Medieval Military History

Monday 11 January 2021, 19:00 Israel Time

Sword and Buckler in Hebrew Letters: Traces of Early Illuminated German Fight Books in Jewish Manuscripts
Prof. Sara Offenberg
Department of the Arts, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Two manuscripts produced in early fourteenth-century German lands reflect similar iconography of fighting with Sword and Buckler (small round shield); one is the well-known fencing manual, Leeds, Royal Armouries, MS I. 33, produced ca. 1320, and the other is a Hebrew manuscript of the Bible, Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France héb. 9, made in 1304, that will be the focus of this paper. I wish to demonstrate that the iconography of the masorah figurata was adapted from German Fechtbücher (fencing manuals), which are books of instructions, usually with illustrations, detailing the fencing arts. First, I relate to the realia of Jews bearing arms and Jewish fencing masters. Afterward I discuss the iconography of the fighting figures; subsequently, after examining the texts that make up the micrography, I reach a broader conclusion regarding the reason the patron commissioned this work and the meaning of the scene. This lecture intends to demonstrate how Hebrew illuminated manuscripts can shed more light on the study of fight books iconography.

The article is a study of the Danish campaign in western Sweden in the summer of 1502. It examines the causes of conflict, the development of the military campaign, the contents of the opposing Swedish and Danish armies, the battle of Älvsborg and the murder of the knight Erik Eriksson Gyllenstierna. Apart from the Paul von Dolstein pictures, which has previously often been the main source when describing the campaign, a number of preserved swedish texts sources are also applied to create a somewhat different picture than that which has dominated in previous reserach. For instance the actual battle of Älsborg seems to have ended in a stalemate, rather than a danish victory.

The middle age city of Pisa displayed an army consisting of different arrays. Among them civic militia that was organized in several companies selected on neighbours criteria, the so-called societates armorum. After Pisa was conquered by Florence this arrangment was forgotten but the "societates" lived a second youth consisting the base of the teams of local games.

Das Chemnitzer Einnahmemanual stellt das älteste nachgewiesene Stadtbuch dar. Es wurde in den Jahren von 1426 bis 1438 geführt und ist nun im Chemnitzer Stadtarchiv verwahrt. Es handelt sich um ein Einzelstück. Ihm folgen erst später ab 1466 das Geschoss- und Memorialbuch mit gemischtem Inhalt sowie die Registratur der Einnahmen ab 1506. Das Manuskript wurde auf Papier geschrieben und mit einem Lederrücken ausgestattet. Das Buch hat das für diesen Handschriftentyp charakteristische Maß von 32 cm x 12 cm x 3 cm. Der erste Eintrag wurde am Dienstag, dem 8. Januar 1426 geschrieben. Die letzte Nachricht bezieht sich auf den 14. September 1438. Es umfasst also einen Zeitabschnitt von ungefähr 13 Jahren. Die Einträge im ältesten Chemnitzer Stadtbuch sind noch in einer weiteren Hinsicht wichtig. Wir kennen so die Namen der Bürger zu Chemnitz, die zu den Reparaturen der Stadtbefestigung im Jahre 1430 über Bußen oder ihre Äquivalente beitragen mussten, von deren Existenz in der Stadt wir sonst keine Ahnung hätten. Jekil Eberhart, Hans Tapperlink, Andreas Roseler, Steugil, Knauwer, Gersler und weitere Bürger sorgten erzwungenermaßen dafür, dass die Stadtbefestigung repariert wurde und die Stadt das nächste Mal besser gegen die Hussiten gesichert war. Die Stadtverwaltung selbst wollte keine Verantwortung für die Verbesserung der Stadtbefestigung vor der Bedrohung der Stadt durch die Hussiten übernehmen. Sie gewährte die finanziellen Mittel erst nach dem gefährlichen Ereignis. Die Stadteinnahmen und Stadtausgaben bildeten nur kleinen Teil der gemeinsamen Ausgaben der Stadt nach dem hussitischen Feldzug. Signifikant für die herrschenden Stadteliten ist die Tatsache, dass, als die Angst vor den Hussiten wieder verging, auch die Höhe der Ausgaben für die Stadtreparaturen vermindert wurde.

Co-authored with Anne Curry, Peter Hoskins and Thom Richardson

The Battle of Agincourt on October, 25, 1415, remains one of the most glorious victories in British history, with a legacy that endures today. A pivotal moment in the Hundred Years War between France and England, it reinvigoratead the English campaign in France and bolstered the English crown's hereditary claims to French land. Published to mark the 600th anniversary of this famous victory, The Agincourt Companion tells a wider story about warfare in the middle ages. Delving into the development and advances in weaponry, armour and tactics during this period and the impact this had on the battlefield, this is a richly detailed look at the world of medieval warfare.

"Knjiga koja je pred nama, pod naslovom In nomine Dei: Kratka istorija krstaških ratova, zajedničko je delo nekoliko autora. Oni su svoj zadatak shvatili veoma široko, pa su dužnu pažnju posvetili i predistoriji krstaških pokreta tako što su dali kratak pregled stanja i događaja u istoriji Vizantije, latinskih država zapadne Evrope i muslimanskog sveta. Sve je to učinjeno u nastojanju da se budući čitaoci na pravi način uključe u epohu krstaških ratova i da bolje razumeju njihove tokove. Pisci knjige su pri tom izbegli opasnost da budu preširoki i da tako naruše unutrašnju strukturu i kompoziciju celine. Posebnu dragocenost ove knjige čine izvanredne ilustracije za koje njeni autori zaslužuju sve pohvale.

Ova knjiga, između ostalog, trebalo bi i da razbije uobičajene predrasude da su krstaški ratovi bili jedino motivisani koristoljubivim razlozima, a njihovi učesnici isključivo avanturisti i bezemljaši željni pljačkanja. Naime, još su žive snažne predrasude čiji tvorci u krstaškim ratovima vide samo pljačkaške poduhvate i versku zatucanost. Pri tome se zaboravlja na jednu od elementarnih naučnih istina o tome da je Srednji vek zaista bio epoha vere, ali "doba vere" i u najplemenitijem značenju tog izraza.

Prof. dr Radivoj RADIĆ
Filozofski fakultet Beograd

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Krstaški ratovi su jedan od najzanimljivijih fenomena, ne samo u istoriji srednjeg veka, već u celokupnoj istoriji čovečanstva. Ova tema ne prestaje da pobuđuje zanimanje kako stručnjaka tako i šire čitalačke publike. Knjiga obuhvata period od 1095. godine i sabora u Klermonu, do tragičnog kraja Luja IX Svetog avgusta 1270. Osnovnu nit knjige dopunjuju i kratki pregledi istorija Vizantije, zapadne Evrope i muslimanskog sveta.

Autori su uspeli da svojim zanimljivim opisima najvažnijih bitaka i pojava oblikuju knjigu koja čitaoce neće ostaviti ravnodušnim. Pored ratova, naročito je istaknut dvosmerni uticaj koje će dve sukobljene kulture ostvariti jedna na drugu. Susret istoka i zapada nije se ograničio i završio ratovima, nastavio je da traje i da se prožima. Pored brojnih ilustracija tekst je obogaćen i istorijskim kartama koje bliže određuju geografski prostor krstaških ratova."

In about 1580 an anonymous author wrote ‘An Apologie of the Cittie of London’, which a few years later John Stow incorporated as an appendix to his Survey of London. Among other things the author of the ‘Apologie’ praised Londoners for their military prowess: ‘It were too much to recite particularly the Martial services that this city hath done from time to time … only for a taste as it were, I will note these few following’. He then listed seven instances, from the time when ‘A huge armie of the Danes (whereof king Sweyne was the leader,) besieged king Etheldred in London…’ to the attack by ‘Thomas Neuell, commonly called the bastard of Fauconbridge’, who ‘was repulsed by the Citizens, and chased as farre as Stratford…’. This paper will similarly give a ‘taste’ of the role of Londoners in their kings’ wars and in the defence of their city during the Middle Ages.

When one speaks of feudalism in Japan, one must always bear in mind that "Japanese" feudalism is as peculiar as "European" feudalism which exhibits different patterns in different countries at different times. The Japanese example is no exception in exhibiting different patterns and features at different regions and times. This study aims at discovering the periodic differences seen within the general framework of Japanese feudalism, especially in the domains under shogunal control by comparing the pre-Edo and Edo patterns of feudal structures. These differences in the administrative organization of the military and bureaucratic structures give Japanese feudalism a peculiar form different from Europe. Despite the seeming similarities attested by early modern European travelers to Japan and 19 th century historians, as the comparative approach demonstrates, what was called as Japanese feudalism by the early western visitors of Japan was in fact a culmination of a centuries long process. This article approaches the theoretical framework of Japanese feudalism in a comparative perspective between different periods.

Opracowanie jest oparte o najstarsze zachowane instrukcje polskie szermierki wojskowej. Omówiono też ewolucję szermierki staropolskiej tzw. sztuki krzyżowej jaka stopniowo zachodziła w drugiej połowie XVIII wieku. Publikacja opowiada również o reformie kawalerii polskiej w drugiej połowie XVIII wieku i transformacji chorągwi husarskich i pancernych w brygady kawalerii narodowej. W książce opisany jest proces szkolenia polskich rekrutów jazdy z końca XVIII wieku oraz realia ich życia w koszarach. Czytelnik towarzyszy również polskim kawalerzystom podczas potyczek i bitew w czasie wojny z Rosją w 1792. Dla pełniejszego obrazu epoki w książce wykorzystano też kilkanaście pamiętników polskich weteranów walczących w wojnie o obronę Konstytucji 3 Maja. Publikacja stanowi swego rodzaju nowość na polskim rynku wydawniczym. Zamysłem autora było pokazanie techniki użycia broni w drugiej połowie XVIII wieku oraz przedstawienie realiów taktyki walk polskich kawalerzystów w konflikcie z Rosją. Do opracowania dodano ponad 60 rysunków przedstawiających tzw. akcje szermiercze, mapy z opisem bitew wojny z Rosją 1792 oraz liczne, rzadkie ilustracje i obrazy z epoki. Całą książkę (e-booka) można znaleźć tu: https://1ct.eu/Zdby

Mark Gregory Pegg, Professor of History at Washington University in St. Louis, has written a short and gripping history of the early thirteenth-century Albigensian Crusade, in which Pope Innocent III waged holy war on the South of France, with far-reaching political and religious consequences. A relatively short (and cheap: $15.95) paperback, it is one of the first entries in Oxford's new "Pivotal Moments in World History" series. Though no doubt designed for undergraduate course adoption, the book has much to offer a far wider range of readers.

This course presents a broad survey of historical forces at work over the past 6,000 years, examining the manners in which human societies have organized themselves along categories of race, ethnicity, class, and gender to meet the challenges of the increasing human population and its demands on natural resources: thus, it examines continuity and change in societies over time, in different places, and among various peoples.

In 1132 a, important battle was fighted by the new king of Sicily Roger II and Norman rebel Barons near the river Sarno (near Vesuvius). The paper examines the tactical movements of troops before battle, the forces and equipments, and finally all the battle phases.

This article looks in detail at the well-planned and very effective defenses at the Crusader castle of Château Pèlerins on the ʿAtlit peninsula, focusing in particular on the defense line of the ʿAtlit ridge. The castle was constructed during 1217-18 by the Knights Templar, and its defenses, which relied on the topography and the exploitation of locally derived building materials, were never breached. The castle was vulnerable to attacks only from the east, so three defense lines were created: (1) On the peninsula neck, two massive walls, towers, and a dry moat. (2) A wall entering the sea in the north and the south bays, with guard towers at both ends, to protect the town east of the castle. A line of large stones which once stood upright, was discovered underwater, extending to the north from the north tower, forming a barrier that prevented approach in the shallows along the coast. (3) An outermost defense line, including two guard towers, and the easternmost external defense line on the ʿAtlit ridge, the focus of this article. A quarry stretched along the ridge, creating an artificial rock cut cliff. This longitudinal defense wall would delay an attack, even if for a short time, enabling people who worked outside the castle to escape to the well-protected peninsula. To provide the large quantity of stones required for building the castle and completing the defenses on the ridge rapidly, the builders simultaneously extracted stones in several places. The stones were quarried from the eastern, far flank of the ridge to create the rock-cut cliff. By applying a sophisticated, pre-planned quarrying technique, they removed immense blocks from the ridge which were then cut into ashlars. The artificial cliff, 2.1 km long and up to 6 m high, thus became the castle's easternmost defense. This longitudinal barrier, described as a quarry in some previous publications, is shown to be an integral part of a pre-planned defense system, completed by an east-west rampart in the south and the natural canyon of the Oren River in the north. Passages were cut across the ridge from east to west to convey the quarried stones to the castle. Other results of quarrying activity were rock-cut enclosures adjacent to the longitudinal defense wall, and usually associated with the passages. Rock-cut feeding troughs and tethering holes identified in these compounds suggest that they served to protect and house the quarrymen, passage guards, and livestock.

The battle of ʿAyn Jālūt between the Mamlūks and Mongols in northern Palestine (3 September 1260) has received much attention among researchers and popular writers, and efforts have been made to explain the Mamlūk victory and its impact on the history of the region. This paper offers some new evidence for the conduct of the battle and its results, as well as looking again at its significance for both contemporaries and modern observers. It begins with a short rendition of what is already known about the battle, based mostly on the author’s previous studies. This is followed by three sections, each dealing with a passage that has hitherto not received the attention that it deserves. The first is from the recently published and translated short history of the Mongols in Iran attributed to the well-known scholar Quṭb al-Dīn Shīrāzī (d. 1311). The second passage is from the Jāmiʿ al-tawārīkh by Rashīd al-Dīn (d. 1318) regarding some of the units that composed Kedbuqa’s army at the battle. The third passage is an exceptional anecdote in an otherwise banal account found in the chronicle by the famous al-Maqrīzī (d. 1442), showing that this author’s version of events may be a little more complicated than previously thought. The paper concludes with some considerations on the importance of the battle, suggesting that in spite of the relatively small numbers of the troops involved (certainly when compared to future battles between the two sides), it was indeed a crucial encounter, setting the stage for the history – military and otherwise – of the region for many subsequent decades.

The Battle of the Ialomita was the greatest battlefield victory of the Hungarian national hero John Hunyadi against the Ottomans. This study approaches the topic from the perspective of the medieval/early modern writings. The author used all accessible narratives that deal with the topic: Chronicles, official documents, aso. It has been the result of years of research on this topic with the focus on the sources of the time.

The paper investigates the narrative sources written in the Medieval Austria, which contain some information about the Mongol invasion of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1241 and 1242. Examining these sources, we have focused on the information on the strength of the invading Mongol army, the role of the Cumans, the military operations in Hungary, the military and political activity of Duke Frederick II (the Quarrelsome) of Austria, as well the aftermath of the Mongol invasion in Hun-
gary. The analysis of the primary sources and the secondary literature indicates that the Medieval Austrian narrative sources provide an excellent material on the Mongol invasion.  The annals of the Cistercian abbey of Heiligenkreuz (Lower Austria), in particular, due to its possible connection with Hungarian monasteries, are quite detailed and well-informed, even if they are inaccurate in some details. That is why the Annals of Heiligenkreuz were often used also by historians of later
generations. Our research also indicates that the sources from the Babenberg territories and Salzburg are extremely honest, when regarding the dishonorable military and political actions taken by Duke Frederick II of Austria, as he had ordered to take King Béla IV of Hungary prisoner, or as he probably might have been involved in the assassination of Köten, Khan of the Cumans. A salient feature of  these narratives  is  the  lack of  information on  the warfare, habits  and  customs of  the
Mongols, compared to the rich descriptions of Thomas of Spalato or Matthew of Paris.

The impact and legacy of Scottish raiding of Northern England during the First Scottish War of Independence has been the subject of significant study. English evidence in particular provides quite detailed accounts of the extent of the raids of Robert Bruce and his commanders, the amount of money and goods taken, and the impact that such raids had on the economy and society of this region. Considerably less analysis has focused, however, on the raids undertaken by Scottish commanders during the next phase of conflict, in particular in the later 1330s and 1340s.

In part this is because the Neville’s Cross campaign (1346), which acts as an endpoint for this phase of raiding, casts a long shadow and affects the perception of this period of Scottish warfare. Moreover, the relatively short duration of this raiding phase has ensured that it remains a less-appreciated element in discussions of this period of Anglo-Scottish conflict. I would argue, however, that these raids deserve to be re-examined in order to better understand the nature, extent and impact of these attacks on the English countryside during a period when English focus was increasingly drawn towards France.

In particular, this paper will consider the depiction of these raids in English sources and the picture that the available evidence presents of these incursions. It is the contention of this paper that: the English north returned to something like the dark days of the 1310s, and that its people quite seamlessly recommenced paying protection money to Scottish raiders to be left in peace; that local lords could not be depended upon to defend the region from Scottish depredations; and that this was a period when the English crown largely abandoned the English north to its fate and northern Englishmen to deal with the Scots as best they could.

La seguente indagine scientifica rappresenta un nuovo tassello nella ricerca
multidisciplinare riguardante l'analisi degli aspetti architettonici e funzionali di
Castel del Monte, edificato per volontà di Federico li di Svevia attorno al 1240. La ricerca sull' Architettura sveva in Italia Meridionale, realizzata dagli autori sin dal 2009, e’ giunta a formulare un' originale ipotesi funzionale sul Castel del Monte.
La tesi ridefinisce il castello edificato da Federico II come una macchina idraulica per la raccolta e utilizzo delle acque meteoriche e sotterranee (presenti in cavità carsiche oggi prosciugate), utilizzandole per la cura corporis e la prolungatio vitae dell' imperatore.
Tale ipotesi si basa sulla comparazione di una notevole serie di elementi architettonici presenti nel castello con altre strutture termali islamiche coeve.
Tra i possibili filoni di ricerca conseguenti la scoperta della possibile funzione di Castel del Monte, di fondamentale importanza è risultato l'approfondimento sul tema delle scienze mediche e farmaceutiche, l'alchimia e la cura del corpo presso la corte di Federico Il, compiuto attraverso l'esame dei numerosi manoscritti ed erbari commissionati dallo stesso imperatore ai numerosi medici e scienziati facenti parte del suo cenacolo culturale.
E’ stato proprio durante l'esame comparativo delle miniature di uno d i questi codici, il De Balneis Puteolanis di Pietro da Eboli, che si è giunti ad interessanti osservazioni riguardo altre miniature comparabili del manoscritto Voynich . Il lavoro scientifico nasce dalla volontà di rendere esplicite tali osservazioni, sistematizzandole con il lavoro di ricerca effettuato su Castel del Monte, nel tentativo di corroborare l'ipotesi su Utilitas dell'edificio attraverso una nuova chiave di lettura interpretativa del famoso, e ad oggi incomprensibile, Manoscritto Voynich.
Riguardo lo studio del Manoscritto Voynich non si è cercato di comprendere o decrittare la scrittura ma si è analizzato il corpus iconografico comparandolo ad altri documenti inerenti ai temi esposti nelle miniature. L'intento ultimo delle osservazioni è quello di sottolineare una probabile stretta connessione tra il Manoscritto ed il contributo culturale di Federico II di Svevia e, più in particolare con il progetto e funzionamento del suo tempio per la cura corporis.

EDIZIONE CARTACEA DI 368 PAGINE. -  https://www.amazon.it/dp/1549911309

Per vent’anni, dal 1282 al 1302, la Sicilia e tutto il Mezzogiorno d’Italia furono devastati da una sanguinosa guerra, combattuta tra gli eserciti dei dominatori Angioini e gli insorti Siciliani appoggiati dalle armi aragonesi. Dall’insurrezione palermitana della Pasqua dell’ 82, fino alla pace di Caltabellotta del 1302, il libro ricostruisce minuziosamente gli avvenimenti bellici di quella lunga guerra: dalle leggendarie gesta dell’ammiraglio Ruggero di Lauria, alle imprese dei feroci guerriglieri almugaveri, alle prodezze della superba cavalleria francese. A differenza delle precedenti pur notevoli sintesi storiografiche – incentrare soprattutto sugli aspetti diplomatici e istituzionali della guerra – per la prima volta, viene presentato uno studio incentrato prettamente sulla narrazione e l’analisi dei fatti bellici: armi, eserciti, battaglie, assedi. Su tale argomento, l’Autore già nel 2012 pubblicava un opuscolo dal titolo Storia militare della Guerra del Vespro (1282-1302). Si trattava di un breve testo che proponeva, in forma divulgativa, una ricostruzione degli avvenimenti bellici occorsi durante quella lunga guerra. Il presente lavoro è molto più di una semplice riedizione di quel libro, qui la ricostruzione degli avvenimenti occupa solo circa un terzo dell’intera opera, mentre gli altri due terzi sono dedicati a una minuziosa analisi degli aspetti organizzativi degli eserciti, agli armamenti da essi adottati, alle flotte, ai castelli ecc. Inoltre, altra differenza di non poco conto, è il suo carattere “accademico”, vale a dire che, mentre lì si adottava una forma prettamente narrativa, qui il testo è accompagnato e sorretto da un’imponente apparato critico costituito da note che rimandano alle numerose fonti consultate: fonti cronachistiche e soprattutto documentarie. Risultato finale è un testo di quasi 400 pagine, a fronte delle circa 100 del precedente lavoro. Ci si augura che tale opera possa incontrare il favore di quanti hanno già avuto occasione di leggere il precedente testo, avendo l’opportunità di apprezzare l’abbondante nuovo materiale proposto, ma possa anche offrire a un nuovo pubblico più esigente ed esperto una completa ricostruzione di tutti gli aspetti legati alla Guerra del Vespro e più in generale alla guerra nel secolo XIII.

ENGLISH

For twenty years, from 1282 to 1302, Sicily and the whole of Southern Italy were ravaged by a bloody war, fought between the Angevin armies and the insurgents Sicilian supported by Aragonese armies. From Palermo’s uprising of Easter '82 to the peace of Caltabellotta of 1302, the book meticulously reconstructs the events of that long war: the legendary exploits of Admiral Roger of Lauria, the guerrilla of fierce Almogavars, the feats of superb French cavalry. Unlike previous historiographical synthesis - focused primarily on diplomatic and institutional aspects of the war - for the first time, this study present a look strictly devoted to  narrative and analysis of the facts of war: weapons, armies, battles, sieges.

It took up to two hundred years to progress from the first confirmed appearance of gunpowder weapons in Europe and the Middle East to the first new fortifications wholly designed according to geometric principles and based on the use of low-lying, interlocking bastions and outworks to defend against and to mount artillery. The authors are researching this long process in detail , to explore how and when changes were made in fortress design, but also what inspired such developments and how effective they were. One challenge is that there are thousands of examples across the Christian and Muslim worlds; the second is that there is uncertainty about dating many of them. This paper suggests a few critical turning points (Fig.1). One thing is clear at the start. Wherever a change was made, it did not remain private for long. The medieval ruling class was international and so were medieval engineers. 1 Technological change diffused rapidly. It is rare that we can prove which country or which ruler was the first to make something wholly new. There is, however, good evidence to suggest that the first changes to fortifications to accommodate the new weapon were made in England, during the Hundred Years War with France. This fits well with the evidence that gunpowder was first used in war in Europe in the early 14 th century. The English used guns at the battle of Crécy in 1346 and at the siege of Calais immediately after, although with little effect. The first datable evidence of fortifications being adapted so that the defenders could use these small and inaccurate weapons was at the abbey of Quarr on the Isle of Wight, which was subject to seaborne attacks by the French, when a wall was built with two square holes cut through it (Fig. 2), in 1365. 2 The gun must have sat on a timber 1 See Purton 2018, passim. 2 Renn 1968, 301-302. Abstract: The authors set out the key turning points in the evolution of defensive architecture in response to the appearance of firearms in the 1 st quarter of the 14 th century in Europe, for both attack and defence. Between the first adaptations to defences during the middle of the 14 th century to the emergence of geometric whole defensive systems based on low-lying bastions and interconnected outworks in the 16 th century, there was a long period of evolution, experimentation and development, responding to continuous improvement in the range and destructive power of gunpowder artillery. New designs of castles, fortresses and town walls focussed on the need to shield high medieval walls and towers against the power of the gun, but also on how to mount guns on defences and integrate loop holes to keep an attacker as far away as possible. Ideas diffused rapidly across Europe and the Muslim world. Factors such as the builder's wealth and the purpose of the fortress also determined what was constructed.