Horses played a vital role in medieval warfare, and this book draws on the governmental records of Kings Edward I and Edward II to reveal how these animals were raised, trained for combat, and managed during military campaigns.
Excerpt:
The fundamental aim of this work is therefore to bring to attention the importance of warhorses in England. To do this, four important questions will be asked: what type of horses were they; where did they come from; how were they trained for warfare and lastly, how were they managed on campaign and what effect did warfare have on them? These questions will be addressed by focusing on warhorses under Edward I (1272-1307) and Edward II (1307-1327).
This period is particularly suited to such a study as it represents a time in which warhorses “occupied a place of primary importance” in military operations. This was due to an almost continuous series of conflicts in which mounted forces were employed on an “unprecedented scale.” Although Henry III (1216-1272) had campaigned in Wales in 1245, and in Gascony in the 1240s and 1250s, and had employed cavalry against his baronial rebels (at the Battle of Lewes in 1264 and the Battle of Evesham the following year), there is little evidence of warhorses being employed on the same scale. Edward I and Edward II’s reigns offer the opportunity to examine warhorses at a time when demand for the type of horses used as heavy cavalry (defined as being used primarily to deliver battlefield charges) was at its peak.
Who is this book for?
This valuable book offers much to medieval military historians, even those whose research lies beyond England. It also serves as a useful case study for scholars interested in the role of animals in the Middle Ages.
The Warhorse in England: 1272-1327
By Emma Louise Herbert-Davies
Trivent Publishing
ISBN: 978-615-6696-59-5
Horses played a vital role in medieval warfare, and this book draws on the governmental records of Kings Edward I and Edward II to reveal how these animals were raised, trained for combat, and managed during military campaigns.
Excerpt:
The fundamental aim of this work is therefore to bring to attention the importance of warhorses in England. To do this, four important questions will be asked: what type of horses were they; where did they come from; how were they trained for warfare and lastly, how were they managed on campaign and what effect did warfare have on them? These questions will be addressed by focusing on warhorses under Edward I (1272-1307) and Edward II (1307-1327).
This period is particularly suited to such a study as it represents a time in which warhorses “occupied a place of primary importance” in military operations. This was due to an almost continuous series of conflicts in which mounted forces were employed on an “unprecedented scale.” Although Henry III (1216-1272) had campaigned in Wales in 1245, and in Gascony in the 1240s and 1250s, and had employed cavalry against his baronial rebels (at the Battle of Lewes in 1264 and the Battle of Evesham the following year), there is little evidence of warhorses being employed on the same scale. Edward I and Edward II’s reigns offer the opportunity to examine warhorses at a time when demand for the type of horses used as heavy cavalry (defined as being used primarily to deliver battlefield charges) was at its peak.
Who is this book for?
This valuable book offers much to medieval military historians, even those whose research lies beyond England. It also serves as a useful case study for scholars interested in the role of animals in the Middle Ages.
The Author
Emma Louise Herbert-Davies is a Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Leeds. You can follow her Substack page, The Horsetorian, to learn more about Emma’s work. She is also on X/Twitter and Instagram.
Emma also wrote a three-part series of articles for Medievalists.net on horses: How to Buy a Medieval Warhorse, Training Royal Horses for Warfare, and How Medieval Armies Cared for Their Warhorses.
You can learn more about this book from the publisher’s website.
You can buy this book on Amazon.com | Amazon.ca | Amazon.co.uk
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