In the present article we want to explain in detail the methods we used for the documentation and interpretation of medieval swords and their inscriptions.
How to make swords talk: an interdisciplinary approach to understanding medieval swords and their inscriptions
December 2, 2015 By
The Duel between Guy of Steenvoorde and Iron Herman
November 29, 2015 By
…both fought bitterly. But Guy knocked his adversary from his horse and kept him down easily with his lance as he was struggling to get up. Then his opponent, running nearer, ran Guy’s horse through with his sword, disemboweling it.
Guns in Scotland: the manufacture and use of guns and their influence on warfare from the fourteenth century to c.1625
November 20, 2015 By
Guns first came into use in Western Europe in the fourteenth century and the Scots were using them by the 1380s.
Ponderous, Cruel and Mortal: A Review of Medieval Poleaxe Technique from Surviving Treatises of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries
November 17, 2015 By
There is no weapon more evocative of the brute force in violence both public and private, a weapon that seems to be perhaps epitomize and even enshrine violence on a grand scale.
The 700th Anniversary of the Battle of Morgarten
November 15, 2015 By
On November 15, 1315, an Austrian army of at least a few thousand men marched along the shores of Lake Ägeri in central Switzerland. It was here that they were ambushed by over a thousand Swiss farmers.
Masculinity and Crusade: the influence of martial activity in the Latin East on Norman and Frankish warrior identity, the material culture, c. 1095-1300
November 7, 2015 By
This dissertation argues that masculine identity in the era of the Crusades developed with Christological and martial focus.
Technological Determinisms of Victory at the Battle of Agincourt
November 3, 2015 By
This article takes issue with the deterministic conclusions of a recent study by three scientists who investigated the effects of wearing armour on soldier exhaustion during the battle of Agincourt.
Agincourt 1415 – 2015
November 1, 2015 By
Anne Curry talks about the myths and history of the Battle of Agincourt
Agincourt 1415: The Battle
October 25, 2015 By
What you haven’t got is an ordered advance – you’ve got complete and total chaos.
Five Myths about the Battle of Agincourt
October 25, 2015 By
Anne Curry explains that ‘no other battle has generated so much interest or some much myth’ as the Battle of Agincourt, fought on October 25, 1415.
Tactics, Strategy, and Battlefield Formation during the Hundred Years War: The Role of the Longbow in the ‘Infantry Revolution’
October 24, 2015 By
The English longbow had a tremendous impact on strategy and tactics during the Hundred Years War.
The King’s Welshmen: Welsh Involvement in the Expeditionary Army of 1415
October 24, 2015 By
This paper examines the evidence behind the claims that it was Welsh archers that won the battle of Agincourt for Henry V. As might be expected, it is a little less clear-cut than that.
From Agincourt (1415) to Fornovo (1495): aspects of the writing of warfare in French and Burgundian 15th century historiographical literature
October 23, 2015 By
The object of this thesis is to inquire into some major aspects of the historiographical writing of war in France and Burgundy, from Henry V’s invasion of France in 1415 to the first wars of Italy.
Anna Komnene and her Sources for Military Affairs in the Alexiad
October 21, 2015 By
Without discounting the contribution of oral traditions of storytelling to the Alexiad, the study favours the growing consensus that Anna was more reliant on written material, especially campaign dispatches and military memoirs.
Why was the Longbow so effective?
October 18, 2015 By
One of the most feared military weapons of the Middle Ages was the longbow, used to legendary effect by the English in The Hundred Years’ War. While the longbow has gone down in history as a mighty weapon, what exactly was it and why was it so effective?
Five Fun Facts About Medieval Archery
October 17, 2015 By
Here are five fun facts about medieval archery which you can use to impress your friends
Honour, community and hierarchy in the feasts of the archery and crossbow guilds of Bruges, 1445–81
October 6, 2015 By
Archery and crossbow guilds first appeared in the fourteenth century in response to the needs of town defence and princely calls for troops. By the fifteenth century these guilds existed across northern Europe.
Hastings: An Unusual Battle
October 3, 2015 By
Part of the reason academic warriors have covered the ground so often is that the battle is by no means easy to understand. It was unusual in a number of ways; so unusual, that the battle demands special care in interpretation.
Trickery, Mockery and the Scottish Way of War
September 30, 2015 By
This article seeks to examine two prominent themes, those of trickery and mockery, in how warfare against England was represented in Scottish historical narratives of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.
New Location for the Battle of Crécy discovered
September 29, 2015 By
For over 250 years it has been believed that the Battle of Crécy, one of the most famous battles of the Middle Ages, was fought just north of the French town of Crécy-en-Ponthieu in Picardy. Now, a new book that contains the most intensive examination of sources about the battle to date, offers convincing evidence that the fourteenth-century battle instead took place 5.5 km to the south.
‘The boldest and most remarkable feat ever performed by a woman’: Fiery Joanna and the Siege of Hennebont
September 27, 2015 By
It ranks as one of the most fascinating stories from the 14th century, one that chroniclers of that time relished in telling and historians have ever since recounted.
Five Medieval Minutes with Steven Muhlberger
September 24, 2015 By
Formal deeds of arms were an opportunity for one group of people to show off their skills – particularly their horsemanship – and for other people to appreciate how bold and daring they were.
Medieval Fort Building 101
September 24, 2015 By
What does it take to build a fortification in the 10th century?
The Battle of Neville’s Cross as told in the Lanercost Chronicle
September 23, 2015 By
The year 1346 is remembered in England mostly for the Battle of Crecy, where King Edward III defeated the French forces in one of the most important battles of the Hundred Years War. That year also saw another major battle, this one fought on English soil.
The English way of war, 1360-1399
September 15, 2015 By
This thesis challenges the orthodox view that the years 1360 to 1399 witnessed a period of martial decline for the English.
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