[CHAPTER III]
The fourteenth century was eminently a period of transition and development in arms, armour, jousts, tournaments, and, indeed, in everything that related to warfare. During its course chain-mail harness had been gradually replaced by iron plate, bit by bit; a process hardly completed at the end. It was a century of almost incessant fighting among the nations, in the East as well as in the West; and the knightly armour of the period in its advancing stages lies open as a book before us, in a study of our effigies and brasses.
An epoch-making detonating force had come into operation, which inaugurated a new era in the art of war. In its early days ordnance was greatly inferior in destructive power to most of the mechanical engines of the period, but by the end of the century it had developed to an extent which produced a revolution in the relative resources at command for attack and defence; and the old chivalry became at length second in importance to the infantry arm.
Contemporary information regarding the jousts and tournaments of the earlier part of the fourteenth century is sparse; they are described in the Romances of Richard Cœur de Lion, Sir Ferumbras, and others, which teem with improbabilities though still of the greatest value; and there is a pictorial representation in Roman du roy Meliadus of “Une Mêlée de Tornois”.[56] This romance, probably written about the middle of the century, contains several pictorial examples of jousts and tournaments, and a wealth of coloured and gilded drawings on military subjects generally; while others are figured in the Froissart plates[57], Hefner’s Tratchten and Carter’s Painting and Sculpture. It is to Froissart that we are immeasurably most indebted for information regarding these martial games, more especially those of the second half of the fourteenth century, and his recitals contain much invaluable detail, which had been industriously collected from heralds, pursuivants, kings-of-arms and other officials at the tourney. Froissart was born about the year 1337, and he began to gather the material for his history when about twenty years of age, viz. eleven years after the battle of Crecy. The Chronicles commence with the coronation of Edward III, in 1337, and with the accession of Philip of Valois to the crown of France, and they close about the end of the century with the death of Richard II of England. At the beginning of his career Froissart was closely associated with the English court as a poet and historian, acting, indeed, as clerk to the closet to Queen Philippa, after which he entered the Church, becoming later canon of Chimay. His fine personal gifts soon placed him in excellent and confidential relations with many prominent and influential personages, both of France and England, able to give him reliable information for his history. His industry was remarkable, his style of writing both original and luminous, and his facts and narrations, though often marshalled with some confusion, are most reliable, so far at least as we can judge now. He was no extreme partisan, but tried, as he often says, whenever possible to hear both sides to a question. The weak place in his history is his dates and the lack of them. Sainte-Palaye says of him: “Froissart, qui a mieux réussi qu’acun de nos historiens à peindre les mœurs de son siècle, ...”
Royal jousts were often held in celebration of the coronations and weddings of princes; and such were usually proclaimed in advance in other countries of chivalry, so as to afford opportunities for the attendance of foreign cavaliers anxious to distinguish themselves; and these were provided with safe-conducts by the crown.
In 1302 “Tournies, iustes, barriers, and other warlike exercises, which yovng lords and gentlemen had appointed to exercise for their pastime in diuerse parts of the realme, were forbidden by the kings proclamations sent downe to be published by the shirifs in euerie countie abroad in the realme: the teste of the writ was from Westminster the sixteenth of Julie.”[58]
A tournament was proclaimed by the King of Bohemia and the Earl of Hainault, to be held at Condé in 1327, just after the coronation of Edward III; and Sir John de Hainault, who had been present at the ceremony, left England to attend this tourney, accompanied by fifteen English knights, who intended taking part.[59]
Holinshed states that in September, 1330, the King (Ed. III) held jousts in Cheapside, when he with twelve challengers answered all comers. The meeting continued over three days, and no serious accidents took place.
A joust of the same year is figured in Codex Balduini Trevirencis. The cavaliers are seen jousting with lances tipped with coronals and with flat triangular shields, heraldically ensigned: they wear ample surcoats and the horses are trapped in cloth. The heaumes bear fan crests, the saddles are without supports; and the object in contemplation is the splintering of lances and unhorsing.
“Great iustes was kept by King Edward at the toune of Dunstable in 1341, with other counterfeited feats of warre, at the request of diuerse yovng lords and gentlemen, whereat both the king and queene were present, with the more part of the lords and ladies of the land.”[60]