

I do not own any of the artworks in this video they have been selected for educational purposes. All credit goes to the original artists and I would be happy to remove them if so required

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Lyrics:

[Old Norse]
Norðr handan um Duná
þaðan ríðr lið Tyrkja.
Jóann garðkonungr várr
óttask hvárki ǫr né sár.

[Old English]
On fǣrsēaþe wīciaþ hīe,
on Iōhannes landum pīe!
Sē Cāsere mid searwe
þæt fæsten ārāfian wile.

[Old Norse]
Garðkonungr ofrar ljúgsátt
þá biðr herinn sǿkja at.
Tók þá til orrosta hǫrð
ok blóð helltisk út á jǫrð.

[Old English]
Fela forwearþ Rōmāna
flānum rīdendra sċyttena.
Ofercumne sind eallenga
ōþ Iōhannes ċīeġþ Wærgengan!

[Mediaeval Greek]
Οἱ ἐκ τῆς Θούλης Βάραγγοι
ἐπὶ τῶν ὤμων τὰ ξίφη κραδαίνοντες

οὐδὲ ψιλὸν πάντως ἀνέξονται
περὶ προδοσίας λόγον

[Old English]
Sunne ofer þone wang rīst.
Þā Wærgengan, on beadwe þrīst,
cweċċende brādæxa
siġe nōmon æt Beroia!

[Old Norse]
Sǿkja þeir at fjándunum
Guðr á sinnum Væringjum
Keisaranum eiðinn efna
sigrsælir við Beroia!

[Old English]
Sē hildewōma cwōm.
On heortan nis nān swicdōm.
Mid sīdrandum ġehæfnum
āsċūfaþ wē hīe eallum mihtum.

[Old Norse]
Á hlið Jóani í svarfi
vegum vér sem berserkir.
Leggjum bogmenn at velli
ok á Tyrkjum áfelli.

[Old English]
Ēalā! Hū hīe wyrċaþ flēam!
On heallum biþ medudrēam!
Forþ, Wærgengan, on siġewang!
Unfordyt is ūre forþgang!

[Old Norse]
Brǿðr erum norðrsjóvar
einskonar eiðs, blóðs ok trúar.
Fyrir sakir Miklagarðs
lifa ok deyja Væringjar!

[Mediaeval Greek]
…πάτριον παράδοσιν καὶ οἷον παρακαταθήκην..
…καὶ κλῆρον τὴν εἰς τοὺς αὐτοκράτορας πίστιν…
…ἄλλος ἐξ ἄλλου διαδεχόμενοι…

[Old English]
Sunne ofer þone wang rīst.
Þā Wærgengan, on beadwe þrīst,
cweċċende brādæxa
siġe nōmon æt Beroia!

[Old Norse]
Sǿkja þeir at fjándunum
Guðr á sinnum Væringjum
Keisaranum eiðinn efna
sigrsælir við Beroia!

[Old English]
Sunne ofer þone wang rīst.
Þā Wærgengan, on beadwe þrīst,
cweċċende brādæxa
siġe nōmon æt Beroia!

[Old Norse]
Sǿkja þeir at fjándunum
Guðr á sinnum Væringjum
Keisaranum eiðinn efna
sigrsælir við Beroia!

[Mediaeval Greek]
…Κλῆρος…
…Πῐ́στῐς…

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