Quote:
Originally Posted by Raellus
https://forum.juhlin.com/showthread....3265#post93265
That's one definition. Historically, there have been large groups of one particular nationality who have contracted to fight for another nation, or pay. A few notable examples are the Varangian Guard (Norseman/Normans and Anglo-Saxons) who fought for the Byzantine Empire), the Landsknechts (Germans who fought for various polities in the 16th century), and the Swiss Pikemen who fought for France and other kingdoms/principalities/city states during the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance.
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I would argue that the Landsknechts were mercenaries but the Varangian Guard were not. The difference is in how broad their customer base was. Landsknechts could take any contract that did not put them in opposition against the Holy Roman Emperor. The Varangian Guard worked only for the Byzantine Emperor. Thus, while Varangians were foreigners fighting for a king not their own, it was one specific employer, not a case where they would hire on to any army. (This is also why I would not consider the French Foreign Legion or Gurkhas to be mercenaries, because they hire on with a specific employer and aren't for hire to other nations).