Subject: فارس fāris knight
Culture: Arab, Kurdish
Setting: Ayyubid sultanate, Crusader war, Egypt/Syria late 12th-early 13thc
Evolution:
Context (Event Photos, Primary Sources, Secondary Sources, Field Notes)
* Elgood ed. 1979 p164 (David Nicolle, "An introduction to arms and warfare in classical Islam" p162-186)
"In this later age when horse-archers dominated Middle Eastern warfare, cavalry armed in the traditional manner with lances often appeared in large numbers, for instance at the battle of al-Bābayn in 1167. Usāma ibn Munqidh, a Syrian amīr of the twelfth century, records many occasions when he and his comrades fought in the old way with lance and sword, generally in inter-Muslim warfare, sieges, or during minor border skirmishes with the Franks. On one occasion some time before 1109 he claims to have urged his rather pacific tutor, Shaykh Abū 'Abdallāh ibn al-Munīra to join in the battle by saying: 'O Professor, if thou should'st put on a jerkin with a helmet, dangle a sword at thy side, carry a lance and a shield and stand by the Mashhad al-'Āṣī (a narrow place where the Franks -- may Allah's curse be upon them! -- used to cross the river), not one of them would dare pass by thee'.
"Even as late as the period following the death of Saladin, cavalry armed with sword and lance enjoyed a pronounced revival in the Fertile Crescent and Egypt at the expense of Turkish horse-archers, a situation temporarily reversed after the Mamlūks' close-run battle with the Mongols at 'Ayn Jālūt in 1260."
* Bennett 1998 p115
"faris medieval Arabic horseman, often compared to the Western knight. His basic military skills were described in the furusiya (cavalry training manuals), stressing obedience, individual skills, tactical awareness, bravery, and the possession of good armour and weapons, including a bow and lance. A professional faris was also trained to fight on foot."
* Maalouf 1984 p
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* Nicolle/McBride 1986 p
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Armor
* Nicolle/McBride 1986 p
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* Heath 1978 p
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* Elgood ed. 1979 p33 (Michael Gorelik, Oriental armour of the Near and Middle East from the eighth to the fifteenth centuries as shown in works of art" p30-63)
"Armour similar to scale was waist-long and poncho-shaped, frequently sleeveless though Arab representations of twelfth-century soldiers in Sicily depict mail coats with elbow-length sleeves. Twelfth-century Egyptian helmets had a spherical bayḍa form, and were probably fashioned from two pieces of iron bound by an iron band along the axis, with round or diamond-shaped plates on the sides of the band and with a felt covering providing protection against the sun."
Sword
* Hillenbrand 1999 p454-455
"Usually, the sword used by Muslim warriors in the Crusading period was straight and made of iron or iron with a steel edge. Swords were identified by their place of origin, and those with blades that came from China and India were especially sought after. ... Abu Shama relates that the Muslims wore their swords at their waist but that Nur al-Din, having heard that the Prophet used to hang his sword from his shoulder with a baldric, adopted this custom for himself and for his army. This statement may well be part of the chronicler's desire to highlight the piety of Nur al-Din; certainly the practice did not become widespread."
* Nicolle/McBride 1986 p
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Shield
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