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Posts from the ‘Medieval Warfare’ Category

Apr 10

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Battle of Flodden 1513

Battle of Flodden

1513 an English army defeated James IV and his invading army at Flodden in Northumbria. More than 14.000 were reported dead on the Scottish side, including the king of the Scots, while the English suffered 4000 casualties. His exact burial has never been found although it is believed his body was afterwards brought to London.

flodden badge 300x200 Battle of Flodden 1513

Royal Badge found at Flodden 1513

This year – the 500 anniversary of the battle – will see a substantial series of events unfolding: an expansion of “The Flodden 1513 Eco-museum” including substantial archaeological excavations in order to get a better grip on the layout of the battlefield. Also a series of tributes relating to the quincentenary include five books, two beers, an opera plus a new Flodden tartan. Edinburgh kiltmaker Gordon Nicolson, of Nicolson Kiltmakers, has been commissioned to create this special Flodden tartan in white, Tudor green, golden yellow and red to represent the dyed colours of the uniforms worn by the English and Scottish troops.

The full story with an unveiling of the programme can be found at www.flodden1513.com

Flodden 1513 Ecomuseum Ltd is a not-for-profit company established to coordinate the heritage and legacy of the Battle of Flodden as well as mark its quincentenary in 2013. An ecomuseum offers a new perspective on how to interpret ‘heritage and association of place’.  It is a concept, which allows the interconnection of sites or projects, which are associated with a central theme or story and does so without claiming central ownership or control. It is a sustainable museum – created, owned and directed by its community- the Flodden community.

The full story of the battle can be found at a dedicated website: Remembering Flodden 1513 – 2013. The Remembering Flodden Project works closely with The Battlefields Trust, which considers Flodden to be one of the three most important battlefields in the United Kingdom, and one of only three battle sites where a monarch lost their life.

READ MORE:

Expansion of the Ecomuseum

Announcement of Key Dates around 500th Anniversary

Announcement of Key Archaeology Find

A report produced by English Heritage on the Battlefield

Feb 4

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Richard III – Indeed!

DNA indisputably identifies skeleton as that of Richard III

DNA analysis conducted by the geneticist Dr. Turi King at Leicester University has without doubt confirmed that the skeleton found at Greyfriars in August 2012 is indeed that of Richard III. This identification has been based on the identical mitochondrial DNA of two independent descendants of Anne of York, the sister of Richard III and the DNA extracted from the skeletal remains from Greyfriars.

These results were presented at a press conference earlier today in Leicester where other details were given about his manner of death.

Battle Wounds
It appears that the skeleton carried ten wounds, some perimortem and some probably postmortem wounds. Although it is not possible to decide without doubt which of these wounds were the fatal ones, at least two, which had been inflicted to the skull must have been deadly. One was a heavy blow probably inflicted by a halberd or the like at the back of his neck and cutting off a significant slive, while another was from a blade stuck into the brain.The researchers have speculated that the trauma to the head must have been the result of the loss at some point of the helmet of the king.

Several wounds were of a slighter character and done by daggers. The researchers have compared these to those found on individuals who were buried in a mass-grave at Towton in 1461. These individuals were found with skulls and skeletal remains, some of which were defaced post-mortem. It is generally believed this was done as part of a wilful defamation of the vanquished foe.

skull with injuries 300x199 Richard III – Indeed!

Man-handled Corpse
At the news conference the view was voiced that Richard III might have suffered the same treatment, since some of the wounds must have been inflicted after the body had been stripped of its armour.

This corresponds very well with a contemporary text, which says that after King Richards body had been discovered among the dead “many other insults were inflicted, the body was carried to Leicester in an inhuman way, a rope being placed around the neck” (Crowland Cronicle). Probably the head was tied to the rope which was strung between the feet and the hands of his body. Maybe a remnant of this fact may be discerned from the grave itself. Apparently the body of Richard III was interred with his hands still tied in front of him as opposed to the usual position of the arms and hands at that time, being laid parallel to the dead body.

On the other hand, although it is known that the body was slung naked over the back of a horse, one source tells us that it was ridden by his pursevant of arms, one Blanch Senglier or White-Boar. Thus there is no doubt that he was stripped at the battlefield; something which was done routinely by the victors and their accompanying throng of looters. Such stripping may very well have been done with the help of daggers, explaining the some of the smaller knife wounds inflicted on the body. The wounds, however, may not have been part of a willful defamation.

Further, the fact that he was not wrapped in a cloth or blanket while being carried from the battlefield may reflect nothing more than the need for the new king, Henry VII to exhibit his trophy thus avoiding any rumours that king Richard had succeeded in fleeing from the battle.

This also accounts for the fact that his dead body apparently was paraded for several days at Newark, the city hall, before being interred at Grayfriars. The body was presumably laid to rest unshrouded as it had not been pressed together as would have been the case had it been wrapped in a piece of textile. No personal objects of any kind were found in the grave.

Read about the scientific findings concerning the skeleton of Richard III at the dedicated website at Leicester University

The future
At the News conference a spokesman for the cathedral told what was decided several months ago that King Richard III will be reinterred at Leicester Cathedral some time early next year. At that time a proper exhibition is expected to be opened at a location near the former Greyfriars.

However already a smaller exhibition is announced to be opened at Leicester Cathedral on the 08.02.2013.

Tonight (04.02.2013)  the full story of the location of the grave, its excavation and the scientific study of the skeleton will be aired at Channel Four at 9PM. Here a facial reconstruction will be shown as well as a reconstructed film showing how Richard III may have walked due to his massive scoliosis.

Channel four – full story tonight 9PM.

Feb 4

richard-III-Credit- University-of-Leicester

Skull of Richard III

Photo of skull of Richard III released ahead of DNA-results

Although embargoed, BBC published a photo of the skull, at their website very early this morning.

Whether the skeleton found in a parking lot in Leicester really did belong to Richard III – or rather whether the researchers believe this – remains to be seen after the press-meeting called this morning.skull 300x290 Skull of Richard III

In the article the primary researcher, who has studied the skull – Dr. Appleby from The University of Leicester’s school of archaeology and ancient History is quoted: “The skull was in very good condition, although fragile, and was able to give us a detailed information about this individual. It has been CT scanned at hight resolution in order to allow us to investigate interesting features in as much detail as possible”.

Follow the Press Conference at BBC -  and ITV

 

 

 

Jan 11

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Battle of Muret 1213

Battle of Muret 1213

Hardly have we survived the commemorations of the battle at Navas de Tolosa, before we have to focus on the battle of Muret in 1213.

The Battle of Muret took place in September 1213 when the crusading army of Simon IV de Montfort defeated the Catharist and Catalan Forces of Peter II of Aragon and those of his brother-in-law, Count Raymond. The battle began as siege of the Castle of Muret, but ended as an open battle. Today there is nothing left of the castle and Muret is nothing but a very unattractive suburb of Toulouse cut through by A64. However in the 13th century it was located on a promontory at the River Garonne, where fed by a tributary, the Saudrune.

The leader of crusaders, Simon de Montfort, had problems recruiting new crusaders. Nevertheless, beginning of September he collected his forces in order to relive the castle of Muret, which was under siege. In this he succeeded. At the same time the Count of Toulouse had placed his army on a hill and planned to dig himself in behind palisades and wagons. The king, however, wished for a pitched battle and marched in front of his 10.000 men attacking Simon de Montfort, who succeeded in outflanking the army and kill the king.

It is believed the smaller crusader army was victorious, because the two opposing war-lords could not agree on the best strategy.

Naturally a group of interested have for some time time worked in order to create an event, commemorating the battle. The plan is to reenact the battle. Programme for the festivities will be published at a dedicated website, www.Muret1213.org. There is also a facebook page for The Battle of Muret 

At the same time historians are planning an academic event in order to scrutinize the battle in its context. At a conference at Muret 13-15.09.2013 focus will be on the medieval city of Muret on the eve of the battle, the military technologies and warfare in the early 13th century, the princes and warlords engaged in the Albigensian Crusade, the culture, language and art in the region plus the historical aftermath of the battle.

Read about the conference: Le temps de la battaille de Muret (12 septembre 1213)

READ MORE:

The battles of Los Navas de Tolosa 1212 (and Muret 1213) were recently the topic of dedicated issue of Journal of Medieval Iberian Studies 2012.

 

A simple introduction to the Battle of Muret may be found here: La Bataille de Muret 1213

 

Oct 4

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Battle of Barnet

Richard III-fever galvanises hunt for the Battlefield at Barnet (1471)  

After the archaeological excavation of the grave of Richard III War-of-Roses enthusiasts hope to get funding to locate the battlefield at Barnet, where one of the famous battles in the War of Roses took place.

The Battle of Barnet is considered a decisive engagement in the Wars of the Roses, the dynastic conflict between the houses of Lancaster and York. At the Battle, Edward IV led the army of the House of York against the army of the House of Lancaster, which was backed by Henry VI and led by the Earl of Warwick

First the Lancastrians were set to win, but the weather was misty, which resulted in “friendly fire” from the Lancastrians against one of their contingents led by the Earl of Oxford. Under cries of treason, the Yorkist troops got the upper hand. Afterwards Edward IV ruled England for another 17 years. At his side his brothers fought, amongst those a very young Richard III, at that time the Duke of Gloucester.

Battle of Barnet wiki 239x300 Battle of Barnet

King Edward Kills the Earl of Warvick

Barnet is nowadays a sleepy suburban development located about 10 miles to the North-West of London. Local enthusiasts, however, hope to ride on the Richard III wave and get a chance to reinvigorate its dwindling high streets through a reinvention of the Barnet Museum, which houses the local collection of stray finds from the Battle.

One of the challenges is, that the exact location and layout of the battlefield is not known. However, he same challenge met researchers from the University of Huddersfield, who were responsible for the rediscovery of the Battle at Bosworth. Here a team led by Dr Glenn Foard, applied techniques of battlefield archaeology to locate the exact spot, where Richard III died.

In connection with this research large amounts of spent ammunition from very early fire-arms were found. All in all the field at Bosworth yielded more than 30 canonballs or “round shots”, which is more than has been found on all European battlefields put together. This find decisively changed the way historians thought of the use of artillery in the Late Middle Ages.

Out of this grew an interest in the technology, ballistic capabilities and forensic signatures of early firepower. Currently Glenn Foard together with Steven A. Walton from Leeds University are busy documenting, measuring and recording small artillery and handguns preserved in collections across Europe. The project – Early European Guns Project – is set to open up “for new insight into the formative stage of Gunpowder weaponry in Europe”  .

It is believed that cannons were for the first time used in a pitched battle at Barnet and that chances are, a systematic location and mapping of the battlefield will enrich our knowledge about the weaponry at that time.

The project is being commissioned by War of the Roses experts at the University of Huddersfield, but digging will not commence, unless money is provided by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

READ MORE:

The Battle of Barnet at the homepage of the The Battlefields Trust

Barnet Museum

Arms and Armour Research Group 

The finds of artillery at the Battle of Bosworth

 

Sep 24

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Navas de Tolosa

REVIEW: Journal of Medieval Iberian Studies. Vol 4:I, 2012

July 1212 a sheltered plain at Las Navas de Tolosa in Southern Spain was the scene for an extraordinary pitted battle. Here the king of Castile joined forces with the armies of his Christian rivals, the kings of Narvarre, Aragon and Portugal. According to the legend it is believed that they mustered app. 100.000 men, which met an army of more than a 120.000 soldiers led by the caliph, Muhammad Al-Nasir.

The Christian army, which was the result of a vivid call for a crusade against the Almohads, who had crossed with a Berber army from Northern Africa. Moving north, they had camped in the valley at Navas de Tolosa northwest of the city of Jaén. The valley had been closed off, but the crusaders succeeded in entering the valley across a pass called Puerto del Rey and take the Muslim army by surprise. At the end of the following day more than a 100.000 Muslim soldiers had perished on the battlefield or been taken as prisoners, while the Caliph only barely succeeded in fleeing. He died a few days later in Marakech.

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Solders from the church of San Lorenzo in Vallejo de Mena

The battle became renowned all over Europe not only for its decisive character as well as for the huge bounty, but because the war had been designated a crusade. There is no doubt that the primary actors at that time considered the battle a resounding victory and trophies like the tents and carpets of the Caliph were send on to the royal Pantheon of Las Huelgas in Burgos as well as presented as gifts to the Pope in Rome. Afterwards the battle became the symbol par excellence for the later collapse of the Almohad Empire as well as the so-called Reconquista – especially in the historiography of the 19th and 20th century, when the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa came to symbolise the final triumph of the Castilian kingdom aka Spain and the Catholic Church over the Muslim South and what has often been termed the “fanatical” Almohad regime. However, after the end of the fascist regime in 1975, Navas de Tolosa became the subject for more serious historical research, while at the same time a revival in the interest of the Muslim past of El-Andalus became more politically correct.

While the 700-anniversary 1912 thus set the scene for a full-scale nationalistic celebration, the events this summer 2012 were much more subdued. The 2012 brochure of the brand new Museo Batalla thus invites “visitors to deepen the discussion of multiculturalism and the dialogue between civilizations, and to develop as a small contribution to the culture of peace, a critical reflection on the conflicts, which we currently experience,” while The Diputación de Jaén has been hosting a year-long series of events designed, on the one hand, to “commemorate the battle” and, on the other, “to convert the province of Jaén into a forum for dialogue, peace, and tolerance between peoples”.

However, the question still remains, what actually happened in 1212 and what impact – if any – the battle had in the short term? In order to raise these questions in a wider context as well as to take stock of current research, the editors of the “Journal of Medieval Iberian Studies” decided to mark the anniversary by inviting a wide number of scholars and researchers in the field to rethink the battle. With 22 essays of no more than seven pages each, the project has resulted in an invigorating and fascinating introduction to current debates and discussions.

Was it a decisive battle? Yes, thought the main protagonists at that time. No is the answer as seen from afar and focusing on the socio-economic development in Al-Andalus in the years, which followed. Yes, if the question is perused from acultural point of view.

What happened after the wars at the end of the 12th century and the first half of the 13th was a massive migration south as well as north, ending up in a cultural hybridization of vast importance.

All the articles, although well worthwhile, cannot be reviewed here. One, however, stands out: the last. Here Juan Carlos Ruiz Souza from Madrid, magisterially shows that although the battle of Navas de Tolosa may only have marked the political demise of Al-Andalus, it nevertheless did activate “the conscious assimilation of its material culture” in a profound way. In the article this is demonstrated for instance by  the story of how the Cistercian monastery of Las Huelgas in Burgos, originally built in the pure French Gothic style, later ended up being embellished by beautiful and extravagant Andalusi stuccos. This forestalled the later cultural mingling which resulted in for instance the palace in Sevilla and the care with which Alhambra was preserved.

Of course there is no final conclusion to the conundrum, to what extent the battle was important or not; and in what sense. But the articles do present us with a remarkable number of diverse overviews as well as a plethora of balanced opinions by a number of specialists in the field. Although here and there a few articles are a bit garbled due to the use of machine translation, the editors are truly to be congratulated.

List of content:

  • On (de)commemoration: rethinking the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa
  •  Was Las Navas a decisive battle?
  •  Alfonso VIII and Las Navas de Tolosa
  •  Forging collective memory: Las Navas and Bouvines
  •  Historians, historiography and archaeologically imperceptible change
  •  Las Navas de Tolosa, the urban transformation of the Maghrib, and the territorial decline of al-Andalus
  •  Making ‘great battles’ great: Christian and Muslim views of Las Navas de Tolosa
  •  Las Navas and the restoration of Spain
  •  Las Navas de Tolosa: the beginning of the end of the “Reconquista”? The battle and its consequences according to the Christian sources of the thirteenth century
  •  Las Navas de Tolosa and the culture of crusade in the Kingdom of Castile
  •  Was the Christian conquest of al-Andalus irreversible?
  •  The triumph of heavy military equipment in twelfth- and thirteenth-century Castile
  •  Women and Las Navas de Tolosa
  •  In the absence of men: representing Andalusi women’s sexuality in the context of military conflict
  •  Las Navas de Tolosa and the changing balance of power
  •  Las Navas de Tolosa and Liber Alchorani: reflections on Iberian Christians and the Qur’an
  •  From dialogue to disputation in the age of Archbishop Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada
  •  Between the straits: the thirteenth century as a turning point for Iberian Jewry
  •  Alexander and the Almohads: telling the stories of antiquity before and after Las Navas
  •  Andalusi exceptionalism: the example of “Philosophical Sufism” and the significance of 1212
  •  Deus ex machina? Economic and technological progress in Castile at the time of Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada.
  •  Castile and al-Andalus after 1212: assimilation and integration of Andalusi architecture.

Journal of medieval Iberian Studies 

Jornadas medievales 2012

Museo de la Batalla de las Navas de Tolosa

Sep 23

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Iberia 1170 -1250

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Las Navas de Tolosa Banner reputedly said to hav been captured in the field from the Muslim army

Next week the “Sociedad Española de Estudios Medievales” organises the 7th conference called the Jornadas Hispano-portuguesas de Historia medieval.

This year the theme of the conference is Navas de Tolosa, the pitched battle between Castilian and decisive for the Muslim forces in 1212, which traditionally has been thought of as decisive in terms of what very loosely used to be termed “the Reconquista”.

The year has witnessed a series of celebrations not least on the actual anniversary on the 16th of July when local and regional politicians together with representatives from the church as well as Muslim Andalucía met in order to commemorate the event, which in its own time was considered ground-breaking. Up to the celebrations there was also a scientific conference focusing on the actual history of the battle and its political ramifications.

The “Jornadas” are however focusing on another dimension: the life and mentalities of people living in the Iberian Peninsula at this time (1170 – 1250). More specifically, focus is on the different Christian kingdoms of the period and their relationships to each other, the contrast between them and the Islamic world represented by the Almohad Empire and al-Andalus, the role of the papacy and finally that of the Military Orders. But focus is also on the poetic and artistic developments, which were the result of the battle, which effectively opened the borders for migration and multicultural mingling at a new level.

At the conference the general assembly of the Spanish Medieval Society takes place.

The Iberian Peninsula at the time of Navas de Tolosa
VII Hispano-Portuguese Medieval History. Baeza
27.09.2012–29.09 2012

Batalla Las Navas de Tolosa

Museo de la Batalla de las Navas de Tolosa

Ruta de los Castillos y las Batallas

 

Sep 17

5 Comments

York or Leicester?

YorkMinster flat 300x159 York or Leicester?The Richard III Foundation advocates reburial at York Minster

Richard III Foundation – not to be mixed up with The Richard III Society – has issued an official statement  – entitled: Time for King Richard III to “come home to York”. In it the Foundation calls for the remains of King Richard III to be brought home to York and interred at York Minster. In the statement the foundation characterizes Richard III thorough his connections to the City of York and the county of Yorkshire.

- “He spent much of his youth at Middleham Castle and for 12 years he ruled the North of England on behalf of his elder brother, King Edward IV, earning a widespread reputation for fair-mindedness and justice. After becoming king, he visited York several times and was showered with gifts each time. His son, Edward, was crowned Prince of Wales whilst in York.

Although entitled to be buried at Westminster Abbey alongside other kings and queens of England, Richard III announced his intention to be buried at York, and in 1483 set in motion plans for a new chantry chapel at York Minster. Indeed, so strongly was Richard linked to York that the City authorities greeted the news of his death at the Battle of Bosworth with these words: “King Richard, late mercifully reigning over us, was, through great treason, piteously slain and murdered, to the great heaviness of this city.”

york 225x300 York or Leicester?

In connection with the issue of the statement, Joe Ann Ricca, Founder and Chief Executive of The Richard III Foundation says: “Richard obviously had no choice after he was killed as to where his remains were taken, but today we have the opportunity to right the many wrongs that have been done to this unjustly maligned king, by correcting the distorted picture that has been painted of Richard over the centuries, and by bringing his remains home to Yorkshire, and to York Minster as he wanted.”

Andy Smith, the Foundation’s UK Public Relations Director, added: “York was Richard’s city. It is where he belongs, and it is only right that this great Lord of the North should return home to Yorkshire after more than five hundred years’ enforced absence. The Richard III Foundation urges the people of Yorkshire to join with us in calling for Richard, our hero and martyr, to be brought home to the city that he loved, and where he is still loved to this day.”

In connection with the official statement the Foundation announces that it will be holding a major conference at Market Bosworth in Leicestershire on Saturday 13th of October on the subject:  “Richard III: Monarch and Man”. Speakers at the conference will include the distinguished actor, historian and author Robert Hardy CBE, Hon. Patron of The Richard III Foundation, who said he believed King Richard to have been “a first rate fighting man” and that his death at Bosworth was “a tragedy, a sacrifice to end the civil wars”.

The conference will be preceded on Friday 12 October by a walking tour of the battlefield site at Bosworth, led by historian Mike Ingram, author of a new book on the battle. 

The Richard III Foundation
The Richard III Foundation, Inc. is an international not-for-profit educational organization promoting knowledge and understanding of the life and times of Richard III. Its aim is to correct the distorted picture of the king that has come down through literature and popular culture. The Foundation provides grants and scholarships to help promote the study of King Richard and the Wars of the Roses. Its main focus are support of research into the history of Richard III. The foundation is an American initiative, but with branches in UK and Australia.

The Richard III Society

The Richard III Society is an international organisation with 3500 members; its activities are diverse. Apart from supporting research, conferences and exhibitions, it services its members with a yearbook (The Ricardian) plus a magazine (The Ricardian Bulletin) which is published four times a year. It is the Society, which instigated the excavations at Greyfriars in Leicester. The Society advocates a reburial at Leicester.

Note:
Both organisations must have made early investments to get presence in the Internet, as both homepages are obviously very complicated to navigate (and thoroughly dated).

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