the indestructible warrior

Berserkers were by far the most feared warriors in a Viking army, and not only by their enemies, but by their allies as well, as they went into battle in a kind of euphoric trance in which they were carried away by the frenzy of battle. combat, focusing so much on killing and destroying that they would even attack their own companions, blinded by madness. Some even drowned as soon as they jumped off the ship because they jumped too soon, eager to get into combat.

They did not feel almost any type of pain, nor did they feel or think anything at the time of the trance. In fact, they were dressed half naked, without any kind of protection, just covered with animal skins such as bears or wolves.

One theory indicates that the etymological origin of "berserker" derives from berr ("naked") and serkr (garment similar to a shirt). Another theory states that it derives from the Germanic berr ("bear"), referring to the skins they used to wear.

In addition, they professed an unshakable faith in the god Odin, since they thought that they were chosen by him to be his elite warriors, so they gave themselves to him in search of Valhalla to impress him, and thus obtain his favor and therefore his best. tables in the hall of the fallen.

The magic "brew"

There are suppositions that one of the causes that caused the trance of a berserker warrior was the ingestion of beer or bread contaminated with ergot, a fungus that affected grain crops and that contains substances similar to those that make up LSD. In addition, they consumed certain plants with their beer, such as black henbane, which provided a sensation of “lightness”, as if one were losing weight and floating, or belladonna, which caused fury or violence.

But of all of them, the most likely cause was the ingestion of poisonous and/or hallucinogenic mushrooms, such as the amanita muscaria (also known as false oronja), which contains a psychoactive substance that caused hallucinations.

the last berserker

The berserkers did not usually act with the rest of the Vikings in formations, they used to launch themselves against the enemy or were reserved for the moment when the battle began to be considered lost, that was the case of the one known as "last berserker", no one ever knew his name but his story was told by his own Saxon enemies whom he faced.

In the battle of Stamford Bridge, which marked the end of "the Viking Age", Harald Hardrada's troops crossed the bridge over the Derwent River to fall back and try to counterattack, they needed to buy time and put a berserker to guard and stop the advance of the pursuing Saxon troops.

According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, a huge berserker of more than two meters and armed with a huge ax defended the bridge holding back the Saxon troops for an hour. It is said that he killed 40 enemies before falling pierced by spears inserted by soldiers who plunged into the river and managed to kill him from under the bridge.