We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.
We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 October 2022
The light lance or lancegay was one of the most ubiquitous weapons used throughout centuries of warfare in Europe and beyond, from ancient times well into the modern era. This article traces the development of the weapon during the medieval period in its broadest sense, though drawing on its earlier and later manifestations. It offers a detailed analysis of a major category of weapon that has received far less attention than more glamorous but shorter-lived arms such as the heavy war lance and the longbow. It demonstrates that the maneuvers of the light lance and the tactics commonly associated with Napoleonic and later periods were familiar to medieval warriors and outlined in contemporary literature. The lancegay was a flexible and enduring weapon, favored by all classes of society, that could be deployed quickly both on horse and foot. Despite some variation in nomenclature, it is possible to demonstrate how the lancegay was utilized by different groups during and beyond the medieval period. Its carriage and manipulation are examined together with the tactics and riding skills that enabled it to achieve its full potential within a light cavalry role.
As with many weapons from the historical past the lancegay requires considerable explication, not least because of the confusing terminology that surrounds it. Although known by several different designations, the lancegay was essentially the light lance of ancient origin, commonly used throughout the whole of the Middle Ages, which preceded, was used alongside, and finally superseded the more renowned heavy lance. The lancegay reached the height of its popularity during the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, being much favoured in the Renaissance. It was succeeded by the light cavalry lance which, largely of a similar design, remained in use well into the early twentieth century. During the Late Middle Ages, the lancegay achieved a social status not dissimilar to that of the sword as well as acquiring a lethal reputation.
David Scott-Macnab has written extensively about the weapon's origin within a linguistic, literary, and political context, noting the complications caused by “false etymologies and speculative interpretations.”
There are, however, many scattered references and much disparate information that have yet to be brought together.
To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure no-reply@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.
Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.
Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.
To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.
To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.
