Warfare through the Centuries Discussions - Traveling within the World2024-03-28T16:11:50Zhttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/group/warfarethroughthecenturies/forum?feed=yes&xn_auth=noThe Management of the Mobilization of English Armies: Edward I to Edward III Ralph Anthony Kanertag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-02-01:2185477:Topic:1965892014-02-01T01:42:58.382ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<p><br></br> <br></br> <br></br> <strong><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2009/12/29/the-experience-of-civilian-populations-during-the-hundred-years-war-in-france-1330-1440/hyw/" rel="attachment wp-att-43756"><img alt="Edward III counting the dead on the battlefield of Crécy" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-43756" height="348" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Hyw-300x348.jpg" width="300"></img></a> The Management of the Mobilization of English Armies: Edward I to Edward III</strong></p>
<p>Ralph Anthony Kaner</p>
<p><em><strong>University of York</strong>: History Department, Doctor of Philosophy, August (1999)</em></p>
<p><strong>Abstract</strong></p>
<p>This thesis examines…</p>
<p><br/> <br/> <br/> <strong><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2009/12/29/the-experience-of-civilian-populations-during-the-hundred-years-war-in-france-1330-1440/hyw/" rel="attachment wp-att-43756"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-43756" alt="Edward III counting the dead on the battlefield of Crécy" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Hyw-300x348.jpg" height="348" width="300"/></a>The Management of the Mobilization of English Armies: Edward I to Edward III</strong></p>
<p>Ralph Anthony Kaner</p>
<p><em><strong>University of York</strong>: History Department, Doctor of Philosophy, August (1999)</em></p>
<p><strong>Abstract</strong></p>
<p>This thesis examines government administrative action that can be described as ‘management’, in the context of the logistics of mobilizing royal armies during the reigns of Edward I, Edward II and Edward III. Its purpose is to contribute to understanding of how fourteenth-century government worked. Mobilization required the issuing of detailed instructions for administrative actions to be taken by individuals. The actions covered recruiting, arranging transport, and providing for supplies. Government’s objective was to assemble armed forces at a particular place and time. Merely issuing the instructions did not guarantee that all would be fulfilled, or achievement of the overall objective. Government had to make on-going arrangements to try to ensure that orders were obeyed, to correct failures, to monitor progress, and, if necessary, to modify plans in good time. Those arrangements, and consequent actions, are the ‘management’ that is studied. The detailed management of mobilizations for eight selected campaigns, from Edward I’s Second Welsh War (1282-3), to Edward III’s Reims campaign in 1359- 1360, is described. Recruitment, transport and supplies are considered, first in relation to each other for individual mobilizations. They are then considered as separate themes, followed by a discussion of the coordination of planning, in Chapter 9.</p>
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<p>The thesis shows that in mobilizing armies Edwardian government made good use of practical management techniques. Planning was coordinated. Plans were by and large based on realistic, deliberately collected, quantitative information. Progress and other reports were required, and acted upon. ‘Progress chaser’ appointments were made to supervise executive action. ‘Privatisation’ was used pragmatically, particularly in 1359. Chapter 10, ‘Conclusion’, argues that, though in mobilization as in other fields, what are remembered are administrative failures, in fact Edwardian government was managerially sophisticated enough to be able to mobilize its armies effectively. This ability to manage effectively may therefore be more true of its general administration than sometimes appears.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a title="The Management of the Mobilization of English Armies: Edward I to Edward III" href="http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/2494/1/DX207775.pdf" target="_blank"><strong>Click here to read this thesis</strong><b> from the <em><strong>University of York</strong></em></b></a></p> Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy By Susan Abernethytag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-31:2185477:Topic:1965612014-01-31T16:24:55.822ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<p><br></br> <br></br> <strong><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2014/01/30/charles-the-bold-duke-of-burgundy/charles-the-bold-2/" rel="attachment wp-att-47152"><img alt="Rogier van der Weyden painted Charles the Bold as a young man in about 1460," class="alignright size-large wp-image-47152" height="500" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Charles-the-Bold-331x500.jpg" width="331"></img></a></strong></p>
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<p>Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy was a man born with huge potential. The child of illustrious parents, he was the heir to a vast, fertile and economically rich dukedom that stretched from the sea west to Germany. Charles could have been a king but personal flaws and failings and an inborn rage were…</p>
<p><br/> <br/> <strong><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2014/01/30/charles-the-bold-duke-of-burgundy/charles-the-bold-2/" rel="attachment wp-att-47152"><img class="alignright size-large wp-image-47152" alt="Rogier van der Weyden painted Charles the Bold as a young man in about 1460," src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Charles-the-Bold-331x500.jpg" height="500" width="331"/></a></strong></p>
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<p>Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy was a man born with huge potential. The child of illustrious parents, he was the heir to a vast, fertile and economically rich dukedom that stretched from the sea west to Germany. Charles could have been a king but personal flaws and failings and an inborn rage were to be his downfall. Charles was known in his time as “le téméraire” which translates from the French into “the Rash”. In English is has been interpreted as “the Bold”.</p>
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<p>Charles was born on November 10, 1433 in Dijon. His father was Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy and his mother was Isabel of Portugal. His initial title was the Count of Charolais and twenty days after his birth, he was inducted into the chivalric Order of the Golden Fleece. It is mentioned he was nourished by his own mother. Isabel has lost her first two children so she was extra attentive with Charles. He was to become a sturdy child, full of youthful vigor. He is described as being below average in height, stout, with a clear dark complexion and a dark beard and hair. Charles and Isabel were very close and she personally supervised his education. He was a studious pupil but really showed an aptitude for martial activities and military operations.</p>
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<p>In 1435, Charles’ father negotiated the Treaty of Arras resulting in peace with France. Included in the treaty was a betrothal of Charles and Catherine of France, daughter of King Charles VII. A year later a formal betrothal took place at St. Omar and Catherine travelled there to be brought up by Isabel. These two were married in 1440 when Charles was seven and Catherine twelve. Charles also began to take up public duties at this time, sometimes with his mother and other times with his father. When he was twelve, he played a part in all the functions of an assembly of the Order of the Golden Fleece. Charles’ wife Catherine died in 1446.</p>
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<p>When Charles was seventeen he was allowed to participate in his first tournament. The chroniclers were already commenting on Charles’ hot temper, impetuousness and determination to get his own way. It’s also mentioned he loved reading, the sea and boats, hunting, archery and falconry.</p>
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<p>When Charles was twenty, his father left to go on Crusade and named Charles as his regent. Charles was eager to take up the reins of government. It was time for Charles to marry again. Isabel was pushing for an English alliance but Philip wanted Charles to marry a French bride. Isabella, the daughter of the Duke of Bourbon was in Burgundy under the guardianship of the Duchess Isabel. Duke Philip arranged the marriage, dispensing with Isabella’s parents approval and without royal approval from King Charles VII. In February of 1457, Charles’ wife Isabella gave birth to a baby girl named Mary.</p>
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<p>Charles’ time at the helm of government allowed him to acquire an inflated sense of self importance. He tended to be impetuous and to have bouts of melancholy. His administration of ducal territories was heavy handed and didn’t win him a lot of adherents. The people of the Dukedom were happy to see the old Duke return.</p>
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<p>From 1456 to 1461, Charles stayed away from the Burgundian court as relations between him and his father were strained. The Dauphin Louis, later King Louis XI of France was a guest at the court during this time and his presence forced Charles into third place in power and etiquette, a position he did not enjoy. Once Louis left Burgundy to become King of France in 1461, Charles’ position was restored.</p>
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<p><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2013/12/26/the-siege-of-beauvais-in-1472/charles-duke-of-burgundy/" rel="attachment wp-att-46059"><img class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-46059" alt="Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Charles-Duke-of-Burgundy-300x400.jpg" height="400" width="300"/></a>In 1465, many French nobles rose up against King Louis XI in a power struggle. Charles saw his chance to join in the warfare and mustered a small army to go to France and fight. There was a pitched battle at the small village of Montl’héry but nobody gained the advantage and Charles was wounded. There was a possibility he could have been taken hostage or killed but his men came to his rescue. Louis slipped away in the darkness and Charles proclaimed a hollow victory. The French nobles made their way to Paris to attack Louis there but their alliance fell apart and peace was made. Charles received the towns on the Somme, Guienne, Boulogne and other places and pensions.</p>
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<p>Charles returned to Burgundy to find his father weak and demented. While Charles was away, his wife had died and been buried. He had been singularly faithful to Isabella during their marriage. The city of Dinant had made Charles and his mother angry by questioning her faithfulness to the old Duke so Charles decided to attack the city. After six days, they surrendered but a conflagration had erupted and leveled the city. Some of the merchants and others were executed. It was to be the first instance of the wrath of Charles and its consequences on the citizenry of his dukedom. Charles continued a kind of harassing warfare until the fall and then joined his father.</p>
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<p>In order to secure an alliance with England against France, Charles had his mother negotiate a marriage agreement for the hand of <a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2013/12/19/margaret-of-york-duchess-of-burgundy/"><strong>Margaret of York</strong></a>, sister of King Edward IV. In the first big event of his reign, they were married in June of 1468. Margaret immediately took charge of Charles’ daughter Mary and they were to remain close for the rest of Mary’s life. In the first seven years of their marriage Margaret and Charles were only together for a total period of one year. They were together fairly regularly for the first four years. After December of 1471, they only saw each other for a total of thirty two days until 1475. After July 23, 1475, they never saw each other again as Charles was away at war. Charles and Margaret never had any children. Margaret was to be a great help to Charles in administering the duchy in his absence.</p>
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<p>In June of 1467, Philip the Good was dying and Charles was called to his bedside while he was still conscious but unable to speak. Charles begged his father to forgive him for any offences. His father squeezed his hand in agreement and died just short of his seventy-first birthday. Charles was left to continue his fathers’ struggle to turn the dukedom of Burgundy into a kingdom and to hold the balance of power between France and Germany.</p>
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<p>While Charles was in the midst of wedding celebrations, King Louis of France was threatening to take by force the cities on the Somme Charles had acquired in 1465. Louis didn’t really want war and agreed to come to Péronne to work on a peace treaty. The negotiations lasted until a treaty was ratified in November of 1468. Charles then turned his attention to the rebellious city of Liege. He was harsh in his treatment of the city burning it to the ground, sparing only the churches.</p>
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<p>In the spring of 1470, the Earl of Warwick, known as the “Kingmaker” arrived in France, seeking King Louis’ help to restore King Henry VI to the English throne. Louis negotiated with Warwick to fund and man the enterprise. Charles was angry and accused Louis of breaking the peace treaty of Péronne. In the summer of 1472, Charles took his troops and began fighting, taking the towns of Nesle, Montdidier and Roye, punishing the residents harshly. Two weeks after the fall of Roye, Charles’ men began the <a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2013/12/26/the-siege-of-beauvais-in-1472/"><strong>siege of Beauvais</strong></a>. The siege lasted for two weeks because the people of the town, including the women and children, bravely fought the Burgundians. Charles eventually lost so many men in the fight he was forced to lift the siege in humiliation. He then travelled west, burning and pillaging as he went. Eventually, on November 3, he agreed to a truce with Louis that was to last until April 1, 1473.</p>
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<p>In May of 1469, Charles had concluded a treaty with Sigismund of Austria, cousin of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III. The terms of this treaty satisfied Sigismund’s need for money and Charles’ ambitions for gaining territory and possibly the title of “King of the Romans”. The transaction was in fact a mortgage. Charles’ new territories included Upper Alsace and the county of Ferrette along with other fragments of territory and rights of seigniory over a few Rhenish cities. There were no records on these territories so it would be difficult to govern them and collect taxes. Efforts were made to make an appraisal of these lands but the holdings were scattered and in disarray. After four years of ineffective administration, Charles appointed Peter von Hagenbach as his deputy in charge. Because Hagenbach was a hard taskmaster he quickly acquired a bad reputation, along with his master, the Duke of Burgundy.</p>
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<p>As early as 1470, a match between Charles’ daughter Mary and Emperor Frederick’s son Maximilian was discussed. Sigismund of Austria was an enthusiastic proponent of the match. Charles was willing to consider the match but he wanted something in return. It was within Emperor Frederick’s jurisdiction to award the title “King of the Romans” which Charles coveted. In the fall of 1473, a meeting between Charles and Frederick was set to take place in the town of Trèves to discuss these matters.</p>
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<p><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2014/01/30/charles-the-bold-duke-of-burgundy/half_guldiner_sigismund_1484_691929/" rel="attachment wp-att-47154"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-47154" alt="Coin of Sigismund of Austria - photo by Attribution: Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. http://www.cngcoins.com" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Half_Guldiner_Sigismund_1484_691929.jpg" height="229" width="500"/></a></p>
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<p>Shortly before this meeting, the Duke of Lorraine had died. Charles wanted to annex Lorraine into his territories. This item was discussed at Trèves and a treaty was signed on October 15, naming the new Duke of Lorraine a vassal of the Duke of Burgundy. After eight weeks and many delays and negotiations, it was finally agreed that Charles would be invested with the title of “King of the Romans”. There were three days of festivities, and Emperor Frederick and Charles signed a convention, postponing Charles’ coronation until February. In the early hours of the morning of November 25, Emperor Frederick departed Trèves without saying goodbye. The Duke may have been furious but he kept his cool, held a few audiences and then departed.</p>
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<p>Sigismund had every intention of paying off the mortgage for Alsace and acquired the funds to do so with the help of King Louis XI of France on April 6, 1474. When he made his intention clear to Charles, Charles sent Hagenbach with a few hundred men to Sigismund with a refusal to acknowledge the repurchase. Within a few months, Alsace came under Sigismund’s control, the Swiss declared war on Charles and Hagenbach was captured, condemned to death and executed on May 9th. In June of 1474, Charles began the siege of Neuss. It was to last until July of 1475, when Imperial troops were threatening him and forcing him to lift the siege.</p>
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<p>In May of 1475, after two extensions, Charles and Louis’ truce expired. Louis immediately attacked and captured some of the territory on the Somme that belonged to Charles. Also at this time, the king of England, Edward IV was planning an invasion of France. Charles offered to fight with Edward against King Louis and march to Reims where the plan was to crown Edward King of France. King Louis had other ideas. Edward was not fully committed to these plans and ended up negotiating a treaty with Louis. Louis paid Edward a huge sum of cash, a yearly annuity for a long truce and a betrothal was agreed to between Louis’ son Charles and Edward’s eldest daughter Elizabeth. Charles was furious.</p>
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<p>At the end of 1475, Charles established a base in Nancy in Lorraine. His plan was to attack the Swiss and take the Duchy of Savoy. In January of 1476, Charles and his army assaulted Grandson. Initially, the city surrendered to him and Charles had the four hundred and twelve soldiers who had held the garrison hanged. Then the Swiss arrived. The Burgundians fell into disarray and Charles was forced to flee with just a few men, leaving behind all his artillery and treasure.</p>
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<p>Charles’ humiliation and the effects of the campaign were beginning to take its toll on his health. He suffered from a low fever, he failed to keep food down, his legs showed signs of dropsy and insomnia plagued him. He was not fully recovered when he resumed plans to fight again. He reconstituted his army and attacked the Swiss at Murat in June. Again he was defeated. Charles was beginning to exhibit strange and unusual behavior. He had fits of hilarity. Previously eschewing alcohol, he started to drink strong Burgundy wine.</p>
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<p>He was determined to raise a huge army and asked his estates to grant him funds in the form of a national levy. They refused. Strapped for cash he raised what army he could. In the meantime, the troops he left to guard Nancy surrendered to the Duke of Lorraine who provisioned and prepared the city for a siege. Charles began attacking in October against the advice of his generals who thought he should spend the winter raising more troops and provisions. Nancy managed to hold off the siege even though the winter was exceptionally cruel.</p>
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<p>By the end of December, fresh Swiss troops arrived. Charles held a council on January 4, 1477. Everyone tried to dissuade him from fighting but he didn’t hesitate. He left a small force to continue the siege and took his army to a favorable plateau, strategically placing his artillery. Charles’ troops had been reduced by the siege and the winter cold. Consequently, the Swiss and German forces greatly outnumbered the Burgundians. The onslaught was fierce and Charles himself plunged into the fight. The Swiss routed the Burgundians on January 5, 1477.</p>
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<p><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2014/01/30/charles-the-bold-duke-of-burgundy/death-of-charles-the-bold/" rel="attachment wp-att-47153"><img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-47153" alt="The corpse of Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy, discovered after the Battle of Nancy, 1477. 19th century painting" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Death-of-Charles-the-Bold-650x481.jpg" height="458" width="620"/></a></p>
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<p>A witness came forth on January 7th, saying he could identify the place where Charles fell. Charles’ body, along with his closest friends was found naked and frozen in a pool of water. His face was not recognizable. The body had been pierced with Swiss pikes and his head cleaved in two. But some who knew the Duke identified the body, recognizing his long and ingrown nails, missing upper teeth and battle scars. When King Louis XI received confirmation of Charles’ death, he proceeded to annex the Duchy of Burgundy into his kingdom.</p>
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<p>See also: <a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2011/01/30/gift-exchange-at-the-court-of-charles-the-bold/"><strong>Gift exchange at the court of Charles the Bold</strong></a></p>
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<p>See also: <a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2012/06/12/diplomatic-aspects-of-charles-the-bolds-relations-with-the-holy-see-2/"><strong>Diplomatic aspects of Charles the Bold’s relations with the Holy See</strong></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Sources: “Charles the Bold” by Ruth Putnam, “Isabel of Burgundy: The Duchess Who Played Politics in the Age of Joan of Arc, 1397-1471” by Aline S. Taylor, “Margaret of York: Duchess of Burgundy 1446-1503” by Christine Weightman, “The Valois: Kings of France 1328-1589” by Robert Knecht</p>
<p></p>
<p>Susan Abernethy is the writer of <em><strong><a href="http://thefreelancehistorywriter.com/">The Freelance History Writer</a></strong></em> and a contributor to <strong><em><a href="http://saintssistersandsluts.com/" target="_blank">Saints, Sisters, and Sluts</a></em></strong>. You can follow both sites on Facebook (<a href="http://www.facebook.com/thefreelancehistorywriter" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/thefreelancehistorywriter</a>) and (<a href="http://www.facebook.com/saintssistersandsluts" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/saintssistersandsluts</a>), as well on <strong><em><a href="http://www.facebook.com/MedievalHistoryLovers" target="_blank">Medieval History Lovers</a></em></strong>. You can also follow Susan on Twitter <strong><a href="https://twitter.com/SusanAbernethy2" target="_blank">@SusanAbernethy2</a></strong></p>
<p></p> 26 January 1316-Battle of Skerriestag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-29:2185477:Topic:1963632014-01-29T22:30:23.362ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<p>During the late 13th and early 14th centuries Scotland was struggling for <a href="http://www.heritage-history.com/www/heritage.php?Dir=wars&FileName=wars_scotindependence.php">independence</a> from Anglo-Norman England. The defeat of <a href="http://www.heritage-history.com/www/heritage.php?Dir=characters&FileName=wallace.php">William Wallace</a> in the <a href="http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/scotlandshistory/warsofindependence/battleoffalkirk/">Battle of Falkirk</a> in April…</p>
<p>During the late 13th and early 14th centuries Scotland was struggling for <a href="http://www.heritage-history.com/www/heritage.php?Dir=wars&FileName=wars_scotindependence.php">independence</a> from Anglo-Norman England. The defeat of <a href="http://www.heritage-history.com/www/heritage.php?Dir=characters&FileName=wallace.php">William Wallace</a> in the <a href="http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/scotlandshistory/warsofindependence/battleoffalkirk/">Battle of Falkirk</a> in April 1298 and his capture and execution in August 1305 seemed to put an end to Scottish hopes for independence. It was during this uncertain time that <a href="http://www.heritage-history.com/www/heritage.php?Dir=characters&FileName=bruce1s.php">Robert Bruce</a>, Earl of Carrick, stepped forward to fight for independence. He was named Guardian of Scotland, along with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_III_Comyn,_Lord_of_Badenoch">John Comyn</a>, by Wallace in 1298 and initially attempted to negotiate for independence with England’s <a href="http://www.britroyals.com/kings.asp?id=edward1">King Edward I</a>. When this failed, he rose in open rebellion.</p>
<div id="attachment_1831" style="width: 195px;" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="http://www.hallamor.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Robertthebruce.jpg" class="grouped_elements" rel="tc-fancybox-group1825" title="1316-Battle of Skerries"><img class="size-full wp-image-1831" alt="Robert Bruce, Future King Robert I of Scotland" src="http://www.hallamor.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Robertthebruce.jpg" height="240" width="185"/></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Robert Bruce, Future King Robert I of Scotland</p>
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<p>After the death of Comyn in 1305, many sources say at Robert’s hand, Bruce was crowned Robert I, King of Scotland on 25 March. Bruce won several battles against the English in the early years of his reign and after the death of King Edward I in July 1307, initially made peace with <a href="http://www.britroyals.com/kings.asp?id=edward2">King Edward II</a>. The peace did not last long and Bruce rose again in rebellion.</p>
<p>To expand the war against the English and in response to calls from Irish lords for liberation, Bruce decided to send an army, under his brother <a href="http://www.libraryireland.com/biography/SirEdwardBruce.php">Edward</a>, to Ireland. The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_campaign_in_Ireland">Bruce Campaign in Ireland</a> initially saw success, with Edward landing in between Larne and Glendrum in Ulster in May 1315. While Edward met some resistance, most of the Gaelic lords in Ulster supported him, proclaiming him King of Ireland in Early June. Edward invaded as far south as Dundalk, meeting very little English or Irish resistance. King Edward II, finally convinced of the importance of resistance against Edward Bruce in Ireland, sent reinforcements under the command of the Justiciar of Ireland, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Butler,_Earl_of_Carrick">Sir Edmund Butler</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hotham_%28bishop%29">John Hotham</a>, English envoy to Ireland.</p>
<p>The Battle of Skerries (also called the Battle of Ardscull), which took place on this date in 1316, Edward faced a much larger force (10,000 for the English against 6,000 for Edward). Though they suffered many casualties, Edward’s army prevailed. Official English accounts blamed bad terrain and bad luck for their defeat. The Scottish dead are buried in the graveyard attached to the Dominican Priory on the east bank of the River Barrow in nearby Athy. Among those buried are two Scottish chiefs, Lord Fergus Andressan and Lord Walter de Morrey. Edward continued to have success in Ireland, but the failure of the crops in 1317 and the pillaging tactics of his army began to turn against him. By the <a href="http://www.oracleireland.com/Ireland/history/battle-faughart.htm">Battle of Faughart</a> in October 1318, Edward’s army had shrunk considerably. He was defeated and killed during the battle, thus ending the Bruce campaign in Ireland.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.culturalheritageireland.ie/index.php/heritage-sites-and-centres/88-the-motte-and-bailey-castle-at-ardscull-near-athy-co-kildare">remnants</a> of the battlements at Ardscull can still be seen today.</p>
<div class="a2k-container"><p class="a2k-sources">Sources:</p>
<p><span class="a2k-title"><a href="http://www.hallamor.org/1316-battle-of-skerries/robertthebruce/">Robertthebruce</a></span> <span class="a2k-copyright"><a rel="license" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_domain">Public Domain</a></span> <span class="a2k-author"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Robertthebruce.jpg" title="Link to Wikimedia Commons">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p>
</div> A BIT OF AN ORDEAL - some matters pertaining to trial by ordeal in 12th century England by Elizabeth Chadwicktag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-24:2185477:Topic:1962382014-01-24T15:53:29.767ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
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At the start of the 12th century, trial by ordeal was an accepted part of the judicial system and daily life. The idea was to allow the accused to undergo a test and that God would decide the outcome. This test would involve either fire, water, combat, or character testification known as compurgation.<br/> In ordeal by water the accused would be let down into an ordeal pit filled with water deep enough to close over his (or her) head, and closely observed by witnesses. If the person sank it meant the pure element of water had accepted him and he was innocent. If he floated, then the worse for him (assuming he hadn't drowned!). Failing the test usually meant that the accused faced mutilation as a punishment.<br/> The ordeal pits belonged to the church and were a lucrative source of monastic income,the clergy being paid generous sums of money to bless them before ordeals. Itinerant royal justices Geoffrey de Mandeville and Richard de Lucy paid the sum of ten shillings to have the local clergy bless ordeal pits near Bury St. Edmunds in 1166. This was at a time when the daily wage of a labourer was one penny.<br/> Should a water ordeal pit not be to hand, then the next best thing was to dunk the accused off a bridge into a stream or brook. The ordeal of cold water was accompanied by liturgical the chanting, a sermon and a mass, and was something of a spectacle for the local populace. The ordeal of water was a trial reserved for those at the bottom of the social pile according to a treatise on the law written down in the later 12th century. <i>'per aquam si fuerit rusticus.' </i><br/> <br/> Free men of status could look forward to ordeal by hot iron instead. <i>scilicet per ferrum calidum si fuerit homo librum</i>. Here the accused had to briefly hold or carry a hot iron. His hand was then bandaged and sealed and was examined a few days later. If the damage was healed, or healing cleanly, then he was deemed innocent. If it didn't then it was mutilation again. King William Rufus in the 11th century was a very unhappy man when 50 people accused of crimes in his forest took the ordeal of hot iron en masse and all came through it unmarked! The King swore that he would never be taken in again. At the assize of Clarendon in 1166, Henry II chose not to believe the people who had been pronounced innocent of trial by water and banished them all from England anyway.<br/> <br/> It does seem that there were ways to cheat at these ordeals. Peter the Chanter, a chronicler of the late 12th century mentioned someone he knew who, on realising he was to face trial by water, prepared for it by practising breathing exercises beforehand in order to succeed. He also mentioned how people would cultivate thick calluses on their hands in order to mitigate the effect of the hot iron ordeal.<br/> <br/> A third way of deciding who was guilty or innocent, right or wrong was trial by combat, a system introduced by the Normans. William the Conqueror made it expressly clear that trial by combat was not to be enforced upon English litigants, who must stick to fire and water. However, accused Normans had the choice of combat as well as the other two ordeals. As with the water ordeal, the church got in on the act by blessing the weapons and imploring God's mercy. Trials by combat were sometimes fought by the accused themselves, as in the case of Henry II's standard bearer Henry of Essex (who lost, was spared and took the tonsure). William Marshal is another example from the late 12th century. Accused of having an affair with his lord's wife, he offered to fight his detractors man to man, but no one wanted to go up against him (strangely enough).<br/> <br/> People were sometimes deemed ineligible for trial by combat. Over sixties need not apply to fight and had to tick the fire or water box. If a person was suffering a serious sickness or injury - such as a broken arm, or a deep cut, the same applied.<br/> <br/> Not everyone had the military skills to make success in combat a likelihood and so professional champions were sometimes engaged to do the dirty work, but that had it its drawbacks too. The richer you were, the better the fighter you could afford. Indeed, if you were really rich, you could buy all the best fighters and leave the cupboard bare for your opponent! By the end of the 11th century, a merchant guild of St. Omer in Flanders had formed a system of mutual help to allow their members to hire the best champions in the land should the need arise - a sort of insurance policy.<br/>
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<br/> Finally there was compurgation. This wasn't so much an ordeal as a way of proving innocence. The accused would each gather together a band of people to swear as to his good character and innocence, having first sworn their own impeccable credentials. One might initially imagine this turning into an 'I've got more friends than you' match. Sometimes it probably did, and sometimes people could be bought, but on the whole the system worked reasonably well. In a society where everyone knew everyone else,a criminal was generally going to be the 'Billy no mates' person. <br/> <br/> Gradually the above systems were mostly replaced with trial by jury. Occasional trials by combat continued for centuries, but they weren't the norm, although the right wasn't taken off the statute books until the early 19th century. By the 1180's trial by jury was becoming the established method of deciding cases. A jury was more reliable and acceptable in practise than leaving it up to God (and a few ruses) to decide.The jury, which mingled Norman and English members, was a sound basis on which to go forward, and since it was a departure from methods on both sides, it was not seen as unduly fair to one side or the other and was accepted with equanimity.<br/> <br/> I'm always fascinated when researching medieval lives and lifestyles. I constantly recognise myself in the people and come across emotions, situations and moments that are very familiar to me today. And then there are times like this, when I think of trial by fire or water, or fight to the finish, when I realise that the past is a foreign field, even if too close for comfort when it comes down to it!<br/> <br/> Elizabeth Chadwick<br/><br/> Suggested reading for further interest<br/>The Birth of the English Common Law by R.C. Van Caenegem: Oxford University Press<br/> The Treatise on the Laws and Customs of the Realm of England Commonly called Glanville edited and Translated by D. G. Hall - Oxford Medieval Texts</div> Sir Richard FitzAlan by Ky Whitetag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-24:2185477:Topic:1963032014-01-24T15:48:26.179ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<div style="width: 458px; word-wrap: break-word; padding-bottom: 7px; color: #000000; font-size: 13px;">Jan 24, 1376 - Sir Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel, died. He was known as ‘copped hat.’ He’s been mentioned a few times lately. He was about 13 when his father was beheaded by Edward II.. He had been married to the daughter of Despencer, but after the death of Edward II, this was not a good political marriage. Since he and his bride were only 7 and 8 years old at the time of the…</div>
<div style="width: 458px; word-wrap: break-word; padding-bottom: 7px; color: #000000; font-size: 13px;">Jan 24, 1376 - Sir Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel, died. He was known as ‘copped hat.’ He’s been mentioned a few times lately. He was about 13 when his father was beheaded by Edward II.. He had been married to the daughter of Despencer, but after the death of Edward II, this was not a good political marriage. Since he and his bride were only 7 and 8 years old at the time of the wedding, the Pope granted the annulment. "Obviously, what really happened was that the powerful Earl desired to get rid of the woman to whom he had been married as a child, and who, since her father's attainder and execution, had ceased to be of any importance, that he might marry the woman with whom he was then living in adultery: and the pope very obligingly annulled the marriage and bastardized the issue: a very unfair proceeding as far as Edmund d'Arundel was concerned." -The Complete Peerage (Arundel).<br/> <br/> Richard, known by the nickname 'Copped Hat', was arrested in the summer of 1330 after plotting to overthrow Mortimer, but a few months later was restored to his father's earldom and estates by Edward III.<br/> <br/> He married Eleanor Plantagenet daughter of the Earl of Lancaster. His mother was the heir to her brother the last Earl of Warenne and Surrey. Through the inheritance he was enormously wealthy.<br/> <br/> In 1340 he fought at the Battle of Sluys, and then at the siege of Tournai. After a short term as Warden of the Scottish Marches, he returned to the continent, where he fought in a number of campaigns, and was appointed Joint Lieutenant of Aquitaine in 1340.<br/> <br/> Arundel was one of the three principal English commanders at the Battle of Crécy. He spent much of the following years on various military campaigns and diplomatic missions.<br/> <br/> In a campaign of 1375, at the end of his life, he destroyed the harbor of Roscoff.<br/> <br/> For Edward III he was Admiral of the West and took part in the wars in France. At the Battle of Crecy on August 26, 1346 he commanded the 2nd Division of the English Army that so devastated the French nobility and proved the superiority of the longbow over armor and mounted knights. He was at the fall of Calais in 1347.<br/> <br/> During almost the whole of his long life he was taking a leading part in warfare either by land or by sea.</div>
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</table> Sir John de VERE, 7th Earl of Oxfordtag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-23:2185477:Topic:1957952014-01-23T18:55:42.766ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<div style="width: 458px; word-wrap: break-word; padding-bottom: 7px; color: #000000; font-size: 13px;">Jan 23, 1359 – Sir John de VERE, 7th Earl of Oxford died at the Siege of Rheims. His body was brought back to England and buried atColne Abbey, Oxford, England. He was a great warrior. The 7th Earl of Oxford and 8th Great Chamberlain, became one of the most famous fighting Earls of Oxford, renowned for his bravery, gallantry and chivalry as one of Edward III's greatest generals, serving in…</div>
<div style="width: 458px; word-wrap: break-word; padding-bottom: 7px; color: #000000; font-size: 13px;">Jan 23, 1359 – Sir John de VERE, 7th Earl of Oxford died at the Siege of Rheims. His body was brought back to England and buried atColne Abbey, Oxford, England. He was a great warrior. The 7th Earl of Oxford and 8th Great Chamberlain, became one of the most famous fighting Earls of Oxford, renowned for his bravery, gallantry and chivalry as one of Edward III's greatest generals, serving in Scotland, France, Flanders, Brittany and Gascony.<br/> <br/> He had an active role in the wars of Edward III fighting in the Scottish campaigns of 1333 and 1335 in support of Edward Baliol. In July 1333, he was one of the guarantors of King Edward's (Edward III) terms at the surrender of Berwick, and he served again in Scotland in 1335. In November of 1339 he put to sea with three great ships in the service of the king. In March of 1340 he went overseas with the Earl of Warwick to the campaign in Flanders. In 1342, he served in Brittany and his personal retinue consisted of 40 men-at-arms (himself, 1 knight banneret, 9 knights, and 20 esquires) and 30 mounted archers. <br/> <br/> In the fall of 1345 he was in joint command with the Earl of Northampton in the 2nd campaign in Brittany where on 30 September they defeated a much larger force under Charles of Blois. He sailed with the king on his campaign to France in July of 1346 and was one of the commanders of the first division at Crecy on August 26, 1346 with a contingent of 160 men including three bannerets and 27 knights. He also took part in the siege of Calais.<br/> <br/> I October 1355 he returned to France joining the Black Prince in his famous raid into the Languedoc. He shared the command of the first division at Poitiers with the Earl of Warwick where he organized a crucial maneuver that saved the English archers from being downtrodden by the enemy's cavalry:<br/> <br/> "Yet all courage had been thrown away to no purpose, had it not been seconded by the extraordinary Gallantry of the English Archers, under the Earl of Oxford, who behaved themselves that day with wonderful Constancy, Alacrity and Resolution."<br/> <br/> He was killed during the siege of Rheims on 24th Jan 1360 during the British invasion of Burgundy. His corpse was brought back to England and interred in the family crypts at Colne Priory.<br/> <br/> John's will, dated 1st Nov 1359, contained bequests to Colne Church and to the chapel (called the New Abbey) at Hedingham. He left instructions to his executors to pay out 400 marks sterling that had been accumulated by his ancestors in aid of the Holy Land.<br/> <br/> John had married, in 1336, Maud de Badlesmere (b.1310), widow of Robert Fitzpayne, second sister and coheir of Giles (d.1338), Lord Badlesmere of Badlesmere in Kent. Following his marriage the title of Lord Badlesmere was added to the honorific titles used by all later Earls of Oxford. His son Thomas succeeded him.<br/> <br/> <br/> Below are the ams of the Earls of Oxford and Hedingham Castle in Essex, the seat of the Earls of Oxford.</div>
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</table> Sir David LINDSAY, 3rd Earl of Crawfordtag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-23:2185477:Topic:1959782014-01-23T18:54:28.130ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<div style="width: 458px; word-wrap: break-word; padding-bottom: 7px; color: #000000; font-size: 13px;">Jan 23, 1445 – Sir David LINDSAY, 3rd Earl of Crawford was killed trying to stop a battle Arbroath, Angus, Scotland from taking place between Clan Lindsay and the Clans of Ogilvy, Gordon, Oliphant, Seton, and Forbes. <br></br> <br></br> The Battle of Arbroath Battle of Arbroath was a dispute fuelled by the dismissal of Alexander Lindsay, son of the 3rd Earl of Crawford, Chief Justiciar of the Abbey…</div>
<div style="width: 458px; word-wrap: break-word; padding-bottom: 7px; color: #000000; font-size: 13px;">Jan 23, 1445 – Sir David LINDSAY, 3rd Earl of Crawford was killed trying to stop a battle Arbroath, Angus, Scotland from taking place between Clan Lindsay and the Clans of Ogilvy, Gordon, Oliphant, Seton, and Forbes. <br/> <br/> The Battle of Arbroath Battle of Arbroath was a dispute fuelled by the dismissal of Alexander Lindsay, son of the 3rd Earl of Crawford, Chief Justiciar of the Abbey of Arbroath, and the appointment of Alexander Ogilvy of Inverquharity in his place. Lindsay was ill-pleased and with 1,000 of his men took possession of the town and abbey. A battle took place and the Ogilvys, supported by Sir Alexander Seton of Gordon, were heavily defeated.<br/> <br/> Their enemy was the Master of Crawford and his Clan Lindsay who advanced with over one thousand men. His father, the Earl of Crawford, rode between the two armies in an attempt to call a truce. However, an ill-advised Ogilvie, thinking that this was the start of the Lindsay's attack, threw his spear at the Earl, hitting him in the mouth and killing him instantly.<br/> <br/> He’s the Great-Grandfather of the 6th Earl of Angus, whom I highlighted on the 22nd of January and my 17th Great-Grandfather, twice.<br/> <br/> His arms are those of Lindsay quartered with those of Abernethy.</div>
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</table> Fireproofing of war machines, ships and garments By Vassilios Christidestag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-17:2185477:Topic:1947452014-01-17T00:12:05.317ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<p></p>
<p><em>TROPIS VI: 6th International Symposium on Ship Construction in Antiquity</em> (2001)</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2011/08/07/secrecy-technology-and-war-greek-fire-and-the-defense-of-byzantium-678-1204/greek-fire/" rel="attachment wp-att-23944"><img alt="Image from an illuminated manuscript, the Skylitzes manuscript in Madrid, showing Greek fire in use against the fleet of the rebel Thomas the Slav" class="aligncenter wp-image-23944" height="341" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Greek-fire.jpg" width="640"></img></a></p>
<p>Introduction: The development of offensive weapons and defenses against them – the perennial cat-and-mouse game – has been going on for centuries, a conspicuous recent…</p>
<p></p>
<p><em>TROPIS VI: 6th International Symposium on Ship Construction in Antiquity</em> (2001)</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2011/08/07/secrecy-technology-and-war-greek-fire-and-the-defense-of-byzantium-678-1204/greek-fire/" rel="attachment wp-att-23944"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-23944" alt="Image from an illuminated manuscript, the Skylitzes manuscript in Madrid, showing Greek fire in use against the fleet of the rebel Thomas the Slav" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Greek-fire.jpg" height="341" width="640"/></a></p>
<p>Introduction: The development of offensive weapons and defenses against them – the perennial cat-and-mouse game – has been going on for centuries, a conspicuous recent instance being the use of Scud missiles and antimissile Patriot missiles in the Gulf War.</p>
<p>Incendiary missiles were in use in antiquity and developed rapidly in the Hellenistic period, and various forms of fire extinguishers were invented to deal with them. The main extinguisher in ancient times was vinegar. Since vinegar was little better than water, as Pattington has rightly pointed out, we may assume that “the vinegar included salty sources, salt left on the surface of burning wood helping to extinguish it.” Other extinguishers in common use were sand, raw hides, urine (which contains ammonia and phosphates) and alum.</p>
<p>After the introduction by the Byzantines of Greek fire or “liquid fire” which was perfected by Kallinikos, a more systematic defense against this very dangerous weapon was developed. Sadly, Chapter 70 of the tenth-century Συλλσγπ Τακτικων, dealing with the defenses against Greek fire and methods of extinguishing it, is missing: only the title has been preserved.</p>
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<p>A marginal note informs us that vinegar was used for protection against Greek fire and the best way to protect a wall was to pour vinegar over it. It is equally unfortunate that some important Arabic sources concerning Greek fire, which would surely have contained information about the methods of extinguishing it, are also lost. Fortunately there are a few scattered references to fireproof equipment and fire-extinguishers in the Byzantine sources and far more in the Arabic sources.</p>
<p>In this paper I shall give a short account of the methods used for fireproofing war machines and ships and of the fireproof garments worn by the personnel who used Greek fire, as described by Ibn al-Manqali (Mangli).</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://nauticalarch.org/uploads/Tropis/Tzalas%202001%20-%20Tropis%206.pdf" target="_blank"><strong>Click here to read this article from the Institute of Nautical Archaeology</strong></a></p> Using Ancient Military Handbooks to fight Medieval Battles: Two stratagems used by Alexios I Comnenos against the Normans and the Pechenegstag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-14:2185477:Topic:1942902014-01-14T21:32:00.447ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
<p><strong>Using Ancient Military Handbooks to fight Medieval Battles: Two stratagems used by Alexios I Comnenos against the Normans and the Pechenegs</strong></p>
<p>By Theocharis Alexopoulos</p>
<p><em>Eoa kai Esperia</em>, Vol.8 (2012)…</p>
<p></p>
<p><strong>Using Ancient Military Handbooks to fight Medieval Battles: Two stratagems used by Alexios I Comnenos against the Normans and the Pechenegs</strong></p>
<p>By Theocharis Alexopoulos</p>
<p><em>Eoa kai Esperia</em>, Vol.8 (2012)</p>
<p><a href="http://www.medievalists.net/2014/01/13/using-ancient-military-handbooks-to-fight-medieval-battles-two-stratagems-used-by-alexios-i-comnenos-against-the-normans-and-the-pechenegs/fighting_between_byzantines_and_arabs_chronikon_of_ioannis_skylitzes_end_of_13th_century/" rel="attachment wp-att-46639"><img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-46639" alt="Byzantine warfare" src="http://www.medievalists.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Fighting_between_Byzantines_and_Arabs_Chronikon_of_Ioannis_Skylitzes_end_of_13th_century.-650x330.jpg" height="314" width="620"/></a></p>
<p>Introduction: During the whole of his lengthy reign, Alexios I Comnenos (1081-1118) faced multiple military threats from many different opponents that seriously threatened the cohesion and the existence of the empire. The Seljuk Turks, the Pechenegs,the Cumans,the Normans and several Turkish principalities of Asia Minor tried to exploit the dire position in which the Byzantine Empire had fallen during the fifty years that preceded Alexios reign. Alexios’ campaigns against all these enemies, sometimes fought with limited resources and often having to cope with strategic disadvantage, have been sufficiently studied by modern scholars. This article is a result of the study and analysis of some of the stratagems cleverly used by the emperor during his campaigns and the identification of their correlation to similar stratagems as they have been recorded in Ancient sources, specifically those concerning wagons and carts. The interrelation between Ancient and Byzantine stratagems can provide useful conclusions about the theoretical military training of the Byzantine senior officials and the significance of Ancient military texts and sources in Byzantine battle theory.</p>
<p>Until the eleventh century, the only people using wagons as weapons of war were the Nomads, usually of Turkish origin. For centuries, these people located at the northern and eastern borders of the empire used wagon carts for their transportation as well as for their security. The Byzantine writers circumscribing the conflicts of the Byzantine army and the Nomads frequently mention the large wagon circles(or‘wagon laagers’) of the latter. These were used as defensive obstacles or forts for the protection of their families and livestock and even as strong points which could be also used as a shelter to accomplish a reorganization of the army in case of defeat, although the wagons were vulnerable during open field fights, in which the Byzantine forces excelled. As a matter of fact, the significance of the wagons for the Nomads was such that many tribes used to name themselves after them.</p>
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<p>The tactics used by the Nomad people had a great impact and influence on the way the Romans and Byzantines waged their wars. The Byzantines adopted many elements from the Nomads, both in terms of tactics and weaponry. They came to terms with a different, more agile style of warfare, in which the use of light-armed cavalry played the most prominent role. The Nomad light-armed cavalry used the composite bow as their primary weapon and applied guerrilla tactics, such as ambushes, and other stratagems in order to dominate more heavily armed opponents. The lengthy campaigns and bloody battles against the Pechenegs and the Cumans during the latter half of the eleventh century and the first half of the twelfth century was the culmination of the long armed confrontation between the Byzantines and the peoples of the steppe.The defeats suffered by Alexios and his predecessors at the hands of these technologically inferior opponents had deep impact on the re-evaluation and transformation of Byzantine battle tactics. The use of wagons in stratagems against the Normans and the Nomads, people with a vastly different military philosophy, is not irrelevant to the experience Alexios gained by watching and fighting these people. As we shall see, those stratagems were not simply mere inspirations of the moment or derivatives of the emperor’s military knowledge and expertise, but mostly strict applications of the theories and deductions of Ancient and early Byzantine military tacticians and historians, the works of whom survived up to the middle Byzantine period, whether identical to the prototypes or as fragmentary medieval revisions.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.eoaesperia.org/index.php/esperia/article/view/10/7" target="_blank"><strong>Click here to read this article from Eoa kai Esperia</strong></a></p> Owain Glyndwrtag:travelingwithintheworld.ning.com,2014-01-12:2185477:Topic:1942332014-01-12T18:47:27.895ZDept of PMM Artists & thingshttp://travelingwithintheworld.ning.com/profile/Artistsandthings
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<tbody><tr class="_51mx"><td class="_51m- vTop fbPhotoUfiCol"><div class="photoUfiContainer"><div class="clearfix fbPhotoContributor"><div class="_3dp _29k"><div class="text_exposed_root text_exposed" id="id_52d2e26aa63fb8153585575">In January 1402 near Ruthin , Owain Glyndwr captured his arch-enemy Reginald de Grey, 3rd Baron Grey de Ruthyn. <br></br><div class="imageStage" id="imagestage"><img alt="" class="fbPhotoImage img" id="fbPhotoImage" src="https://scontent-a-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/q71/1507650_482699951850692_851047908_n.jpg"></img></div>
<br></br> Reginald de Grey was…</div>
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<tbody><tr class="_51mx"><td class="_51m- vTop fbPhotoUfiCol"><div class="photoUfiContainer"><div class="clearfix fbPhotoContributor"><div class="_3dp _29k"><div id="id_52d2e26aa63fb8153585575" class="text_exposed_root text_exposed">In January 1402 near Ruthin , Owain Glyndwr captured his arch-enemy Reginald de Grey, 3rd Baron Grey de Ruthyn. <br/><div id="imagestage" class="imageStage"><img class="fbPhotoImage img" id="fbPhotoImage" src="https://scontent-a-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/q71/1507650_482699951850692_851047908_n.jpg" alt=""/></div>
<br/> Reginald de Grey was responsible for issuing and enforcing royal demands in the Northern March and was in a long-running legal dispute with Glyndŵr, claiming a tranche of Glyndwr's land as his own. Under King Richard II the case had been found in favour of Glyndŵr, but on the usurpatio<span class="text_exposed_show">n of King Henry IV, Lord Grey seized the land.<br/> <br/> Glyndŵr responded in law early in 1400 but his case was not granted a hearing, instead it was asked of Glyndŵr that he grant Lord Grey further concessions. de Grey also delayed summoning Glyndŵr's quota or levy of men for the king's service in Scotland until the last moment, making it impossible for Glyndŵr to respond as requested or even send an explanation for his absence. Such an act as refusal or failure to respond to an order of the King was deemed a treasonous act and Glyndŵr's estates were deemed forfeit until he could prove his loyalty or receive due punishment.<br/> <br/> On 18th September 1400, Owain took up arms, burned Grey's property and for three days ravaged the coutryside of Flintshire and Denbighshire, but on 24 September, Glyndwr's forces were encircled at Welshpool and defeated. de Grey now invited Glyndŵr to a reconciliation meeting, but arrived with a large force and attempted to capture Glyndŵr. Glyndŵr escaped with his life and went into hiding, but this confirmed him as a traitor in English eyes and King Henry confiscated the estates of his supporters.<br/> <br/> The rebellion spread and by 1402 it was gathering momentum. Lord Grey was captured by Glyndŵr's forces in an ambush near Ruthin in January 1402. A ransom of 10,000 marks was asked for him and Lord Grey was asked to swear an oath never to bear arms against Glyndŵr again. King Henry IV sent eleven knights to treat with Glyndŵr and then complied with the ransom. Lord Grey would then have been expected to repay the amount over time as best he could and any outstanding debt would be borne by his family.</span></div>
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