About

American Fyrd

The training log of an armed Citizen

In the early eighth century, the British Isles came under attack by the Danish invaders, or Vikings.  Much recent scholarship has been done in an effort to resuscitate the Viking reputation as bloodthirsty berserkers.  While they might have an undeservedly villainous reputation, there is no doubt that the peoples of Christian Europe lived in absolute terror of invasion by these pagans, who believed death in battle was their ticket to a glorious afterlife.  That fear would seem well- founded, if one considers the vast territories in France, Russia, and Britain they conquered.  Alfred of Wessex, often considered the first English King, developed an effective stratagem to turn back the Viking invasion.

His defense was based on three elements. Fortified cities, or Burghs, where people could take shelter with their livestock and valuables in times of war, were the first element of Alfred’s strategy. The second element was the Fyrd, an army of freed men, farmers, and tradesmen.  They were amateur soldiers who could take their place in the shield wall to defend the Burghs, and buy time so that the third element, the professional army could organize a counterattack.  The fact that you are reading this in English is testament to the success of this strategy.

The concept of the Fyrd predates Alfred, but he did much to formalize it.  The Fyrd continued to be an integral part of the Saxon Kings’ military until 1066 when they were defeated by the Normans. (It is noteworthy that the Fyrd was not present at the battle of Hastings.  Harold sent them home to harvest their crops. Had William sailed earlier, before the fall harvest, the battle might have been very different.)

Even under the Norman rule, the concept of the Fyrd was not completely abandoned, and survived in spirit until the Second World War, with the formation of the Home Guard.  One of the most shining successes of the Fyrd was the evacuation of Dunkirk, where civilian mariners used their own private fishing boats and pleasure yachts to aid in the rescue of the British army.

British colonists brought the Fyrd- concept to the Americas with them. The organizing and training of a military force was one of the primary objectives of the colony at Plymouth Plantation.  Eventually the word Fyrd was replaced by Militia, but the concept was the same, and the colonial Militia was an integral component in aiding the British army in its many wars against the French and Indians in the Americas. That same Militia famously stopped the British army from seizing the weapons and gunpowder stored in the town of Concord, Massachusetts.

The Fyrd is alive and well in America today. Every time a citizen steps up stop a crime, he is acting as the Fyrd.  If a man sees a kid breaking in to his neighbor’s car, and he walks up and asks, “Can I help you?”, and the kid runs away, he is acting as the Fyrd.  Stories like these don’t get reported, and they don’t need to be, but they make our world a safer and better place.  On the more extreme end, the passengers who fought back against the hijackers of flight 93 on September eleventh were acting as the Fyrd, even if they might not have known the word.  It is noteworthy that they are the only people who stopped an attack on that day.  The Fyrd succeeded where the professional Military, Police, and the intelligence community failed.  This is not to criticize those professional bodies, but to point out the inherent strength of the Fyrd.  The Police cannot be everywhere, nor would we want them to be, but the Fyrd can.  This lesson has not been lost on the American people.  Today we have an ever-growing interest in responsible, armed self-defense.  Currently, every state in the union makes some provision for the legal concealed carry of handguns, and sales of weapons and ammunition are both at an all-time high.  I am a part of that trend. Some years ago I decided that I should have the skill, knowledge, and tools to defend the people that I care about.  I made it a goal to become effective with any weapon, or none, at any distance, whether alone are as a part of a team.  It has been a long journey, full of surprises and incongruities, and I am nowhere near the end.  Along the way I have learned a great deal that has nothing to do with fighting, and have met some of the kindest, most gentle and loyal people anywhere.

I started out reading books, watching videos, and training on my own.  Eventually I started taking a few classes.  I studied traditional martial arts, handgun, carbine, precision rifle, first aid, and small unit patrolling.  Every field I study opens up another that I want to pursue.  I have learned valuable things in every school I have studied; that being said, some were better that others. Somewhere along the way I started writing after- action reports about classes I took. At first I did this in an effort to organize my own thoughts, but later, I started sharing them with a few friends.  The purpose of this blog is to share some of the lessons I have learned, so that they might benefit others who are on a similar journey.  Some of these posts are years old, and do not necessarily reflect my current thinking, nor were they written originally for a public audience.  But I am posting them with little revision because they represent my impressions from the time when the memories were fresh.  Some of the posts will be new writing about current classes, training, and books I read.

Please remember I am not an expert, I am just a student seeking to improve. Do your own research, draw your own conclusions, and trust your common sense.

Welcome to the Fyrd!  If we never face an enemy (and the truest mark of martial success would be to never need to deploy martial skill), it will still be a far better hobby than watching professional sports.  And if we must stand in the shield wall, it is good to have a good man to your left and right.