# Destrier

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{{short description|Type of war horse}}
{{About|the type of war horse|the album by Agent Fresco|Destrier (album)}}
{{Lead too short|date=February 2022}}
[[file:Richard Marshal unhorses Baldwin Guines at a skirmish by Matthew Paris.jpg|thumb|Mounted on a destrier, [Richard Marshal](/source/Richard_Marshal%2C_3rd_Earl_of_Pembroke) unseats an opponent during a skirmish.]]

The '''destrier''' is the best-known [war horse](/source/horses_in_warfare) of the [Middle Ages](/source/Middle_Ages). It carried [knight](/source/knight)s in battles, [tournaments](/source/Tournament_(medieval)), and [jousts](/source/Jousting). It was described by contemporary sources as the ''Great Horse'', due to its significance.

While highly prized by knights and [men-at-arms](/source/man-at-arms), the destrier was not very common.<ref>[Prestwich, Michael](/source/Michael_Prestwich). ''Armies and Warfare in the Middle Ages: The English Experience'', New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996, p 30
</ref> Most knights and mounted men-at-arms rode other war horses, such as [coursers](/source/Courser_(horse)) and [rouncey](/source/rouncey)s.<ref>[Oakeshott, Ewart](/source/Ewart_Oakeshott). ''A Knight and his Horse'', Rev. 2nd Ed. USA:Dufour Editions, 1998, pp 11-12</ref>

== Etymology ==

The word is first attested in [Middle English](/source/Middle_English) around 1330, as {{Lang|enm|destrer}}.<ref>''Middle English Dictionary'' (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1952–2001), s.v. ''[https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/m/mec/med-idx?type=id&id=MED11396 destrēr]''. Cf. "destrer | destrier, n." ''OED Online'', Oxford University Press, July 2018, https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/51097. Accessed 12 September 2018.</ref> It was borrowed into Middle English from [Anglo-Norman](/source/Anglo-Norman_language) ''destrer'', whose [Old French](/source/Old_French_language) counterpart was {{Lang|fro|destrier}} (from which the [Modern English](/source/Modern_English) spelling derives). The word is also found in medieval [Provençal](/source/Proven%C3%A7al_language) (as ''destrier'') and Italian (as ''destriere'', ''destriero''). These forms themselves derived from the [Vulgar Latin](/source/Vulgar_Latin) {{Lang|la|equus dextrarius}}, meaning "right-sided horse" (from {{Lang|la|dextra}}, "right hand", the same root as ''dextrous'' and ''dexterity'').<ref>"destrer | destrier, n." ''OED Online'', Oxford University Press, July 2018, https://www.oed.com/view/Entry/51097. Accessed 12 September 2018.</ref> This may refer to it being led by the [squire](/source/squire) at the knight's right side, as often before battle the destrier ran unburdened to keep it fresh for the fray; the knight rode another horse, mounting his destrier just before engaging the enemy. Alternatively,  it could describe the horse's [gait](/source/horse_gait) (leading with the right).<ref>[Gravett, Christopher](/source/Christopher_Gravett). ''English Medieval Knight 1300-1400'', Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2002, p 59</ref>

== Characteristics ==

The word ''destrier'' does not refer to a [breed](/source/List_of_horse_breeds) of horse, but to a type of horse; the finest and strongest warhorses. These horses were usually [stallion](/source/stallion)s, bred and raised from foalhood specifically for the needs of war. The destrier was specifically raised for use in [battle](/source/Medieval_warfare) or [tournament](/source/Tournament_(medieval)). For everyday riding, a knight would use a [palfrey](/source/palfrey), and his baggage would be carried on a [sumpter horse](/source/sumpter_horse) (or [packhorse](/source/packhorse)), or possibly in wagons.

They had powerful hindquarters, able to easily coil and spring to a stop, spin, turn or sprint forward quickly. They also had a short back and well-muscled loin, strong bone, and a well-arched neck. From medieval art, the head of the destrier appears to have had a straight or slightly convex profile, a strong, wide jaw, and good width between the eyes.

The destrier was considered the most suited to the [joust](/source/joust): coursers seem to have been preferred for other forms of [warfare](/source/horses_in_warfare).<!--need to review phrasing against source, source may have said "other" --><ref>[Oakeshott, Ewart](/source/Ewart_Oakeshott). ''A Knight and his Horse'', Rev. 2nd Ed. USA:Dufour Editions, 1998, p 11</ref>

== Breeding and size ==
[[file:Codex Manesse 052r Walther von Klingen (detail 2).jpg|thumb|[Caparison](/source/Caparison)ed horses competing in a [joust](/source/jousting) from the [Codex Manesse](/source/Codex_Manesse)]]
{{details|Horses in the Middle Ages}}

Many well-known scholars have speculated about the nature of destriers and about the size they attained. They apparently were not enormous [draft](/source/draft_horse) types.<ref>See e.g.: Clark, John (Ed). ''The Medieval Horse and its Equipment: c.1150-c.1450'', Rev. 2nd Ed, UK: The Boydell Press, 2004, p 23; Prestwich, Michael. ''Armies and Warfare in the Middle Ages: The English Experience'', New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996, p 30</ref> Recent research undertaken at the [Museum of London](/source/Museum_of_London), using literary, pictorial and archeological sources, suggests war horses (including destriers) averaged from {{hands|14|to|15}}, and differed from a riding horse in their strength, musculature and training, rather than in their size.<ref name="Clark">Clark, John (Ed). ''The Medieval Horse and its Equipment: c.1150-c.1450'', Rev. 2nd Ed, UK: The Boydell Press, 2004, p. 25</ref> An analysis of medieval [horse armour](/source/Barding) located in the [Royal Armouries](/source/Royal_Armouries) indicates the equipment was originally worn by horses of {{hands|15|to|16|lk=off}},<ref>study by [Ann Hyland](/source/Ann_Hyland), quoted in: Clark, John (Ed). ''The Medieval Horse and its Equipment: c.1150-c.1450'', Rev. 2nd Ed, UK: The Boydell Press, 2004, p 23</ref> about the size and build of a modern [field hunter](/source/field_hunter) or ordinary riding horse.<ref name="Gravett">Gravett, Christopher. ''English Medieval Knight 1300-1400'', Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2002, p 59</ref>

Modern estimates put the height of a destrier at no more than {{hands|16|lk=off}}, but with a strong and heavy physique.<ref name= Prestwich/> Though the term "Great Horse" was used to describe the destrier, leading some historians to speculate that such animals were the forerunners of modern [draught horse](/source/draft_horse) breeds,<ref>[Gies, Frances; Gies, Joseph](/source/Frances_Gies_and_Joseph_Gies) (2005) ''Daily Life in Medieval Times.'' UK: Grange Books (originally published by Harper Collins in three volumes, 1969, 1974, 1990) {{ISBN|1-84013-811-4}}, p. 88</ref> the historical record does not support the image of the destrier as a draft horse.<ref>Clark, John (Ed) (2004) ''The Medieval Horse and its Equipment: c.1150-c.1450.'' Rev. 2nd Ed, UK: The Boydell Press {{ISBN|1-8438-3097-3}}, pp. 25, 29</ref><ref name= Prestwich>[Prestwich, Michael](/source/Michael_Prestwich) (1996) ''Armies and Warfare in the Middle Ages: The English Experience.'' New Haven: Yale University Press, p. 30 {{ISBN|0300076630}}</ref>

== Descendants and reproductions ==

The modern [Percheron](/source/Percheron) draft breed may in part descend from destriers, though it is probably taller and heavier than the average destrier. Other draft breeds such as the [Shire](/source/Shire_horse) claim destrier ancestry, though proof is less certain.

Modern attempts to reproduce the destrier type usually involve crossing an athletic riding horse with a light draft type. Outcomes of such attempts include [crossbred](/source/crossbred)s such as the "[Spanish-Norman](/source/Spanish-Norman_horse)", a cross between the [Percheron](/source/Percheron) and the [Andalusian](/source/Andalusian_horse);<ref>[https://www.spanish-norman.com/breedprofile.htm "Breed Profile"], ''Spanish-Norman Horse Registry'', Referenced August 12, 2008.</ref> and the [Warlander](/source/Warlander), a cross between the Andalusian and the [Friesian horse](/source/Friesian_horse).

== Value ==
A good destrier was very costly: at the times of the [Crusades](/source/Crusades), a fine destrier was valued at seven or eight times the cost of an ordinary horse. In England, the specific sum of eighty pounds (in this context a pound was 240 silver pennies, which amounted to one pound of silver by weight<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dyer|first1=Christopher |title=Making a living in the middle ages : the people of Britain 850-1520 |date=2002 |publisher=Yale University Press |location=New Haven |isbn=9780300090604 |page=238}}</ref>) was noted at the end of the thirteenth century.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dyer |first1=Christopher |title=Standards of living in the later Middle Ages : social change in England, c. 1200-1520 |date=1989 |location=Cambridge [England] |isbn=9780521272155 |page=72}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Nicolle |first1=David |title=Medieval warfare source book. Warfare in Western Christendom |date=2002 |publisher=Brockhampton |location=London |isbn=1-86019-889-9 |page=267}}</ref><ref>Ayton (1994) p.47</ref> During the important military campaigns of [King Edward III](/source/Edward_III_of_England) in the middle of the fourteenth century, the increased demand for warhorses brought about considerable price inflation: in 1339 [William de Bohun, 1st Earl of Northampton](/source/William_de_Bohun%2C_1st_Earl_of_Northampton) lost a destrier valued at one hundred pounds while on campaign in [Flanders](/source/Flanders).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ayton |first1=Andrew |title=Knights and warhorses : military service and the English aristocracy under Edward III |date=1994 |publisher=Boydell Press |location=Woodbridge, Suffolk |isbn=9780851155685 |page=215}}</ref> Army muster rolls included detailed inventories of the warriors' horses: fewer than 5% of the warhorses were classified as destriers, owned only by a small elite of the wealthiest knights.<ref>Ayton (1994) p.63</ref> However, because of destriers' relative scarcity and consequent infrequent sale and purchase, reliable price information for the period has not often survived.<ref>Ayton (1994) p.41</ref>

== See also ==

* [Žemaitukas](/source/%C5%BDemaitukas)

== References ==

{{reflist}}

Category:Medieval warfare
Category:Warhorses
Category:Types of horse

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Destrier](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destrier) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destrier?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.