Part of the 'Soldiers' Lives Through History' series, this book vividly brings to life the soldier in the Middle Ages, from Scotland to Portugal, and the Mediterranean to the Baltic. All aspects of soldiers' lifes, including weaponry, clothing, medicine, transport, and more, are examined.

The author makes use of a variety of documentary sources to present a vivid picture of the experience of the medieval soldiers who fought in the Wars of the Roses. Includes new evidence gleaned from the recently discovered mass grave close to the battlefield at Towton in North Yorkshire. Bandw illustrations. Distributed by Books International. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

The author outlines the development of the undisciplined barbarian war bands of the Dark Ages into the feudal armies of the early Middle Ages. It deals with the arms and equipments of the soldier, not only from surviving specimens but also from descriptions in contemporary medieval documents. Vesey Norman covers the slow development of tactics and the transition of the warrior from a personal follower of a war leader to the knight who served his feudal overlord as a heavily armored cavalryman in return for land. He details the attitude of the Church to warfare, the rise of chivalry and the development of the knights of the military orders, the Templars, the Hospitallers and the Teutonic Knights. He answers such questions as what classes of men made up the army, who commanded them, and how they were equipped, paid and organized. Since armies frequently has to be transported by water, a brief description of contemporary ships in included.

The most dangerous arms in the world are those of horse and lance, because there is no means of stopping them, wrote a 15th-century commander, Jean de Bueil. From the fall of the Roman Empire to the end of the 15th century, the men (and a few women in disguise) who reported for military service or who led other men, scouted and skirmished, plundered and burned. If they did not slaughter the peasants they met, they took them prisoner to be sold as slaves or ransomed at heavy cost. It was a brutal time. Rogers illuminates the history of medieval soldiers in wartime and in peacetime, describing the lives of those who attacked, and those who defended, the fortified castles, towns, and lands of Europe and beyond in the Middle Age.

Depicts the life of ther medieval warrior, his training, his weapons and equipment, and his rights and obligations under the feudal sdystem.

There are no book-length studies in any language on the military career of King Henry II of England (1154-1189). Historians have generally regarded his warfare as cautious and limited, and the king himself, while noted for his considerable political and legal accomplishments, is not considered one of the great commanders of the Middle Ages. This book reexamines the medieval evidence and situates Henry II within the context of practiced warfare of the twelfth century. It sketches a narrative of his military activities from boyhood to death and examines his use of fortifications, manpower, strategy, tactics, and weaponry in the prosecution of war. The result is a revision of the king's military legacy: far from a passive or disinterested general, Henry II sought to vanquish his foes and expand his empire by way of direct military confrontation and was, in reality, a proficient commander of men.

This awesomely illustrated and factual account sheds light on medieval warfare, as well as their weapons, armor, siege engines, and much more.