How to Win a Medieval Tournament

Matt Lewis (0:02)

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Eleanor Janega (0:40)

You sit across your saddle in the dust, the smell of sweat, horse, leather, and trampled earth rising around you, as the trumpet sound and the crowd leans in to see who will hold his nerve. What does it really take to win a medieval tournament? I'm Dr. Eleanor Janega, and today on Gone Medieval, Matt Lewis and I are delving into the color, noise, and lavish pageantry of medieval tournaments. Beginning sometime around the 12th century, as brutish contests that helped prepare medieval soldiers for the carnage of war, they evolved over the next 400 years into something akin to medieval sport, with rigidly codified rules, courtly drama, and knightly protagonists keen to win fame, honor, prizes, and maybe even the hand of a maiden. Prepare yourselves for a ride through one of the greatest spectacles of the medieval world.

All right, Matt, we're going to start with a big question because frankly, it's a big subject. This is what people imagine, I think, when they are imagining the medieval period. So why do you think that is? Why do you think that the tournament specifically has such a hook on people? What's so compelling about this?

Matt Lewis (2:13)

I think it's the splash of colour amidst what often feels like quite a dull drudgery of an existence, particularly when we talk about the ordinary people. Here's a chance to talk about a party, some vivid colour and some music and some fun happening. It's the same reason why we're still so obsessed with sports today.

Why is the Football World Cup a huge global event? Why do people pay hard-earned money every weekend to go and watch their teams being beaten into the ground?

We still draw enjoyment from that today. I think it's a link to our medieval forebears. They loved that as well.

Eleanor Janega (2:51)

I mean, really, we still like this stuff. There are still whole places where you can go watch tournaments. Certainly, I've been to renaissance fairs and places like that, or actually seen jousting happen with mine own eyes. And it's really exciting. It's a fun sport, right? It's a very particular one, but I think humans just like a bit of sport. And we like a little bit of a party, don't we? Right.

Matt Lewis (3:13)

Absolutely. And we're going to get into the weeds of this, definitely. But if I gave you like one minute to describe it, what is a tournament?

Eleanor Janega (3:21)

That is a really difficult one, because I mean, when are we talking? Right. But I guess that it is an athletic game. Where people compete to show off martial skills.

Would that work? Do you think?

Matt Lewis (3:34)

I think so. It's a form of practice. It's a spectacle of martial display.

Eleanor Janega (3:38)

Okay. Well, all right. Fancy.

All right. Okay. So what does it do then?

Matt Lewis (3:46)

Right.

Eleanor Janega (3:46)

Because it's not one of these things like, listen, we love a knight's tale, right? As we will bring up at least once per episode, right? But this is not something that you can just kind of come into if you are a guy on the side of the road. If you are a peasant, you go watch tournaments, but who is participating in them?

Matt Lewis (4:04)

Yeah. This is an elite sport. You have to have the money to be able to equip yourself to go and take part in a tournament. So for you and I probably, the peasants, we're paying our bit to go in and watch some rich people bash each other.

Eleanor Janega (4:18)

You know what? I would pay good money for that now. Come on, rich people, let's go.

Things don't change.

Matt Lewis (4:23)

The medieval period is relatable.

Eleanor Janega (4:26)

Right? Okay, so we got rich people. They're showing off what they can do.

But how do you win this? What are the steps you need to do to win? I guess that's a big question.

Matt Lewis (4:37)

Yeah. It slightly depends again when you're taking part in these things, but the rarefied joust that we tend to think of as a tournament is all about hitting your opponent in the right place. You'll score points based on where you strike them, on the helmet, on the shield. If you can get your lances to go tip to tip, you get extra points for that as well. Nothing changes.