During Museums and Galleries Month 2007 24 Hour Museum is picking out some interesting museum, gallery and heritage events from its listings...
If you’ve ever wanted to know exactly what a medieval knight was letting himself in for when entering a tournament then an event at Helmsley Castle has the answer.
It shows how while jousts and sword fighting contests might have seemed bloodthirsty, the complex system of chivalry actually protected knights from serious harm.
“The rules of chivalry actually came out of the common tournaments that knights would participate in to test their skills,” explained English Heritage events manager Jonathan Hogan.
“These tournaments would include all kinds of activity, from jousting to foot combat with assorted weaponry, but by following the rules of chivalry, the combatants were able to ensure that no-one was mortally wounded during the battle.”
Modern-day knights from the Royal Armouries will be travelling to the English Heritage venue in North Yorkshire on May 6 and 7 to teach visitors some of the skills of a 15th century warrior. There will also be poleaxe fights and demonstrations of the armour worn by knights in the mid to late 1400s.
Younger visitors will also be able to learn the fundamentals of sword fighting and the rules of etiquette and chivalry that ensured that friendly bouts didn’t turn nasty.
For more information, call Helmsley Castle on 01439 770442.
This is just one of the hundreds of listings featured on 24 Hour Museum for Museums and Galleries Month 2007. To discover more just enter MGM into the search box on this page or see the What's on Page to search by date or place.
