Ragnar looked down into the courtyards of Wessex, admiring the defensive formations he had arranged over the past few days.
Positioned along the secondary defensive walls and waiting patiently in the main courtyard were 2,000 traditional Wessex infantrymen. These men were a fascinating display of local military lore. In this world, the backbone of any Saxon army was the elite core of professional warriors known as the thegns.
A thegn was a noble retainer, a fierce warrior who was granted large tracts of farmland by the king in exchange for his absolute loyalty and military service. They were the tanks of this era, clad in heavy, ringing chainmail and carrying massive, tear-drop-shaped kite shields.
