Richard III's armour talks and Charlemagne
It’s nearly 15 October, which means that some of you may need to hurry a bit. After all, the proposal deadline for our V-2 theme of Charlemagne closes on the 15th, and, in addition, it’s the last day that people can vote on our Volume V poll. Around the same time next week, we’ll be publishing the results. It seems likely that we’ll have Almanzor for V-4, Piracy and Naval warfare for V-5, and the Mongols in Europe for V-6. But, it’s still a very close call between War of the Roses and the Heptarchy for V-3, as well as between the Kingdom of Jerusalem and Heraclius’ vs the Sassanids for VI-1. These are the last days you can vote, so make sure they count. You can find the poll here.
For those of you interested in contributing to the Charlemagne issue, make sure you send me an email with a full proposal before the end of the 15th (Dutch time). If you’re new to Medieval Warfare, check out our submission page for more information on proposals and writing for our magazine.
Furthermore:
A talk demonstrating the different types of armour worn in medieval battles which shows how each piece was designed to best protect wearer against injury is being held on October 16th at the King Richard III Visitor Centre in Leicester. It is being given by the Curator of Bosworth Battlefield Richard Knox, and the body-double of Richard III Dominic Smee, who has the same curvature of the spine (scoliosis) the king had. As part of a recent documentary, Smee was put through a medieval-themed training programme designed to show how his scoliosis affected his ability to ride horses, wear armour, and raise weapons above his head, and concluded that Richard III could have been a formidable fighter in spite of his disability. The armour on show at the talk was made by the Danish armourer Per Lillelund-Jensen, with the assistance of Roman Tereshenko, and was custom-built especially for Smee. The talk will be followed by a Q&A session. More information can be found on the following page: Medieval Armour.
And don’t forget to remember the following:
- Today, on 10 October 732, Charles Martel managed to defeat a large army of Moors at the Battle of Tours, near Poitiers, France. The battle would see the death of the governor of Córdoba, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, but more importantly, it halted the Muslim advance throughout Western Europe, which had started with the invasion and conquest of Spain from 711 onwards. For more information on both the Battle of Tours as well as the conquest of Spain, read Medieval Warfare I-3. 
- Some 948 years ago, on 14 October 1066, the forces of English King Harold II Godwinson are defeated by William the Conqueror, starting a new age in English history. Local rebellions were soon crushed, and the elite weas replaced by William’s Norman supporters, completely altering English politics. William’s invasion is also one of the options in our Volume V poll.
