The ‘Autobiography’ of Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor (1316-1378), is a rare example of a personal memoir by a medieval ruler. Continue reading
The Chronica de Gestis Hungarorum, also known as the Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle, is an important record of events in Hungary and Eastern Europe from the eleventh to early fourteenth centuries. Continue reading
The anonymous author of the Vita Edwardi Secundi provides one of the best accounts of the reign of Edward II. This includes his description of the battle of Bannockburn in 1314, where the Scots under Robert Bruce defeated Edward and his army. Continue reading
One episode in the continuous warfare between the Holy Roman Empire, the Papacy and the Italian city-states was the siege of Florence by the forces of Emperor Henry VII in 1312. This account of the siege was recorded by the Florentine historian Giovanni Villani (d.1348) Continue reading
The Aegean Sea became a new theatre of warfare between Crusaders and the Turks in the early fourteenth-century. In the following document, the papal camera contracts four fully equipped galleys for service in the first naval league against the Turks. The contract is dated March 7, 1334. Continue reading
The Rhyme Chronicle of Livonia (Liulandische Reimchronik) is an account of the activities of the Teutonic Order . It was written around the end of the thirteenth century, and consists of 12017 lines of rhyming couplets written in Middle High German. It is the only major source of Baltic history for the years 1225 to 1290, since the only other chronicle, the one by Henry of Livonia, covers the period 1143 to 1225. Continue reading
The Gesta Hungarorum, or The Deeds of the Hungarians, was written by Simon of Keza around 1280-2. Simon was a court cleric to King Ladislas IV of Hungary, and his work is highly laudatory of his king. In the following section, the writer describes the battle of Stillfield, in which the forces of Ladislas and Rudolf of Habsburg, the German king, defeated King Otakar of Bohemia. The battle was fought on August 26, 1278. Continue reading
Documents relating to the Order of the Knights of Christ of Livonia (Swordbrothers) and documents relating to the Teutonic order Continue reading
The Guta Saga is a short chronicle, written sometime between 1220 and 1275, which details the history of Gotland, a Swedish island in the Baltic Sea. One of the last sections in this saga describes the arrangements made regarding what obligations did Gotlanders have in providing ships and men for the military campaigns of the Swedish kings. Continue reading
A lingering dispute between Norway and Scotland over control of the chain of islands that lies between Scotland and Ireland culminated in 1263 with the expedition of Hakon (or Haakon) IV against the Scots. Continue reading
The collapse of Iceland as a self-governing country in the mid-thirteenth century is highlighted by several conflicts between various powerful chieftains. The various sagas and histories that make up the Sturlunga Sagas were written soon after the events they record, and their descriptions of some of the battles that took place on the island are among the most interesting medieval accounts of warfare. Continue reading
The passages from this work given below are two chapters in which the Franciscan describes the ways the Mongols conduct war, as well as giving advice on how they could be successfully fought, in case they invaded Europe again. Continue reading
The following text deals with the final campaign of King Sverri, in which he besieges the Baglar forces under Hreidar Sendiman. Continue reading
The Kievan Chronicle is one of the most important historical works for the history of medieval Russia, especially with regards to events in Kiev and the surrounding lands. Continue reading
The Saga of King Sverri (Sverrissaga) is the only source still existing that chronicles the life and rule of Sverri Sigurdarson (1177-1202), son of King Sigurd Haraldsson. Continue reading
This account of the siege and fall of Constantinople was written by Hermodoros Michael Kritovoulos, who was a civil servant working for Mehmed II. Continue reading
George Sphrantzes was a courtier in the Byzantine empire, serving as an important diplomat and ambassador for several emperors. Continue reading
The diary of Nicolo Barbaro is perhaps the most detailed and accurate eyewitness account of the siege and fall of Constantinople. Continue reading
Although Giovanni Villani wrote his chronicle in the mid-14th century, he provides one of the best accounts of the battle of Campaldino, fought between Arezzo and Florence. Continue reading
Most of this section deals with a conflict between the cities of Gesso and Reggio. Early in 1287, the latter city had fallen under the control of Monaco of Canossa, ruler of Bianello. This would lead to a struggle for Reggio. Continue reading
Salimbene de Adam provides this account of a naval battle between Genoa and Pisa, followed by the sad fate of the Pisan prisoners. Continue reading
Salimbene de Adam, a Franciscan, produced his Chronicle in the 1280s. He left one of the most interesting and wide-ranging histories of the Middle Ages, in which he covers a variety of matters, from the political maneuvers of the Italian city-states to the practical jokes that his fellow monks played upon each other. Continue reading
The following is clause 180 of this text, which describes the surrender of a Templar castle after the fall of Antioch in 1268. It was against the Order’s rule for members to abandon their castles without permission, with a punishment of expulsion from the Templars to those who transgressed. Continue reading
Padua, a major Italian city during the Middle Ages, got caught up in the struggle between the Papacy and the Holy Roman Empire in the thirteenth century. Continue reading
Las siete partidas, the Seven-Part Code, is one of the most remarkable law codes of medieval times. Continue reading
The second account describes the death of Sancho Ramirez, son of the Aragonese king Ramiro I, while at the siege of Huesca in 1094 (Christian accounts have Sancho Ramirez being killed by an arrow while at the siege). The third section details how James I invaded and captured the island of Majorca in 1231 Continue reading
The conflict that would become known as the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282 – 1302) had its origins in political and territorial conflicts that had begun over fifty ears before the start of the war. The links below, listed … Continue reading
Created by Lawrence V. Mott The War of the Sicilian Vespers involved virtually every Mediterranean and European country in a smoldering conflict that spanned twenty years. The conflict and its outcome fundamentally changed the course of history in the Mediterranean … Continue reading
The Battle of Jerez was fought in 1231 between the forces of Ferdinand III, king of Castile and León, and Ibn Hud, ruler of Murcia and the de facto successor of the Almohads. It took place near the modern city of Jerez … Continue reading
One of the most important battles fought on the Iberian peninsula, this was the culmination of a major campaign by Alfonso VIII of Castile against the Almohads. The battle took place on July 16, 1212. The first account comes from … Continue reading
Muslim pirates based in the Balearic islands were a major problem for Christian traders in the eleventh and twelfth century. In 113, Pope Pascal II issued a papal bull in favour of a crusade against the islands, and the Pisans, … Continue reading
In the last years there have been an increasing number of works about medieval naval warfare that try to fill a huge gap in the study of medieval military. The present volume is a welcome addition to this trend although it does not completely fit in it. Continue reading
Journal of Medieval Military History Volume 12 The latest collection of the most up-to-date research on matters of medieval military history contains a remarkable geographical range, extending from Spain and Britain to the southern steppe lands, by way of Scandinavia, … Continue reading
Journal of Medieval Military History Volume 11 The comprehensive breadth and scope of the Journal are to the fore in this issue, which ranges widely both geographically and chronologically. The subjects of analysis are equally diverse, with three contributions dealing … Continue reading
William Marshal, King Henry II and the Honour of Chateauroux By Nicholas Vincent Archives: The Journal of the British Record Association Vol.25 No.102 (2000) Chance plays a large part in the survival of medieval charters. Written on parchment, and in many … Continue reading
The Battles at Colbridge By F.T. Wainwright Saga Book, Vol.13 (1947)
Profit and Loss in the Hundred Years War: the Subcontracts of Sir John Strother, 1374 By Simon Walker The Bulletin of the Institute of Historical Studies, Vol.58 (1985) Among the Swinburne manuscripts in the Northumberland County Record Office is preserved a … Continue reading
The Expression of Power in a Medieval Kingdom: Thirteenth-Century Scottish Castles By Fiona Watson Scottish Power Centres from the Early Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century, Foster, S., Macinnes, A. and MacInnes, R., (eds.) (Glasgow, 1998)
Ibn al-Athīr’s Accounts of the Rūs: A Commentary and Translation By William E. Watson Canadian/American Slavic Studies, Vol.35 (2001) The evidence on the early Rūs contained in medieval Arabic geographical literature has long been part of the Normanist/anti-Normanist controversy.1 The … Continue reading
Wars and Warriors in Gregory of Tours’ Histories I-IV By Phillip Wynn Francia, Vol. 28 (2001) In his book on Gregory of Tours’ Histories, Martin Heinzelmann showed how Gregory interpreted events and stylized his narrative according to a scheme of … Continue reading
Turkish Raids in Friuli at the End of the Fifteenth Century By Maria Pia Pedani Acta Viennensia Ottomanica, edited by Markus Kohbach, Gisela Prochaska-Eisl, and Claudia Romer (Vienna: Im Selbrstverlag des Instituts fur Orientalistik, 1999) Acta Viennensia Ottomanica is collection of … Continue reading
The Contest between Lithuania-Rus’ and the Golden Horde in the Fourteenth Century for Supremacy over Eastern Europe By Jaroslaw Pelinski Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi, Vol.2 (1982) Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi focuses on the Eurasian steppes and adjoining regions from the fifth … Continue reading
The Fall of Constantinople: Bishop Leonard and the Greek Accounts By Marios Philippides Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies, Vol.22 (1981)
Invasion, Conquest, and the Creation of Livonia By Andrejs Plakans The Latvians: A Short History (Hoover Institution Press, 1995) The section is the second chapter of The Latvians: A Short History, by Andrejs Plakans, which was published by Hoover Institution Press in 1995. … Continue reading
Chaucer’s Knight, the Alliterative Morte Arthure, and the Medieval Laws of War: a Reconsideration By Elizabeth Porter Nottingham Medieval Studies Vol.27 (1983) Nottingham Medieval Studies is published by the Department of History, University of Nottingham. For more information, please see their website. … Continue reading
Frederick II and the Rebellion of the Muslims of Sicily, 1200-1224 By James M. Powell Uluslararasi Hacli Seferleri Sempozyumu (1999) In 1999 the Turkish Historical Society/Turk Tarifrh Kurumu published this volume which is devoted to the Crusades in the medieval Middle … Continue reading
English Armies in the Early Stages of the Hundred Years War: A Scheme in 1341 By Michael Prestwich The Bulletin of the Institute of Historical Studies, Vol.56 (1983) We thank the Institute of Historical Studies and the authors for giving … Continue reading
King, Clergy and War at the time of the Carolingians By Frederich E. Prinz Saints, Scholars and Heroes: Studies in Medieval Culture in Honour of Charles W. Jones, ed. Margot King and Wesley Stevens (Ann Arbor, 1979)
Venice and the Conquest of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem By Donald E. Queller and Irene B. Katele Studi Veneziani, Vol.21 (1986) Studi Veneziani is published by Istituto di Storia della Società e dello Stato Veneziano. We thank the editors for their permission … Continue reading
Hungarian strategy against the Ottomans (1365-1526) By Gyula Razso From Crecy to Mohacs: Warfare in the Late Middle Ages (1346-1526): XXIInd Colloquium of the International Commission of Military History (Heeresgeschichtliches Museum: Vienna, 1997) We thank the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum of Vienna for … Continue reading
By A. Compton Reeves from Nottingham Medieval Studies Vol.16 (1972) Continue reading
The Venetian Crusade of 1122-1124 By Jonathan Riley-Smith I Comuni Italiani nel Regno Crociato di Gerusalemme / The Italian communes in the Crusading Kingdom of Jerusalem, edited by Gabriella Airaldi and Benjamin Z. Kedar (Genoa, 1986) We thank the author for his … Continue reading
Historical Invasions/Historiographical Inventions: Snorri Sturluson and the Battle of Stamford Bridge By Elizabeth Ashman Rowe Medievalia: A Journal of Medieval Studies, Vol. 17 (1994)
Love and Hate In Medieval Warfare: The Contribution of Saint Augustine By F.H. Russell Nottingham Medieval Studies, Vol.31 (1987) We thank the editors of Nottingham Medieval Studies for their permission to republish this article.
Cloth and Credit: Aragonese War Finance in the Mid-Fifteenth Century By Alan Ryder War and Society, Vol.2:1 (1984) War & Society publishes scholarly articles on the causes, experience and impact of war in all periods of history. While articles dealing with … Continue reading
The Significance of Egypt By J.J. Saunders Aspects of the Crusades, by J.J. Saunders (Canterbury University Press, 1962) John Joseph Saunders (1910 – 1972) was an important medieval historian who focused on Islamic and Asian history. Among his works are The … Continue reading
From ‘Milites Christi’ to ‘Mali Christiani’: The Italian Communes in Western Historical Literature By Sylvia Schein I Comuni Italiani nel Regno Crociato di Gerusalemme / The Italian communes in the Crusading Kingdom of Jerusalem, edited by Gabriella Airaldi and Benjamin … Continue reading
Between East and West: the Jews in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem 1099-1291 By Sylvia Schein East and West in the Crusader States : Context, Contacts, Confrontations Vol.1 (1996) East and West in the Crusader States: Context, Contacts, Confrontations is a series … Continue reading
Rival and Epigone of Kiev: The Vladimir-Suzdal’ Principality By Ihor Sevcenko Ukraine between East and West: Essays on Cultural History to the Early Eighteenth Century (Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press, 1996) Thank you to Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press, … Continue reading
Warfare in the Medieval Gaelic Lordships By Katherine Simms The Irish Sword, Vol.12 (1975)
The Inner Asian Warriors By Denis Sinor Journal of the American Oriental Society Vol.101 (1981)
The Nomads’ Armament: Home Made Weapons By John Masson Smith Jr. Religion, Customary Law, and Nomadic Technology, edited by Michael Gervers and Wayne Schlepp – Toronto Studies in Central and Inner Asia, No.4 (Toronto, 2000)
Castle Warfare in the Gesta Stephani By Sarah Speight Chateau Gaillard XIX: Actes du Colloque International de Graz, 1998 (2000) 1. Introduction The reign of the English king Stephen (1135-1154), popularly known as `the Anarchy’, is a fruitful source of … Continue reading
The Alexandrian Crusade (1365) and the Mamluk Sources: Reassessment of the kitab al-ilmam of an-Nuwayri al-Iskandarani By Jo Van Steenbergen East and West in the crusader states : context, contacts, confrontations, Vol.3 (2003)
On the need for further studies of medieval Hungary in English By Paul Stephenson Byzantina et Slavica Cracoviensia III: Byzantium and East Central Europe (2001)
By Neil Strevett Continue reading
“Spurred on by the Fear of Death”: Refugees and Displaced Populations during the Mongol Invasion of Hungary By James Ross Sweeney Nomadic Diplomacy, Destruction and Religion from the Pacific to the Adriatic: Papers prepared for the Central and Inner Asian … Continue reading
The Tactics of the Battles of Boroughbridge and Morlaix By T.F. Tout English Historical Review v.19 (1904)
Some Neglected Fights between Crecy and Poitiers By T.F. Tout English Historical Review v.20 (1905)
Notes on the numbers and organization of the ninth-century Byzantine army Warren T. Treadgold Greek, Roman and Byzantine Studies v.21 (1980)
William of Malmesbury, Historian of Crusade By Rod Thomson Reading Medieval Studies v.23 (1997)
The anonymous author of the Vita Edwardi Secundi provides one of the best accounts of the reign of Edward II. This includes his description of the battle of Bannockburn in 1314, where the Scots under Robert Bruce defeated Edward and … Continue reading
