The Medieval Tournament as Spectacle - (Royal Armouries Research) by Alan V Murray & Karen Watts (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Fresh insights into the development of the tournament as an opportunity for social display.

The period from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century witnessed a rapid development of the tournament. Alongside the original tourney - a mass battle fought between opposing armies of knights with minimal and rudimentary regulation - new forms of chivalric military contests emerged, in which entertainment featured alongside the necessity of practice for war. The joust featured individual combats, with increasingly elaborate rules and variations in form and accompanying pageantry, while the passage of arms placed tournaments within theatrical and allegorical formats.
This volume brings together the latest research on the late medieval tournament, demonstrating how such events, particularly at the courts of France, Burgundy, England and the German principalities, were increasingly integrated in wider festivities, ceremonies and diplomatic negotiations. Published in association with the Royal Armouries, it will appeal to all those interested in chivalric culture and medieval warfare.

Review Quotes

The Medieval Tournament as Spectacle is a touchstone for the study not only of the tournament but also of medieval European military history and sociocultural practices.-- "H-WAR"

The compendium does an excellent job bringing in the casual reader to the intricacies of the study of tourneys, while also broadening the knowledge of those more invested in such research. Readers come away from the book with an imagination's worth of images and stories, both historical and literary. On top of everything else, it really is a fun read.-- "DE RE MILITARI"

highly informative and clearly written by major experts in the field.-- "THE RICARDIAN"