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A good destrier was very costly: at the times of the Crusades, a fine destrier was valued at seven or eight times the cost of an ordinary horse. In England, the specific sum of eighty pounds (in this context a pound was 240 silver pennies, which amounted to one pound of silver by weight [ 15 ] ) was noted at the end of the thirteenth century.
The most well-known horse of the medieval era of Europe is the destrier, known for carrying knights into war. However, most knights and mounted men-at-arms rode smaller horses known as coursers and rounceys. (A common generic name for medieval war horses was charger, which was interchangeable with the other
While the destrier is the most well-known warhorse of the Medieval era, it was the least common, and coursers were often preferred for battle.Both were expensive, highly trained horses prized by knights and nobles, while a poorer knight, squire or man-at-arms would use a rouncey for fighting.
It was the attribute of knights and was the subject of a specific vocabulary: palfrey, destrier, or rouncey designate different types of horse for different uses. Fictional horses such as Pegasus have populated tales and legends since Antiquity. In the Middle Ages, chanson de geste heroes rode palfreys or fairy horses to serve courtly love. [1]
The medieval war horse was of moderate size, rarely exceeding 15.2 hands (62 inches, 157 cm). Heavy horses were logistically difficult to maintain and less adaptable to varied terrains. [128] The destrier of the early Middle Ages was moderately larger than the courser or rouncey, in part to accommodate heavier armoured knights. [129]
Bucephalus, favorite horse of Alexander the Great; one of the most famous horses of antiquity; following his death after the Battle of Hydaspes in 326 BCE, Alexander promptly founded the city of Bucephala upon the spot in his memory; Chetak, war horse of Maharana Pratap of Mewar in India; died defending its master in 1576 during the Battle of ...
The horse was an essential part of a man-at-arm's equipment. The type of horse, however, varied according to wealth and status. Andrew Ayton in an in-depth study of English warhorses of the 13th and 14th centuries has shown that three types predominate: the destrier, the courser and an animal simply known as a "horse" (L:equus Med Fr : chival).
A medieval painting of a palfrey. A palfrey is a type of horse that was highly valued as a riding horse in the Middle Ages. It was a lighter-weight horse, usually a smooth gaited one that could amble, suitable for riding over long distances. Palfreys were not a specific breed as horse breeds are understood today.