Description

A shield -Maiden was a female warrior from Scandinavian folklore and mythology. They are often mentioned in Viking Sagas, and also in Germanic stories of the Goths, Cimbri and Marcomanni. The mythical Valkyries may have been based on such shield maidens.

There is little actual historical evidence for Viking female warriors, although there are graves of female settlers which have contained weapons.
The historical evidence that Viking Age women took part in warfare, are based on a Byzantine historian’s records that women fought in battle when Sviatoslav I of Kiev attacked the Byzantines in Bulgaria in 971 AD. In the Siege of Dorostolon, the Varangians suffered a devastating defeat. The victors were stunned to discover armed women among the fallen warriors.