The quintessential knight is rarely a solo character; indeed, he is generally depicted riding his great steed.

“David defeats the Philistines.” Used with permission. Via http://www.medievaltymes.com/courtyard/images/maciejowski/leaf30/otm30vb.gif

Horses in the Middle Ages were not like the genetic breeds we have today, instead they were characterized by their physical attributes or what they were used for (“Horses in the Middle Ages”). The main types of horses used by knights in war were the destrier, courser, and rouncy. Destriers, large and strong horses, and the lighter coursers, were favored for use in battle (Prestwich, Knight, 45). Poorer knights, squires, and men-at-arms would use the rouncey, an all-purpose horse used for riding, battle, or as pack horses (“Horses in the Middle Ages”).

The horse was likely the most expensive piece of equipment in the knight’s inventory (Prestwich, “Miles”, 212). Prices of horses ranged considerably; Prestwich suggests that the value of a horse may have been determined by more than quality, the social rank and wealth of the owner may have also contributed to the value (“Miles”, 211). Generally, destriers tended to be more expensive than other horses – one estimate is seven times that of a normal horse (“Horses in the Middle Ages”).

Knights were skilled at fighting on the ground as well as on their mounts, and their tactics varied depending on time and the situation. Sidnell suggests that knights would dismount to boost the morale of the infantrymen, as well as when the terrain made riding ineffective (321). When mounted, the horses would sometimes fight each other, and destriers might have been trained to bite and kick their enemies. This may be due to the fact that stallions were most commonly used as war horses in Europe (“Horses in the Middle Ages”).

The armor worn by horses was called barding, and it consisted of many pieces. Depending on the time and cost of material, the various pieces of barding would be made of plates, chainmail, or leather worn over a layer of padding. Often, the armor would be covered with stretches of cloth called caparisons (“Barding”), pattered with the insignia of the knight to distinguish them in battle (Prestwich, Knight, 46).

In battle, horses needed to be obedient and maneuverable, so training was very important (“History of Dressage”). Tournaments were used for training the horses to get used to the noise and frenzy of battle (“Horses in the Middle Ages”).

Works Cited

“David defeats the Philistines.” Maciejowski Bible. The Morgan Library & Museum, New York. Medieval Tymes. Web. 5 Apr. 2012.

“History of Dressage.” United States Dressage Federation. n.p, n.d. Web. 5 Apr. 2012.

Prestwich, Michael. Knight: The Medieval Warrior’s Unofficial Manual. London: Thames & Hudson, 2010. Print

Prestwich, Michael. “Miles in Armis Strenuus: The Knight at War.” Transactions of the Royal Historical Society 5 (1995): 201-220. Print.

Sidnell, Philip. Warhorse: Cavalry in Ancient Warfare. London: Hambledon Continuum, 2006. Print.

Wikipedia contributors. “Barding.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 30 Mar. 2012. Web. 5 Apr. 2012.

Wikipedia contributors. “Horses in the Middle Ages.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 5 Apr. 2012. Web. 5 Apr. 2012.

At the beginning of the medieval era, the ranged weapon of choice was the longbow due to the power and great number of shots per minute that could be achieved by skilled archers. As time progressed, crossbows started to become favored because of their ease and enormous force that could be produced from the weapon.

The longbow was an easy weapon to produce; it was made from a single piece of wood made in the shape of a D. The height of the bow was similar to the archer using it. These men needed to be strong because longbows designed for war required 200 pounds of force to draw the string back to their chin. (Castle & Manorhouses 2010) Accuracy wasn’t an easy feat for these men to achieve either, it required many years of practice. The majority of these archer started practicing when they were young, so when they were older, they were able to easily take out their targets.

As the crossbow was introduced into the armies, it became a widely used weapon. It enabled common men with the ability of shooting very accurately with a large amount of power. (Claydon 1993) Also they had the great advantage of being able to teach new recruits how to properly use a crossbow within weeks instead of taking a lifetime to perfect the art of the longbow.  Due to the drawing system on crossbows, they were able to pull the string farther back and out shoot a longbow. The first type of crossbow had a notch at the end the archer was able to stick his foot in and push to draw the string back. (Wikipedia 2012) This type did allow the user to draw a considerable amount of power from the crossbow, but users still wanted more power and range; therefore, new drawing mechanisms came about. As time progressed, a windlass system and a crank system were introduced to the crossbow. The windlass allowed the user to turn a mechanism similar to a bicycle wheel, which then drew the string back; while the crank system used a handle to slowly pull the string back through a series of ratchets. Although users were able to gain a considerable amount of power through these devices, it was also extremely time consuming. (Claydon 1993) This did give the user an advantage though because once the bow was drawn, it was locked in place. They could then be ready to fire in a moments notice by simply pulling a steel trigger to release the string.

In the picture to the right, it is shown how easily a crossbow could be used by a common infantryman. It required a small amount of effort to produce a high powered shot able to piece the armor of knights. It also greatly increased the accuracy of these men because it used sights similar to that of a gun; which wasn’t an option with a longbow.

Works Cited

Castle & Manorhouses. (2010). Medieval warfare. Retrieved from http://www.medievalwarfare.info/weapons.htm

Claydon, S. M. (1993). A bolt from the blue. Medicine, Science, and the Law, 33(4), 349-350.

Crossbow. In (2012). Medieval Europe Wikipedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossbow

Gun Powder Ma. (Producer). (2009). The martyrdom of st. sebastian. [Web Photo]. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Martyrdom_of_St_Sebastian_(detail).jpg

Verbruggen, J. F. (1997). The art of warfare in western europe during the middle ages. (2 ed.). Boydell & Brewer.

Bridges have always been something that many civilizations have had trouble with. What with the bridges having being able to withstand weather, floods, and also being strong enough to hold up to travelers and an army. The Romans were given the credit of having the “first and longest lasting bridges built” (Wikipedia) in first and second century AD. As shown in the below picture, the Romans are able to put a lot of weight on their bridges that are even still up today.

Before the Romans many of the past civilizations had been trying to a form of cement, which the Romans used as well, but they were the ones who had thought of making arches which opened up a whole new world of bridge making. The Romans got much of their engineering from the Etruscans and also the Persians (Jays History) but learning to use a keystone arch for their bridges had been a new thought process entirely. It was during the reign of Trajan, a Roman emperor, that the new design of bridges were built. “Some of the most impressive Roman bridges are over ravines. A fine surviving example, built for Trajan in AD 105, spans the Tagus in Spain, at Alcántara. Its two massive central arches, 110 feet wide and 210 feet above the normal level of the river, are made of uncemented granite. Each wedge-shaped block weighs 8 tons.” (History net)

The bridges that were created essentially had made traveling and new towns because people could have easier access. “Allowing the river to be crossed at any time of the year, the bridge was an important factor of development for the town, but it was also necessary and useful for the Pax Romana: here there were hot springs visited by a lot of people; in the region there were mines with precious metals, whose product was taken to Rome; across the bridge passed the important Roman road of Braga to Astorga, with a lot of traffic; and lastly here was quartered a numerous detachment of legionnaires of the Roman army.” (Wikipedia)

The bridges that the Romans had created were the first steps into making the idea of a unified world. Not to mention that bridges have changed the architecture of everything. The picture of the bridge in the Trajan’s column shows how much without the bridges, the Romans couldn’t get across the Danube, and it has changed the outcome of the world. (Peter Rockwell, STOA)

Works Citied:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_bridge

http://jaysromanhistory.com/romeweb/engineer/art2.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Bridge_(Chaves)

http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?historyid=ab97

http://web.ebscohost.com.hal.weber.edu:2200/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=19&sid=eb8015fa-4e1f-4712-b173-9d0318060592%40sessionmgr10&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=70338945

Rockwell, P.  Bridge. Retrieved March 8, 2012 from http://www.stoa.org/trajan/buildtrajanpage.cgi?260

During the reign of Trajan over the Roman Empire, the Romans experienced a great amount of resistance from the kingdom of Dacia. As a result, the Roman leader, Trajan, prepared his forces to fight against the forced of the Dacian Empire led by Decebalus. Battle began between these two nations in 101 A.D. and lasted until roughly 106 A.D. over the period of two wars (Schmitz 7-8). These wars took place on the Dacian’s land, which was in their favor, but they ultimately ended up losing although they dealt many devastating blows to the Roman forces.

As the wars waged on between these two forces, the Romans took many captives and the number of slaves only increased once they claimed victory in the war. The prisoners were treated poorly and expected to complete many tasks for the Romans. The slaves could be assigned any number of tasks including stone work, although they were given low quality tools to work with (Petrie 1917). Although the prisoners provided large amounts of labor for the Romans, they were also used to show a symbol of status and wealth among the Romans. Along with the gold and silver, the servants received from the war were considered to be a part of the goods gained for the Roman Empire. They were displayed in front of the emperor, along with other treasure, as a part of celebration for the Roman army (Cracknell 2010).

75.Subjugation of the Dacians. Used by permission. Copyright Peter Rockwell http://www.stoa.org/trajan/images/hi/1.74.h.jpg

As the picture demonstrates, the slaves were brought before the king not only to be shown off, but also to pledge their allegiance to the kingdom. It was important for the slaves to know that they were now a part of the Roman culture and under its influence for the remainder of their existence.

Works Cited

Cracknell, N. (2010, April). Trajan’s forum: A triumphal reading. Retrieved from http://cardiff.academia.edu/NadiaCracknell/Papers/316728/Trajans_Forum_A_Triumphal_Reading

Petrie, W. (1917). 104. links of north and south. Man, 17(Oct), 158-162.

Piperno, R., & Moore, R. (n.d.). Two roman wars. Retrieved from http://romeartlover.tripod.com/Romanwar.html

Rockwell, P. (1999). Subjugation of the Dacians.Trajan’s Column, The McMaster Trajan Project. Photograph retrieved from

http://www.stoa.org/trajan/buildtrajanpage.cgi?405

Schmitz, M. (2005). The Dacian Threat. 101-106 A.D. Caeros, 7-8

Legatus.

Legate being saluted

The man in charge of the Roman Legions.

The role of Legatus was considered the highest rank that a legionary could strive to gain, while then it was still usually granted to a senator more often than a soldier who worked his way up through the ranks.

The Legatus was in charge of overall military strategy and campaigning. The Legatus would need to lean heavily on the other staff officers that would be surrounded by him, the business of day-to-day operations was run by these officers.

There were a few different “ranks” of Legatus in the Roman Army. There were Legatus in each province, in charge of their own regional legion, who would protect regional interests unless called upon by the Empire to go to battle, which was a common occurrence in the Roman times. (Milner)

One of the most important roles of the Legatus was to know when to press war upon his foes, and when it was time to hold back. In many cases the wisest Legate would listen to the senior “non-commissioned” soldiers who would almost always have the truest feel for what the soldiers were feeling and whether pushing the fight was wise. Vegetius was quoted, via translation, as saying that :

One should find out how soldiers are feeling before battle. Explore carefully how soldiers are feeling on the actual day they are going to fight. For confidence or fear may be discerned from their facial expression, language, gait and gestures. Do not be fully confident if it is the recruits who want battle, for was is sweet to the inexperienced. You will know to postpone it if the experienced warriors are afraid of fighting. An army gains courage and fighting spirits from advice and encouragement from their general, especially if they are given such an account of the coming battle as leads them to believe they will easily win a victory. (Keppie)

One of the largest dangers of the rank of Legatus is that they were subject to the displeasure of the Emperor. If a Legate has a bad campaign, they may not be long for the rank.

Works Cited

Keppie, Lawrence. The Making of the Roman Army: From republic ot empire. Lawrence: University of Oklahoma press, 1984. Print.

Milner, N.P. Vegetius: Epitome of Military Science. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1993. Print.