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7/31/2019 Rethinking the origins of the Irish hobelar
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7/31/2019 Rethinking the origins of the Irish hobelar
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CardiffHistoricalPapersPublishedbytheCardiffSchoolofHistoryandArchaeology,CardiffUniversity,HumanitiesBuilding,ColumRoad,CardiffCF103EU,UK
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mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]7/31/2019 Rethinking the origins of the Irish hobelar
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar
The hobelar is something of a sideshow inmedievalmilitary history. In the past
centurythere
have
been
only
two
major
studies
of
this
troop
type:
J.E.
Morris
MountedInfantryWarfarein1914andJ.LydonsTheHobelar:AnIrishContribu
tiontoMedievalWarfarein1954.1ThisisperhapssurprisinggiventhatMorrissaw
thehobelaras theprecursor to themounted longbowman,whileLydoncalledhim
themosteffective fightingmanof theage, referring to thehobelaras anentirely
differenttypeofmountedsoldier.2Otherhistorianshaveonlyconsideredthehobe
larinpassing,andhavebeenhappytoaccepttheconclusionsofMorrisandLydon.3
Ifhe
is
so
important
to
the
development
of
warfare
in
the
High
Middle
Ages,
why
hasnotmoreworkbeendoneonhim?Thispaperlooksagainattheconclusionsof
MorrisandLydon,andseekstoreevaluatethehobelarsoriginsandlegacy.
Theoriginsofthehobelar,sayMorrisandLydon,lieinIreland.Theirevidence
seems conclusive. The term is first seen in documents relating to the contingent
broughtbyJohndeWogan,JusticiarofIreland,toserveinEdwardIsScottishcam
paign of 1296, and over the next decade Edwards forces included an increasing
number of hobelars in the Irish contingents. The derivation of the term hobelar
stemsfromthehobbyorhobin,thesmallhorsethatthesetroopshabituallyrode,this
name in turn coming from theGaelicword obannmeaning swift.4According to
Morris andLydon, the hobelarwas unlike any cavalry present inEngland at the
1 J.E.Morris, Mounted Infantry inMedievalWarfare,Transactions of theRoyalHistoricalSociety,3rdseries,no.8(1914),pp.77102;J.Lydon,TheHobelar:AnIrishContributiontoMedievalWarfare,IrishSword,2(1954)pp.1216.
2 Morris,MountedInfantry,p.101;Lydon,TheHobelar,p.13.
3 See for example D. Nicolle, Medieval Warfare Sourcebook, vol. I (London: Arms andArmour,1996),pp.165,173,180,204,and2656;M.Prestwich,ArmiesandWarfareintheMiddleAges(NewHavenandLondon:YaleUniversityPress,1996),passim;R.Frame,ThedefenceoftheEnglishlordships,12501450,inT.BartlettandK.Jeffrey(eds),AMilitaryHistory of Ireland (Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,1996),p.80: thehobelarormounted lancer,who rode towarbut foughton foot.P.Contamine,War in theMiddleAges, trans.M.Jones (London: Blackwell, 1985), p. 71, calls the hobelars English andstatesthattheywereused incampaignsagainstWales.Healsodiscussesotherformsof
light cavalry, such as the Turcopoles in the Holy Land,mounted Saracen archers in
southernItalyandtheCatalanalforrats.4 Morris,MountedInfantry,pp.801;Lydon,TheHobelar,p.13.
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RobertJones2
time, being mounted on a small pony, without the caparison of the heavy
cavalrymanandequippedwithonlyamailshirt,ahelmet,asword,andaspear.He
was thereforeunsuited for shockaction, the onlydutyofcavalry.5However,he
wasan
excellent
scout
and
raider,
perfect
for
the
style
of
warfare
common
in
Ireland
andmosteffective intheScottishcampaignsofthefourteenthcentury.Thehobelar
wastohaveashortlifespan.Hisnumbersgrewrapidlyafter1296,490servinginthe
contingent from Ireland for the1304campaign,and1,000being requested (butnot
arriving)forthatof1332.Bythe1350shisnumbershaddwindled,ashewassuper
sededbythemountedlongbowmanwho,combiningthehobelarsmobilitywiththe
archersfirepower,becameanessentialpartofEnglisharmiesforthenexttwohun
dredyears.
These
then
are
Morris
and
Lydons
conclusions.
The
hobelar
comes
from
Ireland, isanew typeofwarrior inEnglishwarfare,andhelps spawn,only tobe
replacedby,themountedlongbow.
These assertionsmaybe challenged, however. The etymology of the name
hobelardoes,atfirst,seemtobecorrect.AlthoughbothFrenchandLatinwordlists
includeanumberofvariationshobeleor,hoblerandthelikeinFrenchandhobelarius,
hobelerius, hobiliarius and so forth inLatin the examplesgiven all stem from the
fourteenth century and later. Furthermore, the majority are from documents
connectedwiththedeedsorgovernmentofEdwardtheThird,whichisofcoursejust
whatonemightexpect.6However, therearecognatewords inFrenchwhichmight
besuggestiveofaContinentalderivation.There is thebirdofpreycalledahobby,
smallandswift.InFrenchthisisrenderedashobet,houbet,butalsohobereau,hobeleror
hoberwhichaccordingtoLeGrandRobertderivesfromthemedievalFlemishhobeleu,
tobudge
or
move
oneself
(sebougerinmodernFrench,buthoberoroberinthatofthe
fourteenthcenturyaccording to theDictionnairede lancienne langueFranaise).7One
5 Morris,MountedInfantry,p.78;Lydon,TheHobelar,p.13.
6 For theFrenchoccurrences of theword seeF.Godefroy (ed.),Dictionnaire de lanciennelangueFranaise,vol.V(Paris:F.Vieweg:E.Bouillon,1885),p.480,andfortheLatinseeR.E. Latham,RevisedMedieval LatinWordlist (London:OxfordUniversity Press for theBritishAcademy,1965),p.227.
7 ForthebirdseePaulRobert,LeGrandRobertdelalangueFranaise,ed.A.Rey,vol.V(Paris:DictionnairesLeRobert,1996),p.211;DictionnairedelanciennelangueFranaise,p.481.FortheverbhoberseeDictionnairedelanciennelangueFranaise,p.480.Inthelatterpartofthesixteenthcenturyhobereaualsoreferredtoacountrygentlemandepetitenoblesse,asquire
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 3
mightwellconcludethatthereisanetymologicallinkbetweentheGaelicobannand
theFrancoFlemish (h)ober,butwhere that link lies chronologically isnot clear.8 It
doeshowevermakeMorrisassertionofaGaelicorigin for the termhobelarmuch
lesscertain.
It is also the case that although some scholarshave suggested a tradition of
mounted combat in Ireland, from which Morris and Lydon claim the hobelar
evolved,thereisverylittleevidenceforthis.Suchaviewseemstohaveariseninpart
becauseofGeraldofWalesTopographiaHiberniae. Inonechapterhedescribes, the
nature, customs and character of thepeople of Ireland, including how they treat
theirbabies,theirstyleofclothing,howtheyride,andhowtheyfightinbattle.These
lasttwo
paragraphs
read:
When theyare riding, theydonotuse saddlesor leggingsor spurs.Theydriveon,and
guide theirhorsesbymeansofastickwithacrookat itsupperend,which theyhold in
theirhand.Theyusereinstoservethepurposebothofabridleandbit.Thesedonotkeep
thehorses,accustomedtofeedingongrass,fromtheirfood.
Moreover,theygonakedandunarmedintobattle.Theyregardweaponsasaburden,and
they think itbraveandhonourable to fightunarmed.Theyuse,however, three typesof
weaponshort
spears,
two
darts
(in
this
they
imitate
the
Basclenses),
and
big
axes9
Itseems thatmanyhistorianshave linked these together, tocreateajavelinarmed
horsemanridingbareback.10
inthemodernEnglishsenseoftheword,whichmightbeofinterestgiventheconclusions
below.
8 Lydonnotes theFrench term for thehobbyashobin,and thatothershavemadea linkbetweenthisandthegaelicobann,buthedoesnotcitehissources.Neitherdoesheprovethattheformerstemsdirectlyfromthelatter.Lydon,TheHobelar,p.13.
9 Itemsellisequitandononutuntur,nonocreis,noncalcaribus.Virgatantum,quammanu
gestant, insuperioripartecamerata, tamequosexcitantquamadcursus invitant.Frenis
quidemutuntur, tamchamiquamfrenivice fungentibus.Quibusetequi,semperherbis
assueti, ad pabula nequaquam impediuntur. Praeterea, nudi et inermes ad bella
procedunt.Habentenimarmaproonere; inermesverodimicareproaudaciareputantet
honere.Tribustantumutunturarmorumgeneribus;lanceisnonlongis,etjaculisbinis,in
quibus et Basclensiummorem sunt imitati; securibus quoque amplis... Giraldi Cam
brensis,TopographiaHibernica,Opera,ed.J.Dimock,vol.V(London,1867),pp.1501;GeraldofWales,TheHistoryandTopographyofIreland,trans.J.OMeara(London:Penguin,1982),p.101.
10 Seeforexample,Nicolle,MedievalWarfareSourcebook,vol.I,pp.77and128;A.Hyland,TheMedievalWarhorse(Stroud:AlanSutton,1994),p.103.
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RobertJones4
Intruth,thegreaterpartoftheevidencefortheuseofhorses inbattlebythe
native Irish comes from the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.Katharine Simms,
writingonGaelicwarfare,describescavalryasanimportantpartofcattleraids,but
theearliest
of
her
examples
is
from
shortly
after
1240,
nearly
acentury
beyond
the
first CambroNorman incursions; one must consider how far we are seeing the
impactof theAngloNormanmilitarycultureupon theIrish,afactorrecognised in
otherareasofWestEuropeanexpansionduringtheperiod.11Evidencepriortoandat
the time of the Conquest of 1170 does not appear to support the argument for
widespread use of light cavalry by the Gaelic Irish. Neither Gerald of Wales
ExpugnatioHibernicanortheNormanFrenchchansonTheSongofDermotandtheEarl
makeany
mention
of
mounted
Irish
troops
during
the
early
phase
of
the
Conquest
thattheybothcover.12Inpart,thismaybeascribedtothefactthatthefightingatthis
point took the form of assaults upon coastal towns or ambushes launched from
heavilywoodedcountry,neitheractionsconducivetotheuseofcavalry.Itisalsothe
casethatthesewerenotsolely,orevenprimarily,Gaelicsettlements,butconsistedof
the Ostmen, Scandinavian settlerswhose ownmilitary traditionwas verymuch
infantrybased.However,IrishsourcesarenomoreforthcomingthantheExpugnatio
or The Song. The Cogadh Gaedhel re Gallaibh, an eleventhcentury poem recording
BrianBorumaswaragainsttheNorse,makesnomentionofcavalryincombat,even
thoughitconcludeswiththepitchedbattleofClontarf,andwhilsttheannalsdorefer
tocavalryengagementsaroundthetimeoftheAngloNormanconquest,suchentries
arerareandlackdetail,atypicalonereading:
AhostingbyConchobarUaBriain,andbythemenofMumhaintoLaighlen,andtheytook
their
hostages,
and
they
proceeded
from
thence
into
Midhe,
and
plundered
the
island
of
11 KatharineSimms, Warfare intheMedievalGaelicLordships, IrishSword,12(1975),pp.98108.ForthecrossfertilisationofmilitaryculturesseeR.Bartlett, TechniqueMilitaire
etPouvoirPolitique,9001300,Annales:conomies,Socits,Civilisations,vol.41(1980),pp.113559andTheMakingofEurope(London:AllanLane,1993),pp.6084.
12 Gerald ofWales,ExpugnatioHibernica, trans.A.B. Scott andF.X.Martin (Dublin:RoyalIrishAcademy,1978);TheSongofDermotandtheEarl,ed.andtrans.G.H.Orpen(Oxford:ClarendonPress,1892).
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 5
LochSemdidhe.Theircavalryand thecavalryofConnachtmet there,and thecavalryof
Connachtweredefeated.13
ThesparcityofevidenceintheannalsisreinforcedinJohnV.Kellehersarticleonthe
battle
of
Min
Mhr
in
1151.
In
spite
of
this
being
a
major
engagement
between
two
powerful kings, there is no evidence that either force fought predominantly from
horseback.14
Whilst there is only a little evidence for the use of horses as battlefield
weapons,this isnottosaythattheIrishmadenouseofthemwhatsoever.Thereis
evidence that the Irishnobilitywerevery interested inequestrianismand that, far
frombeing limitedto hobbies,asLydon indicates,atwelfthcenturyBookofRights
listingitems
given
by
an
over
king
to
his
vassals
includes
awide
variety
of
horses,
suchas horses for racing, steedsof the road,and horsesused tohosting.15The
bookalsomentionshorsesimportedfromScotlandandFrance,anditisknownthat
Welshhorseswereimportedforbreeding.16InChrtiendeTroyesromanceErecand
Enide,TheHaughtyKnightoftheHeathridesintothemeleonanIrishhorse,which
bearshimviolentlyforward,andChrtienreferstoitasacharger.17Thissuggests
that,tothelatetwelfthcenturymind(ErecandEnidewaswrittenaround1169),Irish
13 Cogadh Gaedhel re Gallaibh: The war of the Gaedhil with the Gaill, ed. and trans. JamesHenthornTodd (London:Longmans,Green,Reader,andDyer,1867);AnnalsofLochC,ed.and trans.WilliamM.Hennessy,vol. I (London, 1871) for theyear1130.Thereare
similarentries inthisannalfortheyears1128,1130,1236,and1256,andintheAnnalsofUlster,vol.II,ed.andtrans.B.McCarthy(Dublin,1893)fortheyears1099,1128,1131,and1247.
14 J.V.Kelleher,TheBattleofMinMhr1151,Celtica(1988),pp.1127.15 SeeM.T.Flanagan, IrishandAngloNormanWarfare inTwelfthCentury Ireland, inT.
Bartlett and K. Jeffrey (eds), A Military History of Ireland (Cambridge: CambridgeUniversityPress,1996),p.64.Theitemslistedinthisdocumentmakethebookseemvery
likeanAngloSaxonherriot(seeN.P.Brooks,ArmsandStatusinLateSaxonEngland,in
DavidHill (ed.),Ethelred theUnready (Oxford:BritishArchaeologicalReports,1978),pp.81104).
16 N.A. James, Horses inMedievalWelsh Court Poetry and S. Davies, Horses in the
Mabinogion, in SionedDavies andNerysAnnJones (eds), TheHorse inCelticCulture(Cardiff:UniversityofWalesPress,1997),pp.90and136.
17 De lautre part, encontre lui/ point li Orguelleus de la Lande,/ et sist sor un cheval
dIrlande/quileportedegrantravine./sorlescu,devantlapointrine,/lefiertErecdetel
vertue/quedeldestrier laabatu.ChrtiendeTroyes, Erec etEnide, inLes romansdeChrtiendeTroyes,ed.MarioRoques,vol.I(Paris,1953),p.65;ChrtiendeTroyes, Erecand Enide in C.W. Carroll and W.W. Kibler (trans.), Arthurian Romances (London:Penguin,1991),p.64.
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RobertJones6
horses neednotbe small andunsuitable for heavy cavalry. Indeed the evidence
wouldappear to indicate that the Irishwereusinghorsesofanumberofdifferent
conformations for a number of different purposes.Horseswere expensive, high
statusitems,
and
an
interest
in
horseflesh
is
typical
of
medieval
aristocracies.
The
Carolingians,AngloSaxons andNormans all had highly sophisticated royal stud
farms,anditwouldbesurprisingiftheIrishnobilitydidnottakeasimilarinterest
andprideinthesestatussymbols,ifperhapsonasmallerscale.18Whatweappearto
have in Ireland isnot aGaelic light cavalry culture,with themajorityofwarriors
riding intobattle, as suggestedbyNicolle,butanobility similar to that inAnglo
SaxonEnglandorWales,whereasGeraldofWalestellsus, Their leadersrideinto
battleon
swift
mettlesome
horses
which
are
bred
locally.
Most
of
the
common
people
prefertofightonfoot,inviewofthemarshyuneventerrain.Thehorsemenwilloften
dismountascircumstanceandoccasiondemand,readytofleeorattack.19Thisisnot
wherewefindthelighthorseofeitherMorrisorNicolle.20
So, ifwearenolongercertainoftheGaelicderivationofhisname,norofthe
Gaelicoriginofhisstyleofcombat,isitpossibletosuggestthatthehobelarisinfact
animportandthathecameacrosstheIrishSea,perhapswiththeCambroNorman
settlersinthetwelfthcentury?IntheExpugnatioHibernicaGeraldofWalesgiveshis
formulafortheconquestoftheIrish.21Inthischapterheoutlinestheshortcomingsof
theFrenchknightinthetypeofwarfarepresentinIreland:
thereisagreatdifferencebetweenwarfareinFranceontheonehandandinIrelandand
Walesontheother.InFrancemenchoosetheopenplainsfortheirbattles,butinIreland
andWalesrough,woodedcountry;thereheavyarmourisamarkofdistinction,hereitis
onlyaburden;therevictoryiswonbystandingfirm,herebymobility;thereknightsare
18 ForroyalstudsseeR.H.C.Davis,TheWarhorsesoftheNormans,AngloNormanStudies,10(1987),pp.6781andTheMedievalWarhorse(London:ThamesandHudson,1989),pp.3842,74,81,and137;Hyland,MedievalWarhorse,pp.623and835.
19 Equisautemcursoribusetgenerosis,quospatriagignit,nobilioresadbellaferuntur.Pars
autempopulimajor,propter terraspalustrespariter et inaequales,adpraeliapedestres
incedunt. Equites autem, pro locorum et temporum opportunitate, seu fugiendo seu
fugando facilepedites fiunt.GiraldiCambrensis, DescriptioKambriae,Opera, vol.VI(London,1868),p.181;GeraldofWales,TheJourneythroughWales/thedescriptionofWales,trans.LewisThorpe(London:Penguin,1978),p.234.
20 Nicolle,MedievalWarfareSourcebook,vol.I,pp.77and128.21 GeraldofWales,Expugnatio,pp.2449.
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 7
takenprisoner,heretheyarebeheaded;theretheyareransomed,heretheyarebutchered.
Whentwoarmiesmeetinbattleoutontheplains,thatheavyarmour,consistingofseveral
layers of linen or steel, gives soldiers excellent protection and ismostbecoming. But
equally,whenthefightingtakesplaceonlywithinarestrictedspace,oroverwoodedor
boggyground,wherethereisscopeforfootsoldiersratherthanhorsemen,lightarmouris
far superior. For light arms are quite sufficient for use against enemieswho are not
armoured.Anybattleagainsttheseiseitherwonorlostimmediately,generallyinthevery
firstencounter.Inthatsituationitisinevitablethatanenemywhoismobileandinretreat
overconfinedordifficultterraincanonlyberoutedbyanequallymobileforcepressing
hardon them,andonly lightlyarmed.Forowing to theweightof thatarmourwith its
many layers, and saddles which are high and curved back, men have difficulty in
dismounting,even
more
difficulty
in
mounting,
and
find
advancing
on
foot,
when
the
needarises,mostdifficultofall.22
This is almost exactly the same problem thatMorris and Lydon argue the
Englisharmieswere facingoncampaign inScotlandduring the latethirteenthand
earlyfourteenthcenturies.Geraldalsooffersasolutiontotheproblem.Headvocates
theuseof thatbreedofmenwhichhasbeenbroughtup intheWelshbordersand
trainedinthewarfarethatgoesoninthoseparts,becausewhenthechangingcon
ditionsofwardemandit,theyareskilledhorsemenatonemoment,atanotherquick
moving infantry.23Thesemen,ofcourse,were theGeraldineclanand theiradher
ents,menofsouthWaleswhohadbeenmajorplayers inthe initial invasionofIre
landandwereGeraldskinsmen. It ispossible toargue thatGerald is in factover
emphasisingtheroleofhisrelatives;itiscertainthatinothersectionsofhisnarrative
22 Gallica tamenmiliciamultum abHibernica, sicut et aKambricadistaredinoscitur. Ibi
namque plana petuntur, hic aspera; ibi campestria, hic silvestria; ibi arma honori, hic
oneri; ibistabilitate vincitur, hic agilitate; ibi capiunutur milites, hic decapitantur; ibi
redimuntur,hicperimuntur.Sicut igiturubimilitaresaciesdeplanoconveniunt,gravis
illaetmultiplexarmatura,atmlineascilicetquamferrea,militesegregiemunitetornat,sic
ubi solum in arto confligitur, seu loco silvestri seu palustri, ubi pedites potius quam
equites locum habent, longe levis armatura prestancior.Contra inermes namque viros,
quibussemperinprimofereimpetuvelpartaeststatimvelperditavictoria,expediciora
satisarmasufficiunt,ubifugitivametagilemperartavelasperagentemsolanecesseest
gravi quadam et armata mediocriter agilitate confundi. Cum illa nimirum armatura
multiplici,sellisquerecurvisetaltisdifficiledescenditur,difficiliusascenditur,difficillime,
cumopusest,pedibusitur.Ibid.,pp.2467.
23 In omni igitur expedicione sive Hibernica sive Kambrica, gens in Kambrie marchia
nutrita,genshostilibusparciumillarumconflictibusexercitata,competentissima[]cum
aleamartisexegerit,nuncquishabilis,nuuncpedibusagilisinventa[].Ibid.,pp.2467.
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RobertJones8
theygetmorethantheirfairshareofthelimelight.However,itisalsotruethatatthe
time hewaswriting, therewere lightarmed,mobile troops serving in theWelsh
March.
Inhis
book
MilitaryInstitutionsontheWelshMarches,Suppedescribesatypeofsoldiercalledamuntator,whoisfoundintherecordsofthecountiesofShropshire
andStaffordshire in the lateeleventhand twelfthcenturies.24Thereareremarkable
similaritiesbetween this horseman armedwith a hauberk, an iron helmet, and a
lanceandthefourteenthcenturyhobelar.Suppesuggestedthatthemuntator, con
stitutedamobileforceoflightlyarmedcavalryidealforpursuitofsmallbandsof
WelshraidersonfootPatrolsofmuntatorswouldbeeminentlysuitedforlocating
partiesof
Welsh
on
foot
and
forcing
them
into
battle.25
This ismuch the same role as that performedby Robert le Brut, an Irish
hobelur[sic.],retainedtospythepassingsandhauntsoftheenemybynightandday
in July 1299, and of Geralds ideal soldier for Ireland.26 In fact their regular
employmentinthegarrisonsoftheScottishbordertownssuggestverysimilaruseto
thatrecognisedforthemuntatorbySuppe,takingintoaccountthemoreintenselevel
ofconflictontheScotsborderatthetime.MorrisrecordsthatinAugust1311inthe
castles ofBerwick,Roxburgh, Edinburgh, Linlithgow, Stirling,Perth,Dundee and
Bothwellthereweresome73hobelars,approximatelyhalfthenumberofarchersand
onesevenththenumberofheavycavalry,whichwerepresumablymenatarmsand
sergeantsinMorrisunderstandingoftheterms.27
Here, then,we have perhaps the strongest evidence for theAngloNorman
originofthehobelar.ShropshireandStaffordshirearetwocountiesfromwhichlarge
numbersof
the
first
Cambro
Norman
settlers
in
Ireland
originated.
28
It
is
not
inconceivable that thesemarcher nobles, recognising the success of the muntator
againsttheWelsh,introducedthemtoIrelandtodealwiththesimilarsituationthere.
24 F. Suppe,Military Institutions on theWelshMarches (Woodbridge: Boydell and Brewer,1994),pp.6385.
25 Ibid.,p.85.
26 CalendarofDocumentsRelatingtoScotland,12721307,ed.J.Bayne(London,1881),no.1084,quotedinLydon,TheHobelar,p.14.
27 Morris,MountedInfantry,p.82.
28 Brendan Smith, Conquest and Colonisation inMedieval Ireland (Cambridge: CambridgeUniversityPress,1999),p.38.
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 9
Then,aroundahundredyearslater,beingaskedtoserveinwarsagainstanelusive
Scottishfoe,thelords inIrelandbroughtthemuntatorbackacrosstheIrishSea,but
underanamewithaGaelicorigin:hobelar.Evenifadirectlinkwiththemuntator
cannotbe
proven,
aWelsh
link
is
suggested
by
the
etymology
of
the
old
French
verb
hober,asdiscussedabove.ItsFlemishoriginsmightsuggestalinkwiththeFlemish
settlers in theGeraldine strongholdofPembrokeshire. Ifnotactually aShropshire
muntator,hemightwellhavebeenasimilarPembrokehobeliernotamanwhowas
mounted,butonewhoshiftedhimself.
So, if thehobelarcanbe linked to themuntator,whatwere theoriginsof the
latter?UnlikeinGaelicIreland,historianshavenotsuggestedthatthenativeWelsh
foughtfrom
horseback,
and
there
is
therefore
no
suggestion
that
the
muntator is
Celticinorigin.AlthoughNicollesuggestsapossiblelinkwithpreConquestriding
men, therewould seem tobe littleevidence foraSaxonorigineither.29Geraldof
Wales horsemen are notWelsh,but rather CambroNormans,who havebecome
accustomedtoadifferentkindofterrain.
Suppe has recognised similarities between the muntator and the socalled
secondclass cavalry, or equites classis secundae,which existed under a number of
termssuchas,inLatin,loricatus,scutiferus,servientsequitans,equeslevisarmaturae,and
inFrench,serjans,damoiseau,andecuyer.30However,bothContamineandSmailagree
thatthissecondclasscavalrydifferedfromtheknightsonly intermsoftheirsocial
rankandtheexpenseandqualityoftheirequipment.31Similarly,Morrissaysthatthe
Englishheavycavalry,whetherthesuperiorknightsortheinferiorscutiferi,fought
inthesameway,thatiswiththecouchedlanceandatthecharge.32Thisisnotwhat
wehave
seen
to
be
the
primary
role
of
either
the
muntator or the hobelar, and itwould seem to suggest that they cannotbe tactically related to the nonknightly
cavalryofWesternEurope.
29 Nicolle,MedievalWarfareSourcebook.vol.I,p.114.30 Contamine,WarintheMiddleAges,pp.6970;R.C.Smail,CrusadingWarfare(Cambridge:Cambridge University Press, 1989), p. 111. Suppe makes the same link (MilitaryInstitutions,pp.758).
31 Contamine,WarintheMiddleAges,p.70;Smail,CrusadingWarfare,p.111.32 Morris,MountedInfantry,p.78.
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Yet in all other respects they do appear tobe very similar. There is even a
technical,tenuriallink,fortheserviceoftwomuntatorswastheequivalenttothatof
oneknight,aswasthatoftwosergeants.33Theequipmentofthemuntatorisnotall
thatdifferent
from
the
equipment
of
the
knightly
cavalry
of
the
late
eleventh
and
twelfthcenturiesamailshirt,ahelmet,ashield,andalanceandtheseknightly
cavalrywere capable ofperforming a charge at lancepoint.Thedifferent sizes of
horsemightbe a factor indistinguishingbetween the two,but I suspect that the
smallsizeofthemuntatorandhobelarsmountshasbeenoverplayed.Warhorsesof
thetwelfthcenturywerearoundfourteenorfifteenhandshigh,andponiesneednot
necessarilybesmallerthanthis;thedistinctionisoneofconformation(thatistosay,
bonestructure,
musculature,
gait
and
the
like)
rather
than
height.34
Bythethirteenthcenturythedisparityinequipmentbetweenthemuntatorand
militeshadgrownsignificantly,thelatternowarmouredcappiedinmail,sporting
armand legprotectionsof cuir bouillior ironplates,andwearing fullheadhelms
rather than iron caps.35 However the equipment of the classis secundae cavalry
remainsverysimilartothatofthemuntator.
Thesamecannotbesaidofthehobelar.Inthefourteenthcenturythedifference
between the hobelar and the manatarms is significant. The latter wore large
amountsofplatearmour.Asergeantmightnotbesowellequipped,butbythetime
the hobelar arrived on the scene, even hewouldbewearing some form of plate
defence. The difference between the hobelar and the fourteenthcentury second
classcavalryisalsoindicatedbythefactthat,underEdwardI,thehobelarwaspaid
6dperday,halfthatofasergeant(1shilling),andaquarterofthatoftheknight(2
shillings).36
This
may
suggest
adisparity
in
the
equipment
of
the
hobelar
and
the
sergeant,butoneshouldnotignorethefactthatpayscaleswerealsosetaccordingto
socialrank,so inpart thedifferencewillhavebeenoneof breeding thehobelar
comingfromalowersocialclasstheneitherthesergeantortheknight.
33 Prestwich,ArmiesandWarfare,p.65.34 SeeHyland,MedievalWarhorse,pp.12.35 Foravisualdepictionofthethirteenthcenturyknightseethevividdepictionsofbattlein
theMorganCrusaderBible(formerlyknownastheMaciejowskiBible),publishedasOldTestamentMiniatures:AMedievalPicturebook(NewYork:G.Braziller,1969).
36 Prestwich,ArmiesandWarfare,p.84.
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 11
Having argued that thehobelar isvery similar to themuntator, and that the
muntatoriseffectivelyasergeant,itnowseemsthatthehobelarisnottheequivalent
ofasergeant.Howcanoneexplainthisapparentdiscrepancy?Iwouldsuggestthat
themuntatorgoestoIrelandastheequivalentofthesergeant,butthehobelarcomes
back as the sergeants inferiorbecause of differences in the development of the
military cultures of Ireland and the British mainland between the twelfth and
fourteenthcenturies.OnceinIreland,theEnglishtroopswereinvolvedinadifferent
formofwarfare,asdescribedinthewritingsofGeraldofWalesquotedabove.There
isaonehundredandtwentysevenyeargapbetweenStrongbowsarrivalIrelandin
1171 and the first mention of the hobelar in 1298. During that time military
technologydid
not
stand
still.
In
England
and
continental
Europe
the
cavalry
became
moreheavily armoured as it faced increasednumbers ofbows and crossbows. In
Ireland the intensity of warfare was lower, thebow and crossbowwere not so
prevalent, and the nature of the terrainmeant that heavy armour could actually
prove an encumbrance. Therewas therefore no tactical or technological impetus
amongstthecavalryoftheAngloIrishlordstoutilisetheheavyarmourfashionable
on thecontinent.Therewas,however,a tacticalbenefit tohaving lightlyequipped
horsemenabletopursuetheraidingpartiesthatwereendemic.Thisgoessomeway
toexplainingthestatutepassedinIrelandin1296,whichorderedthatallthosewith
landworth twenty pounds a yearwere to have abarded horse, and those less
wealthyweretoownahobbyorotherunarmouredmount.Ataboutthesametime
a scheduledrawnup for the lordofTrim shows thatmenworthas littleas three
pounds,sixshillingsandeightpencewereexpectedtohaveahorse,whilstinEng
landit
was
only
arequirement
for
those
valued
at
fifteen
pounds
or
more.
37
This
mightindicatethatthefinancialstatusoftheIrishgentrywasinsufficienttoprovide
the requisitenumberofmenatarms,and thatanextraqualificationhad tobecre
atedtomakeuptheshortfall.
WhenthehobelarcrossedfromtheIrishmilitarycultureintothatofcontinental
EuropetojoinEdwardIsScottishcampaigns,hewasfarmorelightlyequippedthan
anyotherhorseman,andpossibly ina lowersocialbracket,and thereforedue less
37 Frame,DefenceoftheEnglishlordships,p.80.
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RobertJones12
pay.Thehobelar is, touse an evolutionary analogy, adivergentbranch,deriving
fromthesamesecondclasscavalryrootasthesergeant,butthenadaptingforadif
ferentmilitaryenvironment.
Whydid
Morris
fail
to
see
the
link
between
the
hobelar
and
the
second
class
cavalry?Inparthemayhavebeenblindedbytheterminology,seeingdifferentterms
asdenotinganew typeofsoldier.This impressionwouldhavebeenreinforcedby
the fact thatthehobelarcameoutof Ireland traditionallyseenashavinganalien
military culture and bore a name of apparently Gaelic origin. Lydons work,
publishedinajournalonIrishmilitaryhistoryandentitledanIrishcontributionto
medievalwarfare,wasalmostboundtofollowthisideaofthehobelarasnewand
indigenousto
Ireland.
Subsequent
historians
also
failed
to
question
Morris
conclusions, in part because of the problems of translating medieval military
terminology, as StephenMorillo has discussed in his article Milites,Knights and
Samurai: Military terminology, comparative history, and the problem of
translation.38Militaryterms,orsoldierwordsasMorillocallsthem,havedifferent
emphasesand connotationsdependingon thevectorofmeaningbeingused,be it
functional,organisationalorsocial.Thus,thesamewordcanmeandiversethingsin
documents of different purposes or periods.39 Themisinterpretation ofmedieval
terms that are still in use today, or the use of modern soldierwords and
categorisations in theprocess of translation can cause evengreaterproblems.The
latterisinevitable,sincemedievalmilitaryhistoryisaproductofthemilitaryculture
of nineteenthcenturyWesternEurope.Themodern study ofmilitary historywas
borninthestaffcollegesoftheEuropeanpowersinthemidnineteenthcentury,with
theaim
of
teaching
cadet
officers
the
fundamental
and
eternal
laws
of
war.
In
order
todo this,battlesandcampaigns throughouthistorywereselectedtobecompared
38 S.Morillo,Milites,KnightsandSamurai:Militaryterminology,comparativehistory,andthe problem of translation, in R.Abels and B. Bachrach (eds), TheNormans and theirAdversariesatWar(Woodbridge:BoydellandBrewer,2001),pp.16784.
39 The terminology used for those heavy cavalrywhowere not knights changed in the
courseoftime;underEdwardI,therewerestillsergeantsintheroyalhousehold,butmost
nonknightly cavalrymenwere termed squires (scutiferi) or valets (valetti), termswhichmight be synonymous. Later all might simply be called menatarms (armigeri). M.Prestwich,MilesinArmisStrenuus:TheKnightatWar,TransactionsoftheRoyalHistoricalSociety,6thseries,no.5(1995),p.202.
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 13
andcontrastedwitheachother.Theonlywayinwhichconclusionscouldbedrawn
fromtheseexampleswasifacommonframeofreferencewasimposed.Becausethe
lessonslearnedhadtobeappliedonthecontemporarybattlefield,themostsensible
frameworkto
use
was
that
of
the
modern
way
of
warfare;
it
was
familiar
and
there
foreeasilycomprehended.ButthemilitarycultureofnineteenthcenturyEuropewas
not the same as that ofmedieval Europe.Morris recognised this,warning of the
dangersofusingmoderndefinitionsofheavyandlightcavalrywhendealingwith
medievalhorsemen.Onecannotavoidusingmodernphrases,butoneneednotthink
oflifeguardswhentalkingofheavy,orofhussarswhentalkingoflightcavalryof
themiddle ages;medieval mounted infantrywere not like seventeenthcentury
dragoons,nor
were
they
companies
of
line
battalions
put
on
horseback
for
special
purposes.40Yetthemilitarycultureofthenineteenthcenturyisstillsuperimposedon
thatoftheMiddleAges.
Innineteenthcenturymilitaryculture,troopsareorganisedbytypes,witheach
heavycavalry,lightcavalry,dragoons,lineinfantry,lightinfantry,grenadiers,foot
artillery,horseartilleryetceteraadnauseumhavingastrictlydefinedrolewithinthe
prosecutionofwar,andeachsoldier receivingspecificequipmentand trainingde
signed solely to fulfil that role. Itwouldbevery rare forone typeof soldier tobe
foundperforming the tasksofanother (say, forexampleheavycavalry fightingon
footas infantry),anduncommon for troops tomove fromonebranchofservice to
another,evenasofficers.Themedievalmilitaryculturedidnothavethesestrictdefi
nitions.AlthoughvariousAssizes ofArms and similardocuments outlinewhat a
particular individual shouldhave in terms ofmilitary equipment, there isno evi
denceto
suggest
that
this
placed
any
limit
upon
the
functions
he
could
be
asked
to
performor theweaponsandarmourhemightown.TheAssizeofArmswasnota
sumptuarylawseekingtorestricttheequipmentthatanindividualshouldhave,but
ameansofensuringaminimumlevelofreadiness.Thus,whenMorrisunderstands
the hobelar as a new troop type, and sees that the only duty of cavalrywas to
charge, not to scout, he is interpreting the evidence according to the nineteenth
40 Morris,MountedInfantry,p.78.
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RobertJones14
centurymilitary culture still so familiar in the armed forces of the twentieth cen
tury.41
Morerecentwritershavefallenintothesametrap.InherarticleArmourand
MilitaryDress
in
Thirteenth
and
Early
Fourteenth
Century
England,
which
describesanentry in theaccountsof the royalwardrobe forJuly1297,Frdrique
Lachaudcites thecaseofone GeoffreydeCreal,amounted sergeantof theking,
who received anaketon,agambeson,apairofhorse trappers,apairofcuisses,a
haubergeon,abascinet,achapeldefer,agorger,apairofglovesofplate,acrossbow,a
saddle and a targe forhis services in France.42 She goes on to say thatdeCreal,
clearly foughtasheavycavalry,presumablybecauseof theevidenceof theheavy
armourcuisses,bascinet,gorger,etceteraandhorse trappers.43 If this is thecase,
whatarewetomakeoftheinclusionofthecrossbowandtarge?Thisisnot,afterall,
theequipmentoneexpectstobecarriedbyaheavycavalryman,unlessoneaccepts
that roleswerenotas rigidlydefinedashasbeenassumed.PerhapsdeCrealwas
beingequippedforarangeofchallengeshemightfaceinthecourseofhismilitary
duties,whichcouldincludenotonlyserviceonhorsebackasheavycavalrybutalso
onfootasacrossbowman.Thewriterofwhatisstillconsideredtobetheforemost
workonthewarfareoftheCrusades,R.C.Smail,wrote:
the term levisarmaturameantonlythat theywerenotsowellequippedas thewealthier
milites; itdidnotmeanthattheywerenormallyusedas light,andtheknightsasheavy,
cavalry,withallthetacticalimplicationswhichsuchacontrastwouldimplytoamodern
reader.Occasionally the fact that theywere lightly equippedwas put to some special
military purpose; they were sent as speculatores on reconnaissance, or they were
employed as skirmishers.Usually, however, they are not associated in the textswith
specializedfunctions,andtheyappeartohavegoneintoactionwiththeknights.44
Here again the link ismadebetween the eques classis secundae and themilites and
Smail, like Morris, warns against using modern definitions of heavy and light
cavalry.However,he thengoeson toassign specialmilitarypurposes to the levis
41 Ibid.
42 F. Lachaud, Armour and military dress in thirteenth and early fourteenthcentury
England,inM.Strickland(ed.),Armies,ChivalryandWarfareinMedievalBritainandFrance(Stamford:PaulWatkins,1998),p.352.
43 Ibid.,p.353.
44 Smail,CrusadingWarfare,p.111.
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 15
armaturathatarewhollycongruentwiththe modernrolesof lightcavalry.Infact,
actingasscoutsorskirmishersmaynothavebeenconsideredaspecialised taskby
medieval warriors. Those of the knightly class, and even some of the highest
aristocracywere
quite
prepared
to
perform
just
such
functions.
After
landing
at
PevenseyatthestartoftheHastingscampaign,Williamwasquicktoinvestigatethe
regionand its inhabitantswithacompanyofnomore than twentyfiveknights.45
DuringthesiegeofAlenon,inthewaragainstGeoffreyMartel,nolessamanthan
William FitzOsbern, the steward of Normandy,was sent ahead of the army on
reconnaissance.46TheevidenceisabundantlyclearthatamongstEnglishknighthood
inthetwelfthcenturyitwasnotonlyacceptable,butalsotosomeextentdesirableto
fightdismounted.
During
each
of
the
six
main
battles
that
took
place
during
the
AngloNorman period, that is to say those of Tinchebrai, Alenon, Brmule,
Bourgthroulde, Northallerton and Lincoln, some or all of the AngloNorman
knightsdismountedandfoughtonfoot.47Occasionallytheknightlyclassesofother
cultureswerealsowillingtodismount.AtthebattleofCourtraibetweentheFrench
and Flemish,Guy ofNamur andWilliam ofJlich sent their horses away, and
armedliketherebels,withthevisorlesshelmetofthecommunalsoldiers,theytook
theirplaceinthefrontrank,graspingapikeorgoedendag.48
That theknightwasprepared toactas speculator reinforces thepoint that the
nineteenthcentury concept of troopsbeing particularly equipped for one role is
anachronisticwhen applied to theMiddle Ages.Justbecause awarrior had the
45 Guillelmusuerocumuigintiquinque,nonamplismilitumcomitatupromptusipselocaet
incolasexplorauit.WilliamofPoitiers,GestaGuillelmiDucis,ed.andtrans.R.H.C.Davisand M. Chibnall (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1998), pp. 11415. Ever the sycophantic
biographer,WilliamofPoitiersnotes that theDukes actionswereunusualboth inhis
own time and classically,when even PompeyMagnus andJuliusCaesarwould send
exploratores to scout rather than exposing themselves to personal danger, separated
fromthewholearmy.
46 Ibid.,pp.267.
47 J.Bradbury,TheMedievalArcher (Woodbridge:BoydellandBrewer,1985),pp.3957;S.Morillo,WarfareUndertheAngloNormanKings(Woodbridge:BoydellandBrewer,1994),pp.28and53.
48 J.F.Verbruggen,TheArtofWarfareinWesternEurope,trans.S.WillardandR.W.Southern(Woodbridge:BoydellandBrewer,1997),p.192;J.F.Verbruggen,TheBattleoftheGoldenSpurs:Courtrai,11thJuly1302,ed.K.DeVries,trans.D.R.Ferguson(Woodbridge:BoydellandBrewer,2002),p.199.Theremaybe some specialpleadinghereon thepartof the
DutchVerbruggentoseethetwoFlemishleadersasbeingparticularlyegalitarian.
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RobertJones16
equipmentexpectedofaknight,itdoesnotmeanthatheworeoruseditall.InJune
of1189,WilliamMarshalandfourcompanionsweresentbyKingHenryIItorecon
noitretheadvanceofKingPhilipofFranceandCountRichardonLeMans.Theydid
so,avoiding
skirmishes
with
the
enemy
forces
because
of
their
greater
mobility
re
sulting from not wearing their hauberks. The following morning, when Henry
himselfwentout toscout theenemypositions,herefused to takeWilliambecause
thelatterwasalreadyfullyarmoured.49
MorrisandLydonsassertionsabout thehobelarcanbechallenged therefore
onanumberofgrounds:heneednothavebeenpartofanativeIrishmilitaryculture;
hisnameneednot stem from aGaelicword;his role isnotuniqueornew in the
fourteenthcentury,
having
been
performed
not
only
by
the
muntatoron theWelsh
March in the eleventh and twelfthbut also,when circumstancesdemanded it,by
those heavy cavalrymen theknightandmenatarms.Their final claim that the
hobelarhadalastingeffectontheEnglishconductofwarinthelatefourteenthand
fifteenthcenturiesmustalsobeexaminedmoreclosely.
MorrisandLydonboth see thehobelarasbeinganancestorof themounted
longbowman,born out of the epiphany thatputting a lightly equippedman on a
horsemadehimmoremanoeuvrableandeffective.Farfrombeinganinnovationin
thefourteenthcentury,mountedarchers(thatistosaymenarmedwithabowwho
rodetobattle,asopposedtohorsearchers,menwhoshotbowsfromhorseback)are
advocated as a vital part ofMarcherwarfareby Gerald ofWales in the twelfth
century,andrecordedinsomenumbersinhischronicleoftheconquestofIreland.50
Theyalsoappearregularly, ifnotingreatnumbers,throughouttheforcesraisedin
thethirteenth
century.
51
The
novelty
of
the
mounted
longbowman,
as
with
that
of
the
hobelar,liesnotinthecombinationofarchersorlightlyarmedmenwithhorses,but
in the increasingnumbersof the same in the field forces of royal campaigns.The
innovationisnottechnological,buttactical,andtheresultofsocialandbureaucratic
changesduringthelatterpartofthefourteenthcenturyapointwidelyrecognised
49 TheHistoryofWilliamMarshal,ed.A.J.Holden,trans.S.Gregory,vol.I(London,2002),pp.4267and4325.
50 GeraldofWales,Expugnatio,passim.ThemountedarchersaregiventhedistinctiveLatintermofarcarii,whilstthoseonfootaresagitariipedestris.
51 Prestwich,ArmiesandWarfare,pp.1345.
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RethinkingtheoriginsoftheIrishhobelar 17
forthelongbowmanperse,butnot,itappearswhenhewasmounted,andcertainly
notforthehobelar.
ThisarticlehassoughttoreevaluateMorrisconclusionsaboutthehobelar.It
hasargued
that
far
from
being
aGaelic
Irish
warrior
arriving
in
mainland
Britain
and
fighting inanewway,hisoriginsmay lie in theWelshMarchesorPembrokeshire
where,under theguiseof themuntatoror similar,hewasjustanother formof the
equites classis secundae, that group of nonknightly cavalry that included the ser
geants.Thiswarriorwasthenreimported intotheBritishmainlandunderthenew
nameof hobelar.Havingadapted to thedifferentcircumstancesofwarfare in Ire
land, however,his equipmentwas lighter than that of the fourteenthcentury ser
geantsand
therefore
considered
differently
with
regard
to
matters
such
as
pay.
It
suggests that thereasonMorrisbelievedhim tobesomethingnewwasbecausehe
wasworkingwithinaframeworkofnineteenthcenturymilitarycultureandvalues
thatservedtodistorthisviewofthemedievalsituation.Thisframeworkenduresto
day,primarilybecausethesoldierwordsofthenineteenthandtwentiethcenturies
form a convenient shorthand for describing troop types. Unfortunately the rigid
definitionoftrooptypesthatformspartofnineteenthcenturymilitaryculturedoes
notallow for the flexibilityof roleandequipment thatwere found inmedievalar
miesandthuscanleadtoamisrepresentationofmedievalwarfare.Farfrombeinga
sideshowofmedievalmilitaryhistory,thehobelarshouldnowperhapstakecentre
stage,asamicrocosmofthemajorpitfallsinthisfieldofstudy.
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RobertJones18
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