Trickery and deception in medieval warfare, c.1000-c.1330
This thesis analyses the use and depiction of deception in warfare during the central Middle Ages (approximately 1000-1320). It studies contemporary narrative histories to understand how combatants employed trickery in combat but also to understand how their society viewed the morality of using such deceitful tactics. Chapter One examines the challenges of using medieval chronicles, which are often employed as clear windows onto the past, for studying military history. Chapters Two to Seven analyse different forms of military deception and their portrayal in chronicles, beginning with the field of espionage and strategic deception and continuing into more tactical deceptions, such as ambushes and disguises. Chapter Eight undertakes a close reading of the vocabulary used by chroniclers to describe trickery and cunning, revealing that the same terms could be used for both licit and illicit acts of deceit and that cunning was considered a legitimate alternative to brute force in war. The final chapter considers those rare cases when chroniclers explicitly discussed the morality of deception in war, whether between Western Europeans or in conflicts with the variety of non-normative enemies that Westerners encountered
Titterton, James William
Trickery and deception in medieval warfare, c.1000-c.1330. This thesis analyses the use and depiction of deception in warfare during the central Middle Ages (approximately 1000-1320). It studies contemporary narrative histories to understand how combatants employed trickery in combat but also to understand how their society viewed the morality of using such deceitful tactics. Chapter One examines the challenges of using medieval chronicles, which are often employed as clear windows onto the past, for studying military history. Chapters Two to Seven analyse different forms of military deception and their portrayal in chronicles, beginning with the field of espionage and strategic deception and continuing into more tactical deceptions, such as ambushes and disguises. Chapter Eight undertakes a close reading of the vocabulary used by chroniclers to describe trickery and cunning, revealing that the same terms could be used for both licit and illicit acts of deceit and that cunning was considered a legitimate alternative to brute force in war. The final chapter considers those rare cases when chroniclers explicitly discussed the morality of deception in war, whether between Western Europeans or in conflicts with the variety of non-normative enemies that Westerners encountered
deception medieval warfare analysis use depiction deception warfare central middle_ages approximately study contemporary narrative_history combatant employ combat also society view morality use tactic examine challenge use medieval chronicle often_employ clear window_onto past study military history analyse different_form military deception portrayal chronicle begin field strategic deception continue tactical deception disguise undertakes close_read vocabulary use chronicler describe reveal term could_use illicit act consider legitimate alternative brute force war final considers rare case chronicler explicitly discuss morality deception war whether western europeans conflict variety non normative enemy encounter