Order of the Argent Bear

The inclusion of these books here should not be taken as a sign that they're not good. They simply seemed either less focused on chivalry or more difficult to read than the other books. Depending on your interests and reading style, you may well consider some of these books to be better and more important than works I have listed earlier.

The Age of Chivalry - English Society 1200-1400; Dr Sylvia Wright (1987)

J942.03 Wright. at: CE/L/MD

A fine overview of its topic; it defines and discusses each of the three estates in turn. Very well illustrated as 'juvenile' books tend to be - many period pictures.

The Book of the Medieval Knight; Stephan Turnbull (1985)

940.1 Turnbull at: CE/SD/L/MD

This book seems to be primarily a political and biographical history of men who were knights during the middle ages. Probably most useful to those doing more general historical research than the title implies. (Update 8/98: I had a chance to go through this book more carefully at a friend's house and found it more interesting that time around - probably because I have been studying the Hundred Years War recently. )

The Chivalric Tradition in Renaissance England; Aurthur B Ferguso (1986)

942.05 Ferguso at : L

Begins with a brief description of 'the chivalric revival in the 15^th century' and then considers the social effects of Chivalric concepts in Tudor and Elizabethan England. Should be of interest both to those interested in 16^th Century knighthood and those interested in the parallel concept of the Courtier. Certainly scholarly, but still seems readable.

The Concept of Knighthood in the Middle Ages; Joachim Bumke (1982)

940.17 Bumke at: L

A very scholarly work. The initial chapters are concerned with tracing the origins of the German word for 'knight' including the use of a goodly bit of statistical analysis. May be invaluable for scholars, probably too dry for most readers.

A Dictionary of Chivalry; Grant Uden (1968)

R940.1 Uden. at: L/MD

As it says, a dictionary of terms related to arms, armor and the chivalric era. Large, thorough and interesting. It's an older book and some of the information may not be up to current standards. Numerous drawings - no photographs.

The Duel, A History of Dueling; Robert Baldick (1965)

394.8 BAL at: L

The early part of this book discusses judicial combat in the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The book gets by without a single footnote and a number of interesting excerpts from (presumably) authentic works are not very useable since the source is not cited. Still, made for fun reading.

The Knight in History; Frances Gies (1984)

929.71 Gies at: CE/L/MD/SD

A fine history of knighthood. I haven't read this one in some years - I remember that it was interesting and informative but I can't think how it compares to reading Barber's The Knight and History or Keen's Chivalry and I'd need to read it all over again to tell.

Knights and the Age of Chivalry; Raymond Rudorff (1974)

929.7 Rud at: L

A general work, the book is nicely organized and readable. Lots of period pictures (with dates!), many of which are not found in other sources. As it is a somewhat older book, some of the newer works such as Barber's revised (1995) The Knight and Chivalry would likely be a better starting point for reading.

Knights in Armor; Shirley Glubok (1969)

J355.14 Glubok at: CE/L/SD

Lots of reproduction artwork and photographs of armor. Mostly a picture book and most of the pictures are available in other books.

Knights in Armor; John D. Clare, ED. (1992)

J940.1 Knights at: L

A Living History book, meaning good pictures and a good skim of the topic. Well worth the browsing.

Knights and Armor, A&E Video (1994)

VHS 940.1 Knights at: L

This was a fun video to watch with lots of items from the Wallace collection and some information on William the Marshal. Run it on a VCR with a good flicker-free pause for maximum enjoyment.

The World of the Medieval Knight; Christopher Gravett (1996)

J940.1 Gravett

This book is listed as being on order.

Take me back HOME

Comments or questions should be mailed to truffa@alaska.net , please include the words 'Argent Bear' in the subject line.