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Knight MICHAEL PRESTWICH Knight the Medieval Warrior’S (Unofficial) Manual

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Knight MICHAEL PRESTWICH Knight The Medieval Warrior’s (Unofficial) Manual with 113 illustrations In memory of Lucy Thweng, who knew many knights Table of Contents Michael Prestwich is Professor Emeritus at the University of Durham. I w A Knight’s World 6 His books include War, Politics and Finance under Edward I; The Three Edwards; Edward I; Armies and Warfare in the Middle Ages: the English II w Upbringing & Training 13 Experience; and Plantagenet England, 1225–1360. He contributed to The Medieval World at War, published by Thames & Hudson. III w Becoming a Knight 23 IV w Arms, Armour & Horses 36 V w 54 HALF-TITLE One of the Knights Templar at the end of the 13th century. Orders of Knighthood TITLE PAGE Christine de Pizan, from the Livre des Faits d’Armes VI w Recruitment & Retinues 63 et de Chevalerie, 15th century. w PAGES 4–5 A typical late medieval longsword. VII Tournaments & Jousts 79 VIII w Campaigning 93 First published in the United Kingdom in 2010 by Thames & Hudson Ltd, 181A High Holborn, London WC1V 7QX IX w Crusade 108 First paperback edition published in 2018 X w Mercenaries 117 Knight © 2010 and 2018 Thames & Hudson Ltd, London XI w Ladies & Damsels 126 All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, XII w Siege 136 including photocopy, recording or any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. XIII w Battle 148 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data XIV w A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Ransoms & Booty 174 isbn 978-0-500-29384-3 XV w Piety & Memory 186 Printed and bound in the UK by CPI (UK) Ltd Map of Medieval Europe 194 w Glossary 196 w Timeline 197 To find out about all our publications, please visit www.thamesandhudson.com. w There you can subscribe to our e-newsletter, browse or download our current Further Reading 198 Sources of Quotations 200 catalogue, and buy any titles that are in print. Sources of Illustrations 203 w Index 205 w A KNIGHT ’ S WORLD w w I w A Knight’s World Every man who does well in this military vocation should be prized and honoured. GEOFFROI DE CHARNY, THE BOOK OF CHIVALRY, 1350–51 w w w magine yourself on a splendid charger, encased in gleaming armour, brandishing sword or lance and shield. Or picture yourself at court, renowned for your bravery and surrounded by beautiful damsels. Of course you want to be a knight. But this is not easy in the early 15th century. It is not just a simple matter of buying a horse and a suit of armour; there is much you must learn. Some books will teach you about the ideals of chivalry, but they do not provide the practical advice you need if you are determined to live – and quite possibly die – for glory on the battlefield. That is what this manual will give you. Since the start of the 14th century we have been living in an age of war The knights of today take their inspiration from a heroic past. This image shows the knightly followers of the renowned hero Godfrey de Bouillon, one of the throughout Europe, and the mounted knight is the most magnificent leaders of the 11th-century First Crusade, riding off to battle. figure on the battlefield. Much more than just a soldier, he should be the epitome of chivalry, a paragon of virtue. Prowess, loyalty, generosity and mercy are among his guiding principles. Yet there is a difficult balance to be struck between the ideals and the tales of King Arthur and other mythical heroes may help to keep you practicalities of warfare. The knight is challenged and often defeated on the amused during a siege or a lull between battles, and may even mirror battlefield by common soldiers armed with bow and pike; he fights on foot knightly behaviour on occasion, but they are hardly a realistic guide. more often than on horseback, and the guiding principles of chivalry often This is not a book of instruction for the sort of knight who may go seem in reality to become those of guile, deceit, profit and cruelty. on one or two campaigns, but who spends most of his time managing his The advice in this manual is derived from the practical experience of estates, playing his part in local politics and attending law courts. This is a knights and men-at-arms. It is not based on romantic chivalric literature; manual for the knight at war. w A KNIGHT ’ S WORLD w War War is complex; it is not a simple matter of gaily adorned knights charging into battle. For a start, it involves a great deal of organization. States need to have systems of taxation to raise the money for armies up to 30,000 men strong. Sophisticated credit systems operated by international mer- chant banking houses are required to enable rulers and cities to meet the short-term needs of expensive campaigns. Armies need supply systems to provide the hundreds of tons of food and thousands of gallons of drink that they require. Siege warfare involves the deployment of up-to-date military hardware. Internationally recognized conventions, amounting to a law of war, regulate conflict and its aftermath. Within all this, there is a great deal of scope for ambitious individuals to develop knightly careers. The opportunities are there for you to grasp. ABOVE. At Courtrai in 1302 Flemish townspeople defeated a great French army. OPPOSITE At Crécy in 1346 the English also triumphed over the French. Where can you fight? War is deeply ingrained in Europe, and as a knight, you will have no diffi- culty finding employment. Conflict is endemic between states, but is most deeply entrenched between France and England, with the war that began in 133 and seems likely to last for 100 years. That is a tricky situation; from one point of view the kings of England are rebellious vassals of the French rulers, and from another, they are justified by descent in calling themselves kings of France. At times local rivalries and internal disputes make it seem more of a French civil war than a war between nations. Great battles have punctuated this war, above all the three great English victories of Crécy in 134, Poitiers ten years later, and most recently Agincourt in 1415. French ambitions in the Low Countries have also led to much fighting, from the battle of Courtrai in 1302 when Flemish urban forces defeated the French host, to that of Roosebeke in 1382, when the French were tri- umphant. Similarly, English designs upon Scotland have resulted in many campaigns. English successes under Edward I were overturned under his successor Edward II at Bannockburn in 1314; but during the following reign the king of Scots, David II, was captured at Neville’s Cross in 134. 8 w A KNIGHT ’ S WORLD w w A KNIGHT ’ S WORLD w Another struggle for independence has been that of the Swiss, whose infan- the Star, and was chosen to carry the celebrated French war banner, the try troops were more than a match for Habsburg forces at Morgarten in Oriflamme. In 135 he was killed, banner in hand, fighting heroically at the 1315, and Sempach in 138. battle of Poitiers. His Book of Chivalry was an attempt to renew and reform In Italy, there is constant rivalry between cities, with Milan, Florence French knighthood, and sets out the ideals that a knight should follow. and Venice the most powerful in a world of shifting allegiances and frequent campaigning. The wealth of the cities, and the opportunities for fighting, are John Hawkwood a magnet drawing in soldiers from Germany and elsewhere. Further south, An Essex man, Hawkwood’s first military experience was in France, but the Papacy is not only a spiritual power, but also a player in the complex the short-lived peace treaty agreed in 130 meant he had to look elsewhere politics of the peninsula. The kingdom of Naples, whose dynasty hailed to continue his career. He found fame and a degree of fortune in Italy, ini- from Anjou in France, is in conflict with Sicily, ruled by the Aragonese king. tially with the mercenary band known as the White Company. He served The Iberian peninsula has recently offered further potential for an Pisa, Milan, Padua, the Papacy, and above all Florence, whose authorities ambitious knight, particularly with dynastic complications in Castile praised him to the skies. He was first hired by the Florentines in 13, and in the 130s, and the Portuguese struggle for independence in the 1380s. fought for the city, with intermissions, until his death in 134. Hawkwood At the other end of Europe, the Baltic has seen German eastward was a soldier of immense ability, who understood the full complexities expansion taking place for many years; the fiercest opponents of which of war. Tactician, strategist and inspiring leader, he could turn apparent are the Lithuanians. There are ample opportunities to join in the strug- defeat into triumph, and had the diplomatic skill to succeed in the complex gle against them, under the leadership of the Teutonic Knights. This is a world of Italian city rivalries. Hawkwood always wanted to return to religious crusade; there are other crusading opportunities available in the England, but he died in Italy, the most notable of the mercenaries, or con- Mediterranean world, but success there is hard to come by.
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