Welcome to Horace Mann's Webpage for:

Medieval War, Warfare, Weapons, Armor, and Castles

Introduction:

From the beginning, Islam spread through wars of conquests, treaties, and conversions. Throughout the Age of the Medieval Islamic Empires, wars were common and life was often violent. Warring factions (divisions, groups) of Muslims often fought bitter wars against each other. Later, Christian Crusaders fought against Muslims to "take back" the Holy Land. And waves of conquerors such as the Seljuk Turks and the Mongols defeated Islamic Empires only to be converted to Islam and reestablish much of the government structure, religion, art, and culture that had already been established by the former Muslim leaders.

I. What did Islam say about war and conquest? What were Islamic policies toward the conquered?

A. Rules and Rewards for Muslim Warriors

As Islam expanded, Muslim warriors were fighting a jihad (holy war). They were regulated (ruled, governed) by religious law that strictly prohibited rape and the killing of women, children, religious leaders, or anyone who had not actually engaged in warfare. Those Muslims who died while fighting a holy war would be rewarded in Paradise (heaven): "Those who are killed in the path of God, He does not let their good deeds go for nothing." - The Qur'an. [Read Hadith (sayings of the Prophet) about "Fighting for the Cause of Allah".]

Abu Bakr, the first caliph (successor to the Prophet Muhammad), had Ten Rules of warfare: "Stop, O people, that I may give you ten rules for your guidance in the battlefield. Do not commit treachery or deviate from the right path. You must not mutilate (cut up) dead bodies. Do not kill a child, nor a woman, nor an aged man. Bring no harm to the trees, nor burn them with fire, especially those which are fruitful. Don't kill any of the enemy's flock except for your food. You are likely to pass by people who have devoted their lives to monastic services (following the life of a monk); leave them alone..." - Abu Bakr, first Caliph. [Quoted from "Jihad and Expedition". Also see On War and Warring: Ethics of War. Islamset]

B. Treatment of Conquered People

As new territories were added to the Islamic territories, Jews and Christians were treated rather well. They believed in one God and were called "People of the Book" since they, too, had a holy book - the Torah for the Jews, and the Bible with its "New Testament" for the Christians. (Christians and Jews were not forced to convert (to change their religion), but non-Muslims were taxed at a higher rate than Muslims or new-converts to Islam. [For examples of Muhammad's written treaties, see "Prophet Muhammad's Treaty with the Jews (622 C.E.)" and "Muhammad's Charter to Christian Monks in Sinai (in today's Egypt) at St. Catherine Monastery (628 C.E.)", and for the Muslim treaty with the Christians and Jews in Spain, see the "Treaty of the Surrender of Orihulea, Spain to Muslim Forces" (713 C.E.)". For more on Tolerance see a lecture entitled "Tolerance in Islam".]

Many conquered people welcomed the Islamic armies because of the way they were treated by the Muslim leaders. The greatest Muslim general at the time of Abu Bakr, Khalid "was extremely kind hearted and just to the people. His army had strict orders not to do any harm to farmers and other civilians (workers who were not part of the military). 'They are the real strength of society,' he said. 'They should always be treated with kindness and respect.' This was something new for the conquered people. The Iranian and Byzantine officers had been very hard on them. The Muslims' treatment won their hearts so much so that they came to hate their old masters." Abridged from Islamzine's report on Abu Bakr

More about Islam as a unifying force: From the outset (the beginning) the Prophet declared that "All people are as equal as the teeth of a comb". Muhammad said, "There is no virtue (nothing better or superior) to an Arab over a non-Arab nor white over colored except by the fear of God". The words of the Qur'an say: "Behold ..all people.. We have created you from a male and a female and made you nations and tribes so that you may get to know one another ..Indeed the noblest of you before God is the best in conduct." According to the Qur'an there is "no compulsion (being forced to believe) in religion" (meaning no one should be forced to become a Muslim). The Muslim society was not strictly (exclusively) a society of only Muslims. Some of its citizens chose to remain Christian or Jew. They, too, were "People of the Book" referring to their belief in God's Bible and the Torah. Christian and Jewish members of the Islamic society had the same rights and owed the same duties as the Muslims. Their freedom and places of worship were protected by Islamic law. They had to pay a tax called "Jizia" in return for their exemption from military service (not having to join the Muslim armies), and it did not apply to the needy. (On the other hand they did not have to pay the Zakat tax which Muslims paid, roughly 2.5 percent of savings annually (each year). It was usually therefore more money saving not to be a Muslim, yet the majority (the largest number; more than half) chose to adopt Islam.) The Islamic attitude towards non-Muslim minorities (groups of people in the smaller number; less than half) was a great help to Islam, and was certainly a major cause for the conversion of many, and for participation of those who were non-Muslims, in contributing to their best to the rise and advancement of Islamic civilization. Abridged from IslamSet.

 

II. Traditional Weapons of the Muslim Warriors:

A. Archery - the bow and arrow

Arab warriors respected archery as a valuable skill for war and even as a sport in times of peace. Archery was also useful for hunting. It is well known that the Prophet Muhammad was an expert bowman. The Prophet Muhammad said, "The angels attend no human sport except archery." For many Muslims, trying to become an expert in archery was a religious obligation (duty, something one must do). The great number of archers in the armies of Islam often gave them a decisive advantage (helped them win) in the early wars of Islam.

Miniature painting of Murat II during archery practice, c. 1570. Topkapi collection.

 

1. The Long Bow

Bows were at first made of wood that was shaped into a curve. Then the composite bow added to the wooden base to make it stronger. A layer of horn or sometimes metal was added to the inside and sinew (animal "gut" or tendons) was added on to the outside facing the target. In this way the bow became stronger and could spring back quickly when pulled back and released. To make a good bow took about a year's time.

Medieval Muslims enjoyed many archery games. One was distance shooting. The contest was not in hitting a target but in shooting an arrow as far as possible. (Those very skilled could shoot an arrow for half a mile, or it may be a little more.) Another game was gourd shooting, in which the target was on the top of a tall pole. (See the picture above.) The archer rode past the pole and shot up at the target, as if he were hunting a bird. "The story is told of one archer who had a saddle made for him with a low back. At a great festival, while competing in the gourd shoot, he rode past the pole so that all watching thought he had missed his shot, then leaned right back with his head on the rump (back end, the butt) of his horse and, shooting up and back, struck and broke the gourd. As to accuracy, a good archer shooting 75 yards should be able to put his arrows into an object about 3 feet across." [Learn more at Archery of al-Islam in Cariadoc's Miscellany.]

This miniature painting shows a Turkish archer's skill at shooting behind him while riding a horse. This was a common strategy (plan, way of fighting) of the Turks - to pretend to retreat (withdraw, pull back, get out of there!) while shooting at the enemy, and then turn and attack when the enemy was tired.

The Mongols (who conquered Muslim armies in Persia and much of the Middle East) were excellent mounted (on horseback) archers. About 1208 AD, they used high stirrups (attached to the horse's saddle for the rider's feet) which allowed them to shoot in every direction. They also used composite bows with draw weights (pulling weights) of up to 160 pounds! They used metal thumb rings to release their bowstrings which allowed them to increase (to make bigger) their range (distance) considerably (a lot).

Image above from Virtual Mongol.

2. The Cross Bow

Little is known about the exact origins of the crossbow, but the earliest records of crossbow use come from China about the sixth century B.C. This technology slowly spread westward into Europe at the time of the Roman Empire. (The Romans developed a large weapon known as the arcabalista, which was used as a siege weapon to attack castles.) Muslim armies also used crossbows from about the 10th century.

In the picture below you can see the foot cocking loop on the right end of the bow. The archer put his foot into that loop and then pulled the string upward until it caught on the trigger catch, or lock. He then put an arrow into the arrow groove. When the trigger was pulled from below, the string was released, and the arrow went flying toward its mark!

As crossbows improved into the 14th century, crossbows could shoot their arrows (called "bolts") up to 200 yards.

Crossbow image from New World Arbalest

 

You are at Page One: War (Introduction)

Go to Page Two: More Weapons

Go to Page Three: Siege Weapons

Go to Page Four: Battlefield Strategies and Animals in War

Go to Page Five: New Weapons and Fire Weapons and Cannons and Guns

Go to Page Six: Armor

Go to Page Seven: Castles and Forts

Go to Page Eight: Important Wars

 

Books and Magazines

1. Silver-Burdett, Rise of Islam by Moktefi, pages 24 - 25
2. The Arabs in the Golden Age by Moktefi and Ageorges, Millbrook Press, pages 14 - 15, 18 - 19.
3. The Rise of Islam by John Child, Peter Bedrick Books, New York, 1993. See pp. 38 - 51 on the changes from the Abbasid Empire, Crusades, Mongol & Tamerlane Invasions, Safavid and Mughal Empires, Ottomon Empire, etc.
4. Muslim Military History Series [Osprey]: "Armies of Islam 7th-11th Centuries", "Armies of the Ottoman Turks", "Saladin and the Saracens", "Armies of the Muslim Conquest", "The Mamluks", "Warriors" and others from Astrolabe Pictures, 1-800-39-ASTRO
5. ARAMCO World: March-April, 1993 "The Arabs in Occitania" p. 24 - 29 [in France, battled Martel, 721 A.D.] and "Fortress on the Mountain" pages 32 - 41 [in Cairo, The Citadel]
6. ARAMCO World: March-April, 1996 "Sultan of Egypt and Syria (Saladin)" pages 16 - 23 and back cover
7. ARAMCO World: May-June, 1970 "Swords for God: The Story of the Crusades (special issue)"
8. ARAMCO World: January-February, 1985; see pages 30-34 for some pictures of weapons, armor
9. ARAMCO World: January-February, 1995 "The Oil Weapons" p. 20 - 27
10. "Retracing the First Crusade", National Geographic, Sept., 1989
11. Activity books/resources:
    • "Paper Soldiers of the Middle Ages: Crusades" (Bellerophon Publisher) - a great resource!
    • "Castles to build" from Dover Publishers or "Medieval Castle" from Usborne