#medieval-warfare

#medieval-warfare

Scotland's in turmoil in the 1330s-and Edward III spots an opening. In this episode of Bow & Blade, Michael and Kelly break down the Battle of Dupplin Moor, where tactics, terrain, and timing turn chaos into catastrophe. The hosts of Bow & Blade: Kelly DeVries is a Professor at Loyola University in Maryland and Honorary Historical Consultant at the Royal Armouries. You can learn more about Kelly on his university webpage.

Mountains with predictably purple peaks drew a serrated line along the horizon. Above them iron grey cumulus warned of a gathering storm. On a plain beneath the sloping hill, moving inexorably towards an obsidian wall protecting an alabaster citadel, several armies converged. Ralph turned to the gaunt grey figure standing a few steps away, cocked a sceptical eyebrow and muttered: "Seriously?"

Every culture that has made and used swords has viewed them as extraordinary objects. They feature predominantly in the history, cosmology and mythology of communities across the globe, from Africa to northern Europe, from East Asia to the Indian sub-continent. Their appeal is not solely attributable to humanity's timeless fascination with death. This is clear from the spectrum of meanings attached to swords across time and space, encompassing power, wisdom, joy, protection - and fear.

Bernie and I had never considered or even discussed the possibility of writing a global history of warfare, or even one that "merely" covered Eurasia and the Mediterranean world. Our first foray into this type of work was in 2014, when we pitched the idea to Routledge that would eventually become Warfare in Medieval Europe. That book took almost two years to write because of the need to synthesize a vast range of scholarship outside of our own areas of specialization.

The trebuchet was the most fearsome weapon of medieval times, a giant catapult that could lay waste to any fortress by battering its walls with boulders.