Courtesy of http://www.dodedans.com/Eindex.htm
The Dance of Death epitomises the ubiquitous obsession and fascination of the afterlife during the medieval ages. Its omnipresence and ruthlessness grasped the minds of all regardless of their status, age or condition. Even the bravest and most awed could not escape its morbid cavort and in fact followed its lead closest of all. As depicted above, medieval Knights, more than anyone, danced with death.
Originally created in 1463 it was replaced with another version in 1701. It was a tremendous painting which stood at the height of a man and stretched across 30 metres. It depicts a long link of 24 different citizens coming from all different classes and ages with Death dancing around them comically, trying to get apprehensive onlookers to join in the parade. This mocking and somewhat light-hearted approach to mortality can be perceived in numerous ways. Death could be insinuating its unquestionable grasp on the fragility of human life in a humorous and almost flippant fashion whilst simultaneously attempting to lure human souls in to its grip in a somewhat ghoulishly gluttonous way. On the other hand, one could suggest that Death is appeasing the nightmarish idea of the afterlife and seeking to lessen the fears of man by approaching him in an uncharacteristically jovial manner.
The painting’s message and influence spread throughout Europe for generations and encapsulates the fascination which surrounded death during the medieval epoch. With disease rampant and life expectancy low it is of no surprise that people of the time held such fear. The Dance of Death humbly insinuates that, regardless of one’s status, one is never immortal and must ultimately face the certainty of passing on from this life. It is this sobering concept that ensured the medieval Knight, such as the one kneeling unsteadily upon the shield, carried such determination with him in defying the odds and performed a duty which stood him frequently in front of possible perishment.
The Tournament
It was at tournaments where Knights were able to display their revered skills in warfare. They were also used as training purposes in order to advance skills in battle. These spectacles took place throughout Europe and could have been used as sources of entertainment at a king’s palace or as strict, brutal training fields. The character and reality of the tournaments have been questioned by historians for centuries with some arguing that later medieval tournaments lacked the sincerity and military value of earlier tournaments. In the early part of the 15th century, court writer and author Christine de Pisan wrote in her Livre de la Paix of the necessity of training nobility for war and how ‘military training was essential and that nobles should be always practised in arms’. She proposed that tournaments should take place in all dioceses across the whole of France unifying warfare and ensuring military competence. In her eyes the only valid cause of exemption was either ‘age or corpulence’. Nobility of the time was viewed as being soft and how ‘their taste for tapestries represented shepherds and sheep rather than fine histories and famous battles’.
Armour, Weapons and Assistants
Without robust and intricately designed armour Knights could not have had the success they sought. The basic accessories used by a Knight were a shirt, a tunic of arms that went over the shirt, mail leggings, a helmet, espaliers which were used in order to protect their shoulders, a breastplate, a shield and of course a sword. However it was not just their armour that aided their pursuit for victory or love. Each Knight possessed a horse and up until the thirteenth century a limit of three stallions was at their disposal. However, these figures fluctuate and at different periods of time and during different circumstances certain knights were offered more horses to use. A good example of this is the pact conducted in 1239 between Pope Gregory IX and Venice where three hundred knights were sent on a campaign with each accompanied by a warhorse, two rounceys (all purpose horses) and three esquires. It depended though on the rank and status of the Knight with regards to how well mounted and equipped their steeds were. Ultimately, these equine companions contributed highly to the success of a knight.
Funerals
It was not just life itself where status and approval was sought after by knights. Their passing into the afterlife also offered the opportunity to express their legacies and the chivalric code they followed whilst simultaneously impressing acquaintances, friends and those who were viewed inferior to them. The church in fact encouraged the giving of material goods as symbols of the combative lifestyle a knight led. It also enabled them to sell some of these goods back to the families of the dead and was therefore a form of making profit as well. Mementos such as battle equipment, weapons and heraldic achievements were left at the burial place. Such lavish expression is well documented with the funeral of Knight William de Beauchamp. He requested ‘a barded horse with warlike equipment’ to lead in front of his body. The wills of many different Knights solidify that such opulent funerals frequently came to pass. They held such importance that some men ordered that their funerals took place although they were unable to afford it. Knight Thomas Chaworth desired that his ‘most venerable palfrey, armed with his arms to go before his body when he is buried’. Such extravagance was not viewed by all in the same light though. Certain ‘puritanical nobles’ and those who did not possess enough finances did not indulge in such displays of luxury. Such displays may have been by some as particularly ostentatious and to hold superficial value. A fine example of the feudal nature of some funerals was the demands of the first duke of Lancaster, Henry of Grosmont, in 1361. He requested ‘nothing vain nor extravagant, such as armed men, covered horses, nor other vain things’. These two differing approaches show the conflict of personalities and egos between Knights in both life and death.
Funeral Monument
Courtesy of War and Chivalry, M Vale
What Historians Think
Many historians have argued that the ferocity and strict nature of later tournaments was lost, being replaced by artificial spectacles and lacking the sincerity of battle they once held. Dutch historian Johan Huizinga stated that tournaments during the 15th century 'as a contest of force and courage had been almost obliterated by its romantic purport' and referred to them as having become 'hollow-pastimes'. However, clarification of the change of the tournaments character is given my Malcom Vale who suggests that 'in later medieval society - so the argument runs- war had parted company with the circumscribed and meticulously regulated conventions observed in tournaments'. Nonetheless, earlier medieval tournaments were comprehensive symbols of a Knight's attitude towards war and his testing preparation for it. Michael Powicke fittingly summarises this notion saying: 'Probably few arts tend to be so dominated by tradition as warfare'.
Religion in War & Death
Faith and the status of the church played a monumental role in the lives of knights during the medieval ages. It is well documented that throughout time different faiths have looked at death in cynical and repugnant ways. In Judaism the corpse is described as a 'site of impurity' whilst the Pagans of Rome viewed a dead body 'as an abomination'. During the medieval ages a knight’s very existence and the duty he carried out placed him in an inescapable position. When a knight killed another he was deemed to have sinned mortally. On the other hand, if a knight did not carry out such a deed and was consequently killed himself, he would have not of had the correct amount of time in order to prepare for death and would therefore be lost for eternity. However, in the case of the crusades, a knight’s plight was legitimatised for his sinful nature was committed with the grace of god in his heart and with the aim of expanding his divinity. Those who stood in the way of this blessed undertaking were clearly enemies of not only those knights but also of the lord. They were destroying an evil at work and it was this very fact that allowed the act of murder to be endorsed. The way a knight led his life also helped in his religious pursuit. Characteristics such as dignity and obedience alongside a prudent nature ensured that in the eyes of god he was living a moral life. Contrarily, through having a military basis the church was also able to profit financially from their affairs. Donations from faithful citizens and the different brotherhoods involvement with banking and commerce allowed the military to grow and hence the church’s teachings to reach wider shores.