I picked up a new book this weekend that I have found to be a great resource: The Hound and the Hawk: The Art of Medieval Hunting by John Cummins.

It's a quick read; I have read the first 3 chapters so far and feel I could run a session involving the hunting of a Hart, either by chasing it down with dogs ("force of hounds") or with bows ("bow and stable"). It has all the details needed: the number and role of huntsmen and hounds, how the hunt proceeds, the role of the nobles involved, the equipment needed, etc.

A hunt would be a great way of introducing PCs to a group of nobles, stumbling upon something of interest in the forrest, or to be involved in a "hunting accident". All good fodder for a game.

Further chapters cover: symbolism of the deer, types of deer, hunting hares, boars, foxes, wolves, bears, otters, lynx, and badger. Then the book moves on to the second half dedicated to falconry.

I hope one of the HQs down the line develops hunting in the way it has for tournaments. But until then there is this book.

My local library has this, so I just put a hold request on it so I can check it out. I am getting back into working on Hârn materials after an almost two year hiatus, and my VERY involved bestiary work could use some of the above as color for how animals impact the culture is the philosophical/folklore way. This might prove to be some useful background to flesh out some entries on such animals as to how they are perceived in the culture beyond the zoological and/or economic aspect of things.

Thanks for the heads, up.

I bought this a couple of years ago. It's superb.

The subject matter is obviously highly specialised, which is why I've never mentioned it as a general Harnic book reference, but if you;re at all interested in medieval hunting, it's very much worth reading. There's tons of infrormation on how a hunt was organised, the codes used when blowing a hunting horn and so on. And, of course, there's all the top medieval tips on hunting unicorns and other fantabulous beasts.

Top notch.

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http://www.penultimateharn.com

If only it had a glossary

This series has been briefly mentioned before.

I just heard Mr. Whyte read from his latest book (Clothar the Frank, first book of a 2 book series "Golden Eagle") last night. So naturally I picked up a copy. Mr. Whyte is an elegant reader and I strongly suggest you keep your eye out for him at conventions and bookshops.

Dream of Eagles is a series of 7 books set in Roman Britain. The story begins with the forging of Excaliber and moves along until Arthur pulls the sword from the stone. Mr. Whyte has worked hard and long in bringing these stories to light. The level of detail and practical lore encompased in these fictional books is astonishing.

I cannot recommend these books highly enough.
http://www.penguinblogs.ca/whyte/
http://www.camulod.com/

The books of the series are:
-------------------------
The Skystone
The Singing Sword
Eagle's Brood
The Saxon Shore
The Sorcerer: Fort at River's Bend
The Sorcerer: Metamorphosis
Uther

Just my 2d.

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Rebecca Downey
ketherian@gmail.com

Ah, a new series... Most excellent! I too am a big fan of these books and highly recommend them.

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:: Tim Falkenberg ::
tim.admin@harnforum.com

I enjoyed the first couple of books of that series, but I found that (like many fantasy series) it started to bog down after a while. But, it is an interesting take on the Arthurian legends.

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Keith Mann
I really must get around to changing my .sig

This thread is too long. I collected most of the references and added few of my own. The classification is maybe inaccurate.

Hârnic Wishlist (Bibliography)


FICTION
-------

Andrews, Allen: Castle Crespin
Barringer, Leslie: Gerfalcon
Bourgenon, Francis: Les compagnons du crepuscule
Cornwell, Bernard: The Archer's Tale
--- The Winter King
Cherryh, C. J.: The Sword of Knowledge
Crichton, Michael: Timeline
Dickson, Gordon R.: Jamie the Red
Doherty, Paul: Hugh Corbet Series
Doyle, Arthur C.: The White Company
Duggan, Alfred: Count Bohemond
Eco, Umberto: Baudolino
--- The Name of the Rose
Ellis, Peter: Father Cadfael Series
Follet, Ken: Pillars of Heaven
Gemmell, David: Druss the Legend
--- Waylander
Godwin, Parke: Robin and the King
Gordon, Alan: Jester Series
Howard, Robert E: The Conan Series
Jecks, Michael: The Tournament of Blood
Kerr, Katherine: Deverry Series
Keyes, Gregory: The Briar King
Kluger, Richard: The Sheriff of Nottingham
Knight, Bernard: Crowner John Series
L'Amour, Louis: The Walking Drum
Lawhead, Steven: Byzantium
--- The Black Rood
--- The Iron Lance
--- The Mystic Rose
Martin, George R. R.: Song of Fire and Ice
Modesitt, Jr, L. E.: The Magic of Recluse
Penman, Sharon Kay: Dragon's Lair
--- When Christ and His Saints Slept
Pyle, Howard: Otto of the Silverhand
Rivelle, Stephen J.: The Booke of Days
Robb, Candace: Owen the Archer Series
Scott, Walter: Ivanhoe
Shaara, Jeff: Gone to Soldiers
--- Rise to Rebellion
--- The Glorious Cause
Shipway, George: Knight in Anarchy
Tarr, Judith: Ars Magica
Tolkein, John R. R.: The Lord of the Rings
Tranter, Nigel: Steps to the Empty Throne,
--- The Path of the Hero King,
--- The Price of the King's Peace
Tremayne, Peter: Sister Fidelma Series
Whyte, Jack: Clothar the Frank
Wolf, Joan: No Dark Place


FACT
----
British

Adkins, Lesley and Adkins, Roy: The Handbook of British Archaeology
Barlow, Frank: The Feudal Kingdom of England 1042 - 1216
Bartlett, Robert: England under the Norman and Angevin Kings
Gilligham, John: The Angevin Empire
Hallam, Elizabeth: The Plantagenet Chronicles
Johnson, Charles: The Course of the Exchequer by Richard, son of Nigel
Reynolds, Andrew: Later Anglo-Saxon England / Life & Landscape
Turvey, Roger: The Welsh Princes 1063 - 1283
Welch, Martin: Discovering Anglo-Saxon England



Military

DeVries, Kelly: Medieval Military Technology
Hallam, Elizabeth, ed.: Chronicles of the Age of Chivalry.
--- Chronicles of the Crusades: Eye-Witness Accounts of the Wars Between Christianity and Islam.
Urban, William: The Teutonic Knights

Men-at-arms Series: Osprey publishing


Religion

Cohn, Norman: The Pursuit of the Millenium
Kieckhefer, Richard: Forbidden rites
Meier, Bernard: Dictionary of Celtic religion and Culture


Technology & Economy

Agricola, Georgius: De re Metallica
Clanchy, M. T.: From memory to written record
Gies, Francis and Gies, Joseph: Cathedral, Forge, and Waterwheel: Technology and Invention in the Middle Ages
Landstrom, Bjorn: The Quest for India
Lopez, Robert S. and Raymond, Irving W.: Medieval Trade in the Mediterranean World
Spufford, Peter: Power and profit: The merchant in medieval Europe
Viollet le Duc, Eugene: Encyclopedie medievale


Society

Barnes, Donna R.: For court, manor, and church : education in medieval Europe
Dyer, Christopher: Standards of living in the later Middle Ages: Social change in England c.1200-1520
Fossier, Robert: Peasant life in the medieval west
Gies, Francis: Life in a Medieval Village
--- Marriage and the Family in the Middle Ages
Gies, Francis and Gies, Joseph: Daily Life in Medieval Times: A Vivid,
Detailed Account of Birth, Marriage and Death; Food, Clothing and
Housing; Love and Labor in the Middle Ages
Gies, Joseph and Gies, Francis: Life in a Medieval Castle
--- Life in a Medieval City
Homans, George C.: English Villagers of the Thirteenth Century
Hope-Moncrieff, A. R.: Romance & Legends of Chivalry
Huizinga, Johan: The Autumn of the Middle Ages
Ladurie, Emmanuel le Roy: Montaillou - Cathars and Catholics in a French village 1294-1324
Reynolds, Susan: Fiefs and Vassals
Stenton, D. M.: English Society in the Early Middle Ages
Tuchman, Barbara W.: Distant Mirror: The Calamitous 14th Century

The Paxton Letters

_________________
Running: AD&D / When a star falls
Running: MERP / Woses of the black wood

The ultimate swashbuckler story-teller....

For those who have seen the movies of Captain Blood, The Sea Hawks, & Scaramouche, they will know them to be classic swashbuckler movies. Not necessarily Harn, but the ideas are great, and the sword-play a key element. Well all three were written by Rafael Sabatini, an Italian born author who wrote his books from the 1890 through 1940, with his first novel published in the early 1900's. (He wrote in English because he said all the best writing is in English). Long out of print, you had to hunt to find any of his books.

Well guess what - House of Strauss has republished his 40 books!

They are great reads in themselves, but are also a mine of good ideas. Only one or two are mediaeval - most are 1600's/1700's in their setting, but you'll love 'em.

Key books are Captain Blood, Scaramouche, & The Sea Hawk (quite different from the movie), but you'll love the other titles. They are all available on Amazon - search for Sabatini.

rgds nick

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Nick Lowson
nick@nlowson.demon.co.uk

I thought that Parke Goodwin's "Sherwood" and "Robin and the King" were a good match for my vision of Harn, but there were a few details I found irksome; The depiction of knightly armour being the one that leaps to mind first.

According to the books, knights wore a full padded coat, with a full mail coat over that, with a full coat of scale over that. I'm surprised they could move at all!

Surprisingly that's a close description of the Byzantine Heavy Calvary and Infantry.

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Roy Denton - the title says Baron, but Queen for a year. (Cheselyne I)

"Nathamh na hoibre an t-eolas"
(Knowledge comes through practice)

Yeah, but when used for the Norman cavalry of William the Conqueror it seemed excessive. Granted, that hasn't been a big period of study for me, but I was fairly certain that the standard was padded mail and the ol' conical helm -- with the really rich being able to afford full shirts, mittens, and mail on the shins/feet.

During the conquest period you can even drop the long sleeves, mittens, and chausses (lower body stuff).

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Roy Denton - the title says Baron, but Queen for a year. (Cheselyne I)

"Nathamh na hoibre an t-eolas"
(Knowledge comes through practice)

I was under the impression that the wealthiest would have gone so far. IIRC, are there not sections of the Bayeux Tapestry that depict armour on the shins and feet of the knights? (I'm not sure if they went higher than that, and I think they may not even have covered the back of the leg in some cases.)

Armor for the legs like that did not start appearing in documented evidence, i.e. manuscripts, until the early 12th century. (IIRC)

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Roy Denton - the title says Baron, but Queen for a year. (Cheselyne I)

"Nathamh na hoibre an t-eolas"
(Knowledge comes through practice)

Actually, the Bayeux tapestry does depict William and a couple other mounted knights wearing chain-mail leggings.

rgds nick

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Nick Lowson
nick@nlowson.demon.co.uk

I stand corected.

I went and looked at my picks of the tapestry and there are two sets of characters wearing what appears to be mail leggings. However their arm protection appears to be the same as everyone else.

The first cluster shows William and one other knight receiving news of Harold's approach. In this picture both are wearing their hauberks and leggings, conical helms, and surprisingly they both have what appears to be cudgles.

The second cluster show william and I think the same knight again wearing the same type of armor, this time only William is shown with his cudgle, the other is not showing a weapon. This scene is wear William pulls his helmet back to show who he is.

His brother, the Bishop of Bayeux, has on what appears to be a leather hauberk (its reddish in color) and cloth leggings. He too carries a club.

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Roy Denton - the title says Baron, but Queen for a year. (Cheselyne I)

"Nathamh na hoibre an t-eolas"
(Knowledge comes through practice)

Please also keep in mind that that tapestry was made by nuns a while after the battle of hastings - you cannot rely on what is depicted there.

Also, the images are vague to say the least. Is it really chain mail that is depicted? Or is it rather ring mail? Whaat exactly are the rectangulars on the chests of some warriors?

I do not believe that the nuns who made the embroidery have had more knowledge about that then we do nowadays. Also, keep in mind who commisioned this "tapestry" - and the impact this fact may have had on the history as it is depicted on it...

_________________
Steer me straight, O German one.
O flamer of mail, O Carver in Stone...

Spartan on HârnChat

I don't know about that, man. I know for a fact that I can't look out my window and see 11th century knights milling about, or speak directly to those who were involved in the battle. The people who put the tapestry together could.



Best guesses tend to pin it on either Odo or one of his underlings. Either way, considering that it likely hung at Bayeux Cathedral for a number of years, and that Odo himself was involved, we're certainly getting a slanted version of the history presented, but that by no stretch invalidates the authenticity of the appearances presented. The Tapestry is generally acknowledged as the best source of information we have for the visual cues of the time, in spite of the iconic nature of the artwork.

BTW, the cudgel/mace that William and Odo are presented with were probably copper-headed maces. The mace wasn't a terribly effective weapon at that point (not developing to its full potential until a century or more later, iirc), but it was a symbol of authority. That may be why William is depicted as bearing one -- or perhaps he did actually carry one around, as some kind of tool for recognition. Maybe even a back-up weapon. Odo's said to have actually used his in battle, though -- pious fellow that he was.

As to leg armour; there's also a couple of panels that show armour other than mail on the legs; the presence of what looked like puttes (would they be made of leather or heavy cloth?), and another that may have been some kind of rigid protection strapped to the shins. It was something rectangular, at any rate, and had a couple straps binding it to the lower leg.

I think the best way to look at what you are saying about medieval and/or rennaisance art is that the artist uses what they see and know as the basis for their art. That is one reason Romans are depicted in 16th century armor and maybe why the rich in the tapestry are wearing leg armor, it was something contemporary to the time the tapestry was made; but maybe not factual to the time of the actual event.

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Roy Denton - the title says Baron, but Queen for a year. (Cheselyne I)

"Nathamh na hoibre an t-eolas"
(Knowledge comes through practice)

As the tapestry in question was constructed during the lifetime of those who were involved, chances are that armouring technology hadn't evolved radically in the few years between the battle and its depiction. If it had been constructed several hundred years later, as with the Roman/14th century example -- or even a generation after -- I think we'd have more cause to be suspicious.

But look at medieval drawings: Even a contemporary artist (maybe even in the bayeux tapestry) depicted more important persons much larger then not so impertant persons. He is contemporary and uses what he sees... still, no one would really believe that, for example, Odo or William were twice as large as their soldiers?

This is just one example of how to display what one sees - we mustn't look at these depictions with the precise, scientific attitude we are drawing today... and that includes the armour details as well.

_________________
Steer me straight, O German one.
O flamer of mail, O Carver in Stone...

Spartan on HârnChat

Perhaps you're thinking of another tapestry? The Bayeux tapestry doesn't depict either William nor Odo as being significantly larger than any other figure -- Including unimportant nameless squires at battle practice (scene 23).



I don't believe that I've claimed, at any point in this discussion, that the depictions are either precise or scientifically accurate. If I were labouring under that misimpression, I'd probably believe that they all wore scale instead of chain mail because of the chosen method of rendering texture. And, of course, all the armour would be skin-tight and worn like silly-looking knickers that probably chafed terribly.

To put the shoe on the other foot; if I were to judge solely by the vehemence with which you discount any reliability on the part of this work, I'd be left with the impression that you think the tapestry utterly worthless (or very near) as a source of historical information from that age. If this is so, then why is that? So far I've seen nothing but dismissive comments.

My wife just brought me a brand new book from the library (I'm the first one to take it out)

A Knight at the Movies: Medieval History on Film by John Aberth (who is a PhD in History from Cambridge).

The chapters are:
The Holy Grail of Hollywood (King Arthur films)
Lights! Camera! Pillage! (Viking Films)
God (and the Studio) Wills It! (Crusade films)
Splendid in Spandex (Robin Hood films)
Welcome to the Apocalypse (Black Death films)
Movies and the Maid (Joan of Arc films)

This should be good I can't wait to read it. I snuck and peak at the Afterward which has an extended discussion of The War Lord including an interview with Chuck himself

Oooooh! The War Lord! I'd forgotten about that one. I should see if Steve's TV has it -- great selection of old movies.

Sounds like a very, very cool book.