East meets West: Mounted Encounters in
Early and High Mediaeval Europe
Jürg Gassmann (https://www.degruyter.com/downloadpdf/j/apd.2017.5.issue-1/apd-2017-0003/apd-2017-0003.pdf)
Abstract – By the Late Middle Ages, mounted troops – cavalry in the form of
knights – are established as the domina
nt battlefield arm in North-Western
Europe. This paper considers the development of cavalry after the Germanic
Barbarian Successor Kingdoms such as the Visigoths in Spain or the Carolingian
Franks emerged from Roman Late Antiquity and their encounters with Islam, as
with the Moors in Iberia or the Saracens (Arabs and Turks) during the Crusades,
since an important part of literature ascribes advances in European horse breeding
and horsemanship to Arab influence. Speci
al attention is paid to information
about horse types or breeds, conformation, tactics – fighting with lance and bow
– and training. Genetic studies and the archaeological record are incorporated to
test the literary tradition.
Bit disappointing (I found the arguments very difficult to follow - I think a Scottish jury would have declared a verdict of "Not Proven") but some of the evidence is interesting.
Quote from: Erpingham on October 02, 2017, 06:59:15 PM
This paper considers the development of cavalry after the Germanic Barbarian Successor Kingdoms...
I hate this confusing recent usage of "Successor Kingdoms" for the Germans, when we have a perfectly good set of Successor Kingdoms already.
QuoteUnusually for Germanic horsemen, horse-archers were an integral part of the (Visigothic) force make-up.
Really?
Interesting article. There is no evidence that I know of for Visigoth horse archers. There have, I think , been finds of Hun/Avar type arrowheads in a Spanish context , but if I am recalling these correctly they are innthe area of Spain garrisoned by Rome after 553 and thus most likely represent a group of Bulgars or Avars transferred to Spain as part of the garrison.
There is a possibility that the Visigoths could deploy Basque javelin cavalry, though there are no descriptions of Visigoth armies that go dow to that level of detail. It looks like the Aquitainian kingdom hired large numbers of Basques and it is not too great a leap to see the Basques who were traditional providers of javelin armed foot depliying cavalry , similarly armed on the wide Gascon plains.
But heavy horse archers ; really?