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Armies of the Dark Ages

The Germanic tribes that overran the Roman Empire at the start of the Middle Ages foughtprimarily on foot with axes and swords, while wearing little armor other than perhapshelmets and shields. They were organized into war bands under the leadership ofa chief.They were fierce warriors but fought in undisciplined mobs. The disciplined Roman legionshad great success against the Germanic tribes for centuries, in part because emotionalarmies are usually very fragile. When the Roman legions declined in quality at the empire'send, however, the Germanic tribes were able to push across the frontier.

Not all Germanic tribes fought on foot. Exceptions were the Goths, who had adapted tohorses when they settled previously north of the Black Sea. Both the Visigoths andOstrogoths learned about cavalry by being in contact with the Eastern Roman Empire southof the Danube and barbarian horsemen from Asia. The Eastern Roman armies put a greater

emphasis on cavalry because of their conflicts with mounted barbarians, the Parthians, andthe Persians.

Following the fall of Rome, most fighting in Europe for the next few centuries involvedclashes of foot soldiers. One exception might have been the battles of Britain'sArthuragainst the invading Saxons, although we have no evidence that his success was due tousing cavalry. Arthur may have halted Saxon progress in Britain for 50 years, perhapsbecause of cavalry or the use of disciplined troops. Another exception was the B

yzantinearmy that recaptured North Africa from the Vandals and almost restored Italy toEasternRoman control in the sixth century. The strength of the Byzantine army of this period wascavalry. The Byzantines benefited also from both superior leadership and an understandingof tactics that the barbarians lacked.

Fighting in these first centuries rarely involved groups that could be describedas armies.They were the same war bands as before, small by Byzantine or Asian standards and employing

limited tactics or strategy. The main military activities were raids to obtain loot in theform of food, livestock, weapons, and slaves. Aggressive tribes expanded by devastating thefood production of enemies, starving them out, and enslaving the survivors. Battles weremainly clashes of war bands, fighting hand to hand with axes and swords. They fought asmobs, not the disciplined formations typical of the Romans. They used shields and helmets

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and wore some armor. Leather armor was common; only chieftains and elites wore chain mail.

In the early eighth century, Visgothic Spain fell to the warriors of Islam, manyof whomfought as light cavalry. At the same time, nomadic Magyars from the Hungarian plainsincreased their mounted raids on western Europe. In 732 a Frankish infantry armywas ableto defeat a Muslim cavalry raid near Poitiers, ending Muslim northward expansion. CharlesMartel, warlord of the Franks, was impressed by the Moorish cavalry and began mounting partof his army. This conversion continued later in the century under the great kingof theFranks,Charlemagne. Frankish heavy cavalry was the genesis of the mounted knightthat cameto typify medieval warfare.

Annually for 30 years, Charlemagne conducted military campaigns that extended the size ofhis empire. The Frankish army consisted of both infantry and armored cavalry, but thecavalry was his most valuable force and the part that got the most notice. It co

uld movequickly and strike hard against foes fighting mainly on foot. Charlemagne's campaigns wereeconomic raids, burning, looting, and devastating enemies into submission. He fought veryfew battles against organized opposition.

The Vikings fought exclusively on foot, except that it was their habit to gatherhorsesupon landing and use them to raid farther inland. Their raids began in the lateeighthcentury and ended in the eleventh century. The descendants of Viking raiders that became

the Normans of northwestern France adapted quickly to the use of horses and became some ofthe most successful warriors of the late Middle Ages.

In the early tenth century, the Germans began developing the use of cavalry under Otto I,both as a rapid response force against Viking raids and to repel mounted barbarian raidsfrom the East.

By the end of the tenth century, heavy cavalry was an important component of most Europeanarmies except in Anglo-Saxon England, Celtic lands (Ireland, Wales, and Scotland

), andScandinavia.