What is the point of connection between medieval horse-riding practices and modern equestrian sports? Some say it is the sixteenth-century rise of the manege exercises, which developed into modern dressage, that is the starting point for equestrian sports in Europe. … Continue reading
At present, there are two opposite opinion on the nature of relations between knights and their warhorses. Many people believe that relations between knights and their warhorses were strictly utilitarian: a knight would have as much affection for his horse … Continue reading
To every success story, there is at least one, usually more than one, story of failure. If Lanval’s fairy did all the right things (see my previous post), the Devil, who adopted the guise of a beautiful forlorn female in … Continue reading
As mentioned in a previous post, there seems to have been a standard formula available to medieval would-be seductresses. Elements of the formula included tents, hot afternoons and distressed knights, all of which were necessary for a lusty lustful lady … Continue reading
This blog provides a rough guide to seducing a paragon of chivalry, bringing him to your feet – and to your bed – resulting in displays of chivalry by day and nights of exhausting pleasure. Caution: only a truly mighty night can endure this routine for long. But then, nothing prevents a damsel from abandoning the exhausted hero in favour of the next prey.
The formula is time-proven and recorded in at least two medieval romances, that of Sir Lanval (variously known as Sir Launfal and Sir Landevale), which contains a formula of successful seduction, and of Sir Perceval (the Lancelot-Graal cycle version entitled La Queste del saint graal), which offers a cautionary tale of failed seduction. Continue reading
There is something going on between saints and horses: a surprising number of saints, from the early years of Christianity, throughout the Middle Ages, and well into the early modern period, from all geographic regions, from Byzantium to Rus (for … Continue reading
the Centaur … is a man combined with a horse. Some say that they were horsemen of Thessaly, but because, as they rushed into battle, the horses and men seemed to have one body, they maintained the fiction of the Centaurs. In his Etymologies (Book 11, … Continue reading
If you have read my previous post on how Bishop Aidan gave a royally turned-out horse to a beggar, you are probably wondering where did Aidan get the beast in the first place. Without further ado, I reproduce here the … Continue reading
What would you do if, going along on your business, you met with a beggar, and you were short of cash? Christian duty notwithstanding, you probably wouldn’t give the beggar your good new Jaguar with keys and all-cover insurance into … Continue reading
via Call for papers for session papers on medieval equestrian history at IMC Leeds 2019
