Medieval battles

Tournament between the Duke of Brittany and the Duke of Bourbon. (Photo by Christophel Fine Art/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Blog Medieval(ish) matters #7: what it meant to be ‘blue’ in the Middle Ages (and more killer rabbits)

A scene from the Smithfield Decretals depicting a rabbit beheading a man. Rabbits seem to have a strange place in medieval imagery – and are depicted as having strangely violent tendencies.

Blog Medieval(ish) matters #5: chivalry, medieval killer rabbits and prisoners of war in the 15th century

Medieval prisoners

What was it like to be a Prisoner of War during the Hundred Years’ War?

Premium

King John II made prisoner at the Battle of Poitiers by the English during the Hundred Years War, 1356. Illustration

Medieval prisoners of war . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Medieval punishments, Toulouse, 14th century. (Photo by Photo12/UIG via Getty Images)

How bloody was medieval life?

Henry III during the Second Barons' War

Simon de Montfort and the barons’ crusade: why rebel lords waged holy war against Henry III

Image of a medieval skull showing arrow injury

Blog Medieval(ish) matters #2: arrows in the eye, The Last Kingdom, Viking dogs

Harold Godwinson is proclaimed king of England in the Bayeux Tapestry. It may have been commissioned by a Norman but this magnificent artwork repeatedly acknowledges the English leader’s piety and courage. (Photo by Universal History Archive/Getty Images)

Editor's pick 11 fascinating articles on the Normans you can read right now

Premium

British author Bernard Cornwell, author of 'The Last Kingdom'

Bernard Cornwell on writing historical fiction and his blockbuster series The Last Kingdom: your questions answered . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

King Richard I, aka Richard the Lionheart. (Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images)

Richard the Lionheart may not have spoken English – plus 7 more surprising facts

Henry V. (© Lebrecht Music and Arts Photo Library / Alamy)

10 things you (probably) didn’t know about Henry V and the battle of Agincourt

A portrait of Edward IV, the first Yorkist king of England. From the National Portrait Gallery. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Edward IV: champion of the Wars of the Roses

A bust of Charlemagne

Charlemagne: creating the myth

William the Conqueror (1027–87), king of England from 1066 when he beat Harold II at the battle of Hastings. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

9 surprising facts about William the Conqueror and the Norman conquest

A detail from the Bayeux tapestry depicting the conquest of England by the Normans. (Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty images)

9 medieval battles more significant than Agincourt