Berserkers... Truly, there is a certain subconscious appeal that defies rational explanation in this ancient name for animal warriors, possessed by a battle madness sent to them by the ancient Scandinavian god-magician Odin, similar to the werewolf god of the Anglo-Saxon pantheon Woden and the one-eyed Wotan - the leader of the Wild Hunting of the ancient Germanic tribes of continental Europe. The origins of military witchcraft and the magic of werewolf warrior-beasts - berserkers, varulvs, ulvhedins, svinfylkings, werewolves, ghouls, lycanthropes, dog heads and others - are rooted in the most ancient layers of the history of military art, the history of religious beliefs and the history of mankind. Who were the animal warriors of ancient and medieval Europe - possessed, possessed, outcasts, werewolves, heroes or villains? What was the secret of their invulnerability and invincibility in battle? How and why did they turn from the elite of the military class into socially dangerous elements and enemies of public order? All this is described in the new book of the historian Wolfgang Akunov.

The author expresses his deep gratitude to Viktor Akunov for his invaluable help in writing this book