The Franks had a war-machine that was a highly effective and mobile under the leadership of Charles Martel. It fought from the North Sea in the north to the Mediterranean Sea in the south and from Aquitaine in the west to Bavaria in the east.
The Vikings on the Continent in Myth and History
May 26, 2015 By
This article examines the evidence for the Vikings’ supposed cruelty, cunning and remarkable height and investigates how true the stereotypes were.
The Hammer of the Scots: Edward I and the Scottish Wars of Independence
May 24, 2015 By
This book offers a fresh interpretation of Edward’s military career, with a particular focus on his Scottish wars. In part this is a study of personality: Edward was a remarkable man. His struggles with tenacious opponents – including Robert the Bruce and William Wallace – have become the stuff of legend.
Special issue of Medieval Warfare: 1415 – The Battle of Agincourt
May 24, 2015 By
Take a look at this special issue of Medieval Warfare magazine, commemorating the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Agincourt
Crafting the Perfect Army: Innovation and the Assizes of Arms in Plantagenet England
May 20, 2015 By
Daniel Franke, Assistant Professor for medieval and military history at the United States Military Academy, examines military obligation towards English rulers and how the crown raised armies for their campaigns against enemies such as France and Scotland.
Enumerating the Battles, Skirmishes, and Naval Actions at the Siege of Acre
May 20, 2015 By
Hosler examines the many episodes during the siege, which involved Saladin’s Egyptian and Syrian troops, fighting against crusader forces that were eventually joined by kings Philip Augustus and Richard I.
Defenders of the Faith: Augustine, Aquinas, and the Evolution of Medieval Just War Theory
May 19, 2015 By
Christianity has always had a difficult relationship with the concept of war. After all, it is impossible to follow Christ’s command to ‘love one’s neighbor’ on the battlefield.
What sword would you use in the Medieval or Renaissance eras?
May 15, 2015 By
You need to wield a mighty blade in the Middle Ages. What kind will it be?
What Melee Weapon Would You Use On A Medieval Battlefield?
May 12, 2015 By
Discover which weapon would be best for you during a medieval battle!
The Secret Attack on Gallipoli in 1473
May 10, 2015 By
During the Venetian-Ottoman wars, a group of seven men attempted a secret attack on the Ottoman base at Gallipoli. The attack did not go completely as planned…
Paying the Army in the Theodosian Period
May 1, 2015 By
Calculating how much the army was paid during the Theodosian period is more difficult than calculating the army’s pay about a century earlier or later.
The Military Legacy of Richard the Lionheart
April 25, 2015 By
Authors look back at the entirety of the reign and reach two common conclusions: 1) he was a neglectful and mostly-absent ruler of England, but 2) he attained spectacular success in war, which was, after all, his primary interest.
Which Historic Military Leader Are YOU Most Like?
April 23, 2015 By
Julius Caesar, Sun Tzu, Horatio Nelson – make these four tactical decisions and see which military leader you would compare to!
13th-century Mongol sabre discovered in Russia
April 22, 2015 By
While Russian archaeologists were conducting a routine examination of an old sabre unearthed seven years ago in Yaroslavl, they discovered that the weapon dates back to the 13th century, making it to be oldest crucible steel weapon in East Europe.
Lasting Falls and Wishful Recoveries: Crusading in the Black Sea Region after the Fall of Constantinople
April 21, 2015 By
This paper examines the Black Sea question in the second half of the 15th century, with special emphasis on crusading and religious questions.
The Defensive Role of Church Round Towers: A Re-Assessment
April 16, 2015 By
Towers were erected essentially to house church bells so was the defensive roll of the tower incidental to that roll or integral to its purpose?
Crusading Warfare, Chivalry, and the Enslavement of Women and Children
April 11, 2015 By
The subject of the treatment of prisoners taken in crusading warfare, long neglected, has attracted considerable interest in the last fifteen years, but more can still be said, particularly on the ways in which crusaders dealt with their enemies’ women and children, the archetypal non-combatants.
The Expansion of Christendom: Crusading in Northern Europe, 1147 – 1415
April 7, 2015 By
Between 1147 and 1415 holy wars raged in the lands on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe.
King Edmund Ironside
April 2, 2015 By
It was the early eleventh century and England was being overrun by Vikings
De Valette’s Battlesword
April 1, 2015 By
This Hospitaller sword is shrouded in mystery, but it is well known and it is, in any case, still in Malta.
Medieval Warfare Magazine – Volume V Issue 2
March 27, 2015 By
This issue’s theme is The Campaigns of Charlemagne
The Life of St. Sabas the Younger as a Source for The History of the Catalan Grand Company
March 27, 2015 By
A piece of Byzantine hagiography from the fourteenth century which, in spite of its religious character, is a valuable source for the history of the Catalan Grand Company, Roger de Flor’s famous band of Spanish mercenaries hired by the Byzantine emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos (1282-1328) to fight the Turks in Anatolia.
William the Conqueror and the Harrying of the North
March 21, 2015 By
This lecture examines the events leading up to the Harrying of the North and the impact of this event on the North of England.
Quiz: The Battles of the Wars of the Roses
March 19, 2015 By
How well do you know your timelines – can you correctly place in order these nine battles from the Wars of the Roses?
Environmental Crusading: The Teutonic Knight’s Impact After the Baltic Crusades
March 12, 2015 By
Environmental archaeologist and Professor of Archeology at Reading, Dr. Aleks Pluskowski, examined Malbork and several other sites across Eastern and Northern Europe in his recent paper, The Ecology of Crusading: The Environmental Impact of Holy War, Colonisation, and Religious Conversion in the Medieval Baltic. Pluskowski is keenly interested in the impact the Teutonic Knights and Christian colonisation had on the region. His ambitious 4 year project on the ecological changes in this area recently came to a close at the end of 2014.
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