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Robert W. Jones

Bloodied Banners: Martial Display on the Medieval Battlefield (Warfare in History) Hardcover – Illustrated, 20 May 2010

by Robert W. Jones (Author)

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`A penetrating investigation of medieval martial display... The reader is struck by its originality, and by its sophisticated and critical interpretative engagement with historical and literary sources. Particularly notable is the author's subtle exploration of the function of armour: not only its practical role, but as a form of display... A refreshingly different approach to the world of the medieval combatant and his place within that "host of many colours" that was a medieval army, it adds a new dimension to our understanding of medieval warfare.' Dr ANDREW AYTON, Senior Lecturer in History, University of Hull The medieval battlefield was a place of spectacle and splendour. The fully-armed knight, bedecked in his vivid heraldic colours, mounted on his great charger, riding out beneath his brightly-painted banner, is a stock image of war and the warrior in the middle ages. Yet too often the significance of such display has been ignored or dismissed as the empty preening of a militaristic social elite. Drawing on a broad range of source material and using innovative historical approaches, this book completely re-evaluates the way that such men and their weapons were viewed, showing that martial display was a vital part of the way in which war was waged in the middle ages. It maintains that heraldry and livery served not only to advertise a warrior's family and social ties, but also announced his presence on the battlefield and right to wage war. It also considers the physiological and psychological effect of wearing armour, both on the wearer and those facing him in combat, arguing that the need for display in battle was deeper than any medieval cultural construct and was based in the fundamental biological drives of threat and warning.

Print length

218 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Boydell Press
Publication date

20 May 2010
Dimensions

15.6 x 1.91 x 23.39 cm
ISBN-10

1843835614
ISBN-13

978-1843835615
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Tobias Capwell
26
Paperback
18 offers from £6.29

Product description

Review

A good example of new, fruitful routes into the study of medieval warfare. ― EUROPEAN REVIEW OF HISTORY

Provides a large amount of material for those interested in medieval military culture. ― THE RICARDIAN

Engagingly readable and clear. [...] It will be useful for undergraduates and for more specialized audiences from a variety of fields, including literature and art history, not just military history. [...] This is a masterful and fresh appraisal of this rich and fascinating field. ― PARERGON

Well-researched and referenced. ― ANTIQUARIES JOURNAL

An excellent, vivid, well written book, an entertaining and encouraging work. ― HOBILAR

Provides an important corrective to prevailing views regarding military value of martial display. ― THE MEDIEVAL REVIEW

About the Author

ROBERT W. JONES gained his PhD from Cardiff University.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Boydell Press; Illustrated edition (20 May 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 218 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1843835614
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1843835615
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.6 x 1.91 x 23.39 cm

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Robert W. Jones

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I am a historian of the medieval period, specialising in the socio-cultural history of medieval warfare and warriors. Military history is very often considered the preserve of retired generals and focused on tedious narratives of battle and campaign. For me, warfare is a cultural phenomenon and its study should be as much about understanding the participants and their experience of battle as of the battles themselves. To my mind, the behaviour of the warriors on the battlefield was informed as much by the culture and society from which they came as by the practicalities of combat.

I came to military history from a background in reenactment and costumed interpretation (something I still do; I have my own fourteenth-century harness and am a practitioner and instructor of Historical European Martial Arts, focusing on medieval longsword combat), and so experiential learning (learning by doing) is a large part of my research.

It is one of the joys of working for Advanced Studies in England - a study abroad programme based in Bath, England, where I am the Alumni Association Coordinator - that not only am I supported in my on-going research but I also get to teach on the subjects of knighthood and chivalry, and military cultures to bright, enthusiastic students. That teaching invariably informs my thinking about my research and, I feel, improves the quality of my work.

I am a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a Visiting Scholar in History at Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania.

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It's Me

Simply excellent

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 May 2013

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Despite the relatively high price, this book is worth every penny. Exceptionally well written in a fashion that allows both the novice researcher to access the information, whilst still presenting the scholarly aspects with sufficient depth to be useful. The references throughout the book are exceptionally good - not something that would normally be noticed; however, the footnote format complete with source material page numbers is a method I sincerely wish all authors would use.

The book perfectly bridges the gap between heraldry and the tools of war - and the interplay between self advertisement and getting the job done.

Put simply (and glibly) you need this book in your collection.

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Mrs Carole Mooney

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 November 2016

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An amazingly good book

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Gruff

An engrossing study, well worth a look.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 September 2011

Bloodied Banners: Martial Display on the Medieval Battlefield is an engrossing study of the various elements; visual, audible, religious and practical that characterized not only medieval warfare, but also the class of warriors for whom the battlefield was a place to communicate social pedigree, demonstrate combative prowess and reinforce their right to wage war.

Although the book is written for an academic readership it is written in a style that is accessible to an interested non-academic, with sources explained in context and occasional touches of wry humour that give a sense of the author talking to, rather than at, the reader.

Another strength of this book is the wide range of sources that the author draws upon in order to bring together a cogent sense of the different facets of medieval military display. In particular, the use of romantic and poetic writings alongside hard-nosed military sources gives a vivid impression, not only of how the warrior classes fought, but also how they perceived themselves and how they wished to be perceived by others. The feeling that one is exploring the mindset of the medieval warrior is perhaps the most enjoyable aspect of reading this book.

The following review of the content represents my understanding of each chapter as I read it. Any misrepresentation of the conclusions drawn is my fault entirely!

The study begins with an account of the death of Sir John Chandos, an English knight who meets a sticky end due, in large part, to the encumbrance of his long robe - seemingly worn for nothing more than flamboyant effect. The author goes on to contend that such apparent vanity was actually an important part of the wider social, psychological and military display that defined and legitimized the warrior class within society. In chapter one the author explains how heraldry was not, as we may expect, a means of differentiating between friend and foe on the battlefield. In fact, examples are given of battles where similar heraldic devices caused confusion between opposing troops. The author suggest that heraldry was instead a means of displaying the family pedigree of the wearer and also a means by which a warrior could project aggressive qualities through the use of heraldic beasts. In chapter two the author outlines how the banner was used to advertise the presence of a commander on the field to both his men and his enemies. It also fulfilled the role of a focal point for the commander's men, and served as a stamp of the legitimacy of the commander's right to wage war. Chapter three deals with the development of the livery badge or field sign which was used as a means of establishing collective identity within the retinue of a medieval lord. In chapter four the role of audible display is examined with reference to the role of trumpets as a means of relaying the intentions of the commander to his forces. The use of the collective war-cry is also considered in terms of its unifying effect on allies and psychological intimidation of enemies, including within the context of conflicts between opposing cultures (e.g. Western Christian and Eastern Muslim) where the `alien' sounds produced by the enemy amplified the sense of intimidation. Chapters five and six are concerned with the practical and psychological roles of armour. Of particular interest is the suggestion that the ritual of donning armour conveyed the wearer through a process of psychological transformation from the state of a genteel human to one of a warrior, separated from human contact and given authority to kill. The significance of the lacing on of the helmet is focused upon as the apex of this process - the moment at which the man becomes the warrior as his face is sealed within his armour. Chapter seven's study of the display significance of the sword and the horse shows how the significance of the sword changed over time. Initially a mystic weapon with a name, even a soul, of it's own, the sword came to be regarded over time as a practical tool but still one that represented the authority and prowess of the one that wielded it. The importance of the horse was, unlike the sword, measured purely in practical terms (speed, strength and temperament) and as a measure of the wealth and status of the owner. Chapter eight deals with the role of religious symbolism in display, examining how a convergence of military and religious ideas led to medieval warriors adopting religious symbols and relics to add to the legitimacy of their right to wage war. Before bringing the conclusions of the previous chapters together, the author assesses in chapter nine whether medieval martial display can add weight to the suggestion that the fourteenth century witnessed a military revolution. He concludes that whilst this period did see changes in tactics and weapons, the underlying values of martial display remained constant and rooted in the socio-cultural norms that it sought to uphold.

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