RESEARCH - Medieval England - Post 11: Travel & Horses

 

Alrighty, let us turn our attention to transport. 

Roads were terrible! Dirt tracks which would get absolutely sodden in wet weather. They were also often overrun with bandits. 

The common man didn't have much need of travel. There may be servants going to market for their masters. But other than that, the roads were reserved for the merchants, peddlars, pilgrims, messengers, armies and the wealthy going between homes. Rich pickings for those bandits!

There were, of course, pedestrians. Going by foot was common for the pilgrims, for example.

However, the most common form of transport was the horse. 

Types of Horse

I created this handy reference to common horse types in 15th century England. 

The destrier was the crème de la crème of the horses. It was a warhorse, renowned for its supreme strength. Used also in jousting tournaments. However, endurance was not their best quality. They were certainly imposing, standing at around 15 hands, and were well-muscled. The destrier was rare and incredibly expensive.

So, the courser (or charger) was more commonly found in use by knights and men-at-arms. They had a slighter, shorter build, but maintained speed and strength. 

I've included the lyard. It's not really a horse type, to be honest. But I'm rather partial to a dapple grey, and that's pretty much what these were. Incidentally, favelle was the medieval name for a chestnut (brown) horse, and bayard was what we now call a bay (reddish brown with black points).

With a lighter weight than the coursers, mild manner and a smooth gait, the palfrey was a highly sought after riding horse. They could amble over long distances. So, naturally, they were expensive. 

Palfreys were a trotting horse. They could be ridden long-distance by knights or noble ladies.

Jennets, not listed in the image, seem to cause contradictory opinions. Some say the name was interchangeable with palfrey, whilst others regard it as slightly less desirable as them. 

Rounceys were an everyday horse. The least expensive of these types. Fast and agile, they could still be seen ridden into battle or used as pack horses.

Then you had draft horses for pulling ploughs and heavy loads, and started to replace the ox. Large and muscly! 

Workhorses as a type covers pack horses (aka sumpters) and cart horses. The shorter, stockier breeds.

Please note: these are all shorter than the horses we see today. They would be considered small riding horses now. The shorter types were more akin to ponies.

The saddles had a high front and back; the cantle wrapped around the rider. Comfy and secure! Well, yes, until your horse fell - oops! Yeah, you could be crushed to death. The inability to twist may have caused life-threatening internal damage too. Jumping obstacles would have been incredibly difficult too, as one needs to lean forwards in order to do so. 

The Modern History TV chap is joyous to watch, and he has a whole video on the saddle!

He also has a video on horse types and what a warhorse could do. But honestly, browse his channel. So many wonderful videos!! I was absorbed for HOURS doing my research! 😍

And whilst we're talking saddles, ladies were more likely to sit astride. The first true, single-rider, side-saddle in England seems to have appeared in the 16th century. 

Women would, however, sit to the side if they were mounted behind men.

We've seen the saddle; when a lady became heavy with child, this was somewhat limiting. Yes, she could sit behind her husband. But the option of a litter was there. Although, these were most frequently used by the frail and elderly.

A litter is a sort of carriage carried between two wooden poles, carried between two horses.

So what speed did they travel at?

A horses' walking pace is around 3-5mph. They could travel up to around 40 miles per day. 

Horses trot at a speed of around 8mph, canter 15mph and gallop 30mph. But these take energy and are not sustainable for extensive periods. You're looking at about 2-3 miles at a gallop, tops.

People walk around 3mph.

So, when looking at how far Isabel travels in a day, I looked at the old A-roads (obviously not motorways). And calculated the walking time on GoogleMaps. I did also reference old maps on the UK to check road routes.

Covered wagons were around, but do not seem to have been popular. Well, the wheels could easily become stuck and they halved the distance to around 20 miles per day. Nor were they comfy - the lack of spring-loaded suspension would have made the ride very bumpy. And they were very expensive. 

So, carts were more appropriate for pulling goods than people.

By the way, if you had oxen pulling your cart, the distance would be halved again to 10 miles per day!

Our wondrous canal system had yet to be built. You could maybe get a barge on the River Thames, but that's not much good to the rest of the country. 

Inns

Inns have been in existence for a very long time. But, as travel increased during the 15th century, so too did the number of inns. Prior to this, they were more of the alehouse variety. Inns sought to accommodate the traveller with their horses (in stables) and wares. As such, they attracted the wealthier type of traveller.

The bedchambers may be private or house a few beds, which several people could share.

A dining room and common area would be provided.

The innkeeper may be involved in trade himself, and was often quite a wealthy personage of good standing. I say he; only about 10% of innkeepers were women, likely widowed.

 

So, there you have it, the limited, unpleasant medieval travel methods.

Always in love and light,

TL

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My book, Love in the Roses is available for pre-order (click here).

To protect her family, she must marry the enemy!

The fictitious tale of a knight’s daughter, living life as it very well may have been in 1484.

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