Favorite Moments from 2014: Part One

There have been many exciting and memorable moments during the 2014 jousting season. This series of posts will share some of the jousters', crews' and photographers' favorite memories of the past season, in their own words and with photographs that they have chosen to go with their stories. Enjoy!

Andy Deane has been a jouster with Royal Armouries in the UK for many years. Here is his favorite memory of the 2014 jousting season:

It’s very difficult to put one moment at the top of my jousting season, there have been so many. Some I wasn’t even involved with; like watching some of the guys that used to joust at the big tournaments at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, now doing stunning tournaments all over Europe. The likes of Toby, Arne, Dom and Joram. They are a joy to watch and follow.

Being invited by the premier tournament group in Britain, Destrier, to join them in a mounted melee at the Beautiful Leeds Castle, and having fun folding Ash clubs over people's heads. Thank you Andreas!

Andy Deane prepares to strike Mark Caple over the head (photo by Richard Pearn)

After harrying Stacy Evans for many years, he eventually invited me to the most wonderful tournament in Britain at the moment, The Arundel Castle Tournament. Having only Jousted at the Royal Armouries for nearly twenty years, I don’t get out much, so to take on some truly competitive (and Big!) jousters from around the world was great. New friends from Poland, the ‘Man Mountain’ Jan and the smiling Assassin Jarek, from Norway Pelle (it was like jousting against Thor's Hammer), the hard to hit Dutchman Ben and those two crazy French Canadians who seem to have been hewn from the Rockies, Steve and Patrice! I’ve now crossed lances with them all, and they will be friends for a very long time. It was a brilliant time.

Left to Right: Jan Gradon, Steve R. Gagnon, Pelle/Per Estein Prøis-Røhjell, Andy Deane, 
Ben van Koert, Patrice Rolland, Phillip Leitch and Jarek Struczynski at Arundel 2014 
(photo by ARW Photography)

However the best moment happened and a very small event. It was an evening joust, on a glorious summers day for the officers of a regiment in the British Army. No more than a hundred people present. I was Jousting against my best Friend Andrew Balmforth, who also used to joust at the armouries for many years. The organisers were short of ground crew, and so I roped in my two teenage sons Henry and Oliver to help out.

With the sun low in the sky, my armour gleaming, on a very keen horse I nudge up to the mounting block, Henry resplendent in our family colours hands me my lance. Off I go, thrashing down the tilt. A massive double hit with Balmforth, rocked all over the place, come to a halt and give the remnants of the lance to my other son Oliver. That moment with my two grown up boys and Balmforth will live with me for ever.

BEST MOMENT!!!

Andy Deane(center) with his two sons Oliver(left) and Henry(right)
(photo by Andrew Balmforth)

Jouster Benedict Green
(photo by Stephen Moss)

Benedict Green, who started training with the British jousting troupe Destrier four years ago with the intention of becoming a jouster, shares his favorite memory:

I went from non-jouster to professional jouster in a season of many ups and downs... Hedingham was without doubt my highlight, as I made my debut there, but winning a joust to compete against the "King" at Bosworth also came very close!

At Bosworth, the jousting system operates differently. Four knights joust and score points in a round robin format, but instead of the top two knights jousting in a final, the highest scoring knight competes against the king (Andreas in this case). Sadly, I didn't defeat the king as well, but that would probably have been bad form!

Benedict Green(right, green feathers) breaks his lance against Jason Kingsley(left, red feathers) during Ben's first professional joust at Hedingham Castle 2014 (photo by NWY Photography)

Tina Steiner is another member of Destrier who has fond memories of Bosworth:

Tina Steiner (photo provided by Tina Steiner)

I’ve been a member of Destrier for 2 years, riding in mounted games and military skill at arms. I enjoy the games and the friendly banter among the participants. Even though at events more stress is always put on the jousts, at least as much skill is needed for cutting cabbages, spearing rings or throwing javelins in full canter.

I am the lucky owner of a horse who has pretty much seen it all and does it all, which gives me an advantage over the group members who ride horses from our suppliers. We know those horses because we train on them over the winter but it’s not the same as riding a horse every day.

When we ride in battles, like the Battle of Bosworth, I can rely on my horse to do exactly what I want and to be exactly where I want her to be. Although Zahara doesn’t like the pressure waves when the cannons go off, she will flinch but she would never run away. I've taught her to push people with her head so she gets desensitized to fighting the shiltron (troops formed in a circle, facing outward).

My favourite memory of 2014 would be riding as standard bearer to King Richard III (portrayed by Andreas Wenzel) in the Battle of Bosworth. I knew most riders in the battle would want to attack the pavaises with a lance in the main charge, and even though I could have done that as well, I knew that there was no better choice than Zahara when it came to carrying a fluttering banner and staying with the king on the battlefield no matter what. We followed him to the parley, when he rallied the troops and into the final battle. And although I know it is ‘only’ a re-enactment, I still get goose bumps when Andreas rabble-rouses the soldiers against the usurper Tudor.

After the attack on Tudor's standard bearer and the shiltron, the King got off his horse and went on to fight on foot. That is not what he really did, but it would be too dangerous for horse and rider to actually unhorse him in battle. So I followed him into the fight with his banner and dutifully died with him.

King Richard's banner bearer had his legs cut off from under him. In the throng of fighters it is easy to imagine what it would have been like. If all the weapons were sharp you could be dead within a few minutes. That really gets the adrenaline flowing. And if I get the chance I'll be there again next year.

Tina Steiner carries the King's Banner for King Richard III(Andreas Wenzel) during the
Battle of Bosworth re-enactment (photo by Mike Ingram)

From the other end of Europe, jouster and tournament organizer Dmitry Savchenko of Russia has this to share:

Well, of course, the most striking is Tournament of the Phoenix. It was my first international tournament outside of Russia, new competitors, new horse – everything is new and everything is very interesting.

Individual moments. Well, perhaps, foot tournament. I did not expect from myself that I will do it well. The most interesting fight was with Luc – probably because was the longest. Good melee where I chased Tobias. That is only with regard to the combat scenes. The rest – the most vivid impression is familiarity with wonderful people.

Dmitry Savchenko(right) fights with Luc Petillot(left) during the pollaxe competition at Tournament of the Phoenix (photo by Clarence Alford Photography)

Well, at home – it is certainly the tournament in Izborsk. I returned to the fortress after a break that lasted four years. Great fights, including – for the first time – with Victor Ruchkin. For me, in Russia, it is very important that there are new, interesting opponents. In addition, we have made a wonderful historical camp inhabited by lovely people. I wrote you a detailed report. I wish that these places could be seen by my friends from abroad.

And, of course, the event in the Crimea. I was glad to come back here and make the event on earth which is directly linked to European history of the 15th century.

Victor Ruchkin(left) jousts Dmitry Savchenko(right) during the tournament in Izborsk
(photo by Eugenia Komarova)

Thomas Andersen
(photo by Karin H. Antonsen)

Thomas Andersen of Norway shares his favorite memory of the 2014 jousting season:

The underdog story come to life!

My favorite moment of the jousting season in 2014 was my last match against Per Estein Prøis Røhjell (Pelle), in the finals at St. Olav's Tournament in Trondheim. One could feel the tension in the air. The men and woman I rode against are far more trained on horseback than me. They have their own horses and have a lot of experience competing in jousting tournaments. A true jouster presents a good target. Pelle is one of those guys!

Coming in 2nd place just two points behind Pelle was truly an awesome feeling!

A huge thanks to my team, for doing an awesome job during the tournament! My aunt, Tone Antonsen, for letting me ride her horse, and being a perfect horsemaster for me. And to my squire Martin Hagen Johnsen for superb help with all the equipment I needed!

Left: Thomas Andersen riding Even, the 21 year old Norwegian Fjord horse (WarFjord).
Right: Thomas Andersen jousts Pelle(Per Estein Prøis Røhjell) at St Olav's 2014
(photos by Stine Gulli)

More Favorite Moments will be published soon!

Do you have a favorite moment from 2014? Please share it in the comments.

Related articles:
Interview with Ben van Koert, Half of the Winning Team at Arundel International Tournament 2014

An Interview with Toby Capwell, Champion of Tournament of the Phoenix 2014

Jousting at Zhelezny Grad

Interview with Per Estein Prøis- Røhjell, Team Champion at Arundel and Individual Champion at St Olav's 2014

An Interview with Arne Koets, Jouster and Organizer of the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

The Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen was a grueling ten day tournament display held in conjunction with an exhibition of knightly arms and armour at the Museum zu Allerheiligen in northern Switzerland. Arne Koets, who organized The Grand Tournament of Sankt Wendel in 2012, was also the tournament organizer for the joust in Schaffhausen.

Arne Koets during the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen (photo by Andreas Petitjean)

A total of eight jousters participated in the tournament including: Bertus Brokamp, Toby Capwell, Petter Ellingsen, Arne Koets, Wouter Nicolai, Dominic Sewell, Joram van Essen and Alix van Zijl. The jousters did not ride the same horses throughout the tournament because that would have been too hard on the horses. However, the horses that were ridden were: Bertus' Andalusian stallion Talento, Toby's Friesian stallion Duke, Petter's Andalusian gelding Sigismund, Arne's Andalusian gelding Maximillian and his Lusitano stallion Sultan, Wouter's Andalusian stallion Flamenco, Dominic's Andalusian gelding Coralito(in his first jousting season) and his Belgian Warmblood stallion Marduc, Joram's Murgese stallion Zogo, and Alix's Andalusian stallion Torero. Interestingly, Talento and Torero are half-brothers.

The Lady of Honour was Christine Krischke and she rode her Berber stallion Raisulih. The Tournament Master was Wolfgang Krischke, Court Riding Master of the Fürstlichen Hofreitschule Bückeburg, who rode his magnificent Knabstrubber stallion Olymp.

Left: Arne Koets' Andalusian jousting horse Maximillian,
Right: Wolfgang Krischke's Knabstrubber stallion Olymp (photos by Andreas Petitjean)

There were two sessions of jousting/mounted melee each day, and many of those sessions sold out. In fact, during the course of the whole ten day event, approximately 80% of the jousting tickets, which cost 30 - 45 francs and also allowed entry to the museum exhibition, were sold.

Despite somewhat uncooperative weather, none of the sessions were cancelled, and only one was delayed. Before each session of jousting/mounted melee, an explanation of the history and rules of the tournament was given to the audience. Other information, such as details on the art of riding, was also provided.

Each session of jousting actually involved five separate parts, all based on an extant description of an actual tournament that was held in that very square in Schaffhausen in 1436.

First, there were two matches of jousting, with two different jousters in each match. Each match consisted of three passes with lances down the length of the tilt. The lances used for the jousting were shaped solid wood with sharp steel coronels. A winner for each pass was declared based on a set of historical rules involving riding, lance handling, where the opponent was hit and whether the lance broke. The jouster with the best two passes out of three won the match.

Toby Capwell waits at the end of the tilt as a member of the ground crew carries
away his broken lance, and a line judge signals the score for that pass.
(photo by Ingrid Isabella von Altdorf)

Second was a Mounted Duel using steel swords on horseback. The duels were judged by the Tournament Master and the Ladies Court, and the winner was determined based on both riding ability/horse positioning and the number of strikes landed against the opponent. According to Arne Koets, in every case, the competitor who rode the best also landed the most strikes, so determining the winner was easy.

Wolfgang Krischke takes a break from judging to participate in a mounted duel
with Arne Koets. You can see members of the Court in the stands behind them.
(photo by Ingrid Isabella von Altdorf)

Third was a Team Turnier(mounted melee), which consisted of two teams of three riders each charging at each other and attempting to strike the members of the opposing team with wooden clubs. Acceptable target areas included any part of the body covered by armour above the waist. For each session, the charge was repeated three times. When a rider broke a club, he could collect a new one from the squires. As many as 12 clubs were broken PER SESSION.

Joram van Essen breaks his melee club over Toby Capwell's helm
(photo by Isis Sturtewagen)

Fourth was a living history display of the 'punishments' that were described in the historical record of the tournament. These historical re-enactments were based on the museum's interpretation of the documents describing them.

Fifth, and finally, there was a Nachturnier or 'after-tournament'. This was an individual Crest Melee where competitors used steel swords to try and knock the crests off of everyone else's helms. The last competitor with his crest still attached to his helm was the winner.

Arne Koets and Alix van Zijl during the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen
(photo by Andreas Petitjean)

Even though this type of mounted combat can be dangerous, especially when doing it twice a day for ten days, only two injuries occurred – both caused by impacts with the crossguards of the steel swords used in the Nachturnier.

Not long after the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen, Arne Koets graciously answered several questions about the event. [Due to various circumstances, it took quite a while to publish this interview. My apologies to both Arne and to the readers of The Jousting Life.]

How did the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen come into being?

I was recommended to organize the tournament for the museum, whose director had organized an event in Berne some years ago. He wanted to enhance his knightly arms and armour exhibition, and we were meant to give a slice of history, doing it for real. Hence the combat was competitive, but in a medieval, not in a modern sense. We were to capture the image of the original historical tournament.

The jousting/mounted melee sessions were a museum ‘interpretation’ and the texts were straight out of the original sources (edited by the director himself). We re-created the whole four day tournament in the space of one hour. Twice a day. For ten days running. The only thing we didn't have was 195 riders on the field like there were in 1436.

Six of the eight jousters who participated in Schaffhausen. From bottom left to top right: Arne Koets, Wouter Nicolai, Toby Capwell, Petter Ellingsen, Bertus Brokamp and Dominic Sewell
(photo by Stefan Kiss)

What were the biggest challenges in organizing the tournament?

The amount of shows. Twenty shows is a lot, but 20 shows with up to 5 melees in each is even more insane! The level of what we wanted to do was really high in terms of riding, saddlery, armour, fighting technique and weapons accuracy, but also we made a marathon of it. Due to the long duration, the team size was very limited, and we were a bit understaffed due to the cap on overall team numbers.

A HUGE challenge was to manage the workload on the horses. The weather was really hot, as well, and we rotated the horses and riders, as planned from the start. The horse transport was also very complicated due to customs, and that cost a great deal of money.

Also the site is very strongly sloped and small due to the requirements of the grandstands and the surrounding shops. In medieval times, the square's outside track would have been the audience area. Now, it needed to be kept free, reducing the field to tiny proportions.

There were very many challenges to get such a complex event to run. Too many to mention.

Explain how the tournament related to the exhibition at the Museum zu Allerheiligen?

We really did a museum display, where we showed a slice of history, and the actual combat was there to supply one of the aspects of authenticity. The arms and armour exhibition was showing in great detail many of the aspects of German tournament culture, and we wanted to incorporate as many of these in the display as possible. We rejected the set notions of how shows are normally run, and instead, first formulated what would have actually been seen in the historical tournament, and only then reduced it to a watchable show for a modern audience.

Petter Ellingsen waits at the end of the tilt while two other jousters compete
in front of a sold out audience (photo by Ingrid Isabella von Altdorf)

How do you think tournaments such as this one can benefit those who study history? 

Due to using a great deal of rare pieces of equipment (like saddles and special helmets), we were able to experiment in new directions, but also the completeness of the ‘experiment’ made it worthwhile to get new insights. There were several visitors from America – academics who flew over for the occasion. We had a lot of museum curators and directors there to see it, and they were able to confirm our interpretation, as well as see things in a different light – understanding much more of the culture and the mechanics of what they study as static objects and written accounts.

Describe any specific training you and/or the other jousters did in preparation for this tournament?

The process started really in 2010, when we replaced almost all the horses in the team and started riding in a more historical way, and being helped a great deal to develop the collected exercises. The team of horses, the time to prepare and the equipment was made and extended. Especially in Holland, several test training's were run, but also clinics in England and Germany were run, so that we could develop the lances, the clubs, the tactics, the riding, the saddles....

Most of the riders worked daily on this development over the last 4 years, ordering armour, riding, learning, reading up on riding theory, etc....

There was also a significant push for mounted martial arts.

Bertus Brokamp, Alix van Zijl, Petter Ellingsen and Joram van Essen during a mounted melee, Schaffhausen 2014 (photo by Isis Sturtewagen)

What can you tell us about the two injuries that were sustained during the mounted melees?

Two horses running at one another have a lot of force, so the dynamics of the swordwork in the Turnier(mounted melee) are quite impressive, and sometimes things go wrong. Bertus' hand punched into a crossguard. The thing was that Bertus' injury was an unfortunate accident. He was hit on the inside of his hand where the leather glove is inside the gauntlet.

Joram was struck in the face with Toby's crossguard. During the melee both men were riding like furies and came upon one another frontally. Whilst they were targeting each others' crests, they noticed they were about to crash and made a last minute swerve to make sure the horses did not collide. However, that could not be said of the riders themselves. Not only did the armoured men hit each other, the hilt of Toby's sword punched onto the visor of Joram's helm with the force of the two colliding horses.

Despite needing stitches, in true warrior fashion Joram came back to the tournament almost instantly and kept rocking the event with his skill and presence...

Alix van Zijl and Joram van Essen. Through Joram's visor you can see the bandages
from being injured during a previous Turnier (photo by Andreas Petitjean)

Please describe the type of lances used during the tournament and why that style of lance was chosen.

Fir tree-trunks. The lances were grown, naturally-tapered fir lances with steel coronels, vamplates and grappers. They are representative of 15th century lances as depicted, described and extant.

Please tell us about your armour.

We use field armour with sport specific exchange pieces, as was the norm in 1460s. My personal armour is based on effigies of Ulrich Busch and Ulrich von Hohenrechbrech (both +1458) with exchange elements from Michael Pacher and Talhoffer. The armour is clearly German in design. Across Europe, the hinged cuirass was used in England, Iberia, France, lowlands, the empire, Italy… mostly everywhere. The silhouette and design of the armour is otherwise distinctly German and specific to the distinctly German style of this period.

Arne Koets in his 15th century German field armour
(photo by Michael Kennedy)

My armour was made by Luke Binks, Craig Sitch and Jeffrey Hedgecock. I have horse armour by Joram van Essen and Roman Tereschenko. What I like about my armour is the shape, fitting, maneuverability, the design I insisted on, the frogmouth helm and kolbenturnierhelm, the sallet for general use, the finger gauntlets,... It is a little thin in places but has stood up fairly well.

If I need to mention bad things: The buckles are really weak and the leather quality is rather bad. There are some design features I ordered which were not implemented in the core set of armour, and that made a difference. Steel thickness was reduced relative to specific order, some sliding rivets were not implemented, bevor's height… stuff like that.

But all in all, this armour is a really workable rig. It keeps soldiering on, and it is comfortable and has good lines.

Please tell us about the horses that you rode during the tournament.

I rode Maximilian, an eight year old Andalusian gelding, and Sultan, a fourteen year old Lusitano stallion.

Max is my old friend, veteran of Sankt Wendel and many other events. He was dependable and did some really nice collected work. He also has opinions, and he needs convincing sometimes. He has done a lot of historical dressage and garrocha work, as well as desensitization in terms of guns, fire, all sorts of things. Stamina was an important part of the preparation for this event, and I built that up over the last year or so. Including riding out, etc...

Arne Koets and his Andalusian gelding Maximillian (photo by Andreas Petitjean)

Sultan is my new horse, a former rejoneo horse. He is very quick on his feet, but he needed to be taught to be less defensive. Bullfighting horses might be quick, but they are taught to dodge at the last moment. Doing this on command is great, but they want to do it as a matter of course. Sultan clicked with me at the event, and I was able to ride him much more offensively, and he did a great job.

I am indebted to Wolfgang Krischke for retraining Sultan. The horse as he came from Spain was ridden very much with the bit and very little on the seat, so he needed a lot of training to be able to work as he does now.

What were some of your favorite moments of the tournament?

The first Sunday was the highlight. Everything fell into place, the Turniers(mounted melees) were hard and well ridden, everybody seemed to give their all on the eve of the rest day. It all just looked great and worked well. The whole team seemed proud of what they achieved

Then again on a personal note, I really liked the fight I had with Wouter at the end of the Nachturnier on one particular occasion. I could still pirouette my horse after all that and could just keep him exactly where I wanted, turning inside him for a while before closing in for the kill. That was nice.

What would you like to say about/to the other participants in the tournament?

Everybody worked soooo hard!
The grooms, the squires, the rest of the crew making 120 crests to be destroyed, prepping the lances, making new clubs (because we broke so many), repairing armour, dodging running horses to remove broken timber from the Turnier,… Wolfgang and Christine riding, doing falconry, speaking, acting… every day. Everybody worked to exhaustion in that heat.

We had a new commentator that no one had met before who was a genius!

The typical working day started at 7:00 am – repairing, preparing, mucking, feeding, free-running horses, etc... And we all worked without a break until dinner at 22:00. We still had meetings after that to coordinate stuff. There were no exceptions. We all worked until we dropped.

The crew and jousters for the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen
(photo from the Museum Zu Allerheiligen)

What are your plans/hopes for the future?

There is talk of a repeat of this event, and I was officially invited to another really exciting one. However, we will not do this workload again on the horses. Hopefully by subtle means, we can take it down a peg. This was too much, for too long.

Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions and best of luck with your future endeavors.


A few more pictures from the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen:

Joram van Essen(left) breaks his lance against Dominic Sewell(right). In the background,
you can see the Ladies Court watching the joust. (photo by Andreas Petitjean)

Toby Capwell breaks his lance against Wouter Nicolai (photo by Stefan Kiss)

Left: Arne Koets and his Andalusian gelding Maximillian (photo by Ingrid Isabella von Altdorf)
Right: Dominic Sewell riding his Andalusian gelding Coralito (photo by Isis Sturtewagen)

Joram van Essen breaks his lance against his opponent(photo by Andreas Petitjean)

Joram van Essen holds the remains of his broken lance (photo by Andreas Petitjean)

Left: Groundcrew member Max Knegjens holds aloft Arne Koets' broken crest (photo by Isis Sturtewagen) Right: Jouster Wouter Nicolai stands armoured as part of a demonstration (photo by Ingrid Isabella von Altdorf)

Toby Capwell's jousting helm reflects the ground crew (photo by Andreas Petitjean)

After the final jousting session, the jousters decided to dismount and engage in foot combat. 
L-R: Alix van Zijl, Dominic Sewell, Capri the dog, Bertus Brokamp and Joram van Essen.
(photo by Isis Sturtewagen)

Related articles:
Video Report on the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

The Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen in the News

Jousting in Schaffhausen a Success!

Arne Koets Comments on the Tournament So Far, Plus More TV News Coverage of the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

An Interview with Arne Koets: Chosen by the Ladies Jury as the Bravest Competitor at The Grand Tournament in Sankt Wendel

Video Report on the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

The Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen took place earlier this year in association with a living history display and an exhibition of knightly arms and armour at the Museum zu Allerheiligen.The overall event was extremely successful and a German tv station decided to take an in depth look at why historical re-enactment and jousting are so popular.

Bavarian journalist Rainer Maria Jilg spent time with re-enactor Ibrahim Karabed and with jouster/tournament organizer Arne Koets during Schaffhausen to create a 45 minute video about the event. Unfortunately, the video cannot be embedded in this article, but you can see it by following this link. The dialogue is all in German, but even if you can't understand the language, the images speak for themselves. The jousting segment starts at 32:50 and shows highlights of the jousting and mounted melee as well as interviews with jouster Arne Koets.

Bayerisches Fernsehen: Jetzt mal ehrlich
Mittelalterboom: Keine Lust auf die Gegenwart?

Petter Ellingsen breaks his lance against Dominic Sewell, Schaffhausen 2014
(screen capture from the Bayerisches Fernsehen video)

The organizer of the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen, Arne Koets, agreed to do an interview with The Jousting Life. It should be published soon.

Related articles:
The Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen in the News

Jousting in Schaffhausen a Success!

Arne Koets Comments on the Tournament So Far, Plus More TV News Coverage of the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen

Toby Capwell's Third Blog Post About the Grand Tournament at Schaffhausen: 'Helmets Off'

Gifts for Jousters and Others Interested in Jousting/Medieval & Renaissance History

The Jousting Life now has its own online shoppe!

Well, actually it's simply a personalized Amazon.com store, but it is filled with items that would make good gifts for jousters and fans of jousting, including books, videos and toys. A small percentage of the cost of items purchased through the The Jousting Life Shoppe (or through the main Amazon.com store if you link through from a TJL site) will be paid to TJL in commission. It does NOT cost you anything extra, you will still pay the same price you would normally.

The Jousting Life has grown big enough and popular enough that it exceeds the memory and bandwidth that hosting sites like Blogger and PhotoBucket allow you to use for free. I have been paying for hosting for almost a year now, and I have been trying to find a way to earn some money to help cover the expenses of keeping the website going. I am not asking you to buy anything that you would not normally buy. I am simply asking that if you buy items through Amazon.com that you purchase them through either the TJL Shoppe, the links provided here (and throughout the text) or the Amazon search widget on the sidebar, so that The Jousting Life can earn a small commission.

Below are listed some of the more interesting items that are for sale in the shoppe:

Did you know that there is a fifteenth century manual on the art of warfare written by a woman? The Book of Deeds of Arms and of Chivalry by Christine De Pizan was written around 1410. Though many people believed that Christine was merely copying from earlier manuals, translator Sumner Willard and editor Charity Cannon Willard show that much of the text is original to Christine. The manual not only includes a great deal of information about the strategy, tactics and technology of medieval warfare, it is also one of the most important sources of information about early gunpowder weaponry.



Other books in the non-fiction section of the store include: recent translations of classic texts such as The Book of the Order of Chivalry, written by Ramon Llul between 1274 and 1276 and newly translated by Dr. Noel Fallows for this 2013 publication. New editions of previously translated medieval texts such as Dom Duarte's Livro da Ensinança de Bem Cavalgar Toda Sela(The Art of Riding on Every Saddle). Books that include both original analysis of historic texts as well as facsimiles and translations of the those texts, such as Dr. Noel Fallow's seminal work Jousting in Medieval and Renaissance Iberia. And books with modern academic analysis of knights and chivalry, such as Knight: The Warrior and World of Chivalry by Dr. Robert Jones.

The Letters, Memoirs & Essays sub-section of the non-fiction section includes historical texts, which, while not related to jousting, still provide insights into the everyday life of individuals who lived in medieval and renaissance Europe. A surprising number of them are written by women, including The Selected Writings of Christine de Pizan(who wrote more than military manuals), Selected Letters of Alessandra Strozzi, who lived in fifteenth century Florence; and The Memoirs of Helene Kottanner (1439-1440), who was the servant and confidante of Queen Elizabeth of Hungary. Kottaner's memoirs include detailed accounts of her participation in the theft of the holy crown of St Stephen from the treasury of the royal stronghold Visegrad. There is also a wonderfully illustrated version of The Travels of Marco Polo. Use Amazon's "Look inside" app to take a peek.

Then there is the section of Fun & Easy Books, which includes books that provide easy to read introductory information for younger readers or for those with a less intense interest in jousting, such as Knights at Tournament which is part of the Osprey series of military history books. Other Osprey books such as Tudor Knight were illustrated by former jouster Graham Turner. This section also includes coloring books, books of paper dolls with medieval and renaissance clothing, and, of course, sticker books. The Ultimate Sticker Book: Castle and Knight includes over 60 full color stickers, some of which glow in the dark.

The fiction section includes mostly historic fiction that jousters and other nobles might have read or listened to during their own lifetimes, with a few contemporary novels that involve jousting and/or knights thrown in. Hard Day's Knight is about a fictional contemporary jousting competition, while The Greatest Knight is historical fiction based on the life of William Marshal. This section also includes books of plays, poems and song lyrics from the medieval and renaissance time period. Medieval English Lyrics and Carols includes not only poems with romantic, moral and penitential themes; but also poems of wit, humor and sexual innuendo; drinking and dancing songs; ballads and satires. There is also an extensive introduction and comprehensive commentary.

The movies, tv & videos section includes the modern movies and tv shows that you would expect from A Knight's Tale to Knights of Mayhem, as well as classic movies such as Ivanhoe and The Three Musketeers. It also includes educational and instructional videos such as Going Medieval which features the original jousting curator Toby Capwell, and Medieval Fight Book which was inspired by Hans Talhoffer's fifteenth century manual.





The toys, puzzles and games section includes jousting and medieval themed items for every age from toddlers to adults. There are puzzles that vary from the 200 piece "World of the Knights" to the 890 piece 3-D version of Neuschwanstein Castle. There are a couple of rubber stamps(including one of Bodiam Castle), and a variety of toy castles, some of which fold, others are made out of building blocks and some are big enough to play in. And of course, there are lots of toy knights. There are even a couple of video games. I was unable to include the Rival Knights game in the TJL store, probably because it is available for FREE!

Within the toy section, there are sub-sections for 'toy swords and shields'(there are separate sections for combat training swords and LARP swords), 'Playmobil knight toys'(for younger children) and the more detailed 'Schleich knight figurines'(which are suitable for both older children and adults). Playmobil makes the 40th Anniversary Knight's Tournament set(which includes a quintain and fully loaded weapons rack), and Schleich makes the Tournament Knights Scenery pack(which includes two knights on horses and a wooden tilt).



The party and cooking supplies section includes cookware and serveware for a joust/medieval themed party. There are cake pans in the shape of castles, cookie cutters to create horses and riders that can stand on their own, and candy molds to create chocolate horses. There is a cupcake making set with medieval themed paper cups and knight toppers. There are paper plates with scenes of knights jousting. There are medieval themed napkins, cups and gift bags. And both inexpensive plastic and fancy brass goblets are available. There is even a very elaborate cardboard castle centerpiece complete with knights and men at arms.

And then, of course, there is the gifts section. Though many of the items in other sections would make excellent gifts, these items are particularly gift-worthy. One of the cutest items is a pair of solid pewter jousting knight cufflinks. There are also several knight charms for bracelets or necklaces. Something a bit more practical for jousters and history lovers who read lots of books are the several sets of medieval themed bookends. Other gift ideas include both small inexpensive pewter figurines of knights and larger cast bronze figures. There are several posters along with the requisite t-shirts, mugs and hanging ornaments.

Finally, there are the items which simply don't fit into any other sections – the miscellaneous items. Some of these items are weirdly adorable, like the Arthur boiled egg cup holder in the shape of a knight holding a functional spoon. There are also pet costumes that make it look like a knight is riding your dog. There is a lunchbox and other school supplies that feature the image of a jousting knight. There are license plate frames that state,"I'd rather be jousting" in black, silver and PINK! There are a variety of wall-mounted sword holders. And a few other jousting/knight related items.

More items and categories of items will be added when they are found, suggested or become available. If you have any suggestions, feel free to email TJL.

Whether you are buying for yourself or for someone else, I would very much appreciate it if you would purchase your Amazon.com items through either The Jousting Life Shoppe or after linking through to Amazon.com from a TJL site.

Thank you for your support!

A Few Yards of Scarlet Velvet

Steve R. Gagnon is an internationally competitive jouster based out of Montreal, Canada, where he lives on a small ranch and trains horses and riders for historical jousting. He first began jousting in the year 2000 in Québec, Canada, where he helped to pioneer the development of the sport in that area. He began jousting internationally in 2009, and has since competed in Belgium, France, Poland, England, USA and, of course, his home country of Canada.

He has worked as a creator and organizer of medieval festivals for nine years, and in 2010, he organized the first Lys d'Argent International Jousting Tournament, which included both a sport and a historical division.  In 2012, he won the Lys d'Argent tournament with his teammates Marc Hamel and Patrice Rolland. However, he considers his best achievement to have been winning the jousting competition during the Tournament of King John III at Gniew Castle in 2013 against 11 of the world's most renowned jousters.

Steve works as an art and creative director in the advertising industry. In rare moments of spare time, he also likes to draw, paint and sculpt. In the painting below, you can see an example of his skill in the visual arts:

Acrylic painting by Steve R. Gagnon of himself and the Percheron gelding Gibraltar
(image provided by Steve R. Gagnon)

During the 2014 jousting season, he competed in Canada, England and France, and served as Knight Marshal(head referee) at the Tournament of the Phoenix 2014 in the USA. His experience marshaling that tournament inspired him to write the following essay.

A Few Yards of Scarlet Velvet

Written by Steve R. Gagnon

At last, I take a few moments to collect my thoughts on the Tournament of the Phoenix experience. I must at first bring up how much Gwen Norwick and Jeffrey Hedgecock’s efforts and perfectionism translate into an event of such exceptional quality.

When I accepted, at a moment’s notice, the Marshal of the Field role, I had a rather preconceived idea of the job’s implications, and also, I must confess, some apprehensions. Normally, I enter the tilt yard clad in my armour and ready to charge, lance in hand. I was hoping that I wouldn’t envy my fellow jousters too much, sitting still on my horse, in all my regalia. Then again, since I was there, I wanted to do my best.

I realized soon enough the scope of the chief referee’s job. The moment I put those few yards of gold lined red velvet on, all the expectations, the responsibilities and the prestige attached to the title sunk in. The Marshal of the Field has to earn each competitor’s trust and respect and from his colleague judges as well. Along with applying the rules with rigor, he must display firmness and discernment. Easier said than done when the people you’re judging are good friends.

All these calls and decisions must also be made diligently, by imposing a certain rhythm to the tournament while remaining aware that under the Californian sun, six jousters in full kit are cooking in a mix of sweat and adrenaline. The three action packed challenges of the event often take unexpected twists, but gladly, the position comes with some precious help. In that regard, I want to salute the excellent work of Lady of Honour Justine Fisher and her Ladies Court, of the scoring judges – Micah "Admiral" Nelson, Joel Hill and Chris "The Nice" Godby.

I will from now on see the referees' jobs from a different angle, should they wear a black, striped or especially a posh scarlet velvet coat. I will never see my sport with the same eye again, and I am thankful to my friends Gwen and Jeff for giving me the chance to serve in this privileged position and to see the sport of jousting from a new viewpoint.

The Ladies and Marshals of the Tournament of the Phoenix 2014, left to right: Canon Purdy, Micah Nelson, Steve R. Gagnon, Justine Fisher, Joel Hill, Rin Hill, Chris Godby and Tori Burfield
(photo by J. Camacho Photography)

Related articles:
An Interview with Toby Capwell, Champion of Tournament of the Phoenix 2014

Jarek Struczynski Wins the Tournament of the Phoenix 2013

Esprit de Corps Dominates at the Tournament of the Phoenix 2012

Quebec Team, Order of the Dragon Wins “Le Tournoi du Lys d'Argent 2012”