209:, or sharp spears with short, narrow blades that could be used in close quarters or in long-range fighting. Warriors who fought on horseback carried a shield and spear, and foot-soldiers often used javelins. Warriors, according to Tacitus, often fought naked or "lightly clad in short cloaks." Few warriors wore breastplates or helmets; however, any helmets worn were made out of animal hide or metal. A shield may bear the colors of a warrior's choice. Throwing away one's shield in the battlefield, or fleeing from battle, was considered a disgrace that could cause a warrior to be banned from attending assemblies and religious rituals and sacrifices.
388:
war injuries of their men to other warriors. Women also gave encouragement and food to warriors in battle. If
Germanic combatants were losing a battle, Tacitus claims that women aided the cause by "thrusting forward their bare bosoms, and making them realize the imminent prospect of enslavement -- a fate which the Germans feared more desperately for their women than for themselves." Women were also believed by Germans to hold within them "an element of holiness and a gift of prophecy; and so they do not scorn to ask for their advice, or lightly disregard their replies."
198:
was dishonored if he was surpassed in courage by a thane, his followers were disgraced if their courage did not match that of their chief. Retainers were expected to obey, protect, and defend their lord and allow their lord to receive credit for their own acts of heroism. The chief's glory resulted in the glory of his retainers. If a chief died in battle, his retainers were expected to avenge him and not leave battle. Leaving a battle alive after the lord had died meant lifelong shame for the retainer.
428:, or warband, perhaps the basic social and military unit of organization among the post-Roman ruling classes. Because the warband members were almost all illiterate, their world must come to us either through heroic oral poetry (often not recorded until long after the period in which the oral tradition thrived) or through hostile clerical chroniclers with little sympathy for warband values." Stephen S. Evans, who examines the
213:
were placed at the main battle-line along with the cavalry. Tacitus further explains the battle practices of
Germanic warriors, "The battle-line is made up of wedge-shaped formations. To give ground, provided that you return to the attack, is considered good tactics rather than cowardice. They bring back the bodies of the fallen even when a battle hangs in the balance."
80:. While his lord lived, the warrior owed him loyalty unto death. If his lord were killed, the warrior had to avenge him or die in the attempt. The lord in his turn had the duty of being generous to his warriors. He had to be the great fighter to attract men, a man of noble character and a generous giver of feasts and treasure to hold them.
387:
Tacitus finds that women helped late first century
Germanic warriors fight their battles. According to Tacitus, warbands were frequently composed of men of one family or clan and kept near to them their women and children during battles. Mothers and wives of warriors treated wounds and compared the
370:
uses the language of the comitatus to sharpen awareness of the conflict between the wife's claim on her lover, and the brotherhood-claims of the lord and his followers: In the words of the Wife's Lament, "that man's kinsmen began to think in secret that they would separate us." How typical this is
236:
In early medieval
England, a lord may foster the children and relatives of allied chiefdoms, which involved sending one's sons to the court of another kinsman or lord. The son(s) would then grow up with other boys similar to their age and be taught the art of warfare. They would reside at the court
201:
To keep a warband together, it must consistently experience war and violence. Tacitus says that
Germanic warriors did not tolerate long-term peace. After a victory, a lord or chief was expected to grant gifts to his retainers, such as a "coveted war-horse or a spear stained with blood of a defeated
212:
Tacitus describes the battle tactics of
Germanic warriors, claiming that the strength of Germanic warriors was in their infantry rather than their cavalry, the horses of the Germans not being overly beautiful or fast and foot-soldiers having the speed to keep up with the cavalry. The best warriors
197:
Tacitus states that
Germanic chiefs, or lords, were to not be surpassed by the courage of their followers on the battlefield. For the chief, being surpassed by a thane in courage was considered a disgrace. Chiefs were to fight for victory, and thanes were to fight for their chief. Although a chief
432:
in
England during the period between the fifth and eighth centuries, admits, "Given the dearth of sources for this period as well as the differing rates of development of the various kingdoms, it is impossible to determine the precise degree to which the image of the
241:. Fostering helped to create loyalty among chiefdoms, often because a lord was fostering his sons at other courts or because the boys he had fostered had grown up and become lords themselves. A lord's family also often comprised large portions of a lord's warband.
437:
manifested itself in the historical record at any given time or place." Although
Tacitus's work describes Germania in the late first century, there is also no guarantee that Germanic societies were the same when they arrived to England in the fifth century.
375:– with the romantic theme of a woman being left by her husband because he needs to be with his liege lord – is however debatable. Even in Anglo-Saxon England, if the Exeter Book contains few pieces featuring women or written from the female perspective,
193:
Tacitus stressed the abnegation of the follower, and his dependence on his patron, whose prestige rested on his ability to successfully wage war, and thus provide a military training for his followers. Loyalty was met by material reward.
252:
was shown to be more important than ties to kinship for the members of the warrior class, warriors choosing to remain loyal to their lords even if this decision meant killing some of their own kinsmen who were on the enemy's side.
402:
supplies much of what scholars believe to know about the customs of
Germanic tribes, the ancestors of the Anglo-Saxons, before they came to Britain during the fifth century and converted to Christianity. However, Tacitus's
237:
from the age of seven or eight until they turned fourteen or fifteen. At the age of fourteen or fifteen, they would be granted weapons that were appropriate to their status and would serve militarily in the
383:
makes the normative claim that “Here each comrade is true to the other/loyal to lord, loving in spirit./The thanes have one purpose, the people are ready:/having drunk and pledged, the ranks do as I bid.”.
61:
of fealty. The concept describes the relations between a lord and his retainers, or thanes (OE þegn); scholars generally consider it more of a literary trope rather than one of historical accuracy.
122:
and accepts physical defeat for spiritual victory. The rood, or cross, in the poem acts as a retainer "who is forced by his very loyalty to become the instrument of his beloved Lord's execution."
409:
must be viewed critically because his descriptions of the Germans were partly used to criticize what he viewed was the corruption and softness of the Roman empire around 100 A.D.
379:
by contrast has roles for women precisely in strengthening the cohesion and unity of the comitatus: thus the 'peace-weaver' (a woman given in marriage to resolve a feud) Queen
72:
A heroic warrior brought up in this tradition would show a reckless disregard for his life. Whether he was doomed or not, courage was best, for the brave man could win
205:
Regarding the armor and weapons of late first century Germanic warriors, Tacitus explains that few carried long lances or swords. More commonly, Germanic warriors bore
202:
enemy. Their meals, for which plentiful if homely fare is provided, count in lieu of pay. The wherewithal for this openhandedness comes from war and plunder."
304:
would pledge military service and protection to the superior (Lord). In return, the superior would reward the inferior with land, compensation, or privileges.
412:
In addition, much of Tacitus's information is not first hand knowledge but information he collected from others. Much of the evidence supporting the
185:
warrior and his lord, ensuring that the former never leaves the field of battle before the latter. The translation is as follows:
576:""Contending Throng" Scenes and the Comitatus Ideal in Old English Poetry, with special attention to The Battle of Maldon 122a"
420:
is generally viewed more by scholars as a literary ideal rather than a historical reality. Regarding sources that support the
244:
A retainer's relationship to his lord was also supposed to be placed above his ties to his kin. For example, in the story of
797:
937:
639:
614:
448:
300:
eventually evolved into a wholesale exchange between a social superior and inferior. The feudal social inferior or
825:(Ultra Press, 2004), p. 130. For the Scandinavian form, see Thurston, T. L., "Social Classes in the Viking Age" in
537:"Reviewed Work: The Lords of Battle: Image and Reality of the "Comitatus" in Dark Age Britain. by Stephen S. Evans"
339:. Equivalents highlighting different features of the lord/man bond include the trust-element of the early Frankish
1027:
955:"Reviewed Work: The Lords of Battle": Image and Reality of the Comitatus in Dark-Age Britain by Stephen S. Evans"
453:
416:
occurs centuries after the writings of Tacitus and are presented through oral heroic poetry. As a result, the
1022:
151:), usually shortened to posse, is a group of people helping a sheriff or other official to enforce the law.
221:
94:
28:
1032:
189:
Moreover, to survive the leader and retreat from the battlefield is a lifelong disgrace and infamy
292:, of a general distributing land to his officers after their retirement, as well as by the later
35:
17:
827:
Landscapes of Power, Landscapes of Conflict: State Formation in the South Scandinavian Iron Age
333:
821:
For the reconstruction and Old English forms, see Pollington, S., "Origins of the Warband" in
76:
while the coward might die before his time. This is the spirit which inspired the code of the
932:. Tempe, Arizona: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies (ACMRS). p. 185.
224:
concept that predates Roman times, practiced from Western Europe to China, especially among
363:
287:
86:
8:
974:
556:
245:
100:
933:
635:
610:
109:
424:
Stephen Morillo claims, "Few topics in early medieval history are as obscure as the
966:
587:
548:
182:
801:
591:
473:
404:
225:
173:
136:
54:
51:
575:
498:
1016:
893:
1007:
Lady with a Mead Cup: Ritual, Prophecy, and Lordship in the European Warband
994:
The Lords of Battle: Image and Reality of the Comitatus in Dark-Age Britain
745:
The Lords of Battle: Image and Reality of the comitatus in Dark-Age Britain
730:
The Lords of Battle: Image and Reality of the Comitatus in Dark-Age Britain
715:
The Lords of Battle: Image and Reality of the Comitatus in Dark-Age Britain
478:
164:
130:
391:
367:
321:
293:
264:, being the agreement between a Germanic lord and his subservients (his
978:
954:
560:
536:
144:
84:
The comitatus ideal is seen in Old English heroic literature, such as
380:
341:
277:
273:
269:
970:
552:
493:
468:
634:(8 ed.). West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 264–265.
483:
463:
399:
376:
168:
90:
47:
458:
301:
107:
is also examined through a Christian context in works such as
609:(8 ed.). West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. p. 129.
126:
125:
In modern times, it is the (neo-)Latin term for a county (cf
119:
115:
488:
351:
58:
64:
Scholars Bruce Mitchell and Fred C. Robinson describe the
118:
is depicted more as a warrior-king doing battle with the
703:"Empires of the Silk Road" (C.I.Beckwith, 2009), p.15.
1014:
629:
604:
517:
515:
913:Tacitus (1970). Mattingly and Handford (ed.).
908:
906:
863:
861:
689:Tacitus (1970). Mattingly and Handford (ed.).
671:Tacitus (1970). Mattingly and Handford (ed.).
684:
682:
666:
664:
512:
392:Challenges to the historical accuracy of the
276:. Partly influenced by the Roman practice of
268:or host of followers), is a special case of
903:
858:
717:. Rochester, NY: Boydell. pp. 118–120.
630:Mitchell, Bruce; Robinson, Fred C. (2012).
605:Mitchell, Bruce; Robinson, Fred C. (2012).
285:
679:
661:
534:
732:. Rochester, NY: Boydell. pp. 51–52.
952:
912:
688:
670:
573:
14:
1015:
853:The Cambridge Medieval History Vol. II
785:The Cambridge Medieval History Vol. II
656:The Cambridge Medieval History Vol. II
256:
231:
991:
927:
915:Selections from Agricola and Germania
747:. Rochester, NY: Boydell. p. 59.
742:
727:
712:
691:Selections from Agricola and Germania
673:Selections from Agricola and Germania
57:for a warband tied to a leader by an
996:. Rochester, NY: Boydell. p. 4.
772:The Medieval Foundations of England
759:The Medieval Foundations of England
535:Chickering, Howell (January 1999).
523:A New Dictionary of British History
296:or private follower - the Germanic
24:
928:Drout, Michael D. C., ed. (2011).
25:
1044:
953:Morillo, Stephen (October 1998).
917:. New York: Penguin. p. 108.
693:. New York: Penguin. p. 106.
675:. New York: Penguin. p. 113.
449:Anglo-Saxon military organization
272:, and related to the practice of
985:
946:
921:
887:
874:
845:
832:
815:
790:
777:
764:
751:
736:
721:
706:
307:
181:is the bond existing between a
147:so the genitive termination is
50:, especially in the context of
959:The American Historical Review
697:
648:
623:
598:
567:
528:
454:Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary)
345:, royal bodyguard; the Danish
139:("power/force of the county";
13:
1:
505:
371:of the medieval genre of the
592:10.1080/00393274.2011.570022
7:
441:
284:), - as exemplified by the
10:
1049:
992:Evans, Stephen S. (1997).
743:Evans, Stephen S. (1997).
728:Evans, Stephen S. (1997).
713:Evans, Stephen S. (1997).
349:or Society, and the Norse
312:The Germanic term for the
154:
33:
29:Comitatus (disambiguation)
26:
829:(Springer, 2001), p. 115.
787:(Cambridge 1926) p. 641-2
658:(Cambridge 1926) p. 638-9
246:"Cynewulf and Cyneheard,"
220:has also been seen as an
101:"Cynewulf and Cyneheard."
358:
355:or household following.
97:,The Battle of Finnsburh
95:The Battle of Brunanburh
930:Beowulf and the Critics
855:(Cambridge 1926) p. 642
838:J. M. Wallace-Hadrill,
586:(1). Routledge: 41–53.
46:was an armed escort or
36:County (disambiguation)
1028:Early Germanic warfare
632:A Guide to Old English
607:A Guide to Old English
594:– via EBSCOhost.
574:Battles, Paul (2011).
286:
191:
82:
869:Medieval Women's Song
580:Studia Neophilologica
187:
70:
1023:Cultural conventions
842:(London 1964) p. 111
774:(London 1966) p. 201
761:(London 1966) p. 204
316:is reconstructed as
87:The Battle of Maldon
27:For other uses, see
900:(London 2000) p. 41
798:"History 231 Notes"
257:Feudal developments
232:Fostering & kin
163:is credited to the
99:, and the story of
981:– via JSTOR.
882:A Beowulf Handbook
851:H.M. Gwatkin ed.,
840:The Barbarian West
783:H.M. Gwatkin ed.,
654:H.M. Gwatkin ed.,
563:– via JSTOR.
525:(London 1963) p.78
171:. In his treatise
40:In ancient times,
521:S. H. Steinberg,
364:The Wife's Lament
110:Dream of the Rood
16:(Redirected from
1040:
998:
997:
989:
983:
982:
965:(4): 1232–1233.
950:
944:
943:
925:
919:
918:
910:
901:
891:
885:
878:
872:
865:
856:
849:
843:
836:
830:
819:
813:
812:
810:
809:
800:. Archived from
794:
788:
781:
775:
768:
762:
755:
749:
748:
740:
734:
733:
725:
719:
718:
710:
704:
701:
695:
694:
686:
677:
676:
668:
659:
652:
646:
645:
627:
621:
620:
602:
596:
595:
571:
565:
564:
532:
526:
519:
291:
21:
1048:
1047:
1043:
1042:
1041:
1039:
1038:
1037:
1033:Ancient warfare
1013:
1012:
1005:Enright, M.J.,
1002:
1001:
990:
986:
971:10.2307/2651233
951:
947:
940:
926:
922:
911:
904:
892:
888:
879:
875:
866:
859:
850:
846:
837:
833:
820:
816:
807:
805:
796:
795:
791:
782:
778:
769:
765:
756:
752:
741:
737:
726:
722:
711:
707:
702:
698:
687:
680:
669:
662:
653:
649:
642:
628:
624:
617:
603:
599:
572:
568:
553:10.2307/2887295
533:
529:
520:
513:
508:
503:
474:Varangian Guard
444:
397:
361:
310:
259:
234:
226:Eurasian steppe
157:
137:Posse comitatus
55:warrior culture
38:
32:
23:
22:
15:
12:
11:
5:
1046:
1036:
1035:
1030:
1025:
1011:
1010:
1009:. Dublin, 1976
1000:
999:
984:
945:
938:
920:
902:
886:
873:
857:
844:
831:
814:
789:
776:
770:G. O. Sayles,
763:
757:G. O. Sayles,
750:
735:
720:
705:
696:
678:
660:
647:
640:
622:
615:
597:
566:
547:(1): 158–160.
527:
510:
509:
507:
504:
502:
501:
499:Secret society
496:
491:
486:
481:
476:
471:
466:
461:
456:
451:
445:
443:
440:
396:
390:
360:
357:
309:
306:
258:
255:
233:
230:
156:
153:
9:
6:
4:
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1034:
1031:
1029:
1026:
1024:
1021:
1020:
1018:
1008:
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1003:
995:
988:
980:
976:
972:
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964:
960:
956:
949:
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939:9780866984508
935:
931:
924:
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909:
907:
899:
895:
894:Seamus Heaney
890:
884:(1997) p. 314
883:
877:
871:(2002) p. 218
870:
864:
862:
854:
848:
841:
835:
828:
824:
818:
804:on 2012-06-30
803:
799:
793:
786:
780:
773:
767:
760:
754:
746:
739:
731:
724:
716:
709:
700:
692:
685:
683:
674:
667:
665:
657:
651:
643:
641:9780470671078
637:
633:
626:
618:
616:9780470671078
612:
608:
601:
593:
589:
585:
581:
577:
570:
562:
558:
554:
550:
546:
542:
538:
531:
524:
518:
516:
511:
500:
497:
495:
492:
490:
487:
485:
482:
480:
477:
475:
472:
470:
467:
465:
462:
460:
457:
455:
452:
450:
447:
446:
439:
436:
431:
427:
423:
419:
415:
410:
408:
407:
401:
395:
389:
385:
382:
378:
374:
369:
365:
356:
354:
353:
348:
344:
343:
338:
335:
331:
327:
323:
319:
315:
305:
303:
299:
295:
290:
289:
283:
279:
275:
271:
267:
263:
254:
251:
247:
242:
240:
229:
227:
223:
222:Indo-European
219:
214:
210:
208:
203:
199:
195:
190:
186:
184:
180:
177:(98.AD), the
176:
175:
170:
166:
162:
152:
150:
146:
142:
138:
134:
132:
128:
123:
121:
117:
113:
111:
106:
102:
98:
96:
92:
88:
81:
79:
75:
69:
67:
62:
60:
56:
53:
49:
45:
44:
37:
30:
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1006:
993:
987:
962:
958:
948:
929:
923:
914:
897:
889:
881:
876:
868:
852:
847:
839:
834:
826:
822:
817:
806:. Retrieved
802:the original
792:
784:
779:
771:
766:
758:
753:
744:
738:
729:
723:
714:
708:
699:
690:
672:
655:
650:
631:
625:
606:
600:
583:
579:
569:
544:
540:
530:
522:
479:German Guard
434:
429:
425:
421:
417:
413:
411:
405:
398:
393:
386:
372:
362:
350:
346:
340:
336:
334:Scandinavian
329:
325:
317:
313:
311:
308:Nomenclature
297:
281:
265:
261:
260:
249:
243:
238:
235:
217:
215:
211:
206:
204:
200:
196:
192:
188:
178:
172:
160:
158:
148:
140:
135:
131:la:Comitatus
124:
108:
104:
85:
83:
77:
73:
71:
65:
63:
42:
41:
39:
867:A. Klinck,
823:TYR, vol. 2
368:Exeter Book
322:Old English
294:bucellarius
288:lex agraria
282:patrocinium
68:more fully:
1017:Categories
880:R. Bjork,
808:2006-10-31
506:References
422:comitatus,
373:frauenlied
167:historian
145:declension
34:See also:
435:comitatus
430:comitatus
426:comitatus
418:comitatus
414:comitatus
394:comitatus
381:Wealtheow
342:antrustio
314:comitatus
298:comitatus
278:patronage
274:feudalism
270:clientage
262:Comitatus
250:comitatus
239:comitatus
218:comitatus
179:comitatus
161:comitatus
159:The term
141:comitatus
105:comitatus
78:comitatus
66:comitatus
43:comitatus
896:trans.,
541:Speculum
494:Thingmen
469:Druzhina
442:See also
406:Germania
347:vederlag
318:*druhtiz
228:tribes.
183:Germanic
174:Germania
52:Germanic
979:2651233
898:Beowulf
561:2887295
484:Leidang
464:Huskarl
400:Tacitus
377:Beowulf
366:in the
320:, with
266:Gefolge
207:frameae
169:Tacitus
155:Origins
143:is 4th
129:).(See
91:Beowulf
48:retinue
18:Komitat
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936:
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559:
459:Gesith
332:, and
324:forms
302:vassal
116:Christ
114:where
975:JSTOR
557:JSTOR
359:Women
337:drótt
330:druht
326:dryht
165:Roman
127:comes
120:Devil
934:ISBN
636:ISBN
611:ISBN
489:Fyrd
352:hird
328:and
248:the
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74:lof
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149:ūs
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