As can be deduced from the title, this book deals with the order in in the earlier part of its existance. Of course, I got this as a reference help to my Templar impression as the Military Orders, while not identical, were very similar. The author is David Nicolle and the illustrator is Christa Hook (who has done several other books for Osprey, most of them in conjunction with Nicolle). As is par for the course, Nicolle's text has leanings/preferences for the 'superiority' of middle-eastern culture, technology, science, etc. For someone interested in getting to the root of the primary sources, the lack of any kind of footnotes or references (the problem with ALL Osprey books) is of course annoying, but not unexpected. However, Nicolle's overview not only of the structure, operations, and history of the Order but of the equipment is quite thorough for as short a work as it is. As is usally the case in a military study of the Hospitallers due to the lack of primary material, Nicolle has to often borrow from the Rule of the Temple (ha!) to explain/document/extrapolate different things for the Hospitallers; the possible deployment of the cavalry in action, for example.

Now, on to the color plates, which (admit it, everyone ) is the REAL reason we all buy these books. As is usual for Hook's drawings, the details are pretty good overall but there are problems with the situation/setting of some of the plates; there are some glaring problems in some of the details (knights wearing their great helms when riding in a convoy, or one of them having a spangenhelm w/oculars, for example). Most of it makes sense and fits, and I can see where some of them are based on period illustrations; however, as I said above, the real problem is that the details aren't documented. For example, one of the plates shows a knight in full c. 1300 battle gear with a greathelm, but with a cloth tied around the top to presumably keep it cooler in the glaring sun: a good idea, seems logical. I'd LOVE to find evidence for that, but I haven't been able to yet... it'd be a lot easier if they listed a source or admitted that some of it is a guess.

I think our friend Graham Turner was tapped as artist for the 15th c English Knight. I wasn't aware that this book was released yet. I think it is due out later this year or at least that was what Graham had indicated a few months back. I am sure that Bob will pick up a copy as soon as he sees it.

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The English medieval knight 1400-1500 osprey mentioned above is now out, and I have a copy.

Several comments;

- I found the text pitched at too low a level for me, with too much general discussion of the institution of knighthood. OK, I can see where that has a place, but it seemed much less specific than the hospitaller book above, which I bought at the same time.

- Several of the colour plates seemed weak. For example, one of them showed a couple of guys about to get hung after a battle, with text that says "You mostly got treated OK if you got captured in the wars with the french, but might well get your clock cleaned if captured during the wars of the roses" OK, it does show some nice things like arming doublets, but look at something like the "English redcoat" book to see how much more data gets crammed into some of the platess in other books in the series.

- I found a lot of the items in the plates were actual straight copies of surviving objects, eg the Warwick Chamfron, the war saddle of Henry V, the odd jousting saddle from the royal armouries. Frankly, if you're going to draw surviving objects, you may as well just include a photo of it. I'd find it more useful if they interpretted manuscript evidence for the plates, and just used photos of the surviving items.

- Some comments were much too generalised, eg "armour for esquires cost between £6 6s 3d and £5 10s 4d" (or whatever, those aren't the actual numbers). Doesn't say whether it differed by wealth, time, place, armour style......

Overall, well, osprey books aren't expensive, and if you're doing stuff in period I tend to think that they're all required reading, even if just so you know where other people are getting strange ideas. If you're on such a tight budget that you have to pick this or another osprey, this one prob wouldn't be my first choice.

I too have recently obtained a copy of "The English Knight 1400-1500, and I would like to add my own review (my take is a little different than Neil's).

As to the content of the book. The intended audience of Osprey publications is the casual reader, the wargamer, and the armchair historian. These books are intended to be the barest introduction to the subject. Neil hits it right on the mark when he states that he already knows most of the information - anybody well read on the subject of 15th century warfare (in England), or the English aristocracy of the 15th century will find very little new ground covered. The excellent news is the information covered is very much in keeping with current scholarship on the topic.

Many Osprey books in the past have fallen flat on content, with misinformation contained, or have been the victims of poor writing (most of the late Medieval titles published in the early '80's are well written, and do their intended work well). Many, especially recent titles are very good at what they are supposed to be. The Author of "The English Medieval Knight 1400-1500", Christopher Gravett, in my estimation gives a very competant and well researched introduction to the subject - probably one of the better ones published to date, actually hitting the mark with the intended audience.

What makes this particular title stand out, is in some of the photographs contained in the book. This particular volume would be of great benefit to an aspiring armourer, as for the first time I have seen readily accesable, published photographs of the Churburg 'Avant' suit, dissasembled into its component pieces, with interior shots, and shots of the major assemblies from angles not normally seen.

Where I take issue with Neil's assesment is in the quality of the artwork. Graham Turner is probably one of the finest artists to ever do serious studies of Medieval Arms and Armour. Gerry Embleton is the other artist to study in detail, and "get it right". Angus McBride, although an outstanding artist, has been known to take liberties with his subject matter, adding details that look good, but are questionable.

This is where Graham differs from Angus - technicaly, both are outstanding artists, but Graham does not take these liberties. He invests a great deal of time in researching his subject matter, and bothers to consult with experts in the field, and see the actual items before he paints the objects. His exploded views of dissasebled assemblies of armour are supurb studies. If any fault can be placed on Grahams paintings, it is that his attention to detail in rendering harness is such that his battle scenes as a rule end up looking a bit too clean (whereas Gerry gets that scruffy soldier look down nicely). I would say his "Battle of Wakefield" is an evolutionary step towards a more gritty representation of combat.

In short, if you are looking for accurate artistic renderings of armour, Graham is your man. I own the original guache of "Bauge", from Henry V and the Conquest of France, and I can attest that the Osprey four colour prints hardly do the original artwork justice. I consider Graham a friend, so I am not an impartial judge - but look at the books, and judge for yourself.

So, this book in my estimation is what an Osprey book intends to be. Whether it is of use to you or not depends on how much in depth information you require on the topic. That said, it is an excellent beginning.

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I would point out that I never criticised either the technical accuracy or artistic standard of the drawings, and apologise if my post gave that impression. If you want a picture of (say) Henry V's war saddle or the warwick chamfron, both of which appear in the plates, Mr Turner is indeed the man I'd probably want for the job.

My actual point was that if you are going to show SURVIVING artefacts, I'd sooner have a photo of it than even the best drawing in the world.

What I want from the plates is best-guess reconstructions of stuff that DOESN'T survive, or only survives in damaged condition.

I also want detailed, useful commentary on the plates, and still feel that the text about the plates in this Osprey was a weak point. Using the plate mentioned above as an example, the only thing the text explains in a whole page colour plate is arming doublets. I really do want more commentary on a whole plate than this - think of the other ospreys with three or four figures per plate, with commentary on each.

Different people want different things from Ospreys, and chef de chambre and I are probably reflecting that. Doesn't mean that either of our views are less valid, and you pays your money and takes your choice, I guess. Like I said, unless you're really strapped for cash, buy it and make your own mind up.

I agree with you Neil on that one - the explaination of the plates is rather lacking in some cases. I also agree regarding photos of equipment, but I differ when it comes to frequently published objects. I am more than happy to see a familiar item, so long as it is from a differing side, or angle, or a close up shot. If all I can get is an artists rendering of that object, I'll be happy if it shows it from a different angle.

Trouble is, there is so few extant examples of some of these objects that are in good condition. How many sallets does the Royal armouries have in it's reserve collection, who's condition would be labled as "excavated", or described as "sadly decayed"? The items that keep showing up in photos tend to be the most complete, and in the best shape.

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