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Showing posts with label war. Show all posts
Showing posts with label war. Show all posts
I'm not big on military history, but you've got to admit that the innovation and design quality involved in kitting out the fighters and hunters of the past was pretty amazing.
With this in mind, I decided to go out on a noble quest to the Royal Armouries in Leeds to see some of these innovations in action.
The first thing to know about the Royal Armouries is that it's free entry, which is always brilliant to see, and open 10am to 5pm. There's easy public parking not far away at Clarence Dock for about £10 for all day and the museum is situated on the dockside and walking distance from the town centre. Often it has live demonstrations and particular workshops and talks that you can attend, as well as exhibitions that - like most museums- mix the cyclical with the permanent: on my visit the special attraction was a display of some the treasures of the Staffordshire Horde. In my case we were a little too early to see the live tournament fights etc, but if you're visiting and especially if you're bringing kids along it might be worth aiming for after 11 or 12 and going for the weekend slots when everything is a little busier.
So what's in the museum?

The main displays on offer were War, Oriental, Hunting, Tournament, Self Defense and the Staffordshire Hoard. But it would be a crime to review the museum without talking about THAT entrance hall...
The museum is arranged vertically over a few floors and linking them all is a wide spiral staircase that surrounds a stunning display of historical arms and armour. War has always been a game of numbers and this is clearly shown in the sheer amount of items arranged in a grimly beautiful piece of gleaming art, perfectly regimented like the armies that bore the equipment.
Impressive, to say the least.

The level of attention to detail, pomp and circumstance follows through the whole museum: there really are some very important artifacts on display that belonged to very famous figures in history and the museum knows just how to present them so you can appreciate their full view. The tournament section is perhaps the most star-studded, displaying armour from Henry VIII to the Holy Roman Emperor, as well as the Armouries' famous mask that appears on their logos. But the War section does a fantastic job of showing a timeline of quality items from wars throughout the ages, and manages to inspire a little of the awe and fear people must have felt when facing down these warriors due to their fantastic model displays. One, for example, sees a full-sized pair of armoured soldiers facing off against soldiers with lances. Another, in the oriental section, shows the largest example of animal armour in the world - a 17thc almost fully complete set of war elephant armour. And you'd better believe that they've mounted it on a fully-scaled model of an Indian elephant, complete with rider. Intimidating stuff.






   The museum is set perfectly to help visitors appreciate the level of skill and craftsmanship involved from practical pieces to the decorative gifts that were given to great leaders. One element that I found fascinating was when they deconstructed armour or turned it inside out so that you could see the clever construction of an armoured jerkin, for example, or the intricate embroidery on the inside of a helmet. Image was everything in war, but the hidden details had real value to them too.
Does the Royal Armouries museum glorify war?
Miniature commoners caught in the fray.
It's impossible not to be struck with awe and an appreciation for the beauty in these instruments of protection and death, but does this mean that the museum glorifies war in a way that's distasteful? For my part I would say no. It's important to appreciate the beauty of these items and the skill of their use, both for their own sake and also to enable us to get into the minds of our ancestors and how they responded to them. Tournaments, chivalry, bravery and pomp were all huge parts of how mainstream masculinity was (and is) constructed, and how nationalism and many symbols of each country's culture are expressed. The important thing is that even in the rooms where the idealism and romance of war is most expressed by the exhibits, the curators are careful to include important details that impress upon you the reality of war. Those large imposing figures aren't just picture-bait, but put you in the position of someone facing them in person - looking up into that killing machine on horseback. The insides of the armour show the realities of living inside of them. And even in tiny details - such as the miniature representation of a great battle - they take the time to show common people fleeing in terror.

 Finally the 'self defense' room, which pulls us into the modern age, acts as a sobering example of what war and violence means for us now. Here you can find testimonies of people affected by gun violence, different types of brutal common weapons throughout the twentieth century, and a display case swimming with examples of real weapons seized from every-day people by the police. Oddly, at the end of this exhibit there is also a display of the different swords from The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, further emphasising the conflict between the fantasy and reality of violence and battles, even in the modern mindset today.
In the end I appreciate the blend of realities: the good and bad sides of these battles in our culture. And neither side is turned into melodrama.
So....should I visit?

 Absolutely! Not only is it free, but it has some seriously important and valuable artifacts, all beautifully presented. Definitely worth your time.

When you visit, keep your eyes peeled for these...
I wonder if king Henry noticed...
  • The craftsman's mistake on the patterning Henry VIII's duelling armour and his rushed-job attempt to fix it. (We've all been there, man!)
  • A very cool demon's-mask for a horse in the oriental section.
  • An unsettlingly anatomically correct realisation of a lady boar's nether region on one of the models. (That's..uh...good attention to detail there, buddy.)
  • Armadillo-scaled armour in the oriental section
  • Tiny, tiny full-plate armour for children.
  • The biggest codpiece I've ever seen.
  • A completely adorable chinese dog/demon face on a sword hilt.
  • The most badass elephant & hunters vs tiger model you're ever likely to see.


We Don't Hear Nearly Enough About The Epic Female Leaders of the Past, So Today I Wanted to Share the Story of the Warrior Queen Tomyris....
By Mark Skalinski

 Tomyris lived in the 6th century BC and, following the death of her husband, became the widowed leader of the Massagetae: a nomadic warrior-like tribe who lived by cattle herding and fishing along the River Araxes in Central Asia (close to modern day Kazakhstan). According to the ancient historian Herodetus, her people were monotheists who worshipped the sun god and held the unusual custom of offering up their elders to the sun god as sacrifices and even meals "and those who thus end their days are reckoned the happiest". They were said to fight on horseback and foot and favoured battle axes as weapons. The tribe were awe inspiring to behold: "their arms are all either of gold or brass...[with]..belts and girles of gold." Their horses were similarily armoured with breastplates of brass "but..gold about the reins, the bit, the cheekplates."
It is little wonder that her people attracted the attentions of another covetous ruler: Cyrus the Great, the king of Persia.
Cyrus had a fantastic reputation in war and his contemporaries warned his enemies that "'wherever Cyrus directed his attack, [the] people could in no way escape.;" He was keen to conquer the lands of the Massagetae, but he decided first to feign diplomacy by offering Queen Tomyris' hand in marriage. She was suspicious and scoffed at what she saw as an attempt to steal her lands, rejecting his proposal. incensed, Cyrus declared war on the tribe and began a frenzied effort of bridge-building to cross the river Araxes into Tomyris' lands. Seeing this, the queen attempted a last piece of diplomacy;
" '[Cyrus] be content to rule in peace in your own kingdom, and bear us to see reign over the countries that are ours to goven.'" Tomyris declared, "'However, I know you will not choose to hearken to this counsel, since there is nothing you less desirest than peace and quietness, come now, if you are so desirous of meeting the Massagetai in arms, leave your useless toil of bridge-making...'"
She suggested instead that either they would come to him or he to her to fight the battle. 


-Croesus' Crime-


 Initially Cyrus saw the advantages of fighting the Queen's army on his own grounds, but his advisor Croesus instead had a more cunning plan that violated all rules of ancient warfare at the time. He suggested that they send out the weakest section of Cyrus' army to fight the section of the Queen's army she would in turn send out. The Queen's victory would be assured and, jubilant, her army would then have Cyrus' cooks to create a huge banquet for them. The Massagatae would be unused to the foods and - most importantly - wines of Cyrus' culture as they were instead accustomed to drinking only milk. Thus intoxicated and with their guards down the rest of Cyrus' forces would rush forwards in the night and slaughter their way to victory. Keen not to be outdone by a woman, Cyrus approved the plan and it went off without a hitch. Tomyris' own son - Spargapises - was even captured.
Tomyris demanded revenge and sent out an ultimatum:

 "'You bloodthirsty Cyrus, pride not yourself on this poor success: it was the grape-juice ---which when you drink it, makes you so mad, and as you swallow it down brings up to your lips such bold and wicked words -- it was this poison by which you ensnared by child, and so overcame him, not in fair open fight. Now hear what I advise, and we sure I advise you for your good. Restore my son to me and get you from the land unharmed, triumphant over a third part of the host of the Massagetai. Refuse, and I swear by the sun, the sovereign  lord of the Massagetai, bloodthirsty as you are, I will give you your fill of blood.'"

 Before hearing of the ultimatum, Spargapises, realising his predicament, committed suicide. The furious and grieving mother vowed revenge.

-The Furious Battle and the Fallen King-
By Jason Porath
The battle that followed was a long and punishing one that made use of arrows, spears, daggers and battle-axes, crushing thousands under its weight on both sides. The Massagatae gained the upper hand and slaughtered the Persian soldiers without mercy, counting Cyrus himself among the dead.
Hearing of Cyrus' death the Queen pushed ahead to seek out his body on the battlefield and performed a very personal revenge that would forever place her in the hsitory books. It was said that she cut off King Cyrus' head and thrust it into a wineskin filled with blood.

"'See now, I fulfil my threat.'" She declared, "'You have your fill of blood.'"

Apparently Tomyris kept that wineskin with her for the rest of her life in memory of her dead son.
Tomyris has become a legend and it is not known what happened to her after this fateful battle. But she was, and always will be, a key figure in Iranian history.





Other Preludes Posts on Extraordinary Women Throughout History:





  • The Wicked Women of History





  • The Golden-Eyed Lady of Sharh-e Suketh





  • Mary Toft's Rabbits
  • A Cukold By Consent 





  • Fantastic Female Inventors 





  • Bess of Hardwick: The First Lady of Chatsworth 





  •  #herstory

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