Medieval Warhorse - by Oliver H Creighton & Robert Liddiard & Alan K Outram & Carly Ameen & Kate Kanne (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

The image of the armoured knight mounted on his charging warhorse is one of the most evocative of the Middle Ages. As distinctive symbols of social status, horses were central to the medieval aristocratic image and closely bound up with concepts of knighthood and chivalry, while as weapons of war bred for size, strength and stamina, they changed the face of battle.

Drawing upon new interdisciplinary research, this volume presents a fresh perspective on warhorses, and medieval horses generally, in Britain, understood within its wider European context. It adopts an integrated approach that covers the full array of evidence for medieval horses, from their physical remains (bones, teeth and DNA), equipment and armour, through to visual sources such as sculpture and wall paintings, and documentary and landscape evidence for the environments in which they were bred and trained. Analyses of these sources of information are first presented individually, and then integrated and cross-compared with the historical record to present a new chronology of horse stature, conformation and appearance and to generate new understandings of the changing place of the horse in the medieval world.

Review Quotes

'The book exemplifies how disciplines can partner to transform the way we do history.'
Dr Sophie Thérèse Ambler, History Today

'This book deftly combines disciplinary perspectives, recognising the limitations of individual approaches and source bases, to paint a fuller picture of this complex subject. It was laid a foundation for further study and provided greater nuance to our understanding of the medieval elite horse. It is a very rich account of a subject which continues to interest historians, students, and the medievally curious public alike.' Sunny Harrison, Current Archaeology