Between Rhos and Varangians: Hetaireia of infantrymen in the Byzantine imperial guard in the last third of the 10th century

Introduction . The article is dedicated to the study of the hetaireia of infantrymen - the Byzantine Imperial Guard troop in the 970-980s, which included mercenaries from Rus’ and Scandinavia. Methods . The research is based on a combination of systemic and institutional approaches in the analysis of Byzantine and Old Icelandic written sources that allow us to establish a chronological framework for the existence of this military formation, its composition, structure and place in the development and transformation of the foreign mercenary corps in the Byzantine Empire during the 10th century. Analysis . The unit is known by the rank of its commander, the hetaireiarches of infantrymen, mentioned in “Escurial Taktikon” (970s). The main information on the hetaireia of infantrymen and related foreign mercenary groups in Byzantine service is contained in the treatise “De Cerimoniis” (963), the historical work by Leo the Deacon (late 10th century), the military treatise “De castrametatione” (second half of the 980s) and in the Old Icelandic sagas such as “Hrafnkels saga Freysgoða”, “Finnboga saga ramma”, “Hallfreðar saga vandræðaskálds” and “Brennu-Njáls saga”. Results . As the study shows, the hetaireia of infantrymen was organised during the reign of the emperor John I Tzimiskes (969-976) and existed from 970 to 988-989, becoming one of the stages in the formation of the so-called “Varangian-Russian” corps as part of the Byzantine armed forces. Presumably, this unit consisted of two troops of northern mercenaries with a total number of about 400-800 warriors.