Enjoy Medieval Warfare Vol III-6 - Heroic Legends in the Middle Ages

Medieval warfare vol iii-6 - heroic legends in the middle ages



Heroic legends in the Middle Ages



Subject: nils visser, 'historical introduction - larger than life'.



The theme of this issue, legendary heroes, may seem simplistic at first glance, but scratch the surface and multi-layered complexities are revealed. This makes the theme of this issue a difficult one that requires a careful approach for several reasons.



Topic: Kai Grundmann, 'The Ancient Warrior and His Medieval Legacy - Theodoric the Great'.



Theodoric, who ruled the Goths from 471 to 526, led them into Italy and built a strong successor kingdom to the Roman Empire. He nearly achieved imperial power, and was prized by his Roman subjects under emperors such as Trajan, while his fellow Goths revered him for his shrewd strategy and daring charges into enemy lines as a younger man. Theodoric quickly became a figure in early medieval legend and sagas, a role model for Charlemagne and noble knights, but he was also condemned by the Church as an Arian heretic, who had let Pope John I die in prison and executed the innocent and noble Symmachus.



Subject: Patrick S. Baker, 'The Battle of Roncevaux Pass - The Death of Roland'.

Illustrated by Carlos Garcia and Ru-Mor.



Roland, Charlemagne’s champion and the bravest of all the French knights, lay dying. He and his fellow Christian warriors had slain tens of thousands of enemy Saracens, but of the 20,000 men under his command, only Roland remained alive. After blowing his horn and placing his unbreakable sword, durendal, nearby, Roland lay down and died a conqueror’s death, facing the enemy (The Song of Roland, trans. from As Way, p. 92), untouched by an enemy weapon. Or so goes the chanson de geste, the song of heroic deeds. But what is the story behind the legend?



Subject: Nicholas Whaley, 'Leaves of Victory, Symbols of Freedom: The Swords of Grunwald'.



How could a pair of simple, naked swords, crafted over 600 years ago, become a national symbol of freedom that persists to this day? The swords were not crafted by a master smith, nor were they wielded by a fierce warrior. In fact, these swords never saw battle, though they did incite one – a battle that would decide the fate of nations – and the swords became an immortal symbol of victory and independence: the Grunwald swords.



Topic: Sydney E. dean, 'the arthurian legend in the light of military history: dux bellorum, come brittaniarum?'.



King Arthur. Two simple words that stir the imagination and the soul. And raise questions. Was there really an individual war leader (not necessarily a king or one bearing the name Arthur) who organised an effective resistance against the barbarian invaders? If there was a leader, was he Roman, British, both, or, as some theories suggest, neither? How did he train and organise his forces? Exploring all of these questions and the many competing (and equally valid) theories would take a book (and there are many such books available). Instead, this article will examine the early chronicles of the Arthurian cycle and compare their content with the known military situation in sub-Roman Britain.



Topic: Sean McGlynn, 'William of Kensham - Hero of the Resistance'.

Illustrated by Maxime Plasse and José Daniel Cabrera Peña.



William of Kensham is one of England’s great unsung heroes. A guerrilla fighter who led a highly effective resistance against the French invaders, his lack of noble status has deprived him of the full recognition he deserves. Yet in his lifetime, he was an inspirational figure mentioned by contemporary chroniclers who acknowledged his role in a largely forgotten war.



Subject: Filippo Donvito, 'A mysterious letter to the Christian West - the legend of Prester John'.

Illustrated by milek jakubiec.



Between 1155 and 1175, several versions of a strange letter circulated in the royal courts of Europe. They were addressed to the most powerful rulers of the Christian West: the two emperors, the pope, and the king of France. The author called himself “Prester John” and claimed to be the monarch of a virtually unlimited realm that stretched from Babylon to India, where contemporary scholars located the Garden of Heaven.



Subject: jean-claude brunner, 'an abbreviated austrian giant - andreas baumkircher'.

Illustrated by ganbat badamkhand.



Humble beginnings, an outstanding physique, courageous deeds and a sudden, violent end – the life of the Austrian condottiere and rebel Andreas Baumkircher (1420–1471) includes all the elements of a tragic hero. Despite his personal enmity with the Holy Roman Emperor and his subsequent execution (a fate shared by fellow military entrepreneur Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von Wallenstein), Baumkircher is honoured, as one of Austria’s 56 great commanders, with a statue in the entrance hall of Vienna’s Museum of Military History.



Special offers



The Castle: Dr. Konstantin Nossov, 'Mysterious Heritage in the Middle of the Syrian Desert: Qasr Al-Hayr'.

Illustrated by Vladimir Golubev.



Qasr al-Hayr (also known as Qasr al-Heir) East and Qasr al-Hayr West are twin structures, 200 kilometres apart, located east and west of Palmyra in Syria. Qasr al-Hayr means “walled castle” in Arabic. Indeed, both structures resemble a Roman desert fort in plan: a rectangular space surrounded by defensive walls reinforced with towers. Their obviously defensive character, together with their architectural decoration and their location in the middle of the Syrian desert, sparked much debate in the 20th century. They were mistaken, on the one hand, for palaces, and on the other, for fortified outposts in the heart of a desert, some as caravanserais and others as castles.



The Rebellion: Elizabeth Norton, 'The Uprising That Threatened Richard III's Throne: Buckingham's Rebellion'.

Illustrated by juhani jokinen.



Richard III's brief reign in England was brought to an end in August 1485 by Henry Tudor at Bosworth Field. What is less well known is that Tudor was involved in another conspiracy two years earlier, which could easily have overthrown the last king of the House of York. It was only Richard's quick thinking, as well as some luck with the weather, that ensured that Buckingham's Rebellion, one of the most widespread conspiracies of the late medieval period, failed without a single battle being fought.

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