Download Borrowing or Adaptation of Medieval Weaponry between the

Erin R. Westman
Dr. John Robertson
History Department
Central Michigan University


Address differences in weapons and military tactics
between the Muslim and the Crusader military forces.
Examine the degree of borrowing and/or adaptation that
occurred.

Borrowing is defined here as the temporary short-term
appropriation of military technology for a specific purpose.
 Adaptation is defined here as the long-term integration of
military technology within the culture itself.


The First and Third Crusades (1096-1192) will be the
focus of the analysis.
The techniques include: siege machines, the “couched”
lance and saddle with attached stirrup.

First Crusade: 1096-1099 C.E.
 Began as a response to the Muslim attack and capture of
Jerusalem in the 7th century.
 Aim was to regain Christian control of Jerusalem and
the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.
 Largely successful; Jerusalem conquered which led to
the creation of Crusader states along the Mediterranean.
 Crusaders conquered cities along the Mediterranean
coast and built fortified castles across the Holy Land to
protect new territories.

Third Crusade: 1189-1192 C.E.
 After the First Crusade, new leaders began to restore
Muslim unity in the Near East.
 Third Crusade began as a response to the capture of
Jerusalem in 1187 by Muslims under their new leader,
Salah ad-din Yusuf ibn Ayyub – known by Europeans as
Saladin.
 European kingdoms of England, France and the Holy
Roman Empire participated.
 A Muslim victory: the Crusaders did not regain the
Kingdom of Jerusalem and lost strategic coastal cities.



Historical research involves interpretation of primary sources as
well as secondary sources.
Primary sources are original historical documents of the time
period under study.
 Examples include: Gilbert of Nogent’s, Historia quae dicitur
Gesta Dei per Francos; Ralph of Caen’s, Gesta Taneredri
Secondary sources reflect later the interpretation of the original
primary documents.
 Examples include: Carole Hillenbrand, Christopher
Tyerman, Jonathan Riley-Smith, Steven Runciman, David
Nicolle, and Adrian Boas.
Results: Siege Machines
6th Century Trebuchet
recreated in France.




Siege machines were adopted by
both the Muslims and the
Crusaders.
Primarily countered the
development of castles, which
emerge during the 2nd Crusade.
They were used as both a
weapon and a tactic.
Greatest amount of crosscultural impact within the
Middle East.
Results: “Couched” Lance
“Couched” Lance from the
8th Century.



Briefly borrowed by the
Muslims during the First
Crusade.
“Shock and Awe” tactic
utilized by the Crusading
Knights.
Not successful because of
the specialization of armor
and tactical uses.
Results: Saddle/Stirrup
5th

Century
stirrup.


Reconstructed
8th Century
saddle.

Independently developed
within both the Muslim and
Crusader cultures.
Muslims adopted the saddle
for ceremonial, ornamental
and status purposes.
The Muslims’ lack of heavy
armor did not require them to
have a continued use of the
stirrup.
The saddle symbolized the
conquest of the enemy rather
than a tactical adaptation.

Research indicates that borrowing occurred more
frequently than adaptation.

Climate and geography
Culture
 Distance



How much of the original representation of the
culture was seen in saddle with attached stirrup,
siege machine, and the couched lance?
When does borrowing or adaptation occur for
cultural purpose versus a militarist one? How early
in the historical record does this split occur and by
what cultures?
Questions?