Horses 3

NORMAN WAR HORSES

The Norman war horses that were used by William the Conqueror and his men were the largest and most powerful breed capable of carrying fully armored knights.

William the Conqueror’s war horses, as depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, were a breed of rather large and heavy equines.

They were appreciated for their strength, heavy weight and the ability to pull large loads for long distances.

These horses displayed an aptitude for learning, displayed stamina and exceptional enthusiasm for performance.

Moreover, they were highly acclaimed for their exhibition of harmony, symmetry and balance.

During the early development of the Norman horses, there were several distinct types of breeds such as Merlerault, Cotentin, the horse of La Hague.

Among these, the former was a popular breed which lasted until the 18th century. It was mainly used for riding purposes.

The Cotentin horses were the oldest breed and were especially used for the luxury carriage trade.

Due to their immense size they were much slower.

Appearance

The Norman horses had sturdy feet and legs, wide hooves and a thick mane.

A very athletic breed with large and expressive eyes.

They had thin ears of medium size with a long and abundant tail.

Their other physical characteristics include broad chest, medium sized neck and strong hindquarters.

The animal’s head, as compared to the rest of his body, seems to have been disproportionately small, but it was rather thick and its nose was full.

The crest was rounded.

The neck, shoulders, and chest were very fully developed and probably thickly muscled rather than simply fat.

The croup was markedly arched, while the haunches and thighs were heavy and give the impression of great strength.

The mane was relatively short, and the tail was long and scraggly.

These horses appear to have been considerably more bulky and stronger than the lean Arab breed.

Size

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The height of a horse is properly measured, in inches, from the ground to the highest point of the withers.

Analysis of horse transports suggests 13th-century destriers were a stocky build, and no more than 15 to 15.2 hands (60 to 62 inches, 152 to 157 cm).

Height 15.3-17 hands (155.4-172.7 cm)

Weight 408.2-544.3 kg (900-1,200 lbs)

Size of horses

The average early medieval horse was shorter, about 4 ½ feet at the withers, I mean 13 ½ hands, however, there is dispute in medievalist circles over the size of the war horse, with some notable historians claiming a size of 17 to 18 hands (68 to 72 inches, 173 to 183 cm), as large as a modern Shire horse.

However, there are practical reasons for this dispute.

Analysis of existing horse armour located in the Royal Armouries indicates the equipment was originally worn by horses of 15 to 16 hands (60 to 64 inches, 152 to 163 cm), or about the size and build of a modern field hunter or ordinary riding horse.

Research undertaken at the Museum of London, using literary, pictorial and archaeological sources, supports military horses of 14 to 15 hands (56 to 60 inches, 142 to 152 cm), distinguished from a riding horse by its strength and skill, rather than its size.

This average does not seem to vary greatly across the medieval period. Horses appear to have been selectively bred for increased size from the 9th and 10th centuries,[47] and by the 11th century the average warhorse was probably 14.2 to 15 hands (58 to 60 inches, 147 to 152 cm).

Information from the Tapestry

The Tapestry can provide comparisons that provide insight into their size versus the men that are depicted next to them

One such image is particularly good and depicts a mounted fighting man from William’s army engaging a housecarl who is wielding the often-celebrated two-handed Danish axe.

These elite foot soldiers who served in King Harold’s personal military entourage were renowned for their great strength and size.

The animal’s height at the withers (once allowance is made for his bent front legs) is 9/11 of that of the housecarl as measured from the point of his helmet to the soles of his feet.

Thus if the horse measured 15 hands, the housecarl would have stood 73.3 in. to the helmet point, and if the horse measured 16 hands, the housecarl would have stood 77.3 in. to the helmet point.

Since the top of the warrior’s head reached only to within 3 or 4 in. of the point in helmets of the type depicted in the tapestry, the housecarl under discussion here would have been somewhere between about 5 ft. 10 in. and 6 ft. 3 in. tall.

A further measurement is of some importance in this context; i.e., the shaft of the Danish axe is generally agreed by archeologists to have been approximately 42 in. in length.

With this as a base figure, the housecarl would have stood about 78 in. to his helmet point, and the horse of the Norman soldier against whom he is fighting would appear to have been just slightly more than 16 hands.

Temperament/Personality

Calm, docile, lively, willing to work

Physical Characteristics

Large and muscular stature, refined and slightly convex head, expressive eyes; neck is of medium-length; sloping shoulders, strong hindquarters, broad chest, strong and sturdy legs, wide hooves; thick, luxuriant mane that is often wavy; low set, large tail

Size of Horses

Standards of measure

A hand is standardized at 4 inches.

The Romans used palms. They had two forms: the great palm, which is length of the hand, or 12 fingerbreadths, and the small palm, the breath of the hand, about four digits. A palm as a unit of measure varied with the size of the hand.

This has been verified by studies of Norman horseshoes as well as the depictions of horses on the Bayeux Tapestry.

Further evidence for a 14-16 hand (56 to 64 inches (140 to 160 cm)) war horse is that it was a matter of pride to a knight to be able to vault onto his horse in full armour, without touching the stirrup.

This arose not from vanity, but necessity: if unhorsed during battle, a knight would remain vulnerable if unable to mount by himself. In reality, of course, a wounded or weary knight might find it difficult, and rely on a vigilant squire to assist him.

EXAMPLE

One description is particularly good and depicts a mounted fighting man from William’s army engaging a housecarl who is wielding the often-celebrated two-handed Danish axe. These elite foot soldiers who served in King Harold’s personal military entourage were renowned for their great strength and size.

The animal’s height at the withers (once allowance is made for his bent front legs) is 9/11 of that of the housecarl as measured from the point of his helmet to the soles of his feet.

Thus if the horse measured 15 hands, the housecarl would have stood 73.3 in. to the helmet point, and if the horse measured 16 hands, the housecarl would have stood 77.3 in. to the helmet point.

Since the top of the warrior’s head reached only to within 3 or 4 in. of the point in helmets of the type depicted in the tapestry, the housecarl under discussion here would have been somewhere between about 5 ft. 10 in. and 6 ft. 3 in. tall.

A further measurement is of some importance in this context; i.e., the shaft of the Danish axe is generally agreed by archeologists to have been approximately 42 in. in length.

With this as a base figure, the housecarl would have stood about 78 in. to his helmet point, and the horse of the Norman soldier against whom he is fighting would appear to have been just slightly more than 16 hands.

Further evidence for a 14-16 hand (56 to 64 inches (140 to 160 cm)) war horse is that it was a matter of pride to a knight to be able to vault onto his horse in full armour, without touching the stirrup.

This arose not from vanity, but necessity: if unhorsed during battle, a knight would remain vulnerable if unable to mount by himself.

In reality, of course, a wounded or weary knight might find it difficult, and rely on a vigilant squire to assist him. Incidentally, a knight's armor served in his favour in any fall.

WEIGHT

Our estimates concerning the weight of medieval war horses, and William’s animals in particular, are given some additional support by the fact that horses can comfortably carry 20% of their own weight under normal conditions; however, when conditions become more difficult as a result of excessive exertion, extreme weather, or rough terrain, the comfort index decreases dramatically.

In light of the conformation of the horses depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, their weight should be estimated conservatively to have been in the 1,500 lb. range & surely no less than 1,300 lb.

For purposes of comparison, this places William’s war horse as slightly larger but not heavier than the cavalry mounts of the British army in the later nineteenth century. Light cavalry mounts averaged 14.3 hands and heavy cavalry horses 15.3 hands.

The loads carried by these horses in the nineteenth century were not markedly different from those of me

Colors

Predominantly gray; black and bay are less common

Gait

elastic, fluid movement displaying balance, harmony, and symmetry

Feeding/Diet

Hay, grass, grains, legumes, millets; crushed oats are easily digested while crushed barley provides energy

CAPABILITIES

Weight affects speed and endurance, creating a trade-off: armour added protection, but added weight reduces maximum speed.

The average horse can carry up to approximately 30% of its body weight. While all horses can pull more than they can carry, the weight horses can pull varies widely, depending on the build of the horse, the type of vehicle, road conditions, and other factors.

Horses harnessed to a wheeled vehicle on a paved road can pull as much as eight times their weight, but far less if pulling wheelless loads over unpaved terrain. Thus, horses that were driven varied in size and had to make a trade-off between speed and weight, just as did riding animals. Light horses could pull a small war chariot at speed.

Heavy supply wagons, artillery, and support vehicles were pulled by heavier horses or a larger number of horses. The method by which a horse was hitched to a vehicle also mattered: horses could pull greater weight with a horse collar than they could with a breast collar, and even less with an ox yoke.

At the Battle of Hastings, William’s war horses were required to carry live loads which in some cases surely exceeded 250 lb., i.e., a physically well-developed warrior, who was likely to have been overweight by modern standards, armed with a sword, spear, and shield, and dressed in a coat of mail, probably some sort of mail “trousers,” and a helmet.

In addition, the horse carried a saddle, saddle blanket, and an assortment of other harness under particularly trying conditions.

For example, at Hastings the horsemen made repeated uphill charges while under missile attack against a formidable enemy throughout a battle that lasted from ten to eleven hours

The battle was preceded by a 7 mile ride and ended for some only after they had carried out the hot pursuit of Harold’s retreating army.

Restrictions

a horse that was to be kept ready to engage in combat could not be ridden much more than 20 miles on that same day. After the 20 miles limit was reached, the animal’s physical ability to carry its rider into a battle of any significant duration was severely reduced. If the horse was used simply for transport, a daily distance of about 30 miles for no more than five or six consecutive days was practical and safe. After such a journey, the horse required at least a day’s rest, or risk was being taken that the animal would break down.48 Simply to keep a horse in the proper shape for traveling such distances and for combat, a minimum of two hours hard training under the saddle each day was required, as well as a weekly ride of about 20 miles.49 Under extreme conditions a horse could be pushed 45 or perhaps even 50 miles, but after such a ride it generally would become useless.