The Manual of Heraldry; Fifth Edition: Being a Concise Description of the Several Terms Used, and Containing a Dictionary of Every Designation in the ScienceAnonymous
History
The Manual of Heraldry; Fifth Edition: Being a Concise Description of the Several Terms Used, and Containing a Dictionary of Every Designation in the Science
Anonymous
Heraldry
When the sports were over, the heralds and pursuivants declared the
names and titles of the knights, and proclaimed the heraldic ornaments
which the emperor, king, or prince that presided at the tournament
granted to those whom he pleased to reward or favour.
Notwithstanding all the precautions to prevent the mischief that might
happen at these martial exercises few were exhibited in which a great
number were not wounded, some killed in the melee, others crushed by
the falling of the scaffolds, or trod to death by the horses. Kings,
princes, and gallant knights from every part of Europe have perished
at different times while attending or taking part in those mimic
battles. Successive popes thundered out their anathemas against all
that encouraged this warlike and dangerous amusement. Those who
perished in these sanguinary entertainments were denied the honour of
Christian burial; and yet, so strong was the passion of the nobility
of Europe for these martial sports, from a desire to display their
grandeur, courage, and address before the ladies and the assembled
multitude, that no bulls, decretals, or anathemas of the church were
able to restrain them. The use of gunpowder, and the consequent
inutility of armour to defend the person in battle, gradually put
an end to these animating shows. The tragical death of Henry II. of
France, in 1559, who was accidentally killed in a tournament, caused
laws to be passed prohibiting their being held in that kingdom. They
were continued in England till the beginning of the seventeenth
century.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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