In the company of the areas women

In the company of the areas women

fiction
edward w pritchard

Ailred had an unusual command. Because of the shortage of soldiers, or men for that matter, in the area of York in England in the year 910 he was temporarily in command of a company of 150 women. The women had been temporarily recruited to fill in for the men who had went to the seaside to fight the Vikings who were rampaging again in England after a break of twenty five years. The raiding activity of the Vikings was dictated by economic conditions and weather conditions in their homeland of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. When they came to England, the Viking men raped, pillaged and destroyed without mercy in England and then returned to their homeland to again function as good Father's and citizens.

Ailred's command were in charge of escorting 50 captured Viking soldiers to York. The captured soldiers were marching with their hands securely bound behind their backs. As they walked an old woman in a village had yelled curses at the marching Vikings for molesting her, years ago, when she was a young girl. Without warning Ailred's command of 150 women fell on the Viking prisoners and hacked at them with knives and small swords for twenty minutes or so in a frenzy of retaliation. Ailred a hardened soldiers of many years, turned his back, unable to bear the site of his troops at work. Later what was left of the butchered Viking prisoners was buried in a small mass grave.

After the massacre, Ailred's female troops were relieved of duty and the women peacefully returned to their lives and their families to function as good citizens.
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