Medieval Warfare

The Medieval period was a time of noblemen who fought for love, honor, and country under a code of chivalry. "Chivalry comes from the French word cheval, chivalry means someone who fights from horseback. The term also meant "knighthood".(Matthews, Platt, Thomas p.234-235)." In this period the nobility used war as a way to show their power and hold their status by being professional soldiers. There were also lots of soldiers from the lower classes who were led into battle under nobles. These soldiers fought for the nobleman to maintain their safety and land. The soldiers rode into battle on their horses in full armor with weapons drawn ready to defeat their enemies one by one. They laid siege castles for weeks and months at a time until the battle was won.

To better understand warfare in medieval times we must look at the armor and weapons that were used in battle. According to Rogers, "The main hand weapon for most types of soldiers throughout the medieval period was the sword (Rogers p.432) ". The war hammer and mace were also used by the cavalry soldiers as close range weapons. "These weapons were made of iron so they would be heavier and were capable of inflicting more damage against heavily armored soldiers (Rogers p.440). There were some innovations at this time that helped the cavalry soldier, like the high saddle. "This saddle had high supports in front of and behind the rider, and stirrups which made it possible for the cavalryman to remain firmly in the saddle during a rapid charge (Bradbury p.19)". For the soldiers on the ground other weapons like Longbows, crossbows, slings, and poleaxes were used. According to Rogers, "The sling was a weapon for lower-status soldiers (Rogers p.441)". The longbow was a very portable...

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Rogers, Clifford J. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Medieval Warfare and Military Technology.

Vol. 3. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010. N. pag. 3 vols. Print.

Matthews, Roy T., F. DeWitt Platt, and Thomas F. Nobel. The Western Humanities. Seventh ed.

New York: McGraw-Hill, 2010. 233-71. Print.

Bradbury, Jim. The Medieval Siege. New York: Boydell & Brewer Ltd., 1992. N. pag.

NetLibrary. Web. 6 June 2010.

Hetfield, James . "For Whom The Bell Tolls". Ride the Lightning. Elektra / Wea, 1984.