The Roman writer Tacitus writes about the Germanic Harii in his work Germania. He mentions that they paint their bodies black and use shields painted in black (nigra scuta, tincta corpora). They would attack at night like a shadowy army, causing fear among their opponents.
Trigger warning: Contains nudity.
Connection between the Harii and warrior bands
Placing this remarkable description of the Harii in a broader Indo-European context reveals several similarities. The black-painted warriors Tacitus mentioned in the 1st century AD were likely a reference to the ancient tradition of warrior bands. These were groups of young warriors from a tribe who had not yet acquired possessions or fame and only possessed their weapons. They gathered in a small group of warriors living on the fringes of society, forming a warrior band dedicated to an animal or deity cult. Examples include the Indo-European kóryos, Gaelic fianna, and Germanic berserker. They lived in the wild from spring to autumn, engaging in hunting and plundering other tribes. They were known for their audacity. Once they reached adolescence and proved themselves, they returned to the tribe as full-fledged warriors. During this time, the youth fought in a manner distinct from established warriors. They often lived in the cult of the wolf, boar, or bear (like the berserkers). Undergoing a ceremonial transformation, they became a 'wolf' (hence, in some cultures, such as the Germanic Berserker or the Roman Velites, they wore only a fur). They fought embodying the characteristics of these animals: violence, cunning, speed, great strength, and warrior's rage. Additionally, within the group, tales of heroic deeds of epic individuals were central, and the warrior band aspired to these stories to inspire their individual achievements.
Naked warriors
At the Battle of Telamon (225 BC), it is said that Gallic warriors wore only trousers and capes. In the Norse tradition, Berserkers despised the use of armor and preferred to wear only an animal skin. Ancient Italic tribes also had 'mad' warriors among them who fought naked, barefoot, with flowing hair, often engaging in one-on-one combat. Young Vedic boys also wore only a belt and an animal skin during their initiation into the kóryos. The belt symbolized their commitment to the kóryos. The Greek historian Herodotus mentions that Gauls sometimes fought naked. Tacitus reports that the Germanic tribes, the Cimbri and Teutones, fought in a kind of frenzy and sometimes naked. Many depictions of Gallic warriors show them naked, but others depict them clothed, indicating a ritualistic form of warfare rather than conventional military actions.
Black-painted warriors
It's not surprising that these warriors painted themselves black and attacked at night when the enemy was most vulnerable. These warriors were lightly armed, likely often equipped with various types of spears and javelins, as Tacitus mentions, along with their shields. Naturally, the spearheads and shields were camouflaged with black charcoal or pigment. The nudity of the warrior also played a practical role, allowing the entire body to be coated with black pigment, ash, or mud for better camouflage. Spears were probably the weapons of choice for these warriors; they were relatively cheaper than swords and offered the opportunity for quick, cunning actions, serving both stabbing and throwing purposes. In Old Irish, there are dozens of different words for spear.
The name Harii is linguistically related to the einherjar, and the Harii were likely the source of this Scandinavian myth. The einherjar are those who fell in battle and were brought to Valhalla by the valkyries, preparing for the end of the world.
It's also possible that the Harii, or related groups, were the origin of the Wild Hunt, a supernatural hunting procession through the night sky, sometimes led by Odin.
Female warriors
Not only Germanic and Celtic men fought; women also participated in battle. Viking graves, such as those in Birka and Nordre Kjølen, show that women were buried with full armor, just like men. The Roman historian Tacitus also mentions female warriors, and other evidence includes Celtic queen Boudicca and the female Celtic warrior found on the island of Bryher in Cornwall. Additionally, female warriors are frequently mentioned in Old Norse sagas. However, it is interpretive whether women participated in warrior bands or if only the female aristocratic class engaged in warfare.
Germanic female names
Several Germanic female names can be derived from military actions and warfare. Here are some examples:
Brunhilde: Composed of the Old High German elements "brun" (brown) and "hild" (battle), Brunhilde means "battle in brown attire."
Freydis: Derived from the Norse goddess Freyja, Freydis means "goddess of love and fertility," but she was also known for her combative character.
Hildegarde: A combination of "hild" (battle) and "gard" (protection), Hildegarde means "the protector in battle."
Lagertha: This name is associated with the legendary Viking warrior Lagertha, and while the exact meaning is uncertain, it is often interpreted as "protector of the army."
Alfhild: Composed of the Old Norse elements "alf" (elf) and "hild" (battle), Alfhild means "elf battle" or "battle elf."
Signy: Derived from Old Norse "sign" (new), Signy means "new victory" or "new battle."
Gertrude: Though known as a German name, Gertrude is derived from the Old Germanic elements "geri" (spear) and "thrud" (strength), meaning "strength with the spear."
Ragnhild: Formed from the Old Norse elements "ragn" (advice) and "hild" (battle), Ragnhild means "advice in battle" or "advisory battle."
Composition
In our composition, we've chosen a female model, but the same composition is suitable for males. We've named this Germanic warrior Gertrude, derived from the words spear (ger) and strength (trud).
Trousers
In this composition, we've opted for Gertrude to wear dark Viking trousers. Since it was challenging to dye clothing in such a pure black color, a brown pair of trousers would serve as a good alternative. Furthermore, for the trousers, we've chosen a somewhat later period. If we were to place Gertrude in earlier periods, she might wear a Thorsberg trousers like this one:
https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/thorsberg-hose-fenris-dark-gray.html
https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/viking-trousers-ketill-black.html
Footwear
In this composition, Gertrude is wearing Viking shoes found in Jorvik: https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/viking-shoes-knut.html
For an earlier version of Gertrude, we would recommend Iron Age sandals. These sandals were widely worn in Europe, and even a 16th-century original has been found in Ireland: https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/iron-age-sandals.html
Shield
In this setup, we deliberately gave Gertrude a smaller shield. Large shields offered better protection and were well-suited for creating shield walls on battlefields. However, our experience in historical guerrilla tactics teaches us that small shields provided sufficient protection and were preferred because they lessened the wearer's slowdown. In this arrangement, speed is your best defense. We haven't painted the shield black, as Tacitus mentioned. For temporarily painting shields, we would recommend ash and ocher pigments.
We used this shield: https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/wooden-round-shield.html. We removed all metal parts except for the edge.
Germanic Spears
In this composition, Gertrude is wielding a spear with this spearhead: https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/early-medieval-spearhead-dublin.html
The spear shaft is wrapped with leather laces for additional grip.
We've made an artistic compromise and given Gertrude only one spear. Our experience indicates that a skilled hand during an ambush can effectively handle about three spears, ranging from throwing spears to light thrusting spears with a maximum length of 2 meters. For that purpose, these spearheads would be suitable:
https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/ulfberth-hand-forged-germanic-javelin-spearhead.html
https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/light-javelin-spearhead.html
Body Painting
For Gertrude's body painting, we used both three cans of body paint spray https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/bodyspray-black.html and Epic Effects makeup https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/epic-armouries-epic-effect-make-up-black.html. We intentionally allowed the paint to be somewhat faded in places because historically, the Harii would not have had as opaque body painting as modern paint allows. If you want to fixate and densify the black paint more, we recommend using setting spray https://www.celticwebmerchant.com/en/epic-armouries-epic-effects-make-up-spray.html.
