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 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
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
By Neil Strevett Continue reading
Killing or Clemency? Ransom, Chivalry and Changing Attitudes to Defeated Opponents in Britain and Northern France, 7-12th centuries Matthew J. Strickland Krieg im Mittelalter (2001) On 25 September, 1066, the forces of King Harold II of England fell upon the … Continue reading
The recruitment of armies in the early middle ages: what can we know? Timothy Reuter Military Aspects of Scandinavian Society in a European Perspective, AD 1-1300 (Copenhagen, 1997) Abstract The study of medieval warfare has probably both benefitted and suffered from … Continue reading
English Refugees in the Byzantine Armed Forces: The Varangian Guard and Anglo-Saxon Ethnic Consciousness Nicholas C.J. Pappas (Sam Houston State University, 2004) One of the most interesting episodes in Byzantine military history and in medieval English history is the Anglo-Saxon … Continue reading
A Military History of Belarusian Lands Up to the End of Twelfth Century A.D. Jahor Novikaǔ Jahor Novikaǔ A Military History of Belarusian Lands Up to the End of 12th Century A.D. Vol. 1. (Minsk, Belarus: Łohvinaǔ, 2007). (Новікаў Я.У. … Continue reading
‘Treachery in the Remotest Territories of Scotland’: Northern Resistance to the Canmore Dynasty, 1130-1230 R. Andrew McDonald (University College of Cape Breton) Canadian Journal of History: vol. 33 (August 1999), pp. 161-192 The Annals of Ulster, a rich source of … 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
The Crusading Motivation of the Italian City Republics in the Latin East, c. 1096-1104 Christopher J. Marshall Rivista di Bizantinistica v.1 (1991) Throughout the 200 years of its existence, the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem was heavily reliant upon the Italian city … Continue reading
The Rouen Riot and Conan’s Leap Warren Hollister Peritia: v. 10 (1996) In the course of the eleventh century, and more commonly in the twelfth, many of the growing towns of Western Europe were disrupted by communal riots. The objective … Continue reading
Militia and Malitia: The Bernardine Vision of Chivalry Areyh Grabois The Second Crusade and the Cistercians: New York (1992) In his treatise, De laude novae militiae,l Bernard of Clairvaux distinguished between the Templars and the entire secular knighthood. The first … Continue reading
Dover Castle and the Great Siege of 1216 John Goodall Chateau Gaillard XIX: Actes du Colloque International de Graz, 1998 (2000) Commanding the shortest sea crossing between England and the Continent, Dover Castle was a vital strategic and communication lynch-pin … Continue reading
War and Chivalry in the History of William the Marshal By John Gillingham Thirteenth Century England v.2 (1988) Ever since the History of William the Marshal was discovered in the late nineteenth century it has been universally recognized as a document … Continue reading
Anna Comnena, the Alexiad and the First Crusade John France Reading Medieval Studies: v.10 (1984) Abstract By her own account Anna Comnena began to write the Alexiad shortly after the death of her husband, Nicephoros Bryennios, in 1137. He had … Continue reading
The Siege of Nottingham Castle in 1194 Trevor Foulds Transactions of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire: v.95 (1991) The last years of King Henry II’s reign were troubled by fierce family squabbles between him and his sons, Henry, Richard, Geoffrey and … Continue reading
The Origin of the Second Crusade George Ferzoco The Second Crusade and the Cistercians (1992) In seeking to establish the formal origin of the Second Crusade, one finds that in Vetralla on December 1,1145, Pope Eugenius III issued the crusading … Continue reading
Pagan Peverel: An Anglo-Norman Crusader Susan Edgington Crusade and Settlement: Papers read at the First Conference of the Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East and presented to R.C. Smail (1985) Thousands of men participated in the … Continue reading
Looking Back on the Second Crusade: Some Late Twelfth-Century English Perspectives Peter W. Edbury The Second Crusade and the Cistercians It was as long ago as 1953 that Giles Constable published his seminal study, “The Second Crusade as seen by … Continue reading
Bertran de Born (c.1140-1202), lord of Autofort, was one of the most famous French troubadours of the Twelfth century. His poetry covers a wide variety of topics, including warfare. Be’m plai lo gais temps de pascor[1] Well do I love … Continue reading
The Annals of Roger of Hoveden provide an account of the Battle of Gisors between Richard I of England and Philip Augustus of France, which took place in 1198. Hoveden writes down two versions of this battle, and includes a … Continue reading
William of Newburgh (d.1198) was one of England’s most important historians in the twelfth century. In the following section, he details the war that broke out in 1173 between Henry II against his son, Henry, called ‘The Younger’. Henry II … Continue reading
Following the death of William Rufus in 1100, his younger brother Henry took the English crown, spurning the claim of his elder brother, Robert Curthose, duke of Normandy. Continue reading
The Amloravid empire collapsed in 1145, leading to al-Andalus fragmenting into a new collection of taifa states. Alfonso VII was able to exploit this situation by capturing Cordova in 1146. He then organized another expedition with Genoa and Pisa to … Continue reading
This account, from The Book of the Foundation of Walden Monastery, of the military actions of Geoffrey de Mandeville, Earl of Essex, during the reign of King Stephen. In 1143, Stephen imprisoned Geoffrey, forcing the earl to surrender various castles. … Continue reading
One of the most important events in this war was the battle of Lincoln, fought on February 2, 1141, where Stephen was defeated and captured by Robert, Earl of Gloucester. Continue reading
The Chronicle of John of Worcester is the only source that records the attack on Worcester in 1139, by Miles of Gloucester, who rebelled against King Stephen earlier that year. In retaliation, Waleran, count of Meulan, sacked Sudelely. One morning … Continue reading
This section of the Gesta Stephani deals with events in Bristol in 1138. Geoffrey Talbot had just lost his bases of Hereford and Weobley to Stephan, while Gilbert de Lacy was an enemy of Miles of Gloucester, who at that … Continue reading
Walter, archdeacon of the diocese of Thérouanne, spent his youth among the regular canons of Saint Martin of Ypres whence he was called by John of Warneton, bishop of Thérouanne in 1115. John made him archdeacon of Flanders in 1116 … Continue reading
Walter, archdeacon of the diocese of Thérouanne, spent his youth among the regular canons of Saint Martin of Ypres whence he was called by John of Warneton, bishop of Thérouanne in 1115. John made him archdeacon of Flanders in 1116 … Continue reading
Herman of Tournai provides an invaluable account of the history his monastery and the events of Flanders and Hainaut during the late eleventh and first half of the twelfth centuries. Continue reading
Galbert of Bruges was a cleric who worked principally in the fiscal administration of the castellany of Bruges. He was thus a marginal member of the count’s curia, at least when the count was in Bruges, and it is reasonable … Continue reading
The Battle of Sandwich and Eustace the Monk English Historical Review: v.27 (1912) Abstract The battle of Sandwich, 24 August 1217, followed so closely upon the fair of Lincoln, 20 May 1217, that the careful analysis of authorities made some … Continue reading
Richard, prior of the church of Hexham, wrote an account of Scotland’s invasion of England in 1138, along with their defeat at the Battle of the Standard. Continue reading
Suger, 1081–1151, French cleric and statesman, abbot of Saint-Denis from 1122, minister of kings Louis VI and Louis VII, wrote this account of Louis VI. Continue reading
The account of this battle comes from The Greater Annals of Cologne, which was first written around 1175. Continue reading
The following are two accounts of the invasion of Cyprus by Richard I in 1191. The Seljuk Turk under Saladin had recaptured Jerusalem in 1187 and Cyprus’ geographical position placed her on the route of the Crusaders from Western Europe … Continue reading
On July 4, 1187, the Crusader army of the Kingdom of Jerusalem suffered a crushing defeat in the hills a few miles to the west of the Sea of Galilee. The victor was that most famous of all medieval Muslim … Continue reading
Translated by Helen J. Nicholson Continue reading
Here are several versions of the founding of the Knights Templar, from sources translated by Helen Nicholson Continue reading
A Norman-Italian Adventurer in the East: Richard of Salerno, 1097-1112 George T. Beech Anglo-Norman Studies: v.15 (1993) Abstract The adventures, hardships, and disappointments awaiting the Europeans who went on the crusades have long been well known; indeed enough information has … Continue reading
A Forgotten Crusade: Alfonso VII of Leon-Castile and the Campaign for Jaen (1148) Simon Barton Historical Research: v.73 (2000) Abstract Between 114-7 and 1149 the rulers of the realms of Christian Iberia conducted a series of victorious campaigns against the … Continue reading
William the Marshal, earl of Pembroke, was one of the most noteworthy knights of the Middle Ages. After almost being killed by King Stephen when he was a child, William grew up to be a prominent tournament competitor, and then … Continue reading
German bishops and archbishops were important military commanders in the Holy Roman Empire, often leading troops to battle. In the following account by Otto of Saint Blasien, the chronicler describes how a Roman army besieged Reinald, the archbishop of Cologne … Continue reading
From Tyrants to Soldiers of Christ: the nobility of twelfth-century Leon-Castile and the struggle against Islam Simon Barton (University of Exeter) Nottingham Medieval Studies: v.44 (2000) On 2 July 1120, Bishop Diego of León made a generous grant of property, … Continue reading
The Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick I, nicknamed Barbarossa, often was engaged in campaigns in Italy against rebellious cities such as Milan. As he began one campaign in 1158, Frederick issued a set of rules for his army to follow. Frederick’s … Continue reading
Frontier Warfare in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem: The Campaign of Jacob’s Ford, 1178-79 Malcolm Barber The Crusades and their Sources: Essays Presented to Bernard Hamilton (1998) The construction by the Latins of the fortress of Chastellet at the place … Continue reading
Raoul de Cambrai is one of the most violent and illuminating of the twelfth-century epic poems of chivalry known as the chansons de geste. Continue reading
The main focus of the Second Crusade (1145-49) was an attempt by Christian forces to expand the territory held by Christian forces in the Holy Land. One of the key players was Conrad III, the Holy Roman Emperor, who led … Continue reading
One of the most interesting contemporary accounts of the crusades comes from a twelfth-century resident of Damascus. Ibn Al-Qalanisi was a distinguished scholar in Damascus, and was twice elected the mayor of that city. His Chronicle begins in 1097 with … Continue reading
Myra Miranda Bom Women in the Military Orders of the Crusades The New Middle Ages. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. Pp. xiv, 230. $85.00. ISBN-13: 9780230114135. Reviewed in The Medieval Review: TMR 13.03.15 The topic of women’s participation in the military orders is one which … Continue reading
By John Gillingham in War and Government: Essays in Honour of J.O. Prestwich, edited by John Gillingam and J.C. Holt (Boydell, 1984) Continue reading
A. Bysted, K. V. Jensen, C.S. Jensen, J. Lind (eds.) Jerusalem in the North: Denmark and the Baltic Crusades, 1100-1522 Outremer. Studies in the Crusades and the Latin East 1 (Turnhout, Belg.: Brepols, 2012). xiv+393pp. ISBN: 978-2-503-52325-5. According to the authors of … Continue reading
“Fino alle mura di Babilonia”. Aspetti militari della conquista normanna del Sud Giovanni Amatuccio Rassegna Storica Salernitana, n.30 (1998) L’apparizione dei Normanni nell’XI sullo scenario mediterraneo si caratterizza, a livello militare, come un incontro-scontro con le diverse realtà preesistenti: Longobardi, Bizantini … Continue reading
Saracen Archers in Southern Italy De Re Militari, June (2001) Giovanni Amatuccio During the first phase of their Southern Italian conquest, the Normans included archers in their troops; but such usage seems to have been sporadic and simple. The tactic … Continue reading
The following text details the tournament held at Lagni-sur-Marne, in 1179. Organized by Henry, count palatine of Champagne and Brie, this tournament was unusually large, with the writer of our history estimating that 3,000 knights attending. Continue reading
The Chronicle of Matthew of Edessa is considered by scholars to be a primary source of major importance for the history of the Near East during the period of the early Crusades. This work relates events that occurred between the … Continue reading
The following are two accounts of the invasion of Cyprus by Richard I in 1191. The Seljuk Turk under Saladin had recaptured Jerusalem in 1187 and Cyprus’ geographical position placed her on the route of the Crusaders from Western Europe … Continue reading
A multi-book essay review by Sean McGlynn has appeared in the European Review of History/Revue europeenne d’histoire 20.1 (2013): 153-159. For those who have institutional access, you should be able to link to it here. The books reviewed en masse are Medieval Warfare 1000–1300, ed. … Continue reading
In the following letter, the Patriarch of Antioch describes events in the Crusader States that took place in 1164. To describe briefly, the King of Jersualem, Amalric I, joined forces with a Kurdish emir, Shirkuh, to besiege the Egyptian city … Continue reading
Translated by William Watson. From: Canadian/American Slavic Studies 35 (2001). 1. al-Kāmil fi ‘t-Ta’rīkh, viii, 412-415 “The Rūs Seizure of the Town of Barda’a” (332 A.H./943-944 A.D.) In this year (332) armed bands of Rūs went by sea (the Caspian) to the … Continue reading
Translated by Helen Nicholson from the editions in the Monumenta Germaniae Historica Scriptores, ed.Bill Zajac. In 1153, Baldwin launched a major attack on Ascalon, with an army large enough to invest the great city completely. The siege dragged on for months, with … Continue reading
Boncompagno da Signa (1168?-1240?) was an important Italian scholar who wrote several treatises and other works as he moved around between cities such as Ancona, Bologna and Venice. His account of the siege of Ancona, which he wrote around 1201, … Continue reading
The Amloravid empire collapsed in 1145, leading to al-Andalus fragmenting into a new collection of taifa states. Alfonso VII was able to exploit this situation by capturing Cordova in 1146. He then organized another expedition with Genoa and Pisa to … Continue reading
In the 1190s, Alfonso VIII of Castile (1158-1214) undertook a raid into the region around Seville, the Almohad capital of Spain. In retaliation, the Almohad ruler, Ya’qub (1184-99) went on his own campaign against Alfonso, leading to his victory at … Continue reading
The Battle of Bremule was fought in 1119 between Henry I of England against Louis VI (the Fat) of France. Orderic Vitalis provides the most extensive account of this battle, noting how few people were killed during the fight. Meanwhile … Continue reading
Ágrip af Nóregskonungasögum wrote his account of the history of the Norwegian kings around 1190. Along with Theodoricus Monachus’ Historia de Antiquitate Regum Norwagiensium and the anonymous Historia Norvegiae, this work represents one of the earliest surving accounts of the history of Norway and … Continue reading
Cristina Tonghini Shayzar I: The Fortification of the Citadel Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2012. 539 pp. This book, an immense assembly of transcribed inscriptions, re-established floor plans, chemical analysis of mortar and construction materials is very much like the building—or rather … Continue reading
Rubenstein, Jay. Armies of Heaven: The First Crusade and the Quest for the Apocalypse. New York: Basic Books, 2011. Pp. xiv, 402. $29.99. ISBN-13: 978-0-465-01929-8. Reviewed by John France, United States Military Academy, West Point <[email protected]> Available at The Medieval Review 12.06.05
Aurell, Martin. Le chevalier lettré: Savior et conduite de l’aristocratie aux XIIe et XIIIe siècles. Fayard: Paris, 2011. Pp. 540. EUR 26. ISBN: 978-2-213-66233-6. Reviewed by Amy Livingstone, Wittenberg University, [email protected] Available at The Medieval Review TMR 12.02.22
“Ego et uxor mea… :” Countess Clemence and Her Role in the Comital Family and in Flanders (1092–1133) by Penelope Ann Adair Ph.D., History, University of California – Santa Barbara, 1993 ABSTRACT In an evaluation of Flemish countesses the eleventh and twelfth centuries, Clemence … Continue reading
