What is a (Religious Society) Military Order?

Introduction A military order (Latin: militaris ordo) is a Christian religious society of knights. The original military orders were the Knights Templar, the Knights Hospitaller, the Order of Saint James, the Order of Calatrava, and the Teutonic Knights. They arose in the Middle Ages in association with the Crusades, both in the Holy Land, the… Read More

A Brief Overview of SCA Armoured Combat

Introduction SCA armoured combat – also known as heavy combat or SCA heavy combat – is a combat sport developed by the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) in which participants in protective body armour compete in mock combat, individual tournaments inspired by forms of historical combat, and tournament combat practiced in medieval Europe. Groups also… Read More

What was the Challenge of Barletta (1503)?

Introduction The Challenge of Barletta (Italian: Disfida di Barletta) was a duel fought in the countryside of Trani, near Barletta, southern Italy, on 13 February 1503, during the Third Italian War, on the plains between Corato and Andria. Overview The tournament was provoked by a French knight Charles de la Motte who, after drinking too… Read More

Who were the Knights Templar?

Introduction The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon (Latin: Pauperes commilitones Christi Templique Salomonici), also known as the Order of Solomon’s Temple, the Knights Templar or simply the Templars, was a Catholic military order founded in 1118, headquartered on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem through 1128 when they went to meet… Read More

What was the Challenge of Barletta (1503)?

Introduction The Challenge of Barletta (Italian: Disfida di Barletta) was a duel fought in the countryside of Trani, near Barletta, southern Italy, on 13 February 1503, during the Third Italian War, on the plains between Corato and Andria. Background The tournament was provoked by a French knight Charles de la Motte who, after drinking too… Read More

What is a Knight?

Introduction A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. The background of knighthood can be traced back to the Greek hippeis (ἱππεῖς) and Roman eques of classical… Read More