William, Count of Aumale, ref1
William I the Conqueror, King, ref1, ref2, ref3
and battle of Hastings, ref1
and castles, ref1, ref2
and fall of Exeter, ref1, ref2
Harrying of the North, ref1, ref2
and Normandy, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5
ruthlessness, ref1, ref2
William I the Lion, King of Scotland, ref1, ref2, ref3
William III, King, ref1
William de Beverley, Archdeacon, ref1
William des Barres, ref1
William fitz Duncan, ref1
William Longsword, ref1, ref2
William of Albiny, ref1, ref2
William of la Roche Guyon, ref1
William of Malmesbury, ref1, ref2, ref3
William of Newburgh, ref1
William of Poitiers, ref1, ref2, ref3
William of Puylaurens, ref1
William of Tudela, ref1, ref2
William of Tyre, ref1, ref2, ref3
William the Breton, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6
and siege of Château Gaillard, ref1, ref2
Williams, Ann, ref1
Winchester, Bishop of, ref1
Winchester, ref1
Winchester, statute of, ref1
Windsor Castle, ref1, ref2
Wingfield, Sir John, ref1
Winwaed, battle of, ref1
witch hunts, ref1
witches, ref1
women, ref1, ref2, ref3
burial alive, ref1
burning of, ref1, ref2, ref3
and chivalry, ref1, ref2
cutting off of breasts, ref1, ref2
drowning of, ref1
hanging of, ref1
Jewish, ref1, ref2
married, ref1
men disguised as, ref1
pardons for, ref1
pregnant, ref1, ref2, ref3
and prisoners, ref1
protection for, ref1, ref2, ref3
and rape, ref1
and sack of Jerusalem, ref1, ref2
and Scottish invasions, ref1, ref2
and siege of Béziers, ref1, ref2
and sieges, ref1, ref2
trial by ordeal, ref1
and Welsh raids, ref1, ref2
Woodstock, ref1
World Wars, ref1
Worringen, battle of, ref1
wrestling matches, ref1
Wright, Nicholas, ref1
Wulfsige, abbot of Ramsey, ref1
Wydville family, ref1
Wysbeche, John, ref1
xenophobia, ref1
York, Duke of, ref1
York, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6
Yorkshire, ref1, ref2, ref3, ref4, ref5, ref6
Yugoslavia, former, ref1, ref2
Zimbardo, Philip, ref1
Picture Section
Torture of captives. The livery of the soldier is that of William Marshal, considered by many contemporaries and historians as the epitome of chivalry. (Matthew Paris manuscript, 13th century.)
Turkish soldiers torturing, killing and eating prisoners. Although such depictions were designed to demonize the enemy, they frequently had their foundations in reality. (Matthew Paris manuscript, 13th century.)
The execution of Hugh Despenser in 1326. Public executions served as a deterrent by the authorities while also meeting popular demand for the visible enforcement of justice and punishment. Many executions, such as the one here, involved mutilation and torture of the condemned man before death. (French School, 15th century.)
Massacre of prisoners, believed to be at the battle of Agincourt, 1415. Henry V’s chivalrous reputation survived unscathed despite his order for the execution of French prisoners. This action, based on ruthless military reasoning, has shocked modern commentators more than Henry’s contemporaries. (English School, 15th century.)
Crusaders hurl the heads of Muslim soldiers over the defences at Nicaea in 1097. Atrocities committed on both sides were not limited to the Crusades: medieval armies regularly employed such acts of psychological warfare so as to undermine the morale and resistance of the enemy. (French School, 13th century.)
Richard the Lionheart orders the beheading of over 2,500 Muslim prisoners at Acre in 1191. Richard’s decision was based on a combination of factors: maintaining face, revenge and, most importantly of all, military imperative. (French School, 15th century.)
A mother and child escape their house which is being burnt. Scorched-earth policies deprived an enemy of resources and were also used as a punitive measure against troublesome regions. (Bayeux Tapestry, 11th century.)
Soldiers kill non-combatants and sack a town. Non-combatants were frequently targeted with the intention of terrorizing a population into submission while undermining the economic base of the enemy. The victim on the left being run through with a sword is a priest. (French School, 15th century.)
The expulsion of inhabitants from Carcassonne in 1209 during the Albigensian Crusade. Unlike the massacre at Béziers a few weeks earlier, the Crusade leaders prevented any slaughter here – not on humanitarian grounds, but primarily for strategic and financial reasons. (French School, 15th century.)
Massacre of the Innocents. Depictions of biblical horrors often coloured monastic reporting of contemporary atrocities. However, many monks were well informed and had local knowledge of the savage reality of warfare. (Psalter, German, 13th century.)
About the Author
Sean McGlynn is Lecturer in Lifelong Learning, School of Humanities, University of Bristol and the author of Blood Cries Afar: The Forgotten Invasion of England 2016. He has contributed to a number of books, including the Cassell Atlas of the Medieval World, Reader’s Guide to Military History and Oxford University Press’s Encyclopaedia of Medieval Welfare. He is a regular contributor to many journals and magazines, including History Today, English Historical Review, History, French History, Canadian Journal of History and The Times Higher Education Supplement. He lives near Bath.
A PHOENIX EBOOK
First published in Great Britain in 2008 by Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
First published in ebook in 2014 by Phoenix.
Copyright © Sean McGlynn 2008
The moral right of Sean McGlynn to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission in writing of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published without a similar condition, including this condition, being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
ISBN: 978 1 7802 2753 5
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